Spotlight & Giveaway: Said No One Ever by Stephanie Eding

Today, HJ is pleased to share with you Stephanie Eding’s new release: Said No One Ever

Ellie Reed’s self-esteem can’t take it anymore…

 
Ellie has just about had enough of her family’s constant criticism and attempts to control her life. But when she rents an Airbnb getaway on a gorgeous farm in Montana, she encounters a whole new set of family drama.

Now she’s the reluctant and borderline competent caretaker of a barn full of unruly farm animals, caught between two handsome men competing for control of the farm, and the sudden best friend of a spunky elderly widow whose outrageous ideas just might change her destiny…

Readers of Sally Thorne and Beth O’Leary will love Ellie Reed’s wild adventure.
 

Enjoy an exclusive excerpt from Said No One Ever 

“Seriously? Are we ever going to get to the nursing home, or can I call this in as a kidnapping?” Another wrong turn had Ellie contemplating crawling through the window to escape. The way this guy kept her in the dark with their plans and still continued to issue her a judging eye proved absolutely maddening.
“I have no interest in kidnapping you. Trust me.” Warren eased into the parking lot of a tiny, dark-wooded shack with a sign that read DAILY BREW. “But if we don’t bring Gram her favorite beverage from her favorite coffee shop, I’m pretty sure she’ll just send us right back out to get it.”
Whether or not that was true, fresh coffee didn’t sound half bad.
Plus, she’d often swung through Winans for coffee and chocolates when she spent the day with Grandma Val. Specialty coffees and grandmas went together like peanut butter and jelly.
“If we’re doing this, then I’m getting a latte.” She reached into her purse and foraged her wallet. A dollar bill and a handful of change should cover her order. It’d better, since she didn’t have much more than that.
Plucking the money from her hands, Warren sighed as if she’d horribly inconvenienced him.
Good.
“Hi. Can I help— Hey, Warren! I didn’t realize it was time for your visit already.” A middle-aged woman with tight black curls and plum lipstick rested her hand on her hip as she stood hunched over the drive-thru window.
Everybody knew everybody. By the end of her stay, they might know Ellie’s life story too. Hell, they might even try to get her back together with Sean, like her family and friends back home. That’d just be great.
“Hey, Babs. How’s it going? I’m on a mission for Gram this morning.”
“Oh, then I bet you need a marshmallow steamer.” The giddy woman clapped her hands together and signaled for her coworker to get on making that. “When I heard about her fall, I felt terrible. This one’s on the house. You tell her Babs needs her feeling better ASAP.”
Ellie grinned in the passenger seat. Maybe it wasn’t all bad that everybody knew everyone and their business. It filled her with the warm fuzzies of a cheesy Hallmark movie. Well, until Warren opened his stupid mouth again.
“That’s very sweet of you, Babs. I’m sure Gram will greatly appreciate it. I’m also gonna need a latte for this stranger I found wandering around the farm.”
“Oh my gosh,” Ellie whined.
Babs just laughed. “What flavor can I get you, sweetie?”
“Caramel, please.” Ellie’s polite tone ended with a scowl toward Warren.
It was too bad she lived on the other side of the country. A small-town coffee shop like this would be an amazing place to work, and Bab’s seemed like the ideal boss.
While Ellie desperately wanted to keep working from home, available remote jobs were few and far between. Most required special licensing, certification, or a ridiculous amount of experience. She had no choice but to apply for positions in a physical office with a real boss watching over her shoulder or micromanaging her every task. Oh, how she dreaded that transition.
Still, it beat that boss being Averie. Her sister had always had one over her in every aspect of life. Averie now controlling her schedule and paycheck made her want to vomit. She had to find another option and fast.
“You two have a great day, and take care of that grandmother of yours,” Babs said to Warren and waved a farewell.
Ellie held her breath again when they came to the main intersection in town, but relaxed her shoulders when Warren turned the proper direction.
She swung her purse over her shoulder and cradled the piping hot latte in her hands as she climbed down from the truck. The temps had to be in the mid-eighties already, warranting a cold drink. But this caramel treat was one of the best drinks she’d ever had in her life. The brew managed a level of flawlessness the big chain joints back home couldn’t even hope to achieve.
Inside, Warren stopped at the nurse’s station to inquire about Marilyn’s room number, but Ellie breezed past him. She knew the room number, unlike Marilyn’s actual family.
He dropped his conversation with the nurse mid-sentence and hurried to catch up to Ellie.
“You know where you’re going?” he asked.
“I told you. I’ve been here before.” She scowled over her shoulder. “You know, as part of my scheme to take your grandmother for all she’s got, I came to visit her while she’d laid up in the rehab unit like a proper con artist would.”
With an eye roll, she rounded the corridor and knocked on Marilyn’s open door. Their arrival kept Warren from any comeback. Thank the Lord.
When the older woman’s voice beckoned them inside, Warren brushed past Ellie, his fierce blue eyes staring her down as he went.
“Get over here.” Marilyn waved for her grandson and took hold of his arm, tugged him down to her level, and kissed him on the cheek, both hands sandwiching his face. “You look good, kid. You finally shaved. I like it.”
“Too hot for a beard.” He stuffed his hands into his pocket and crossed one foot over the other as he leaned on the wall beside Marilyn’s chair. “You look good too, for being captive in a nursing home. Brought you something.”
“Oh, heavenly marshmallowy goodness! Warren, you magnificent angel.” She took a long whiff and closed her eyes. “I’ve asked for one of these countless times since I arrived, but they look at me like I’m in a loony bin and not rehab center. Why would they not run our errands to help us recover faster?”
Warren shook his head. “Well, you can thank Babs for this one. She says to feel better soon.”
“Warren, I love that woman. She is a saint, and the next time you see her, you give her a hug for me. I don’t care if you have to climb out of the truck and through that window. You do it. And that daughter of hers is a treasure too. You can hug Tori for me too while you’re at it. I’m sure she’ll be out to see you soon.”
He scratched the back of his head. “I’m not so sure about—”
“Do it, Warren.” Her multi-ringed finger could have stabbed through his chest if she’d applied the proper pressure. “That girl does so much for my animals when you’re away. You just gotta hug her for it.”
“Sure, Gram. Whatever. Now, are you ready to tell me what happened to you this week?”
The older woman didn’t miss a beat.
“Tripped over a shovel in the garden.” Marilyn swiveled away from Warren and winked in Ellie’s direction. “Come have a seat on the bed so we can talk, Ellie. Warren, I appreciate this beverage with my every breath, but my business today is with this young woman. You gotta leave.”
“I just got here.” His shoulders sank.
Marilyn reached out and squeezed his hand. “And I love you for it, darlin’. You can come back in a little while. We’ve plenty of time for chatting over the next month, and I’ll need to discuss this barn repair plan in greater detail before you go pulling some fancy renovation like on TV.”
Warren huffed and stared hard at Ellie again. She averted her gaze, tired of his accusing expression. Today, Marilyn could clear everything up, the mysterious secret would come out, and Ellie could get back to the farm and start getting her Ohio life together instead of treading water in this Montana life.
Ellie reached into her purse and handed Marilyn a small plastic shopping bag containing mail and her cell phone from the garden. “Found it next to the daisies. Doesn’t appear to have any damage from being outside.”
“Oh, thank you. This will make communication so much easier. The nurses weren’t happy about me asking for the phone all the time,” Marilyn said.
“You had her phone?” Warren’s face scrunched.
Ellie plopped down on the bed and drew her knees up into her. “She asked me to find it for her, so I did.”
He gave her that same stupid look that made her want to deck him. “Did you do anything to―”
“Warren Michael, I will talk with you in a little bit.” Marilyn’s stern tone made Ellie straighten. She seemed like one of those people who didn’t get mad very often, but you wanted to do whatever you had to do to keep her happy.
“Don’t you have some other errands you can run? Surely, we didn’t hit them all this morning,” Ellie suggested.
“As a matter of fact, I do have more places to go. I’ll grab some groceries and come back for you, Ellie,” he said.
“Thanks. I’d appreciate that.” She picked at her fingernails in her lap and waited for him to leave already.
When his footsteps had cleared the room, Marilyn reclined in her chair. Her cool composure returned, and she smiled. “Oh, he likes you.”
Ellie groaned, but her cheeks burned anyway. “He most definitely does not. He thinks I’m a con artist here to steal your family fortune or some such garbage, which I would appreciate you clearing up with him. He started in on it this morning, like he was up all night Googling ‘is the girl living in my tiny house here to steal our souls’ or something.”
Why was she rambling? Letting him get to her like this was letting him win. And he should not win, because he was wrong.
Marilyn shook her head. “That sounds like my grandson. Don’t worry. I’ll have a talk with him. You’re my first and last Airbnb guest, so don’t bother leaving me a bad review based on his poor behavior.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Ellie laughed, a welcome release after the tense car ride over.
“You should know, Ellie, my daughters still don’t know about the Airbnb. After Warren blabs about this, which he will, the rest of the family is sure to flock to the farm to make things right. The boy has always had my best interests in mind, even if he’s a turd about it. Poor thing’s caught between his mother and me more often than not. Either way he goes, one of us will whoop his ass red.” Marilyn picked up her nursing home issued mug and cradled it in her hands as she sipped through the straw. “I sure do love that boy. And you will too, with some time.”
Huh? Ellie’s heart sped up again. Perhaps that was just some odd old people saying—like the weird “cheese” thing she said at their first meeting. But to imply Ellie would end up enjoying Warren’s company or liking him… Yeah, no.
And if Marilyn meant to imply that Ellie would eventually love love him. That’d be—well, that’d be as effed up as the rest of this trip had been. Of all the supposedly eligible bachelors presented to her since arriving, she’d date the rooster before she’d go for Warren Oliver.
“I’m sure he’s very nice when he’s not questioning someone’s integrity.” Ellie resumed picking at the skin next to her thumbnail. “Also, Warren and Hardware Store Barry were also talking about how if your daughters got wind of the Airbnb, there’d be big trouble. What kind of trouble are we talking about?”
“Isn’t Barry fantastic? One of the best of fellows. Anyway, you let me deal with my daughters. I told Savannah not to come, so we’re safe there. She’s a busy woman. And Janey only comes at Christmas.” Marilyn’s words lacked the confidence Ellie desired. The way she instantly checked her phone also proved a bit alarming. Like the very mention of her daughters might summon a phone call or something. “How are my animals? Any problems?”
Ellie nearly choked on her sip. “Well, that’s a loaded question. They’re all alive and fine. I had to chase Edgar and Hilda down the road, but your neighbor helped me get him back home.”
“Edgar?” Marilyn cocked her head.
“Oh, sorry. The donkey. I didn’t know his name, so that’s what I’ve been calling him.”
She laughed. “That’s cute. I’m going to keep that in mind for next time. It’s actually Sheriff Humphrey—Sheriff for short. He’s in charge ‘round these parts.’ That’s why I gave him such a name. Kind of a stinker though, isn’t he? I should have warned you he occasionally remembers he can lift the latch on that back gate. Doesn’t happen all the time, but when it does, it’s loads of fun. Glad my neighbor came to your aid. They’re good people down there.”
“Yes, I was glad he came when he did. I didn’t know how else I’d get Ed—Sheriff back home otherwise.”
“Apples.” Marilyn clicked her tongue and tapped her index finger to her temple. “That muckinfuzz will do anything for an apple. I’ve led him home many-a-times that way.”
Ellie would have to make sure she kept some fruit in stock or found Marilyn’s current stash. Then again, Blake was prepared to come to help whenever necessary, and loading him up in the trailer struck her as a much easier solution to walking all over the county with an apple in hand.
She shifted in her seat when she thought about the prospect of Blake visiting again that afternoon. It wouldn’t allow for much work time. But what else was new? His presence would offset Warren’s and give her much more pleasurable company…and a chance to get to know him a little better.
“Apples, okay. Good to know.” Ellie cleared her throat. “Any tips on calming your attack rooster?”
Marilyn’s brow furrowed when she regarded her company. “I don’t believe I have a rooster.”
Warren had sounded equally surprised when Ellie brought up the demon bird. “Well, there’s definitely a rooster on the farm—blue and orange coloring, stands taller than all the chickens, big red comb on top of his head, beak like a dagger—”
“Sounds like a rooster, all right.” Marilyn laughed. “Sometimes those blamed things show up uninvited. If the neighbors pop by again, have them take him. They’ll figure out where he belongs. My hens don’t need a man. They know those bad-boy types are nothin’ but trouble.”
“Preach,” Ellie said.

Excerpt. ©Stephanie Eding. Posted by arrangement with the publisher. All rights reserved.
 
 

Giveaway: 1 Print copy of Said No One Ever, US Only

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Meet the Author:

Stephanie Eding specializes in humorous women’s fiction about the struggles of adulthood in the twenty-first century. She works as a freelance editor, cleans when stressed, and hates cooking but loves to eat. Away from her desk, she’s a wife, mother, expert napper, and leader of a cat horde.

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