Author P J MacLayne on Handbag and Book - Not big on handbags and #newbook Wolves Gambit #romance #designerhandbag #organizer

I'm not big on handbags. I've never owned a designer name bag. In fact, there was a time when I traveled a lot for my job that I carried an organizer instead. It fit into my travel pack better and everything I needed was easy to find.

The purse I carry now is a workhorse. It's got room for a notepad, assorted pens, my cellphone, wallet and assorted other stuff. It's got rings on the outside so I can attach easily my keys to it. It's ugly but functional.

I do own one purse that I've had for years and rarely use. It's too small to carry everything I want to tote around. I bought it with a gift card I was given so it didn't feel as if I was wasting my money on a purse that was more decorative than useful. But I like it!

Why? Because it's leather, it's purple, and it has fringes! What more could I ask for! I use it once in a while for special occasions, but most of the time it lives in my closet.

The main character in my new book rarely carries a purse. She keeps a small backpack packed and handy in case she needs to make a quick exit out of town.

Wolf-shifter Lori Grenville was rescued from near-slavery and a brutal pack leader by the Free Wolves. To pay back the favor, she's dedicated her life to helping others in the same situation, leading shifters to safety and a new start, risking her life in the process. She's faced down alphas and has no qualms in undermining pack structure.

Now she's challenged with the task of restoring an alpha to his rightful place. If she gets it right, she can stop a war from ripping apart two packs and spreading across an entire state. If she fails, she'll be among the first to die.

There's still the option of walking away and letting the Jaeger and Destin packs destroy each other. That means she'll fail in her original mission of rescuing the daughter of the Jaeger alpha before the girl is forced into marriage for political gain.

Lori hasn't failed in a mission yet. This one may be the exception.

         As they bumped along the road, she worked on a plan to ditch him as quickly as possible. The burner phone hid in her purse, buried beneath the carefully planted clutter of lipsticks, assorted old receipts, and tissues.

         He didn’t look the type to take kindly to being asked to wait in the truck while she ran her errands. Charity didn’t offer enough activities to allow her to lose him in a crowd, one of her specialties. It didn’t have a shoe store where she could bore him into leaving after watching her try on shoe after shoe after shoe. But another kind of purchase practically guaranteed he’d go running back to the safety of the truck.

         Her shopping began in the grocery store. She needed napkins and paper towels for the bar and that aisle was a convincing place to start. Then she moved on to the snacks. Although she always kept the bar stocked with chips and pretzels, today she'd treat herself to personal favorites. At least that’s what she wanted Rory to believe.

         After pretending to study a display of dusty Christmas decorations, she moved on to her real target. Feminine products. As she’d hoped, Rory paused as she entered the aisle. “This will take a few minutes,” she said, “if you want to wait for outside, I’ll understand. I promise I’ll be good.”

         He hesitated for a moment before turning around and disappearing out the front door. Lori grinned. It had been too easy. If she wanted to leave, she could walk out the back door and vanish. She’d done it before. Not this time.

Find Wolves Gambit at: Amazon