Imbroglio by Alana Woods

Would she have saved him if she had known she would be facing sharks of the finned as well as the two-legged variety? Her aim? To stay alive.

To purchase Imbroglio today, please visit: http://amzn.to/1oC2rYm

Excerpt:

Imbroglio
By Alana Woods

He sat cross-ankled, arms wrapped around knees, by her towel and
robe. From his car he had watched her leave her own and walk down
onto the sand. Every movement, from removing the shift to the
graceful sway of her hips as she padded to the water’s edge, her pale
skin contrasting the black costume, the way she lifted her arms to
cover her brown hair with the white swimmer’s cap and
goggles—nothing could break his gaze. Not even when he left his
vehicle and went to guard her gear.
Twenty minutes later she was crawling back with regular unhurried
strokes. The water was calm this morning with rolling humps that
retained the surface sheen. Crystal splinters, glittering in the early
morning sun, arched rhythmically with each upsweep of her arms. In a
direct line with her belongings she halted and without pausing
breaststroked leisurely to a point where she could wade. He watched
her walk the long stretch over wet sand to dry while removing goggles
and cap. When she was ten paces distant he rose to his feet, uncoiling
like a diver in reverse.
‘You’re fully recovered then.’
‘Just need the certificate.’ His goose bumps matched hers.
‘No you don’t.’ She fluffed the wet edges of her hair.
‘Who taught you to swim?’
‘My father.’
‘He taught you well.’
‘Yes.’ Her eyes had not left his face. ‘Are you going to introduce
yourself?’
He handed her the towel. ‘You know who I am.’
She dried her arms. ‘How did you find me? How did you know who
I was?’
She was being careful. He nodded, and shoved his hands in his
pockets. ‘When you knew me at Darling Harbour it connected. What
made you not say anything?’ He was curious, and intent. ‘Do you know
who I am? Did you know who I was in Cairns?’
Noel loofahed her back.
Imbroglio‘No, to both.’ She hoped he believed her. ‘Who would I have said
anything to?’
‘Donaldson.’
‘Why would I have told him?’
Was it all a major coincidence? He formed his question carefully.
‘Why do you think I’m here?’
She opened her mouth but no easy answer came and she shut it. It
was harder to act than she thought, standing two feet away from him on
a beach with no-one else in sight.
‘I know you know who I am.’ Why was she afraid to admit it?
She flattened her mouth across her teeth. ‘What are you doing here?
What do you want with me?’
He didn’t know, but he wasn’t going to walk away. He said the first
thing that came into his head. ‘I need a place to stay.’
The swell began to break. A frilled line crept up the wet sand and
receded.
‘Is that all? Why me?’
Another wave receded, leaving a foamy broken line.
‘What else would there be? Because I don’t have anywhere else to go;
and I don’t want it known I’m here.’ That would test her allegiances.
‘Because you helped me before.’
She prevaricated. ‘How are you going to stay unnoticed?’
‘I’ll blend.’
She snorted. ‘You’d need to get rid of four inches and put a bag over
your head.’ She gave him the towel and bent for the robe. ‘Why are you
here?’ She waited.
The towel hung in his hands. ‘I need a place to stay.’
He wasn’t going to tell her. Noel sighed and swung down to scoop
up her sandals. She took a step and stopped. ‘There’s risk in this, isn’t
there?’
He hesitated.
Yes, she thought, but he’s not going to tell me what that is either.
Alana Woods

I have two suspense intrigue novels (thrillers), a short story collection and a writing guide for budding authors published to date, and I’m reworking a third thriller—which has spent several years in a drawer while I thought about it—that I hope will be out this year.

Quality is the name of the game—my career was as a professional editor—and it’s what I aim for. I have a Bachelor of Arts in Professional Writing and a Graduate Diploma in Communication. I was serious about being the best I could be.

Visit my website and send me an email, I’d love to hear from you. Let me know what you think of my books and if they’re suspense intrigue in your opinion: http://www.alanawoods.com