Today we have a Q&A, Excerpt & Giveaway
to celebrate the release of BACK TO YOU by Jessica Scott
Q&A
1. You
first introduced Trent and Laura a few years ago and readers have
been eagerly awaiting their story for a few years. Did you always
know when you first created them in BECAUSE OF YOU that this was how
their story would play out?
I
knew they would have a story to tell but telling their story in this
particular way, no I didn’t intend it. It took finding my amazing
editor along with multiple attempts at trial and error to get them
just right. I’m a nervous wreck about their story but I’m also
really excited because I’m very happy with how their story turned
out. Plus, hamsters. Who can argue with that, right?
2. BACK
TO YOU is the incredibly emotional story of a marriage at the
breaking point. What or who inspired you to write this story?
I
remember standing in the ops one day and one of the guys was on the
phone with his wife. He was telling her how much he was sorry, how
much he didn’t want to work late. Then one of the other guys
remarked that he always says that but he doesn’t ever mean it. So I
had this idea of a man who was so driven to get back to war that he
let his entire family and personal life suffer but I also wanted a
wife who people could relate to, as well. Laura is Trent’s perfect
compliment.
3. In
your own personal life, you’ve been the soldier that has deployed
to a war zone and the spouse that stayed home and has taken care of
the family on the home front. Which was more difficult for you in
your experience? And why?
That’s
a much bigger topic than we have time for but I’ll say this: each
one has it’s own unique challenges. Being deployed, not being able
to get home when your kids are crying that they want mommy, that’s
brutal. It rips your soul out. But then coming home and your reality
doesn’t live up to the fantasy? In some ways, I think it’s worse,
and that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. As far as being the
wife at home? I remember vividly lying awake at night, obsessively
checking to make sure my ringer was turned on. I never cared when he
called I just wanted to hear his voice. So which one is worse? I
can’t really say. But I’m grateful that we’ve made it through
each one a little bit stronger, you know?
4. Which
is your favorite story to write—a reunion romances like Trent and
Laura’s where each scene is alive with their own history or a
fresh romance where they meet for the very first time and everything
is new? Why?
I
love a reunion story. I love the idea being able to forgive and love
the person you’re with right then and not the memory of someone.
I’m a huge sucker for reunion stories, honestly. I love the
reconnection, the noting of how things have changed, of learning to
love that person all over again, especially after a betrayal or
things didn’t work in the past.
5. Trent
is such a compelling character and you do a beautiful job of showing
his survivor’s guilt and the resulting anxiety and fear that
provokes in him. He’s both so alpha and strong and so very
broken. What inspired you to create such a complicated hero? A
real life person? A culmination of your own experiences? What
you’ve seen yourself in the army? And were you at all concerned
about the way readers would respond to him?
Trent
is going to be hard for people to read, I suspect. He comes close to
crossing some boundaries and I wanted to do that deliberately: I
wanted people to understand that coming home from war isn’t cured
in a day or a week. It’s a process. Someone like Trent who has bled
in combat isn’t going to be okay after a night of magical sex. I
know that’s the fantasy but I wanted something more: I wanted the
fantasy that the couple will be strong enough to make it. So for me,
Trent is deeply, deeply personal because I’ve seen friends struggle
with some very tough choices. And the truth is, there is no magical
cure but there can still be a happily ever after if you have someone
strong enough to stand with you.
6. Laura
is such an amazing character because she’s done the best for her
family at every turn and supported her husband. But when all
communication breaks down with her husband and he just keeps
deploying, she serves her husband with divorce papers while he’s
serving. It seems like such a taboo to serve papers while your
spouse is deployed—is that true? And why did you choose to have
Laura, the ultimate good wife, respond this way?
Laura
sending Trent divorce papers while deployed I think is the ultimate
prohibition. It’s just wrong on so many levels and yet, I wanted
to give readers a sense of what could drive someone to their breaking
point. Laura is such a strong woman and yet she broke. The strongest
of us all have our breaking points. I wanted to show people how hard
the war has been on everyone--not just the soldiers deploying but on
the kids, on the spouses--but I also wanted to give people hope, too.
7. Agent
Chaos and Fluffy, the family hamsters, almost steal the show with
their disappearing acts and they add the perfect amount of cuteness
and comic relief. What inspired you to add them into the story?
Ah
Fluffy and Agent Chaos. So for readers who don’t know, we have
hamsters. It all started when we volunteered to buy the pre-k class
pet. I didn’t realize that this would include home visits for the
holidays. Fluffy was the first hamster and she promptly escaped
within the first 24 hours. After that, we’ve become a multiple
hamster household and well, when they escape, it’s madness because
we have dogs and cats who, by some miracle, haven’t actually ever
managed to capture one of the little buggers.
This
story badly needed something to lighten it up. I thought adding in
some escaping rodents would be the perfect thing to break up a really
tough interaction between Trent and his kids. They provided a bridge
for him to cross, a way to reach them while he was still getting used
to them.
8. Big
wedding or small? Hamsters or dogs? Sweats or lingerie?
Small
wedding. Both hamsters and dogs and cats. Sweats all the way.
9. Emma
and Ethan, Trent and Laura’s kids, are adorable and watching Trent
learn how to be a dad again is an amazing thing. How do you think
Trent got so detached from his family?
Coming
home to be a parent again is probably the hardest thing soldiers do.
The kids have changed, they have their own wants and needs and, well,
they’re not your soldiers. They don’t listen like your soldiers
have to. The noise and the chaos and the constant needs are really
tough to get used to again, so I think Trent just ran away because it
was too much to deal with.
10. Since
this is such an emotionally charged story, was it difficult for you
to write? Or did it come easily?
It
was very, very difficult to write. I wanted to push boundaries and
create at least a glimpse of what it’s like to come home. I wanted
to give readers a taste of the emotions that people go through, the
fear, the uncertainty but also the love and the hope and the relief
that their loved one is home safe.
11. Since
you’ve been in Trent’s shoes, what is the hardest thing about
readjusting to civilian life after a deployment?
The
crowds and the entitlement. To this day, I won’t go into crowded
stores or wait in crowds. It’s suffocating. And it’s funny
because when I first came home, I was so annoyed at people
complaining about lines and traffic and school starting. I was just
so grateful to be back. Now, I’m much more sympathetic to everyday
gripes and groans. I think it’s just part of how we get through our
days.
He's in for the fight of his life . . .
Army
captain Trent Davila loved his wife, Laura, and their two beautiful
children. But when he almost lost his life in combat, something inside
him died. He couldn't explain the emptiness he felt or bridge the
growing distance between him and his family—so he deployed again. And
again. And again . . . until his marriage reached its breaking point.
Now, with everything on the line, Trent has one last chance to prove to
his wife that he can be the man she needs . . . if she'll have him
. . . to win back his only love.
Laura
is blindsided when Trent returns home. Time and again, he chose his men
over his family, and she's just beginning to put the pieces of her
shattered heart back together. But when Trent faces a court martial on
false charges, only Laura can save him. What begins as an act of
kindness to protect his career inflames a desire she thought long
buried—and a love that won't be denied. But can she trust that this time
he's back to stay?
Series: Coming Home #3
Release Date: January 7, 2014
Excerpt
“So,
to what do I owe the honor of this visit?” she asked, minimizing
her e-mail to be able to focus.
“Don’t
throw me out of the office,” he said, trying to keep his voice
light. “But I need to talk to you about Trent’s case.”
Laura
leaned back in her chair, folding her arms over her chest, and
started counting to ten.
“I
know you’re having a hard time with him.”
Laura
sucked on her top lip for a moment before answering. “I wouldn’t
necessarily call filing for divorce a hard time.”
“And
that’s what I need to talk to you about.”
“Patrick…”
“Just
hear me out, okay?”
She
ground her teeth but after a moment nodded.
“Listen,
there’s no case against Trent. It’s weak at best. With the
Article 32 about to start, we have a good chance of getting it
stopped here before it goes to court-martial. But I need to plant
doubt that the allegations against him are true.” He met her gaze.
“I need you to do that.”
Laura
chewed on her bottom lip, playing his words over and over in her
head, not understanding what he was asking of her. “What do you
mean, you need to plant doubt?”
“The
primary witness against your husband, PFC Adorno—”
“Oh,
we’ve met,” Laura said dryly.
Patrick’s
smile was humorless. “Yes, well, that’s part of the prosecution’s
problem. She’s alleging that Trent was inappropriate but the
problem is that she and Lieutenant Randall were caught in their
shenanigans downrange.”
Laura
frowned. “So you think this is a ploy to get herself out of
trouble?
“Her
and her husband. If they were working together to steal the missing
weapons systems, then what better way to get out of trouble than to
make this stuff up against Trent? Takes the focus off her and her
husband completely.” Patrick leaned forward, tapping his index
finger on the desk. “If I can cast Trent as a sympathetic family
man who would never do anything like what she’s alleging, this case
is all but dismissed. I’m not attacking her. All I have to do is
make Trent look better than the story she’s telling and we’ve got
a win.”
“And
you need me to paint on a happy face and be the loving wife.”
Patrick
shook his head. “No, I need you to be one half of a loving couple.
And I need you to do it publicly where everyone can see it—in the
PX, in the chow hall, everywhere. I need the officers on this board
to believe exactly what I’ll be telling them on the day of the
hearing.”
She
looked down at her empty ring finger, absently rubbing the bare skin
beneath the bandage. “Everyone knows that we’re having problems,
Patrick.”
“Then
make sure everyone knows you’ve fixed it.” He leaned back. “I
wouldn’t ask you to do this if I didn’t think it was our best
shot at getting this whole thing thrown out.”
She
looked up at him. “Why didn’t Trent ask me to do this?”
Patrick
swallowed and looked away. “He refused to drag you into this,” he
said quietly. “For what it’s worth, I don’t in a million years
believe the allegations against Trent. I don’t think he would ever,
ever be unfaithful to you.”
Laura
pressed her lips together in a flat line. “You’re wrong, Patrick.
He’s been cheating on me for years. It was just with the army
instead of another woman.”
“Laura—”
“Let
me think about it,” she said quickly. “I won’t say no out of
hand but I can’t make this decision on a whim.”
Patrick
leaned across the desk, gripping her hand. “I know this is hard for
you, Laura. I know what I’m asking you to do.”
She
said nothing for a long moment and he gave her a sympathetic but firm
smile. “Give it some thought, okay?”
When
she was alone, she sat there, staring at the picture of her family.
Wondering how she was going to bring him back into the kids’ lives
and then rip him out again. What he was asking wasn’t fair. He had
no idea what this was going to do to her family.
She
glanced at the photo on her desk as she typed furiously, trying to
get ahead of the flood of e-mails in her inbox.
There
was a quiet rap on her office door. “I’m not here,” she said
quickly, looking up.
Her
fingers froze on the keyboard. Her heart stopped in her chest.
Trent
stood in the doorway. He had a duffle bag slung over his shoulder.
His glasses hid the darkness of his eyes. There was a streak of dirt
on his cheek. An assault pack hung limply from his left hand.
A
thousand emotions ripped through her all at once, rioting for
supremacy as she drank in the sight of her husband.
Ex-husband,
she reminded herself. Or at least he was supposed to be.
She
wished that this were a normal homecoming. One where she would rush
across the small space and crash into him. His arms would come around
her and she would inhale the strong spicy scent of his skin. Feel the
heat of his touch. Savor that first, wild kiss.
Instead
she had this. This empty chasm between them, echoing with loneliness.
And
she had no idea how to cross it.
About the author:
USA Today bestselling
author Jessica Scott is a career
army officer; mother of two daughters, three cats and three dogs; wife
to a career NCO and wrangler of all things stuffed and fluffy. She is a
terrible cook and even worse housekeeper, but she's a pretty good shot
with her assigned weapon and someone liked
some of the stuff she wrote. Somehow, her children are pretty
well-adjusted and her husband still loves her, despite burned water and a
messy house.
She's written for the New York Times At War Blog, PBS Point of View: Regarding War Blog, and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. She deployed to Iraq in 2009
as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom/New Dawn and has served as a company commander at Fort Hood, Texas.
She's pursuing a PhD in Sociology in her spare time and most recently, she's been featured as one of Esquire Magazine's Americans of the Year for 2012.
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