At home in the Florida Keys on medical leave, undercover agent Jack Benton is on a mission to save his beloved aunt’s failing dolphin facility. He’s sure he can close a seven-figure deal, until his sassy Aunt Ruby accepts the proposal of a world renowned marine mammal scientist, Dr. Vic Sheffield. Against his better judgment, Jack must cooperate with the project, or break Ruby’s heart. More than the temperature in the Florida Keys heats up when Dr. Victoria Sheffield finesses her way into the facility under the guise of her famous father’s name, hoping to finally establish herself as a top notch researcher. A lifetime of behavioral observation hasn’t prepared her, however, for a suspicious, sexy homosapien like Jack Benton. She’ll need every last point of her elevated IQ to outwit this wily alpha male. He knows she’s hiding something, and sooner or later he’ll figure it out. And to complicate matters, it’s not only his suspicions Victoria is arousing. When things begin to heat up between the scientist and the undercover agent, a Category Five attraction may cause the biggest storm of the season.
A voracious book fan since first learning to read, I fell in love with romance novels while pursuing my B.A. degree in English decades ago. A professional writer since someone first paid me to write radio commercials while I was still in college, I always dreamed of writing a book someday. Eventually, I realized that a book wouldn't spring fully written from my brain so I'd better get cracking.
All Keyed Up, a humorous contemporary romance set at a dolphin facility in the Florida Keys with a determined researcher and a stubborn DEA agent, is my debut novel, originally published in print format a few years ago. Key of Sea, published a year later, proves that an ex-trophy wife can create a new life for herself, find love again with a younger man, and successfully battle land crabs.
I updated both of my books prior to releasing them electronically. I'm hard at work on a new project, which will also be set in the Florida Keys - the beautiful, fun, slightly abnormal island chain that I call home.
I love to hear from readers. Please email me at mary@mary-stella.com.
