Bloo Moose Romance BoxSet 3 (Books #7-9), page 1
Bloo Moose Romance BoxSet 3 (Books #7-9)
Jemi Fraser
Published by Jemi Fraser, 2022.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
BLOO MOOSE ROMANCE BOXSET 3 (BOOKS #7-9)
First edition. February 22, 2022.
Copyright © 2022 Jemi Fraser.
ISBN: 978-1990092152
Written by Jemi Fraser.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Bloo Moose Romance BoxSet 3 (Books #7-9)
Jemi Fraser
A Bloo Moose Romance | Jemi Fraser
Into The Bloo
Scaredy-Moose
Moose Prints
Look What The Moose Dragged In
Out Of The Bloo
Go Moose Wild!
Cat & Moose Games
Let The Moose Out Of The Bag
Ugly Mooseling
Moose To A Flame
Your Moose Is Cooked
Let Sleeping Mooses Lie
The Moose's Den
A Fine Kettle Of Moose
Moose On The Loose
A Moose Out Of Water
Feeling Bloo
The Moose In The Room
Talk Until You're Bloo In The Face
Cry Moosey
Games Mooses Play
Moose Over Heels
Til The Mooses Come Home
A Bloo Moose Romance | Jemi Fraser | Just Jemi Books | Canada | 2021
The Wrath Of Khan
Discovery
A New Hope
The Fred Wars
First Contact
The Phantom Menace
Reboot
The Force Is Strong
Jedi Mind Tricks
Into Darkness
I Am Your Father
A Long Time Ago
The Menagerie
The Undiscovered Country
You Do Have Your Moments
Encounter At High Reaches
Solo
Engage
The Voyage Home
The Force Awakens
Live Long and Prosper
A Bloo Moose Romance | Jemi Fraser | Just Jemi Books | Canada | 2021
Baby It's Cold Outside
Let It Snow!
O Little Town Of Bloo Moose
Jingle Bells
Have Yourself A Merry Little MooseMas
The Polar Express
I'm Dreaming Of A White MooseMas
Deck The Halls
It Must Have Been The Moosletoe
The Grinch
Do You Know What I Know?
Visions Of Sugar Plums
Home Alone
Frozen
It's Christmas Time In Bloo Moose
We Wish You A Merry MooseMas
All I Want For MooseMas
O MooseMas Tree
Hallelujah
'Twas The Night Before MooseMas
A Merry MooseMas To All
I'll Be Home For MooseMas
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Also By Jemi Fraser
About the Author
Bloo Moose #7-9
Reaching For Roots
Reaching For Family
Reaching For Home
Jemi Fraser
Just Jemi Books
Canada
2022
BLOO Moose Box Set 3 (#7-9)
ISBN 978-1-990092-15-2
Copyright @ 2022 Jemi Fraser
Self-published
All rights reserved
Reaching For Roots
Copyright @ 2021 Jemi Fraser
Reaching For Family
Copyright @ 2021 Jemi Fraser
Reaching For Home
Copyright @ 2021 Jemi Fraser
No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Moose icon by Moose Moose at TheNounProject.com
Alpaca and solar panel icon by Freepik on Flatiron.com
Snowflake icon created by Surang at Flaticon
Cover design by JB and Jemi Fraser
by Jemi Fraser
Contemporary Romance
Bloo Moose Romances
Reaching For Normal (#1 Myla and Sawyer)
Reaching For Risks (#2 Darby and Quinn)
Reaching For Everything (#3 Kami and Rayce)
Reaching For Balance (#4 Rebecca and Gage)
Reaching For Christmas (#5 Lil and Max)
Reaching For Trust (#6 Trina and Jack)
Reaching For Roots (#7 Emmy and Ryan)
Reaching For Family (#8 Jenna and Noah)
Reaching For Home (#9 Jaz and Nia)
Small Town Heroes
Built Of Secrets (#1 Tansy and Sam)
Built Of Strength (#2 Aisling and Graham)
Nonfiction
Dancing With Dementia: Recognizing and Coping with the Early Stages of Dementia
A Bloo Moose Romance
Jemi Fraser
Just Jemi Books
Canada
2021
CARTOONIST Emmy Rivera loves everything about the quirky town of Bloo Moose, but that doesn’t mean she’s ready to put down roots. That’s never worked out for her in the past.
Undercover agent Ryan Ward is always on the move, taking down criminal masterminds like the one who caused his dad’s death.
Ryan doesn’t expect the only connection to his latest target to be a sweet and sexy cartoonist who makes him want to rethink everything.
Putting down roots might not be so bad. If the lies don’t destroy them first.
REACHING FOR ROOTS is the seventh book in the Bloo Moose Romance series. Each book can be read as a standalone. The book contains some strong language and sexy times. Enjoy the read!
To the stick figure artist
in all of us!
Into The Bloo
Emmy Rivera gripped the key tightly in her hand and struggled to breathe. All she had to do was sign on the dotted line and the key would be hers.
Along with monthly commitment to the bank and all kinds of strings attached.
Strings tying her to one place.
Strings tying her to a business.
A home.
So many strings.
Emmy drew in a deep breath to stop the room from spinning.
People did this kind of thing every day. Normal people. Which didn’t describe her very well.
Maybe this was the wrong time.
The wrong place.
She could hear Nathan’s voice in her head telling her to breathe. Her best friend had pushed her into looking at the space. Into considering it as an option.
What did he know about retail? Firefighters weren’t experts on leases and business and selling things. Certainly not cartoon things.
But she’d promised him she would give it an honest evaluation. Promised him she wouldn’t run at the first obstacle.
Even if that first obstacle was her.
Could she put down roots?
The thought simultaneously made her smile and made her want to throw up.
Signing a lease meant permanence. Nowhere to run when things went wrong. As they always did.
Always.
Pessimist.
She wanted to be an optimist but it was hard to work against twenty-eight years of experience.
“Okay, space, talk to me. Do you think we’d make a good team?”
Sadly, the space didn’t offer an opinion.
Emmy looked around the main room. Huge windows opened onto Bloo Moose’s boardwalk. The view was absolutely killer. No complaints there.
The quirky Vermont town strung itself along the lakefront. Any business on Boardwalk Avenue got good tourist traffic throughout the year.
Apparently people liked fishing in the winter. Who knew? Hard to even imagine the huge lake covered in ice thick enough to support snowmobiles.
The space was also on a corner. More visibility. Another check in the plus column.
The main room had a counter near the back wall and plenty of floor space. Hardwood floors were scuffed and worn from years of feet but still looked great.
Emmy opened the door to the private rooms on the main floor. An office space and bathroom with another door to a hallway.
That hallway lead to the back door, a storage space and then a set of stairs leading up to an apartment.
She knew all this.
She’d seen all this.
Because this was her third trip and she was waffling.
Terrified to take the step.
Terrified to stay in one place.
And terrified that if she didn’t take the risk, she never would.
Emmy didn’t want to be a coward but being brave was hard.
The walls started to close in on her and she suddenly needed air. Outdoors air.
Emmy flew out of the front door of the shop and smacked into something.
&
Before she could fall flat on her face, strong hands grabbed her and pulled her upright.
Upright and closeup to the owner of those arms.
A total stranger with a sparkling grin and amusement in his eyes.
Great.
“You okay?”
Emmy nodded. The deep voice resonated with her. She loved a good rumbly voice.
And strong arms. Check.
When she didn’t answer immediately, the amusement changed to concern. “Are you hurt?” His eyes flashed to the store behind her. “Is something wrong?”
Nice guy. Check.
Emmy managed a smile. After eight months in Bloo Moose she knew everyone by sight. This guy must be a tourist and that meant she didn’t need her brave face at the moment.
“I’m fine. Just having a cowardly moment and a slight panic attack.”
His eyes cut back to hers. Deep brown like his wavy hair. This guy checked a whole lot of boxes.
Amusement sparkled back in his eyes and his hands moved gently up and down her arms offering comfort.
“You afraid of empty stores? Or was it the broad daylight? Wait. Is the store haunted?”
Emmy grinned. Sense of humor. Check.
Check, check, check.
“Haunted by my fears and insecurities, maybe.”
“Well, let me offer some protection. Make sure the ghosts of insecurities don’t get you.”
Emmy huffed out a laugh. “I’m probably good.”
“Probably? I’d say you’re good. Why don’t you tell me about these insecurities anyway. I’m going to guess that the For Lease sign has something to do with your stress.”
“Good guess.”
He heaved out a dramatic sigh. “And here I was waiting for a compliment on my superior detecting skills.”
This man was a cutie and a charmer. And every girlie part of Emmy wanted to grab him and hang on tight. If he was a tourist, it could be a fun ride.
She hadn’t felt such a zip of chemistry with a man in a long time. Maybe ever.
Or maybe that was the panic about the space talking.
He gave her arms a gentle squeeze then turned her and slung his arm over her shoulder so that they faced the store.
“Pros and cons. Go.”
“A pragmatic list maker, are you? Okay, fine.”
Emmy drew in a deep breath and forced her thoughts off the man she wanted to lean into and onto the space.
“Pros. Great location. The space only requires fresh paint. Comes with an apartment above. Also in good shape.”
When she didn’t continue, he asked. “Cons?”
A lease. A declaration of permanence. A tie that bound.
And the biggie. “Potential to fall flat on my face.”
He squeezed her into him and leaned down to whisper. “You already tried that. And you survived.”
She laughed. “This would be a bigger fall. With a big price tag.”
“What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Aside from the failure thing?”
He shrugged. “Everyone fails. Part of being human.”
She’d never thought of failure like that before.
“We try. We fail. We pick ourselves back up and try again.”
“And fail again.”
He squeezed her again. “Sure. But not always. Not every time. Maybe this is your time.”
Emmy swallowed. He sounded like Nathan. “And how am I supposed to know that?”
His chuckle was warm and soothing. “You’re not. You’re supposed to take a risk and jump into the void.”
“That doesn’t sound like a lot of fun.”
Another chuckle. “Weigh the risks against the rewards. What’s the best that could happen?”
Hmm. Another new way of thinking.
The best.
She could find a place. Her place.
Her hobby could become a legitimate job.
She could be happy.
Another squeeze on her shoulder preceded another chuckle.
“Congratulations. I think you’ve made a decision.”
With a cocky salute and a dazzling smile the stranger left her alone.
Standing in front of her future.
CONTACT.
Ryan Ward could barely suppress the grin as he strolled down the boardwalk.
Talk about serendipity. He hadn’t been in Bloo Moose for more than a couple of hours and he’d made contact.
After his GPS had driven him to the middle-of-nowhere Vermont, he’d dumped his suitcases in his middle-of-nowhere little rental house and headed to town.
And literally bumped into his target.
Proof positive that he was finally in the right place at the right time. Paul Wilson was going down and Ryan couldn’t wait to be the key that turned the lock on the man’s jail cell.
Ryan was thrilled he’d managed to make a positive connection with his target so easily. Naturally.
She’d never suspected a thing.
Probably because of her panic about renting the space. Now he had a natural in with her. It would be easy to drop in and see her again.
Find out how she was progressing.
Bring her a coffee.
With those deep dark eyes, gorgeous black hair, and sweet, sexy curves, it wasn’t going to be a hardship to strike up a friendship with the woman.
Emmy Rivera was friendly and easy to like.
Even her sweatshirt had been fun. BlooMers written in a silly font with a couple of moose peeking out from behind the letters.
Had to be a Bloo Moose reference.
He’d ask her next time as a way to start up a conversation.
This was the best of all possible beginnings.
Several people nodded and smiled at him as he walked the boardwalk. Friendly town full of friendly people.
Everything was looking great.
Now to make his second contact of the day.
Outside of the police station stood one of the huge moose statues scattered throughout the town. This one wore a police cap and uniform. He also sported a huge badge showing he was #1 and his name was Deputy Mooris.
Smiling, Ryan headed into the station. Bloo Moose was going to be a fun assignment on many fronts.
Inside the station a counter separated the lobby from where the work happened. Although only two of them were occupied, six desks filled with modern-looking computers filled the space.
A woman with a bright smile popped up from her desk and approached the counter. “Hi. How can I help you?”
“I have an appointment with Chief Belanger.”
“You must be Ryan Mitchell. Welcome to Bloo Moose. Come on back this way and I’ll introduce you to Dave. I’m Leila, by the way. And that’s Scott over there.”
Scott lifted a hand and waved but didn’t take his eyes or his scowl off his computer screen. Something was making the big man unhappy.
Ryan followed the pretty Leila down a short hallway. Clean, bright building. No small-town nightmare police station for Bloo Moose.
At an open doorway, Leila knocked and waved Ryan forward. “Hey, Dave. Ryan Mitchell is here.”
The police chief’s office was tiny. His desk faced the wall so the man’s back was to the door. Leaving his computer screen visible to anyone who walked by, although there was nothing but a photo of Bloo Moose lake on the screen now.
Ryan’s research had pointed at Dave Belanger being an upstanding officer of the law. One who’d turned down job offers from around the country and from various organizations.
He was apparently content with his job. And good enough at it that Ryan’s superiors had deemed it necessary to bring him in on the assignment.
Belanger rose to his feet and offered his hand in a firm shake. No posturing or silly exertion of pretend-power.
“Dave Belanger.”
“Ryan Mitchell.”
Dave did nothing more than raise an eyebrow a millimetre but it made Ryan aware the chief knew that wasn’t his actual name. Well, it was. But Mitchell was his middle name. For this assignment, it would replace Ward as his surname.
Dave reached around Ryan and swung the door shut and Ryan realized one advantage of the teeny-tiny office.
Dave owned the space. Filled it. And anyone in the room with him knew it.
Ryan was glad he was on the right side of the law.
Belanger backed up and crossed his arms over his chest. “The calls from the IRS and the Treasury Department didn’t give me much information. Asked for my cooperation. Said they wanted you to go undercover as one of my deputies. They asked me to say nothing about it to anyone. I want to know what you’re doing in my town.”
