Cover Reveal – TNT by Giulia Lagomarsino

Title: TNT

Series: Reed Security Series

Author: Giulia Lagomarsino

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Release Date: May 18, 2020

After walking into his girlfriend’s house and finding her murdered, Tony is struggling to get back to normal. Everyone’s looking at him like he’s damaged, but they don’t know the truth. And when they find out, they won’t ever look at him the same again. But a one night stand changes everything. Suddenly, everyone at Reed Security is trying to set Tony up with this crazy woman that can’t cook, shows up at his work, and calls him at all hours of the night. He doesn’t want to hurt her, but how long is a man supposed to go along with a crazy person that thinks there’s a relationship where there isn’t one?

After meeting Tony one night, Molly knows without a doubt that he’s the man for her. He’s everything she’s been waiting for, and she’s not going to let this opportunity slip through her fingers. She knows that he’s slightly damaged and dealing with a lot, but with a little encouragement from Tony’s teammates, she refuses to let him push her away. She has a whole arsenal of tips and tricks to keep a man’s attention, and with her momma’s advice and her best friend’s help, there’s no way she’ll fail. Now she just has to make Tony see that what they have is forever.

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“Uh…you know, this isn’t working,” I said briskly.
She tilted her head, all cute like and looked at me in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“Us…whatever this is. It’s not going to work. You’re nice and all, but it’s just not working.”
I waited for the tears and the drop of her face. I braced myself for the yelling and name-calling. But no matter how much I steeled myself for her reaction, I just wasn’t ready for what she actually said.
“Hmmm. Well, I appreciate your input, but I think it’s going good. Pop tarts?”
“What?”
“I’m sticking some in the toaster. Want some?”
I blinked several times, shook my head, and even slapped my own face, but nothing changed. She was still standing in front of me, asking me if I wanted fucking pop tarts after I just broke up with her. She actually refused to break up with me. Could that really happen? Did I not get a say in this? And if so, was I destined to just be with her the rest of my life? I’d never been in this position before. I’d never had a woman refuse to let me break up with her. What was the protocol for this? Did I just go along with it? Maybe I should just not return her calls. Of course, that hadn’t really worked so far. She always showed up, with food.
“Honey?” She quirked her head to the side and smiled sweetly at me. “Pop tarts?”
Shaking my head, I tried again. “I’m serious, Molly. I’m breaking up with you. I don’t want to be with you anymore. It’s been fun, but let’s just end this now.”
“I hear you. I really do, and while I think you make some not very valid points, I’m going to pretend like what you said makes total sense. But we’re not breaking up. You’re just freaking out and you want to end this before it gets too real. I get it, but we’re still not breaking up.”
And with that, she turned around and left the room. I stared at the floor, trying to figure out what to do next. How the fuck had this happened? Was I being too sweet? I mean, I was never too sweet. I was never that guy that women felt they could walk all over. Yet, here I was, standing alone in my pretend girlfriend’s bedroom as she walked out after telling me we were not breaking up.
This was not happening. She couldn’t make me stay with her. She couldn’t force me to date her. I wasn’t some chump. I was Tony-fucking-Tacos. I groaned and rolled my eyes at myself. I was not Tony Tacos. I was something much cooler. I wasn’t even Mexican, and if I was honest with myself, I didn’t even like tacos all that much. Not that I would tell Molly that. She had been really sweet yesterday, bringing me food at work because she thought tacos were my favorite. 
I cursed myself for thinking of her as sweet when I was trying to break up with her. Damnit, I would not be forced to date a woman that I really liked. Fuck, I was screwed. I marched into the kitchen and slapped my hand down on the countertop.
“Listen, Molly, this is over between us. I’m not going to let you tell me that we’re not breaking up, because we are so breaking up. I’m walking out that door and you will not follow me. You will not bring me food at work, and you will not call me later tonight to ask where I am. Do you know why?”
She smiled at me. “Because you think we’re breaking up.”
“Yes. No!” I shouted. “I don’t think we’re breaking up. We are in actuality breaking up. It’s for sure. Not a possibility or a probability. We are one hundred percent broken up, as of right now,” I said, punctuating the statement by punching the counter with my pointer finger.
She nodded, her eyes wide with a very serious expression on her face. “I hear you. I want you to know that I really do hear you, but it’s just not possible for us to break up. We have that dinner with Momma and Daddy tomorrow, and they already planned dinner. Momma did all her shopping and got everything we could possibly need for your favorite dinner.”
“What dinner?” I asked hesitantly.
“Tacos,” she grinned.
“Fucking hell,” I said, throwing my hands up in the air. “I’m not even fucking Mexican!”

Sinner (Reed Security Series #1) Cap (Reed Security Series #2) Cazzo (Reed Security Series #3) Knight (Reed Security Series #4) Irish (Reed Security Series #5) Hunter (Reed Security Series #6) Whiskey (Reed Security Series #7) Lola (Reed Security Series #8) Ice (Reed Security Series #9) Burg (Reed Security Series #10) Gabe (Reed Security Series #11) Jules (Reed Security Series #12) Sniper (Reed Security Series – Book 1 of a 3 Book ARC) Jackson (Reed Security Series – Book 2 of a 3 Book ARC) Chance (Reed Security Series – Book 3 of a 3 Book ARC) Phoenix Rising (Reed Security Series #16) Alec (Reed Security Series #17) Storm (Reed Security Series #18) Wolf (Reed Security Series #19) A Mad Reed Security Christmas (Reed Security Series #20) Rocco (Reed Security Series #21) Coop (Reed Security Series #22)

I’m a stay at home mom that loves to read. Some of my favorite titles are Pride and Prejudice, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and Horatio Hornblower. I started writing when I was trying to come up with suggestions on ways I could help bring in some extra money. I came up with the idea that I could donate plasma because you could earn an extra $500/month. My husband responded with, “No. Find something else. Write a blog. Write a book.” I didn’t think I had anything to share on blog that a thousand other mothers hadn’t already thought of. I decided to take his challenge seriously and sat down to write my first book, Jack. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed writing. From there, the stories continued to flow and I haven’t been able to stop. I hope my readers enjoy my books as much as I enjoy writing them. Between reading, writing, and taking care of three small kids, my days are quite full.

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Saturday Spotlight – Eighty-One Nights by Georgia Cates

Title: Eighty-One Nights

Duet: Beautiful Illusions Duet #1

Author: Georgia Cates

Release: April 9, 2019

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44284142-eighty-one-nights

Blurb:

Beautiful, penniless American girl meets handsome, wealthy Scotsman. 

Sounds like the beginning of a fairy-tale romance? It’s not.

This story begins with a contract.

And an exchange of money.

A lot of money.

An angel perches nervously on one shoulder.

A devil lounges smugly on my other.

And even that dark little bastard is leery of what I’m doing.

Maxwell Hutcheson wants the girlfriend experience.

All of it.

And I’m going to give it to him.

I’m not supposed to enjoy being his whore.

I’m also not supposed to fall in love with him.

But I do. Both.

When our contract expires, I will walk away.

Because I have to.

But he’ll always have a piece of me.

I’ll mask my sorrow with a smile.

I’ll hide my love with indifference

… all while it’s killing me softly.

A fairy-tale romance.

It isn’t mine to have.

And this man I’ve come to love so dearly isn’t my happily ever after.

About Eighty-One Nights:

While the characters from Eighty-One Nights are entirely new, their storyline is a combination of fresh material and carefully selected themes, scenes, and settings from The Beauty Series, The Sin Trilogy, Dear Agony, and Indulge. This is intentional. I chose some of my favorite elements from previous releases and interjected them into Hutch and Lou’s story. Let’s call it a “story fusion” between our old favorites and new material. This work was briefly released under a pen name and was titled The Girlfriend Experience.

PreOrder/Buy Links:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2YQrL1t

Apple Books:  https://apple.co/2HXX2KL

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2WRGhVh

Google Play: http://bit.ly/2FZ5VS1

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2OLLjj0

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In the Duet (Preorder)

Beautiful Ever After (Releasing May 7, 2019)

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2K7Hu9m

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2YOdPFn

Apple Books: https://apple.co/2OQoQ4i

Google Play: http://bit.ly/2ONViEA

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2uLjGNR

Giveaway: $25.00 Amazon GC

Direct Link:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/81aa78942033

RafAuthor Bio:  (author photo in drive)

Georgia resides in rural Mississippi with her wonderful husband, Jeff, and their two beautiful daughters. She spent fourteen years as a labor and delivery nurse before she decided to pursue her dream of becoming an author.

Social Media Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GeorgiaCatesAuthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GeorgiaCates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorgeorgiacates/

Tumblr: http://authorgeorgiacates.tumblr.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5228869.Georgia_Cates

Website: http://georgiacates.com/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Georgia-Cates/e/B005RQM69U

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/georgia-cates

Email: authorgeorgiacates@gmail.com

Maxwell Hutcheson.

He’s tall and fit. Very fit. And the suit that he’s wearing looks killer on him. He’s nothing like what I had pictured in my head when I imagined my first client. This is not what I was dreading.

Dark hair. Light eyes, pale blue I think, but it’s dark in here so I can’t tell for sure. What I do know is that he is one of the handsomest men that I’ve ever seen. And I don’t understand what he’s doing at an Inamorata gala.

I snap back into the present and realize that I’m sitting across from him, staring at his face. It’s as though I’ve forgotten all of my training.

I lower my eyes and face, hoping that he won’t see the heat in my cheeks. I should probably apologize for staring, but there’s no tactful way of telling him that I’m dumbfounded because he isn’t a troll or old enough to be my grandfather.

I don’t get it. Why in the world would this man need a paid companion? Surely women flock to him.

I recall the reasons why many of our clients use our services. They’re busy businessmen, often too engaged in their jobs to have time for dating. That must be it because there’s no way this man would have a hard time finding a woman who was interested in him.

“Cora tells me that you’re brand new. You’ve never had a client?”

His accent is heavily Scottish. You’d think that I would have gotten over hearing it after living in Edinburgh for six years, but the truth is that I still find it sexy as sin.

I look up and smile when my eyes meet his. Yes, I’ve decided that they are pale blue. And kind. I don’t see judgment in them as I am certain that he is analyzing me and my decision to be an inamorata.

I believe that you can see into the soul of a person through his or her eyes. Thoughts. Intent. Opinion. The simplicity in their expression tells a story. It says more than any words they could possibly speak.

The lines around the corners of his eyes. The creases around his mouth beneath his facial scruff. The furrows across his forehead. All of these distinct contours mean that he smiles often, and when he does, it spreads over his entire face.

“Tonight is my coming out, I guess you could say.”

“Then I’ve met you at the perfect time.”

“The perfect time for…?”

He hesitates and his uneasiness is a visible mask upon his face. “I want to be transparent with you about what has happened in my life. I need you to understand why I have specific… needs.”

Saturday Spotlight – One of a Kind Christmas by Lexi Post

One of a Kind Christmas
A Christmas Carol Book #4
By Lexi Post

Lexi has a $25 Gift Card to giveaway during the tour. Please use the Rafflecopter below to enter. Remember you may enter every day for your chance to win. You may find the tour locations here https://goo.gl/sPP5CV.

About One of a Kind Christmas:
For her to love him, he must face a spirit, an archangel…and himself.

The spirit of Cameron Douglas has totally screwed-up…again. Now, he has to fix his mess in one night with the help of his best friend and somehow encourage his widow to move on.

Holly Douglas is anguished that this is the last Christmas she’ll be visited by her late husband, Cameron. For three years he’s sent her the spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, and they‘ve helped her cope with her loss. But now all that ends, and she doesn’t understand why he must push her away.

Ethan Stewart has been in love with Holly since Cameron’s death, but she isolated herself from everyone, including him. Then something changed, and he was welcomed back as her friend. But he wants more— to love her openly, and most of all to make her happy again. Though he loved his best friend like a brother and will do anything for Holly, as he’s pulled into the spirit world, he discovers the price they must pay for their chance at forever…and it just might be too high.

Releases Day December 5, 2018
Buy Links for One of a Kind Christmas:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2TukRfU

B&N:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/one-of-a-kind-christmas-lexi-post/1129901071?ean=2940161606766

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1442733578

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/one-of-a-kind-christmas

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/One-Kind-Christmas-Carol-Book-ebook/dp/B07KK2LFHN/

Amazon AU:  https://www.amazon.com.au/One-Kind-Christmas-Carol-Book-ebook/dp/B07KK2LFHN/

Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/One-Kind-Christmas-Carol-Book-ebook/dp/B07KK2LFHN

Excerpt:

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening them. “I miss Cam. It was as if we were two parts of the same soul. I lived vicariously through him even while I worried constantly about him. It was one of the reasons I was constantly warning him to be careful. I was afraid to lose him.”

Ethan looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. “And then I did.”

She felt as if her heart were breaking all over again, not for her but for Ethan. He was so good to her. He even loved her. And she… “Ethan, I understand.”

His gaze returned to hers. Though she couldn’t see his face clearly, the limited light reflected off the sheen in his eyes.

She placed her hand on his cheek and rising on her toes brushed her lips across his in a feather-light kiss. She only meant to give comfort, but a spark of something else hit her heart.

She remained there, her lips close to his but not touching, wanting more but afraid to ask.

Ethan remained absolutely still, his breath mixing with her own.

He loved her but would never push her. It wasn’t his nature. She could walk away right now, but to what?

Nothing.

She stared at his mouth in the dim light. She wanted to live again. She wanted to feel again. Tilting her head, she pressed her lips more firmly against his, moving her hand down his stubbled jaw and behind his neck to pull him closer.

Ethan’s lips opened, and she slipped her tongue between them.

As his arms came around her, it was like waking from a dream. A slow burn flowed through her veins as he took control of the kiss and explored her mouth with his tongue. It was an unhurried exploration and heat built in her belly. When he pulled back to lick the underside of her top lip, she took her first deep breath. As she exhaled, tingles spread throughout her body.

He kissed the corners of her mouth before leaning his forehead against her own. “Ye catch my blood on fire, lass.”

Other Books in the Series:

A Christmas Carol Book 1, Pleasures of Christmas Past is on sale for only $.99!
Jessica is assigned a hot, Scottish mentor who confuses her heart. But will he protect her soul?

Buy Links for Pleasures of Christmas Past:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2DxWFDU

B&N: http://bit.ly/1jICy8T

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1026485012

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/pleasures-of-christmas-past

Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/Pleasures-Christmas-Past-Carol-Book-ebook/dp/B013EVYRV4/

Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.com.au/Pleasures-Christmas-Past-Carol-Book-ebook/dp/B013EVYRV4/

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pleasures-Christmas-Past-Carol-Book-ebook/dp/B013EVYRV4

Desires of Christmas Present (A Christmas Carol Book 2)
Sometimes not knowing is better…for everyone.
Desires of Christmas Present Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2DxtbpE

Temptations of Christmas Future (A Christmas Carol Book 3)
He set out to prove the future was far worse than she imagined. Now he wished it wasn’t.
Temptations of Christmas Future Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2Q9s71L

About the Author:
Lexi Post is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of romance inspired by the classics. She spent years in higher education taking and teaching courses about the classical literature she loved. From Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Masque of the Red Death” to Tolstoy’s War and Peace, she’s read, studied, and taught wonderful classics.

But Lexi’s first love is romance novels so she married her two first loves, romance, and the classics. From hot paranormals to sizzling cowboys to hunks from out of this world, Lexi provides a sensuous experience with a “whole lotta story.”

Lexi is living her own happily ever after with her husband and her cat in Florida. She makes her own ice cream every weekend, loves bright colors, and you will never see her without a hat.

Lexi’s Social Links:

Website: http://www.lexipostbooks.com/

Lexi Post Updates: https://app.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/c1w1g3

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexipostbooks

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexiPost

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexipostbooks/

Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/1IEL2cc

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lexi-post

D2D: http://books2read.com/author/lexi-post/subscribe/1/16171/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/goodreadscomLexiPost

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexipostbooks/

Blog: http://www.happilyeverafterthoughts.com/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lexipost77/

Email: lexi@lexipostbooks.com

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Nowhere On The Map by Caroline Walken

“She is jealous of you, a girl that is naturally beautiful without trying.” 

Maggie frowned slightly shaking her head dismissing his suggestion; Jon lifted her chin and lowered his face to kiss her. 

 All he could feel was Maggie.  Her lips softly brushed his own, lightly she exhaled, and next she leaned in towards him.  Her sweater was soft under his hand, her body warm beneath it.  Her tongue danced on his intuitively he pulled her closer.  It was sad but kissing becomes underrated when you are an adult, as a teen he remembered his first kiss.  Maybe it was that he is too sentimental.  Perhaps it was because he had not kissed a woman in a couple years.  Hell, it could be he was drunk but for whatever the reason; kissing Maggie was sensual.  Jon ran his hand down her waist and placed it on her hip pulling her closer; with his other hand; he wound his fingers in her silky hair.   She moaned softly and the sound traveled straight to his groin.  His heart beat like a drum, hammering in tune with this seduction.  His pulse pounded in his ears so hard it drowned out the band.  The only thing he was aware of was Maggie, her scent, her body pressed against his own, her lips softly responding and becoming more urgent under his.   Jon was became high from her kiss.

 She drew back, he left her lips only to trail his mouth down her neck to her collarbone she sharply exhaled in his ear, and he groaned, having no control of the reaction she brought from him. 

Maggie murmured, “OK City Cat, I get the whole jealousy thing now!” 

Jon chucked then attempted to reclaim her lips but Maggie stopped him.  Her eyes were dancing with mischief as she kept some distance between them. 

“You should probably get your drunk-ass to bed.”  Her voice sounded husky and low. 

He gave her a lusty grin.  “As you wish, Miss Maggie!” 

He was suffering from the double assault of desire and Matt’s Shine and his head spun.  He kept her wrapped in his arms, her body felt like a hot ember against him.  She smiled sweetly, her eyes dancing in the low light. She leaned back slightly, giving herself the chance to look him straight in the eye.

“Well, I would love to continue however, your girlfriends lip gloss is really not one of my favorites.”

Join me next Thursday for Madison Micheal’s Blog Tour. ~ Tina

The Editor’s Kisses by Kara O’Neal

The Editor’s Kisses

Blurb:

She’s a suffragette with plans. He’s the editor with a kiss that could make headlines…

Constance Forrester has no intention of getting married. She is a suffragette and determined to change society. When Stephen Dawson, her school chum, starts a newspaper in their sleepy little town, Constance discovers an opportunity. With confidence and an unflinching will, she asks Stephen to take a risk and employ her as a journalist.

Stephen is stunned by Constance’s impossible proposal and immediately turns her down. But the small moments he’s spent with Constance have piqued someone’s curiosity, and Stephen finds himself sought after by the town princess, Madeline Talbut. Stephen has loved Madeline for years, and when the young lady finally shows an interest in him, he concocts a plan: enter into a fake courtship with Constance in order to make Madeline love him, and in return, Constance can be a journalist for his newspaper. Anonymously, of course.

It’s a chance Constance can’t pass up. So what if she has to attend parties and withstand Stephen’s heart-melting kisses? A suffragette must forge through barriers, break down walls and risk all for the sake of freedom. But Stephen changes the game, and Constance finds herself the object of the editor’s desire…

Excerpt:

“Constance,” he uttered. “I’m gonna kiss you.”

She flinched again.

“I won’t hurt you, I swear it. But if I don’t kiss you…they’ll all question us and our…attachment.” He was an ass. He was using their agreement to coax her into acquiescence, and while he knew it, and was ashamed of it, he continued. “It will only be for a second. I’ll just brush my lips with yours.”

In the darkness, he felt her slight nod against his chin. His heart pounded at her quiet surrender.

When she pulled back as far as the space would allow, and lifted her head to his, heat slashed through him. He’d never needed a kiss as much as he needed hers.

Madeline had kissed him. Once. Behind the schoolhouse when they were sixteen. And that moment hadn’t caused near the anticipation this one was.

He lowered his head and swallowed her gasp. It wasn’t a brush even though he only set his lips on hers. It was a fire. A shot of whiskey that whipped through him and pooled in his gut. He deepened the connection, and she let him, sighing and sinking into him despite already being as close to him as he could get her.

But there was a melting. A need to move to the ground and cover her, press her down and make her his. He used his tongue, tasting her. She capitulated instantly and opened her mouth under his. He took what she allowed without hesitation as his free hand came up to grip her waist.

The damn closet was too small. His left hand was wedged between her side and the slender door. But though he couldn’t get his arms around her, he didn’t stop the kiss. It went on and on, stealing his breath, tightening his chest, and making him doubt everything he’d ever known about his heart.

Rapid footsteps had him surging backward and he knocked his head on the wall.

The door was flung open and cool air blasted his cheeks. He and Constance fell out of the space, their limbs tangling as they tried to right themselves.

Peals of laughter rung around them as Stephen reached out a hand to balance her. She latched on like she didn’t want to let go, and his muscles vibrated with hope she had enjoyed the moment as he had.

It had taken less than a few seconds for him to realize kissing her had been the wrong thing to do. But also the most right, most perfect, most sound judgement he’d ever made in his life.

As those who’d crowded around the entrance to the kitchen went roaring with laughter back into the parlor, he gazed at Constance. And his world tilted.

Her flushed cheeks and bright eyes made his heart constrict with an emotion he was too afraid to name at the moment. But he knew what it was. He knew.

How in the devil had it happened? Was he a fool? A fickle man?

He swallowed. “Do you want to leave?”

And before his eyes he witnessed a transformation that set his blood on fire. Determination changed her expression, and she lifted her chin.

“Certainly not. I’m quite all right, I assure you.” She gave a shake to her skirts. “We’ve a job to do, Stephen Dawson, and I’ll not let you down.”

She exited the kitchen with a swirl of satin, and he followed with less sure steps. She wouldn’t let him down, he was positive. But he was afraid he might disappoint her, for if she knew the direction of his thoughts, she would never forgive him. Constance Forrester had no time for any man. She had plans. Plans that didn’t include caring for the heart of the newspaper editor.

Amazon Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Editors-Kisses-Pikes-Run-ebook/dp/B06XP8ZQBR/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1512342384&sr=8-6&keywords=kara+o%27neal

AuThursday – Kara O’Neal

Please welcome my fellow Resplendence Writer Kara O’Neal to the Clog Blog.  Kara – Tell us a little about yourself and your background?

I’m a teacher with three children who are kind people and talented artists. I’ve been married to a wonderful man for almost twenty years, who is also a talented artist. I have always been an avid reader, loving books written by Lucy Maud Montgomery, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Carolyn Keene, and Louisa May Alcott then on to Jane Austen, Mary Balogh and a plethora of others. My active imagination, which got me into trouble in school because I was often day dreaming, got to work and eventually I wrote my own story. I never thought I’d be an author. It didn’t even cross my mind until after I’d graduated college. But that’s the grand thing about life. A person can decide to do anything at any time. I’m so grateful I’ve had this opportunity.

How do you make time to write?

I write just about anywhere. That’s the only way I get it done. I’ve written in the car, in doctors’ offices, waiting for one of my children to come out of rehearsal, in those few minutes before meetings start, and while I’m cooking supper. Whenever I have a free moment, I’m writing.

What are your current projects?

I have finished the 10^th book in the Pikes Run Series – The Cowboy’s Embrace – and I’m preparing to send it to my editor soon. I have also finished my 11^th book in the series, but it still needs to go through the critique process. It also doesn’t have a title. (Yikes!)

What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?

For me, it’s making sure they sound like men. Sometimes I can have a male character explain something with flowery language and several sentences, but when I go back and read it, I realize it’s way too much. Short and sweet – that’s what I say to myself when a male character is talking about feelings or working through some sort of conflict. It usually helps.

Are you an Introvert or Extrovert?  How does this affect your work?

I’m an introvert until I get to know the person or environment then I’m comfortable and can be the “life of the party”. For the most part though, I’m quiet. Therefore, this makes it hard to talk about myself and to market myself. I don’t want to do it, so I usually steer away from social media and other avenues of a similar nature.

What is your Kryptonite?

Hmmm. Well, with writing it would have to be the television show, Once Upon A Time. If I turn that show on – usually through Netflix or Hulu – nothing will get done. I can’t tear myself away from the love story of Emma Swan and Captain Hook. (Even though I’ve seen the episodes a million times!) And now I’m blushing because y’all know how much I watch it!

So, when it’s time to write, I can’t have that show playing in the background.

My other weakness would be rain. When it’s raining outside, all I want to do is stay under the covers and write or read or watch a movie.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Keep writing. Finish the book. Even if you know it’s terrible. The best thing you can do for yourself is finish, because the only way to get better is to edit and revise your current work. If you delete or tear up what you’ve done because it’s awful, you’re only going to be in the same spot you were before. Keep going. Write so you can revise. Then once you’ve finished, find a critique group so they can tell you how awful it is, and you can figure out how to fix it. It’ll be hard to hear, but it’s so worth it.

Where can readers find you on the World Wide Web?

A few places! Here are the links:

My website: www.karaoneal.com.

My facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KaraONeal84/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/karaoneal7/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Kara-ONeal/e/B00FL19TH8/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1465007993&sr=8-1

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/kara+o’neal?_requestid=845025

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7278350.Kara_O_Neal

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KaraONealAuthor

Do you have a sexy teaser you’d like to share with us?

I sure do! The following is from Love’s Promise – Book 6 in the Pikes Run Series.

She bit down on her back teeth, needing to find some semblance of control. It was as if she felt his lips running over her flesh, and she had the distinct impression he would lick every part of her if given the chance. And she suddenly wanted to give him that chance.

Join me Saturday when we read an excerpt from Kara’s book THE EDITOR’S KISSES. ~Tina

Saturday Excerpt – In a Dream by Ava Lynn Wood

I spun on my stool, staring Aiden right in the face. My heart did somersaults as everything else inside of me went into panic mode. After our meeting this afternoon, I thought I had mixed emotions about seeing him again, but there was no denying what I was feeling now. As he hovered over me, offering to pay for my drinks, I felt my body instinctively lean into him. “What are you doing here?”

“Didn’t feel like being alone tonight,” he answered, nodding at Jake as he slipped away with Aiden’s card.

With looks like Aiden’s, I couldn’t even fathom the amount of women he picked up in bars. “Looking for women to fill your dance card?” I asked, trying to hide the bitter jealousy I felt imagining him with other women.

“Just one,” he replied, searing his piercing blue eyes into my emerald ones.

My thighs rubbed together as Aiden moved in infinitesimally closer. Gulping down my nerves, I breathily replied, “Well, good luck finding her.” Turning to take a sip of my beer, I struggled to get my hormones in check. This guy was my client. My blood shouldn’t be humming in my veins just from his nearness. I should be putting distance between us.

Join me next week when author Karen Docter joins us. ~Tina

AuThursday – JC Hannigan

Tell us a little about yourself and your background?

I am a twenty-eight year old mother and wife of two boys. We have a black lab and live in Southern Ontario. Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to write books. I would write books, on lined paper with crayon coloured “covers”.

I see you’ve written a lot of series, including COLLIDE, DAMAGED and REBEL. What are your thoughts on writing a book series?

I love reading series, following as characters grow and change. For the Collide series, I wasn’t quite done with Harlow Jones after the first book…or the second book. So I wrote a third, and I feel like that story is definitely one that couldn’t be condensed and told the same way. I encountered the same problem with the Damaged Series; I knew that Everly and Grayson’s story couldn’t be condensed to just one book.

But for the Rebel Series, I did try something different…while it is a series, each book can be read as a standalone as each book focuses on one of the three Miller siblings; Brock, Becky, and Braden. The first book–Rebel Soul, is Brock and Tessa’s story. Rebel Heart is Braden and Elle’s story, and Rebel Song is Travis and Becky’s story. I had a blast writing this series, and I think I’ll do more in the future because it appeals to both series lovers and those who prefer standalones.

What do you owe the real people upon whom you base your characters?

A LOT, I owe them a lot! Everyone around me has influenced or inspired aspects and personality traits in my characters. For example, Bill Armstrong (from the Rebel Series) is a lot like my father–traditional, productive, stubborn, hard-working, a man of few words. Everly Daniels (the Damaged Series) has my naive nature and wears her heart on her sleeve.

What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?

Nailing their emotional response to things! I always have to hit up my husband for advice with my male characters.

What would you say are the main advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing against being published or the other way around?

I have tried the hybrid publishing house method, and that didn’t end well. The publishing company went under, and that kind of stress and uncertainty didn’t jive well with me, so I really like the control I have with independant publishing. But I can only really speak from my experiences thus far. I’m not against traditional publishing, or closed off to the idea, and who knows what the future will bring.

Do you let the book stew – leave it for a month and then come back to it to edit?

I’m not really good at letting things stew, so I edit right away. But I usually do several cycles of editing, revising, and tweaking before sending it to the editor and beta team. In between those edits and revisions, I work on other projects.

What is your writing Kryptonite?

MUSIC! I need music!

Do you believe in writer’s block?

Yes, writer’s block is definitely a thing. I like to refer to it as “word constipation”.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Just keep writing 🙂

Where can readers find you on the World Wide Web?

Author Website – http://jchannigan.com
Amazon Author Page – http://amzn.to/2bvioNg
Twitter – http://twitter.com/jcahannigan
Facebook – http://facebook.com/jcahannigan
Google Plus – http://tinyurl.com/qaqex3f
Instagram – http://instagram.com/jcahannigan
Personal blog – http://sarcastica.ca
FANnigans – https://www.facebook.com/groups/FANnigans/
Do you have a sexy teaser you’d like to share with us?

Sure do! This is a teaser from my new release, REBEL SONG. Available in KU September 18th!

Join me next Thursday when Izzy Syn joins us.  ~Tina

#AuThursday – Beverley Oakley

I was born in the tiny African mountain Kingdom of Lesotho, which is land-locked by South Africa. When I was small I emigrated with my family to South Australia where we built a two-story mud brick home and planted 25,000 trees in the wine-producing Clare Valley before I returned to Africa in my 20’s – this time to Botswana’s Okavango Delta – to manage a safari lodge. There I met and married a handsome Norwegian bush pilot who took me to live and work in 12 countries before we settled, a few years ago, in Melbourne, Victoria.

I write fulltime in between teaching creative writing interspersed with communications and marketing contracts, mainly for the Victorian government.

How do you make time to write?

I have to work hard at the discipline. When I was writing for traditional publishers I was given deadlines but now that I self publish, mostly, I have to make my own deadlines. Often that’s locking myself into a pre-order which usually ends with me burning the candle at both ends – such as now when trying to finish my work in progress, Devil’s Run. I still have at least 10,000 words to write in less than a week!

What genre are your books?

I used to call them straight historical Regencies or Victorian-set romances. Now, however, I find that there are multiple layers of plot and either mystery and intrigue with, quite often, a lovely, honourable hero and a heroine who has a blemished past or who is spoiled or needs redeeming in some way. I don’t consciously set out to write noble heroes and heroines in need of redeeming with either a wicked villain or a vain anti-heroine in the wings, but there’s often a version of that set-up.

So my books aren’t for readers who like a straight, sweet and uncomplicated historical. My biggest series – Daughters of Sin – is like a Regency-set soap opera with four different sisters – 2 illegitimate, 2 nobly born – lots of rivalry, double-dealing, mystery, a wicked rake being pursued for traitorous activities, and so on. I recently wound up the series with book 5, Lady Unveiled: the Cuckold’s Conspiracy, but intend to do a spin-off series of the various children – legitimate, illegitimate, secret, swapped and stolen – who have resulted from the five books in this series.

What draws you to this genre?

The inequalities between genders and the social divide, as well as the clothes and the manners. There’s so much scope for desperation to override good judgement and other rich plot possibilities when there’s not the social safety net that we take for granted today where no one starves and or doesn’t get treated at a hospital. (At least, that’s the case where I live in Australia so I let my imagination take me to another century when people couldn’t take health and not starving for granted.)

What are your current projects?

I’m nearly finished book 3 in my Beautiful Brazen Brightwell series. It’s called Devil’s Run about a young woman whose dying aunt may or may not leave her a fortune so she makes a wager to marry this betting man, both of them having very different motivations for wanting the marriage to go ahead (all about a horse) except that love gets in the way.

Are you an Introvert or Extravert?

Introvert.  How does this affect your work? I’ve forced myself to do author talks and, as I love making historical costumes, it’s less intimating to do an author talk dressed in a 1780s polonaise as I can then pretend I’m someone else.

What is your writing Kryptonite?

Porridge to get me going for breakfast, a glass of wine to spur me on after dinner and sometimes chocolate in between. I have very different writing schedules and as my husband is away in Singapore for six weeks at the moment and I’m between government contracts (plus it’s school holidays) I can write around the clock if I want – and as my next deadline draws near I have in fact got to work after waking at 4am.

What advice do you have for aspiring writers?

Never give up.

Where can readers find you on the World Wide Web?

www.beverleyoakley.com

Do you have a sexy excerpt you’d like to share with us?

I just grabbed this paragraph from my unfinished work in progress, Devil’s Run:

Perhaps in the glow of moonlight he saw the spark in her eye that reflected his own feelings. Whatever it was, something in his expression flared. There was a split second of arrested awareness before a subtle shifting in the mood between them, then the sharp excitement of melding bodies, arms entwined and mouths unexpectedly fused in a kiss. The jolt of something come to life within her sent Eliza into the abyss, her mind a mass of coalescing thoughts, her body a jumble of nerve endings.

Thanks so much for having me, Tina.

You are welcome Beverley!   Join me on Saturday when we read a post for Beverley’s Blog Tour! 

This interview was scheduled by: 

 

Saturday Sexcerpt – Gun for Hire by JJ Montgomery

“This is from early in the book, Sam and Grady’s first kiss. And as you can guess, things do not get easier from here:”~JJ Montgomery

“Can I trust you, Sam?”

I stared him right in the eyes. “You can trust me.”

I did it without thinking.

I pushed up onto my toes, and smacked my lips against his. Just a friendly kiss to seal the deal. A quick touch of my mouth, my hands pressing against the solid wall of his chest. It was impulsive, crazy. But my eyes fluttered closed anyway and I stood pressed against him, mesmerized by the feel of his big body against mine. His hands hung limp at his sides, but he leaned into me. Our breath mingled. My heart tapped a rhythm in my chest.

Oh my God, what was I doing?

I pulled away, my cheeks burning, and snatched my hands back. A long moment stretched between us. I waited for him to laugh, to make a joke, to dismiss me.

Instead, he swooped down, his big hands cupping my jaw, taking possession of me, his mouth greedy, demanding. He tasted so good, like something sweet and warm.

My stomach bottomed out and I matched his need by pressing against him, a thrill shooting through me at the friction.

He gobbled me up in pieces, biting at my lip, scraping me with his teeth, and then plunging his tongue to meet my own.

He was raw, unguarded, and I wanted him so much I forgot everything that stood between us. The kiss was fast and hungry; he’d responded to my harmless peck like a man starved. He pulled back just as abruptly.

I swayed into him, catching myself on his chest. I was breathing hard, afraid to look up.

He tilted my head back, and his eyes were softer than I’d ever seen them. He kissed me again—just a gentle brush of his mouth against mine. “I believe you, Sam.”