Helena Hunting's Blog, page 9

Hayden: Post-Valentine's Day Short

Valentine's Day. It's full of flowers and chocolate and wine and maybe, if you're lucky, lingerie, body paints and a whole lot of getting busy. But this is not the case for everyone. In light of the sometimes sucky reality of being single on Valentine's Day, two lovely bloggers shared some of Hayden's not-so-warm-and-fuzzy thoughts and poems about Valentine's Day.

Now anyone who knows the way I write, understands that I have a difficult time keeping things concise, so while I was writing these fun little outtakes, I got carried away. As usual. As a result, I had quite an extensive piece written before I pared it down into something reasonable.

To experience Hayden's poetic genius, visit SUBClub Books 

For the full experience of Hayden's Valentine's Day disdain, please read the Hayden Stryker Outtake so graciously posted by Bookish Temptations before reading the continuation below: 


~*~

By four in the afternoon I was hopped up on sugar from all the treats Lisa forced on me. And by forced, I meant she put one of those little heart shaped candy dishes at my station and refilled it every time she passed by. Resisting those stupid gummie hearts was impossible because they were sitting right beside me. Thankfully, I had a short break before my appointment this afternoon. It was enough time to add a shot of caffeine to my system and offset the come down from the sugar rush.I took a coffee order and headed across the street to my Aunt Cassie’s antiques shop, Serendipity. Two store fronts to the left was a florist. It was a revolving door today, with just as many people leaving as entering at any given moment. Nothing said romance more than a frazzled suit buying last minute flowers for his girlfriend/wife/woman-on-the-side. The bell above the door jingled as I entered Serendipity.Cassie was half-hidden behind a massive vase of flowers poised on the counter. Nate must have stopped by. For a second I felt bad, like maybe I should have done something nice for her. It was too late now, though. Cassie looked up from the battered book in her hands and smiled. It was the same one she read every year at this time. It had been my mother’s favorite.“Hayden. I’m glad you stopped by. How are you today?”“It’s been busy in the shop.” I avoided giving a truthful answer and leaned across the counter to kiss her cheek. I plucked a red carnation from the vase, hidden among some of the more exotic blooms, and twirled it between my fingers.“Eleanor loved those,” she said wistfully.“Yeah. Carnations were mom’s favorite.” I slipped the flower between a few pink roses. “Nate send you these?”“He had them delivered first thing this morning.”“You two got plans tonight?” I asked, changing the subject.“He made me breakfast in bed and he’s taking me out for dinner tonight.” Her cheeks flushed. I didn’t want details on the breakfast in bed part. “Are you doing anything special?”I snorted. “If you call putting hearts on boobs special, then I’m doing special all day.”She covered her smile with her hand. “You’re booked solid?”“It’s mostly walk-ins.”“Oh? I’m closing early. Nate’s coming to get me around five. I was thinking about stopping by Chapel Hill before we go for dinner, if you have time. . .”“I have a client soon, but thanks for the offer.”Cassie’s smile fell a little.She asked me to go every year. My answer never changed, I hadn’t been to Chapel Hill in years. If I went, it would be on my own, with no witnesses. “If you finish early—”“It'll be a few hours, maybe another time.” I adjusted the vase just so I wouldn’t have to meet her disappointed gaze. “Enjoy your date with Nate. I gotta grab coffees and head back.”“Okay. Maybe when the weather's nicer?"“Sure thing.” I continued through the store to the adjoining café, the smell of fresh cupcakes not nearly as alluring as usual, thanks to all the crap I’d consumed over the course of the day.I ordered coffees and returned just in time for my client’s arrival. By the time I finished it was close to six. Chris was cashing out his most recent walk-in and Jamie, Lisa's boyfriend and my business partner, was helping Lisa into her coat. Her poppy red hair was pulled into a ponytail. It matched her red dress with the tiny white hearts dotting the fabric.“Don’t stay too late.” She called over her shoulder as Jamie ushered her out of the shop.On days like today, I was perfectly happy not to deal with all the crap that came with relationships. Besides going out for dinner on Valentine’s Day was a waste. Restaurants were over-crowded, the menu was fixed and they jacked up the price. Or so I'd heard.After they left I went to the private room to set up for my first session tomorrow morning. Chris poked his head in a few minutes later. “I’m out, H.”I stopped sorting ink and raised an eyebrow. “You got a date?”He grinned. “Not exactly.”“What does that mean?”“I got an invite me to a party.”
"By who?"
"Candy." “When was the last time you saw her?” He'd had a thing with her a while back. I’d been under the impression that was done, but maybe not.Chris shrugged. “I don’t know. A few months? You wanna come along?”“Nah, man. I’ll just finish up here and then call it a night.”“You sure? I can blow her off if you want to hit the club instead. Either way, I’m guaranteed a hook up tonight.”“Thanks for the offer, but I’m good. Have fun.” I turned back to the drawer of ink.There was a long pause before he finally said, “All right. Hit me if you change your mind.”“Sure thing.”The door chimed a few seconds later. Clubs were the worst place to be on Valentine’s Day. Combine alcohol with desperation and the result was a nightmare of epic proportions. Romanticized expectation applied to hook ups, as if Cupid would string up his bow and make people fall magically in love just because they’d gotten their fuck on. Over the years I’d learned not to partake in the gratuitous opportunities for casual sex on this particular night of the year.Once Chris left, I got to work putting away all the decorations Lisa had put up. When I was done and there was nothing left to do, I locked up. My condo was almost directly above Inked Armor, so I was home before seven, which meant I had a long night of nothing to look forward to. I milled around the kitchen for a while, fixated on Cassie’s invitation to go with her to Chapel Hill. If I wasn’t such a pussy, I would have taken her up on the offer. It wasn't too late to go on my own, though. Before I could give myself time to reconsider, I grabbed the keys to my car, nabbed my wallet and headed for the underground parking garage.I hit the florist across the street on the way. There wasn’t much selection left, but then, I wasn’t looking for roses. I picked a bouquet of carnations and gave the tired looking girl behind the register a twenty as a tip.Even though I hadn’t been out to Chapel Hill in several years, I still knew the route by heart. I parked beneath one of the dim lights and crunched across the snow. Cassie had been here already. There were two sets of tracks in the snow; one belonged to her and the other to Nate. Unlike me, he would never let her go alone. A bouquet lay across the top of the headstone, all carnations. I put my own, less impressive one against the base and shoved my hands in my pockets, absorbing the eerie quiet.Growing up, we’d never celebrated Valentine’s Day because it was my mom’s birthday. Even though my dad had been gone a lot on business, he never missed her birthday. He always made sure it wasn’t overshadowed by the commercialized, Cupid inspired love-fest. Sure he bought her flowers, but that was the only tribute to the artificial holiday she got. Everything else on that day was totally about her.As I stood there in the bitter cold of the dark February night, staring at my mother's headstone, I wondered if this day would ever be more than a painful memory of someone I’d never get back.

~*~
 Be sure to check out more of the Valentine's Day posts over at Bookish Temptations and SUBClub Books

Stay tuned for more from me later this week. I'll have something to share on Friday!

~HH 

Giveaways and Awesome Stuff!

This week has been full of awesome. Cupcakes and Ink has been released in the US, Canada and the UK and while it's in ebook format only, it's a pretty damn exciting first for me!

Today these came in the mail from Gallery Books *cue marching band of tattooed hotties*:



To celebrate the release of Cupcakes and Ink, as well as the upcoming release of Clipped Wings there are a few giveaways happening. I thought it would be a good idea to link them all here.

For US residents:

Gallery Books is giving away 25 copies of Clipped Wings on Goodreads!



Simon and Schuster Audio are hosting a sweepstakes with some pretty damn fabulous prizes, including the audio version of Cupcakes and Ink as well as a whole slew of amazing authors I adore:

Want to beat the cold this February? Heat up with the great prizes in Simon & Schuster Audio’s sexy sweepstakes! Enter for a chance to win a $500 gift card to Victoria’s Secret, a $500 gift basket from Bliss Spa plus a 32 GB iPad Mini preloaded with over 20 steamy listens. Check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/SimonAudio/app_160430850678443
*Facebook tabs aren’t mobile optimized, so please enter on a laptop or desktop computer.

You can listen to an excerpt of Cupcakes and Ink, as narrated by Elizabeth Louise and Jason Carpenter by following the links below. Be warned, though, Hayden's clip is NSFW which is exactly why I love it:

Tenley & Hayden

*To find out more about the narrators and their other projects, please click on their names above.



The following giveaways are for UK residents:

The Clandestine Cake Club and Orion Books have teamed up for the Tattoo Cake Challenge. The goal? You bake a tattoo themed cake, send them a pic and you're entered to win a copy of Cupcakes and Ink as well as a bundle of amazing cookbooks!



Orion Books is also giving away 10 copies of Clipped Wings on Goodreads. You have until March 3rd to enter!


The Breakfast Blog is giving away 5 e-copies of Cupcakes and Ink (not isolated to the US, I believe) so give them a tweet and get while the getting is good.


For my Canadian contingent who may be feeling left out in the cold; not to worry. I have some plans in the making;)


More stuff is on the way! However if you're a visual person (like me), you might want to check out Bookish Temptations Illustrated Temptations of Cupcakes and Ink, because it is sexy and gorgeous and just plain awesome!


The countdown is on! 26 days until Clipped Wings is on the shelves!

~HH

Cupcakes and Ink Release Day!

It's finally here! 



Cupcakes and Ink is now available for you reading pleasure!


Here's a little taste of Hayden through Tenley's eyes:

I glanced up, startled, and found Hayden standing right in front of me, a curious smile playing on his full lips.Beyond the eyebrow ring and the ones piercing the left corner of his bottom lip, the first thing I noticed was his eyes. They were astonishingly blue. Not a sea blue, or a sky blue, or even a grayish blue. They were icy and pale and shockingly intense against his dark hair and thick dark lashes. He was painfully gorgeous in a severe, atypical way. Just like I imagined he’d be. And that was just his face.The dream rushed back, and I stammered out a greeting as images of his face and hands between my thighs flashed in my mind. He was taller than I’d thought, towering over me. He was wearing dark jeans and a short-sleeve T-shirt with an Inked Armor logo stretched across his chest. Hugging the contours of his torso, it highlighted the defined muscles underneath, giving my imagination a more accurate vision of what was under the shirt. 

And here's a little visual, because we all know they're so helpful. If you'd like to see more of Stephen James (with more art exposed) you can check him out here:



To get your copy follow any of the links below: 


S&S.com
Kindle 
iBookstore
Nook

Happy Reading!

~HH

*all images in this post can be found on the Google images database

Cupcakes and Ink

Happy New Year!!!
Cupcakes and Ink, the novella length prequel to Clipped Wings releases in just FOUR WEEKS!!!!

Tenley Page is looking for a new start: a new city, a new apartment, a new life. Her plan is to keep to herself and stay focused. But leaving her past behind and starting over isn’t as easy as she thought. And neither is maintaining her solitude. As Tenley settles into her new surroundings, she finds herself drawn to Inked Armor, the tattoo studio across the street. But it’s the gorgeous, dark-haired tattoo artist who captures her interest. There’s something about his severe beauty that captivates her—and not just in her waking hours.

Covered in the ink he inscribes on other people’s skin, Hayden Stryker has made a career out of being a tattooist. He’s got his own business and a tight circle of friends. As far as he’s concerned, that’s all he needs. At least until his aunt, who owns the antiques and used book store across from his tattoo studio, hires a new employee. At first his intrigue is based on physical appeal; hot chick equals something nice to look at. But as he begins to catch glimpses of the fiery personality under the fragile, feminine exterior, his fascination with Tenley grows. Annoyed by his inability to control his fixation, Hayden decides the best way to cure him of the new obsession is to get to know the girl under her skittish façade.

But like the ink he wears as armor, Tenley has the ability to get under his skin and stay there.

Bloggers and Reviewers who would like to request an ARC, please visit NetGalley 

If you're interested in joining the Blog Tour you can fill out THIS FORM

For blog tour business please contact Enn at enn@boccipr.com


I look forward to sharing more soon!

~HH

RETURN TO POUGHKEEPSIE IS ALIVE!!!!

Hi friends,
I hope you all are enjoying the holidays and are gearing up for a fantastic New Year's celebration!My lovely fellow author, Debra Anastasia has just announced the official release of Return to Poughkeepsie and I thought I would share the excitement with you!
~HH
RETURN TO POUGHKEEPSIE IS 
ALIVE!!!! You can buy Return to Poughkeepsie RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!  I can't even!! This is just Kindle so far, I will post each of the sites as they come up!!! You can also download a sample. 



POSTED BY DEBRA ANASTASIA AT 8:03 PM NO COMMENTS:

More Pretty from Orion Publishing!

Hi all!

Thanks so much for all the positive comments following my previous post. It's amazing to be embraced with such warmth after a long hiatus.

I'm incredibly excited to share the gorgeous cover for Clipped Wings by Orion Publishing! This stunning version will be available in the UK come March 2014.



Orion has also created a Pinterest page for Clipped Wings. If you'd like a sneak peek at some quotes from the story and the inspiration for the cover art, click here.

I'll be sure to post when I have further updates, until then, Happy Holidays!

~HH

Tattoos and Cupcakes and Kittens, Oh My!

Please click the link above for full details.
It’s officially official! Clipped Wings and Inked Armor will be published by Gallery, as well as Orion (UK rights), and KRP (Turkish rights).


To say I'm excited would be an understatement!







Clipped Wings will be released March 4, 2014

Inked Armor will be released May 13, 2014


The first novella, Cupcakes and Ink, a prequel to Clipped Wings, will be available from Pocket Star ebooks on February 3, 2014
The second novella will be available from Pocket Star ebooks on June 23, 2014

Clipped Wings and Inked Armor will be available both digital and print format!
To pre-order in the US:
Amazon.com
Barnes & Noble
To pre-order in the UK:
Amazon.co.uk
To pre-order in Canada
Amazon.ca
Chapters


I couldn’t have done any of this without my team from The Writer's Collective, My Filets, my very calm agent Brooks Sherman, my lovely editor Micki Nuding at S&S and the rest of the S&S team, and all my fellow fandom author and reader friends who have supported me, both when this story was posted in its initial draft and during this journey.

Thank you for sharing this exciting news with me!

~HH



*All images in this post can be found in Google images.

COVER REVEAL

AREN'T THEY PRETTY!!!!
I know it's been a VERY long time since I've posted anything, but I figured this might redeem me a little. I'll be able to share more on Friday (although I'm sure you have some idea as to what might be happening) but at that time, I'll be able to answer any question you might have!

~HH

A huge thanks to the following bloggers for helping to share the covers:

Fics2Flicks
Once Upon a Twilight
Martini Times
Manga Manic Cafe
WTF are you Reading
Cocktails and Books
Enchantress of Books
Sinfully Sexy Books
Books Make Me Happy
Harlequin Junkie
Flirty and Dirty Book Blog