Hallie Reads: batch of love | excerpt + giveaway

about the book

Nailed It meets You’ve Got Mail in Batch of Love

A small-town baker with dreams of moving out of the mall’s food court and opening her own brick-and-mortar bakery enters a baking competition for a chance to win $25,000. But instead of winning the grand prize, she finds herself in the middle of her ex’s plan to acquire her business for a big box retailer.

Two years ago, Ginger opened a bakery, Ginger’s Goodies, to honor a promise she made to her late mother. Ready to take her business to the next level, Ginger enters a baking competition hosted by big box retailer, Decadent Dough. What she doesn’t count on is running into her high school ex, Brock Pearson, who works for the company.

Instead of joining his father’s firm, The Pearson Group, Brock Pearson was eager to prove he could be successful outside of his father’s shadow and joined the legal team at Decadent Dough thirteen years ago. When his mentor retires, he throws his hat in the ring to become his successor. The job is his if he can find potential acquisitions, one of which is Ginger’s Goodies.

For Ginger, joining Decadent Dough is a hard NO.

However, Brock will not back down easily because now he wants to win her heart again.

And just when Brock and Ginger were at the precipice of sealing the deal of love…

Brock’s boss learns Ginger is the daughter of his college rival. Now, he will stop at nothing to destroy her business. To make matters worse, he convinced Ginger that Brock is part of his scheme. To prove his innocence, Brock may lose his shot at the promotion he’s coveted and the career he’s worked so hard for.

Ginger and Brock’s careers and hearts hang in the balance. Which is more important than the other?

publisher: encouraging works

release date: august 6, 2024

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excerpt

At closing time, she hurriedly rounded the corner into the walkway and crashed into a man’s chest that had to be made of steel, knocking the cell phone out of his hand.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry.” She knelt to pick it up, but a strong hand on her wrist stopped her.

“No, no, you’re okay. I should’ve been watching where I was headed. I was a little too preoccupied.” He waved the phone in the air. “You’re…good.” His dark brown eyes widened.

“Ginger.” Her name came off his lips in a whisper, a mixture of disbelief, recognition, and a plethora of other emotions she was certain.

Ginger’s eyes trailed up to his and air trapped in her chest. Her eyebrows raised above her glasses, and her eyes fluttered. She suddenly needed water, and for a moment, she couldn’t decide whether to run and scream or throw her arms around Brock Pearson’s neck because she hadn’t seen him in over twenty years.

“Brock,” she’d finally said, still unable to complete a full cycle of breathing. All of a sudden, her brain ceased sending signals to the rest of her body as she stood in the middle of the food court, unable to take her eyes off him.

And him her.

The light chatter in the distance, the music humming from the PA system, and mall patrons all faded as she struggled to pull her thoughts together. Granted the Houston metro area was large enough not to run into the same person twice, but to see Brock after nearly twenty years tossed her off her axis. What was he doing there? Had he moved back to town? What was he doing with his life? All valid questions, yet Brock was none of her concern anymore.

She’d spent the entire summer before her freshmen year in college getting over their breakup.

“It’s good to see you,” he finally said. He had to be in as much shock as she was because his gaze remained fixated on her—a spiral of emotions flashing in his eyes. And she almost hated to see it because something stirred within her.

about the author

Natasha D. Frazier fell in love with love around the age of twelve because of artists like Babyface, Boys II Men, Whitney Houston, and New Edition. Around sixteen when her mother purchased a romance novel and left it lying around the house untouched, Natasha read it and a spark for the written word had been ignited.

Natasha believes that writing is one of her purposes and contributions to the world. She feels accomplished when she can get a few words written and like blah when life gets in the way. Her hope is that at the end of every novel, readers will feel like they’ve been wrapped in a cozy blanket with a mug of their favorite coffee/tea/warm drink.

When she isn’t reading or writing, she is likely watching movies with her family. Natasha resides in Richmond, TX with her husband, Eddie Frazier, Jr. and their three children, Eden, Ethan, and Emilyn. Her greatest joy and commitment is to her family who she hopes to inspire above all else. One of her many mottos in life is: Faith removes limitations. Natasha and her family attend Parkway Fellowship in Richmond, TX, where she volunteers as a small group leader for elementary students. Natasha is also a member of the Houston Area Alumni Chapter of Jackson State University and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Connect with Natasha by visiting natashafrazier.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

giveaway

(1) winner will win a $25 Amazon gift card!

(1) winner will win a 3 book bundle of backlist titles by Natasha D. Frazier!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight August 13, 2024 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on August 20, 2024. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

tour schedule

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