H.K. Carlton's Blog, page 173

The Tartan MP3 Player Virtual Book Tour @caszarek @Twinsietalk #timetravel #fantasyromance

Twinsie Talk Book Tourswww.twinsietalk.com
The Tartan MP3 Player Blog TourC.A. Szarek RELEASE DATE: March 25, 2014
Book One in the time travel, fantasy romance series, Highland Secrets!
She never believed in magic…
Claire McGowan, Scotophile and historical romance novel addict, finally saves up enough for her dream vacation to Scotland.
She never imagines she’ll get sucked back to the seventeenth century while running on the beach—that’s what she gets for exercising when she should be relaxing.
He knows with a harsh certainty magic exists...
The Fae have taken his brother—Laird of his clan. Duncan MacLeod finds a bonnie naked and confused lass. He’s convinced Claire arrived in 1672 through the Faery Stones—a magical portal he’s been scouring the lands for over the past six months.
At last, he has someone who’s been through the Faery Stones and can help him find them—and get his brother back.
Duncan promises to help Claire get home, even though his desire to have her wars with his vow.Torn between familiarity of the present and what she wants in the past, can Claire help Duncan find his brother and get back to the future? Will she even want to?

Excerpt:
  
“Who goes there?” A deep, accented voice made her jump.

Her MP3 player crashed to the sand, the wires from her headphones ripping over her shoulders as they flew away from her body, but she didn’t go after the devices.

Claire’s heart kicked into overdrive, and she shot her arm across her naked breasts. Plastered her palm over her bare sex.

“Okay, don’t like this dream anymore.” Her voice jumped up an octave.

Why can’t I wake up?

Maybe a touch of fright would make her wake the hell up.

“Ummm….hello?” Claire ventured even though her pulse pounded in her temples. She didn’t see the voice’s owner, but she was stuck now.

Not like I can run and hide.

She wasn’t fond of a stranger seeing her nude, even if gym time had given her a rockin’ body.

Claire smirked. Her sister would’ve declared her egotistical right then and there.

Three figures came into view, standing atop a grassy overhang and staring down at her. Two men and a boy.

“Lass?” One asked.

Lass?

Okay, no more Scottish Highlander romance novels before bed for you, Claire McGowan. But at least she’d placed the accent.

All three were dressed in period clothing. Like—seventeen hundreds or something. The tallest one had a tartan kilt on.

The man who’d spoken was older, wearing a thick grey beard he was currently scratching, as if he was trying to figure her out.

Well, duh. Naked girl on the beach at the ass crack of dawn should do it every time.

The boy looked about ten. He scrambled down the incline, stopping about three feet from her and staring. Wide blue eyes. Dark, messy hair that needed a good cut.

Claire backed up, squeezing her eyes shut. “Seriously, wake up.” Though she should pat herself on the back for the vivid imagination—if she didn’t have to cover her tender parts—she would’ve so been on that.

This place looked and felt real.

“Are ye Fae?” The kid’s brogue was thick, but his voice was high, making him sound younger than she’d guessed.

“Wh-what?” Claire asked, taking another step back.

“Angus, hush.” The last man admonished. His voice was familiar; he’d been the one who’d called out first.

He jumped down to the beach with little effort.

Claire almost forgot to cover herself as she gazed up at him.

Had to be about six-five or six-six.

Definitely had a foot on her, for sure.

Blue eyes, like the kid. Long black hair that flowed in the wind. He was wearing a kilt, and had the same tartan pattern strewn across his body, shoulder to waist and held down with a belt, but no shirt beneath. A huge, defined pec peeked out and her stomach fluttered.

Good job, Claire. At least you dreamt up someone yummy.

The model on the cover of the book she’d been reading before bed had nothing on this guy.

“Lass? Are ye all right?” His voice was concerned, as was his expression. He spoke gently.

“M-m-m-me?”

Way to go on the stutter, Clair-bear.Her sister’s nickname popped into her head with ease. It should’ve grounded her, but she still didn’t wake up.

“She talks funny, uncle!”

How can he tell?

She’d said two words, literally.

“Where am I?” Claire whispered. The sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach made her shift on her feet.

“Isle of Skye.” The boy jumped up and down. “We were supposed to go fishing. But I found ye, instead.”

“Hush, Angus MacLeod,” the man said, but there was amusement in his tone. However, he didn’t take his eyes off Claire.

A tremor slid down her spine when his gaze travelled her frame.

Still. Naked.

She wanted to sink into the sand, her earlier confidence about her body gone. Claire shivered, her teeth chattered.

“Jesu, lass. Yer freezin’.” The huge man unbelted the plaid from his waist and whipped it off his torso. It was a separate piece from his kilt, and now he stood before her bare chested. His accent was as thick as the boy’s, but she could make his words out clearer.

Sexy as hell.

“Yeah, kinda naked over here.” A nervous titter fell from her lips and made Claire wince.

“Is she Fae, uncle?” Angus asked.

“Ye’ve been spending too much time with my father. Da, stop clouding the lad’s head with faery tales,” the man called.

The old guy on the hill chuckled. “Och, then ye shouldna leave the lad with me when you go off.”

“Like I have a choice.”
C.A. is originally from Ohio, but got to Texas as soon as she could. She is married and has a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice.
She works with kids when she’s not writing.
She’s always wanted to be a writer and is overjoyed to share her stories with the world.
To learn more, visit C.A. Szarek on her blog, on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreadsand website.
C.A. Szarek is also author of Collision Force, Chance Collision, and Sword's Calland Love's Call. Buy Links ARe Barnes and Noble Smashwords KOBO Amazon

 The Blog Tour Schedule  

April 7          Twinsie Talk Book Reviews
April 8          Jo-Anna Walker
April 9          The Conley Corner
April 10        multitaskingmomma
April 10        She Walks in Bravery
April 10        Anastasha Renee Writes
April 10        Book Babblin
April 11         Forever TBR
April 12         Platypire Reviews
April 14         Big Fish Book Blog
April 14         Noelle Writes
April 14         Pick a Genre Already
April 14         The Book Tart 
April 15         Pinky's Favorite Reads
April 16         I Make Stuff Up
April 17         Romantic Hearts
April 17         Elle Marlow 
April  20       Just One Indie's Opinion
April  20       In The Pages of a Good Book
April  21        Character's Perspective
April  23        iequalsAlissa
April 24         Madeline Pryce
April 26         cece reading and writing safari
April 26         The World Between
April 27         The Hopeless Romantic
April 28         Love to read
April 28    the plus side of reading blog

Smut for Good Curves - Rule Charity Blog Hop! @smut_uk @ParkinsonsUK @JustGiving

 Smut for Good: Curves Rule is a blog hop with prizes galore to raise funds for Parkinson’s UK as this is Parkinson’s Awareness week. To find more curves, and seek out further prizes please visit http://smutters.co.uk/smut-for-good and if you can take a minute to please visit the Smut for Good: Curves Rule Just Giving Page at http://www.justgiving.com/curvesrule and donate whatever you can to help us reach our target of £100 to raise awareness of Parkinson’s and to support the charity Parkinson’s UK http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/ who help those with the disease learn to cope with the challenges, give out information and search for a cure.

We Don't Need Roads Where We're Goin'
As we drove away from the college campus my wife, Grace, cried silently in the passenger's seat next to me. I reached over and gripped her knee, giving it a gentle squeeze. I knew that the next few weeks would be hell as it always was after we'd dropped one our kids off at school to begin that new chapter in their lives. But this was the last one. I'd no idea what to expect. And I was a little worried. At least with the other two, she'd had our little Ben to come home to.

"Can you believe it? That's our last baby, Tim." I looked over and her lip trembled. I hated to see her so sad. But I saw this as a good thing for us. For our relationship. It had been a long time, since it had been just me and my woman, without interruptions and chaos. Sporting events and school functions. But would she see it the same way? My wife was a wonderful mother, she gave everything she had to our kids. But I wanted to remind her that before all that, she'd been a woman in love. With me. 

All the way home—and it was hours—she'd calm and get a hold of herself, then some song would come on the radio and remind her of another time and she'd dissolve into tears again. 

"Don't cry, baby, this is a good thing."


"I know," she said, her voice wavering as tears streamed down her face. "This is what it's all about right? You give them all the tools and send them out to do good things. And I want them to, Tim. I want them to go out and do and live and be. But in the same moment, I want to hold them close and never let go."
Her face pinched then, and she turned towards the window, hiding the ugly cry from me.

About twenty minutes from home, I pulled off the highway.

"Where are we going?" she asked mopping, her face.

"You'll see."

"Oh, Tim, don't even. I can't put up with one of your silly schemes right now. Please I just want to go home and fall into bed and forget this day."

I tried not to take offense and I'd also known that she would protest, but I'd been planning this a while. If I could just get her there, I thought that this would set the tone for this next phase in our lives. And if we didn't, I was afraid that I just might lose her. 

I kept up an endless stream of senseless chatter, talking about work, which almost always produced the same reaction from her anymore. She'd get that glazed look and nod her head every once and a while in the appropriate place. But I knew she had no idea what I was saying, nor did she really care. I was beginning to think that her interest in me was nil. At one time, she'd looked at me, as if I were God-like. And it had made me feel like one. But now, often, when she looked into my eyes, I saw nothing more than tolerance. 

I pulled into the parking lot of the swanky hotel, just on the outskirts of town.

"What are you doing?" Grace asked.

"Come on," I said, turning off the car. "We have a date. Twenty-five years in the making."

Not leaving room for argument, I got out of the car and went to the trunk, popping the lid with the key fob. 

Slowly, she exited the car and made her way to where I was.

"Tim, what are we doing here. I just want to go home."

Her nose was red, her cheeks raw from wiping. Her shoulders sagged in weariness.

I dropped the bag, I'd been holding and took her cheeks into my hands. I looked into her watery, but still beautiful green eyes and said, "And I just want my wife back."

Her mouth opened and her gaze registered surprise. "What?"

"Baby, we got married and then the kids came so fast, somewhere along the line, we lost each other and damn it woman, I'm about to get you back!"

Still trembling from emotional upset, her lips made a perfect oh, but no sound came out. 


I handed her one of the lighter bags and took the other. I slammed the trunk and took her hand, making sure to link our fingers, just as we used to do.

 We checked in and I escorted her to the room. It wasn't as fancy as I'd wanted it to be. But we were putting three kids through school. It was about all I that we could swing for the moment.
 
I set my bag on the bed, it was the one I'd packed for her. I unzipped it and pulled out the dress that I hoped she might wear for me. I held up the slinky red garment and gave it a little wiggle.
"Why on earth would you bring that?" The corner of her mouth turned up in disapproval.

"You haven't worn this in ages. You look so fuckin' sexy in it. Put it on and we'll go down to dinner." I walked over to my own bag and began to unpack my grey suit. The one she liked.

"I haven't worn that dress since before Ben was born, Tim, because it doesn't fit me anymore. Look at me. Blah." She crossed her arms and glared at me. Yes, I knew she wasn't the size she'd been when we'd married or even the same body type as she'd been after the first two kids. But it didn't matter to me. I wasn't God-like anymore either.

I approached her. "Come on. Put it on...for me?"
 
"I'm not going downstairs with that on. I'll be bulging out all over when I sit down. If the damn thing doesn't give and rip in the seams first."

"Fine then, we'll eat up here. Having you all to myself is an even better idea."
 
She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Why are you doing this? Can't we just go home and pretend everything his alright?"

Now that statement, was one of many lately, that scared the shit out me. Was she pretending? Was I just fooling myself? Had we grown so far apart that now that the kids weren't between us, we wouldn't be able to relate to one another at all? That was unacceptable to me. I wanted to wine her and dine her and seduce her into remembering us. The way we'd been once. That's what this was all about.

"I brought other dresses. I know how you like choices. Pick whatever one you're comfortable in, I'll call room service." I turned my back on her and prayed she'd play along. 

I leafed through the menu and jotted down our preferences. Just as I picked up the receiver, I heard the bathroom door close and seconds later, the sound of shower spray. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath trying to calm my growing nerves. After all these years, she could still wind me up.

After ordering the food, I climbed into my suit.  It had been a while since I'd tried this one on and it was a little snug. I rolled my shoulders and it pulled tight. I made my way over to the mirror and finger combed my hair, greying in places and thinning in others. "Yep, God-like," I snorted, turning away from my reflection, just as the washroom door opened.

Grace came out, wearing the little red number. But she wouldn't even look at me. The dress was tight on her. But accentuated all the things I wanted to see. But I began to second guess myself. Perhaps I shouldn't have pressed my wishes on her. But inside, I was desperate to make things right. 

"You look amazing, love."

"Oh fuck off!" she retorted. "Look it. Breasts, roll, roll, hips." She emphasized her account, with hand gestures from top to hips.  She looked behind her and down at her behind. "And then there's that! Sexy? Ya think?" she finished, derisively. And then all of a sudden her anger turned to misery and she began to sob again, just as she had in the car. Pure grief for what she thought she'd lost.

I took off my suit coat and stopped trying to pull my gut in. It's not as if we hadn't seen each other through our best and worst. 

I moved to stand in front of her and waited until she looked at me. It wasn't a loving look, that she returned, that was for sure. 

Slowly, I placed my hands on either side of her, just under her lovely round breasts. She fidgeted and tried to push my hands away. She did the same thing in bed, when I tried to touch her. Especially when I attempted to grip what she called rolls. She didn't appreciate that at all. The extra bit of flesh bothered her so much more than it did me. I loved that she filled my hands.

"Don't," I said, holding her firmly.

"I don't like it!" she raged. 

"What? You don't like me to touch you?"

"No..." she replied petulantly. "You know I don't mean that."

"No, Grace, I don't know that you mean that," I retorted pointedly. "You never let me touch you."

"I do so. We have sex all the time. Don't even try that with me."

"Sure. Quietly, in the dark or quick before the kids get up in the morning. When we're half asleep fumbling, with barely any foreplay, in and out. Done. We never just take our time," I complained. 

"When did you ever want to take your time?" she asked raising a perfect eyebrow at me. But there was a little twinkle in her gaze, that gave me some hope. 

"Well you make it hard on a guy to take his time." I looked down and admired the lovely swells on display, but got back to the subject at hand. "We never even kiss anymore. Don't you remember how much you used to enjoy kissing? I liked it too. I miss it." When we were teenagers, we'd spent hours perfecting it. Saying goodnight was the best and worst time of my day. Often we were out there so long, her mom would flash the porch light. 

I took one of her hands and placed it on my chest. And I decided this would be the perfect time to remind her. I grinned thinking about the first few times we'd been together and then after that, we couldn't seem to get enough of each other. "Remember that time we almost got caught in the cold room at your parent's house?" Those times were some of the sweetest memories I had. I fixated on her pouty sexy mouth.

She lowered her gaze but smiled, reflecting. "My daddy would have killed you."

"I know, but it woulda been worth it." She slid her palm up my chest and kneaded my shoulder. It felt good.

"Well, now maybe we can have loud wild animal sex. Any damn time we please. Morning, noon, night and every spare second in between. I wanna make you scream my name until the neighbours hear."

The corner of her mouth lifted. "Ya think?"

"No parents lurking around trying to save your innocence from the kid from the wrong side of town. No demanding kids running in and out. I think it's the perfect time. It's finally our time, baby. Time to savour each other." My throat actually tightened. I wanted this so badly. To reclaim my wife and have us both feel that same overwhelming thing that we'd had when we started, but so much stronger and deeper now. "I love you, Grace. Everything about you." I made sure to grip those love handles that she hated. "Every inch. We've earned every one of them.I love your curves. I want us back, baby. The way it was in the beginning. I want you to look at me..." I paused as I realized that she was wearing that look. The very gaze that made me melt on the spot. "Yeah, just like that," I managed to whisper. 

"I miss you, too, Timmy," she said, as more tears breached her lashes. "But I miss my babies so much. They are such a part of what made us, us, Tim. How are we ever going to be enough, now? You meant everything to me back then before we had the kids and now there is just so much more."

"Exactly, baby. So much more. Look what we created? I'm just as proud of our kids as you are. But we did that, love. Gracie and Timmy. We have so much more to look forward to. Just you and me. This is not the end. It's just another beginning. Another chapter." I leaned forward and kissed her softly, only intending to give her a sweet kiss, but she cupped the back of  my neck and she opened up and then deepened it. She tasted salty, from the tears, but oh so good. It had been so long since we'd shared a kiss like this.

She began to undo the buttons on my dress shirt. I unzipped her dress.
It slithered to the floor and under my greedy hands I realized there was no underclothing between us.

"Commando, lovey?" I said into her mouth, loathe to release her sweet lips. 

She didn't answer, but while still engaging me with her tongue, she unfastened my trousers and pushed them, along with my boxers, to the floor. She then pulled my hips forward and pressed her mound against my growing erection. 

I backed her to the bed having every intention of giving her the works, but she had other ideas and guided my throbbing cock right to her hot ready pussy. Taking our time would have to wait. Her familiar scent filled my senses. Her scorching inner walls hugged me, drawing me deeper into her sweet cunt. She pulled her legs back before I could even demand it. We knew each other so well by now, but she could still rock my world. 

As I thrust, giving us both long satisfying strokes, she reached down between us and circled her clit. I almost smiled thinking back to a time when she would never have done such a thing in front of me. Even after I'd suggested it. We'd come a long way, baby. As she continued to round that delicate little bud, she let out the most exquisite sound. One I had no choice but to answer with an appreciative growl of my own.

Soon, sweet all encompassing spasms began to squeeze my aching cock. I changed angle just ever so slightly and she gasped. Followed by another delicious contraction, overlapping the next, which sent me over the edge. I collapsed on top of her. 

She held me close, stoking my back softly. "Built for comfort, not for speed, anymore?" she chuckled and muttered against my shoulder.

I hugged her closer. "Naw, you were made perfectly; just for me."


Later after our amazing quickie and sharing our meal, I knelt beside the large bathtub, with my lovely wife, submerged in fragrant, frothy white bubbles. Occasionally, she'd sip from the glass of red wine, I'd provided. I ran the soapy terry cloth in circular motions over her chest, as I kissed her smooth white shoulder. 

"How long have you been planning this, Timmy?" Grace asked. I detected the smile in her voice. Funny, she'd referred to me as Timmy more tonight than she had in years.

"Mmm, since Ben began applying to colleges last year."

"It was very well done of you." She held the glass up, as if in toast.

"Scored some points?" I kissed her collarbone. 

"Big time. I didn't even know we needed this."

"But we did. We do." I moved around, my old knees popping a groaning in protest, but I needed to look at her. "We can't take each other for granted, baby. I can't lose you."

Her eyes filled again. "I didn't know that you felt this way. I thought it was just me. I never meant to take you for granted, Tim. I love you too. But things are going to be different. How can they not be? It's going to take some getting used to."
  
"Then they'll be different," I shrugged. "We'll just be heading down an alternate path. A new one. It's not so different from when we began this journey. Just as long as we do it together, I don't care about anything else." I wiped her cheek and to my relief she smiled and gave me that look that sent my heart to pounding. 

She passed me the glass of wine. I placed it on the vanity and I helped her to her feet. I wrapped a towel around her shoulders before pulling her into my arms. 

"Do you remember what you said when you asked me to marry you?" She grinned, although shakily, with emotion.

"Of course. How could I ever forget. I practiced that particular speech at least a hundred times."

"Oh, you did not," she scoffed. Even after all this time, she still didn't seem to grasp what I would have done to be with her. What I would still do. She just didn't know how to appreciate her own worth.

"I did so. I had to impress you. What if you'd turned me down?"

"How could I say no to you?" she said softly, as she looked into my eyes.

For the first time in a long while, I felt like maybe we were going to be okay.

"So, we just need to find that same open eager mindset we had back then, Gracie. You and me against the world. We'll go places…” I grinned dragging it out, making her wait. “…but baby, we don't need roads where we're goin'."

She smiled, a real genuine, Gracie's-happy kind of smile and the sight did wonders for my old heart. And then, she kissed me senseless. 

                                                     ©Copyright H K Carlton 2014

 I'll be giving away a $10 ARe giftcard and winner's choice of any one of my titles. Leave an email address in the comments below and on April 14th, I will announce a winner at random.


1.Lucy Felthouse2.Kev 'Mitnik' Blisse3.Victoria Blisse4.Lily Harlem5.Cynthia Sax6.Melissa MacFarlane (Voluptasse)7.Beautiful Undulations - Kay Jaybee8.Tabitha Rayne - Curvy Drawings9.K .D. West10.Justine Elyot11.Kemberlee Shortland12.Cara Sutra13.Jillian Boyd14.Tilly Hunter Erotica15.Sal and Tal Erotica16.K D Grace17.Holly J Gill18.Sacchi Green19.Books and Paintings by JoAnne20.Suz deMello: Rakes in Tartan21.Amanda Ann S22.Elizabeth Delisi 23.Mummy Jo's Sexy Chat24.Liv Honeywell25.Morticia Knight26.Casey McKay27.Sheri Savill28.AReCafe29.Tory Richards30.Tamsin's Superotica31.Normandie Alleman32.Domina Caffeine33.Elizabeth L. Brooks34.Sommer Marsden35.H K Carlton

New Release, New Contracts and #AutismAwareness Month #competition #giveaway #prizes

A New Release, New Contracts & Autism Awareness Month

It's been a busy few months. And this past week book one from my very first series launched from +eXtasy Books . A crime suspense family saga with an angst ridden love story.  If you'd like to read an excerpt scroll down. I'm also visiting with my friend Donna Gallagher, author of rugby romance, and the very popular League of Love Series—if you'd like to read the excerpt that I shared there and there's a bit about how Always Cambridge started out.  

Always Cambridge Buy Link @eXtasy Books
Book One in the Always Cambridge Series
(expected Amazon arrival date April 9) 
I will add links to the site as they become available.

I've also got some contract news. I've signed the first three contracts for a paranormal erotic romance series with MuseItUp Publishing . Book four has been verbally accepted. And I'm working on books five and six while keeping up with edits for the Cambridge series. Although I have two historical romances with MuseItUp, this will by my first books with MuseItHOT.
 The Wild Darkness Calls Collection  is a new line of sexy, dark erotic romance themed stories and they must all have dark in the title. Which was fun.



I'm also taking part in author RJ Scott's Autism Awareness Blog Hop. RJ hosts this hop every year and I've learned so much from it. I hope you'll check it out, along with taking a moment to read the thought provoking posts from the participants this year. The topic is What I've Learned from a Child. And if you scroll down again, here, you'll find my post and what the prize is that I'm giving away. Plus you'll see the link that takes you to RJ's place where you'll find the master list of authors and prizes taking part.

 Until Next Time, Take Care.

Gave Good Face is also available for Pre-Order @Totally Bound
 

Hot, Rich and Dominant – The Complete Collection by @AmyValenti

Please Welcome the incomparable Amy Valenti! (see what I did there)   You can probably tell from the title that I wasn’t taking Hot, Rich and Dominant too seriously when I started it, back in the summer of 2012. Everyone was talking about Fifty Shades of Grey and the ebook market was filling up with copycat books, so I thought, ‘Why not?’
Strange how characters can grab you and demand that a story be told. These days, I’m kicking myself for not calling it something more serious, since the main character, Nell, is far from a gold-digger obsessed with her man’s looks!
The first short story in the series (now free, so you can get an intro to Nell’s connection with Marc) was only 8,000 words long, and that was where I’d originally planned to leave it. But something about the CEO’s son with a sexy lock of hair that kept falling into his eyes, and the grad intern who finds herself drawn into a BDSM scene practically out of nowhere, stayed with me until I had to write another part… and another…
Fast-forward to winter 2014, and their story is thirteen times as long as that first part! It’s finally finished, far deeper and more full of twists than I’d ever expected in the beginning. It started as a curious experiment, but I can’t really tell you where it ended without spoiling the book. You’ll have to find out for yourself. ;)
Excerpt:

The maître d’ seemed to know Marc, and he showed us to a table in a shadowy, romantic nook lit by candles. He left us with the menus, and out of habit I looked for prices, but there were none listed—a sign that everything was extortionately priced if I’d ever seen one.

“You know, you don’t have to try to impress me with your wallet,” I said, without thinking.

He raised a brow. “What makes you think that’s what I’m doing?”

“I’m wearing designer dress and sitting at a table at Della’s.”

“I eat at Della’s a couple of times a month, and I wanted to see my new sub in a dress I’d take great pleasure in taking off later. Is that so bad?”

A waiter approached to take our wine order. I left the choice to Marc, and sat there hoping I wasn’t blushing too noticeably at the words ‘new sub’. How had I fallen into this crazy situation so quickly? Was he moving faster than I wanted to go?

I shifted slightly and remembered, for the umpteenth time, that I wasn’t wearing any underwear. That made me blush even more and by the time the waiter had left, I was pretty sure my cheeks were scarlet.

“Relax, Nell.” Marc was smiling, and under the table he brushed my leg with his, just for a second. “I’m not trying to knock all the sense out of your head by showering you with cash. I wanted to eat here tonight anyway, and I wanted you to feel comfortable, like you were dressed for the occasion.”

Part of me melted. It seemed so considerate, so sincere. “Thank you.”

Then I thought about it. Wait a minute… “So how comfortable am I supposed to feel sitting here without any—”

He kicked me gently under the table, his attention fixed somewhere over my head. I shut my mouth immediately as the waiter returned to let Marc taste the wine. He poured a glass for each of us at Marc’s approval.

When we were alone again, Marc leaned over the table, his expression intense. “I said I wanted you to feel comfortable—past tense. When I got there and remembered the hundred and one naughty little things I’m dying to do to you, I couldn’t resist upping the ante a little.” He paused for effect, then shrugged. “You could have said no.”

It was true. I’d protested the first time he’d mentioned it, but by the time we’d been ready to leave the apartment I’d been willing to do anything he’d suggested.

“I’m sure if I have a quiet word with the waiter, he can send someone out to procure some new underwear for you…”

Now it was my turn to kick him under the table. “Don’t you dare!” I hissed—then remembered I was supposed to be his submissive. “Sir,” I added belatedly.

He laughed aloud, as if he were genuinely enjoying my rebelliousness, and took my hand across the table. “You know, most Doms would tan your hide for insubordination.”

“I’m not good at this,” I mumbled, staring down at his fingers entwined with mine. “If you’re looking for Little Miss Subservient, I don’t think I’m your girl.”

It almost hurt to say the words. I wanted to see where this was heading, and to suggest that I wasn’t right for him wasn’t exactly the best way to convince Marc of that. But it was only fair that I was honest.

He squeezed my fingers. “Then it’s a good thing I like subs with a little spirit.”

You can grab a copy of Hot, Rich and Dominant – The Complete Collection now at Amazon, iTunes, All Romance eBooks, Barnes & Noble, Kobo or Smashwords – six stories for the price of three!
 

Catch Amy on Facebook or Twitter, or sign up for her monthly newsletter in the sidebar of AmyValenti.com to keep up with news, price drops, exclusive giveaways and more!

April Blog Hop for Autism Awareness #Giveaway #Competition

April is Autism Awareness Month and April 2nd, 2014 marks the seventh annual World Autism Awareness Day. Every year, autism organizations around the world celebrate the day with unique fundraising and awareness-raising events.  



I'm pleased to take part again this year in author RJ Scott's April Autism Blog Hop. There are lots of wonderful prizes to be won every day, but more importantly, follow the hop and check out all the posts from the amazing authors who are contributing this year.

So here's my Autism fact:

In the US Autism costs a family $60,000 a year on average.

The topic this year is what you've learned from a child.

I learn from my children everyday. I know as a parent you are the one who is supposed to be the teacher and the role model, but what I've gained from my kids over the years, has been immeasurable.

My eldest son was born with more than his share of health problems and in attempting to help him through, I had to grow up in a hurry. We've kind of grown up together really. In the early days, it kind of seemed like it was him and I against the world, just fighting every day to keep him here. And he is a fighter.  Thank goodness, I cannot imagine what life would have been like without him. I was determined that he would live. I know it was totally out of my control, but at the time, I couldn't think any other way. 

It took years and several major operations and therapy and he will always be watching over his shoulder for the next thing that might befall him, but he is as prepared as he can be and determined. This past year, he had a bit of a set back. And because he'd gone such a long stretch of being in relatively good health, I think it was a wake up call for him, that he is not Superman, (though he'd love to be) and that he is not invincible. Though his mind is steel, his body isn't. And it really pisses him off too. :) He hates that it is his weakness. But as I a said, he is a fighter and he never gives up. He taught me strength; that I didn't know I had, he taught me love; that I didn't realize was possible, and he taught me tenacity, which any one who knows me, would never attach that word to me. I'm not a go getter by any stretch. But maybe when it counts, I can be a bulldog, and 'C' taught me that. 

So when I started this new chapter in my life, my writing, my son was my biggest supporter (all of my kids have been incredibly supportive of my dream), but he never allowed me to give up, even at some of my lowest points when I just wanted to stop. He'd pick me back up, give me shake and tell me failure was not an option. At times, he has been my sounding board, my critic, my mentor, my artistic expert and the shoulder that I go to. I have dedicated the first book in my latest series with eXtasy Books to him, because right from the very first day that I mentioned this project to him, he has been behind it. It has taken years and many twists and turns and incarnations. I'm not sure that AC would have seen the light of day, if not for his faith and support. 

Here's the blurb for my brand new release, book one in the  Always Cambridge Family Saga Series:
 The Always Cambridge Series chronicles the life of Holly Cambridge through her tumultuous childhood and violent teen years and the consequences that stem from being the daughter of mob boss, Bill Cambridge.
~ Always Cambridge Book One
He is her guardian, but she'll do anything within her power, to protect him. His only duty is to keep her safe, but he can’t save her.  


Holly Cambridge is just a typical kid, or so she thinks, until one day, she takes a good look around and realizes that her friends don’t have bodyguards dogging their every step.
At the age of sixteen, Holly is assigned a new bodyguard, Randy Phillips. He is a tall, muscular, God-like force in the young, impressionable and lonely girl’s life. He is her friend, her confident, her conscience and the older man she adores beyond reason.

Randy Phillips, is fully aware of his young charge’s adolescent crush on him. Although, he is flattered by the adulation, he maintains a safe distance and professional demeanour until Holly is wounded in a rival family blood feud, and the course of both their lives is changed forever.

Always Cambridge Now Available @eXtasyBooks release date April 1, 2014
Thanks again RJ for being such an incredible advocate, author and friend!

So here's my prize:

Leave an email address in the comments below and on April 16th, I will announce a winner at random. I'll be giving away a $10 gift-card from ARe and winner's choice of any one of my titles. 

And don't forget to follow RJ's Blog Hop for Autism Awareness

NEW @eXtasyBooks ALWAYS CAMBRIDGE Book One #familysaga #series #crime #suspense

AVAILABLE NOW +eXtasy Books the first book in THE ALWAYS CAMBRIDGE SERIES
The saga begins... 


The Always Cambridge Series chronicles the life of Holly Cambridge through her tumultuous childhood and violent teen years and the consequences that stem from being the daughter of mob boss, Bill Cambridge.
~
Always Cambridge Book One

He is her guardian, but she'll do anything within her power, to protect him. His only duty is to keep her safe, but he can’t save her.


Holly Cambridge is just a typical kid, or so she thinks, until one day, she takes a good look around and realizes her friends don’t have bodyguards dogging their every step.
At the age of sixteen, Holly is assigned a new bodyguard, Randy Phillips. He is a tall, muscular, God-like force in the young, impressionable and lonely girl’s life. He is her friend, her confident, her conscience, and the older man she adores beyond reason.

Randy Phillips is fully aware of his young charge’s adolescent crush on him. Although he is flattered by the adulation, he maintains a safe distance and professional demeanour until Holly is wounded in a rival family blood feud, and the course of both their lives is changed forever.


Advisory : This is a six book series. The first five installments end with To Be Continued... But the good thing about this series is you won’t have to wait years between instalments. 
eXtasyBooks will release a new book, the first of every month until the conclusion in September.

Excerpt: 

I stopped, turning to face him. “None of this is any of your doing,” I repeated his words quietly back to him.
Randy smirked but his eyes remained serious. “Smart, aren’t ya, little one. But my job is to keep you safe and I wasn’t here.” He stuffed his thumbs into his jacket pockets and said so softly that I had to lean in to hear him. “I was so scared I wouldn’t get here in time. I could hear your voice. And his.” He shook his head remembering.

My eyes filled. “I was scared too. But I knew you’d come. And Paddy. I trust you. The two of you are always here for me.”

He stepped closer to me and I had to look up.

“Patrick said the threat isn’t over. He said that man was not it.”

“No, he was just another bad man in a long line of many who walk the halls here, Holly.”

I shuddered at the thought.

Randy kept his head bowed but looked at me through lowered lashes. “Are you afraid of me now? After what you saw? Not just last night? But your friend, Timmy?” He exhaled shakily. He seemed to need my reassurance that I was still okay with him. I’d never seen him like this. He was never anything but confident in my eyes.

“We are all bad men here, Holly.” His stormy grey look was intense. Was he trying to warn me? It was not something I wanted to hear right now.

“Is the man dead?” I asked.

I heard his teeth grind. “He was alive when the others removed him from here last night. I didn’t kill him.”

I turned away from him. Angry. “Well, that makes it alright then, doesn’t it!”

“Yeah, that’s right, Holly. See what’s really going on. Take your blinders off. You’re a smart girl.”

He grabbed me and spun me back around to face him. His eyes narrowed. “I’m not a good guy, Holly. No one on this whole goddamn compound is good except for you and the longer you stay here…” He let me go and stepped away from me. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration. “Sometimes you look at me and I can see in your eyes that you think I’m…” His lips thinned as he searched for the right words. “…like I’m your own personal saviour. I’m here to keep you safe, Holly, but I can’t save you from what’s going on here. I can’t stop this from tainting and shaping your life. This is going to be your life forever. You’ll always need protection. You will never have that normal life that I see that you crave.”

“Don’t say that! Don’t say it, Randy!” I rushed at him wanting him to stop.

He pulled me into his arms, he whispered in my ear, “See what’s going on. Accept it. The sooner you do the easier it’s going to be for you.”

I cried into his chest. I don’t know how long. He pulled away to look down at me. His eyes looked glassy, too. He stroked his thumbs down my cheeks, wiping away the wetness.
“You’ve been watching and absorbing everything around here since you were nine years old, Holly. This can’t honestly be a big shock to you.”
“I’m not stupid.” I said petulantly. “I see. But I don’t look. I don’t want to know. But I should. It’s not right, but it still happens. I can’t stop it. Is it so bad for me to want normal? Should I have to pay, should April? Do you and Patrick have to pay for his sins?”
“Patrick and I chose to be here. You and April didn’t.”
As much as I wanted to stay in his arms forever, I pulled away from him. He was trying to make me see him for the man he really was and not the one I had created in my mind when I was nine. Didn’t he know that would never change?
“Is that why you do the charity thing, Hol? Do you think you can atone for the man?”
I looked at him dumbly as he finished.
“It’s still his dirty money.”
“I never thought of it like that. It just makes me happy. It feels good to help people. Especially when they don’t even know who’s doing it. It doesn’t matter to the people who need those things that I’m a Cambridge. I have so much.” I looked at the big house, the pool. “It never occurred to me that’s what I was doing.”
He shook his head. “Aw, Holly, I didn’t mean…”
“No, you’re probably right, on some level, maybe that’s why I do the things I do.” I was thinking hard about what he’d said. I didn’t really think about the things that I was revealing as I spoke. “But it’s not his money. It’s my own.  My mom left April and me a lot of money. Most of it is in trust, but I have access to some funds. We get lump sums at certain ages. Sixteen, eighteen, twenty-one and the balance at twenty-five. My mom came from a well-to-do family before she married my dad. And he had crazy life insurance policies on her, as well.”
I bit my lip as I stared at the house, not realizing until it hurt. “Sometimes I just want to leave. Ya know? I want to run away. Disappear. Forget that I’m a Cambridge. Go somewhere where nobody knows who I am.” I was just thinking out loud, I didn’t expect him to comment.
“That would be incredibly dangerous. Stupid, even,” he warned me. “Did last night teach you nothing?” He was angry with me now. I felt him step close to me. His voice in my ear, deep and severe. An eerie coldness ran up my neck, different from the feeling I had last night but just as chilling. “You have no idea what he would have done to you, do you? You are so naïve, for sixteen. And that’s the least of your worries. If his enemies,” he gestured towards the house, “were to get their hands on you, you’d beg them to kill you. And if by some miracle you were able to outrun them, you’d never escape me. I would find you.” He threatened.
I guess I should feel privileged to think he cared enough to come after me, but I was not feeling that. I got the impression that he saw it as a challenge, and another part of me thought he only saw me as his job. Was I just fooling myself that he cared about me? That any of them cared for me.   Buy Link:
eXtasy Books http://www.extasybooks.com/hk-carlton/always-cambridge/ 
Other buy links will be added HERE as they come available(estimated Amazon launch date April 9)
Expected Always Cambridge Series Release dates: April 1May 1June 1July 1August 1September 1, 2014 

NEW from Nancy Adams - Extinct @Nancyadams_A @Totally_Bound #Erotic #ParanormalRomance #WereShifters

Please welcome back author Nancy Adams featuring her latest release, Extinct...
Here are a few things that helped influence me in the writing of EXTINCT
1.  The idea of Extinct came to me when my husband and I took out kids for a hike along a trail close to Long Beach, Vancouver Island. A huge black sign that read: BEWARE OF THE WOLVES was the spark that spawned the outline for Extinct.
2.  I love the town of Tofino and the Long Beach area so much that I decided to use it as the setting for Extinct.  Seriously, it’s such a beautiful area if you ever get the chance to go there, go.
3.  While on a trip to London England last April, I was finally able to choose the area for my hero to grow up and live in.  In fact, I grabbed a coffee and walked my ass over to check it out.  
4.  Two of my own dogs (an Akita and a German Shepherd) are the inspiration for my heroin’s dog, Ruby.  And like Ruby, my own dogs shed all over the place, used leather furniture as a giant chew toy and were/are to damn smart for their own good. And Yes I have on occasion called my dogs Fuzzy-Butt and Fur-face.
5.  I’ve spent many hours on Urban Dictionary researching the perfect slang words for my characters…Yeah *grin* that’s it, I was researching…or laughing…whatever.
Blurb
Theo’s sole purpose for the last ninety-eight years was to protect his wolf. That changed the moment he met Drew and the wolf called ‘Mate’.
Carrying the soul of an extinct wolf alongside your own isn’t easy. Swapping into said wolf is even harder. Ask Theo Grey—he’s been doing it for ninety-eight years. Yet, after surviving two world wars, witnessing the space race and patiently enduring the eighties, you’d think he’d have seen it all, but nothing could have prepared him for meeting Tofino’s new vet, Drew O’Bannion and according to the wolf, his mate.
Drew loves her dog, sleeping in and coffee. She also loves being a vet. The main reason behind her accepting the veterinarian practice offered to her from a family friend. Hoping for a slower pace at life Tofino seemed the ideal spot. What she didn’t expect was Officer Theo Grey. Theo is tall, dark and drop dead gorgeous, a definite 10 on the ‘wow’ scale. Regardless of his looks, there is more to Theo, there is her unexpected attraction for him. It’s unnerving and completely out of character for her, but she is able to match Theo’s hungry kiss, for hungry kiss.
With their desire growing at an alarming rate and the threat of an unknown shooter roaming the woods of the coastal town, Theo must face the ultimate decision—let Drew go for her own safety or claim his mate for all time.

Reader Advisory: This story contains scenes of violence and threats of   
                                            non-consensual sex
Excerpt
“You want her too,” Tom pointed out.
“Well, can you blame me? Look at her.” He swiped his hand down his face. Her scent still clung to his skin. “What man wouldn’t want her? Jesus, Ben hasn’t stopped talking about her, the guys at the station keep talking about her. Everybody is talking about her. Angus told me she was a looker, but I had no idea she would affect me or the wolf like this.”
“Wow, you’re really agitated.”
“No, I’m annoyed.” 
“Annoyed because people are looking at her and talking about her?”
Theo rubbed the back of his neck. “No.”
Tom placed his coffee down and sighed. “You’re an idiot.”
“Excuse me?”
“You know very well that wolves don’t pick a mate based on beauty. There’s a deeper connection, it’s like a psychic link between the two. The wolf is picking up this link, and by your behavior, you are too, you just don’t recognize it for what it truly is. You’re thinking too much like a human.”
“That’s because I am human.” Theo tugged his cap back on.
“You stopped being a normal human the moment the wolf joined with you. You are so much more.”

Find Nancy: Website
      Blog         Twitter   
@Nancyadams_A Facebook   Pinterest    
Buy Links Totally Bound  All Romance Ebooks Amazon.com

New Release : Happy Birthday Baby! by @ToryRichards

Happy Birthday Baby!by
Tory Richards

Everyone has a birthday, right? I mean, if you don’t, then you’re probably six-feet under. Personally I like growing older. Age has always just been a number to me. Unlike my sister, who’s only a year younger, who celebrated her 29th birthday for several years. She was in denial. How we celebrate our birthdays vary depending on  budget, culture, location, and many other things. Some people don’t acknowledge their birthdays at all, while others may only celebrate reaching certain milestones.
Lordy, lordy looks who’s forty. My gosh, I can still remember that day as my co-workers decorated my office with black streamers, balloons, and confetti. I had a screen protector over my computer and one clown slipped black paper between it and the monitor so that when I turned it on all I saw was black. Thinking something was wrong with my computer I called IT and spent several minutes on the phone with them before figuring out what the problem was. I found confetti in my desk drawers for months after my birthday.
In Happy Birthday Baby! our heroine is celebrating the milestone of turning fifty, and her friends planned something special for her after a day of pampering.  Below is a blurb and excerpt. Enjoy!

Blurb – What better way to spend your fiftieth birthday than with the hot male stripper you’ve been coveting for months! Proving you can have fun at any age, Happy Birthday Baby! from author Tory Richards is a celebration of life you won’t soon forget.


Excerpt :

Joe seemed to reach us in record time. He pulled the man away from me. While they were exchanging heated words, I casually slipped away and headed for the door, praying that Helen and Sandy had taken care of the bill before they left. I didn’t stop until I was outside. At the same time, it dawned on me that I didn’t have a ride home. Damn!There was no way I was going back inside, so I headed toward the street where I would be able to see beneath the light to make a call.“Lana, wait.” I heard Joe’s voice and picked up my step, which was hard to do on gravel while wearing heels. He caught up with me in no time, gently taking hold of my arm and drawing me to a halt. “Are you okay?”

I knew we were looking at each other, but it was too dark to see his expression. “Yes. I just need some light to call a cab.”“You’ve changed your mind about coming home with me?”

“I’m sure you can find a replacement,” I said, thinking about the waitress inside.“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” he asked angrily. “What did that asshole tell you?”

“Enough to know you won’t be lonely. I only hope my friends didn’t pay you too much to sleep with me.” The hand on my arm tightened, revealing either I’d hit a nerve, or he was growing angrier. “I’m okay with it, Joe, really. I should have known a man like you would have to be paid for a little, ah, extra special attention.”“A man like me?” His tone was low and gravelly, and I didn’t need any light to know he was clenching his teeth. “Well, let’s go then. I want to make sure I give you their monies worth.”

Surprisingly, I wasn’t frightened of Joe. He brought out otheremotions in me. So when he began pulling me behind him I didn’t protest. He was just too damned sexy, and arousal still hummed through my body. I knew that with his talents he’d have me eating out of his hand in seconds. He was a tall man, his steps much wider than mine, and it was inevitable that I’d stumble. When I did, he caught me, and pulled me up into his arms without breaking stride.“This isn’t necessary.” A thrill shot through me in spite of my mild protest. I couldn’t recall the last time a man carried me.

He just grunted. When we reached his car, he dropped me to my feet at the passenger’s side door. I barely had time to notice it was a Corvette before he crushed me against the door and kissed me roughly. Caught totally by surprise, at first, I stiffened, but within seconds, I melted against him like ice cream on a hot sidewalk. Oh my God, the man knew how to kiss! When he reined in his aggressive attack, his mouth turned soft and coaxing, dragging me into a realm of endless erotic possibilities.I moaned beneath his mouth, and opened my lips inviting his tongue inside. As we explored each other’s mouths, I was aware his hands had moved from my shoulders down my back to my hips. My body started to move in a writhing, sensuous dance against his, letting him know that I was turned on. The movement of his cock against my lower belly sent my senses spinning out of control. I fought the urge to reach down and touch him. As if guessing what was going through my mind, he reached for my hand and brought it to his zipper. The length and hardness of his shaft caused a stream of volcanic heat to flow through my blood, and that’s how I felt, as if I was going to erupt.


Release day – 3/24/2014 at Liquid Silver Books, also available for pre-order until then at http://www.lsbooks.com/pre-order-coming-soon-romance-books-c322.php

Links – Find Tory @ Liquid SilverBooks Tory Richards Website/Blog Amazon authorpage Facebook Twitter Goodreads Pinterest

Before I forget I’m running a month long contest over on my website. For a chance at one of three giveaways enter the Rafflecopter. 

#MySexySaturday Decisions and Sacrifice

Welcome to the 41st week of My Sexy Saturday where a bunch of authors get together and share 7 paragraphs, 7 sentences or 7 words of a sexy snippet from a WIP or published work. 

This week our topic is all about those difficult decisions and the sacrifices couples sometimes have to make for the ones they love.

I chose this snippet from time-travel erotic romance  
Lost Time.

 Blurb:

Within this frame, his curse is time…

Hannah Keys thinks she’s setting off on the trip of her dreams—a month in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland—but after one mishap after another—beginning with her best friend abandoning her in the airport and ending with the man of her dreams dead—she’s renaming it the vacation from hell.

When Hannah Keys discovers a four-hundred-year-old portrait in Wales, she is intrigued and somewhat saddened by the handsome Highlander portrayed by the artist’s masterful, lifelike strokes. But when she runs into the majorly hunky model for the painting—in the flesh, in the middle of the night—she learns first-hand all about masterful strokes when she shares a night of medieval passion with him.

Lockhart Munro has been cursed inside the portrait until he meets Hannah Keys. For four hundred years, no one has heard him or seen him, let alone touched him. The one woman who can do all these things may be the key to his long-awaited freedom.

But if Hannah sets Lockhart free from his prison, will she be cursed to spend the rest of her lifetime without him?

Or perhaps freeing Lockhart will be just the beginning…

Excerpt: 

 “You seem very moved by the paintin', lass. Almost as if it were real to ya. It was speculated in the documents that I have read… It was believed Lockhart could move outside of the paintin'. Is it true? Have ya seen him, lass?”

 “Yes,” she admitted, no longer caring if he though her crazy, but the warm empathy in his eyes undid her.
 
“I am not one to baulk at things that I do not understand. I’ve seen things in this very hall that I cannot explain. But if ya have broken the curse for Lockhart, by returnin' him home, then allow yourself to feel relief for him that he is in a better place. He should have been dead for at least three hundred and fifty years, lass. You’ve freed his soul to find its rightful resting place. He is finally at peace. Take solace in that.”
 
But now, would she ever find peace? “May I have a moment,” she gulped, not wanting to hear his words. To her, Lockhart had been very much alive only a few hours ago. And he’d never been given the chance to live his life. It was so unfair.
 
He bowed formally. “Of course.” She watched him walk away.
 
Hannah placed her back against the wall and slid down it dejectedly. “Why didn’t you tell me that you would never come out again? Or did you and I was too stupid to understand the consequences?” She sighed. “And here we are—in your home, just as you wanted, and your descendents are here. What happened to ‘There are secrets in the paintin', lass, they’ll know what to do’? You knew that just bringing you back would set you free.” She slammed her elbow against the wall in anger. “I would have stayed with you, you know. I meant it when I said that if I met a man like you that I would stay. I would have made it work somehow even if we’d only been given whatever time you were allowed to be free of the painting. It would have been enough.” She wiped her face.
 
“But maybe Llachlan is right. After so many years of desolation and loneliness, freedom is your reward. And I should not be selfish for I will only have to endure one lifetime without you.” 

She didn’t know how long she sat there before Llachlan stood over her. 
“Come, English, there will be no more cryin’.” He held a hand down to her.
 
She looked at him, shaking her head slightly, remembering Lockhart calling her ‘English’. “It’s Hannah. Hannah Keys,” she said, placing her hand in his and allowing him to pull her to her feet.
 
He grinned. “How appropriate, Miss Keys.”
 
She blinked, swaying forward into his arms, feeling quite dizzy, the tunnel vision returning. “He looked just like you,” she whispered, touching his cheek. Llachlan held that same pulling magnetism that Lockhart had.

“So I’ve been told,” he said, setting her on her feet. He stroked her wet cheek. He backed her against the portrait, his eyes on her lips, as if he might kiss her.

 Totally Bound     Amazon Canada    Amazon US     Amazon UK   All Romance Ebooks      Barnes&Noble         BookStrand
I hope you enjoyed today's MSS. Don't forget to check out the other My Sexy Saturday Blog Hoppers from the list below.

Have a Sexy Saturday! 

In Love with the Office Romance? Minding the Boss by @realamandabretz

Please Welcome Amanda Bretz with her brand new release
Minding the Boss...

In Love with the Office Romance
Fluorescent lighting, drab color schemes and industrial furnishings don’t exactly scream sexy, but the office is often touted as fertile ground for a romance, at least the fictional kind, that is.
With movies like Two Weeks Notice, What Women Want and Jerry Maguire it’s clear that people are in love with the thought of an office romance. While the idea is almost universal in its appeal, in real life our pragmatic sides probably warn us that getting involved with a coworker--or our boss--could be disastrous for our careers (not to mention our hearts).
Still, there’s nothing wrong with a little fictional love--and lust-- in the workplace. And that was the inspiration for my latest release Minding the Boss. My short erotic romance focuses on what happens when two people are all alone in the office on a Saturday night.
Here’s the blurb:
What is it about a man in charge?
Rachel Ellis has spent months fantasizing about all the things she'd love to do to her sexy boss Max Drake if given the chance. When the two find themselves alone in the office, on a Saturday night no less, she quickly realizes that all her naughty daydreams are about to come true.
Even though she'll settle for just one night of passion with Max, Rachel finds out that anything is possible when you mind the boss.
I even brought along an excerpt:

I hated that I looked like a bag lady in front of Max. I hated that I’d spilled coffee all over my cube and myself. I hated that I was dabbing at my boobs with his gym towel. I just wanted to crawl under my desk and never come out.

“I’m sorry I’m such a klutz. I-“ whatever else I was going to say next died on my lips when I felt Max’s hands encircle my wrists.
My pulse raced at the nearness of him as he pulled me from my chair and toward his hard body. I closed my eyes when I saw him lower his sensual mouth toward my own. I was dreaming. Despite the copious amounts of caffeine I’d consumed, I’d somehow managed to fall asleep at my desk and I was having a deliciously sexy dream. But when Max’s lips met mine I knew I was wide awake.
His tongue plunged into my mouth and licked and explored. I inhaled his rich scent. The cologne I’d admired for so many months filled my nostrils with its hints of musk and timber. Max released his hold on my wrists and cradled my face between his strong hands.
“Follow me,” he commanded as he let go of my face and stepped out of my cubicle.
I followed him through the maze of gray cubicles, his towering form rising high above the four foot tall partitions. We walked the short distance to his office. When we reached the closed door of his private quarters, he unlocked it and grabbed me the moment I stepped across the threshold.
The overhead lights, which were motion activated, flickered to life just as I tried to adjust my eyes to the dark surroundings. Max's spacious office was flooded with light and my eyes instantly went to the massive mahogany desk in the center of the room. It was a piece of furniture I'd dreamt of laying naked across as my hunky boss ravaged me. A chill went through me when I realized my sexy fantasy was more than likely about to come true.
My tawdry musings were interrupted when Max sank all ten of his fingers into the hair gathered at my nape. He tugged gently a few times and my messy bun dissolved in his powerful hands. He wound my long brown hair around his fist until my head was jerked back from the tension. He forced me to look into his eyes. Their irises, as deep blue as the Pacific, seemed to penetrate my soul.
“I’ve wanted this for so long,” he told me before he placed a searing kiss on my lips.
Where to buy Minding the Boss: Amazon US and Amazon UK and Amazon.ca
About the Author: 

In addition to being an author of contemporary, historical and erotic romance, Amanda Bretz holds a degree in communication from Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida. She is a multi-published author of several books and short stories and has worked as a journalist in both print and online news. Amanda writes romantic stories with a happy ending and invites readers to experience the rush of falling in love.

When not writing, Amanda can be found whipping up something delectable in her kitchen, spending time in nature or getting lost in a good book.
She resides in historic Saint Charles, Missouri, with her husband, Brandon.
Find Amanda online: Website Blog Goodreads Facebook Twitter: @realamandabretz