The Island's Michael Hartley joins the #WickedAfterDark Party

Hello my sassy ones! It's The Vixen checking in for a moment before I turn the blog over to another sexy as hell Guardian Angel. You'll see in a moment what I mean, but first it's time for a little housekeeping and announcements. For those of you who have stopped here for the first time, welcome! This is day four of the Wicked After Dark Halloween Blog Hop. Between this blog and my sister blog Behind Closed Doors, we are giving away two FABULOUSLY NAUGHTY prize packages. Check out the photos of each on the first day of this hop Here and Here. 

There are over 200 other participants in this naughty hop. You have until November 1st to visit as many as you can. Each one is running an individual contest too. More fun! So take the time to stop in and say hello to some old friends and make some brand new ones. You won't be sorry!  Now to turn over the blog to Jacob's father Michael Hartley. He's more than just Pop to him though. He's one of his Guardian Angels. You see, a year before Jacob visits the Island for the first time, Michael was taken from his family due to a heart condition that went undetected for years. By the time they discovered it, he was out of time on Earth. How about I let "Sarge" tell his story?

Thank you for inviting me here today, Tammy. Oh sorry, Vixen. ;) I like that nickname. Folks call me Sarge because I was a Staff Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps. (Semper Fi!) I retired at that rank once my kids got a bit much for my wonderful wife Katrina to handle alone. Well, I should say I didn't retire completely. Once a Marine always a Marine as they say!

Now about The Island (Now and Forever 2). Did you know the author first wrote this story as a short for a Christmas blog hop last year? Tammy called it "A Christmas Miracle for Jake." It was the first time you got to hear about Jakey's past and the first time Daniel and I revealed ourselves as Guardians.  When I was given the assignment to watch over my family, I thought it would be a piece of cake. I mean I had already promised my Katrina I would never leave her. This would be my way of keeping that promise. I found out right away she could see me. We couldn't actually touch, except in her dreams. There it was like I never left.  But I'm getting off topic here, and our love story is one to be told at a later date. I peeked at Tammy's notes for this series! LOL!

After about a year of solo action, I got paired up with a new Guardian. Daniel Quartermarsh reminded me so much of my son Jacob and of course we hit it off from the get go. This turned out to be a good thing since our list of charges began to multiply. Seems we were paired up for a reason, Danny and me. Not only did we have to watch over my brood, but also the Quartermarsh extended clan and several others. We weren't too worried about the added work load. Both of us enjoyed our work, but then the shit hit the fan.

Danny's sister Quinn was barely holding on. Losing her little brother only a month before he was paired with me, was taking its toll on her physical and emotional well-being. She had lost her faith and that nearly broke Danny to watch. He held on because we had someone else who needed our attention immediately...

My eldest son and middle child. My Jakey. He was spinning out of control so fast and there was nothing I could do to stop it. In fact, I was ordered to stay away when he had the collision with the semi. Thankfully, Danny was allowed to protect my son from the worst of it. Having several other Guardians around to lend their power and energy helped to keep Jake alive. For that, I'll always be grateful.

What caused Jake to take off on his motorcycle in the rain? What else? A broken heart. He found out the woman he thought he was going to spend the rest of his life with was in fact cheating on him. He caught them in the act if you know what I mean. That would send just about anyone into a blind rage, but not my son. He turned that hurt inside and took it out on the one person he hated the most...himself.

Danny and I got Jacob to the Island and gave him a choice. He could stay there and wait for his next lifetime to begin, or he could choose to go back to be with his soul mate, the one who would be his happily ever after. In fact, The Three were giving him a special gift. He would meet the one who would complete him heart and soul, fall in love and seal their bond for all eternity. The only condition was they had to both choose to leave the Island and go back to the Earth Realm in order to find each other again.

Well, what do you think he chose to do? ;)

Tomorrow, I'll fill you in on a bit more of our story in The Island and in the rest of the Now and Forever series. Tammy has a lot of work ahead of her to get the entire story down for everyone to enjoy. Don't worry. With Danny and me bugging her, she'll get them all done in no time!

Now for more blog hop stuff. Here is the Rafflecopter for you to get more entries in The Vixen's contest and below that you will find the froggy icon that will take you to the list of the rest of the hop participants.  Have fun and I'll see you all tomorrow!

Semper Fi!

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