Welcome Michael Mandrake to the blog!!

Thanks to JC for hosting me today for my I Love it Rough Blog tour. I’m happy to be here to speak about the sequel to my gay romance I Like Em Pretty, I Love it Rough, the second book in the N’awlins Exotica series.

The first book was more of a hot romance, a story of newfound love during a crime scene in the Garden District. It occurs between a detective and a stripper who might also be a possible murder suspect. Detective Frankie Choteau is called to investigate the possible murder of successful businessman, Bob Kales. Along with the dead body, he finds the victim’s exotic Native American fiancée, Kajika Fortier, an exotic dancer at N’awlins Exotica complex. From the moment they meet, sparks fly between the two, sending poor Frankie into a tizzy. And since the feelings are mutual, the two are instantly drawn together and so becomes the base of this 6 book series. Seemingly from their romance breeds some chaos around them, starting with the brutal attack of Frankie’s partner Kenina Porter to the sudden heart attack of Frankie’s long time mentor Frank Ballard.  
Now in book two, more trouble is ahead. Frankie and Kajika face challenges in their new relationship. Frankie has come out to his peers and some of them aren’t treating him the same. The tragedy of young black men being killed In the inner city is mounting and pushing Detective Choteau to the brink of exhaustion. He thinks about quitting and wants Kajika to be by his side a lot more often, but Kajika balks at this and the two separate.
Added into this book is a serial killer looking for his next victim, sexual tension between supporting characters Vance Morain, the aforementioned Kenina Porter, and Orrin Daugherty as well as Kajika’s new found “family members.” This is what I wanted book one to be; more of a mainstream book with the romance supporting the main plot. Still I’m very happy how both books have moved along; never a dull moment in either book.
In this one there are some twists and surprises as well as a little violence. I feel I pushed the limits with this book to add more intrigue into this already complex collection of stories. 
If you haven’t picked up the books yet they’re available at Amazon, All Romance, and Smashwords. Thanks for listening to me today. Please enjoy a blurb and snippet form the newest book and don’t forget to enter the contest!
 
 Blurb
 Livin’ in N’awlins ain’t all that easy…
Kajika Fortier loves his job, the attention he gets from onlookers, and Frankie Choteau. However, his new partner’s jealousy, mood swings, and over protectiveness drives Kajika to the brink but at the same time, excites him to no end.  
To complicate things further, a murderer is on the loose looking for blood. All three of the killer’s victims are strippers which not only makes Frankie nervous about Kajika’s safety but leaves him questioning his love for being a homicide detective. Coupled with the stresses of cold cases as well as some fellow officers shunning him for coming out, Frankie is having second thoughts about staying in New Orleans. Despite the encouragement from Vance, Kenina, and Orrin as well as new chief Quinn Murray, Frankie is wondering if his life’s passion really is to catch the killers.  
Will the new couple survive these new issues that impede their nearly perfect union? Or will the relationship fail, thus leaving Kajika alone and a target for New Orleans latest serial killer? Detective Choteau and Kajika’s commitment to one another is being tested in more ways than one and they only have one another to lean on. 
Amazon  All Romance  Smashwords
Excerpt TwoKajika stepped out of the tub, grabbing the towel nearby to dry off. He’d been looking forward to spending the night and the early part of the day with his man, but duty called, causing Frankie to run out the door without saying anything more than ‘I’m gone’ and ‘I love you’.

Damn job.
Sometimes Kajika wished Frankie worked a nine to five instead of the dreaded detective position he held at the police station. They hadn’t had much time with the workload being so large due to shortage of staff, and it affected their relationship more than Kajika would’ve liked. At first he thought he could handle it; the excitement of his hot homicide detective out in the streets solving murders. Such a dangerous career but with it came nice money and accolades. Although Kajika was scared to death of blood and dead bodies, he loved hearing about some of Frankie’s cases, including the more intriguing ones that had yet to be solved. Tonight though, he would’ve traded all that in for his Frankie to be by his side.
In bed with me, where he should be.
Kajika finished wiping down and wrapped himself in his terry cloth robe to get ready for bed. He’d thought about staying up and watching some television, hoping that Frankie might return sooner than later, but he knew the truth. When called in, detectives don’t make it back home within a couple of hours. More like a few hours, or even half the day, would pass before he’d see his man again. As long as he came home safe, Kajika would deal with the amount of hours he spent away from their warm bed in Kenner, Louisiana.
On the way to the bedroom, Kajika wrapped his hair in the towel, drying his long strands. He glanced at the clock on the wall and grimaced when he noticed the big and small hand hovering over the two.
“Shit. Now I know I won’t see you until breakfast.” Kajika clicked his teeth and stomped on the trail of rose petals, angered by their night being interrupted. He pushed their bedroom door closed and leaned against the wood. “Damnit. We haven’t done a whole lot other than late night cuddling, quickies in the bathroom or on the kitchen floor. I need more than that, Frankie…I need−”
A long buzz sounded from the dresser, and Kajika moved quickly to see who was calling.
Frankie.
Frankie, or at least Kajika hoped it was, calling him with the news he’d be returning home sooner than expected. Although farfetched, Kajika could still wish his husband to be back early. He gulped hard and said a little prayer before clicking the connect button. “Hello?”
Silence then a sigh. “Babe, it’s me… I… I got some real bad news to tell you, sweetheart, but I’d rather you hear it from me as opposed to anyone else.”
Kajika released a deep breath and shrugged. “Are you okay, love? Something bothering−”
“Naw, I’m good, boo, but−” Frankie stopped a moment and blew hard through the phone.
Kajika plopped on the bed and crossed his legs, wondering what the heck his man was talking about. Bad news? What could it possibly be? Kajika nibbled on his bottom lip while he toyed with the frayed threads on his housecoat. “What is it, lover?”
“Babe, the murder I got called in for was…” Frankie ceased speaking again and sounded a little choked up about it.
Kajika held his breath and blinked twice in succession. “Who Frankie? Come on, just spit it out, right…who…”
“Lana Miles, babe. Lana’s been strangled to death.” Frankie spoke quickly to get the words out.
Kajika stared straight ahead, and his heart caught in his chest. Oh my God! Unable to cope with what he’d just heard, he dropped his phone and immediately the tears welled under his eyelids. Lana? Oh my God, who killed her? She was a good person…she…
“Kajika? Babe, you there? You okay, love? Talk to me, honey.”

 
Michael Mandrake pens complex characters already comfortable with their sexuality. Thorough these, he builds worlds not centered on erotica but rather the mainstream plots we might encounter in everyday life through personal experiences or the media. To find out more please visit http://tabooindeed.blogspot.com.

Author Sharita Lira: In one word, crazy. Just crazy enough to have 3 different muses running around in her head, driving her to sheer exhaustion with new plot bunnies and complex characters.
This happily married mother of two beautiful children loves music, computers, reading, and still enjoys reading and writing fanfiction. She’s a proud member of the Erotica Readers & Writers Association, as well as an advocate for rights of LGBT citizens.  She’s also a contributor to the heavy metal ezine Fourteeng.net.

For more information, please visit http://www.thelitriad.com as well as her Facebook fanpage, The Literary Triad.
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Michael Mandrake – http://tabooindeed.blogspot.com
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