Jennifer Peer's Blog
May 3, 2021
First Kiss
Excerpt from True Beginnings... There are certain looks that I decipher well, hunger being one of them. It's a raw emotion that’s difficult to conceal and it was all over Dante's face when I located him seated across the room. He had obviously been watching me for quite some time and made no attempt to disguise the fact that he liked what he'd seen. Of course, maybe he was literally hungry or simply impressed by my form. Neither of us looked away, and for the first time, I felt like I might have a little power in whatever this was. Still, I had been wrong earlier, and I wasn't all that good at these types of signals. Then he stood, and I was confident that this time, there was a much smaller margin of error.
He stared at me and I tried desperately to keep my Zen. It was difficult when at some point during his workout he had taken off his shirt. I had confirmation that he was solid and sinewy. I refused to look down further because I knew the hardness continued and I wasn’t sure I could conceal my thoughts. Dante wasn’t embarrassed about his obvious arousal and it made me feel incredibly sexy that he was reacting to me. He let his eyes blatantly roam slowly up and down my body, appraisingly. I was sweaty and messy as hell, but I let him look. He was obviously a fitness fanatic and wasn't turned off by a woman who could keep up. There was something incredibly hot about that. Our eyes met again, and I took another sip of my water, now craving something else to quench that heat building up in my nether regions. Man, those lady parts were coming to life. I had to do something soon or I was going to burst.
I couldn't find a reason to keep Dante out except for habit, but I’d only known him a short time. Was it true that sometimes you knew or was that all nonsense? I took another sip never breaking eye contact. The sexual tension was thick as the heat level rose. I had an urge to pour the whole bottle of water over my head to see if it would cool me down or produce steam. I was too distracted by the intense look on his face to make a pro and con list at this point. Shit. What to do…what to do.
My body screamed as my head battled befuddlement. Screw it. I shot it all down, embracing the changing tides. My whole damn world was upside-down anyway, might as well give in and try something different. I was throwing my modus operandi out the window and this incredibly hot man had no idea what a big deal that was. I remembered something my dad said. Sometimes you have to let go, believing that fate has bigger plans.
I did the only thing I could under the circumstances, used sarcasm wrapped around a blatantly cheesy pickup line. “Come here often?” Dante was across the room in moments, mouth crushing mine. Hot and wet, our tongues battled as we devoured each other in the power of our first kiss. My hands wound through his curls as he pulled me closer. I could feel the hard lines of his body. Each nerve ending focused on the fusion of lips as our arms wrapped around each other to deepen the contact.
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True Beginnings: FIRST IN A NEW SERIES
November 22, 2020
The Last Bloom Excerpt
"You be sure to let me know if there are any others you need assistance with.” The man had a way with words that I truly appreciated. I was warm now and thoroughly enjoyed the repartee we were developing.
I looked at him, not bothering to hide my smile. “I’ll be sure to do that. It’s nice to meet someone so willing to jump in and help out wherever they can.”
His smile was blinding, and I could tell he was enjoying himself as much as I was. “We’re dedicated to serving and protecting the public as you know Ms. Laurent and I intend to provide whatever services you require to the best of my ability whenever you require them. All you need to do is ask.” I could feel my heart pounding against my ribcage as I imagined what I could do with this man in a twenty-four-hour period.
“You should be careful what you offer Brady Harrison. What I need may be quite time consuming. Several things are long overdue, and I would certainly love your assistance in getting them up to date.” It was on now. If I thought I could get away with it, I would give this man a tongue lashing all day long and call it foreplay before taking him to my bed and keeping him there all night. It had been a long time since I wanted anyone, and possibly the first time I wanted someone so badly I felt like I was burning from the inside out.
“I’m planning on it.” Boom! Spontaneous combustion on the spot. I had to think very carefully about my response.
“Are you always so free with your assistance?”
“Never. My 'go to any lengths' attitude with you might be a bit of a shocker to my co-workers. I’m kind of known as a hard ass.” There was no hesitation on his end and I knew he was being totally transparent.
“From what I’ve noticed that would be accurate.” He exhaled in a half whistle and I was pleased that I’d rattled him and decided to go for gold. “Is that a consistent theme?” I ran my gaze up and down his body appraising every inch before looking up at him from under my lashes.
He let out a deep booming laugh and I took a sip of coffee. “You are a naughty girl Calliope. I like it.”
“Just making conversation Brady.” He shook his head at me and I bit the edge of my lower lip which drew his attention to my mouth. He jumped back up to my eyes and then moved in a little closer.
I looked at him, not bothering to hide my smile. “I’ll be sure to do that. It’s nice to meet someone so willing to jump in and help out wherever they can.”
His smile was blinding, and I could tell he was enjoying himself as much as I was. “We’re dedicated to serving and protecting the public as you know Ms. Laurent and I intend to provide whatever services you require to the best of my ability whenever you require them. All you need to do is ask.” I could feel my heart pounding against my ribcage as I imagined what I could do with this man in a twenty-four-hour period.
“You should be careful what you offer Brady Harrison. What I need may be quite time consuming. Several things are long overdue, and I would certainly love your assistance in getting them up to date.” It was on now. If I thought I could get away with it, I would give this man a tongue lashing all day long and call it foreplay before taking him to my bed and keeping him there all night. It had been a long time since I wanted anyone, and possibly the first time I wanted someone so badly I felt like I was burning from the inside out.
“I’m planning on it.” Boom! Spontaneous combustion on the spot. I had to think very carefully about my response.
“Are you always so free with your assistance?”
“Never. My 'go to any lengths' attitude with you might be a bit of a shocker to my co-workers. I’m kind of known as a hard ass.” There was no hesitation on his end and I knew he was being totally transparent.
“From what I’ve noticed that would be accurate.” He exhaled in a half whistle and I was pleased that I’d rattled him and decided to go for gold. “Is that a consistent theme?” I ran my gaze up and down his body appraising every inch before looking up at him from under my lashes.
He let out a deep booming laugh and I took a sip of coffee. “You are a naughty girl Calliope. I like it.”
“Just making conversation Brady.” He shook his head at me and I bit the edge of my lower lip which drew his attention to my mouth. He jumped back up to my eyes and then moved in a little closer.
August 21, 2019
Get it all out!
I have had people amazed that I was actually able to finish writing a novel. they've asked questions like: "How did you ever write that much?" "How long did it take you?" "Did you have the whole thing plotted out before you started?" "What kind of outlines, diagrams, etc. did you create to keep you on track?"
Well to be honest, my first draft took me about 9 weeks because I wrote every moment that I wasn't at work. My family was extremely patient and supportive. My husband took on more of the evening activities because my book was essentially writing itself at a frantic pace. My characters took control and I was their medium.
Now my family will tell you that I have no shortage of words and am a very capable conversationalists. However, nothing prepared me for the re-reads and re-writes where I over-analyzed every comment my Beta readers made and words sometimes escaped me. I think I overdid that process most likely. It brought me to an epiphany... is there really a right or wrong way to write?
I'd like to think that there are no guidelines or rules around how you write a novel. In my humble opinion, it should be a process of trial and error to discover what works for you. What works for me is sitting down and free thought writing to get it all out of my head and heart and onto the paper. Sometimes that process is feverish and fast to ensure that I don't forget anything. Other times it's a slow burn that slowly grows as the pages fly by. Then there are those painful moments when it just isn't working and I can't craft my words to suit what I am visualizing...those are the moments when I have to walk away and grab a cup of coffee and a pep talk.
What I have discovered through this process is that the things you do to get yourself to the final goal don't matter once you see your name on a cover. You forget all about the sleepless nights, hair pulling, gnashing of teeth... well you get the picture. That feeling of lighting up from the inside out with a grin that you can't suppress is the only way I can think of to describe it. So no matter how long it takes or how you get there, it's really up to you to decide to just do it.
True Beginnings by Jennifer Peer
Well to be honest, my first draft took me about 9 weeks because I wrote every moment that I wasn't at work. My family was extremely patient and supportive. My husband took on more of the evening activities because my book was essentially writing itself at a frantic pace. My characters took control and I was their medium.
Now my family will tell you that I have no shortage of words and am a very capable conversationalists. However, nothing prepared me for the re-reads and re-writes where I over-analyzed every comment my Beta readers made and words sometimes escaped me. I think I overdid that process most likely. It brought me to an epiphany... is there really a right or wrong way to write?
I'd like to think that there are no guidelines or rules around how you write a novel. In my humble opinion, it should be a process of trial and error to discover what works for you. What works for me is sitting down and free thought writing to get it all out of my head and heart and onto the paper. Sometimes that process is feverish and fast to ensure that I don't forget anything. Other times it's a slow burn that slowly grows as the pages fly by. Then there are those painful moments when it just isn't working and I can't craft my words to suit what I am visualizing...those are the moments when I have to walk away and grab a cup of coffee and a pep talk.
What I have discovered through this process is that the things you do to get yourself to the final goal don't matter once you see your name on a cover. You forget all about the sleepless nights, hair pulling, gnashing of teeth... well you get the picture. That feeling of lighting up from the inside out with a grin that you can't suppress is the only way I can think of to describe it. So no matter how long it takes or how you get there, it's really up to you to decide to just do it.
True Beginnings by Jennifer Peer
