V.L. Locey's Blog, page 49

Author/Book Spotlight - Beverly Ovalle's Stealing Hope

BOOK INFORMATIONTITLE – Stealing Hope SERIES – A Dragon’s Fated Heart #1 AUTHOR – Beverly Ovalle GENRE – Erotic Paranormal Romance LENGTH (Pages/# Words) – 165 pages PUBLISHER – Ardent BooksStealing Hope will be on sale for $.99 from January 22- 27!BOOK SYNOPSIS The apocalypse has come and gone.Those who survived learned to adapt.Dragons awaken to once again reign over the skies.Upon eruption of a volcano, Ari awakens to a changed world, and a knowing that his dragon's mate is near. He saves her twice—once as a dragon, and again as a man—and wins her confidence.Hope cried out, moaning, “just change me with pleasure?”Hope is restless and unfulfilled until she meets Ari, the man of her fantasies. The sensual tension between them heightens with every touch. When their passion explodes, Hope gets pulled into the dragon's mating ritual...and into a world of erotic sensation she never dreamed existed but now cannot live without. The dragon binds his mate to him with a ritual that shows Hope her true nature in this humorous erotic romance.BUY & TBR LINKS AMAZON KINDLE US AMAZON KINDLE CA AMAZON KINDLE UK AMAZON KINDLE EU AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE GOODREADS EXCERPT

She heard Crag snickering somewhere behind her. She turned and splashed at him too. “I would have saved you. If you’d quit splashing and stand up, you’ll see you could stand.” Ari frowned suddenly. “Oh no. You can’t stand with your leg.” He started toward her and Hope pushed deeper into the water. “Leave me be.” She began treading water, deep enough that she didn’t have to put weight on her leg. Ignoring both of them, she sank under water to get her hair out of her face. When she popped out Hope screamed. Ari was right there, grinning at her. “What the heck?” “I was just making sure you were okay.” His eyes twinkling at her. No way was she falling for that, no matter how attractive it made him. “And I brought you the soap. How will you get clean without it?” “Fine. Give me the soap.” Ari held it back out of her reach. “No. You’ll drop it out here.” Hope growled at him. Yes, she sure did. Hope didn’t know quite how to take his teasing, if he was teasing. Ari laughed. “You can come in closer and I’ll help hold you while you wash or I can wash you here while you float.” Hope didn’t answer, but she swam in closer to shore. No way was she letting him run his hands all over her.

CHARACTER BIOSAri:Male dragon, black scales tipped with blue and golden eyes. When he changes Ari has black hair, golden eyes and stocky muscular body that he doesn’t mind showing off. Outgoing with a wicked sense of humor, He has one thing on his mind, his mate. He’ll do anything to make her his, especially if it involves getting naked. He runs on the theory that it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.Hope:Human, for the moment. Fated mate to Ari. She can’t seem to resist him and doesn’t understand why. She is self-sufficient, providing her family with meat from hunting and trapping small game. She is fearless and has no problem rescuing herself. She loves to play though she hasn’t had a lot of that in her life as her family focuses on survival. Family is all important to her.AUTHOR BIO Beverly Ovalle dabbled with writing on and off for years when her best friend finally dared her to submit a story to a writing contest. Beverly decided she had nothing to lose and since she’d always wanted to be an author sent it in and agonized for months waiting to hear back. Contract in hand she has never looked back.Beverly has been obsessed with dragons and romance since she was a young girl, collecting dragon books and reading everything she could find on them even down to the care of real life dragons. She’s always been slightly panicked that the world as we know it will end, so has prepped for it, haunting survivalist pages and prepper projects she felt she needed in the event SHTF.An avid fan of all romance, Beverly’s goal is to share her love of the written word and write the hot and erotic romances that she enjoys. She writes what she loves to read and it was only a matter of time before her obsessions crept into her writing for her to share. She hopes you enjoy her tales as much as she loves writing them.A Navy Veteran, Beverly has traveled around the world and the United States enabling her to bring her settings to life, meeting and marrying her husband of twenty five years along the way for her own romance. Reading romances since the fourth grade she’s followed as the genre changed and spread into the vast cornucopia of romance offered today.AUTHOR FOLLOW LINKS Facebook Tsu Website Blog Blog 2 Tumblr Twitter - Author Twitter - Fated Dragons Pinterest LinkedIn Google+ Twitter Facebook Blog NewsletterGIVEAWAY PRIZESeCopy of Stealing Hope: A Dragon's Fated Heart a Rafflecopter giveaway Tour has been organized & hosted by

Snippet Sunday

Hello and welcome back for another Snippet Sunday! 
If you were or are in the path of the snowy weather I hope you're staying safe and warm. I've got a little excerpt from the fourth Venom novel, Angle Play, for you today so perhaps that will help entertain anyone who is snowbound. In this book we get to know the Venom goaltender, Stephanie Huschuk, better. While Stephanie struggles to carry the burden of being the starting goalie, her attraction to Greg Blue Blanket, her goalie coach's divorced twin brother, is only adding to the weight the young woman carries. 

In this week's snippet Stephanie and the team captain, Alicia Avery, who you'll read all about when Twirly Girl comes out on March 2, share a small moment on the ice before Stephanie discovers a little surprise that lifts her morale greatly.


This excerpt is hot off the presses and has not been professionally edited. I've done my best to make it as tidy as I could but there may be some misplaced commas or other mistakes. Please be kind about any flubs you may find. When you're done reading today's snippet, skate on over to Cathy Brockman and Ellie Mack's blog to see what they've been up to recently. 
*~*~*


     "Is there any kind of problem here?" Alicia asked after cruising behind my net. She gave the blue ice a quick look, saw that I had not gotten my shaved ice in its proper place yet, and slid gracefully into my crease. Her expression was serious.

      "Nope, all is good so you can erase your captain face and put your 'I got laid by a beatnik and I liked it' expression back on," Karrie said then skated off to torment someone else.
      "She always has to have the last word," Alicia said with a shake of her head.

     "That's just Karrie," I replied as I cradled my water bottle. "We just had a little spat earlier that was completely on me, but everything is good now."

     "Okay, as long as it's been worked out amiably. We need to play as a cohesive unit. There are only twenty games left in the season and we need to win as many as we can or we'll miss getting a wild card slot."

     "We're aware."

     "Right, yes, of course you are. Sorry. "She blushed prettily then inhaled and exhaled. "All the yoga and meditation that I've done over the past few months can't quite dampen my need to captain."

     "We love how you captain. It's all good." I assured her once again then turned to stuff my bottle into the holder. Alicia rubbed my helmet as it rested on top of the net, gave me a smile, and then skated off to attend to someone else who needed some pep talking. I meant it when I had said we all loved her. She was the kind of captain this team needed. Lord knows we were struggling to put back-to-back wins together so any kind of upbeat message played well.

     I shoved my hand into the holder clipped to the back of the net and pulled out a small but crumpled piece of paper. I looked around the rink but no one seemed to be watching me. There was a real feel of a prank in the air but I went ahead and unfolded the thick vellum. The handwriting was bold and masculine.     Stephanie-
     As I readied to leave home today, I thought of you and your struggle with the pressure of being in the limelight. It is a familiar one that I also had problems with at your age. Please know that if you ever wish to talk, I am but a phone call or short drive away. I wished to leave you with this quote from Herb Brooks in the hopes that it may inspire you--
     "You were born to be a player. You were meant to be here. This moment is yours."
     Veikko    
       A prickle of tears teased my eyes. I sniffled, folded the paper neatly, and placed it inside my bra. If anyone skating past saw me playing with my boobs, they didn't say anything. I tapped the pipes with my stick twice then turned to face my teammates with determination burning in my breast. Maybe the loss of Brahms wouldn't ruin this practice after all. 





*~*~*


Don't forget to drop by Cathy and Ellie's blogs-


Cathy Brockman Romances


Ellie Mack's Blog

Have Fun in the Sun Party!

Looking for a fun way to spend a snowy Saturday? 
Come join me and fellow romance authors Jean Joachim and Kathleen Ball at the Have Fun in the Sun event today! The party starts at 11 am EST and runs until 7 pm EST so there will be plenty of time to drop in on the fun, games, and giveaways from all three authors. 
Hope to see you and your sandals there!  smile emoticon
Here's the link-
Have Fun in the Sun

Throwback Thursday Tunes

Week number #3 in our month long Elvis movie tribute is one of the sexiest, and funniest, excerpts from one of his movies that I have ever seen.

Feel free to take a complimentary fan before watching this smoldering rendition of Relax.

Author/Book Spotlight - Holly J. Gills Innocence of Love

Innocence of Love

Release Day!
This book comes as part of a series!

Genre: Contemporary Romance with sexual tensionPublished by: Holly J. GillWord count: 110.256  Tagline

Two directions, one past
Lives tipped upside down.Forgiveness and pain.Love and respect.Can two hearts heal?

Quote: ‘I never make promises I don’t keep!’


Blurb

Calvin Edward’s life has been tipped upside down, never had he imagined encounter his first one true love. Only she held a massive secret from him for nine years— his son. His flesh and blood. How could have Sophie denied ever telling him about his child, now adopted to another family? Struggling with his emotions for Sophie, he has to deal with how to handle his son. Could he find it in his heart to forgive Sophie or is all lost?
Sophie Richards couldn’t believe the turn of events— how could the man who saved her turn out to be her first partner? Now the truth is out, her secrets discovered and finally she shared all her pain, never to have imagined the one man who showed her true care and affection is the father to her first child. She loves him, only Calvin resents her. How could she ever say sorry?



Excerpt
“I don’t hate you…I would never hate you. I just wish you had come to me, I would’ve helped you. I would certainly not have seen you out on the street or allowed you to have him adopted.”
“Calvin, please don’t.” Her eyes filled with tears. Her heart ached to his kindness that she really didn’t deserve.
“I want to be here to support you and Kacey.”
Sophie snapped her head to glare at him. “She isn’t yours.” He stared back at her horrified. His lips pressed firmly together, eyes peering harshly at her. She swallowed heavily and could feel her heart being ripped out of her chest. “Sorry,” she managed to say feeling larger knots in her tummy.
“I just want to help you.”
“You don’t need to.”
“I want to. Regardless!”
With that, Calvin stood.
She watched him walk away, heading toward the main building indecisive if to chase after him to explain. So fed-up of allowing her mouth to run away with her, but the truth was Kacey wasn’t his to worry about.
Sophie allowed him to go. She hitched her breath, aching in every limb.


   Amazon US
  Amazon UK
 Amazon Canada
  SmashwordsKobo Barnes and Noble 


Book 1 Innocence





Author Bio

Holly is a wife, mum of three grown up and not starting to flee their nests she's also a proud nana to twins. Holly lives in England a town called Grimsby. The J in her name stands for Jody. She enjoys spending quality time surrounded with her family. Her and hubby have a secret hideaway for peace and quiet in a sweet idyllic campsite where they like to pitch a tent close to York one of her favourite cities. Holly also likes touring around the UK, sight-seeing, visiting stately homes and castles. Her hobbies are reading, writing, socializing and listening to music.Writing is where Holly’s heart is… 
Where to find Holly
 Facebook
 Romance Blog
 Erotic Blog
Twitter
Google+
 Goodreads
 Pinterest
 Website

Books available from Holly J. Gill
Erotic Romance series
Desires


Holly J. Gill http://www.facebook.com/hollyjgillauthor http://hollyjgill.blogspot.co.uk/ http://hollyjodygill.blogspot.co.uk/ https://twitter.com/HollyJGill http://hollygill.wix.com/hollyjgill

Tuesday Tales - Paint

 Hello! It`s time for Tuesday Tales.




Today we the next issue in my historical M/M romance, Dear Jon, which is set in 1945. Every issue of this serial will be under 1500 words so they're quick reads.  Our word prompt today is 'Paint'. This story contains mature language and gay sexual situations. If that offends now would be the time to move onto another Tuesday Tales offering. 
Don`t forget to visit the other talented Tuesday Tales authors. Thanks for stopping by!



            “Jon, I know you youngsters--”            “Pleasedon`t use that term to make me feel like a child.”            “Very well, I`m sorry if I offended you,” he replied gently, his fingers applying a steady pressure that was quite heartening. “Let me rephrase. I know that the wild fire of reform and rebellion burns more brightly in the souls of young men. When you grow older – and I`m not making any sort of age reference about us- you learn to temper the fire with patience.”            “I refuse to play their game.”             “Then you chance losing Andrew,” Ross whispered, keeping our conversation private. “Would it be so terrible to grab a part-time job in Hannity Hills? You can still paint to add to your income, as we`ve discussed.”            “And where do I draw the line?” I asked, turning my head to look right into his stunning grey eyes. “Do I move here and become a laborer at the feed mill? Do I marry some ditzy young farm girl? Do I live a lie for the rest of my life?”            “Yes, if it means that young man has his uncle, then yes, you work at the feed mill and you marry Becky Barley, the farmer’s daughter. You even go to the church that Becky says you go to, because in the end, that child`s needs are more important than yours.”            He stood up and walked to his red brick fire pit. I sat there staring at a bat that had braved the last rays of sun to grab a mosquito rising from the pond. Andy giggled and pointed at the brown bat. I smiled and nodded then stood up slowly to ensure my legs had recovered from Ross` words better than my mind had. I met the man`s steady gaze over the steaks as he tended to them.             “If I could, I would marry you in an instant,” I told him. He was not prepared for me to say something of such magnitude. In truth, the proclamation kind of shocked me as well. Of course, the thought of a couple of fruits tying the knot was outlandish, and we both knew it. But even queers can dream, right?            “You`d look wonderful in an apron, high heels, and pearls,” he said, one side of his mouth twitching.             “Why do I have to be the woman?” I asked, sliding around the pit to stand at his side.             “You`ve got better legs for the stockings.”            “That’s true.” I raised my glass for a sip, peeking around the tall brick flue. Andy had forgotten about fishing to pursue the bat. Talk about an exercise in futility. When the lad ran behind a tall spruce, I leaned over to grab a taste of Ross. His mouth claimed mine instantly. We broke apart when a child raced past with a stick. Do little boys go anywhere without a stick in their hands? “Andrew, stop running with sticks!” I shouted at his back. He threw the stick down but continued chasing the poor bat, his high-pitched squeals muddying the bats echolocation terribly I was sure.             “And with that last statement your time in heels and garter belts is cemented into place,” Ross chuckled, forking a steak.             “I think I`ve fallen in love with you,” I said.             “Christ, Jon, is there any other startling news you`d like to throw at me tonight?” Ross asked, the steak nearly missing the platter he was placing it on. I shook my head. “Good,” he huffed as he cleared the racks of t-bones, “I don`t know if my old heart can take too many more shocks.”            “I didn`t mean to throw you for a loop.”            He placed the steaks to the picnic table then turned to look at me. “You didn`t. It was just a surprise to hear you saying what I too have been feeling.”            “So now what?” I asked after we stood there in the dwindling sunlight staring at each other for a solid minute at least.             “We`re going to eat dinner, go inside, listen to the radio, tuck Andrew into bed on the couch, and then go into my room where I plan to make love to you for hours.”            “That`s not what I meant,” I countered as Andrew barreled around the side of the house, arriving as young boys do, in a blustering cloud of dirt, wild hair, sweat, and giggles.             “Let tonight pass and then worry about tomorrow.” Ross waved a hand at the steaks, salad, and big baking potatoes wrapped in tin foil. “Have faith that things will work out. Be patient.”            Cocking an eyebrow at the man, I sat down beside my nephew, dropped my head, and for the first time since I knew I was queer I asked God to help guide us through the trying times ahead.
Copyright 2013 ©by V.L. Locey
*~*~*
Click on the link below to return to the Tuesday Tales main blog for more great reads from the Tuesday Tales authors.
Tuesday Tales
See you next week!

Author/ Book Spotlight- Vikki McCombie's A New Beginning for Nanci

A New Beginning Blurb & tagline
Loglines:
When grief pulls her life apart, will she seek a new beginning, or will fear keep her from finding a forever kind of love?
Can her new infant son and a friendship with a naval officer offering more, give her the chance for a new beginning?
Taglines:
A new beginning or a life stuck in the past?
Dare she risk her heart to find a new beginning?
Blurb:
On the day Nanci discovers she’s going to have a baby, she receives the devastating news every Navy SEAL’s wife never wants to hear. Her husband’s death sends her into the depths of despair. As she struggles to accept, she’s grateful for the support from the officer assigned to her.
Will she turn to God letting Him show her the path to a new beginning, or will fear of loving and losing keep her locked in the past?
When Lt. Daniel Foster’s appointed to assist a SEAL’s widow, the last thing he expects is a woman who can break through the barricade guarding his heart. As he helps her with the aftermath, he offers her a shoulder to lean on, but would like to offer more.
Should he allow their friendship to blossom and trust God will show him lowering his defenses is the only way to love?
Buy Link:
http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AC7V0EK
Add to Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28504804-a-new-beginning-for-nanci
metadata: Contemporary, romance, military, inspirational, SEALs, Navy, sweet
Tweets:
 A new beginning or a life stuck in the past?
Dare she risk her heart to find a new beginning?
Will fear rule her heart, or will she grab a second chance for love?
Will she turn to God or stay locked in her grief?

Excerpt:
After setting Tiger on the slate floor, Nanci checked her voice mail on the home phone, but still no call from Bryan. Of course, his mission was a secret, as usual. She had no idea what time zone he was in. It could be the middle of the night for him. After feeding the cat, she settled on the couch with the paperback she’d purchased earlier in the day. Tiger curled beside her, and she became engrossed in the book, especially the part concerning the first trimester of pregnancy.The doorbell rang. How odd. She couldn’t imagine who it could be. Probably some kids selling something. But a rush of anxiety flooded her system as icy prickles raced along her arms.The doorbell rang again. She laid her book down, went to the door, and used the peep hole to look out. Three men in Navy uniforms stood on her front porch. Her heart caught in her throat. Three men usually meant bad news, especially naval officers. No, maybe they have the wrong house. Maybe they’re collecting money for some type of charity. Anything but what it might mean. Her body began to shake. Her knees grew weak. No, no! She would not allow those terrifying thoughts to enter her consciousness even for a moment.Nonetheless, her hand trembled as she opened the door. Her voice shook as she said, “Hello. W-what can I d-do for you?”The older officer removed his cover, tucking it under his arm. “Good afternoon, we’re here to see Mrs. Bryan Bowman.”“I’m Mrs. Bowman. Please, c-come in.” Terror gripped her as she showed them into the living room. Her mind screamed—Oh, God, please don’t let Bryan be hurt.
Author Bio:


Vikki McCombie started her writing career when a story invaded her mind and would not leave. Ever since then, the stories keep coming and writing is now her passion. Over the last five years, she has written well over a half dozen romances and is presently working on her next, while fighting off the other future characters shouting my turn!
Whether Vikki’s stories are contemporary or historical, she’s a romantic at heart and gives all her heroes and heroines a “happily ever after.” Her contemporary romances also have a strong inspirational element to them.
Vikki writes her historical romances under the pen name Vikki Vaught. Miss Kathleen’s Scandalous Baron is scheduled to release in the first quarter of 2016 and is the second book in her new Honorable Rogue series.
Vikki lives in the beautiful foothills of the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee with her beloved husband, Jim, who is the most tolerant man in the world to put up with her when she is in a writing frenzy. When she isn’t writing or working her day job, you’ll find her curled up in a comfortable chair reading her Kindle, lost in a good book with a cup of tea at her side.
Author Links:
Website: http://www.vikkivaught.com/home.htmlEmail: mailto:vvaught512@aol.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/VikkiVaught?ref=bookmarksTwitter: https://twitter.com/vvaught512Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+VikkiMcCombie/postsPinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/vaughtmccombie/Amazon Author Page: http://smile.amazon.com/Vikki-Vaught/e/B008EE7TG2/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1433778387&sr=1-2-entGoodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5208041.Vikki_Vaught
Author Note:As a Navy wife for many years, I know how hard it is to put fears at bay and go on with your life when your loved one is far from home. I want to thank all the military men and women who serve and protect our great country, along with their families who support and love them. I spent over twenty years in Hampton Roads, Virginia and grew to love the area. I love the ocean and enjoyed its beauty almost every day as I traveled from Hampton to Virginia Beach where I worked. When this story came to me, I had to make Virginia Beach the setting.What Nanci goes through in A New Beginning for Nanci is what countless military wives have faced since the creation of our nation. What I want to show in this story is that there is always a new beginning out there. We just have to go after it and not allow tragedy to keep us frozen in fear.
There are lessons learned in this
While this is definitely an inspirational romance, it does have a couple of scenes with minimal sensual touches and kissing. Nanci and Daniel have a strong physical attraction between them, so it is hard to resist, but never fear, they do not fully give in to temptation.

Snippet Sunday

Welcome back for another wintry edition of Snippet Sunday!

The cold winds and snow have found our little farm on the hill. I hope you're staying nice and warm if Old Man Winter is knocking on your door. To help keep myself entertained while we await spring, I'm busily working away on hockey books, watching hockey, and reading hockey romances. You'd think all that hockey would get tiresome but nope! There is nothing like a good game or a great hockey romance to make my day a little brighter. I hope this weeks snippet from my recently completed Wildcat novella, Roster Addition, brings a smile to your face.

This week we get to visit with Maggie, as she and Derrick struggle to come to terms with some long buried emotions about Veikko and Liz adopting Maggie's granddaughter. I've always loved this couple and not simply because Derrick was so darn popular. They symbolize hope for many readers. Maggie and Derrick show us that love does not disappear just because you're over forty and have a few scars and/or stretch marks. Also, may I just add that Derrick is full of surprises! He knocked me off my pins while working on this story. That is one of the great things about being an organic writer. You never know what your characters are going to do.

This excerpt is unedited so please be kind about any errors you may find. When you're done visiting with Maggie and her man, skate on over to Cathy Brockman and Ellie Mack's blogs to see what those two clever scribes have been up to!

*~*~*

"Let's go inside here," Derrick whispered. I let him steer me into a room with muted lighting. It was quiet in here. I lifted my head to find that we were in a small chapel. "Sit down and get your wind."            He led me to the last pew near the door and assisted me down to the seat.             "I'm not so old that I need help sitting down," I said. My voice cracked several times.             "I know, Mags, it's just that you ain't looking too sturdy." He sat down beside me, filling the delicate wooden bench with Minnesota ex-hockey player. "You need a hankie."             I threw my hands up to cover my face while Derrick rummaged around in his pockets.            "Thank you," I croaked when he tickled my ear with his handkerchief. I slid around so that he couldn't see my face then blew my nose several times. "My God, everyone must think I'm a massive boob," I coughed as I dabbed at my swollen eyes.             "Nah, they don't. They think you're just maybe overwhelmed like the rest of us is," he said and rearranged himself on the pew. The bench groaned. "It's nice in here. Reminds me of when I was a kid and visited my Grandma Andersson. She went to this small church outside of her hometown. God that was a nice place," he sighed as I worked on trying to look less like a snot monster. "There was all these green hills and cows. More cows then people it seemed. Her church was tiny inside, kind of like this. Makes me feel like I was back home. There are times I sure miss Minnesota, Mags. I dream of taking you there to live."            "Do you really?" I asked, lowering his hankie from my puffy face.             "Oh sure, seems like every day I think about going back. Buying a place in the deep woods, near a lake, fixing it up good, you know, lots of modern things in the kitchen so you can cook and bake all them good meals you make."            I smiled at the wistful tone of his voice. "That sounds really nice." I slid around to face him now that I had the worst of the crying jag wiped away. "I could cook all the fish and moose that you caught."            "You don't catch a moose, Mags," he chuckled then pulled his gaze from the plain wooden cross to look at me. The man was so handsome, worn and weathered yes, and with silver appearing in his dark brown beard daily, but he was the best-looking man in this hospital in my eyes. "You shoot them."            "You knew what I meant."            "Yah, yah, I did." He smiled at me. "I like it that we know what the other means now. Makes a man feel good to be that close to a woman," he said. I bobbed my head. "Maggie, I know how hard this is for you. For me too," he exhaled deeply. "I always thought I would have time for kids, right? Then life just happened and the kids, well, they just never come. Then I fell in love with you, and you had this little family and it was nice, real nice." He tapped his chest, right over his heart. "Being with you and them kids, even when the kids are being asses, it's what I always wanted. But the kids, well, they're all for grown mostly, and little Elsa, she was going to be my chance to help bring up a child good. With good codes and stuff, proper like thinking about things."            "Yeah, I understand," I said then began rolling up the damp hankie in my hand. "I screwed things up so badly with Trevor. So many years spent raising him improperly."            "Nah, you done good with the boy, Mags. He's coming around. I seen lots of maturity in him over the past few months."            "Well if so that's all on him, not me. I was a coward. I should have left Travis way before I did, taken my son away from that abusive environment. I was too scared. So I let him see things that he shouldn't have. Then, when I did finally work up the guts to leave Travis and divorce him, I spoiled Trevor and made him into a young man that no one could stand."            "Seems like Ashley stood him just fine."            I gave the man an eye roll and he smiled widely. God, that smile was so what I needed that my eyes began to well up.             "So it seems," I agreed, sniffled, and then tightened my fist around his handkerchief. "I guess I wanted to keep Elsa because I wanted to be a better mother than I was the first time around. She was going to be my chance to hopefully get it right."            "Mags, you're a great ma, really and truly. I know you don't see it, but others do. I do, your son and his gal do, hell everyone does."             "That's very kind. I love you for saying that."
             "Just saying the truth, Maggie. You and me, we got lots of things that we feel we did wrong. Maybe we did, and maybe we didn't, hell I don't know." He slid closer so that his hip now pressed against mine. I glanced down to where our bodies touched. Oh look, I had black slacks on. Good to know. "I doknow that the one thing that I did right was getting you into my life. You think maybe, after all this baby stuff is done, that you'd like to marry me and move to Minnesota?"             The hankie slid from my fingers to the carpet of the chapel. 



Don't forget to drop by Cathy and Ellie's blogs-


Cathy Brockman Romances

Ellie Mack's Blog

Throwback Thursday Tune

Our tribute to Elvis and his movies continues! This song was the title track for one of his films and has always been one of my faves.

Tuesday Tales - Picture Prompt

Hello! It`s time for Tuesday Tales.


Today we have another snippet from Dear Jon. It`s our picture prompt and the excerpt must reflect the image and be under 300 words.  Don`t forget to visit the other talented Tuesday Tales authors. Thanks for stopping by!


            Ross flipped the steaks. I could hear the fire in the brick pit flaring up as well as the sizzle of meat juices. I was sitting on the redwood swing by the pond keeping an eye on Andy as he tried his hand at fishing. We had about an hour before dark, give or take. I took a small sip of the gin and tonic Ross had prepared for me. The cubes made a reassuring clatter inside the tall frosted glass. There were birds rustling around in the pines that blocked the cabin from sight from the road. Clouds were gathering overhead.            “Mourning doves getting ready to roost,” Ross said as he sat down beside me with care. The swing moved slightly. His hand rested on my knee. “Feeling better?”             “I`m not sure what to do,” I said as I stared at the lime slice in my gin and tonic. “They`re asking me to be a totally different person, Ross.” I looked from my drink to the man on my right. “They`re trying to mold me into the very thing that I broke free from the day my father died.”            “I know how hard it is for you, but sometimes we just have to conform.”            “Why? Why the hell do we have to change to fit a stereotype? I`d be a damned good father figure to Andy just as I am!”             Andrew looked from his bobber sitting atop the water at the sound of his name. Ross waved and asked if he had any bites. The lad shook his head, sandy hair falling into his eyes as he replied. I threw back a long pull of my cocktail.             “Jon, I know you youngsters--”            “Please don`t use that term to make me feel like a child.”



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