The Trickster's Treat

By Kameron Claire

Death can't stop Love
She lost her fiancé years ago. He's looking for something that feels like home. When they meet at the Halloween Fest, will they embrace the supernatural elements bringing them together and give love a second chance?

Trixie: I lost the love of my life days before Halloween, only hours after he proposed, and every year since then he's come to visit me in my dreams—except this year. So, when a stranger (who reminds me of him in every way) comes to down with his sights set on me, I have to wonder if he is a trick or a treat.

If he's a trick—well, my heart's already broken.

But if he's a treat—he's the happily ever-after I thought I lost years ago.

What do I have to lose, besides my mind, if I play trick-or-treat with the new guy in town?

 

Treat: I woke up from a coma three months ago, and nothing of my previous life has felt right. So, I follow my instincts into the Sangre de Cristo mountains to a little town hosting a Halloween Festival, and suddenly everything feels right. Right place, right time, and right girl who shines like a beacon in an otherwise muted world. The closer I get to her, the more I realize the man on the inside is not the man on the outside, and if I want to stay, I have to convince her to risk her heart and love me as the man she once loved.

This is a Contemporary Romance with a Paranormal Twist - just in time for Halloween!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Snuggle Whore Press, LLC
• Release date: Oct 28, 2021
• ISBN: 9798215716915

Kameron Claire

USA Today Bestselling Author Kameron Claire loves building worlds where heroes and heroines push, pull, and fight their way to the love and happiness they deserve. She writes full length and short, steamy romance with an emphasis on strong female characters—often in male-dominated roles—and the alpha men who know how to love and support kick-ass, take-charge women.  While she may not need him to save her, she wants him to love, support, and most of all, RAVISH her. ** Get up to date information and freebies as a newsletter subscriber: www.kameronclaire.com/newsletter ** Reach out and chat with her anytime on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kameronclaireauthor

Book preview

1

TRIXIE

Istare at the engagement ring on my finger, fiddling with it back and forth as the morning sunshine bounces off the small facets of the half-carat diamond solitaire. It’s not big, nor flashy, but neither was Trey, and I loved him for it.

Lori’s alarm buzzes through the wall, letting me know it’s seven-thirty. Not that it matters. I’ve taken these two weeks off of work every year for the last three years because dealing with people is too much for me. The shower comes on, and I count down the minutes until my roommate leaves for work and I’m left alone to wallow in my memories.

Don’t get me wrong; I love Lori. She’s my best friend, but she’s sick of my shit, and I can’t talk to her about it anymore. Talking about it doesn’t help. Talking about it doesn’t take the pain away. If I could crawl into a hole, I would. Not forever, but for these two weeks—the weeks before and after Halloween—I’d gladly hide myself away from the world. Unfortunately, that’s not an option, and people around here are particularly mettlesome this time of year.

That’s the problem with losing the love of your life in the most horrific car crash a town of five thousand people has ever seen—you’re not the only one who remembers the date. There’s a memorial placard at the crash site on the two-lane highway that winds through South Vista. The local newspaper reruns the gruesome article year after year, using it as a cautionary tale of inclement weather and speeding on slick roadways.

Three years later, and I still can’t escape that night.

My eyes refocus on the ring on my hand. That night had started off perfect with a fabulous drive up the mountain pass to one of our favorite secluded spots. We cuddled on a blanket—me sitting with my back pressed against Trey’s chest, his strong arms wrapped around me in a loving embrace—and nibbled on cheese and crackers, strawberries and grapes, and mini cookies from the bakery while watching a beautiful sunset. And just before the sun completely sank below the horizon, with only the smallest trace of light brightening the sky—my first boyfriend, my first love, my first everything asked me to marry him.

I hear the shower turn off and the vinyl curtain scrape against the metal rod. Lori is a natural beauty and wears little to no makeup, so it doesn’t take her long to get ready in the morning. She also has untamable curls that she stopped fighting long ago, which means she also doesn’t take a lot of time to do her hair. Another fifteen minutes and she’ll be on her way to work, and I’ll have the house to myself.

Tap-tap-tap

I debate whether to feign sleep or acknowledge her gentle knock, but considering I’ve avoided her for three days, I should probably answer. She doesn’t give me an opportunity to decide, instead cracking open my door and inviting herself in. Instinctively, I close my eyes, thankful my back is to her.

I know you’re awake, Lori says softly as she sits on the edge of my bed.

I say nothing, but open my eyes at her words and resume my staring at the wall beyond my ring finger.

Lori runs her hand over my hair, her touch soothing, if not a bit impatient. Come on, Trixie. Are you going to spend two weeks in bed?

What would you have me do?

We should’ve made plans. She gives a gentle tug to my hair and then runs her hand down my arm. Six months ago, we should’ve made plans to go somewhere and do something, but we didn’t and now we’re stuck here for another year.

We can’t afford to go anywhere anyway, I half-mumble, half-chuckle. It’s sad, but it’s the truth. Neither one of us can afford to leave this small town. Hell, we can barely afford to live here as it is.

I’m working one of the game booths at the Halloween Fest this year, so I couldn’t leave even if we had the money to do so.

Tears prick at the back of my eyes at the mention of the Halloween Fest. That was our favorite annual event. Trey and I met at Halloween Fest when we were sixteen. Our first kiss was on top of the Ferris wheel.

You should come work the booths with me.

Lori’s words barely cut through the fog of loneliness surrounding my brain.

Did you hear me? she prods again.

"I heard you, and you know my answer. I don’t want to leave