Sasha White's Blog, page 27
June 11, 2011
SS: Bound
BOUND was my very first single title written. It was an adventure for me, and I'm sorry to say it's not in print anymore. You can find second hand copies around I'm sure, but I wish I could tell you you could find it any bookstore. However, I'm happy to tell you that it is available on Kindle and Nook.
The stories BOUND, WATCH ME (Kink anthology), TROUBLE, WICKED and MY PREROGATIVE are connected by locations and secondary characters.
Be sure to check out the links at the bottom of the excerpt for behind the scenes and more excerpts from BOUND.
This weeks theme is BFF's, so I picked the one where get to see Katie and her BFF, Julie, interact for the first time in the book.
"Oh. My. God."'
Julie stopped dead in the middle of the lounge floor, a tray full of drinks balanced skillfully in her right hand, the fingers of her left hand wrapped around my arm. "You did it, didn't you? You really did it!"'
The shock on my best friend's face was outdone only by the excitement in her voice.
"Did what?" I tried to play innocent.
With my long blonde hair, big brown eyes, and wholesome smile, most people fell for it. Not Julie Anderson. She had been my best friend since grade school and she knew me too well to believe I was innocent of anything.
"You made your move. Somehow, you finally got up the nerve to hit on Joe, and he took you up on it, didn't he? Oh yeah, and from the glow in your cheeks he was every bit as good as he looks." She let out a husky chuckle, and a wicked glint I knew only too well appeared in her amber eyes.
Julie knew Joe had been the star of my fantasies ever since I first set eyes on his six foot, solidly muscled body. It wasn't just his body that gave me a hot flash, or the way he looked in his security uniform with a big nightstick and handcuffs on his hip. It was the energy that radiated off of him.
Maybe I'd been hanging around Julie's new-age roommate too much lately, but beneath Joe's wavy black hair and intense blue eyes was a quiet strength, and a vibe that sucked me in and made me forget everything but him.
"Would you hush," I warned. "I don't need the whole world to know." I skimmed the crowd in the small lounge and gave the bartender, a small wave.
"Relax," Julie scoffed. "You know the people that come here don't care what you do when you're not here, even if it is something wild with 'Big Bad Joe'. All they care about is that you cash out their winnings. That's why you work here." She paused and eyed me shrewdly, "Well, that and the fact that it drives your mother absolutely batty."
Julie called Joe's invisible energy his 'bad boy' vibe, but that didn't do it justice either. First of all, he was no 'boy' bad or not. He was definitely all man, and the bad part? Well, something told me it was more than bad. It was almost . . .dangerous.
Watching him walk the casino floor was like watching an animal hunt. A sleek, sexy, panther prowling through the urban jungle. When he first arrived at Black's his eyes were always shuttered. I never had a clue what the man was thinking or feeling, but I always got the feeling he saw everything. Even when I'd seen him smile and joke around with the other guards, I sensed he kept hiself on a tight leash.
I recognized that kind of self-control. It was the sign of someone that was hiding their true self, and it only made him more attractive and intriguing. It had made me want to see what it would take to make him lose it, and what it was that he hid.
I'd dreamt of having all that energy focused on me, but the reality of it had been way more than I'd anticipated. When we were in the surveillance office yesterday, I'd gotten a look behind those shutters and the intense emotions there had both scared and thrilled me.
"No one cares," I muttered to Julie, glancing around the dimly lit lounge. "Except her."
Julie peeked over her shoulder and saw Rene, my arch nemesis since grade school, standing at the oak bar watching us intently.
"Yeah, she cares. But she can't hear us from over there so give!"
Before I could open my mouth and say anything, Louie, one of the many regulars who thought the world revolved around him, called out to Julie in a whiny voice. "I'm dying of thirst over here, sweetheart."
I ignored him and eyed Julie. "Are you almost done?"
"Yeah, Rene's already started taking over the tables, this is my last round." She gestured to the full tray in her hand.
"Go finish up and cash out." I waved her off. "I'll wait outside and tell you all about it on the way to your place."
"You're on," she said as she started off in Louie's direction. "And know this . . . I want all the dirty details!"
I nodded and headed for the back exit, my eyes scanning the interior of the casino as I hurried through it. No way was I going to give Julie all the details of the night before. I wasn't ever going to tell anyone the complete details! I'd share some of the good stuff with her. She was my best friend, and if it weren't for her I wouldn't know half the shit I knew about sex. Even Brad had considered me too much of a lady for anything other than the missionary position.
Well, okay, every now and then I'd taken control of the situation and climbed on top of him. He'd always been helpless to stop me when I did that.
The point is that Julie, and maybe her roommate Lillian, were the only people who would believe that I had the nerve to try and seduce someone like Joe. No one else knew that I had a bit of wild streak in me.
Behind The Scenes
Read an Excerpt
Read an Excerpt#2
Read an Unpublished Scene
The Bound Soundtrack
Don't forget to check out SHIFT CHANGE, a short story in which readers met Katie and Joe for the first time.
More snippets
Emma Petersen
Leah Braemel
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Shelli Stevens
T.J. Michaels
Delilah Devlin
June 10, 2011
Personality matters.
*** FIrst off, the winner of the Gemma Halliday giveaway is Angel Graham. Angel, use the contact link here to send me your information and collect your prize."
As a writer I know that personality matters. If my characters don't have personality how can I expect readers to connect with them?
As a woman who's struggled with her weight since hitting puberty I've always found it a bit condescending when people say things like. "Sure, you could stand to lose a few pounds, but you've such a pretty face/great personality."
As a woman I've often found myself attracted to men who aren't traditionally good looking. "There's just something about him." is the easy reason. However, it's rare for me to change my mind about finding a famous person attractive. You know what I'm talking about…a singer/actor/tv star that others think is so hot, yet you don't?
I figure it's because with famous people we don't usually see the real person, we see the character, or image they present, and you make your call based on that. Well, I do anyway.
I can remember when Maroon 5 first hit and I saw their video for This Love and I was not attracted to Adam Levine at all. I thought, skinny guy, baggy pants, high voice,=…. so not my type. I like them big and strong so I feel all womanly. Like maybe I wouldn't crush him if I was on top. ;)
However, since The Voice has started, I'v fallen for Adam Levin. I love his wicked sense of humor, and his thoughtful responses to the singers. His personality is showing, and I'm hooked. And since I was already hooked, I can honestly say Holy Crap did he look hot doing that Guitar solo the other night. 
Anyway, the point being, seeing him on The Voice, then on Chelsea Lately, seeing his personality spark really has made me luv him. It really brought home the lesson that personality matters … in everything.
Now I'm applying that to my current characters, who I like to think were already well developed, but not necessarily full of personality…if that make sense?
PS: Maroon 5's new album Hands All Over is very sexy too. Love the first single. Listen tot he lyrics…think sexy…then write. ;)
June 8, 2011
Guest Blogger: Gemma Halliday
Years ago when I first starting learning about the whole online writing community I explored a few yahoo loops and message boards. Only one of those things has stuck with me for since the beginning. Romance Divas is a fabulous place, and I hope to always be part of it. One of the reasons it's so great is the people. Divas rock. They support, commiserate, and kick ass when needed. They're also more than just the message boards, so be sure to check them out. They're always up to date on fabulous new releases…like this one from fellow Diva Gemma Halliday, who kindly offered to come and visit with us. Please make her feel welcome…then go buy her book. *grin*
* * * * *
A huge thank you to Sasha for letting me crash her blog today to talk about my latest release, Hollywood Confessions. This is day six of my two week Hollywood Confessions Blog Tour, so please check out my website for more tour stops, as I'll be giving away cool prizes (including gift cards, free books, cameo appearances, and Hollywood Headlines collectibles) at each stop!
In Hollywood Confessions(#3 in the Hollywood Headline series), Chester Barker, a reality show producer, is poisoned in his Beverly Hills estate. Luckily for reporter Allie Quick, it's just the kind of story she needs. Allie has high aspirations – much higher than reporting on the latest celebrity gossip for the L.A. Informer, Hollywood's most notorious tabloid. But if she's going to join the ranks of the real reporters, she's going to need a headline worthy story under her belt – and this story has her name written all over it. Allie has no shortage of reality stars suspects, but when she finds herself falling for her numero uno, Allie's relationship with her editor is suddenly on the rocks, and her life is in danger. This is one deadline Allie can't afford to miss!
While writing this book, one of the most fun things I got to do was create the fictional reality shows that Chester Barker worked on. While they are so not real shows, they so steal some concepts from my favs.
Among others they are…
Little Love
A reality dating show, where one eligible bachelor is put into a house with twenty hot, young single girls. Every week the girls tried to out-flirt each other on group dates to earn a rose at the end of the hour-long show. The last one left standing at the end of the season gets a proposal from the bachelor. The twist? All the contestants on the show are little people.
Don & Deb's Diva Dozen
Don and Deb Davenport are the parents of 12 little girls: two sets of triplets (ages six and ten) and a set of sextuplets (four-year-olds), and all of them compete in the Tiny Tot beauty pageants. In their fourth season, the ratings hit a high when Don was photographed with a string of young co-eds at trendy Hollywood nightclubs. Don and Deb announced a trial separation for Fall sweeps, Deb taking the sextuplets and doing the Southern Glitz pageant circuit, while Don took the triplets to the West Coast Sunshine pageants. But, thankfully, by May sweeps, the couple announced they were going to give marriage a try again, and the season culminated in an hour-long Don & Deb's Reunion show where the couple took all twelve children to Vegas for a long weekend, renewing their vows at the MGM Grand.
Stayin' Alive
Currently in its ninth season, this is the granddaddy of all reality shows, pitting fifteen strangers against each other to fight for the title of Last Survivor Alive. Each season contestants are dropped in the middle of nowhere, the only location requirements being a beach (where the female contestants can wear their teeny tiny bikinis), torrential rains (that wet said bikinis suggestively), and lots of big, hungry mosquitoes (just for kicks). All fifteen contestants have to brave both the elements and each other, fighting it out in reward and immunity challenges. Anyone not winning immunity is forced to go to the tribal staging area, where someone is sent home each week. However, they aren't voted out on their survival skills. Instead, the contestants participate in a dance-off, where a panel of judges vote out the contestant with the worst ballroom skills.
So, while no actual reality stars were harmed in the making of Hollywood Confessions, I will admit that several fictional ones might have been bruised. ;) And since this is the 3rd book in the Hollywood Headlines series, today I'm offering a FREE autographed copy of the 2nd book in the series (Hollywood Secrets) in print format to one lucky winner. Just post a comment below to enter, telling me what sort of reality show YOU would create, and I will post the name of the lucky winner in the comments at the end of the day.
Happy reading!
* * * * *
Gemma had a hard time figuring out what she wanted to be when she grew up. She worked as a film and television actress, a teddy bear importer, a department store administrator, a preschool teacher, a temporary tattoo artist, and a 900 number psychic, before finally selling her first book, Spying in High Heels, in 2005 and deciding to be a writer.
Since then, Gemma has written several mystery novels and been the recipient of numerous awards, including a National Reader's Choice award and three RITA nominations.
Gemma now makes her home in the San Francisco Bay area where she is hard at work on her next book.
http://www.gemmahalliday.com
HOLLYWOOD CONFESSIONS
available now in:
Paperback Print*Kindle*Nook*Ebook
For a chance to win a copy of Gemma's HOLLYWOOD SECRETS (Hollywood Headlines #2) comment below. A random winner will be picked and announced on Friday.
June 6, 2011
Random Reader Thoughts
I've been reading more than writing lately, and it's been a bit of a rollercoaster. Some books have been great, I loved them. Some have made me roll my eyes until I have headache. Because of that I've noticed something change in my reading habits. My patience and tolerance level has lowered a lot. Not too long ago I'd have been able to say It was rare for me to not finish a book I've started. It's not so unusual anymore.
The thing that's really frustrating me is when I pick up a book by a fave author, and find I can't get past the blurb because it sounds like it's a regurgitated story. It not only frustrates me, but saddens me too. I feel like new story ideas and original characters are becoming harder and harder to find. Is anyone else finding that? Or am I just being picky?
One good thing about feeling this way about many of the stoires I've read is that they make me want to write more. Make me challenge myself to come up with original ideas and characters.
June 4, 2011
The theme for this weeks Snippet Saturday is Work, so I ...
The theme for this weeks Snippet Saturday is Work, so I chose this excerpt from My Prerogative. It's not super hot or sexy, but I chose it because I love it. As someone who's worked bars for too many years to say I can tell you this is actually a tame conversation for when a bunch of serves and bartenders are sitting around. Yet, it's fun, and it gives you a couple hints at to some of the actual issues in the story, and not just the sex. ;)
Risqué was closed on Sunday nights, and opened at eight pm the other six nights a week. Four of those nights a week I was the first person in – aside from Val that is. But that Wednesday I worked the short shift, from ten 'till close.
I walked in just after nine that Wednesday and the place was still quiet, so instead of jumping behind the bar I headed to the corner booth where staff always lingered until things picked up.
"No fucking way!" Savannah Morris, one of the clubs' go-go dancers shouted just as I got there.
At Savannah's outcry Callie held her right hand up, palm open. "I swear it."
"Swear what?" I asked, propping a hip against the side of the booth.
Savannah gaped at me. "She's never had a male induced orgasm."
Ohhh, sex. My favorite topic of conversation. But first … I turned to the third person in the booth. "Good to see you, Joey. Show going good?"
Joey Kent was one of the best dancers at Risqué. So good that she only worked on a very casual basis for us now because she was part of a local Dance Troupe that put on seasonal shows. I'd only seen her two or three times all summer, and I'd missed her. She wasn't a close friend, but she was one of those people with a true blue good heart, and it showed. Just being around her brought out the happy in a person.
"Summer run is over, and we start rehearsals for the winter show in a month, so I'll be around a lot more for a while."
"Nice," I said. Then turning to Callie I continued the previous conversation. "Never?"
"Never." Callie said.
Perplexed, I gazed at her. "How can that be when you're in love an all?"
Color flooded her pale cheeks. "I don't know. It's just never happened."
Savannah leaned forward. "Does your boyfriend suck in bed?"
"No!" Callie looked away from us and fiddled with the straw in her drink. "He's good."
"Good?" I asked
Joey shook her head. "Good isn't a great recommendation, sweetie."
Callie sniffed. "Good is good enough for me."
I was shocked. "How can you say that? Sex isn't supposed to be good. It's supposed to be great, fantastic, and out-of-this-world. It's one of life's basic pleasures. How can you live without it?"
Joey and Savannah were nodding and Callie was chewing on her bottom lip. "I don't think he sucks. I think he's good, but how would I know? We've been together for three years and he's the only guy I've ever had sex with."
Joey and Savannah started babbling at Callie, throwing out all kinds of questions and advice and I sat back to take it all in.
"If he's not getting the job done, then you need to find a new man."
"But I love him."
Joey twirled the straw in her drink. "She doesn't need to get rid of him. Just take charge, Callie. Nothing makes a guy strut more than getting his woman off. Tell him what will do it for you and he'll be more than happy to oblige."
"I can't tell him what to do!"
"Why not? You don't need to give him step-by-step instructions. At least I hope to God you don't have to, or maybe you should get a new man."
They all laughed.
"Just do the female thing," Joey said. Then she softened her voice and started sighing. "Oh, there, baby. Yeah, just like that. No, deeper. Harder, faster… y'know, like that. Coach him."
I was laughing so hard tears were forming. To make matters worse Callie's fair skin was flushed bright red and her eyes were about to jump from her skull. "I can't do that!"
"Sure you can," I said. "It's easy."
"No," she said. "I mean I can't. I don't know what I really like. I mean I like everything he does, it's just … not enough."
"What do you mean you don't know what you really like? How are you supposed to tell him how to please you if don't know what will please you? What gets you off when you play with yourself? You like to play with your nipples or do you need clitoral stimulation?"
"Ohhh, there's nothing better than one of those little silver bullets." Savannah jumped in. "I'll always remember the guy who introduced those to me. He's cock wasn't very big, but he made up for it in other ways."
"What's a silver bullet?"
Callie leaned closer to Savannah and the two proceeded to talk about toys. I turned away from them and focused on Joey. "So how are things with Mike?"
She grinned. "Great. Now that he doesn't work nights here anymore we have a lot more time together."
"And you're happy about that?"
Joey and I were a lot alike. As a dancer she always had men asking her to go home with her at the end of the night, but never out for dinner or a real date. We used to talk about how after being single for so long, we might get so set in our ways that a steady man would be more hassle than he was worth.
"Yeah, I am happy with that." She smiled and I saw the contentment in her eyes. "Getting used to having him around all the time was a lot easier than I expected. Great sex on a regular basis really helped."
I nodded. "It would, wouldn't it?"
"You? How are things going? I heard you went on another beach trip?"
"Jamaica was good, and now life's back to normal."
She eyed me. "Nothing new and exciting?"
Well, some stranger has been watching me in my apartment, and I think I like it. "My little sister's getting married and I'm trying to help her find a dress. It's freakin' nuts."
The club has slowly been filling up while we talked and I could see a line starting to form at the front bar. Just then John, the bartender looked up and our eyes met. It was time for me to get back there.
"Why don't you talk to Samair about one?" Joey said as I straightened away from the booth.
"About a wedding dress?" That got my attention. "You think she'd be interested?"
"Shit, yeah," Joey said as she stood up and removed her warm up jacket. "Why wouldn't she? Especially if your sister has some unmarried friends who might need a dress in the future."
Beneath her light jacket Joey had on a strapless corset and miniskirt that I knew were custom made by Val's girlfriend. They looked really good. Asking her about a wedding dress was definitely something to think about.
Amazon | Amazon Kindle | Barnes & Noble | Chapters.ca | Red Light Books.com
For more great snippets, check out these authors.
Jody Wallace
Emma Petersen
Leah Braemel
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Shelli Stevens
T.J. Michaels
SS. My Prerogative
The theme for this weeks Snippet Saturday is Work, so I chose this excerpt from My Prerogative. It's not super hot or sexy, but I chose it because I love it. As someone who's worked bars for too many years to say I can tell you this is actually a tame conversation for when a bunch of serves and bartenders are sitting around. Yet, it's fun, and it gives you a couple hints at to some of the actual issues in the story, and not just the sex. ;)
Risqué was closed on Sunday nights, and opened at eight pm the other six nights a week. Four of those nights a week I was the first person in – aside from Val that is. But that Wednesday I worked the short shift, from ten 'till close.
I walked in just after nine that Wednesday and the place was still quiet, so instead of jumping behind the bar I headed to the corner booth where staff always lingered until things picked up.
"No fucking way!" Savannah Morris, one of the clubs' go-go dancers shouted just as I got there.
At Savannah's outcry Callie held her right hand up, palm open. "I swear it."
"Swear what?" I asked, propping a hip against the side of the booth.
Savannah gaped at me. "She's never had a male induced orgasm."
Ohhh, sex. My favorite topic of conversation. But first … I turned to the third person in the booth. "Good to see you, Joey. Show going good?"
Joey Kent was one of the best dancers at Risqué. So good that she only worked on a very casual basis for us now because she was part of a local Dance Troupe that put on seasonal shows. I'd only seen her two or three times all summer, and I'd missed her. She wasn't a close friend, but she was one of those people with a true blue good heart, and it showed. Just being around her brought out the happy in a person.
"Summer run is over, and we start rehearsals for the winter show in a month, so I'll be around a lot more for a while."
"Nice," I said. Then turning to Callie I continued the previous conversation. "Never?"
"Never." Callie said.
Perplexed, I gazed at her. "How can that be when you're in love an all?"
Color flooded her pale cheeks. "I don't know. It's just never happened."
Savannah leaned forward. "Does your boyfriend suck in bed?"
"No!" Callie looked away from us and fiddled with the straw in her drink. "He's good."
"Good?" I asked
Joey shook her head. "Good isn't a great recommendation, sweetie."
Callie sniffed. "Good is good enough for me."
I was shocked. "How can you say that? Sex isn't supposed to be good. It's supposed to be great, fantastic, and out-of-this-world. It's one of life's basic pleasures. How can you live without it?"
Joey and Savannah were nodding and Callie was chewing on her bottom lip. "I don't think he sucks. I think he's good, but how would I know? We've been together for three years and he's the only guy I've ever had sex with."
Joey and Savannah started babbling at Callie, throwing out all kinds of questions and advice and I sat back to take it all in.
"If he's not getting the job done, then you need to find a new man."
"But I love him."
Joey twirled the straw in her drink. "She doesn't need to get rid of him. Just take charge, Callie. Nothing makes a guy strut more than getting his woman off. Tell him what will do it for you and he'll be more than happy to oblige."
"I can't tell him what to do!"
"Why not? You don't need to give him step-by-step instructions. At least I hope to God you don't have to, or maybe you should get a new man."
They all laughed.
"Just do the female thing," Joey said. Then she softened her voice and started sighing. "Oh, there, baby. Yeah, just like that. No, deeper. Harder, faster… y'know, like that. Coach him."
I was laughing so hard tears were forming. To make matters worse Callie's fair skin was flushed bright red and her eyes were about to jump from her skull. "I can't do that!"
"Sure you can," I said. "It's easy."
"No," she said. "I mean I can't. I don't know what I really like. I mean I like everything he does, it's just … not enough."
"What do you mean you don't know what you really like? How are you supposed to tell him how to please you if don't know what will please you? What gets you off when you play with yourself? You like to play with your nipples or do you need clitoral stimulation?"
"Ohhh, there's nothing better than one of those little silver bullets." Savannah jumped in. "I'll always remember the guy who introduced those to me. He's cock wasn't very big, but he made up for it in other ways."
"What's a silver bullet?"
Callie leaned closer to Savannah and the two proceeded to talk about toys. I turned away from them and focused on Joey. "So how are things with Mike?"
She grinned. "Great. Now that he doesn't work nights here anymore we have a lot more time together."
"And you're happy about that?"
Joey and I were a lot alike. As a dancer she always had men asking her to go home with her at the end of the night, but never out for dinner or a real date. We used to talk about how after being single for so long, we might get so set in our ways that a steady man would be more hassle than he was worth.
"Yeah, I am happy with that." She smiled and I saw the contentment in her eyes. "Getting used to having him around all the time was a lot easier than I expected. Great sex on a regular basis really helped."
I nodded. "It would, wouldn't it?"
"You? How are things going? I heard you went on another beach trip?"
"Jamaica was good, and now life's back to normal."
She eyed me. "Nothing new and exciting?"
Well, some stranger has been watching me in my apartment, and I think I like it. "My little sister's getting married and I'm trying to help her find a dress. It's freakin' nuts."
The club has slowly been filling up while we talked and I could see a line starting to form at the front bar. Just then John, the bartender looked up and our eyes met. It was time for me to get back there.
"Why don't you talk to Samair about one?" Joey said as I straightened away from the booth.
"About a wedding dress?" That got my attention. "You think she'd be interested?"
"Shit, yeah," Joey said as she stood up and removed her warm up jacket. "Why wouldn't she? Especially if your sister has some unmarried friends who might need a dress in the future."
Beneath her light jacket Joey had on a strapless corset and miniskirt that I knew were custom made by Val's girlfriend. They looked really good. Asking her about a wedding dress was definitely something to think about.
Amazon | Amazon Kindle | Barnes & Noble | Chapters.ca | Red Light Books.com
For more great snippets, check out these authors.
Jody Wallace
Emma Petersen
Leah Braemel
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Shelli Stevens
T.J. Michaels
June 2, 2011
Help me out, readers.
I'm looking for a new story idea..something HOT & Edgy that I can delve into Something NOT connected to any of my previous character. But since I sort of want to do everything at once I need help narrowing my focus. Help me out and pick one. :)
What would you like to see from me?
straight erotic contemporary
a few paranormal elements
futuristic
contemporary BDSM
Any genre, as long as it's BDSM
pollcode.com free polls
June 1, 2011
WotWS: Risque Business
I've known HelenKay Dimon for a number of years, since before either of us were published in NY. and I've always enjoyed her stories. I'm thrilled to be part of Walk On The Wild Side Books with her and urge you all to check us out.
Kari Reynolds is a human resources specialist on a short-term assignment at Coleman Engineering. It's her job to lead workshops but there's one big problem – the boss, Matt Bradford.
Being near Mr. Tall, Dark and Smoking Hot brings out Kari's naughty side. One look at him makes her forget what's appropriate in the workplace, and she's smart enough to know the heated glances he's shooting her way have nothing to do with business.
Now all she has to do is convince Matt to ignore her job title and try a little office pleasure…
Approximately 11,000 words
Download:
Amazon*Amazon UK*ARe*Smashwords
Also available for iBooks
Excerpt …
Matt Bradford stared across the conference room table and felt his balls clench. His managers stepped out for the lunch break twenty minutes ago, but the glass-walled space was not totally empty. One person remained. One hot and very off-limits person who broke his concentration just by breathing – Kari Reynolds.
With straight brown hair, green eyes and body that even her proper navy business suit couldn't hide, she qualified as pure temptation. Curvy with big eyes and a full mouth. Then there was the necklace. She wore a string of pearls every single day, and every single night he fantasized about her spread out on his sheets wearing nothing else.
"You don't have to babysit me, you know." She delivered the comment without looking up. Her fingernails drummed against the mahogany tabletop as her gaze stayed focused on the yellow legal pad in front of her.
"I'm not hungry." Now that was a damn lie, but food was not the issue. She was.
She'd come to Coleman Engineering on an interim assignment and at the insistence of corporate headquarters. Matt ran the San Diego satellite office but the owner in New York City, Rob Coleman, set the rules. When a manager there crossed a line with an assistant a few months back, Coleman instituted a company-wide human resources campaign on proper workplace behavior. Matt's division claimed a clean record, but that didn't matter. Everyone had to attend the training by the outside consulting group, which landed Kari and her mile-long legs right in his path.
Matt had never even dated a woman from the office. He hadn't wanted to take the chance of having his advances misunderstood. But keeping his hands off Kari and his staring to a minimum was killing him. It was as if Rob had invented this twisted sensual game to torture him.
"I leave on Friday," she said.
That was news to Matt. That left only a few more days of watching her and wanting. "Since when?"
She glanced up at him. "I thought you'd be relieved to be rid of me after three weeks of constant contact."
"Admittedly, before you came I wasn't looking forward to interrupting the workday for lectures on topics that seemed like common sense, but you made it interesting." He left out the part where he spent half the night mentally undressing her.
As if she could read his mind, she smiled. Leaning back in her chair with her arms folded under her breasts, she crossed one leg over the other. "In other words, you got used to me."
That heated look, the dip of her blouse, the peek of the shadowed valley beneath the open button, the sexy way her leg swung around in the air. In any other place, in any other time, he would swear she was sending a signal.
May 30, 2011
Gypsy Style
Most people who either read my blog regularly, or know me personally know that I'm also a photographer. Digital photography has opened a whole new world for me from film, because it makes 'playing' that much easier. Not only can I take as many pictures of silly experimental things as I want, but develeoping them and playing with them creatively requires no dark room, no chemicals, and is simply…easier.
Editing and manipulating photos has become a big hobby for me, and helped to define my own style as a photographer. Close friends know how much I enjoy it, and I've started to do some work for them, and word is spreading so that others have contacted me as well. I love it. I'll never do graphic or photography as my full-time work, but I love having another avenue of exploring my creative side, as well as bringin in income. ;)
Recently I did a website header up for author Leigh Evans.
and a business card for her as well.
Be sure to check out her site, and see her news.
May 24, 2011
WotWS: Alison Kent
Though AT HIS MERCY has been for sale for most of the month, today is the official WotWS release day for this 12,000 word novella. And even though the Kindle and Nook versions went up weeks ago, the files that will eventually be for sale at the Sony, Kobo, Diesel and iBook stores take longer. Those are generated by Smashwords, and unfortunately authors have zero control over the timing.
When car trouble sends Lise Kimball into the sweaty, sultry Mississippi south, she wants nothing more than a new tire and a place to spend the night before continuing her trip to New Orleans.
What she doesn't want is to find herself stranded in the company of Donovan True, a man as controlling as the one who drove her from Atlanta.
Except Donovan takes charge in ways Lise has never known. Being at his mercy might be exactly what she's been looking for.
