Contemporary Women’s Fiction/Contemporary Romance
Date Published: November 6th, 2025
Publisher: Acorn Publishing
Faster than details break in a news story, Kennedy Sloane gets scooped.
On a rainy Manhattan afternoon, career-obsessed writer and news producer
Kennedy loses the interview that was guaranteed to catapult her to senior
producer status. Hours later, revered and feared book editor Muffin Evans, aka
the Manuscript Eater, shelves the publication of her promising debut novel.
Over a night of tears and too many glasses of wine, Kennedy responds to an
internet ad for a villa on the picturesque island of Hilton Head. She books a
five-week “hiatus from life,” to focus on herself, free from
distractions.
However, soon after arriving on the island, J.P. Long catches Kennedy’s
hesitant eye. Despite a series of serendipitous encounters around the romantic
oasis, Kennedy knows there’s no room in her life for a charming
professional golfer turned businessman who is battling his own personal and
professional insecurities.
But maybe he’s worth the trouble.
If there’s one thing Kennedy’s learned, it’s that life
rarely happens as expected, and sometimes, the best stories unfold when you
stop chasing the perfect headline.
EXCERPT
Kenny started her day just before sunrise like most other mornings, mentally pumping herself up for the hours to come atop the saddle of her Peloton, powering through a forty-five-minute hill climb that was sprinkled with motivational pep talks. Rushes of adrenaline from the Snoop Dogg playlist and the high five emojis that lit up the scoreboard on the upper right corner of KennyNYC’s screen had a way of physically waking up her still sleepy body.
For inspirational and aesthetic purposes, the stationary bike occupied one of the front-facing bay windows of Kenny’s spacious three-bedroom apartment on the fifteenth floor of the high-rise, doorman building on Riverside Boulevard.
There was no energy like waking up on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. On the days Kenny couldn’t muster the enthusiasm to sign into a vigorous instructor-led class, she’d at least sit on the bike and peddle at a leisurely pace while preparing for the day. Those mornings she’d allow herself to get lost in the sight of activity along the Hudson River.
Flashing lights cruising up and down the West Side Highway would make her wonder. Was there an accident, a fire? Or was the president or Taylor Swift in town? The congestion on the George Washington Bridge. Were these commuters who transplanted out of the city to make their Jersey housewives happy? Or was a Yankees game bringing traffic to a screeching halt?
The barges that moved at glacial paces through the current. What were they carrying? The occasional paddle boarder or kayaker. Were they wearing wet suits? Who would risk falling into that murky water? The Circle Line cruise ships that glided by several times a day. Were they filled with awestruck tourists or native New Yorkers falling in love with their city all over again?
The endless air traffic shuttling airbuses of passengers to and from JFK and LaGuardia. Who were on those planes and where were they going? Would one of those aircraft hit a flock of birds and descend on the congested river? Captain Sully and his crew made that miraculous landing in this exact location.
Kenny was endlessly curious. As a journalist, she was trained to be keenly aware of what was going on around her. Born a news producer, she was inherently interested in people’s stories.
Today Kenny didn’t have time to let her mind wander. She pulled her feet out of her cycle shoes, hopped off the bike and flung her sweaty tank top over her head and into the hamper. She glanced in the full-length mirror, assessing if she could ever be one of those girls who was confident enough to workout in just a sports bra.
She slid into her slippers and shuffled through the kitchen to plug in the percolator. Kenny always filled the pot with water and coffee grinds the night before. Accustomed to working and living on deadlines, she valued every minute of her day, especially the mornings; and the three minutes it took to prepare the coffee pot were best allotted to the nighttime routine.
About the Author
A graduate of Fordham University, Caila Klaiss is an award-winning network
news producer who spent seventeen years crisscrossing the country to cover
breaking and developing stories for platforms across ABC News. The bulk of her
career was spent producing true crime documentaries for 20/20.
Since making the difficult decision to leave a career she loved, Caila has
pursued her other life-long dream of becoming a writer. When she is not
reading, writing, or researching, Caila recharges by practicing yoga.
Born, raised, and currently living in northeastern Pennsylvania, Caila is a
New Yorker at heart whose happy place is a warm sandy beach, under a palm
tree.
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