My guest today is author, Dora Hiers. After a successful auditing career, Dora left the corporate world to be a stay-at-home mom to her two sons. Eventually, needing something more to fill her days, she started writing heart racing, God-gracing books. Dora belongs to the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and the Carolina Christian Writers.
Dora and her husband make their home in Kannapolis, North Carolina. When she’s not writing, she enjoys spending time with her family, guzzling café con leche, kicking back in her recliner with a good book, teaching Sunday School, vacationing in the mountains, watching football, and walking her dog.
Anne – Welcome to my little corner of cyberspace, Dora. When did you first realize you were destined to write romance?
Dora - When my son started middle school and didn’t want me hanging out at school with him anymore. LOL. By then, I’d been a stay-at-home mom about three years and had spent most of my time alternating between two schools. My older son graduated, and my younger son moved to middle school. I knew I needed something more to fill my days. An avid inspirational romance reader, God planted a story idea that pinged around in my head for a few months until I finally confessed my desire to write to my husband. With his enthusiastic support, I started pounding out the story.
Anne - Tell us about your book.
Devastated after the brutal murder of her husband, Chelsea Hammond vows never to love another lawman. Intent on rebuilding her shattered life, she turns her focus to helping troubled teens. But when an angry father bent on retaliation, threatens her, Chelsea must turn to the one man she never thought to trust: Deputy U.S. Marshal Trey Colten.
Trey wants only to protect Chelsea, but she blames him for her husband’s death. Trey can relate. He blames himself, also. As danger lurks, Trey begs Chelsea to heed his warnings. He let down one Hammond. He won’t let down another—especially one who now holds his heart.
When Chelsea is snatched from her home, can she put aside her fear and trust Trey with her life? Can she forgive him for destroying her past and let him help to rebuild her future?
Where one journey ends, another begins…
Anne - Is there a message in Journey’s End you want readers to grasp?
Dora - Forgiveness ~ it’s never too late.
Anne - Of all the characters you’ve created, does one hold a special place in your heart? Why?
Dora – That would be Trey. In JOURNEY'S END, Chelsea initially resents Trey's control and rebels against his protection, but his kindness and sensitivity chip at her defenses. He’s the type of guy who helps with dishes, feeds her many pets, listens—really listens to her, and makes killer hot chocolate at midnight. How could she not love a man like that? Wouldn’t you?
Anne - What is the hardest part of writing for you? Dora - Sitting down in front of a blank screen to start a new book. Can I do it again? Do I have it in me to write a story from start to finish?
Anne – It’s a universal fear for writers, isn’t it?! Would you share an excerpt of Journey’s End with us?
Dora – Certainly!
“I suppose I should have been a vet.” Chelsea stroked the dog’s fur from his head all the way down his back, careful not to touch his wounded leg.
“Maybe. But I don’t think you’ve wasted your energy or your talents as a guidance counselor. Teenagers can’t seem to resist you, either.”
That produced a full-fledged smile in his direction. Way to go, Colten!
“Remember that natural charm I warned you about?”
He threw back his head and laughed. “Yes. And after a few days in your presence, I’m inclined to agree with you.”
He pulled into the veterinarian’s parking lot and glanced her way, surprised to see her grinning. “What?”
“Saved by the vet.”
Her words hit him like a piano dropping ten stories. She was flirting with him.
He took his time walking around to her side of the truck. He opened the door and leaned in, planting his hand on the seat next to her shapely legs. His face hovered inches from hers while he savored the way her wavy hair cascaded down her shoulders, the lips that curved in that always graceful way, and the eyes that spoke everything his heart wanted to hear.
Her eyes closed, and her lips parted slightly.
Trey snapped out of it. He couldn’t do this. He was on the job. She didn’t know the secrets he knew, the truth about her husband.
Her eyes startled open. As much as he wanted to partake and enjoy, he couldn’t. He touched a silky curl framing her face and ran it through his fingers. “You need to know that right now I’m working. But there will come a time, soon, when I’m not.”
Anne – Where can readers reach you online?
Anne – Thank you so much for dropping by, Dora. I wish you every success with Journey’s End. Happy writing!
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