Love at First Sight by Caryn Moya Block

Do you believe in “Love at First Sight?”

I do. Let me tell you why.

 

I’ve had several people ask me why I have destined mates in my stories. Some of these same people even scoff at the idea and complain that real life isn’t like that. I would have to disagree, I think it can be like that, and here is why.

When I was in college one of my professors asked me to be a part of the new student government they were trying to get organized. I agreed and dove in whole-heartedly, writing by-laws and having elections. Then I was invited to attend the state-wide student government conference and again, I agreed.

Our college had three different campuses in three different cities, all about thirty-five miles away from each other. Each campus had its own student government with members attending the conference. So to save money, it was decided we would all meet at the main campus (not mine) and ride up together with our advisor.

A long-time girlfriend and I drove up together and parked at the main campus. Neither one of us had been there before and didn’t really know our way around.  We decided to head for the office and hoped someone there would tell us where to meet the rest of our group.

I will never forget the next few moments for the rest of my life. We had turned down the proper pathway that ran to the office, when a young man came out of the door and started walking towards us. His blond curly hair was down to his shoulders and he was wearing a t-shirt and a pair of ratty jean cut-offs. Seeing him was so overwhelming, I stopped. I knew from that first moment that this was the man I was going to marry.

 “Who is that?” I asked my friend.

She replied that he was the president of the student government on this campus and would be leading our college group at the conference. My future husband walked up to us and started directing us to where we would be picking up our bus.

How did I know he was the one? I would say now that I was guided by the divine. At the time I had no idea why I knew, I just did.

Was it love at first sight? No, it was knowing at first sight.

My husband of over thirty years is a handsome man, but he isn’t drop-dead gorgeous. It certainly wasn’t his ratty clothes that drew me. Did I mention he had a goatee? With his sun lightened blond hair the goatee looked like a ball of lint and did nothing for him. In fact, it covered up the cute dimple in his chin that I came to love later on.

Once we were all loaded onto the bus, I found out how wicked his sense of humor was and still is. One of the students was an older woman who was near my mother’s age. She was a member of the student government from the third campus, and I had never met her before. As we were driving past the farms and pastures full of cows somehow the fact they had different colors came up.

I sat quietly in my seat, amazed, while my future husband convinced the woman that white cows have white meat, dark cows have dark meat, and mixed color cows are for hamburger.

I didn’t know whether to be angry or laugh. I was taught to treat your elders with respect and playing this prank on someone who could be my mother was unsettling. On the other hand, how was it she believed the bunk he was telling her? Believe me, my husband can be very persuasive.

 Did we fall for each other immediately? No, in fact he decided to make a play for my girlfriend during the conference. She wasn’t interested, thank goodness, because she had a boyfriend waiting for her at home.

To say that I had to go fishing is an understatement. Just getting him to notice me took a while. But I was determined, because in my heart, I knew he was the one.

Our courtship was rocky. We lived in different cities and literally had a mountain range between us. Luckily for me student government business often had us on the phone with each other. Frequently, after school business was discussed, we would talk and learn more about each other. I started going to his baseball games and he came down for our campus’ picnic. Things became more serious when we started going steady.

At the next year’s state-wide student government conference, my future husband proposed. We had fallen head-over-heels in love with each other. The road was still rocky when my parents didn’t approve and my fiancé decided to join the Air Force, going in after graduation. But we kept trying and working to be together.

August 1, 1981 we were married in a park on the Colorado River in front of our family and friends. My girlfriend stood up with me as my maid of honor, while our student government advisor was my fiancé’s best man.

We have been together through thick and thin ever since. And it all started “at first sight”.

Caryn Moya Block burst onto the paranormal romance scene with her debut e-book “Alpha’s Mate” in January of 2012. Since that time she has published “A Siberian Werewolf in London” and “My Mate’s Embrace.” She was named one of the “Top 50 Indie Authors for April 2012” from E-Reader Reviews, and won the “Global E-book Awards for 2012” in contemporary romance. Caryn is also one of the contributors to "Interviews with Indie Authors, Top Tips from Successful Self-Published Authors" By Claire and Tim Ridgeway.

Caryn loves romantic movies and stories that end "Happily Ever After." She is an avid reader and writer who currently resides in the Virginia Piedmont. Her pack consists of her husband of over thirty years, two grown sons and a beautiful daughter in law, one cat, one turtle, and four Shetland Sheepdogs. She suffers from "Multiple Sheltie Syndrome", because one is never enough. She has been intrigued with the paranormal since seeing her first ghost at three years of age. She would love to hear from you at: CarynMoyaBlock@gmail.com.
 

Blurb

My Mate’s Embrace

Anton Volkov, Siberian lycanthrope, is following the scent of Laurel Harris, who is running away from her abusive stepfather. When Anton finds her, he is surprised to realize she is his mate, the one woman meant to be his. But the Russian mafia is also on her trail. In order to rescue Laurel, Anton must first get this troubled woman to trust him. Can love heal her wounded heart?

 Excerpt

My Mate’s Embrace

The first raindrop hit Laurel in the eye. Within moments, the cloud-filled sky opened up, and a deluge of water soaked through her T-shirt and jeans. She shivered as the sky darkened even more, turning the summer evening into twilight. Wiping her eyes, she continued up the mountain trail to the scenic river overlook. The trees and wildflowers became a blur as she concentrated on where to put her feet on the wet path. Laurel glanced down at the Lena River in the canyon below. It rushed along as the wind picked up, blowing until the water churned and flew up into the air. Lightening flashed from cloud to cloud, and there was a large boom. Laurel gasped in fear, feeling shock waves of thunder roll over her.

She had to continue with her plan. Her stepfather’s drunken beatings had been increasing, and she wasn’t able to tolerate staying with him a minute longer. Then, there were the frightening tattooed men who visited their motel room, asking to speak to her father. Her skin crawled when she saw them. Something felt terribly wrong. This was her chance to escape, and she was determined to be free.

Laurel tripped and fell to her knees. Rain quickly turned the dirt trail to mud. Her sneakers kept slipping as she tried to stand, so she grabbed a nearby boulder to steady herself. If only she hadn’t taken time to use her powers of healing. Broken ribs, however, would have slowed her down on this climb, and she could see better without a black eye. But the time she had used to heal her injuries placed her in this predicament. She needed to find shelter and soon. Her only hope was to keep going up.

Her backpack was getting heavier and heavier the longer it rained. The clothes inside were quickly getting soaked. Adjusting the backpack higher on her back, she kept climbing. Laurel reached out for a bush along the trail to pull herself farther up. Lightening flashed, and a loud crack of thunder made her jump.

Where was the protector her dead mother’s spirit promised would save her? Coming now would be a perfect time. Of course, no one would believe that her mother’s ghost had appeared to talk to her while she did her healings. Laurel wasn’t sure she believed it. Breathing more heavily the farther up the mountain she climbed, she forced herself to keep going.

“Just one foot in front of the other. You can do it,” Laurel said aloud, trying to gather her strength of will.

She had been planning her escape for a week, waiting for this moment, for this day. She had stuffed her few items of clothing and her mother's silver hairbrush inside her backpack. Then, she had stolen her passport and a few rubles from the small black box her stepfather kept them in. As soon as he went out the door to go drinking, Laurel made good her escape. Luckily, a lot of strangers were in town for the Siberian Summer Sakha Festival. No one seemed to notice her as she walked past the various drinking tents and vendors. She kept her head down and made sure not to make eye contact with anyone. She couldn’t chance someone recognizing her. The summer sun wouldn’t go down until after eleven here in Siberia.

Laurel pushed her sodden auburn hair out of her eyes. Lightening flashed, and she saw the overlook ahead, a small half-moon shape cut into the side of the mountain. She put on a burst of speed and hurried the last few feet. Reaching the top, she stopped to catch her breath. She wrapped her arms around her middle and held on as she bent over and panted. Looking down at the river, she was surprised to see how high she had climbed. Wind created white caps on the river’s surface. Lightening flashed from cloud to cloud around her, and thunder rolled and cracked. The wind blew stronger on the ledge, and she shivered harder, her teeth chattering.

She glanced around her. Now what? The gloom from the storm made it hard to see. Laurel glimpsed a small path going higher into the mountains. Would that lead to the caves mentioned in the guidebook? She climbed over the rock wall that surrounded the overlook and started following the small dirt path. While the other route had been wide enough for several people, this trail was little more than a deer path. Cold and desperate, she kept climbing.

Twice Laurel tripped, going to her knees as she slipped in the mud. She grabbed shrubs and boulders near the path to stop her from plummeting back down the mountain. An abyss of despair overtook her. Her chest felt heavy, and tears welled up in her eyes. Should she just let go? The fall down the mountain would kill her before she landed in the river. Should she end her flight right now? If she did, at least it would be her choice.

Laurel shuddered and shook her head, water dripping off her sopping hair. Giving up wasn’t the answer. She didn’t want to die. Stopping now would lead to going home to be beaten again. This was her chance to be free, to start a new life. If she could just be strong enough. Worrying when her stepfather would get angry and hurt her again had made her so tired.

 “Not anymore,” she promised herself. Reaching up for the next handhold, she kept climbing.

 

 

OTHER TITLES BY CARYN MOYA BLOCK ~

 

 



 

 

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