Carson Chance, P.I., Over the Edge Blog Tour

Title: Carson Chance, P.I., Over the Edge

Author: N.E. Brown

Publisher: Tate Publishing

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Format: Paperback/Kindle/Nook
Pages: 269

Set against the rock and roll era of the early 1960’s, when casual sex and recreational drugs were the norm, a chance meeting on a road trip finds twenty-four year old Carson Chance smitten with a young female hitchhiker he gives a ride to. 

Sparks fly as the two loners reach out to each other for companionship. They are like two pages torn from the 

same book that fit together perfectly, only Carson doesn’t know it.

Book Excerpt:

Carson Chance was deep in thought when he first saw her. 
At first he thought it was a mirage or maybe his imagination, but as he got closer and slowed his Harley Davidson to a stop on the side of Highway 80, just in front of her; there was no question it was his lucky day. 
He stared at her as the wind blew her long auburn hair into her eyes. 
She swished it out of her face and it fell back around her shoulders as she smiled up at him. 

Mesmerized by her beautiful brown eyes, he quickly came back to reality and turned off 
the engine on his bike. Putting the kick stand down, he got off his bike, removed his 
helmet and took off his riding gloves. “Are you looking for a ride to Dallas?” he asked.

“Would I be out here on the side of the road with my arm extended out if I weren’t?” 

Carson laughed. “I suppose not. Hop on.”

“I’m Amy.” 

“Carson.”  

“What’s your first name?” Amy demanded.

“That is my first name. Carson, Carson Chance,” 

 “Like Johnny Carson?” 

“Yeah, I guess except Carson is my first name.” Carson was fascinated by Amy’s low, 
sexy voice and hoped he would get a chance to have a real conversation with her before 
they got to Dallas.

The Harley was now cruising down Highway 80 at sixty miles an hour making it difficult 
to hear. Since Carson relied on both his weak hearing and lip reading, he decided he 
would pull off around Terrell, Texas, and get something to drink. He’d made the trip back
to the VA Hospital in Shreveport, Louisiana, several times on his bike and knew there 
was a Dairy Queen drive-in a quarter mile off the highway so he turned off and pulled in. 

“Duty calls,” he said. They both got off the bike and she pulled off her helmet, shaking 
her hair out. Carson thought it was the sexist thing he’d ever seen, and took a closer look 
at her. She had deep-set brown eyes, luscious thick pink lips and her skin was flawless. 
Her silhouette was perfect with all the curves in the right places and she had a small waist 
and tight slim hips. 

Carson was quite a prize himself. He was just over six feet tall, lifted weights and limited 
his drinking so his abs were tight and Amy thought he had a really cute butt. He had 
brown semi-curly hair that was combed back over his ears and a dimple in the right 
corner of his mouth when he smiled. His lean bronze face was well offset by his fiery, 
hazel eyes which had the faculty of seeing things as though he had a wide-angle lens. 

Preferring variety, picking up girls came easy for him, and he had no intentions of ever 
getting married. 

They entered the Dairy Queen, ordered some food at the counter, and Carson 
extracted his wallet from his back pocket and paid for it. When he returned from the 
men’s room, he walked over taking the bench across from her. Amy put five dollars on 
the table in front of him. “I don’t expect you to pay my way. 
Carson shrugged his shoulders and picked up the cash. The restaurant was almost empty, so the waitress brought their food to their table instead of calling out their number. Amy got up to go wash her hands, and Carson waited for her to return before he picked up his hamburger. 

“You didn’t have to wait on me,” she said, taking a seat on the bench across from him. 
“Are you always this bossy?” 
Amy studied him for a minute and then picked up a french fry stuffing it into her mouth. 

“Look, my bike got stolen and when I called the police, they treated me like a piece of trash. They didn’t want to believe me. The last guy that gave me a ride thought I was a prostitute and offered to pay me ten dollars for a blow job. I’m tired of taking crap off of men and the reason why I gave you money for my burger was because I didn’t want you to think I owed you something.” 

“All right, I’m not the enemy here. You put yourself out there and I simply offered you a ride, nothing else.” 

“Look, you seem like a nice guy and I’m sorry to take my frustrations out on you. 
The truth is I’m from Austin, Texas, and I dropped out of school. I went to Monroe, 
Louisiana, with a friend and then he met up with an old high school sweetheart and 
kicked me out. I should have known he was a loser. I don’t have much luck with men. 
They seem to always take advantage of me and I’m sick of it.” 

Carson continued eating and took a sip of his root beer. “Why were you on your way to Dallas and not Austin?” 
“My dad told me if I dropped out of school not to bother coming back home and I know he means it. He’s really strict and this isn’t the first time I’ve skipped out on school. 

Carson was surprised by her comment, thinking she looked older. “What are your 
plans when you get to Dallas?” Carson asked. 

“I don’t know. Try and get a job maybe. I have a couple of girlfriends that moved there after school was out last summer and I could look them up. I’ll figure something out. I always do. Enough about me. What do you do?” she asked looking at his finger for a wedding ring. 

“I’m a private investigator.” He sat back in the booth and looked out the window. 

“No way. Were you on a job in Louisiana?” 

“No, I have to go to the VA Hospital for a check-up every so often and I was headed home.” 

“VA Hospital? Were you in the military?” 

“Army until I got injured in Vietnam.” 

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I feel bad that I was so rude to you at first.” 

Carson laughed. 

“You and I have a lot in common,” he said. “Edgy on the outside but we have a 
few soft spots on the inside.” Amy laughed and Carson was amused by her sexy laugh. 
It was more like a rumble in her throat and her smile was contagious. 

“Edgy? I’ve been called a lot of things, but edgy isn’t one of them.” 
The tension was finally gone and they were beginning to have a real conversation. Amy was animated when she spoke and used her hands in the conversation. Her nails were long with clear polish and Carson tried hard to find something he didn’t like about her. 
He found it difficult to take his eyes off her.

Carson looked at his watch. “It’s going to be dark in an hour and it’s difficult to see 
cyclists riding on the highway at night. Best we get on with it. Where do you want me to 
take you?”

Amy sighed and bit her lower lip. “Do you know if there is a cheap motel close to where 
you live? I don’t want to put you out. I took some money out of my friend’s wallet before 
I left.”

Carson couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. It would be late when they got to Dallas and a 
cheap motel wouldn’t be safe. He hesitated before he said, “Look, I was in a bad situation 
once myself and a good friend helped me out. I live in a two bedroom house but I only 
have one bed. You can have it tonight and I’ll sleep on the couch.” 
Carson took out his identification card and showed her his PI license.
 “Just so you know I’m legit.”

Amy looked at it and smiled. “Actually I didn’t think you were making it up, but thanks 
for showing me.”

“I’m curious,” Carson said. “Just how old are you?”

Amy let out a big sigh. “Eighteen.” He noticed she looked down not wanting to make eye contact. Carson stood up and put a dollar tip on the table. “We better get going.”

When they took off, Amy tightened her arms around Carson’s waist and hugged his back 
side laying her chin on his shoulder. Carson was twenty-four years old and even though 
he found her utterly fascinating and extremely sexy, he knew he was too old for her. 
He  preferred woman closer to his own age, since most girls younger than twenty-one needed 
too much pampering, and had too many insecurities. Amy seemed different though, and if 
she had any insecurities, she certainly hid them well. 
He was smitten with her sharp confidence and she was smart beyond her years. 

Amy had hardly moved while they made their way back to Dallas. He called her name
twice, and when she didn’t answer he assumed she had fallen asleep. When he pulled up 
in his driveway, he took each one of her hands into his and slowly swivelled around. 
She nuzzled her head under his neck and he could hear her easy breathing. “Amy, wake up, we’re here.” Amy raised her head up and looked around.

“Where are we?” she said yawning.
“Home. I need to get off and open the garage door. Are you awake?”

She yawned again, “I guess so,” Carson couldn’t help but smile at her.

When Carson first comes across Amy hitchhiking towards Dallas, he is not sure what to think. Young and beautiful, she is well versed in sass and sarcasm. Carson is a time hardened Viet Nam vet who feels ruined and lost. His typical relationships are counted in hours, not years. Discovering Amy has no where to go, and has also experienced a difficult and traumatic past, he takes her under his protective wing. He allows her to stay in his extra room and until he discovers her true age, he considers making her another of his usual no strings conquests.
There is much to admire about Carson, but throughout the book there are times you may not like him.

Amy is a very complicated character. After her mother died, her stepfather only put up with her for his own needs. When Amy could take it no longer, she found an escape with a friend who also used and abused her. It wasn't long before she found herself on her own. Then she met Carson.
By this time she believed that the only value she had to men, and the way she could survive, was through sex.

It took me a few chapters to warm up to this story. Think of it as foreplay. When Ms. Brown writes the more intimate scenes, they are HOT!
Carson is struggling with his own demons but honestly wants to behave more civilized. Amy once had dreams but now cannot imagine even getting started.
The attraction between the two is obvious but for every step closer, two or more obstacles thrust forcefully between them... the line that I appreciated most in the book is:

The legal system worked against those who were not guilty, making the assumption that once you were in jail, you were guilty simply by being there.

Like most other readers I developed a fondness for Thomas Jefferson, even if he had his imperfections. 

The further into the story I read the more suspenseful it became.
Amy and Carson came together and angered each other and abandoned each other, stalked each other and got together again. A totally disfunctional relationship. If they really belong together would it be so hard?

Drama, intrigue, hot romance, and danger are all included.
I think readers of crime genres will appreciate this as much as erotic romance readers.
Read my full review on Goodreads.


For More Information

 Carson Chance, P.I., Over the Edge is available at Amazon.

 Pick up your copy at Barnes & Noble.


 Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

After a successful career in real estate, N. E. Brown retired and began pursuing her passion for writing.  She has authored and published four successful historical fiction novels about life in early Galveston.  Her most recent book, Carson Chance, P.I., Over the Edge, takes place in Dallas, Texas, during the 1960s. 
It is not only available in paperback and e-books, but is now an audio book.

Having been a legal secretary during that time in Dallas, her eye for detail brings about a memorable life experience between two young people who are destined to find love a real challenge.

Being a native Texan, Ms. Brown’s love of Texas history inspires her to create true-to-life fictional characters from the past. She is currently working on two new novels, one being Book 5 of her Galveston, 1900, Indignities series. Ms. Brown resides in Tyler, Texas, with her husband.