Laurel O'Donnell's Blog, page 93
March 11, 2012
Inspirational Quote Monday! – #10 of 2012
It's Inspirational Quote Monday! Here's the quote for the week – "Every moment you get is a gift. Spend it on things that matter. Don't spend it by dwelling on unhappy things." - Celestine Chua
March 10, 2012
The Bride and the Brute – Top 100 free eBooks on iBooks
As of March 10, The Bride and the Brute was in the top 100 eBooks of all free eBooks offered on iBooks. Thanks for all your interest and support!
March 8, 2012
First Kiss Friday – The Alliance by Georgina Lee
Today's First Kiss Friday featured guest is Georgina Lee, author of science fiction romance The Alliance. Welcome Georgina! Here's the first kiss between First Minister Toran and The Empress D'Minicah.
Hello, I'm Georgina Lee, and I write sci-fi/fantasy romance. I'm offering for First Kiss Friday, the kiss between two leaders who need to unite in order to battle a common enemy.
Georgina Lee – http://thetwinplanets.blogspot.com/
Set up:
In The Alliance, #4 of The Twin Planet Series, the binary planets must unite to battle a common enemy. The union must be sealed with a marriage between NaKaya's patriarchal leader, Toran, and D'Minicah, the Empress of the matriarchal planet of Vatrel. Part of the wedding ceremony is the ritual of the Binding Blood, where the bride and groom cut each other's cheek and press them together to seal their commitment. But Toran sees D'Minicah's uncut cheek, a metaphor for her purity, and decides he won't cut her in public, even if it means risking the approval of their peoples, who must go into battle the next day. Instead, he decides to initiate something far riskier.
*****
"Drauk-nur-p'hua-cora." She also spoke the ancient words clearly, now staring directly into Toran's eyes and finding them as dark as NaKaya's umbra. No emotion. Inside her heart, D'Minicah flinched slightly. No warmth for her at all?
She shut her eyes before they watered, turning quickly away from the congregants. She wasn't afraid of being cut. She was afraid of the strange sensations smoldering within her, making her ache for want of touching her husband. Her heart thundered. Toran ripped his dagger from its sheath and the harsh noise grated her nerves. D'Minicah remained motionless, her cheek offered in tense, brutal silence. The congregation below the dais held its collective breath.
Toran found his hand shook and kept it down until he could conquer it. The only hint of the Empress's impatience was a slight rising of her eyebrows.
He should cut her. He must cut her. After all, the Binding Blood was the only way to tie their peoples together. Yet, as he stared at the Empress's flawless cheek, the need to please his people fled.
D'Minicah was perfect. Untouched. Peerless, except for him. No. Even he was now cut, the sting and stream of blood a testament to the fact that he was no longer perfect. Yet Toran's gaze roamed D'Minicah's perfection.
To his horror, he found he didn't want to destroy such perfection.
"Are you unmarked?" he asked her, his voice barely a whisper.
D'Minicah shot him a quick look from the corner of her eye. "Obviously."
He swore beneath his breath at the foolish question. He'd really wanted to know how chaste she was. For some reason, he needed to know.
Why? His responsibility required he cut her, but suddenly, a surge of passion crushed his duty to his people. She was pure and the first mark on her would be his cut. His brand. Yes, it would be his brand, but he refused to do so in public. He shoved his dagger into the forearm sheath, and hauled her into his arms. She went rigid with shock. The guests all gasped in unison.
But his passion refused to abate and he pressed on. Initiated by Toran's priest's risky applause, the congregants moved in a single, fluid motion to roar their approval. Toran pushed the kiss forward. He felt D'Minicah's lips part and she let his tongue invade her mouth. Her body softened and molded itself against his torso. He felt her hands cup his cheeks. The sting of the Binding Blood was forgotten. D'Minicah's hand smeared the blood over his cheek and ear, but still he drove the kiss onward, further invading her mouth and drenching them with his passion.
Their witnesses went wild. The celebration of the Binding Blood began.
D'Minicah drew away, inhaling deeply. She sat down, shaking. Toran joined her and, with smug satisfaction, leaned over her, annoyingly close.
"Stupid savage," she muttered, wiping her bloodied hand on her napkin. "Why did you not cut me like a civilized person?"
Toran pushed back her hair and smiled when she flicked his hand away. "Because, woman, the first mark I leave on you will be done in our marriage bed."
She dug her long dark nails into his leather-clad thigh, but he merely chuckled. Right now, compared to his desire for her, her talons feel like a caress.
"Then you have condemned both our peoples to slavery, Toran."
Laughing, Toran glanced at around the merry crowd. D'Minicah was the only one not enjoying herself. "Not today, I think."
March 5, 2012
Inspirational Quote Monday! #9 of 2012
It's Inspirational Quote Monday! Here's the quote for the week – "Don't ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who are alive." - Howard Thurman
March 1, 2012
First Kiss Friday – Confessions of a Courtesan by Elizabeth Charles
Today's First Kiss Friday featured guest is Elizabeth Charles, author of historical fiction Confessions of a Courtesan. Welcome Elizabeth! Here's the first kiss between Elizabeth Armistead and Charles Fox.
Dawn found me sitting in a closed carriage on the street outside Charles's lodgings. I prayed he'd had the sense to snatch a few hours sleep and not gone to the dueling ground straight from his club. Wringing my hands inside my fur muff, I glanced at the shadowy figure of the doctor seated opposite me. It had taken the payment of a very handsome fee to secure his services at such an early hour.
"Are you certain you have brought everything you might need?" I asked for the fifth time.
"Bandages …" The doctor betrayed his impatience with a faint sigh, but humored me — for the sake of his fee, no doubt. "Compresses, laudanum, leeches — I am equipped for such aid as can be administered in these cases."
"Very good." I glimpsed another carriage drive up to Charles's door. It must be Richard come to fetch him. I knew Charles would have no one else as his second.
"Such aid as can be administered," the doctor repeated. "I make no promise what I can do if your friend suffers worse than a flesh wound. A shattered bone, a vital organ pierced, a belly wound …" He shuddered.
"I do not expect miracles, sir." I refused to contemplate any of the horrible possibilities he mentioned. "I only want to insure my friend gets whatever treatment will help him."
A short while later, Richard and Charles emerged from the house, climbed into the waiting carriage and set off. My coach followed through the still-dark streets of Mayfair to Hyde Park. The morning was clear and cold, the grass whitened by a touch of frost.
The instant my carriage stopped, I scrambled out, not waiting for the doctor or coachman to help me.
"Bless me, what is this?" cried Charles when he spied me. "The only person less likely than me to be out at such an early hour."
He cast a dark look at Richard, who held up his hands. "I did not breathe a word to her, I swear. Go home, Mrs. Armistead. A field of honor is no place for a woman."
"Honor?" I cried. "What honor can there be in such dangerous folly? Make peace with the man, Charles, however you must. Then come back to my house for a good breakfast."
"A tempting offer, my dear, but if I try to satisfy Mr. Adam, there will be no end to it. I must stand by what I said in the House, for it was true and I meant it with all my heart."
When I tried to argue further, he shushed me. "I am deeply touched by your coming here at this hour, but I must ask you to leave and not distress yourself further on my account."
The depth of my anxiety surprised me. It surpassed even my fears for Richard when he had gone to war. "How can I leave now, fearing the worst? I have brought a doctor to tend you in case you are injured. I pray you will have no need of him."
"So do we all," Richard muttered grimly. "Come, Charles, let us have this over with."
Tucking a slender wooden box under his arm, he stalked toward a pair of men waiting beneath a nearby tree.
"If you insist upon staying," Charles flashed me an impish grin, "might I have a kiss from you … for luck?"
His request took me by surprise, though not nearly so much as my own compelling need to agree.
I leaned toward him for a brief peck. But there was something fond and sweet in the touch of his lips upon mine that made me feel like an innocent young girl with her first bashful swain. I believe he felt it, too. For when we drew apart, he inhaled a deep breath and swayed on his feet, as if made dizzy.
"Upon my word," he murmured. "You shall make me want to provoke a duel every week."
"Do that," I cried, "and I shall never speak to you again, let alone kiss you!" Then I relented a little. "But I will give you another if you survive this duel."
February 27, 2012
Inspirational Quote Monday!
It's Inspirational Quote Monday! Here's the quote for the week – "People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost." – Dalai Lama
I have to remember that with my teens! 
February 26, 2012
Highest Rated Historical Medieval eBooks
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February 23, 2012
First Kiss Friday – A Knight of Honor
Here's the first kiss between Slane and Taylor from my romance novel, A Knight of Honor!
"Stand here," Taylor instructed, pulling him in front of her like a shield.
At least that would protect her, Slane thought.
But suddenly, she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Slane would have tumbled backward, had he not braced himself by splaying his hands on the sides of the doorway. He opened his mouth to reprimand her, but she quickly pressed her lips and her body against his.
Stunned into immobility, Slane gaped as she slid her lips across his, pressed her tiny body to his quickly hardening one. He jerked and tried to pull away, but her embrace held him tightly to her chest.
Slane managed to slide his lips off of hers and exclaim, "What in God's blood are you doing, woman? Have you lost your senses?"
"Unless you want to lose more than your senses, you'll return my affection and make it good," she warned in a whisper, nibbling his ear.
Jolts of pleasure shot through Slane's body. His mind told him to resist her, but his body was already succumbing to her seduction. Then his quickly fogging mind focused enough to realize what she was doing. A desperate disguise: a harlot and her customer.
She slid her mouth across his jaw and pressed her lips against his again, running her hands through his hair, clinging to him as if his lips were the only thing that could save her. Slane wrapped his arms around her tiny waist, wanting to reassure her. He knew it had to look convincing or they were done for.
He ran his tongue lightly across her lips, coaxing her to open to him. He felt her quiver beneath him as she parted her lips. She was either a very talented actress or…
Distantly, Slane heard footsteps march closer in the street, and he pulled her tighter against him. He thrust his tongue deep into her mouth. A soft groan escaped her parted lips. A groan that sent his world tumbling end over end.
The curves of her body fit snugly against the ridges in his; her full breasts pressed heavily against the battle-hewn muscles in his chest. Tingles followed the trail her fingers left along his skin; prickles of heat inflamed his soul. The essence of her seemed to take on solid form, enclosing him in a swirl of passion. He no longer heard the footsteps in the streets, no longer cared if they were caught; he only wanted this moment to go on forever.
Then a man cleared his throat behind Slane. Even as Taylor's kiss warmed his body, the threat of danger pierced the moment like a dagger. He almost reached for his sword.
Taylor's hands moved over his waist and down to his buttocks. He battled with control as she gently squeezed, running her hands over the firm rounded portion.
He pulled back slightly to gaze deeply into the green pools of her eyes. What did she want of him? Did she truly do this for disguise? Or did she dare to challenge him so blatantly? He ran his fingers through the long locks of her glorious hair, loosening it from that accursed braid. He almost growled with the passion she had aroused within him. Then he claimed her lips again with a fierce painful lashing. If she was toying with him, he would teach her what it was like to enrage his lust so powerfully.
She matched his kiss, his intense need with a longing of her own. He felt her tremble beneath the onslaught of his kiss. He wanted her as he had never wanted anything in his life. He wanted to see what her body looked like beneath the leather armor she wore. He wanted to kiss her breasts and her stomach and…
Suddenly, she tore away from him. Slane stared at her for a long moment, trying desperately to regain control of his heated body. She stood before him like a vanquishing hero, her chin raised, her eyes glittering with –
With what? Was that passion in her eyes? Or was it mockery?
Slane felt a chill seep through his clothes to his heated skin as the cold reality of what had just happened set in. What had he been doing? What had he been thinking?
"You made it good," she said. "Damn good. Very convincing. Even to me. But the soldiers are gone."
And indeed, they were gone. Long gone. The streets were empty.
*****
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February 20, 2012
Inspirational Quote Monday! #7 of 2012
It's Inspirational Quote Monday! Here's the quote for the week – "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." – Steve Jobs
February 16, 2012
First Kiss Friday – Lust on The Rocks by Dianne Venetta
Today's First Kiss Friday featured guest is Dianne Venetta, author of contemporary romance Lust on the Rocks. Welcome Dianne! Here's the first kiss between Samantha Rawlings and Victor Marin.
"I like you, Sam."
"Me, too," she murmured.
"A lot."
He skimmed the backs of his fingers along her temple, and every inch of her wanted to respond. Balmy breeze, the heavy scent of ocean, romantic moonlight… All he needed was to say the word.
"What are we going to do about it?" she asked, quieting her response, taming the exhilaration coursing through her. She didn't want to appear eager. Interested, but not eager.
"I don't know." He smiled. "What I do know is I'm in a difficult position."
Realization settled in, but she asked, "How so?"
Vic's smile turned electric. "My boss is sexier than any woman has a right to be."
Careless to the schoolgirl grin lengthening across her face, she was captivated within the spotlight of his attention. Which was crazy. She was used to entertaining the hot-crackle-pop of new lovers, the tentative first beginnings, but for some reason, this one was different.
Not only snared, this one had her hooked, but good.
"Go on…"
"Not only stunning, her mind runs circles around most others. A trait I find incredibly appealing in a woman."
Doubt pushed in. Should they do this? Getting close to Vic was something she had been considering for a long time, her desire compounded after the incident with Selena.
But today she had drawn him closer—professionally speaking—and sex could change everything. What would it do to their relationship? Would sex ruin it?
He inched closer and excitement sprinted through her.
Or sweeten it?
"Is this wrong?" he asked, the delicate question swept closer by the brush of a breeze.
Sam didn't know, but every fiber in her being wanted to find out. She tipped her chin up, hair blowing about her face, and encouraged his next move.
Vic ran the pad of his finger along her lower lip, staring at them as he did so. "You drive me insane with that mouth of yours."
Her response was more a throaty groan than chuckle.
His eyes darted back and forth across hers.
Sam smiled. With a hand to the back of his head, she pulled his face to hers. They were both adults. She'd had relationships with men on the job before and nothing had come of them, good or bad. Hell, office romances were more common than the common cold! If it didn't work out, they could handle it.
Pleasure hummed along her senses. She was sure of it.
Rubbing her lips back and forth across the satiny skin of his, the contact sent hot stabs of want through the soft folds of her loins. Sam felt his warm breath grow shallow and leaned into the rock of his chest, welcoming his tongue as it delved inside, his arms as they slid around her back.
Moving her hands to his biceps, she luxuriated in the hard, round curve of his muscle, the sense of virility it exuded. Her craving intensified.
Vic broke away, but not too far, keeping her secure in his grasp. "You okay with this?" he asked, his eyes intense, probing.
"I'm okay, if you're okay."
She had had her share of lovers and wasn't embarrassed to say so. Much like a man, she had needs, enjoyed sex, and uninterested in commitment—or marriage—saw no problem with the arrangement of a casual affair.
"Once I get started I'm not gonna want to stop."
"I hope not," she said, anticipation welling. She wanted to feel him, all of him. From the rock of his chest as it pressed against her breasts to the supple skin of his lips, Sam wanted to experience all of this man.
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