Caitlin Ricci's Blog, page 13

Excerpt for Almost Paradise

Hey!

These past two weeks have been incredibly busy for me. I've had family in town and so while I've had a lot of fun, this is the first day I've really been able to sit and write. All or Nothing is being worked on today. I plan to have it done this week hopefully.

But instead of talking about Ben, Eli and Micah, today I wanted to share the excerpt for Almost Paradise. It's available one week from today on June 16th so go check it out. You can go here to find it from Silver Publishing.

Enjoy the excerpt and I hope you like my book next week!

Excerpt:


Liam clipped the thin leashes to Lucy and Ethel's collars with quick, precise movements. They were a tapestry of wrinkles and drool, with small black eyes and long, gangly legs they hadn't quite gotten the hang of yet in their eight short months of life. He loved his Neapolitan Mastiffs greatly and appreciated them all the more for being a gift from an ally he had helped earlier that year. The man's generosity had not been a surprise, but the two shiny silver puppies delivered to his doorstep had been.

The small parking lot was nearly empty as they jumped out of the back of his large SUV and landed solidly on the ground. Lucy, the younger of the sisters by four whole minutes and months of maturity, tried gnawing on her leash for a moment before a look from Liam stopped her instantly. He allowed some puppy-like behaviors from them at home but he expected far more from them out in public. And at nearly one hundred pounds each, that was as much for the benefit of society as it was for his peace of mind.

The thin leather leashes were an annoyance in his hand as he entered the small upscale boutique. He disliked them greatly and only used them as a show for the humans to ease their worries. In reality, his dogs, and most others he had met obeyed him because he was dominant and expected nothing less from them.

The boutique was awash with rich sheer drapes in the dramatic colors of plum, indigo and emerald. His boss's twin, Evangeline, had been a longtime customer and he'd been picking up her purchases ever since. Once a month she would call the owner, a lovely redhead named Miranda, and they would talk endlessly about what was new and what was trendy in the world of fashion that they both loved. Before the girls had arrived, Liam would walk in like any other of Miranda's customers. He'd brought them in when others were there shopping when they'd been just a few months old as well. But as his dogs had grown, he'd realized that how people reacted to them had changed and he'd started making appointments to pick up Evangeline's purchases during Miranda's lunch hour. The quiet and privacy suited him just fine as well.

Miranda gave him a bright smile from her seat behind the small glass case as he approached. "Mr Glass, good to see you again sir. And your lovely ladies as well," she said, leaning across to give each of his dogs a quick pat. "I swear they've grown nearly a half a foot since I saw you three in here last month."

Liam nodded. "That sounds about right, Miranda." His dogs took their places, sitting on either side of him as he began to peruse the earrings.

"So who's the lucky recipient this time?" she asked him, leaning forward to look at the selection as well. "Those little diamond studs are new." She pointed to the ones she meant and sighed wistfully. "They're really beautiful."

Liam smiled. They were nice-looking. She knew that he most often shopped for Evangeline, but the bright silver chain he wore was from Miranda's shop as well. "My boss has annoyed Evangeline and has sent me out to apologize to her with jewelry while I'm getting the rest of her things." He shifted his gaze to the emeralds but quickly moved away. They would be too dark against her coffee colored skin.

Miranda giggled. "Have something in mind already?"

He pursed his lips. Normally he'd have just grabbed the first thing he thought might fit the bill and then paid for it. It's what he did for her birthday every year. But this time Samson had sent him out with the idea of apologizing to her, not an easy feat when the woman kept her grudges like she kept her fine chocolate--as close to her as possible and in a combination locked safe.

Nothing looked quite right and he was about to become discouraged when his gaze caught on a bright gold necklace with a trail of different gemstones winding down like a river. The pinks, yellows, and purples would go beautifully with her skin and the diamonds were brilliantly clear. He tapped on the glass over that one and Miranda instantly pulled it out for him.

"Wow, it's beautiful," she said candidly as she stroked the largest of the stones at the bottom of the river, a beautiful yellow gem. "She's going to love it."

Liam nodded. "I think you're right." He pulled out the credit card Samson had given him and handed it over to her. He didn't care about the price, didn't even look at the little tag. Samson wouldn't have cared and Liam wasn't going to change his mind on the perfect gift for his alpha's twin.

As Miranda was boxing up the necklace he saw a pajama shirt and pants set that made him grin. Leaving the dogs where they were he picked it up and brought it back to the counter. It was made of silk and he thought that the pastel pink would go well with Evangeline's skin.

"That's lovely," Miranda said as she began folding up the clothing. She handed the small bag to him along with a few much larger ones that contained Evangeline's purchases for the month. "Here you are, Mr Glass. I'm sure she'll love these. There's also a little bottle of perfume in there for her as well as a thank you for being such a great customer all these years. I don't know what I'd do if it wasn't for customers like her," she said wistfully.

Liam took the bags from her with a thankful smile. Evangeline was always easier to deal with when she had shiny new presents. "Thank you Miranda, I'm sure she appreciates you catering to her needs and putting up with the three of us as well. I'll see you next month. I will need a pair of cuff links then. A friend's birthday is coming up."

She nodded and pursed her lips as she tapped one long fingernail on the counter, thinking. "Particular color?"

Liam tilted his head as he considered. "Rubies would be good I suppose," he said after a moment. His friend's favorite color was red after all.

Miranda wrote a quick note to herself. "Great. I'll order them today and they should be in later this week and you can pick them up next month. If you like them, great. If not, you know we have a wide selection of diamond cuff links as well. Sometime you should bring in Mrs Glass, I'd sure love to meet her."

He nodded. "Thank you Miranda. I appreciate all your help. And there is no Mrs Glass."

She blushed and he turned away.

He'd known she'd fish for more information sooner or later and he'd let her stew on that for a little while. He doubted she knew why there was no Mrs anything in his life or even that there never would be. But his sexuality had never been open to discussion between them and he would keep it that way. Privacy was one of those little things Shifters liked to keep intact.

The door behind him jingled as another customer walked in. He frowned and looked up at Miranda. She usually locked the door behind him so that they would have privacy during his visits and so that she didn't have to see customers during her lunch hour. He turned around to see who it was and nearly tripped over Ethel in the process. He took a step back, bringing his dogs out of the way as the man came forward. Liam didn't think that he'd seen him yet and wanted to watch him for as long as possible.

Out in the Rockies Blog Hop!

Eight Colorado M/M authors (including me) are participating in a great blog hop, hopefully our first of many, called Out in the Rockies. More details will be coming soon but home base and where the blog starts is at Marie Sexton's blog which can be found here. Make sure to visit each blog on the tour and comment. Each comment will enter you to win a nice gift card at the end of the hop.  Hope to see you next week!

Silver Shorts Week 24

Silver Shorts Week 24 is now available for pre-order from the Silver Publishing site. It's free and there are a some great stories in this one. My story, Alea, is a bit darker than what I usually write but I hope that you'll enjoy it.

All or Nothing

All or Nothing is going very well. In fact, I hit the 15k mark just a few minutes ago. I probably still have another  15k to go but I really like how its going right now. There's something fun about the challenge of making three different guys work together in a story.

Silver Shorts week 23

Silver Shorts Week 23 is now available for pre-order. In this edition Travis and Liam of Almost Paradise visit the Masquerade, a Shifter club in my short story, Welcome to the Masquerade. I hope you get a chance to check it out and enjoy seeing a sneak peak of these characters before their story comes out on June 16th!

Silver Publishing's 10% Off Sale

Silver Publishing is turning two in June and to celebrate all current releases are 10% off. Now, this doesn't apply for coming soon books or print books, but there's still hundreds of books to choose from and at 10% off all month long you should be able to pick up a few goodies.

Silver Shorts

The Silver Shorts free reads have been moved to the Free Reads page above. I have finished weeks 24 and 25 and they will be available in June.

Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods

We went for a little day trip down to Colorado Springs today and here are the highlights. Pikes Peak is 14,100+ ft and Garden of the Gods is just a really neat free park where a bunch of red rocks are.

Summit
Summit
Summit
Crystal Lake as seen from the Summit
Snow near the Summit
 Sorry random car that happened to be in front of us. I just really liked this turn, probably because I wasn't driving.
All the glare is because I was shooting through a window. Garden of the Gods
Garden of the Gods
Garden of the Gods
Garden of the Gods
Garden of the Gods
Garden of the Gods

Home of the Free because of the Brave

This post is about what it means to be a Military Brat according to me.

All One Blood by Vish studio
It's Memorial Day here in the United States. And yes, while that means that  Summer is pretty much here and  people are getting drunk and I went fishing Saturday, I'm also reminded of what it means to be part of a military family. And I do mean that in the most literal, all encompassing sense of the word. I am the only generation in my father's line to not enter the service directly out of high school. Any service would have done. But I chose college instead. If I had been in shape at the time it would have been more important but as it was I was reminded that every generation has entered since we arrived in 1904. We have never been drafted, we have never backed down from a fight and we have always done whatever we could to defend  our freedoms. My mom served over twenty years in the Navy and has always said it was the best decision she ever made. She taught me about discipline and independence. My dad taught me about freedom and using my rights because they are mine and if I don't use them, they will be taken away or used against me.

I'm using our a lot and no, I haven't been in any service, so how could I possibly know what it was like to be in the military. But that's not really the point of Memorial Day. It's remembering that people got on a plane or ship, headed out somewhere and then lived in miserable conditions, watched their friends die around them, got injured and then died themselves. All so that I and the rest of us Americans, could enjoy the lives that we have right now. No, America isn't perfect. But we have those freedoms because people have fought for them. Other countries have freedom where they might not have before because we did that.

Memorial Day isn't about arguing over wars, or politics. It's about remembering those people that have died while in service to this country. It's about putting aside political ideas, presidents and the economy for one day and remembering those that fought and died for something bigger than themselves. It's about realizing that our soldiers, both living and gone, have always mattered. When someone chooses to enter the service, when they put on that uniform and fasten their ribbons to their starchy white uniforms everyday like I saw my mom do, that it means something. It's more than just a job, or a career. It's being more than who and what you are by taking up an ideal that is greater than anything that has ever been.

If I've lost you, I'm sorry. And I'm not trying to be preachy though it may come across that way. I love being part of a military family. I love that I have that history, that my father's choices, my grandfather's choices and his father's choices and so on run through me. That I've got that kind of history backing me up. That my freedoms matter to me and I will fight for them with everything I have because people have died to give them to me.

And most people don't even know how Memorial Day really started. Though few people know what happened in 1776 and even fewer know when D-Day was or what happened at the Battle of Normandy so I don't know why the lack of historical knowledge today frightens me so much. Remember that line that those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it? How much of history do you really want to repeat? Because it really wasn't all fun and games.

Soapbox moment over. Just... go remember a veteran. Do something with your rights today. And if you're feeling really generous, go visit a military memorial at your local cemetery, tell a veteran thank you or buy someone in the uniform lunch. People don't appreciate soldiers enough when they're alive. It shouldn't take Memorial Day for people to recognize their great acts and sacrifices when they're dead.

Kool Queer Lit

I'm up on Kool Queer Lit today so take a moment to go check them out. I'll be visiting with them again on July 27th and that time I'll be talking about Taming the Lion Tamer.