Naked Truths

 
He’s a grieving widower, the perfect boyfriend, and the prime suspect…
Lucy knows the importance of boundaries. As a massage therapist, she keeps her work and her personal life completely separate. But when a handsome widower shows up on her table and sparks an instant attraction, Lucy is shameless. Breaking her rule, she crosses the line, triggering a series of thrilling mysteries.
Paula isn’t so sure about her best friend’s perfect man… or the story of his wife’s death. To uncover the truth, the former detective infiltrates his social circle. When she examines a scandalous lodger, a jealous brother, and a protective mother-in-law, everyone seems to have a hidden motive for murder…
Lucy is torn between her old friend and her dark new love. Will she follow her head or her heart? And can Paula discover the true killer before her friend makes a fateful mistake?
Naked Truths is the first book in a series of pulse-pounding romantic suspense books. If you like the odd steamy sex scene, complex characters, and twists you won’t see coming, then you’ll love the suspense of Karen Botha’s gripping romantic suspense.
The rest of the Naked Series of gripping mystery romances can be read as stand alones or as part of the series and are free on Kindle Unlimited.

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Excerpt
Naked Truths was the first novel that I wrote and as such it is based very much on my personal experiences. It's just been in to a kick-ass editor for a complete overhaul. Even after the countless hours poring over it, this still remains one of my favorite sections because this happened. I went to Blackmore show with my dad and after he almost knocked over a passing cyclist trying to park on a country lane, I saw one of my massage clients and felt all the emotional turmoil that Lucy experiences when caught out of her comfort zone.
Parking is easy, barring the close shave with a passing cyclist who bangs on the car in disgust. Giggling at the poor chap, mischief in our bellies, we hop out, eager to win a ton of junk on the raffle that we’ll only throw away later.
A steel band kicks off as we slam the car doors shut. We’re in the midst of an instant carnival. I do a funny shuffly walk, swaying my hips as I cross the road toward the event. I’m not alone. People are laughing and dancing in the sun to any rhythm other than that of the metal drums. It doesn’t matter. The sun is shining, music is playing, and it’s fun.
We head for the stalls nearest the beer tent and grab a cool drink to help us on our way.
“Are you still enjoying being a massage therapist?” Paula is obviously still mulling over our earlier conversation.
“Yeah, totally,” I lower my voice. “I had a real lovely specimen in earlier this weekend.”
“Oh,” she’s unimpressed, distracted by a stall displaying scarves and home crafted jewelry. After browsing what any market stall sells for half the price, we’re off with purpose to the hog roast, which is the highlight of our Sunday.
“It’s a long line and it’s not even lunch time.” Someone speeds up to jump in front of us. We leave them to it, exchanging a look of mutual derision for this unmannered individual.
“It has the aroma of being somewhat overcooked,” Paula is not wrong. Never mind, I’ve been dreaming about this.
“I’ll stand in line for ten minutes to pay an over-inflated price for bread lathered with more butter than pork,” I roll my eyes.
“And we will enjoy it because the smell demands it,” she throws in. So, there we are, happily standing in line for a guaranteed disappointment, when I spot a face in the crowd at the other side of the serving girl.
There it is.
That thump in my chest. Again.
“Don’t look now, but that guy there is Giles. He’s the hottie client I was telling you about, the one from Friday.”
“Where? Don’t look where?” she hisses, eyes darting in every direction. I try to point him out discreetly. For once Paula does not do the embarrassing thing I expect. She’s quiet.
“He’s familiar but I can’t place him. He’s handsome. I can see how he got your juices flowing.”
I try to keep my rapid breathing under control as the line edges closer to the counter. Closer to him. I pray I’m not blushing and that my forehead isn’t shiny from the heat. Oh no, do I smell? It’s such a hot day.
“Oh hi again.” He notices me as we draw near.
“Hi,” I’m as cool as I can muster, “didn’t see you there.”
“Fancy bumping into you here. You enjoy these kinds of things then?” he asks, but I’m sure I mentioned the other day we were coming. It could have been another client, I can’t be one hundred percent certain.
“Yeah,” I reply instead of grilling him.
We stand in awkward silence, the hairs bristle on the back of my neck until the line finally moves forward. I’m unable to remove a kind of polite half-smile that tells him I have no clue how to react beyond the initial niceties. I find myself fidgeting with my hands, wringing my fingers.
Here, I’m the real Lucy; thirty-two, (just) single and a little fatter in places than I’d choose, but not enough to bother me. And here he is with nowhere to hide.
When we are past him and I’m sure he won’t notice, I sneak a wary glance to my left to judge Paula’s reaction. She has remained unusually silent throughout the exchange.
“You’ve got a crush on him, haven’t you?” She whispers even though Giles is now a distance away. I discard the sense there’s more to her throw away comment. “Yeah, he’s a bit of a dish, but he’s a client.”
“What difference does that make?” She shoots me a quick smile, then focuses on the tasks dictated by arriving at the front of the line. We both order our much-anticipated slice of dry pork in a stale roll then head to the refreshments tent to grab a drink.
Lo and behold, Giles is loitering. I had kept a sneaky eye on him, just to be prepared, obviously. He’d headed in this general direction, but I lost him when I placed my order and was required to behave like a rational adult. Primed now, I’m now overjoyed to see him re-emerge from the crowd.


Author Bio 
Naked Truths Karen Botha Author Face
 Karen Botha was born in Lincolnshire, England where her father was in the Royal Air Force. As a young girl she always had a passion for reading and writing, studying English Language before University.

Working most of her adult life in digital marketing didn’t leave her much time to pursue her passion for stories. But, at the age of 36 she retrained as a reflexologist and started working for herself. This helped her free up more than enough time to enjoy a re-found passion; writing.
Her first novel was inspired by the true life experiences of her clients. But don’t believe everything you read, she has more than enough imagination to catch you out with twist and turns galore.
She enjoys romance, travelling and motor sport, which also provide her inspiration for her books.
She currently lives in London with her husband and rescue dog, Shadow.

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