The initial story in the Eternal Shadows series strikingly intertwines a Native American myth with a modern-day dilemma, resulting in a most rewarding story. With her thorough historical research evident all through the book, Caitlyn Hunter has crafted a touchingly spellbinding love story with convincing paranormal elements.

 

Many centuries ago, Mathias Tassel and his three blood brother cousins disregarded the laws of their Cherokee heritage and were punished by the Shamans of their tribe. A curse was put upon each of them, causing them to be able to shift into the form of a beast. These four would also have to stay close to Eternity Mountain, where they could watch over their people while keeping the surrounding area plus the animals safe. With their telepathic abilities, the men communicate with each other but Matt has little interaction with any other humans. The one time he did let himself become close to other people, their deaths caused him too much heartache to ever risk caring about someone again.

 

With her life still in emotional turmoil since divorcing her repeatedly spiteful husband, the boss of Ellen Mallory believes she needs to unwind at his cabin located on Eternity Mountain. He sends word of her coming to his blood brother, Matt, so he can look after her while she stays in the isolated cabin. Unfortunately, a snowstorm arrives and Ellen becomes lost while walking in the nearby woods. When she is rescued by Matt, desire overpowers them and they give in to the fiery passions. Ellen feels at ease with her rescuer, except for the short time when she had to mistakenly think he turned into a bear. Although they both feel a potent attraction for the other, they soon discover not only the curse will be deeply affecting their futures.

 

Caitlyn Hunter has a poetic writing voice, and her talent for expressing scenes in a romantic way is exceedingly evident in SNOW SHADOWS. Whether describing a pristine snowy mountain or revealing how a character really feels, the moment is depicted with colorful narrative. The history behind the legend which this book uses for its basis is cleverly combined with a contemporary tale to create a heartwarming romance. Readers will become enthralled as every enlightening scene reveals more and more insightful information. Watching Matt and Ellen come to terms with not only what they are feeling but also what is physically occurring to them is sometimes poignant but always compelling. This couple is charmingly appealing from the instant they are met, and their compassionate natures only intensified my own connection to them. The intimacy between these two is particularly heartfelt, and their true emotions are clearly shown through their actions.. The secondary characters are either delightfully interesting, like Matt’s three blood brothers, or ruthlessly dangerous like the villain in the story. I definitely cannot wait to read about these other extraordinary men whose own stories are begging to be told. With graphic images, engaging characters and the perfect blending of humor and suspense, SNOW SHADOWS is a memorable story of fated love.

: July 2008

Title: The Pet 6
By: Nix Winter
Publisher: Loveyoudivine
Website: loveyoudivine.com

Honey and Clover’s kiss deepened and he stopped protesting, hands instead moving to her bare shoulders, sliding towards her fiery red hair. Passion brought him to a grace a normal human male would rarely have, slender as a dancer, he nearly mewled into the kiss, lifting up towards her. Lips wet, he broke the kiss, hands cupping her face as unguarded eyes searched hers. “I love you. There is nothing before you. Whatever your plan is, that’s what we’ll do.”

: July 2008

She detected a trace of sarcasm with his arrogance. “One does not court a Queen. One savages her.”
“I make no claims on your body. I simply wish to touch you, to understand the Queen of the Kildarkees better.”
A suitor? This silly water dragon was risking his life to court her. Her? It was a giddy and unconceivable thought.
He trailed his fingers along her thigh. “Well, my Dragoness, will you call your guards?”
The emphasis on “my” had her fighting her invisible prison again. But it was secure. He didn’t appear to exert any effort to hold her. He was her match.
She stilled. “No.”
“My thanks.” He leaned forward. “I would like to kiss you on the lips, Queen of the Kildarkees. Will you permit it?”
“My name is Cerenth,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Cerenth,” he whispered. He made her name a promise, a moan. He pressed his lips to hers. He was not Handilee, strong and willful. No, there was no roughness. It was like the kiss of the tide as it lapped the shoreline. It tasted of salt, of the sea. His lips were firm and possessive, seizing control, a balm to her fire. With a sigh her lips parted. His tongue flicked into her mouth, a clever forked tongue that tasted and teased. She breathed fire into him then opened her eyes. They stared at one another, lips locked. His eyes gleamed, amused but unhurt.
“My precious Cerenth,” he whispered. “Do not worry. You will not hurt me. Nor I you.”
“You know nothing about me.”
“You are wrong.” He cupped her face in his hands, fingertips brushing her cheeks. “I’ve watched you escape from your gilded prison for many seasons.”
She gasped. She’d been so careful.
His lips brushed hers again. Then he started at her fingertips, kissing a path up her forearm, her upper arm, gaze locked on her eyes. He moved to her face, kissed each cheek and headed down the other arm. Each kiss left a burst of fire on her skin. She felt as if she were being branded, marked, claimed by this…this…
“Zeb,” he whispered, reading her thoughts. She should call her guards. No one had the right to take her body. But she was mesmerized by his gentle touch. She was a woman of fierce needs, used to satisfying her whims. This inability to touch, to strike, to lick blood from his cheek was strangling her. She wanted to taste his blood. She wanted to wrap her hands around his neck. She made a small noise in the back of her throat. Who was she trying to prove herself to? She wanted to press her breasts against the smooth skin of his chest and feel her fire warm his skin. When he had first emerged from the water she’d thought he was poor copy of her kind. She was wrong. He was muscle and sinew. The torchlight played off his sleek stomach muscles, the corded sinew in his arms. And yet when he held her it was as if he held a goblet blown of thin glass.
Zeb was resting on his elbows above her, watching her with his alien violet eyes. “What will it be, Cerenth?” He traced the line of her jaw.
“You incapacitate me with your water magic, have your way with me and now ask permission to continue? You have quite the brass balls.”
“Say my name,” he said softly.
“What?”
He bent over her, pressing his lips to her exposed neck. Her jugular vein fluttered beneath them. “Say my name,” he said again. “Beg me.”
“I’ll die first.”
He ran his hands down her sides, sliding them beneath her buttocks. Cupping her rear, he arched her against him. Hip to hip, chest to breast, she felt his cool skin quench her fire. She closed her eyes, letting his touch breach her defenses, spiraling to her very core. Beyond that she felt his mind press against her mental shields. She’d wonder later why she let down her defenses.

Cassandra only agreed to go camping with her friends, Heather and Graham, in the hopes of meeting a hot guy. Just what she wanted comes to her rescue as she struggles with her tent. Cray, with beautiful green eyes, is one of the hottest guys she has ever met and he can put up a tent. When he invites her to go hiking with him, she readily agrees to the dismay of her friends who feel she may be moving too fast with this stranger. Cassie and Cray feel an incredible attraction for each other but Cray holds back. He senses that Cassie could be more to him but he does not want her to be like him. The choice may no longer be his when his protective instincts are raised. He senses that Graham is more than he appears and Cassie could be in danger.

Lycan Lore will appeal to the reader on many levels. There is the mystery of the Lycan Lore and there are the main characters themselves. Cray was incredible with his high degree of honor, control and sexiness. Cassie was perfect for him. The plot was very exciting and kept you on the edge of your seat. Cray’s actions appeared very mysterious until the Lycan Lore was revealed. Excitement, heat, danger and love all make Lycan Lore an intriguing and satisfying read. After reading Lycan Lore, we will all be looking forward to Shannon Leigh’s next tale.

Dr. Charlotte “Charlie” Blair has just returned from an archaeological dig in Peru and is taking her first real shower in months, when she realizes someone is in her house.

Charlie has enough things to worry about, what with the priceless Incan artifact Manco Copac, a phallus shaped statue made of gold, gone missing and replaced by seemingly worthless Ica stones. So when detectives barge into her home to find a dead body in her basement, it’s one more thing she doesn’t need.

Detective Vaiden believes Charlie has nothing or do with this murder or the others he is investigating attributed to a serial killer known as Orion. Yet, his case and her troubles keep crossing paths. And how the heck can Vaiden keep Charlie safe, when she keeps getting into trouble?

From the very beginning I was completely hooked on this story. The characters are quickly engaging and the story moves at just the right pace. I enjoyed the byplay between Charlie and Vaiden. I also enjoyed that Charlie is a strong woman, who can kick butt all on her own. The story definitely had suspense and wasn’t one the those where you can easily figure out who the bad guy is and with a touch of paranormal that makes you wonder what is really going on here. I loved it.

I hope that Ms. Berlin will write more stories for members of the Vaiden family. I would especially love to read Vaiden’s brother Nate’s story.

: April 2008

“Who are you?” Jenna asked. “And where am I?”
The figure flicked the burning butt into the dark water lapping at the barge and stood up. “I’m Charon. And I’m in charge of this barge that takes those who died down the River Styx here. You’re near the gates of the Underworld.”
“Underworld?”
“Yep, the Underworld. You know, where Hades hangs his hat. If he wore a hat.”
She shook her head. “Okay, I’m still asleep and dreaming. Did I watch some episode of Hercules last night to cause this dream?”
“Nope, girlie-girl,” said Charon with a wide grin. “Hades has been waiting a thousand years for you. Ever since old Zeus zapped you out of his arms while you were both doing the wild thing. Thanks to your mother, the head honcho of Olympus sent you off into the future to be born in some mortal body.” He shrugged. “Too bad it’s such a pitiful one. From goddess to geek.”
The snorting and neighing of horses filled the air suddenly and they both whipped around. A handsome man with pale skin, black eyes and long, midnight hair that flowed over his shoulders like smoke halted a black and silver chariot pulled by a matching pair of pitch-black stallions. The horses, almost blending with the darkness, had eyes that glowed red like the dying embers of a fire. They stamped and snorted until he laid a touch on each one. Then they stood still like statues.
“Do not insult my beloved, Charon.” A frown appeared on his dark angel face.
Charon sat back down. “Oh hi, boss. Sorry about the pitiful body part. Same about the geek thing. But Persephone sure isn’t the same as she was before. Sure you still want her? I mean, Aphrodite is interested in you and boy, that goddess is well stacked!”
Jenna frowned. “Excuse me, but what are you talking about? I am not Persephone. I’m just plain old Jenna Krinard from Nebraska. Can I wake up from this nightmare now?”
Dark amusement glinted in Hades’ eyes. “Nightmare? Beloved, this is no dream.” He stepped down from the chariot. “And neither is this a dream.” He pulled her into his arms and captured her lips with his, moving against them with hard, seductive intensity.
His tongue thrust past her lips to enter her mouth. It dueled with hers, flicking and caressing the inside of her mouth. It felt real. All too real. She thought she must be drunk, as if she’d swallowed too much wine. Boneless, she felt ready to fall down, except she didn’t, due to the dark young god who held her body tightly fitted against his. He was all hard muscles and power, even down to the hardness nudging her hip.
He let her go. “Now, tell me again that all this is a dream.” His dark gaze locked with hers. “That I am a dream.”
Jenna’s felt strange, electrified. Her breathing moved in and out, in short rasps. She reached up and touched her lips, which felt swollen because the god who ruled the Underworld had made them so. She shivered, but not from the cold air.
“Oh God,” she moaned.
“Yes, my beloved, which I am. Though I prefer Hades on your sweet lips.”

: June/2008

“I’ve read about you in business magazines over the years. What is the nickname they gave you?” She asked standing back up so they were eye level, “Yeah, the devil in an Armani suit. Some men and women could sell their soul for a moment of your time, but I’m not one of them.”
“Headley, don’t make me prove how true that nickname came be. I want to help you, but if you keep punching my buttons you’ll lose. I’ve a lot more experience that you when it comes to this world. I consider you a friend, however, one more insult and I might forget that you are.”
“Mr. Christian, don’t worry about it. I’ve giving you a lot of names over the years, but friend isn’t one of them. I’m going to take this back home and read it, but it won’t make any difference. I bet you that I’ll get my father’s balance to you paid off and I will.”
She tried to slip by his body, but Troy was tired of Headley and her smart tongue. Grabbing her by the arm, he pulled her back against his body until not an inch separated them. “That smart mouth of yours is going to get you in a world of trouble one day. You should learn how to control it.”
“I’ll worry about that when the time comes. Right now, I’m only worried about getting you out of my father’s life,” she retorted
“How do you know now isn’t the time? I might be the one who’ll want to teach you to use that tongue of yours for more pleasurable things.” Troy’s voice whispered as he trailed his finger over Headley’s bottom lip. He heard her breath caught and a smile pulled at the corner of his mouth. “I see that you aren’t immune to me as you pretend to be. Do you want me to kiss you?”
Twisting her head away, Headley moved his finger from her mouth. “You’re not going to do this to me. I won’t let you. You might have used my father to get what you wanted, but I’m not going to fall for it.”
Without giving her a chance to react, he covered Headley’s sinful mouth with his and thrust his tongue inside. He was tried of hearing her bad mouth him. He warned her about what would happen if she didn’t stop. Now it was time that Headley learned what trouble she could get into when she didn’t listen.
Headley tried desperately to listen to the voice screaming in the back of the head to push Troy away, but it was like her arms wouldn’t work. A part of her hated that Troy was kissing her. However, the other half loved it. All of her secret fantasies were coming true.
The slow stroking of his tongue inside her mouth was sending tiny tremors through her body. Little by little her traitorous body was turning into a puddle of mush. Why did she have to want the man who was single handedly trying to take away her family’s legacy? No, she couldn’t let this happen…not with Troy Christian of all people.
“Let me help you,” his warm breath whispered against her mouth. ‘You can’t handle Douglas’ problems by yourself. It’s too much for you. You need me and we both know it.”

: March 2008

Julia started for one of the soft chairs in front of the fireplace, but Ross intercepted and pulled her down with him to sit on the soft bearskin rug. As night fell, the cabin suddenly seemed very romantic. Attempting to distance herself from the fact she was sitting so closely to her hunky best friend, Julia forced her mind to other subjects. Perhaps a cabin like this could be the setting for her new book. An isolated cottage deep in the mountains during a terrible blizzard. It definitely had potential. Even now, as she and Ross were enveloped in cozy warmth with only the fire to light the room, Julia could easily envision the characters from her erotic novel in just such a place.

“So,” Ross said, lying on his side with his head propped on his elbow. Even in such an unassuming pose, Julia couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by his presence beside her.

“How’s the book coming?” he asked, as if reading her mind.

“I’ve only been here a day, Ross. I’ve barely had time to unpack, let alone start writing.”

“Even so,” he continued, “I know you, Jules. You’ve probably been obsessing over the plotline for days. What’s it going to be about?”

Julia blushed as she considered his words. Truth be told, she had been imagining the story every night in bed since she’d read the erotica books he’d loaned her—with him cast in the role of the leading man and her as the heroine. She’d even gone so far as to order a vibrator online, although she hadn’t worked up the nerve to actually use it yet.

“Well?” he persisted.

“Ross, you know I hate it when you pressure me about a story line. Truthfully, I haven’t decided what to write about yet. I’m tossing around a couple of angles.”

“Really,” Ross said, not the least bit put off. “What angles? Maybe I can help you decide.”

“Well,” she began, startled by his persistence. Ross never pushed for story lines. He always trusted her to script a plot completely before she asked him to help her tweak it. “I…was thinking about trying one of those…you know.” She waved her hand in midair, too mortified to tell him where her fantasy world had taken her.

“No,” he said, imitating her vague hand gesture with a grin, “I don’t know.”

Biting her lower lip, Julia scowled at him. “Ross,” she began to protest.

“Domination?” he asked. “Or maybe a kidnapping story where the woman is sold as a sex slave into a harem?”

Afraid Ross might discover how close to the truth he was coming, Julia turned her head to hide the damned blush burning her cheeks. In her fantasy, she was his sex slave. She belonged totally to him, doing anything and everything he asked of her. Thanks to the erotica books he’d loaned her, she now had a wide array of sexual fantasies about him, far beyond the usual missionary-position one she’d indulged in for years. Her favorite one involved him tying her up and forcing her to have multiple orgasms. A purely ridiculous fantasy considering the fact she’d never had a single orgasm and didn’t know the first thing about how to have one, let alone several.

“Hmm.” He took her chin in his fingers and drew her face back to his. “What are you plotting in that delicious little mind of yours, Brown Eyes?”

“I— I—” she stuttered again. “Domination.” She blurted out the word quickly, hoping perhaps he wouldn’t hear or understand what she’d said.

“Domination. And what do you know about domination?” He sat up and slowly moved closer to her.

“Only what I’ve read,” she whispered, her gaze dropping to his lips as he moved even closer.

“Jules.” His breath was hot against her cheek. “I’m going to kiss you.”

“You are?” she asked breathlessly, her tongue sliding along her lower lip.

“Mm-hmm,” he murmured, his lips pressed softly against hers, “and then I’m going to help you do a little research for your novel.”

With those words, his lips opened against hers and his initial soft butterfly kiss took on a life of its own. His lips bruised hers in his intense efforts to possess her mouth. Julia had never been kissed with such reckless passion. All of her previous lovers had been almost timid in the way they approached her. As if they were afraid she would break. Ross seemed to suffer from no such fear. He used his kiss and his body to push her to her back on the soft rug, coming over her, covering her completely and leaving her feeling helpless and desired all at the same time.

Available at Samhain Publishing.

: Stephani

Rogue Angel
Archangel Series Book Three
by Stephani Hecht
www.extasybooks.com

Later that night, Appolion decided to play hero and go out patrolling for demons. Since he knew Cam’s and Ana’s little brother, Barakiel, lived in Flint and was probably out hunting, too, he made sure to keep his psychic sense open for angels. While he did have the ability to shield himself from both demons and angels, he couldn’t do so for long periods of time and stuck to lurking in the
shadows.

Soon enough he caught a whiff of the scent he searched for—decay. Almost all demons carried the disgusting smell, which made hunting them all the easier for angels like him. But you’re not an angel remember? “Shut up, Appolion.”

He stopped short in the middle of street as it dawned on him he was actually arguing with himself, much like an elderly married couple would bicker. All the centuries of living alone must have finally made him lose it. He told both of himselves to stifle it and continued hunting.

He followed both the stink and telepathic vibes the demons were sending off until he found them lurking in an alley. There were five of them and they looked like they were ready for a pissing match.

Appolion might want to be hero, but he wasn’t suicidal. Deciding the odds were against him, he started to slowly back away. His foot caught an empty soda can and the aluminum container skidded noisily down the street. All at once, the
demon’s heads snapped up as they spotted him. Shit, why did his luck always have to swing this way?

He could have easily just shot off one of his energy balls and vaporized all of their demon asses, but that would be like announcing, Hello, Mr. Destroyer here, and that was the last thing he wanted to do. With a huge bounty on his head, thanks to that title, he wanted to keep who he was a secret. It was better they just thought he was some plain archangel and that was how he was going to have to fight them—fists and blades without any special magic tricks.

Appolion barely had time to bring up his sword before they were on him. It was easy enough to fight the three in front of him, it was the two pounding on his back that posed a problem.

Then all of the sudden he wasn’t fighting the demons alone. A tall willowy blonde female angel charged down the street and took on the nearest demon. She fought with two small daggers, one in each hand, moving so fluidly and quickly it were as if her body was made for battle.

“Ana?” he said incredulously, right before a demon cold-cocked him in the back of the head. She flashed him a smile before she pulled out a gun and shot the demon that hit him. As soon as the bullets infused with holy water hit the bastard, it flashed back to Hell. He pulled out his own weapons and they stood back-to-back, ala Mr. And Mrs. Smith style, shooting the remaining four demons. Soon they were the only ones in the alley.

Appolion turned to look at her and it felt like someone slammed him in the chest. He knew she was beautiful, but he didn’t know she was that beautiful. Her hair was not just blonde, it was every shade of blonde, light streaks mixed in with darker ones and it was swept up in an intricate knot. Her eyes were a light blue and stared back at him with just as much interest as he gave her.

Ana wore the same leather all the angels seemed to like, but hers was black and so tightly molded to her body he had a full view of her curves. They were a nice set of curves, too. She was thin, but not too thin, her breasts were just the right size.

When she reached out and wrapped her arms around him, he was surprised, but didn’t resist. Normally he hated when anyone touched him. After centuries of being abused in Hell in every way possible, any physical contact repulsed him, but with her it was different. Appolion even let her kiss him. If you could call what she did a kiss. Her lips were tightly clamped shut as she pressed them to him. It was obvious she never kissed before and it annoyed the hell out of him when the thought gave him satisfaction.

It wasn’t until he heard the snap of the angel harness around his wrist that he realized she duped him. He even stared down at it, dumfounded, for several moments. The fog lifted. He was good and pissed off at her. “Take it off. Now.” He stalked her until her back was pressed against a brick wall.

“No.” She lifted her chin haughtily. “It you think I’m going to let you slip away from me after I have chased you for three years, you’re off your rocker.”

“And if you think that after centuries of dodging every demon my father could think of to throw at me, I’m going to roll over and be taken in by some little female angel, you’re off your rocker.”

Ana opened and closed her mouth a few times as her cheeks flushed with anger. “You have to come with me. The only one that can take off an angel harness is the one who placed it there and I’m not taking yours off until we get to Heaven.”

“No, I’m not going anywhere with you, let alone Heaven. Look here, female, I’m not one of your brothers so I don’t have to listen to you.” Appolion pivoted and strode back to where he left his bike parked, but wasn’t surprised when her boots clicked on the pavement behind him. Once he got to his bike, he turned and fixed her with a hard stare. She was out of breath from following him, but still looked as determined as ever.
“You have to listen to me,” she panted.

“Why?”
* * * *
Why? Did he just ask her why? Well, because that’s what everybody always did, whatever she told them to, that’s why. Ever since her parents were mentally destroyed by demons, she took care of her eight younger brothers. Even though they were all technically adults now that didn’t make her job any easier, but in the end, they always obeyed her. She didn’t know how to handle Appolion’s stubbornness.

Ana raised a hand and patted down her hair while she tried to think of an appropriate answer. When she felt something shifting on her wrist, she looked down to see what it was. A cold wave of disbelief went through her. That son of a bitch, he slipped an angel harness on her, too. When she growled in frustration, he had the gall to smile at her and shrug his massive shoulders.
“How…when…you arrogant jerk.” She gaped.

“All’s fair in love and war, sugar.”

“I don’t love you, I loathe you.”

“You sure could have fooled me with that kiss you just gave me.” He gave a crooked grin.

She tried to ignore how cute it looked on him. Good God, dimples that adorable ought to be outlawed. The pictures she had of him really did not do him justice at all. His hair was so dark it was almost black and it looked so soft, all she wanted to do was run her fingers through it. He towered over her and, when she’d pressed her body to his, she felt every inch of pure muscle. “That kiss meant nothing, it was just a trick.” Ana didn’t think she’d ever been this angry with anyone before in her life.

“Good, because it sucked.”

“What?” As far as she was concerned, it was a perfectly pleasant kiss. Nothing like the ones she witnessed Abdiel lay on Gabi, but she certainly enjoyed it. Before she could tell him off, he strode over to her and gathered her into his arms. He cupped one hand on the back of her head, tilted her head up and captured her lips with his. Ana saw stars. This was a lot different than the earlier kiss. This was so much more demanding and well…hot. Her knees weakened when his tongue rubbed against the seam of her lips.

Open your mouth for me, Appolion ordered telepathically.

When she did, he slipped his tongue in. That’s when her knees did go out Ana sagged against him and, for the first time in her immortal life, yielded control completely. She wanted all of him, every inch of him, to be hers and hers alone.

She tentatively started to explore the inside of his mouth, too, and was delighted to hear him groan in response. No male ever reacted this way to her and here the hottest guy she ever laid eyes on, wanted her.

: July 2008

Released July 2008 Bare Back Angels eBook and Paperback.
—
Adair gave Abbie his arm as they set out to walk back to her home. Some of the earlier tension had dissolved, but Abbie still seemed inclined to hold him at a distance. Adair’s fingers fretted at the edge of his jacket sleeve as he tried to think of some way to cut through her reserve and regain the companionable feeling between them.

As they walked by the light of the waning moon, the town and prying eyes left behind, Adair slowed his steps, pulling Abbie to a halt.

“Abbie,” he said softly. “I’m sorry for what I said back at the hall.” He gazed into her eyes. “My work is what it is, there is no helping it.” He rested his hands on her shoulders, her skin soft and warm to his touch. God, but she is alluring. Adair closed his eyes for a moment and then went on. “Please, let us not allow it to…”

“Bryant,” her reply was a whisper on the breeze. “I’m sorry, too. Really, I am. I do try not to think badly of ye. I know ye must do your duty.” She raised her eyes to his face, the pupils wide and dark in the moonlight. “I…”

Adair sighed. Biting his lip, he slowly drew her closer. “Abbie…” he whispered. His heart set up a ragged beat as he pulled her to him, his arm going around her waist, one hand on her jaw as he tipped her face up and pressed his mouth to hers.

He felt her stiffen in his arms for a moment as his tongue touched her lips, and then she melted against him, her lips parting and her hands gripping the lapels of his jacket. He groaned, pulling her close, his fingers in her hair, loosing the pins to let it tumble in silken waves down her back. God, dear God!

: July 2008, Resplendence Publishing

Smooch from PROJECT SEDUCTION by Tatiana March

During the drive they remained silent. Rick held Georgina’s hand as he helped her in, and reclaimed it when the car was halfway across the bridge. She could feel the warmth spreading from his fingers to hers.
When they got out, he slipped a folded bill to the driver and wished him good night. Georgina wondered if Rick’s daughter had waited up, and was watching them through one of the dark windows.
“Would you like to have a cup of tea?” she asked, nervously clutching the gift basket of bath products. “I mean, or coffee?”
Rick placed his hand over the small of her back, the way he’d done at the hotel, and steered her toward the entrance. “I’ll try the tea.”
Inside the apartment, Georgina kicked off her high-heeled sandals. She draped the shawl over the handle of the living room door, and placed the bath product basket on the hall table. Then she went into the kitchen. Rick followed her. He shoehorned himself into one of the small chairs grouped around the fitted table at the end of the counter.
Georgina realized her hands were shaking. Water splashed over the sink as she filled the kettle. She clenched her hands into fists and took a long breath. If she didn’t get her body under control soon, she’d end up scalding herself.
She reached up to the cupboard to take out two of her bone china mugs. One of them slipped from her fingers and crashed down to the tiled floor, where it shattered into hundreds of tiny pieces.
“Oh.” She stood still and stared down at the debris.
Rick dashed up and pulled her back from the shards. “Don’t walk that way. You might cut your feet. I’ll sweep it up.”
“It was my favorite,” she said, staring desolately at him. “It was the one with cows.”
“I know,” he said. He reached up to brush a strand of hair behind her ear. “We’ll find you another one, sweetheart. It will be all right.”
And then he bent down and kissed her.
It was a kiss of such exquisite tenderness it made Georgina’s heart stop. Rick brushed his lips against hers, so softly there was hardly any pressure at all, just the warmth, and the friction of her lips against the slightly rougher texture of his. It overwhelmed her that a man of such physical strength could be so gentle.
“Wait,” Georgina said. She arched her back, fighting the burst of dizziness that was making her lose herself and fall into him. “I need to know something.”
Rick skimmed his mouth along her cheek until his lips were next to her ear. “What is it?” he murmured.
“I need to know if I can trust you. How many times have you lied to me tonight?”
He straightened, still holding her in his arms, and looked into her eyes. “Only once,” he said.
“That’s all right, then.” She gave him a little nod. “Will you promise never to lie to me again?”
She could see his throat moving as he swallowed. “I promise,” he said after a brief silence.
“Thank you.” She nodded at him once more.
“Why aren’t you asking me what I’ve told you that wasn’t true?”
“Because I know.”
He raised a skeptical eyebrow. “What?”
“You don’t like seafood.”
He pulled a face. “I hate goddamn seafood.”
Then he lowered his head and kissed her again. This time there was nothing gentle about it.

—

Don’t forget to read the other Smooch of the Day entries in our August contest.

: May 27, 2008

Ben had the nerve to pop his head in her office exactly two hours later. “Uh, do you mind if I wait in here while the parents pick up the kids?”

Still angry with him—and herself—Sandra didn’t bother to look up from writing at her desk. “You mean hide in here while the parents pick up their kids?”

He cleared his throat. “Yeah, I mean hide,” he said with a trace of defeat.

She finally put her pen down and lifted her head. Ben was doing one heck of a personal repentant show for her, hovering in the doorway with wide eyes and his hands folded. She practically saw the halo hovering over his golden-brown head. “Okay,” she said. “Then no, I don’t mind.”

“Great. Thanks, Sandals.”

She looked at him sharply as he stepped in. Five seconds had barely gone by and he already had her back on the defensive. “That I do mind. My name is Sandra—not Sandals.”

“Yeah, I didn’t figure you for a nickname type of woman,” he agreed, looking pleased with himself.

“Good.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned back against her door. “Ah, but you need to loosen up. That’s why I’m going to call you Sandals.”

“You know, typically a nickname is shorter than the given name.”

“Is it?” he asked in mock seriousness. “Oh. Well, tell you what, you can call me…”

She waited several beats, thinking of more than a few unkind examples. “I can call you what?” she finally asked.

“That’s it.” He shot her his bone-melting smile. “You can just call me. Anytime.”

She rolled her eyes, refusing to give in to the smile that threatened. “That sounds like a line from one of your movies.”

He shot her a triumphant look. “Ah, ha! I knew you were a fan.”

“Please. Don’t flatter yourself. I just meant that it sounds like a very generic line from a very generic movie,” she lied.

“Ouch.” He played wounded and made a show of sticking in and taking out a pretend knife from his gut.

She’d seen better performances by him.

“You know, it’s okay to admit the truth,” he told her. “It means you’re human.”

“I know I’m human, thank you very much.”

He chuckled. “Okay, if it makes you feel better, I’ll give you a truth. That’ll show you I can be human too.”

“I doubt one piece of trivia will accomplish that enormous feat.”

“Come on,” he cajoled, undaunted by her attitude. “It’ll pass the time while we wait for the kids to be picked up.”

She narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean, like that twenty-questions game?”

He shrugged. “I was thinking more along the lines of truth or dare, but okay. We can play whatever game you like.” His gaze traveled over her body, slow and thorough, giving her an idea of where his thoughts were going.

A mixture of curiosity and excitement had her swallowing hard. But she hid her emotions with an amused huff as she stood and walked over to her filing cabinet. Ben was worse than Hannah, always wanting to play games. She didn’t have time to entertain his childish whims, even if they did seem…a little enticing. But she needed to find the number of a handyman. The building was falling apart, and a coat of paint might gloss over the many imperfections of it. Unfortunately, she was so intent on finding an old invoice, she didn’t notice Ben come up behind her until his hands braced the filing cabinet on either side of her, caging her in.

“Wh-what are you doing?” she asked, feeling her heart slam up against her chest so hard she jerked forward.

“Waiting to find out what game you want to play,” he whispered in her ear.

She felt a shiver and whirled around. “I…uh…Game?” She couldn’t think—or even breathe. He was standing so close he seemed to snatch up all the air around her, and for a split second, she almost felt faint because of it.

He smiled, and her throat constricted even more. “It looks like I’ll have to pick for you,” he said.

“I don’t—”

He kissed her then.

She couldn’t believe he kissed her. And what a kiss it was.

Feeling his hands travel up her arms and cup her face created an unfamiliar sensation she wasn’t prepared for. That’s why she kissed him back. It had nothing to do with the man himself. Or the incredible scent of his skin. Or the addicting taste of his mouth.

He pressed his body—the one she’d been so preoccupied with lately—against her, hard and firm, and she nearly died. His arms dropped and wrapped around her, holding on to her as if he were dangling off a bridge. He felt so good. It didn’t matter that she was kissing a famous movie star or what he must be thinking at that moment. Their tongues touched briefly, and it was all she could do not to open her mouth further. So she did.

How could she resist that kind of blatant physical hunger? It had been so long since she had felt or incited that kind of reaction. She found herself wrapping her arms around his neck, pressing herself further into him, enjoying his response. If Ben was just acting again, he was doing a fine job of it. Maybe too fine. However, she gave in to this small, reckless moment of a kiss anyway, willing her better judgment to take a short hike—for once.

: June 24, 2008

He moved into the water and waded out to her, knowing only that he had to hold her, that he had to do something to comfort her. That he wanted to touch her more than he wanted his next breath.
“Lauren?” he said as he came up behind her, but the rush of the water drowned out his voice. He repeated her name, louder, and touched her shoulder.
Gasping, she whirled about so fast she lost her footing on the slick streambed.
Jackson grabbed for her, caught her waist. Bracing his own feet to fight the current and the slippery rocks, he hauled her up against his body to steady her.
She seized hold of his arms, her muscles tense, and snapped blood-shot eyes to his face. “Jackson.”
Finding her footing again, she released him and stepped back. Heaving a deep sigh, she swiped at her face. “Damn it, you scared me!”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t—” His words stuck in his throat as his gaze dropped to her drenched clothes. In the cold water, her T-shirt and panties had become transparent and her nipples peaked.
Lightning-hot desire flashed through him. His gaze dipped lower to the wet scrap of her underwear. White cotton had never been so alluring. She might as well have been naked for all the good her wet undies were doing her.
“Judas Priest,” he mumbled.
She glanced down at herself and wrapped an arm across her chest. “Damn it. I wasn’t expecting company.”
“I heard you crying and—”
“Didn’t take the hint that I wanted to be alone?” Tears burgeoned in her eyes again along with anger. She scowled at him and stepped back.
“I thought you might be hurt,” he said loud enough to be heard over the swoosh of the water. “I wanted to make sure you were all right.”
“I’m fine!” she spat. “Just peachy!”
Okay. She was pissed at him. He’d expected as much.
Tears spilled on her cheeks. “Just leave me alone!”
Right. But first… “Lauren, if this is about me, about the way I walked away from—”
Her dismissive bark of laughter interrupted him. “You arrogant asshole. This has nothing to do with you. Believe me, I lost no sleep over the fact that you didn’t kiss me. It’s forgotten.”
Yet she’d known exactly what he was talking about. Interesting.
Morning sun peeked through the highest ponderosa branches and glittered on the moisture in her eyes. “This is about Boomer. And Riley.” Her voice cracked, and her face crumpled. “I lost a good friend yesterday, damn it! A man with a wife and family…”
He moved toward her, unable to stay away.
“He was there one minute and then he was…just gone! Murdered.” She hugged herself, and another deep, mournful sob escaped.
Her grief ripped through him, leaving a sharp ache in his chest. Oh, yeah. He understood well about sudden, tragic loss.
“And Boomer. Oh God. He’s my best friend. If he dies—” She choked on her tears and buried her face in her hands.
Balancing carefully on the treacherous rocks, Jackson pulled her into his arms and closed his eyes against the rising sting. Her heartbreak cut close to a fragile bubble inside him where he kept his own grief for Janine trapped. “Hey, don’t cry. C’mon, Lauren. It’s gonna be okay.”
With a violent twist, she shrugged free of his grip and glowered at him. “Stop it! I’ve told you I hate platitudes. And nothing’s going to be okay. Riley’s dead! I’ll cry if I damn well feel like it! At least I know how to mourn!”
Jackson stiffened. “What does that mean?”
“Forget it.” Shaking her head, she turned and took a few more careful steps away from him. “Just go.”
He should let it drop. He knew he should. Knew he should leave like she’d asked.
But some black emotion wrenched free from the corner where he’d shoved it after Janine’s death. “Tell me what you mean.”
Bracing one hand on the boulder behind her, she faced him, her jaw tight. He tried not to notice how her breasts rose and fell as she huffed angrily. “You haven’t let yourself mourn your wife.”
He scoffed. “Of course I have. It’s been nineteen months.”
“Have you?”
“What’s your point?”
“I think you’re afraid to grieve. Afraid to give your emotions that much control.”
A chill spiraled through him. “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, his tone sharper than he’d intended.
“You asked.” She smoothed her wet hair away from her face. “I think you bottled your grief inside you.”
She didn’t know. She couldn’t. How could she understand the void in his soul, the tempest he fought every day to keep from drowning?
“I had a daughter to think about. A little girl who’d lost her mother. I had to hold it together for her.”
“So you could fall apart later?”
“I’m fine,” he grated through his teeth. His heart beat a wild cadence against his ribs.
“You can’t suppress it forever, Jackson. Unless…you didn’t really love her?”
He whipped his hand up, his finger in her face. “Don’t! I loved Janine with all my heart. I—”
He spun away abruptly and sloshed through the water toward the shore. He squeezed his hands in fists, felt his pulse pounding at his temple.
“Right. Walk away. Just like last night. You’re good at that, aren’t you?”
Her taunt shattered the tenuous hold he had on his temper. Turning, he crossed back to her in three long strides.
“Damn it, what do you want from me?” he shouted.
“Nothing! Just leave!”
He was shaking. To his core. Ready to fly apart.
And there she stood. Wet. Trembling. Nearly naked.
Sexy as hell.
His temper morphed into something far more dangerous to them both. Reckless desire.
“You sure as hell wanted something last night. You’re pissed because I didn’t kiss you. Aren’t you?”
She made a face. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
He edged closer, and she shifted back a step, eyeing him warily. “What are you doing?”
“We have unfinished business.”
Her eyes widened. “Unfinished…business?”
“Yeah.” He captured the base of her skull with one hand and tugged her up to meet his mouth.
Teeth clicked, tongues battled, lips clung. He tasted the stream water on her skin, and a hunger that matched his in her eager response. Minutes later, when he lifted his head and sucked air into his oxygen-starved lungs, she raised dazed eyes to his.
“If you want to stop, you have to be the one to walk away this time,” he rasped.
She stared at him for one heartbeat. Two.
Then looked down at her feet. “Hmm.” Challenge lit her eyes. “I’m still here.”
He needed no further invitation.

Hawk’s Woman, by Madeline Baker, is a riveting story of the old West that has it all: Indians, cowboys, Nuns, novices, sheriffs, horses, gun fights, kidnapped wives and children, Indian Attacks, and true love.

Hallie McIntyre, an orphan, is a novice at a small nunnery outside of Bitter River, 80 miles from the Wyoming border. Hallie’s responsibilities includes the care of the animals, so finding a man appearing dead, covered with blood, is not something that she was expecting to see near the barn. Touching him to see if he lived, she was thankful to feel warm skin, and faint breaths. Fearful of what could happen to him if she abandoned him, she manages to get him covered, and begins taking care of him. With Hallie’s care the man, whose name is Clay, begins to gain strength, and starts helping around the grounds of the nunnery. When Hallie is discovered kissing Clay, they leave the nunnery, and the adventures begin as Clay takes Hallie to his home, then to his tribe where Hallie meets his daughter. Clay has enemies who not stop until he is dead, so Hallie and Clay must unite and learn to trust if they are to survive, and for their love to have a chance for a happily ever after.

Ms. Baker keeps the reader enthralled with the adventures as Hallie travels with Clay, survives Indian attacks, gun fights, kidnappings, and losing their hearts to each other. This is a story that pulls the reader in, and never lets up until the last wonderful moments. Clay, known as Hawk with his Indian family, is a man’s man, and the care he takes of Hallie is so touching and precious that the reader may find tears in their eyes as I did. This is a genuine love story wrapped in the old west, and tied with ribbons of love. I highly recommend this to any reader who loves adventure and romance.

Author Allie Boniface’s prose is poetic in it’s beauty when describing the thoughts and feelings of the lovers in her precious romantic story, One Night in Memphis.

Dakota James is a young single woman living alone in a small town in New Hampshire. She works at a local restaurant, Candlelight, where she has watched as her friends have married,and had children. Dakota seems to have been passed over except for the past year when she started dating Sean, the town sheriff, who claims he is separated and divorcing his wife, but has yet to achieve the freedom to marry Dakota during their time together.

Fed up with Sean’s lies when she discovers he has not filed for divorce, and is still married after a year of saying he was getting a divorce, she literally throws him out of her apartment, and flies off to Memphis to visit her best friend hoping to get over the heartbreak of believing his broken promises to her about a future together.

Innocent of the evil within Sean, Dakota answers his cell phone call, and admits to having found a one gigabyte flash drive attached to her computer, but does not tell Sean if she has it, or if she threw it away. Sean finds out where Dakota is going, and he follows her in desperation to recover the flash drive which holds information that could destroy him, and his career.

Dakota’s life will be changed forever by her decision to visit her friend Sarah. In Memphis Dakota discovers the extent of the evil within Sean as she and Sarah watch the contents on the flash drive, and realize Sean’s violent and dangerous true nature. However, a chance meeting on a basketball court leads to an evening encounter on Beale Street, and a true communion of souls. But deadly danger stalks Dakota on Beale Street, and only courageous action by her new friend can save Dakota, and grant them the possibility of a happily ever after.

This story is exciting,funny, scary,poignant, and heart touching. I highly recommend it to anyone who believes in first and second chances for love. Ms. Boniface has penned some of the loveliest prose that I have read in any story anywhere. Curl up with this book, and spend a wonderful evening sharing the adventures on world famous Beale Street.

March 2008

Seth stopped by Lauren’s house after his shift the following morning. He needed his ATM card, and he wanted to see what she bought Crystal. Hell, no excuses. He wanted to see her. God save him from high-heeled boots.

As he waited after ringing the doorbell, he wondered when he’d stopped worrying that she had someone overnight. Had he ever worried about it? No, because he’d never encountered it. Even when she was dating Ed, Seth had never seen the guy there the next morning. Maybe Seth just hadn’t come around as much in those days.

Lauren opened the door. No high-heeled boots today. She looked fresh out of bed, rumpled, messy in a sweatshirt and plaid flannel pants, fluffy slippers. His Lauren. And instead of being relieved, he stepped inside, cupped her face in both his hands, and kissed her.

Oh, man. She was minty and soft, and her lips parted in surprise under his. He had enough wits to give her a couple of seconds before he tilted her head and took the kiss deeper. She made a sound that might have been protest, and he started to pull back, but then she wound her arms around his neck and brushed her tongue over his lower lip. He accepted the invitation. The inside of her mouth was warm, and the heat she gave off inviting. He slid his hands into her hair, twining his fingers through the silken strands, releasing the scent that had plagued him for weeks, heightened his desire. His hands followed the curve of her head to grip her shoulders, and he knew she wasn’t wearing anything silky under that sweatshirt. She wasn’t wearing anything at all.

And just like that, ice water. He dropped his hands and stepped back, realizing he’d pinned her to the wall behind the door, like some—some… Not like he ever wanted to treat Lauren. “Oh, man, Lauren, I am so sorry.”

Her expression, which had been dreamy, if confused, sharpened into anger in less than a blink. “For what?”

“For…” Wanting to feel you up. Wanting to let you see how much I want to see you naked. “I shouldn’t have done that.” Bail, bail, bail, the alarm in his head blared. It had saved his life many a time in a fire, and he wouldn’t ignore it now. He took a backwards step toward the door.

“Why did you?”

Damn, she was going to trap him with talking, asking questions he didn’t know how to answer. “I…the…you—” Great coherence there, Seth, my man.

She took a step toward him, her arms crossed beneath the breasts that—

“Why did you?” she repeated, close enough to touch.

He clenched his hands to resist the urge. Why hadn’t he had this self-control earlier? “I’ve got to go,” he said, and bolted.

When she shouted, “Coward!” he couldn’t disagree.

The next day Mitch handed him an envelope. Seth took it with a frown, slit it open with his thumb. His ATM card, and a note. “You’re very lucky I didn’t wipe you out.”

Damn. Hell hath no fury.

: May 2008

She studied his face through a blur of tears. “But it’s not right. They had no reason to beat you like this.” Her finger gently traced a welt on his upper arm. “Is there anything left from your mother’s collection of herbs that might help?”
“Really, I’m fine.” He pulled his shirt over his head.
Sarah walked around him, holding up the buckskin and surveying his back. “No, you’re not. I can’t believe you rode so many days to return to St. Mary’s, and now, traveling again… you’ve not said a word.”
He faced her, his eyes solemn. “Sarah, it’s over and done. Let it go. There’s no changing what happened. In a few days, you’ll barely be able to see the marks.”
She was speechless. How could he accept such horrid treatment? True, the lines might fade, but didn’t acts like that leave a scar on a person’s heart? Hers ached for him—for all that he’d been through in his life simply because he was a mixed breed. It wasn’t his fault. He hadn’t asked to be born. She touched his arm softly. “I’m so sorry that you’ve suffered at the hands of ignorant people. I wish there was something I could do to make up for it.”
“There is.” His features softened and he gathered her into his arms. Before she had a chance to speak, his lips claimed hers, sending shivers of delight coursing through her body. Her mind screamed to pull away, but her heart’s plea convinced her to stay in his arms. She parted her lips, allowing his seeking tongue entrance to her mouth, his kiss quenching a desire too long denied. Twining her arms around his neck, she sagged against him, unable… unwilling to stop.

Should you ever meet someone who says to you, “Greetings, I am Talista, and I am a fairy”, be prepared for the escapades of a lifetime as you discover that there is a Lot more to Fairy Tales than we were led to believe!

Adventures Galore are in store for the reader as author Jody Wallace takes the genre to new levels of fun and fantasy as an innocent Fairy decides to do her Earth Survival Training in Las Vegas instead of the desert where the rest of her survival class is located. This seems like a fabulous idea to Talista, Tali for short, but her twin sister is not so sure about Tali’s decision. Having watched human T.V. Tali thinks that spending two weeks in luxurious hotel suites, eating gourmet meals, and watching television sounds perfect to her, and it certainly beats camping in heat, sand, and bugs in a tent. Tali goes to investigate everything that she has heard about Las Vegas, but discovers that all is not as simple as she thought it would be. To her shock, she needs something called money for the hotel and food, cars keep trying to run over her as she walks the streets, and it is hot there also! What is a fairy to do?

Luckily, Tali meets Jake, a magician, who rescues her from being run over by numerous vehicles, and finally takes her to the hotel where he works, and helps her get a very simple room. This act of kindness starts a chain reaction that kept this reader laughing until my hubby brought me Kleenex for my tearing eyes. Is Jake not what he appears to be, has Tali been missed, are furious faeries hunting her, and why is there a feeling of magic when she is with Jake in his theater?

To enjoy all of the fun, adventures, and romance that Jake and Tali experience please find a copy of this E Book, and share the fun of this marvelous story…

: July/2008

Smooch Excerpt from “Light in a Hollow Place”, copyright, Vicki Gaia, 2008:

Scene: Paris Hospital, 1945 - Claire just arrived from the States. She hadn’t see Richard, her fiance, in 2 years:

“I wasn’t going to cry,” she sniffed.

Richard’s chuckle lightened her heart.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cry all over you.”

“Darling, blow your nose so I can kiss you for real. There’s tissue on the nightstand.”

Richard’s deep voice sent a rapid thrill through her. She’d craved every part of his being. Once she dried her tears, she tossed the tissue in the wastebasket and cupped his cheeks. She hovered her lips above his mouth, surprised how nervous she felt. They’d kissed hundreds of time, made love even more. Familiar with every part of his body, she’d memorized his scent until it became part of her. Everything lay bare between them. Except for this war, pulling them apart, until all she had were memories.

“I’ve waited an eternity for this kiss,” she said, her voice cracking.

Richard’s upper lip curled. “Then you’d better make it memorable.”

Claire bored down on his mouth, her tongue pushing at the seam of his lips. Parting her mouth, he thrust inside, his taste warm. She met his intensity. As she kissed him, she stroked his nape, the tiny hairs soft against her fingers. Inhaling his scent, the antiseptic salves competed with his musky scent. It didn’t matter. Nothing did but Richard’s body, his smell, the familiar taste of him.

“Oh God, it’s been too long.” Richard pressed his hand against his skull. “I’m feeling slightly dizzy.”

Richard’s reddish cheeks warned her to take it easy. She reluctantly pulled further away, keeping her hands on his shoulders.

Available at Awestruck Ebooks: http://www.awe-struck.net/AUTHORS51/liahp.html

: 2/22/08

Mayce looked down at the vampire from the last step. “We will begin at the post. Do you object?”

“No, master.”

“What is your safe word?” Spyce asked.
Dante met her gaze, and then glanced away. “I need no safe word.”

“You will this time.” She stepped down beside Dante and had to look up slightly to meet his gaze. “You will test your safe word once within the first thirty minutes. At any point that you wish to stop or renegotiate the terms, your safe word will bring all activity to a halt. Any other screams of pleasure or pain will be considered, rejected or punished as Mayce and I see fit. The only control you have is the use of this one word. Now, what is your safe word?”

“Sebastian,” he whispered.

Spyce caught his jaw in her hand. “You will test your safe word. Is that understood?”

“Yes.”

Her hand struck out, slapping him hard. “You will answer properly.”

“Yes, mistress.”

“Good. Go to the post.”

Mayce waited until the vampire began across the room, before grabbing Spyce and dragging her into a hard kiss. They came together with a crash and sparred for dominance that neither would truly gain. The battle was one Mayce lived for. Passion flared and he was rock hard and aching for her in seconds.

Never one to deny himself pleasure, he shoved her back until she hit the low wall around the pool area. “Lose the clothes.”

“Make me.”

This smooch is from Anom’tan 3: Walking at Sundown by L. Shannon

Walking with Synn - July 2007
Walking in Memories - September 2007
Walking at Sundown - February 2008
Walking Death’s Edge - May 2008

Buy all four Anom’tan stories from Cobblestone Press at http://cobblestone-press.com or read more excerpts at http://lshannon.net

: Feburary 2008

Despite the tub of sun block Sammy showed him during lunch, Demo insisted she needed a large hat. “Trust me. You’ll sizzle in this sun.”

“It’s almost five in the afternoon. I’ll be fine,” she said, waving a dismissive hand.

He laughed as if truly amused and turned his attention to the colorful display. Plopping a large, floppy brimmed, flower-patterned hat on her head, he spoke to the storeowner in Greek and paid.

She attempted to take it off but found he was holding it steady in the back. Trying to suppress her laughter, she shook her head in disbelief. “You’re just a little stubborn.”

She’d had a great time at lunch. It was so unusual to have him feeding her fries dipped in the creamy yogurt sauce, laughing and carrying on as if they were really together.

No. She had to remember: he was just being nice.

“And what are you? Acquiescent?” His laugh was a call of triumph pulling her out of her thoughts. “You’ll look like a sweet ripe berry tonight if you don’t learn to listen.” A big grin crossed his face. “Hm, on second thought, it might be interesting if you don’t wear the hat.”

The mischievous look in his eyes sent a rush of heat through her body. She tried
to justify it, but couldn’t.

His gaze dropped from her face to the length of her neck, and his lips followed, intimately searing the sensitive skin below her ear.
“Deliciously interesting.” His last words smothered her lips.

Her breasts swelled, and her nipples strained against the thin fabric covering her suit. Affirming that her feelings for him had nothing to do with reason, her heart thudded noisily in her chest. She felt things a woman should not feel for her employer, and it appeared he did too.

Logic dictated she should run, run very far and very fast. But her feet did not move. Logic also dictated she shouldn’t be here, alone, with the man slated to marry Zoë Markos. And she should definitely not kiss him back. Instead, parting her lips, she raised herself to meet his kiss.

The blood pounded in her brain, leapt from her heart, and made her legs tremble. A large hand settled on her back, and she steadied her spinning senses.

“It’s safer if you keep your hat on.” His husky whisper caressed her ear. He began to sing. “You should keep your hat on.”

She straightened, raised her hands to the sides of the cap, and pulled it tight over her head. Her eyes pierced into his, and her breath was sharp. “Step back, and let me see the key chains.”

She pushed her fingers against the hard wall of his chest and walked to a spinning souvenir rack. Hearing him behind her, she walked quickly into the next store. Confused and flustered, she didn’t want to confront him or her feelings for him.

Exiting the fourth store, she saw him leaning against the jeep, with his arms crossed on his chest, making no secret of the fact that he enjoyed watching her.

“Have I done something to offend you, koukla mou?” An arrogant smirk graced his face.

“Yes, you have.” She looked up into his eyes, daring him to talk. He didn’t. “Your behavior is inappropriate, Mr. Lakis. We’re in a public place, with dozens of people around us.”

The arrogant smirk grew. “I’m sorry, I don’t usually plan the time and place I find a beautiful woman irresistible. But if you prefer we go somewhere private, it will be my pleasure.”

“Private, huh? What would Zoë Markos think of that?” Her cheeks were getting hot and her insides twisted.

“Zoë would be happy.” He reached for her arm.

“Happy? That’s sick.” Yanking away, she walked towards the car door. “Please take me back to the resort.”

Knowledge registered on his face and he laughed. “Now I understand. Get in and we’ll talk.”

Ace pulled her in his arms for the last dance of the night. They moved together to the soothing, sensual, sound of a country love song. He held her close, wanted desperately to kiss her. But in a time when kisses were given too lightly and often taken as such, he opted to wait and share that intimacy with her some time and place where he could be more private about it.

He didn’t feel strange in that desire. He’d had his share of kisses. He had the feeling though, that a kiss between them would mean so much more than the others he’d experienced. Unable to resist completely, he brushed his lips across the thick, silken mass of auburn hair beneath his cheek and pressed her face into his chest in a hug.

Lexie looked up at him, her eyes alive with questions. He hushed them with a gentle shake of his head and a finger on her lips. His smile was tender as he pulled her close once more to finish the dance. His head jerked up as his name was called.

“Ace! Tailgate, usual spot.”

He grinned and eyed Lexie. “Want to go?”

“Where, for what?”

He laughed. “A bunch of us usually get together when we’re not quite ready to call it a night, laugh, joke, dance to the radio, bonfire, the works.”

“Sure. Sounds like fun.”

All you could see were taillights for miles as truckloads of kids made their way to their special spot by the river. They parked in a huge circle then gathered twigs and started a fire.

Radio’s tuned in to the same country station, they pared up in couples around the fire. Some laughed and told jokes while others danced.

After initial introductions, Lexie found herself the butt of endless coonass jokes. She retaliated with her share of Aggie jokes. “Besides,” she countered the latest assault to her heritage. “I’m a Cajun.”

Someone snorted. “Huh! A Cajun is just a snobby coonass,” they remarked and brought on another round of laughter.

One hand flew to her cheek, the other to her heart, Lexie gasped, wide-eyed and presented them with the perfect picture of insulted innocence.

“Ya’ll know what separates a coonass from a jackass, don’t ‘cha?” she queried, laying the accent on thick. She played the southern belle to the hilt and pretended to fan herself as everyone waited breathlessly to see what she’d say next.

She batted her eyelashes at Ace, “Why, the Sabine river, of course.”

Ace laughed with the rest of them. No one was disappointed with her lively wit and charming personality. As darkness subsided, couples left or slipped off into the remaining shadows for a few moments alone. Ace rolled to his feet and reached down to give Lexie a hand up. The fact that they were leaving was cause for more teasing by his bolder comrades.

Lexie tossed her head and grinned over her shoulder. “Ha! You’ll never know if he even gets to first base,” she taunted her new friends.

Whistling and jeering, they egged Ace on. He pulled her against him, his earlier thoughts of privacy forgotten. “Ah, little Lexie,” he taunted, his voice thick with male pride and arrogance. “You’ve been challenging me to shut that pretty mouth since the first time we met.”

Before she could pull away, he turned her in his arms. His mouth covered hers and hushed her protests. She resisted but a moment before something wonderful began to happen.

His lips were soft, persuasive, his arms firm, but gentle. His tongue traced her mouth, urging not forcing entrance. Once allowed, instead of the rough thrusting she was used to, and expected, he dipped gently inside as though savoring all the sweetness she had to offer.

The woman in her responded with a little cry of delight that sounded more like a purr, the little girl within responded with a whimper of fear as the thought occurred to her once again that she was losing some part of herself.

Blood warmed by degrees.
Ace held her until the moment of tension passed and their senses hummed like high voltage wires. His hands ran over her in a gentle, subtle caress until he cupped her cheeks in his work-roughened palms. Slowly, gently, he released her lips, thrilling in the soft moan of protest that escaped her.

A low wolf whistle reached their ears. “Looks more like second base to me,” came the taunt.

Ace released her. His mind and body reeled from the potency of that one kiss. “Don’t give them the satisfaction of being embarrassed,” he whispered his voice husky. He ran his finger up her throat, lifted her chin, and waited until she lifted wary green eyes to his, “Breakfast?” She smiled and nodded.

He stepped away from her enticing embrace and held a hand to her. Once more shy, she placed hers in it while he opened the truck door. She scooted across the seat while he got in and buckled up. With a gentle tug on her hand, he pulled her by his side.

Breakfast was sweetly romantic and not at all awkward as they laughed and talked and got to know each other on a deeper level, surprised to find that they had a great deal in common.

May 2008

He walked to the dresser and opened first one drawer, then another. This was too weird on too many levels. It took a gay man to tell her how to dress for a hetero relationship? How much did she have to change to get a guy interested?

She wore what was professional, conservative and comfortable. She couldn’t be bothered with all these details.

But Eric sure paid attention to them.

Why did all the good ones have to go the other way? When they’d first become friends she’d asked about his past relationships, but he’d been so overtly evasive, she’d suspected something was amiss. All straight men bragged at least once in a while. Eric’s elusiveness, his extremely caring and considerate demeanor, and the fact that he’d never once come onto her—oh yeah, he was too sweet to be straight.

He obviously wanted to remain closeted and it was none of her business anyway. She loved him no matter what he did in private. One of these days, maybe he would feel comfortable enough to confide in her about his personal life.

Still, did he cross-dress, too? “I didn’t think women’s clothes were something you’d be interested in.” She knew she was prying now, trying to coax him to share his “secret”. As she watched him go through her bureau drawers, she tried to imagine him dressed as a woman.

She couldn’t see it.

Eric continued searching through the drawers. “Well, I look at what women wear like every other man on the planet. Why wouldn’t I?”

“Men look, but they know next to nothing about styles—what goes with what. How do you happen to?”

“I’m not that interested in the clothing. I just know what would look good on you.”

“Something you’d look good in, too, maybe?” As soon as the words passed her lips, she wanted to wrench them back.

He closed the drawer and turned toward her, his eyebrows drawing together. “What?”

So, he’s not a cross-dresser. “Nothing.”

He left the bureau and walked slowly toward her. “That wasn’t nothing. What are you talking about?”

Julia took a step back. The last thing she’d wanted to do was hurt or embarrass him. Damn her nosiness anyway.

“I’m sorry. It doesn’t make a bit of difference to me. Your business is your business, and you’re great to be helping me on this. Forget I said anything.”

“And what did you say, exactly? That I’d look good in women’s clothing?” His eyes bore into hers. “What doesn’t make a difference?”

Her face grew hot and she chewed her bottom lip. Now she’d done it. She’d put him on the defensive, something she’d avoided all the time they’d been friends. If he didn’t want to tell her, he didn’t want to.

She shouldn’t have said anything. Now there was no way out.

Well, they were friends, weren’t they? Maybe this was her chance to let him come out to her, her chance to tell him he could confide his secret. It was the least she could do after all the work he was going to for this “training weekend”.

Julia took a deep breath and smiled. He’d said “trust me”… He had to realize he could trust her, too. “I thought maybe you were into cross-dressing, as well.”

He blinked. “What?”

Julia shook her head. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pried. This is none of my damn business. I wanted you to…well, you can tell me stuff, you know? I don’t judge.”

“What is none of your business?” He put his hands on her shoulders and stared into her eyes.

“Your being gay.”

Eric’s eyebrows shot up and disappeared under his shock of blond hair.

“You think I’m gay?”

He pulled her into his arms and covered her mouth with his before she could sort out what was happening. His tongue moved over her lips and she opened her mouth against the insistent, mind-blowing action. Heat raced through her limbs, no longer from the embarrassment at her faux pas, but from the fervor of stark, shocking desire.

Eric tangled his fingers in her hair and held her to him, his warm breath mingling with hers, obliterating all thoughts of the closet, the clothes and any question about his sexual preference. She slid her hands slowly up his arms, only to steady herself—for no other reason.

Yeah, right.

The kiss went on for another staggering bombshell of a moment before he released her with a jolt and stared down at her, his eyes blazing, his mouth a hard, thin line.

“I am not gay.”

Julia gazed into his crystal-blue eyes, her heart pounding in her chest as her knees quivered. It wasn’t like he hadn’t kissed her before—friendly, fun kisses on her forehead or cheek. His words aside, the tingling of her lips and the heat coursing through her bore more convincing evidence. He knew what to do with a woman.

She cleared her throat. “I guess not.”

“Lesson three—be prepared to give yourself over to the moment.”

Julia nodded, searching for a reply. This was part of the training? If so, she was in big trouble.

–published by Samhain Publishing
http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/seduction-101

For your reading pleasure this morning is the first entry in our Kiss Off competition.

March 2008 Freya’s Bower

Katie smiled. “Finally. Now you can make love to me, and I’ll wake up.” She laughed and turned to Aidan. “I always wake up just when things get to the good part.”
He shook his head. “You’re not goin’ to wake up.”
“What?” Fear seeped into her bones. “I have to wake up. It’ll be dark soon. I’ll never find my way back in the dark.” She paced over to one of the windows and fingered the bright curtains that matched the quilt on the bed. “Oh, God. I’m going to die, aren’t I? I’m going to lie there on that little bridge, get hypothermia, and die.”
She hugged herself, panic threatening to take over. Tears filled her eyes, and her vision blurred. She looked at Aidan. “I can’t die yet. I’m only twenty-eight. I wanted to fall in love, have babies.”
He stood next to her in two long strides. He gripped her shoulder and gave her a little shake. “You’re not goin’ to die, Katie. But you’re not dreamin’ either.” He sighed, and his hands fell away from her shoulders. “If anyone’s dreamin’ here, it’s me.”
Katie sniffed. “What do you mean?”
He stared at her dress for a moment then reached up and twirled one of her curls around his finger. “I’ve dreamt of a woman in that dress at least a dozen times. And your hair. It was just like this, curls the color of honey. In the dreams, I never saw your face. I didnae realize it was you until….”
“See? I told you this is a dream. You still don’t believe me, do you?” She stepped closer to him and laid her head on his chest, listening to his heart pound a steady rhythm against her cheek. “It feels so real this time. I can even hear your heartbeat.”
A low groan rumbled through him, and his arms came around her.
She lifted her head. “Are you going to kiss me now?”
The corner of his mouth lifted in a half grin. “Aye, Katie. I cannae resist you any longer.”
His head lowered, his lips hovering over her mouth for a single heartbeat before they brushed across hers. Her breath caught. Electricity coursed through her, awakening every nerve, every cell. Then his mouth covered hers, and the world fell away. Her head began to spin, and she clung to him, wrapping her arms around his waist.
She parted her lips, begging him to make the kiss more intimate. The tip of his tongue teased her bottom lip before he drew it into his mouth. Katie melted against him as heat spread through her veins. Her dreams had never felt like this before, so real, so alive.
The kiss grew more passionate, his tongue exploring her mouth. Standing on her toes and lifting her arms, she wound them around his neck. Her hands tangled in his hair. His magic kiss had her blood singing in her ears, her body tingling in anticipation.
His hand moved down her back to her bottom. Groaning into her mouth, he squeezed and pulled her hips against his. The firm ridge of his erection pressed into her belly. A low moan echoed the ache building inside her.

Getting to Know You

Start by telling us a little about yourself. You’re an author, obviously. But who is Elaine Charton?

EC- Hmm, where to start. I’m married, very happily, we’re celebrating our 24th anniversary later this month.  My husband is also a writer, he writes historical novels.  We live in Arizona, have no children, just  two terribly spoiled cats.  Miss Lucy is the guardian of my website.  Her picture is on the home page.  Yerbalot aka Yerbie is my husbands cat and definitely Daddy’s boy. WCe also have 14 nieces and nephews. Ranging in age from 30+ all the way down to 3 years old.

For those who may not know you yet, what do you write and who do you write for?
EC-I write romantic suspense for Swimming Kangaroo Books.  A wonderful small press out of Texas.  I also have written some paranormal romance that was published with an electronic publisher who is no longer in business.

Do you have a favorite genre?
EC-I read a lot of different things, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, mystery(mostly cozies) .  I also love stories set in the Victorian era and during WWII.

Was there a moment in life where you thought to yourself I want to be a writer?
EC I always used to change the ending of books and movies if I didn’t like the way they ended.  I was taking some college courses and one of them was in English class.  Actually it ended up being more of a creative writing class.  I loved it.  My professor and my husband both encouraged me to continue with my writing.

What was your favorite book as a child?

EC- That’s a toughie.  I’ve read so many. I’d think nothing of taking half a dozen books out of the library at a time.  One of the best days of my life was the first day my mother let me cross the street to the library by myself.  I made my way through the entire childrens collection and then started on the young adult side.
I loved reading biographies and history books. Mrs Mike was my first introduction to heroines who were strong but yet loved. The Diary of Anne Frank also affected me deeply.  I read both my freshman year in high school

What are three of your favorite websites and why?
EC  Obviously my own and then the Cata site. I love the way you have it set up. I recently discovered a new site.  British history online   
I’ve spent entirely to much time there.  I also like witchychicks.blogspot.com  It’s the blog of some of my favorite paranormal authors, including my buddy Linda Wisdom.

When you’re not writing, do you have any hobbies or interests?
EC I work full time in a rent paying job  as well as write in my spare time.  I am a food network junkie and love to cook and read.  I have  a book case in my office that starts about half way up and goes to the ceiling.

About Your Books

Tell us more about your latest release, EZ Lovin. What’s it about and what inspired you to write it? 
EC   Believe it or not, EZ actually started as a dream.  I had this dream about a tall cowboy standing against the wall smiling.  The only thing he said was “Evening Ma’am.”  There was a TC series a long time ago called McCloud.  I sort of based it on that.  He was a Texan Working in NYC.  Only instead of New York I set it in my home town of Boston.  I imagined Sam Elliott as the hero.  One of my readers recently told me she immediately thought of the country singer Trace Adkins.  Works for me!

I’m intrigued by the title of your next release, Pandora’s Justice. What’s it about and when will it be available? Our readers will want to mark their calendars!
EC I just finished editing Pandora’s Justice and we are hoping to have it out by October I’ll be sure to let you know when I get the exact date.  It is a true book of my heart.  It is actually part of a trilogy that began with EZ Lovin’ .  Pandora is a single mother and a survivor of an abusive marriage.  Someone is stalking her someone who things only he ex would know.  There is just one problem.  The man is Dead,  Justin, who you meet in EZ is the hero of this one and I have to say he is one of my favorites.

I’ve not heard of Swimming Kangaroo Books. Care to tell us about this publisher?
EC  It’s a small press out of Texas, they’ve only been in business a few years.  My husband actually submitted to them first. When I was looking for a new publisher he suggested them.  I was very impressed with they way they had treated him.  They’ve been fantastic, easily accessible and open to just about anything, within reason.  About the only thing they don’t publish is non fiction.  Check out thier website www.swimmingkangaroo.com

So many authors talk about hearing characters voices. Some would prescribe medication but we totally understand the “hearing voices bit.” Do your characters talk to you? Haunt you until you write their story?

EC  Oh yes. All the time.  I had to promise Justin and another character in EZ Lovin’ their own books or they threatened to take his book over.

Do you believe characters find you? Do they have names when you “meet” them? If not, how do you pick the names?
EC- They find me, definitely but they don’t always have names.  One of my favorite reference books is the Character Naming Source Book by writers digest.  I have the original version that has the names broken down by country of origin and the meaning of the name.

Do you have a favorite book or one that’s closest to your heart that you’ve written?
EC  Pandora’s Justice definitely.

Random Questions

If you were stuck on an island, what 3 things would you take with you?
EC Probably my computer - my cat and my husband but not necessarily in that order.  Of course if Hugh Jackman or Colin Firth were available I might be persuaded to leave my cat behind.

Give us 5 words that describe you.
EC  stubborn- determined-imaginative-caring and honorable  The last one was from my husband.

Do you have a favorite book store, online or brick and mortar?
EC   We have a favorite Borders near us that we like to go to on date night.  We’ll browse books then get a cup of coffee in the cafe and look through what we want to buy.

Tell us about The Call.
EC  The call was actually an email which I got about 8 oclock at night Arizona time.  I started screaming and crying and I called my friends and anyone I knew on the east coast who I thought would still be awake.  It’s a three hour difference and this was a weeknight.

How do you see the romance novel industry changing in the next 5 years?
EC I’d like to think it would be expanding and growing with younger people growing up so technologically literate it would have to or stagnate.  No one wants that.

If you could be the leader of your country for a month, what changes would you make, if any?
EC  I’d get rid of NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND.  From talking to friends of mine who have kids as well as several who are teachers-no one likes this program.

CataNetwork is on Twitter now. Are you on any of the social networks? Twitter, Myspace, Bebo, LiveJournal, Facebook, GoodReads? How about Shelfari?
EC Twitter is a new one on me.  I’ll have to check it out.  I’m on My Space and Bebo and FAcebook, Good Reads and Shelfari

Do you have any pet peeves?
EC  Rudeness, stupidity and injustice.

Do you have a personal motto or favorite quote?
EC  One of my favorite people in history is Eleanor Roosevelt  One of my favorite quotes from her is: “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face…Do the thing you think you cannot do.

Do you have any advice to new writers?
EC Believe in yourself and your story and stick with it.  Success will come.  It took me 12 years before I got The Call.  Along the way I studied hard and was blessed to have made some wonderful friends who kept me motivated.

How can readers get in contact with you?
EC  my email is echartonwrites@gmail.com
or through my website www.elainecharton.com

Is there anything we didn’t cover that you’d like to mention?
EC Just to let you know that I signed a contract this week for the third book in the series.  Titled Mac’s Man and that will be available sometime early next year.

Thanks so much!
EC  You’re welcome!  I’ve enjoyed it.