Are you ready for more Montgomery Ink? Carrie Ann Ryan's ASHES TO INK releases January 22nd - read the first chapter below and pre-order your copy now!
About ASHES TO INK
Available January 22nd, 2019
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling
author Carrie Ann Ryan comes a new story in her Montgomery Ink series…
Back in Denver, Abby lost everything she ever
loved, except for her daughter, the one memory she has left of the man she
loved and lost. Now, she’s moved next to the Montgomerys in Colorado Springs,
leaving her past behind to start her new life.
One step at a time.
Ryan is the newest tattoo artist at Montgomery
Ink Too and knows the others are curious about his secrets. But he’s not ready
to tell them. Not yet. That is…until he meets Abby.
Abby and Ryan thought they had their own
paths, ones that had nothing to do with one another. Then…they took a chance.
On each other.
One night at a time.
** Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a
standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world.
And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you'll enjoy
each one as much as we do.**
ASHES TO INK releases January 22nd, 2019 - pre-order your copy now!
Read the first chapter of ASHES TO INK
Abby loved tea. She loved everything about it.
The taste, the smell, the way it warmed her up on a cold day or cooled her down
on a warm one. She’d even loved tea when she was a little girl, playing with
air in her teacups and treating her stuffed animals and Cabbage Patch dolls to
an afternoon tea party.
Her grandmother had taught her the basics of
brewing the perfect cuppa, as well as the ratio of sugar cubes needed. Abby had
then learned to try tea with all additives: cinnamon sticks, lemon wedges, a dash
of cream. Some might consider that ruining it, but Abby had wanted to try it
all.
She loved tea bags but adored loose-leaf tea
even more. She relished steeping it, blending it, and finding the perfect mix
for the season.
So when she found herself looking for a way to
create something that was just hers
and start over after everything had fallen apart around her, opening the tea
shop had seemed like a no-brainer.
Teas’d specialized in loose-leaf tea, but Abby
also sold some bagged tea and different teapots and helpful equipment.
It was Abby’s goal in life to make it so
others could discover the joys of tea like she had, and maybe find a new
favorite along the way. She had always loved the idea of teatime, even if she
didn’t have the time to truly sit down and enjoy it herself every day.
Regardless, she adored the scents, loved the
idea of falling into a cup—a different flavor every day. With the resurgence of
tea drinkers, it was easier for Abby to find fellow tea lovers as time moved
on. There were big chain tea shops and smaller ones as well, but Teas’d was
just for her. She was a tiny little speck in the idea of tea and how it could
serve the needs of the people, but she was the best speck she could possibly
be.
She’d had to be after everything changed.
She’d had to be when she lost everything.
Well, not everything. She still had her little
girl. Abby grinned down at her phone and swiped up so she could look at the
photo on the home screen.
Julia was growing every day and even looked
slightly different now than she had in the picture. Abby still couldn’t quite
believe that she and Max had made this beautiful baby girl. Max might not be
around to help raise Julia, but he had been there for the conception and had
been there to pick out everything the two of them as new parents would need to
raise their child together.
It didn’t hurt as much as it once had to think
about Max. Oh, it would always hurt, but at least it didn’t make Abby want to
throw up and grieve right then.
She could think about her husband and smile
now. She could think about the fact that he had loved her with all of his
heart, even if that had been the thing to take him away from her in the end.
And she couldn’t say her feelings didn’t
matter now though, because that would be a disgrace to his memory and the fact
that she could see Max in her little girl every single day.
Julia would never know her father, but Abby
was doing her best to make sure that Julia knew exactly who Max was, and how
excited he had been to have Julia in his life.
The two had never met, but Abby knew Max was
always watching over them.
There was no other way to think about it. Not
when Abby needed to get up every day and breathe—try to be the mom and woman
she needed to be.
But today was a new day, just like all the others.
Today, she would make some tea, sell some tea, and maybe even have a cookie or
two. Because it was Friday, and she was allowed to have a cookie if she wanted.
She just might have a little extra padding on
her hips, but that was fine with her. It wasn’t like she was trying to entice a
man.
Oh, she’d dated a couple of times in the past
year or so, but it hadn’t really amounted to much. She hadn’t been ready, and
she didn’t know if she was ready now either.
“What are you looking at over there?”
Abby looked up at the sound of her friend
Adrienne’s voice and smiled. Adrienne Montgomery owned the tattoo shop,
Montgomery Ink Too, next door and was part of a huge family—way bigger than
just the set of cousins that lived near Abby.
The Montgomerys were large, loud, brash, and
the sweetest people Abby had ever known. They had taken her in with just one
look, much like their cousins in Denver had, and Abby loved every single one of
them.
“Just looking at tea,” Abby answered, holding
up a couple of tins. “I’m trying to see what I need to put on special. We have
good stock of most things, but not all.”
“I don’t know how you do it. I mean, I know
how to run a business, and I think I’m doing pretty well, but it takes the
advice of two accountants for me to know what I’m doing.”
“Since I have the same two accountants you do,
I totally understand.”
Shea was Adrienne’s sister-in-law, and Roxie
was Adrienne’s sister. Both were accountants, and pretty much helped run the
businesses on this stretch.
The Montgomerys owned two of the
businesses—Montgomery Ink Too, and Colorado Icing. While Adrienne and Shep ran
the tattoo shop, the Montgomerys’ middle sister, Thea, owned the bakery at the
end of the strip.
Abby had a feeling that if there had been more
space available, the accountants of the family probably would have moved in as
well. Or maybe even the mechanic, Carter, who was married to Roxie. In fact,
Adrienne was dating one of the tattoo artists, Mace, and that just meant there
was more family than ever. More Montgomerys.
Abby didn’t think that Thea’s boyfriend,
Dimitri, would be able to move a whole high school into the strip, but if there
were a way, the Montgomerys would likely make it happen.
“Your family really is pretty amazing.” Abby
grinned as Adrienne rolled her eyes.
“Oh, don’t tell the guys that. I mean, you can
tell me, Thea, and Roxie. It’s true, and it’s sort of what we do. We are the
touchstone for the Montgomerys.”
They both laughed at that because even though
it might be true, every single one of the Montgomerys had their own touchstones
when it came to what those around them needed.
“So, have any good tea for me today?” Adrienne
asked. “I have a long project coming up, one that’s gonna take me a few hours
and a few sessions. I could use all the energy I can get. And while I love
coffee from Thea’s bakery, I think I’m in the mood for tea today. Something to
keep me wired, but something flavorful as well. I can head over to Thea’s later
for something sugary, or even a sandwich for some protein, but here is where I
want my tea.”
“Well, you’ve come to the right place. Let me
set you up with some chai. I know that’s your favorite.” Abby went around the
counter and began working. She knew the exact blend her friend favored and even
had the milk Adrienne so dearly loved to put in it. She’d make a latte if she
could, but she only did that when she visited Thea’s bakery. Here at Teas’d, it
was all about the blends and steeping.
“That and some of that peppermint one for
later. It is the holidays. You have some peppermint, too, right?” Adrienne
bounced from foot to foot as if she’d already had her caffeine for the day.
Knowing Adrienne, she probably had but wanted more. Abby was happy to oblige.
“Oh, I have the peppermint. I also have that
white chocolate peppermint bark one that you love.” Both of them smiled, and
Abby watched as Adrienne rubbed her stomach with her hand, her eyes comically
wide.
“I might have to come back for that later.”
“I can always stop by with some tea. That is
what I’m here for.”
“You’re going to be a delivery person for tea
as well?”
“I can. Only for my friends.”
Abby didn’t actually serve brewed tea all that
often. Most people came to Teas’d for stock rather than just a cuppa. But she
did have a couple of places to sit outside, as well as one inside. It was
winter in Colorado Springs, so sitting outside wasn’t something that people did
often.
But Abby knew some did like to sit outside the bakery at the other end of the strip,
drinking their hot cocoa or coffee and braving the cold just because they were
Coloradans, and that’s what they did.
And while it didn’t happen often, she loved
when people came in for a cup to go, or even stayed to drink out of her ceramic
mugs. She had painstakingly searched forever for the cups that she wanted and
had ended up just going to Jake Gallagher to have them made.
Jake was an artist. He sculpted with his hands
and with his heart. He’d made the mugs for her, as well as other things she
could sell in the store.
She knew that he made art. Real art. And though she thought of her
teashop as its own kind of art—the way it made others feel was art itself—she
knew Jake was in a realm of his own.
With any other person, he might not have tried
to help her as he did, but they had a good relationship now, and she liked that
their working relationship meant that she could sell his wares and still use
everything that he made for her and her customers.
The Gallaghers were connected to the
Montgomerys through marriage, and Abby was tied to the Gallaghers through Max
since Jake’s brother Murphy had been one of Max’s best friends.
It was odd how everything seemed to tie
together and be so close—yet so far away.
She might have felt that she was on the
outside looking in once, but that wasn’t the case anymore. The Montgomerys and
the Gallaghers wouldn’t allow that.
And while both families had given her space to
breathe, they hadn’t given her enough room to bury herself. No, she wasn’t
thinking physically, she would never do that. Never to herself, never to Julia,
and never to Max’s memory.
But she had needed some time to figure out how
to be a single mom in this world. A mom without a real job and with only a
savings account for a dream that she’d never thought to have realized in the
timeframe she was forced to work in.
“That smells delicious,” Adrienne said.
“Seriously delicious.”
Abby smiled, knowing today would be a good
day, because it had to be. There was no other option when it came to tea.
“Here’s the chai, just for you. I put it in a
to-go cup, but if you want it out of a mug later, just let me know. I don’t
know how you and your elbows are doing today.”
Adrienne rolled her eyes. “That was Ryan’s
fault, not mine. He startled me, and my elbow broke that mug. I paid for it. I
went right up to Denver to ask Jake for another one. I am still so sorry about
that.”
Abby just smiled and shook her head, handing
over the tea. “I know it wasn’t your fault. I was just teasing. Though I do
have to watch out for all of you over at the shop. You are a wild bunch.”
Adrienne threw her head back and laughed.
“That we are. Although, I do have to say, Ryan might be the wildest of us all.”
Adrienne winked.
Abby frowned at that but didn’t say anything.
Was Adrienne trying to match up two of her single friends? She wasn’t sure if
she was ready for anything like that. Or if she could think about Ryan like
that at all.
He was handsome, that was for sure. And he
always had a soft smile for Abby and was really great with Julia whenever they
ran into each other. But that wasn’t often since Julia was usually with the
sitter when Abby was working. Or maybe Abby was just reading into what Adrienne
had said because she’d had a little too much caffeine that morning. It was time
to switch to herbal tea for the rest of the day if this was how she was going
to start thinking.
“You better hurry if you’re going to make your
appointment. I’ll be over later with any tea you need. Just call if you want
something different than the peppermint. Or if Mace or any of the others need
anything.”
Adrienne leaned over and hugged Abby hard
before taking her chai. “That I can do. It’s just me, Mace, and Ryan over
there. It’s Shep’s day off to hang out with the kiddos.”
“I’m glad that you guys are able to work it
out with all the kids. Daisy is with Shep as well?”
“Yes. Since we’re able to make our schedules
work, we don’t have to get an outside sitter as much.” Adrienne paused. “You
know, Julia’s always welcome to come over. I know that you would trade off with
us if you could. You don’t have to pay for a sitter. We Montgomerys make it work,
and you are an honorary Montgomery,
after all.” Abby didn’t shake her head or say no. She knew the others were just
trying to help, but it was sometimes hard to willingly accept help when she
wanted to stand on her own two feet. Plus, Abby didn’t want to have to rely on
anyone. Everything could change in an instant.
She shook off that thought and tried not to
think about what it meant. She knew she was thinking about Max and the fact
that she hadn’t really spoken to his family since the funeral. They hadn’t even
met their granddaughter. Hadn’t been involved in anything having to do with
Julia’s life. But that was okay. Abby would be okay. She had to be okay.
“I will talk to you later. And bring the tea.”
Adrienne just rolled her eyes. Probably because Abby hadn’t commented about the
daycare, but it didn’t matter.
The Montgomerys would just bring it up again,
and Abby would cave—because she would. Julia loved hanging out with Daisy and
Livvy. And since Julia and Livvy were close to the same age, it worked out
well. Soon, there would probably be more babies in the Montgomery world. They
might not have room for Julia.
Abby shook that thought out of her head as
Adrienne walked out of the store. And then she went back to work. There were
more teas to make, more blends to perfect. And peppermint tea and chocolate to
give to her friends later.
The day went on like normal. People came in
for tea, and more than one for gift baskets and Christmas presents. The
holidays were quickly approaching. So fast that Abby was sure she was behind on
her shopping. She tried to get some things for the Montgomerys, but most
everything was for Julia. She didn’t want her daughter to assume there would
always be gifts, something material. But she also wanted to spoil her baby just
enough.
Julia deserved to be spoiled.
When Abby went to bring over peppermint tea
for both Mace and Adrienne, Ryan was out on a personal call. She hadn’t asked
why, and she didn’t want to explore why her brain immediately went to her
wanting to know more about the man.
She shouldn’t want to know more about him. He
was a friend. Nothing more. And that meant she shouldn’t be thinking about how
he looked in his jeans every day. Or how much she liked the beautiful ink on
his arms.
Nope, she wouldn’t be thinking about any of
that, thank you very much.
As the day wore on, the snow started to fall a
little faster, a little harder. It had even begun to accumulate, which annoyed
her since the forecast hadn’t predicted it. Then again, the meteorologists were
rarely right these days.
Abby wasn’t really looking forward to driving
in the snow, but she was a native Coloradan, and she was used to it. There was
no use complaining about the precipitation in Colorado. That was like
complaining that there were mountains or high altitude.
Weather like this was just something one got
used to. The snow would probably melt the next day anyway. Even if the sun
shone and it was frigid outside, the precipitation did its own thing here in
Colorado.
As she made her way to the babysitter’s house
to pick up Julia, Abby knew that she would eventually have to ask the
Montgomerys for help. She didn’t like how long it took to get to the sitter’s.
If Julia stayed with one of the Montgomerys, she would actually be closer to
Abby throughout the day, and Abby would have an easier and shorter drive home.
It just made sense, and it would help out more people if she were there to add
to the days when someone could watch all of the children.
She knew she just had to give up control and
say yes.
But as the snow started to come down a little
more earnestly, Abby was afraid she might have a bit of a hard time getting to
her daughter tonight. And when she finally got there, it might be even more
difficult to get them home. Her windshield wipers flew back and forth, the
speed increasing, but so did the quickness of the snowfall.
She cursed herself once again for saying no to
the Montgomerys.
When she finally arrived, Julia was hyper but
not too much since Abby knew the babysitter didn’t give her extra sugar. This
was just Julia’s happy, bubbly way. Her daughter was an amazing baby
girl—though she wasn’t really a baby anymore, was she?
Julia was perfect in every way. No, Abby
wouldn’t tell her that she was perfect over and over again because that would
probably lead to issues down the road. But in Abby’s mind, her daughter was
perfect.
She had gone through so much in her short
life, even before she was born.
She was a survivor. Just like Abby.
Her daughter spread joy to everyone, even if
she was a little shy at times. But she was so graceful, so grateful. She shared
her toys with others, and always had a smile for those who might not want to.
If another kid was crying or just needed a hug, Julia was right there.
Sometimes even faster than the adults in the room.
In the car, Julia babbled on about her day,
using strings of words that wouldn’t really make any sense to anyone but Abby.
Because that was the role of the mother, to always understand what her baby
girl was saying, even if it didn’t make a lick of sense.
Darkness started to fall across Colorado. The
fact that it was December meant that there weren’t many hours of sunlight these
days. The snow fell harder, the wind getting a little bit brisker. Abby just
wanted to get home. She just wanted to be
home.
She was just turning onto the next street in
her route, knowing she was close to home but not close enough, when her tires
slid on the ice that she hadn’t seen.
She tried not to panic, tried to remember what
she was supposed to do in this situation. She didn’t twist her wheel hard, but
she did try to turn into the skid. It was no use.
She was sliding into the other lane of
traffic, and though there were no cars right now, that didn’t mean there
wouldn’t be some soon. Julia didn’t make a sound, Abby wasn’t even sure she
knew that something bad was happening.
Inside her head, Abby was screaming, her hands
tight on the wheel—so tight, she was afraid she’d lose circulation.
But she couldn’t focus on any of that. She
just had to concentrate on making sure they survived the skid. She had to make
sure that whatever they hit, they didn’t hit too hard.
The sound of her tires sliding across the ice
seemed loud in the vacuum of her panic.
It shouldn’t have sounded loud. But the rubber
did squeal, and Julia let out a sound in response that made Abby want to turn.
But she couldn’t. She had to keep her eyes on the road. The decision to do
that, to not look at her baby girl when her daughter might need her, broke her.
But she had to focus on what was in front of her.
The car hit the snowbank on the other side of
the street with a dull thud, not even jostling the vehicle as it did, and Abby
just sat there for a moment, her heartbeat so loud in her ears she couldn’t
hear anything else.
Everything had moved so slowly—and still did,
as if she hadn’t just been in a minor accident.
No other cars were coming, and there was no
one else on the road. She always took this route because there was less traffic
and fewer idiots out and about.
But it was cold, and there was nobody around
to help. Her car was still running, but she was halfway in a ditch and slammed
into a snowbank. Her body didn’t hurt, but her head did. Only because of the
headache, not anything else.
But Julia.
Oh my God. Julia.
Abby undid her seatbelt, trying to ignore the
fact that she just might pass out from the stress, and tuning out the cheery
Christmas music filling her car. This seemed like the worst time for Christmas
music, but then again, she didn’t know when a good time for it would be
anymore.
When she finally got turned around, Julia just
smiled and held out her hands for a hug. Abby practically crawled over the seat
back to check on her baby girl. They hadn’t hit hard, neither of them getting
jarred too badly. The car hadn’t even been going fast enough for the airbags to
go off.
Abby knew that she needed to figure out how to
get out of the ditch. Maybe she should call Carter. Or the cops. Then, she
remembered that Roxie’s husband Carter had just been in an accident and wasn’t
working at his shop. He wouldn’t be operating the tow truck.
Right then, all Abby wanted to do was cry
because she had no idea what to do.
But because she knew her baby was fine, that
both of them were fine, she got Julia out of her car seat and held her close.
She had to keep reminding herself that they
were okay. She wasn’t even shaking, even though she probably should have been.
Shock would likely do that to her later, but right now, she needed to hold her
baby girl.
Headlights suddenly filled the car, and Abby
closed her eyes and held Julia close, trying to protect her as best she could.
If a car hit them right then, Abby knew that
they were done for.
But as the light continued to fill her car,
the oncoming vehicle slowed.
The sound of a door opening and closing filled
Abby’s ears, followed by the sounds of a person walking, their shoes crunching
on the snow.
Someone tapped on the window and called out
her name.
Her name.
They knew her.
But because she and Julia had fogged up the
windows, Abby couldn’t see who it was. She scooted over in the backseat and
opened the car door.
“Ryan,” she breathed. “Ryan.”
She had never been happier to see his bearded
face.
Ryan frowned down at her, looked at Julia in
her arms, and let out a soft curse. “Are you okay, Abby? What the hell
happened?”
She just looked at him, and then promptly
burst into tears.
About Carrie Ann Ryan
Carrie Ann Ryan is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary and paranormal romance. Her works include the Montgomery Ink, Redwood Pack, Talon Pack, and Gallagher Brothers series, which have sold over 2.0 million books worldwide. She started writing while in graduate school for her advanced degree in chemistry and hasn’t stopped since. Carrie Ann has written over fifty novels and novellas with more in the works. When she’s not writing about bearded tattooed men or alpha wolves that need to find their mates, she’s reading as much as she can and exploring the world of baking and gourmet cooking.
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