Ari Thatcher's Blog: Ari Thatcher's Words of the Moment, page 2

Hot for Friday – First Meet: His Wedding Date

This week we’re sharing the first meet for our couples. Ash and Bree of His Wedding Date have been working together for several years, so this technically isn’t their first meet, but it’s where they first move toward the possibility of being more than coworkers.

Excerpt:

Bree Simmons held the collar of her wool coat closed as the winter wind off the distant ocean blasted past the front of the office building. Moving as quickly as she could toward her car, she almost turned her ankle when her stiletto boot heel caught a depression in the asphalt. She should have worn pants to work, but her little plaid skirt was so much more fun. More fitting to the mood she’d been in when she woke. Flirty. Dangerous. It was Friday, the end of a long week, and she planned to make the most of the beginning of her weekend.

“Bree, wait up!” Ash Uberman, the hunky graphic artist who worked two cubicles down from her, trotted up. His longish blond hair danced in the blowing air. “Wow, this wind is crazy.”

“Yes, and thanks for making me stand in it longer.” She grinned and tipped her head to one side. “What’s up?”

He smiled back and she forgot how cold her legs were. “I need a favor. Huge favor.” He spread his arms wide.

They were friendly enough to have lunch on occasion, often with a few other coworkers, but other than the major crush she had on him, she wouldn’t call them friends. That made the curiosity even stronger about what he wanted. He’d starred in a few battery-operated fantasies of hers that she wouldn’t mind bringing to reality. “What kind of favor?”

“I need a date.”

The outrageousness of that statement made her laugh out loud. “You need a date? I hear you on the phone all the time—baby this, sugar that. Did you get stood up?”

He glanced around then took her elbow and walked across the parking lot toward where she usually parked. “It’s a long story. Can I buy you a drink?”

Nibbling her lips to keep from squee-ing out loud, she said, “Sure.”

She climbed in her car and followed him to the small pub not far from the office where they often went with the crowd from work. He found them a small table in a corner near the fireplace, which she was very grateful to find burning brightly.

Taking off her coat, she draped it over the chair while Ash went to the bar to get their drinks. She was a bit surprised when he came back with her favorite, a strawberry stripper. The guy had paid attention. A good quality in a man. She smiled as she took her drink.

He sat and poured his ale into a frosty glass. “Now, then. The favor. I need a date to a wedding.”

She raised an eyebrow. “You want me to be your plus one? One of your sugar babies can’t help you out?”

“I don’t want to ask any of them. This is important.” A line appeared between his eyebrows, and his baby blues watched her carefully.

She sipped her drink while she let that digest. It was too important to ask one of his bimbettes, so he was asking her. She shivered and blamed it on the cold drink, not the thought that he would ask her to do him an important favor. “So, when’s the wedding?”

“Next weekend.”

“Weekend,” she repeated. “Not next Saturday or next Sunday. They have some special ritualistic ceremony that lasts all weekend?”

He shoved his wind-tousled red-blond hair back from his face, which made those seductive eyes that much easier to see. “No. It’s at the Snowshoe Mountain Lodge. I guess they call it a destination wedding. I have to be there Friday night for the bachelor party. The ceremony is Saturday. I plan to come home Sunday.”

A weekend at the lodge, and all she had to do was show up at a wedding and reception. Hello. She’d be nuts not to go. If Ash wasn’t interested in warming her bed, she was sure she could find a lonely skier who’d be game. “I pretend to be your date and you pay for the weekend?”

His eyes locked on hers as if searching for something, their happiness dimming slightly. “Well, yeah, if you have to pretend, I guess that still works.”

Aww. That cute puppy sound went off in her head and tugged at her heart. She felt like a heel. He wanted a real date. “I’m sorry, you said you needed a favor so I assumed pretending to like you was the favor.”

Shit! She should just shove her whole boot in her mouth, since her foot was so far in. Way to destroy a hot guy’s ego. “Wait, I didn’t mean that. I meant—well, I don’t know what I meant. I’m a bitch, what can I say? How’s this? I would love to be your date for the wedding.”

~*~

His Wedding Date is available to buy or borrow at Amazon.

Be sure to head back to Book Boyfriends Cafe to visit the rest of the Hot for Friday stops!

Hot for Friday: First Kiss~ His Wedding Date

Ash and Bree are coworkers who’ve never acted on the chemistry between them until he needs a date to a wedding to impress his ex-wife.

This scene is just prior to their trip to a destination wedding.

“Can’t stay out late on a school night?” she teased.

“Something like that.” But he didn’t move toward the door.

Bree rose and picked up their glasses. Ash quickly dove to grab the plates. When Bree set the glasses in the sink, she turned and found herself trapped by Ash. He was so close, his warmth and his scent enveloped her. Butterflies stirred in her stomach as she breathed in the clean, masculine smell. Try as she might to not do so, she swayed a bit in his direction, wanting to feel his lips on hers.

Ash leaned in, too, then pulled back. He took a step closer and set the plates on the counter without breaking eye contact.

The butterflies multiplied as if she’d never been kissed. Her tongue swiped her lips just as Ash planted his hands on the counter on either side of her. She drew in a breath and narrowed the distance between them.

His touch was warm and gentle. Her eyes closed as she parted her lips to welcome his searching tongue. Her hands pressed against his back, pulling him closer. When her breasts rubbed against his shirt, she moaned.

He echoed the sound, and then his mouth was gone. Bree opened her eyes. Ash was still close, his eyes looking as heated as she felt.

“I should go.”

“Should you?” she asked.

“Yeah. Or neither one of us will make it to work tomorrow.”

Bree sighed and followed him to the door. The weekend couldn’t come soon enough.

About the Author

Ari Thatcher has always loved romance, the hotter the better. Turning up the heat level in her own writing involved closing her eyes as she typed the “good” parts, but soon she got used to using “those” words and was pleased with the result. Finding out that others enjoyed it, too, was icing on the cake!

Her stories are split between light contemporary and paranormal genres, with some BDSM in the mix for good measure. She enjoys being in a metaphysical world filled with shapeshifters and psychic gifts, but some stories just insist that sex and romance is enough.

Also writing as Aileen Fish, she’s a USAToday Bestselling Author of sweet Regency and contemporary romance.

A few words about writing sex scenes by Suz deMello (#NaNoWriMo #iamwriting #writingcraft @MFRW_ORG)

From my writing treatise, Plotting and Planning, available at http://tinyurl.com/deMelloPlotting

Scenes are the building blocks of your story, for acts are comprised of scenes. They’re nothing more than events, most often interactions between your characters. Scenes should fulfill at least one or two of the below purposes—best if you can include all four.

•Advance plot

•Reveal or develop character

•Complicate or resolve conflict

•Express setting, mood, theme

Everything in your manuscript should have a function, even every comma or em-dash.

How does this apply to the writing of erotica?

Too often, sex scenes are shoehorned into a story to increase the word count or the heat level, while those scenes don’t fulfill any other function. To quote from Plotting and Planning again, Everything in a story should contribute to it, from the biggest monster to the tiniest comma.

If a scene doesn’t contribute to the story, it doesn’t belong there. It doesn’t matter how well-written it is. It doesn’t matter how hot it is. It doesn’t matter how much you, the author, may love the beautiful prose or the scorching hot, kinky sex.

There’s a piece of writerly advice out there: Kill your darlings.

No one’s quite sure where this phrase originated, but it’s been repeated often, by such notable authors as William Faulkner and Stephen King.

(http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2013/10/18/_kill_your_darlings_writing_advice_what_writer_really_said_to_murder_your.html).

But it doesn’t matter who originated the phrase–it’s great advice. We often fall in love with our prose and are loath to cut it, especially when we may have slaved over a particularly well-turned clause or exhaustively researched, say, the eating habits of the lesser lemur of Madagascar.

But fiction is no place to be a smarty-pants. Leave that for term papers, book reports and theses.

In terms of writing sex scenes, what do we leave in and what to we cut?

We leave in those scenes that fulfill at least one of the above purposes. Ideally, a well-written, thoughtfully planned encounter will fulfill more than one purpose.

Here’s a brief example, from a story I wrote called Gypsy Witch. The backstory is that the heroine is dating a cop.

Ben propped himself up on his elbows to better see the naked woman beneath him. Sheened with sweat, Elena’s lush curves glowed in the reddish half-light of her bedroom, curtained in exotically patterned swaths of gauze and silk. A curl of smoke from a lit incense stick scented the air with sandalwood. Otherworldly New Age music flowed out of a boombox in the corner, irritating the hell out of him.

Though the paragraph is very sensual, there’s quite a bit of characterization and even a little conflict—and this is only the first paragraph of the story. We see that Ben is very “feet-on-the-ground” while Elena, his lover, is exotic and New-Agey. So character is described, setting is related and the romantic conflict is shown.

If you like what you read, find the story here: http://www.ellorascave.com/gypsy-witch.html

As a romance novelist, I believe firmly that erotic scenes should never be gratuitous. If a writer keeps the purposes a scene must fulfill in mind while writing, the sex is never out of place but is a seamless part of a well-written story.

About the Author:



Best-selling, award-winning author Suz deMello, a.k.a Sue Swift, has written seventeen romance novels in several subgenres, including erotica, comedy, historical, paranormal, mystery and suspense, plus a number of short stories and non-fiction articles on writing. A freelance editor, she’s held the positions of managing editor and senior editor, working for such firms as Totally Bound and Ai Press. She also takes private clients.

Her books have been favorably reviewed in Publishers Weekly, Kirkus and Booklist, won a contest or two, attained the finals of the RITA and hit several bestseller lists.

A former trial attorney, her passion is world travel. She’s left the US over a dozen times, including lengthy stints working overseas. She’s now writing a vampire tale and planning her next trip.

Check out Suzie’s site: http://www.suzdemello.com

And her blog: http://www.TheVelvetLair.com

New Release! His Wedding Date by Ari Thatcher

I’m back in action with a new release! His Wedding Date is the first novella in the Destination Weddings series featuring people who fall in love at someone else’s wedding. Or possibly, their own…

The Blurb:

A free weekend at a ski lodge, and all she has to do is attend a wedding and reception on the arm of her sexy coworker, Ash? Heck, yeah! Bree is all over it. She’s been crushing on him for some time, but even if he’s not interested in anything long term, she’ll get a long weekend in the snow.

Ash doesn’t mind attending his college buddy’s wedding at a ski lodge, except for the fact Mark’s sister is Ash’s ex-wife. All the things she said was wrong with him are still true, but the only one that bothers him is his inability to maintain a relationship. At least with Bree at his side, he can hold his head up around his friends. Too bad she’d never go for a guy like him.

An Excerpt:

Chapter One

Bree Simmons held the collar of her wool coat closed as the wind off the ocean blasted past the front of the office building. She should have worn pants to work, but her little plaid skirt was so much more fun. More fitting to the mood she’d been in when she woke. Flirty. Dangerous. It was Friday, the end of a long week, and she planned to make the most of the beginning of her weekend.

“Bree, wait up!” Ash Uberman, the hunky graphic artist who worked two cubicles away from hers trotted up. His straight brown hair danced in the blowing air. “Whew, this wind is crazy.”

“Yes, and thanks for making me stand in it longer.” She grinned to show she was teasing. “What’s up?”

He smiled and she forgot how cold her legs were. “I need a favor. Huge favor.”

They were friendly enough to have lunch on occasion, often with a few other coworkers, but other than the major crush she had on him, she wouldn’t call them friends. Still, with the right kind of favor, that could change. Or she could hope so. “Depends. What kind of favor?”

“I need a date.”

The laugh that escaped her was loud and brief, and she snapped her mouth closed a moment to regain her composure. “You need a date? I hear you on the phone all the time, baby this, sugar that. Someone stand you up?”

He glanced around then took her elbow and walked toward the parking lot. “It’s a long story. I don’t want to keep you out here in the cold. Can I buy you a drink?”

Dying to find out what was going on, she said, “Sure.”

She followed him in her car to a small pub not far from the office and he found them a small table in a corner near the fireplace, which she was very grateful to find burning brightly. She took off her coat and draped it over the chair while Ash went to the bar to get their drinks. She was a bit surprised when he came back with her favorite, a strawberry stripper. The man paid attention at their happy hour gatherings with their coworkers.

He sat and poured his bottled ale into a frosty glass. “Now, then. The favor. I need a date to a wedding.”

She raised an eyebrow. “One of your sugar babies can’t help you out?”

“I don’t want to ask any of them. This is important.”

She sipped her drink while she let that digest. It was too important to ask one of his bimbettes, so he was asking her. She shivered, and blamed it on the cold drink, not the thrill of excitement that he would ask her to do him an important favor. “So, when’s the wedding?”

“Next weekend.”

“Weekend,” she repeated. “Not next Saturday or next Sunday. They have some special ritualistic ceremony or something?”

“No. The wedding is at the Snowshoe Mountain Lodge. They picked the location so we can get some skiing in while we’re there.”

A weekend at the lodge, and all she had to do was show up at a wedding and reception. Hello. She’d be nuts not to go. If Ash wasn’t interested in warming her bed, she was sure she could find a lonely skier who’d be game. “I pretend to be your date and you pay for the weekend?”

His cool blue eyes locked on hers as if searching for something. “Well, yeah, if you have to pretend, I guess that still works.”

Available exclusively at Amazon.com.

Seven Sensuous Days Book Four – Appointment With Pleasure Series ~ Tina Donahue

Welcome to Tina Donahue, who’s celebrating the upcoming release of the next book in her Seven Sensuous Days series! Be sure to read all the way down to find out how to enter her giveaway!

Blurb:

At an erotic auction, she’s his to bid on…to take…to command.

The night’s sultry, filled with carnal promise as Tessa participates in an agency event to raise money for charity. She’s chained and bared—as women were once displayed for a sultan’s harem—her sweet looks and full figure offered to the wealthy and powerful men.

Among them is Logan. To him, Tessa is so different from his late wife, the seemingly perfect female who cruelly stole his hope and future. Wanting only to forget and have a good time, he wins Tessa, demanding she be his in every way possible, engaging in all wanton acts, though not only for an evening…for seven sensuous days at his secluded Virginia estate.

A provocative proposal with such a dangerously virile man.

A week that changes everything, with Tessa’s exquisite vulnerability and Logan’s suddenly unquenchable desire more than either bargained for.



Excerpt:

Music swelled, drums drowning out what had sounded like flutes and a female voice trilling something. Blood pounded in Tessa’s ears, muting it all. With her face lowered, all she could see was the purplish sheen of her cape. She sensed the panels in front of her parting, the stage displayed. Beyond it were a series of steps descending to a stone walkway flanked with splashing fountains, which eventually led to the crowd…the one man who was supposed to win her for an evening.

A full day was reserved for goddesses like Felicity. With her participation in this event, Ronnie would probably have enough funds to build a community college for young women.

The microphone screeched with brief feedback. Tessa made a face. Ronnie said something Tessa didn’t quite catch.

She bit her bottom lip, and decided to hell with it. She was going to take Felicity’s advice and fantasize.

“He’s dark and dangerous,” Felicity had said.

His features would be masculine, strong, slightly rough, his face shadowed with his coming beard. No, wait. He’d have a mustache and a closely cropped goatee, that hair as dark as his eyebrows. His eyes would be black, piercing, his skin a deep bronze, his lips satiny, his mouth full and rich.

He’d move into her with a right given him by birth, as a ruler. As a male. Looking down at her, he’d smile, shameless lust transforming his features, making him seem even more dangerous. Sex would be on his terms. He’d take her in any manner he chose. Orally, vaginally, anally, his strength precluding escape, his stiffened cock demanding its due, all that she could—

Tessa’s cunt stopped aching with need as her hood fell away. Or rather, Brian had pulled it back. Instinctively, she lifted her head, her attention darting everywhere, much as she suspected a real captive would have behaved, not knowing what to expect. A part of her mind recorded water spraying from the fountains, the again-subdued music, rich and seductive. Ronnie’s voice. The muted conversations of the ladies with their so-called masters.

Those men who hadn’t yet made their selections were quiet. Tessa regarded each. Some were listening to Ronnie. Others glanced at Tessa’s cloak, no doubt wanting it off.

With a flourish, Brian complied and pulled the thing from her, then lifted her arms above her head, securing her shackled wrists to the column.

Tessa stiffened at being exposed in every way possible. There was no hiding her nudity or expression up here, not with the lights trained on her. They weren’t fully intrusive, just enough illumination to exhibit, making her the brightest spot among all the shadows and the torches’ flickering flames. The toasty breeze skimmed the faint moisture on her cunt and licked her nipples, puckering them even more so that the tips appeared that much longer. Areas Felicity’s makeup had accentuated.

Perspiration prickled Tessa’s neck. Her heart beat out of time, the pose she struck both daunting and oddly arousing. There was absolutely nothing to compare to this…being chained and displayed. A sensation of delicious helplessness. Intense vulnerability.

Especially as no one spoke up.

Oh no.

Embarrassment drove heat to Tessa’s throat and cheeks. The music played on and on. Each second crawled by while her mind raced. Would her part in the auction stop when the piece ended even though no one had offered a price? Would Ronnie call for an intermission then, or would she want to continue with the rest of the event as quickly as—

Someone called out a bid.

Tessa’s heart paused. She hadn’t hear the amount. It didn’t matter. One man, at least, craved her.

Who? She studied the audience. A guy, forty or so, smiled with kindness, rather than lust, no doubt sensing and seeing her uncertainty. She offered her own smile in return, liking his sympathetic manner, wondering if he was the one who’d bid on her.

No. He’d already turned to the server and was now pointing at his drink as though he wanted a new one more than anything else.

So who had made the offer?

Another client kept looking from her to Ronnie. Others took a moment to study the program, see who was coming up next.

That would be Felicity. For her, the men would shout over each other, demanding to be heard, letting the money flow freely.

Another bid rang out.

Completely surprised, Tessa continued to regard the crowd, her attention drawn finally, almost irresistibly, to Logan Kincaid.

She forgot to breathe.

Someone had relit the torch nearest his table. Its bobbing light bathed him in a warm golden glow.

Tessa’s body softened.

Young—thirties or so, just as she’d thought—he wore his dark brown hair longish on the top and sides, combed away from his face. His features were rugged, deliciously masculine, especially his shadow of beard. Tessa had no doubt those short bristles would be rough to the touch, a wonderful contradiction to the silkiness of his lips, his generous mouth. A man’s mouth.

Warmth sluiced through her again, the heat soothing this time. Arousing.

He wore a beige blazer that went well with his tan complexion, his white shirt opened at the collar. Decidedly relaxed. The same as his demeanor. He lowered his drink…whiskey or bourbon…from here it was impossible for her to tell. He glanced at his watch, then surveyed the crowd, not her.

Ronnie took another bid.

With a neutral expression, Logan regarded the man who’d made it.

Tessa didn’t bother to look. She focused on Logan.

Another bid followed the last. As if to determine why, Logan finally glanced at the stage.

Tessa’s pulse pounded. Her legs felt watery.

His attention swept upward from the ridiculous shoes she wore to her naked calves and thighs. He studied her exposed cunt and glittering body jewelry for a moment, then continued to her bared breasts, viewing them briefly before he at last reached her eyes.

There, he stopped, as though he hadn’t meant to. There, he lingered.

Available at: Ellora’s Cave

Release: March 5

Other books in the Appointment with Pleasure series:

Claiming Magique – Book One

Losing Control – Book Two

Illicit Intent – Book Three



About Tina:

Tina Donahue is an award-winning, bestselling novelist in erotic, paranormal, contemporary and historical romance for Samhain Publishing, Ellora’s Cave, and Kensington. Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, Romantic Times and numerous online sites have praised her work. Three of her erotic romances (Adored, Lush Velvet Nights, and Deep, Dark, Delicious) were named finalists in the 2011 EPIC competition. The French review site, Blue Moon reviews, chose her erotic romance Sensual Stranger as their Book of the Year 2010 (erotic category). The Golden Nib Award at Miz Love Loves Books was created specifically for Lush Velvet Nights, and two of her titles (The Yearning and Deep, Dark, Delicious) received an Award of Merit in the RWA Holt Medallion competition (2011 and 2012). Take Me Away and Adored both won second place in the NEC RWA contest (different years). Tina is featured in the 2012 Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market. She was the editor of an award–winning Midwestern newspaper and worked in Story Direction for a Hollywood production company.

Email: tina@tinadonahue.com

Website: http://www.tinadonahue.com/

Blog: http://www.tinadonahue.com/blog/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/tinadonahue

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tina.donahue.75

FB Fanpage: https://www.facebook.com/TinaDonahueBooks

Triberr: http://triberr.com/tinadonahue

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/authortina/my-books/

Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/author/tinadonahue

Tina’s page at TRR: http://erotic.theromancereviews.com/mypageprofile.php?location=tinadonahue

CONTEST DETAILS:

Tina will choose one commenter as her winner. Winner gets her choice of one of Tina’s award-winning, bestselling ebooks from this list:

1. Adored – RWA award-winning; EPIC 2011 Finalist; 4 Stars RT

2. Deep, Dark, Delicious – EPIC 2011 Finalist; Holt Medallion Award of Merit

3. Lush Velvet Nights – EPIC 2011 Finalist; Golden Nib Award

4. In His Arms – SIX 5 Star Reviews; 4 Stars RT

5. Sensual Stranger – 2010 Book of the Year (erotic); 4 Stars RT

6. The Yearning – Top Ten Bestseller

7. Take Me Away – #1 Pick, Miz Love Loves Books

8. Unending Desire – Best Book Rating LASR

9. SiNN – Nominated for Book of the Week LASR

10. Sinfully Wicked – Magnificent – Romancing the Book

11. Claiming Magique – Top Pick – NOR

12. Illicit Desire – Four Stars Romantic Times

13. Come Fill Me – Five Stars – Guilty Pleasures

Sabrina York Romanticon Megaswag Contest!

Whether you could not attend Romanticon 2013 (and bemoan that fact), or you came, played and would like to win a commemorative prize package chock full of author swag and goodies—this mega basket is for you!

Easy to enter using the Rafflecopter below. Deadline: December 30th at midnight PST.



FEATURING ONE-OF-A-KIND PRIZES AND AUTHOR SWAG

• Commemorative conference program signed by most authors in attendance as well as ALL the sexy Cavemen, Thelmer Sedzoid and more!*

• A tiara from Sabrina York, because you know you deserve one.

• Ellora’s Cave Romanticon Swag

o Commemorative Romanticon 2013 t-shirt

o 2014 Caveman Clanedar

o Ellora’s Cave “Silver Bullet” vibrator

o Bollywood scarf

o And More!

• Assorted Author swag including:

o Mugs, keychains, buttons, pens, excerpts, t-shirts

o And MUCH MUCH MORE!

• A signed copy of Adam’s Obsession, Book One of the Wired Series by Sabrina York

• A signed copy of Under His Skin by Sidney Bristol

• A signed copy of Taking Over Me, the first book in the Geek Kink series by Sara Brookes.

ENTRY DEADLINE IS DECEMBER 30th at the stroke of midnight. Tell your friends!

ENTER HERE: http://sabrinayork.com/?p=1235

PRIZE DETAIL:

PRIZES: Sabrina York Tiara & assorted Bling; A blinged out hot pink lanyard for your next conference; Sabrina York 2014 pocket calendar; A signed photo of Alpha Caveman, DeAngelo; New Species Visitor Pass Signed by Laurann Dohner; Ellora’s Cave “Silver Bullet” vibrator; Ellora’s Cave 2014 Cavemen Calendar; Ellora’s Cave Disco Inferno 2013 card deck; Ellora’s Cave coasters; Sabrina’s Bollywood scarf; Romanticon 2013 t-shirt (XL); Cave Chaos utility knife; Ellora’s Cave “Got Sex?” and Logo Temporary Tattoos; Cave Chaos smooshy bed; Ellora’s Cave lollipop condom & condom keyring; Ellora’s Cave memo mate; Cave Chaos flashlight keyring; Sexy “I’m Proud to be a Cole Girl” t-shirt from Regina Cole (XL)

BOOKS: A signed copy of Adam’s Obsession, Book One of the Wired Series by Sabrina York; A signed copy of Under His Skin by Sidney Bristol; A signed copy of Taking Over Me, the first book in the Geek Kink series by Sara Brookes

AUTHOR SWAG: Teaser Books from Anna Alexander & Sabrina York; Sidney Bristol “I love Cavemen” pin; Sidney Bristol button pack and assorted So Inked swag; Regina Cole pins & magnets; Geeks are Kinky Too magnet & button from Sara Brookes; Laurann Dohner True magnet; A complete set of “Master” “Submissive” and “Switch” buttons from Jennifer Kacey; Special Agent button from Desiree Holt; Kristin Daniels “My Tye” shot glass; Tiara duckie from the Publisher’s Tea Party; Ellora’s Cave Swag Bag “The Bad Girls of Romance”; Mari Freeman “It’s Hot in Here” fan; Danica Avet shot glass; Cheryl Dragon tote bag; Scandalous Martini Glass from Nicole Austin; “Hot Doms & Playful Subs ruler from Cheryl Dragon (great for spankings!); Tara Nina Gargoyle mug; Dee Brice Hot Pad Holder; Cara Carnes lip balm; Mari Freeman pencil; Jayne Rylon Luggage tag; Pens from Dee Brice, Lexi Post, the Cabal of Hotness, Sabrina York, Cheryl Dragon, Cara Carnes & Desiree Holt; Ann Jacobs screen cleaner; Cara Carnes stress ball; SPI (Sexual Positions Investigation) Trainee button; Cait Miller mirror keyring; Piper Trace “Made you look at my boobs” button; Danica Avet mirror; Brenna Zinn drink holder; Samantha Kane sticky notes; Becca Jameson Wolf Masters keyring; Desiree Holt “Gotta love a naked cowboy” button; Jayne Rylon Book Compantion; Lea Barrymire nail file; Samantha Kane magnet; A.M. Griffin mini flashlight; Glasses cleaner from Cris Anson; Kathy Kulig power stone from the Demons in Exile series; Lisa Fox condom; Kangaroo Key ring from Mari Carr; Zipper pouch from Heidi Lynn Anderson; Kristin Daniels mirror; Lexi Post masquerade mask; Cowboy Stetson charm from Cassandra Carr; Hero Revealed Stash Tea from Anna Alexander; Tip Card from Frances Stockton; Tara Nina drink holder; Coaster from Danica Avet; Steamy excerpts from Kathy Kulig, Sara Brookes, Mari Car, Joey W. Hill; Plus bookmarks, trading cards and more from Samantha Cayto, Karen Booth, Fran Lee, Ruth D. Kerce, Isabelle Drake, Ruby Duvall, Laurann Dohner, Becca Jameson, Cornelia Amiri, Anna Alexander, Dena Garson, Kathy Kulig, Regina Cole, Jennifer Kacey, A.S. Fenichel, J.K. Coi, Samantha Cayto, Brenna Zinn, Jocelyn Dex, Fongled & Gobbled Cabal of Hotness, Cara Carnes, Dee Brice & The Jeep Diva!

*Author Signatures: A.M. Griffin, A.S. Fenichel, Afton Locke, Alexa Day, Aline Hunter, Amy Ruttan, Ann Jacobs, Anna Alexander, Annabeth Leong, Anya Breton, Anya Richards, Brynn Paulin, Cait Miller, Cara Carnes, Cassandra Carr, Chandra Ryan, Cheryl Dragon, Cris Anson, Cristal Ryder, Dalton Diaz, Danica Avet, Dee Brice, Dena Garson, Desiree Holt, Ditter Kellen, Erin Simone, Eve Vaughn, Frances Stockton, Gayle Donnelley, Heidi Lynn Anderson, Isabelle Drake, JL Taft, J.K. Coi, Jaid Black, Jayne Rylon, Jennifer Kacey, Jennifer LaRose, Jocelyn Dex, Joey W. Hill, Kaenar Langford, Karla Doyle, Kate Poole, Kathleen Lash, Kathy Kulig, Koko Brown, Kristen Daniels, Lacey Thorn, Laurann Dohner (Mr. Laurann), Lea Barrymire, Lexi Post, Lisa Carlisle, Lisa Fox, Liz Andrews, Lynne Silver, Mari Carr, Mari Freeman, Nicole Austin, Piper Trace, Rebecca Royce, Regina Carlysle, Regina Cole, Robyn MacKenzie, Ruby Duvall, Sabrina York, Samantha Cayto, Samantha Kane, Sara Brookes, Sasha Devlin, Sherri L. King, Sidney Bristol, Sierra Summers, Tara Nina, Tiffany Bryan, Tina Christopher, Virginia Cavanaugh, VJ Summers & Brenna Zinn. PLUS Thelmer Sedzoid and the Jeep Diva.

Caveman Signatures: Outgoing Alpha Caveman Nick, Incoming Alpha Caveman DeAngelo, Caveman Ace, Caveman Axl, Caveman David, Caveman Justin, Caveman Rodney, Caveman Taylor

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Cover Reveal: Bring on the Heat!

A scorching collection from ten of today’s hottest authors!



Title: Bring On the Heat

Authors: Eden Bradley, Cassandra Carr, Stephanie Julian, Amber Kallyn, Keira Kohl, Adriana Kraft, Emma Lai, Anh Leod, Ann Mayburn, Cari Quinn

Genre: Erotic romance

Length: Approx 263k words

Release date: January 6, 2014

FB page: https://www.facebook.com/BringOnTheHeat

New! Keeper of my Pleasure by Kayelle Allen

Rai trusts Koo to submit. To keep him, she must trust her heart.

A Romantica® BDSM erotic romance from Ellora’s Cave

This book is in the Taboo line — one of the Ellora’s Cave Quickies

A recent college graduate, Koo hires Rai as his attorney after thieves total his car and then dare to sue him. She wins, and takes him out to celebrate. Dinner leads to the hottest sex in his life, and a long-term relationship as her submissive. He adores the way she makes him feel, and the way she makes him burn. He longs to show her he has more to offer. He has a heart, and it’s hers, if only she’ll let him give it.

A successful attorney in her late thirties, Rai has a penchant for handsome young men with long hair. Koo, her newest client, becomes more than her usual boy toy. He likes being tied up and whipped, and he yields the way she’d always dreamed. But he has a future ahead of him, and she’s a jaded lawyer. He wants sex, not love. Right? He wouldn’t stay with her forever. She trusts him to submit. To keep Koo, Rai is going to have trust her heart.

Inside Scoop: Our hero willingly submits to his Dom lady love and all her toys in their BDSM play, including whips and bindings and more.

Word count: 7170

Genre: BDSM Romance

ISBN: 9781419946592

Author: Kayelle Allen

Editor: Victoria Reese

Cover art: Ellora’s Cave

Publisher: Ellora’s Cave

Trailer for Keeper of My Pleasure

Music is “Road Adventure” from iStockPhoto, used with permission.

Meet Rai Whethen from Keeper of My Pleasure

Rai is an attorney who recently moved from New York to Atlanta. She’s as far from a Southern Belle as a woman can get, but does act like a lady. Well, except in the bedroom. There, as in the courtroom, she takes command without pause or apology. But she does have one weakness, and that’s Koo Ayakura, the younger man she’s been having an affair with for the past two years. He’s her submissive, and he’s right for her that she’s been thinking of asking him to move in. Every time she does, though, she remembers why having a live-in lover just won’t work out…

This scene takes place in a restaurant where she is having dinner with Koo.

~*~

Koo’s cheeks darkened, and he wet his lips. Those big gray eyes of his looked back at her with heat and longing. “I’ve been thinking about you all week. So glad it’s finally Friday.”

“Me, too.” Oh my God. I love you. She bit her tongue. Don’t you dare say that to him. Bad, bad idea. Remember what happened the last time you fell in love?

Brett had seemed as submissive as Koo, and she’d loved him. Once Brett had moved in, however, she’d seen the other side of him. Arrogant, lazy son-of-a-bitch. And did I say arrogant? Oh, and he was arrogant, too. Yeah, that ended well. Never again.

Since she’d moved to Atlanta she hadn’t had a live-in lover. She had Koo. What else did she need? Certainly not a full time lover. Her vibrator got her through the week just fine.

It struck her that since she’d begun seeing Koo she’d never even considered having sex with another person. She met men every day. It wasn’t lack of opportunity. When she played with herself, she fantasized about Koo.

In her fantasies, it was him pinching her nipples. Koo going down on her. Fucking her senseless while tied to her bed. Hell, she even thought about herself being tied up, and him being the top.

“Okay.” Koo reached across the table and took her hand. “Now I know you aren’t thinking about golf. You’re biting your lips.”

She smiled. “I wasn’t. I was thinking about you tied to my bed, and me finding new ways to fuck you.”

He swallowed. “If it was up to me, I’d be saying, ‘Check, please,’ to the waiter, and getting us the hell out of here so you can take me home.”

“I should spank you for being so impertinent as to suggest such a thing.”

Koo ducked his head, and peeked up at her. “Sorry, mistress.” His smile said he was far from it.

Rai signaled the waiter, and while the man approached, she savored Koo’s squirm.

“Yes, ma’am? What can I get you?” The waiter glanced at Koo, back at her.

She sat forward in her chair. “Check, please.”

Inside Peek: Keeper of My Pleasure This free, illustrated eBook provides insight about the book, its characters, and its creation. When you click the link, it will either offer you a download, or open in a new window, depending on your settings. To read it, you need Adobe Reader, available free. http://is.gd/meet_Rai_and_Koo

About the Author

Kayelle Allen is a multi-published, EPIC Award winning author. She writes Contemporary Romance, Gay Romance, Erotic Science Fiction Romance, Mainstream Fantasy, BDSM, and non-fiction. She likes to attend Science Fiction conventions, and has been a speaker at DragonCon, Outlantacon, and Gaylaxicon. Kayelle is the founder of the author-mentoring group Marketing for Romance Writers, and manages the successful Romance Lives Forever blog. She is a US Navy Veteran, and founded the graphics and eBook conversion company The Author’s Secret. Kayelle is married to her personal hero, and makes her home in the southeast.

Homeworld http://KayelleAllen.com

Unstoppable Heroes Blog http://kayelleallen.blogspot.com

Twitter http://twitter.com/kayelleallen

Facebook http://facebook.com/kayelle.allen

Pinterest http://pinterest.com/kayelleallen/

Goodreads http://goodreads.com/KayelleAllen

Romance Lives Forever http://romancelivesforever.blogspot.com/

Marketing for Romance Writers http://marketingforromancewriters.org/

The Author’s Secret http://theauthorssecret.com

Sneak Peek Sunday ~ The Substitute Stripper

Welcome to Sneak Peek Sunday! First off, I have to tell y’all how hard it was to find six consecutive paragraphs that I could post on a public blog! But I found ‘em. Hope they tempt you for more!

FROM: The Substitute Stripper



To set you in the scene — Ash and Bree are coworkers. Ash asks Bree for a favor, to be his date at a wedding, and She asks when the wedding is.

“Next weekend.”

“Weekend,” she repeated. “Not next Saturday or next Sunday. They have some special ritualistic ceremony or something?”

“No. The wedding is at the Snowshoe Mountain Lodge. I have to be there Friday night for the bachelor party. The wedding is Saturday. I plan to come home Sunday.”

A weekend at the lodge, and all she had to do was show up at a wedding and reception. Hello. She’d be nuts not to go. If Ash wasn’t interested in warming her bed, she was sure she could find a lonely skier who’d be game. “I pretend to be your date and you pay for the weekend?”

His cool blue eyes locked on hers as if searching for something. “Well, yeah, if you have to pretend, I guess that still works.”

Aww. That cute puppy sound went off in her head and tugged at her heart. He wanted her for a real date. He was too cute. “I’m sorry, you said you needed a favor so I assumed pretending to like you was the favor.” Shit! She should just shove her whole boot in her mouth, since her foot was so far in. “Wait, I didn’t mean that. I meant—well, I don’t know what I meant. I’m a bitch, what can I say. I know, how’s this? I would love to be your date for the wedding.”

Don’t forget to see the other sneak peeks at Sneak Peek Sunday!

Arial Burnz Midnight Scavenger Hunt

Woo hoo! I’m so pleased to be a guest here at Ari Thatcher’s sexy website! Hot! Hot! Hot!! Be sure to check out her sizzling stories while you’re here. Thank you so much for accepting my invitation to participate in the hunt, Ari! *Virtual hug!*

What is the Scavenger Hunt?

For those of you just joining the scavenger hunt, I’m Arial Burnz, author of the Bonded By Blood Vampire Chronicles and I’m doing something a little different than your typical cover reveal. We’re on a Scavenger Hunt! In short, I’ve split my new book cover for MIDNIGHT HUNT into fifteen puzzle pieces and scattered them across the Internet. From June 17th through July 1st, one piece a day has been revealed on a blog, website or one of my internet hangouts (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc.).

Gather the codes from all the pieces and send them in to me at the end of the hunt and you’ll be entered into the drawing for Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift cards, a signed paperback copy of my new release MIDNIGHT HUNT, as well as some signed Romance Trading Cards and other swag (Total Approximate Retail Value of All Prizes: $65). Please click here for the details and my contact information, and here for Official Rules.

Today’s Puzzle Piece

Ari is doing the honor of revealing the piece lucky number thirteen!! *drum roll* Tah-dah!

Notice the really important part of the puzzle piece above…the CODE! You’ll need that for the final drawing. Be sure to write that code down. You can right-click on the image and save it OR jot down the code somewhere safe. (NOTE: You can always go back to my site where the links to the pieces will be consolidated on one page and updated throughout the Scavenger Hunt.)

Zooming In On the Piece…

Whoa!! Look at that sexy BARE back with some nice ebony waves of Monika’s hair. The more we reveal of her…the less we see she is wearing. Hubba hubba, as my husband so aptly exclaimed! Broderick is going to have his hands full with this sexually expressive and alluring witch.

Exploring the Paranormal

So during the Scavenger Hunt, we’ve talked about what we love about vampires, werewolves and witches. And we’ve even had a little bitch session regarding the things that irk us about these supernatural beings…or what authors, movies or television have done that irk us about our favorite paranormal characters. We’re going to close these last three days of the tour by talking about who we adore in the paranormal genre. Today: Vampires.

 

I’m a big fan of the campy ‘80s film, Fright Night. I haven’t yet seen the new one with Colin Farrell (I know…what’s wrong with me, right?), but Christopher Sarandon, who played the vampire living nextdoor to the main character, was just sex on a stick for me. So sexy, so evil, so charming…*swoon*.

Not your cup o’ tea? Perhaps you’re a fan of the old films with Bela Lugosi or Christopher Lee playing the classic Dracula, when vampires were evil and they always got their cummupence. Or even the more current version with Gary Oldman (one of my favorite actors, by the way). I never quite understood the appeal of Frank Langella in the 70s (too young, I guess)…UNTIL I was older and saw him in the 1979 version of Dracula. Holy bananas!!

 

Are you a Twilight or Vampire Diaries fan, then? How about True Blood and the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris? And speaking of all these, there’s the novel versions versus the screen renditions. There can be a big difference. Dracula, the novel by Bram Stoker and published in 1897, is nothing like what we’ve seen on the big screen because, when I read it, I had my own ideas about the main character we all know and love. Nothing quite matches what we have in our imaginations because we dream up what we like best while we read.

But who is your all-time favorite vampire character – male or female, movies, TV or books? Who is the one vampire that made the most impact on you and why? For me…hands down, Lestat de Lioncourt from Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles. He was unlike any other vampire character I’d read about at the time – delightfully evil, bold, charming and sexy and, oh, the adventures he had! I read The Vampire Lestat at least four times. LOVED him! Of course, my own character, Broderick MacDougal is my all-time favorite…but I don’t think I can count him because, well…I created him.

So how about you? Please share!

I’ll be available if you have questions and I’m looking forward to interacting with.

Added Bonus: Be sure to leave a comment for my characters, who have been known to make appearances and surely already have during this hunt. (Click here if you’d like to learn more about my characters.)

Thanks again, Ari, for having me as a guest! Mwah!