BOOK BLITZ! THE ROCK STAR’S WEDDING BY DEMELZA CARLTON

September 28, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

Buy now on Amazon. Only $3.99!

The Rock Star’s Wedding (Romance Island Resort #6), the final book in Demelza Carlton’s Romance Island Resort series about a romance-novel-reading rock star looking for love, is out now! She’s celebrating the release with a very special giveaway – The Rock Star’s Wedding RING. A gold and pearl ring valued at $300 that’s a custom made replica of the ring Jay gives to his bride in the book.

You can enter the giveaway HERE: http://blog.ravenpublicity.com/giveaways/demelzacarlton/

Five women. One rock star. Who will be the bride in the celebrity wedding of the year?
Audra is back from Antarctica. Phuong the email-order bride is free, acquitted of all charges. Flavia’s forgiven Jay, now she knows who’s really responsible. Gaia the billionaire is determined to get what she wants. And Penelope’s sporting a pink diamond engagement ring.
The weather may be as hot as Hell with the mother of all storms brewing off the coast, but Xan knows one thing for certain: come fire or flood or ex-fiancés, there will be a rock star wedding at Romance Island Resort.
But the question on everyone’s lips is…who will be Jay Felix’s bride?

You can get your copy of The Rock Star’s Wedding at the following retailers:

Amazon: http://www.smar turl.it/rir6

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-rock-stars-wedding/id1118040623?mt=11

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-rock-stars-wedding-demelza-carlton/1123854438?ean=2940153041445

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Demelza_Carlton_The_Rock_Star_s_Wedding?id=tqvhDAAAQBAJ

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/the-rock-star-s-wedding-1

Would you like a sneak peek of what’s to come? If you haven’t read the series yet, there might be a spoiler or two in there for the earlier books in the series – you have been warned.

But if you’d like to start reading the series, the first book, Maid for the Rock Star, is FREE.

A hot Aussie rock star looking for love. Why did he have to pick HER hotel?

A maid at the exclusive Romance Island Resort, Audra knows how to handle rock stars, billionaires and celebrities. She keeps their secrets, cleans up their mess and makes sure their holiday is a memorable one. There’s just one rule: no relationships with guests. And Audra never breaks the rules.

Jay Felix is rock royalty and he knows it. When one of his bandmates threatens to break up the band, he goes into hiding at the Romance Island Resort. Looking for a distraction, he sets his sights on the unattainable Audra. But what’s a rock star to do when the girl he wants is the one woman he can’t have?

Welcome to paradise, where the romance is as hot as the weather and the tides aren’t all that’s surging beneath the surface.

You can download your FREE copy from the following retailers:

Amazon: http://smarturl.it/B00Y9MUCEO

iBooks: http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/maid-for-the-rock-star/id1011715116?mt=11

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/maid-for-the-rock-star-demelza-carlton/1122195054?ean=2940151990455

Google Play: http://play.google.com/store/books/details/Demelza_Carlton_Maid_for_the_Rock_Star?id=nXL1CQAAQBAJ

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/maid-for-the-rock-star

Okay…now for the sneak peek!

Here goes:

Xan took a moment to stop herself from laughing. How much had Jay had to drink this time? “Why are you so set on getting married?” she asked carefully. “The mail order bride, the virginity auction, the reality TV show…and now an old friend who worked here before Meier hired me. If you ask me, it smacks of desperation. Which is pretty strange, considering how easily you seem to charm the women you want. What am I missing, Jay?”

“Angel’s wedding,” he mumbled, so quietly she barely caught the words.

“Your bandmate, right? But if it’s her wedding, she’s the one getting married, not you.”

“The invitation said to bring a partner.”

Xan waved her hand. “But you know that’s just a courtesy, right? If you don’t know the name of your guest’s partner when you write the invitation, which can be printed a year in advance, that’s what you put on it, so they can still bring a partner along if they want, and she or he still has an invitation.”

“Not this time. Not when it’s from Angel. It’s her telling me to bring a partner because she thinks I need one.” He eyed the jetty boards, avoiding her gaze.

“And you always do what she says?” Xan asked.

He looked up. “Fuck yes! I like living, with all my bits attached, thanks.”

“But it didn’t say wife, did it? Your invitation? It just said partner, right?” Xan pressed.

“Yeah. The wife bit…that bit…that was me.” He kicked a rock off the jetty. “I said I’d come with my wife, and we’d be so in love we’d put the other couple in the shade.”

Tempting fate, of course. The beginning of a true Greek tragedy. Or a Roman farce, seeing as this involved Jay Felix.

“You could just bring a partner for the night. You don’t seem to have a problem keeping a girl interested that long. I’m sure there are hundreds of girls who’d kill for the chance to attend a wedding with you.”

“Bring a fangirl to Angel’s wedding?” Jay’s eyes widened in horror. “She’d crucify me. Once Jo was done with me, because she’d never forgive me, either. This won’t be a public wedding. You’ll see. Angel won’t allow any media on the island. Shit, she’ll probably have armed security guards stationed along the beaches, ready to shoot down any aircraft within range, drone or manned.”

Xan still didn’t understand what passed for logic in Jay’s mind. “But she’d be happy have a reality TV show starlet or some girl whose virginity you bought in an online auction at her wedding.” She almost added something about his black widow mail order bride, but stopped herself in time. Phuong’s betrayal was a low blow that still had the power to upset him. Xan might not like Jay, but she wasn’t that cruel.

“She wouldn’t have known,” Jay said.

Xan snorted. “That reality TV show aired its first episode last week. The whole country knows about your very public search for a wife. Paige told me the studio is in talks to sell the rights to this season to one of the big networks in the US. Everyone wants to watch the music world’s hottest bachelor find a wife, live in their living room. Your Angel would have to be living under a rock in a bunker with no access to the outside world not to know about THAT.”

Jay sighed heavily. “She’s not my angel. Never was, never will be.” His shoulders slumped and all the fight went out of him.

Finally, Xan understood. “How long have you been in love with her?”

“What’s it matter?” Angrily, Jay swept the remaining rocks off the jetty with his foot. “She’s marrying that psycho, not me. And Audra says cheaters never get a happily ever after, so I’m fucked on all sides now. Doesn’t matter who I go to her wedding with, because whoever she is, we won’t be happy.” He laughed bitterly. “Because if I cheated on Audra by getting with fangirls on just that one farewell tour, I’ve cheated on Angel hundreds, maybe thousands of times. Doesn’t matter that there was no love or relationship involved with any of them. She’ll never want me.”

“Sometimes the one person we want is the one we can’t have,” Xan said. That was the whole bit about the hero’s quest in all the ancient stories, right? A hero haring off after some impossible goal?

“Would you get back with a guy who cheated on you?” Jay challenged.

Xan hesitated. Would she get back with Jerome? “No,” she answered finally. “It’s too big a betrayal. I hope his dick shrivels up and no one ever loves him again.”

Jay plucked at his shorts. “You want my dick to do what? Hey, there’s nothing about that in any of the books. Never being loved is enough, don’t you think?”

Yes. Maybe it was. Xan would settle for never seeing Jerome again, to be honest, let alone any shrivelling. Except….there was the problem of the reopening of the Mangrove Hotel. Maybe she and Jay could help each other out.

“You know what?” Xan said. “If you come with me to an official function in town next month, I’ll make a deal with you. If you still can’t find an acceptable partner to attend your bandmate’s wedding with, I’ll go with you.”

“And marry me, too?” Jay realised his mistake as soon as the words left his lips. “Okay, sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. Forget I said it. She’ll already know you’re the hotel manager here, and she won’t believe…”

“That’s right,” Xan interrupted. “What do you say? Is it a deal?”

“Yeah.” Jay eyed her with what Xan might have called relief. “Thanks, Xan. I guess that makes us friends, doesn’t it?”

Xan nodded, biting her tongue before she blurted out the bit about her friendship coming with an absolute lack of benefits. Instead, she wished him a nice evening, and headed back to her house, vowing to help him find a better date for the wedding than her. Whatever it took.

And she had to meet this Angel, who had the power to both terrify and enthral a man like Jay Felix.

BOOK BLAST! UNBOUND PURSUIT BY LINDSAY MCKENNA (@TastyBookTours @lindsaymckenna)

September 27, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

As Wyatt plans a dangerous operation to catch the drug dealers,

Tal fears she could lose the man she loves.

UNBOUND PURSUIT

DELOS Series 2B1

Lindsay McKenna

Releasing Sept 29, 2016

Blue Turtle Publishing

You met Tal and Wyatt’s in Tangled Pursuit, book 2 in the Delos Series. Read their
continued story.

Captain Talia Culver risked her heart again for Navy SEAL Wyatt Lockwood. The
brave, cocky Texan was worth the risk and Talia couldn’t be happier. Still
recovering from injuries she received from her last mission in Afghanistan,
Wyatt whisks her away to meet his family on their sprawling Texas ranch. But
things don’t go as planned when Wyatt hears the local gossip that his drug
dealing ex-friend is out of prison and planning a drug run across the Lockwood
ranch. Wyatt wants to enjoy some hard-earned down time with Tal, but he can’t
ignore the danger at his backdoor.

As Wyatt plans a dangerous operation to catch the drug dealers, Tal fears she
could lose the man she loves.

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See how it all began in Tangled Pursuit

“How’s that ankle of yours feelin’?” Wyatt asked Tal. He had her sitting comfortably on his old brass bed, leaning against the headboard, pillows behind her back, her bad ankle over his thigh as he gently massaged it.

“Mmm, better,” Tal said, closing her eyes.

“Did you take your medication?” Wyatt asked her, sliding a glance her way. She had just come out of the bathroom after soaking in the old claw-foot bathtub. Her black hair was still up in a mussed topknot. She looked tired, and he knew traveling with her bum ankle had taken a toll on her. Tal would never complain about pain. It just wasn’t part of her makeup. As a Marine Corps sniper, she’d always worked hurt. It might not have been broken bones like this, but, as a mountain goat climbing around in the Hindu Kush of Afghanistan, out in brutal weather and other harsh conditions, bruises, cuts, scrapes, and even a strain were tolerated so she could successfully finish a mission.

“No, you know I didn’t.”

Wyatt chuckled and continued to tenderly ease the swelling out of her once-crushed ankle. He did this every night when they were home, and he especially wanted to do it when he was on the road with her. “I think we did a little too much walking around the ranch this afternoon. Your ankle is really swollen. Sure you aren’t in pain?” He knew she was and saw her lips flex at his needling her about it.

“I’ll take some ibuprofen to get you off my back, Lockwood.”

Chuckling, he said, “I’m such a pest to you, Ms. Culver.” The corners of her lips lifted and she opened her eyes.

“You are a royal pain in the ass sometimes, on that we agree.”

“But,” Wyatt said lightly, moving his fingers down from below her knee to her ankle and then beginning to massage her foot, “there are other times, Ms. Culver, you really enjoy having me around.”

“That is very true, cowboy. Good thing those times outweigh the pain-in-the-ass times, huh?”

Seeing the sparkle of teasing in her green eyes, Wyatt moved his hand over the red flannel robe she wore on top of her white flannel pajamas. “Indeed.” He felt her begin to relax as he pushed the fluid out of her ankle area. “Feelin’ a little better, darlin’?”

“Oh,” she sighed, “much . . . I don’t know what I’d do without you, Wyatt. You spoil me rotten.”

“I’m better than any meds you aren’t taking.”

“I don’t like drugs, Wyatt, so don’t climb on that bandwagon tonight, okay?”

“Miss Grumpy, are we?”

She couldn’t stay irritable long with Wyatt around. He had that Texas good-ol’-boy attitude, was a terrible tease in a nice way, and inevitably lifted her out of her low mood. “Hey, getting serious for a moment?”

“I’m always serious where you’re concerned,” Wyatt drawled, giving her a warm look.

She snorted. “Yes, you’ve been acting like a mother hen with me all day today. Shadowing me, keeping a hand on my elbow or against the small of my back in case I might stumble and fall.”

“Ah, the truth comes out now.” His lips quirked.

“I’m not going to use a cane while I’m here, Wyatt. That’s all there is to it. And you need to let me walk on my own and stop hovering around me as if I’m going to fall on my ass any second.”

He moved his fingers to her arch, hearing her groan with pleasure. “Okay, I’ll stop being a mother hen with you. Fair enough?”

“Yes . . . thank you.”

“My family does not see you as a weak woman, darlin’. They know you’re one tough Marine.”

“I just hate showing up like this,” she muttered.

“We all have our prideful moments,” Wyatt said amiably, working each of her toes, hearing her groan with more pleasure. Tal loved to have her feet massaged.

Lindsay McKenna lives her life as a risk taker, and it shines through the
books she loves to write: romance, adventure and suspense. She started writing
at age thirteen and continues to hone her writing skills to this day. She sold
her first romance novel in 1981. The rest is history.

Because she went into the military, this experience became the
backbone of her writing—she is credited with writing the first military romance
novel (Captive of Fate, 1983, Silhouette Special Edition) and has created a
thriving sub-genre within the romance field! As a New York Times Best Selling
author, she has sold 23 million books and in 32 foreign languages in her career
thus far. Her many experiences in the U.S. Navy are backdrop for her
understanding of the military in general, and also her very successful Morgan’s
Mercenaries, which is an ongoing series in Silhouette to this day! Forty-five
books strong!

Lindsay has gone Indie in 2015 and has created a new family saga
on par with Morgan’s Mercenaries It is known as the DELOS SERIES. There will be
paperback and eBooks created under Blue Turtle Publishing, her company for her
fans. Readers who love Morgan and his family are bound to fall in love with the
Culver family. Delos is romantic suspense, which Lindsay is well known for. It
took her five years to create and bring DELOS to her readers. It was worth the
wait, but we’ll let you decide that.

Lindsay loves to hear from her readers and loves to know what
they’d like to see her write next. Stay up with the latest on the Delos Series
here. Please visit her Web site at www.lindsaymckenna.com. And be sure to sign up for her free
quarterly newsletter. It contains exclusive content found nowhere else on the
Net. Plus, giveaways and other surprises, to her loyal and faithful
subscribers!

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RELEASE BLAST! A SISTER’S WISH BY SHELLEY SHEPARD GRAY (@TastyBookTours @ShelleySGray)

September 27, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

A respectable young woman finds herself falling for

an Amish man from the wrong side of the tracks.

A SISTER’S WISH

The Charmed Amish Life #3

Shelley Shepard Gray

Releasing on Sept 27th, 2016

Avon Inspire

In Shelley Shepard Gray’s third book in her Charmed Amish Life series, a respectable young woman finds herself falling for an Amish man from the wrong side of the tracks.

Amelia Kinsinger is the perfect Amish woman—at least according to her neighbors. And while Amelia takes pride in her role as homemaker, she’s also harboring a secret: She’s been in love with bad boy Simon Hochstetler for as long as she can remember. Too bad he’s about as far from “perfect” as an Amish man could get… but that’s exactly why she’s so drawn to him.

Life hasn’t been kind to Simon. He ran away from an abusive home at fifteen and things went downhill from there. Eventually, Simon landed in prison. But the experience changed him. Now back in Charm as a grown man, he’s determined to make a new life for himself and not think too much about his wild past…unless it pertains to Amelia.

He’s loved Amelia for years. To him, she represents everything good and kind in the world. When he realizes that she returns his affections, he starts calling on her in secret, even though her older brother Lukas—who just happens to be Simon’s best friend—has made it perfectly clear that Amelia deserves better. Simon disagrees and believes he’s the only one who can truly make her happy.

But when Amelia gets hurt, it sets off a chain of events that forces them to consider their future together—and face their past mistakes. There’s a chance for love… but only if Simon dares to trust Amelia with the secrets of his past.

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Shelley Shepard Gray is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling
author, a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers prestigious Carol
Award, and a two-time Hold Medallion winner. She lives in southern Ohio, where
she writes full-time, bakes too much, and can often be found walking her
dachshunds on her town’s bike trail.

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RELEASE BLITZ! OBSESSION BY ANN MAYBURN

September 26, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

This is a STANDALONE dark(ish) erotic romance with insta-obsession between two damaged soulmates(no cheating-HEA-no cliffhanger)

Hannah

All my life, I’ve only wanted one thing: someone to love me and someone who will let me love them in return. This seems like a simple request, but I was born to parents who wished I had died of childhood leukemia, instead of my younger sister, and who have ignored me no matter how much I’ve tried to please them. I’m starved for affection, addicted to the feeling when someone cares about me, which has led to a love life filled with either boys I’ve scared off, or men all too eager to take advantage of me. I thought I would never find a man who could feed my craving for constant attention–and then I met Leo. He fills the void inside of me, haunts my dreams, and does things to me in bed that are so good, they’re probably illegal. I can only pray I don’t scare him off once he figures out just how needy I really am.

Leo

There are very few people in this world I’ve ever been able to form an emotional attachment to, but the moment I saw Hannah, I knew she was mine. We were bound together by fate, our paths crossing first as children, then as adults, each time marking me. She doesn’t know it but I’ve been watching her for a year now, studying her, stacking the deck so when I do make my move, there’s no way she’ll ever escape me. But my world is a harsh, cruel place, and the cartel I work for demands absolute loyalty and trust…a loyalty Hannah has yet to earn in the dangerous eyes of my employers. There is only one way to ensure Hannah’s absolute devotion, and I hope that she doesn’t hate me forever when she finds out that not only have I brainwashed her into loving me, but that I don’t feel an ounce of guilt about doing it. She’s mine, only mine, and I’m keeping her forever.

Warning: This story features a rough and demanding Dom who’s completely devoted to bringing his baby girl pleasure through such unconventional means as spanking, mild BDSM, D/S, roleplaying, and various other forms of wicked kinkery.

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With over forty published books, Ann is Queen of the Castle to her husband and three sons in the mountains of West Virginia. In her past lives she’s been an Import Broker, a Communications Specialist, a US Navy Civilian Contractor, a Bartender/Waitress, and an actor at the Michigan Renaissance Festival. She also spent a summer touring with the Grateful Dead-though she will deny to her children that it ever happened.

From a young Ann has had a love affair with books would read everything she could get her hands on. As Ann grew older, and her hormones kicked in, she discovered bodice ripping Fabio-esque romance novels. They were great at first, but she soon grew tired of the endless stories with a big wonderful emotional buildup to really short and crappy sex. Never a big fan of purple prose, throbbing spears of fleshy pleasure and wet honey pots make her giggle, she sought out books that gave the sex scenes in the story just as much detail and plot as everything else-without using cringe worthy euphemisms. This led her to the wonderful world of Erotic Romance, and she’s never looked back.

Now Ann spends her days trying to tune out cartoons playing in the background to get into her ‘sexy space’ and has accepted that her Muse has a severe case of ADD.

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Boys Reading Books

September 26, 2016January 8, 2019 3heather24Leave a comment

EXCERPT REVEAL! A FOOL FOR YOU BY KATEE ROBERT (@TastyBookTours @katee_robert)

September 26, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

It’s just a belated goodbye, right? No harm, no foul.

A FOOL FOR YOU

Foolproof Love #3

Katee Robert

Releasing Oct 3rd, 2016

Entangled: Brazen

It’s been thirteen years since Hope Moore left Devil’s Falls, land of sexy cowboys and
bad memories. Back for the weekend, she has no intention of seeing the man she
never got over…or the two of them getting down and dirty. It’s just a belated
goodbye, right? No harm, no foul.Until six weeks later, when her pregnancy test comes back positive…

Daniel Rodriguez hasn’t forgiven himself for how things went down with Hope all
those years ago. He knows she’s better off without him, but when she shows up
on his doorstep, panicking because she’s pregnant with his baby, he can’t help
seeing it as a chance to make up for the past.

Too bad Hope has no intention of going along with his plans.

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| Entangled

Chapter One

Hope Moore held her breath as she passed the sign declaring Welcome to Devil’s Falls. She hadn’t crossed the town boundary in thirteen years, not since she sat next to an open
grave as they lowered her brother into the ground. Not since she turned her
back on her entire life here, whisked away by her parents to the best medical
facilities Texas had to offer.

She touched her knee. She’d never cheered again, never run track, never done any of the things she’d had planned when she was eighteen and had graduated high school with
stars in her eyes.

Stars in her eyes, and love in her heart.

Neither had lasted past that car crash.

Oh, it had taken the love a lot longer to die than it had her knee, but Daniel Rodriguez made sure she knew where she stood with him.

She caught herself taking her foot off the gas and picked up speed again. There was no telling if she’d see him while she was here, but it couldn’t matter. She’d moved past what
happened that night, moved past the disappointment that she’d almost let sour
everything else about her life. It might not have happened like she planned,
but she’d made the best of her college experience, and she’d gone on to create
a successful little niche for herself, helping people and institutions with too
much money on their hands create trusts and scholarships for those in need.

And now Hope was back in town to finally do that in her brother’s memory.

She pulled onto Main Street, heading for the only lodgings someone out of town with no relatives to stay with would consider—Sara Jane’s B&B. It was a nice little place, but
Sara Jane was nosy to a criminal degree and gossiped more than anyone Hope had
ever come across. The second she checked in and went up to her room, everyone
with a phone would be getting a call letting them know that she was back in
town.

It wasn’t that it was a secret, but she couldn’t help but feel that she’d always be John Moore’s little sister, the one who survived when her older brother—her better in a lot
of ways—didn’t. She knew that was her own insecurity. She’d had too many
years of therapy to believe anything else, except in her darkest heart of
hearts, the place she didn’t let see the light any more than strictly
necessary.

But it was hard to ignore that little voice when driving through Devil’s Falls. No, not through. To. This was her destination.

Her parents hadn’t been too thrilled about her coming back, even for a limited time, but even they couldn’t deny that this scholarship she was here to set up was a good thing—the right way to honor John. He’d been in the middle of a full ride at the
University of Texas when he was killed, and it made sense to set it up to allow
other kids the opportunity he’d never be able to realize.

She pressed a hand to her chest and pulled into the nearest parking spot against the curb. God, even after all this time, it still hurts. Most days it didn’t. He’d been
gone long enough that she’d processed her grief as much as one person could
process grief, and she was able to focus on the good memories.

Most days.

Her eyes focused on the sign she’d been staring blindly at, and she frowned. Cups and Kittens. That was new. In a town as mired in the past as Devil’s Falls, change was something of a novelty. Or maybe she was biased in a negative way, because the only thing this town held for her was memories. Some bad, mostly good, all dust now.

Pathetically grateful for something external to focus on, she climbed out of her car and
looked at the cheery window painting depicting kittens frolicking in between
flowers.

The B&B could wait a little while longer. Her meeting with the town board wasn’t until tomorrow, so there was no reason she couldn’t do a little poking around in the meantime.
Thirteen years was a long time. If anyone had asked her, she would have joked
that she hadn’t expected anything about Devil’s Falls to change while she was
gone.

Apparently she’d been wrong.

She pushed through the door and froze in the face of a pair of cats staring at her from their perch on a table overlooking the big window in the front. The sight surprised a
laugh out of her. “Cups and Kittens, indeed.”

“In the most literal sense.”

She glanced over at the woman behind the counter, a third cat lounging near the register. Familiarity rolled over Hope. “Jules Rodriguez.” Daniel’s little cousin. Not so
little anymore. Last time she’d seen Jules, the girl had been lanky to an
almost awkward degree and had braces with bright green bands. She’d grown up
pretty, and there was more of Daniel about her now than there had been when she
was a kid.

Or maybe I’m just back in Devil’s Falls and seeing Daniel wherever I look.

Jules’s dark eyes cleared. “Hope? What are you doing back in town?” She hesitated. “I don’t suppose you’re here to sweep my brooding cousin off his feet and shove him back
into real life?”

Her mind tripped over itself trying to keep up with the other woman’s verbal gymnastics. Jules had always been like that, now that she thought about it—a bright and bubbly steamroller. She tried to weed her way through what the woman had just said,
but there was only one thing she could focus on. Daniel. Always Daniel. “What
do you mean, back into real life?”

“Well, you know.”

No, she really didn’t. She studied Jules’s face, the way she wouldn’t quite meet her eyes. “Is he okay?” She hadn’t missed the way Quinn Baldwyn had frozen up when she’d
asked that same question a few weeks ago at his sister’s wedding, and worry had
been simmering in the back of her mind ever since, no matter how many times she
told herself it wasn’t any of her business. Daniel was a grown man, and he had
always been more than capable of taking care of himself—and everyone else
around him. Things changed, but she couldn’t see that changing.

Jules shifted, her hand darting out to pet the calico on the counter and then darting away when the cat swiped at her. “Define okay.”

It was none of her business. It stopped being her business a very long time ago.

But that didn’t stop her from clearing her throat and asking, “Is he…is he married?” Did he build the house we always talked about and have those two wild boys and one sweet
girl? Does he bring his wife waffles for breakfast in bed on the weekends?

Oh my God, stop.

But Jules was already shaking her head, her mouth turning down. “Nope. No wife, no kids, no serious relationship in, well, thirteen years.”

Hope blinked. “You’re joking.”

“I wish I was.” A calculating look came into her eyes, but then she shook herself and it was all guileless enthusiasm. “What are you doing for dinner?” She rushed on without
waiting for a response. “We’re having a little thing with Quinn and my friend
Aubry, and, well, I kind of went and married Adam Meyers.”

Some things really do change. She remembered Adam, the wild-eyed boy who’d
grown into a wild-eyed man, better than she remembered Jules. No one had
expected him to come back to Devil’s Falls after he blew out of town that last
time, let alone to settle here and…get married. “Wow. What’s Daniel have to say
about that?”

“He was best man at our wedding.” Jules laughed. “Though he was pretty furious at the beginning. Here, sit down. You look like you could use a coffee, and I’ll tell you the
story since we’re generally pretty dead Thursday nights. Then I’ll close up and
we can go to dinner. The boys will love to see you. Quinn was just talking
about you the other day.”

Hope wasn’t sure she actually agreed to any of it, but the next thing she knew, she was drinking coffee while a cat curled up in her lap and listening to Jules’s wild tale
about a fake relationship that turned into a real relationship. Somehow in the
middle of that, she was bundled up into Jules’s truck, and by then it was too
late to change her mind.

She settled into her seat, consoling herself with the fact that Jules had very specifically not mentioned Daniel’s name. There was no reason to think he’d be there, but it would
be nice to reconnect with some of her old friends. As much as it had hurt when
things went south with Daniel, knowing that she’d lost Quinn and Adam, too, had
just been salt in the wound. She’d chased them around since she could toddle
after her big brother and his friends, and they’d turned into true friends over
the years. She understood why they hadn’t reached out, but she wasn’t going to
turn down a chance to catch up with them.

It would probably be the only nice thing about being back in Devil’s Falls.

…

“Not interested.”

“You haven’t even heard what I’m asking.”

“Don’t need to.”
Daniel Rodriguez leaned down and unbuckled Rita’s saddle and hefted it off the
horse’s back. They’d had a good run today, the hot sun making it impossible to
think too hard about anything other than whether a human being could roast
alive in Texas in August. He hadn’t yet, so that put the odds ever so slightly
in his favor.

All he wanted was to finish here and head back to his place for a cold shower and an even colder beer.

It would just fucking figure that the universe had other ideas. He glanced up, but Aubry
Kaiser hadn’t moved. In fact, with her arms crossed over her chest and her chin
up, all signs pointed to this adding up to an argument he couldn’t possibly
win.

Damn it.

“No.”

She frowned harder.
“It’s your birthday. You can’t just sit at home by yourself.”

“Since it’s my birthday, this is the one day a year I should be able to do exactly that
with no one bitching at me.” He regretted the harsh words almost as soon as
they were out of his mouth, but Aubry wasn’t like his little cousin. She was
meaner than a rattler and twice as likely to bite.

She narrowed her amber eyes at him. “Your cousin misses you.”

That explained why she was out here when he knew for a fact she thought horses were akin to goats—as in, the devil’s own creatures. Hell, she was giving poor Rita a
suspicious look even while guilt-tripping him using the one person in his life
he couldn’t say no to.

Which doesn’t explain why Jules herself isn’t here.

“She sees me on a regular basis.”

“This is your birthday.” Aubry sighed and rolled her eyes, looking put-upon. “Look, it goes like this—Jules has worked really hard to put together a surprise birthday
party for you, and if you don’t show up to be surprised, she’s going to be
crushed.”

He stared. “I don’t want a surprise birthday party.” The fact that it was no longer a surprise said a whole lot about Aubry’s priorities, and he couldn’t blame her for that.

“Look at my face.
This is the face of a woman who doesn’t give two fucks what you care about.
What I care about is Jules, and that means you’re going to go shower off
the smell of that animal and show up at their house in an hour, right on time.”
She paused, her brows slanting down in an expression that was downright
forbidding. “You helped me out not too long ago, so I’m going to do you a solid
and give you the lowdown. Ready?”

Fuck, no. “Sure.”

“Jules is worried about you. Really worried. If you don’t show up tonight, she’s going to take that as a sign to go forward with plan B.”

He knew he was going to regret it, but he still asked, “What’s plan B?”

Aubry gave a tight smile. “A full-scale intervention with everyone in your life, including your parents. The kind where they sit you down in a circle and each speak their mind in the most uncomfortable way possible until you’re ready to beg the ground to
swallow you whole.” Her smile dimmed. “She’s worried about you, Daniel.”

Everyone seemed worried about him, though they usually did him the courtesy of at least trying to hide the looks exchanged when they thought he wasn’t looking. The whispered conversations with his various cousins and his parents. The never-ending work
that was only there because they were throwing him a goddamn bone. It didn’t
seem to matter that he hadn’t done anything requiring an intervention. He’d
just stopped enjoying the company of people, mostly because he was such shitty
company these days. But try telling that to the family, and they acted like he
had just confessed to being an ax murderer.

At least Jules had mostly stayed out of it. Up until today.

He grabbed the curry brush and went over Rita’s back. Aubry was right. Showing up
to a party he didn’t want on a day he sure as fuck didn’t feel like celebrating
was vastly preferable to the alternative. “Explain to me what the plan is.”

She gave a grin that did nothing to reassure him. “Dinner and drinks. It’ll be nice. Adam and Quinn miss you.”

“I see those assholes every day.” Kind of hard not to when they worked the ranch alongside him. It felt right to have Adam back, to have Quinn there, but at the same time
it was a constant reminder that they were a man short.

And it was his fault.

“It’s different and you know it,” Aubry continued, obviously enjoying how miserable he was. She’d always been a mean one, which never failed to amuse him because Jules was her polar opposite—as bright and happy as a spring day. Rita shifted in her stall,
and Aubry went even paler than she was normally. “Dinner starts at six. Don’t
be late.” Then she was gone, moving at a clip fast enough that a less cautious
man than Daniel would call it running.

He waited a good five minutes before he followed, hauling the saddle into the tack room and sorting out the bridle. He didn’t begrudge Quinn his happiness—or Adam, for
that matter—but sometimes it sure as fuck was hard to be around them and their
women. The fact that one of those women was his little cousin barely entered
into it.

He headed for his truck and took the pitted dirt road leading around the edge of his parents’ property to the little house he’d built a few years ago. It wasn’t anything
fancy, but it got the job done, and it was far enough outside town that most
people thought twice before stopping by unannounced.

Most people not including his family.

The shower did nothing to ward off the feeling of pending doom. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Jules or Adam or Quinn or whoever the fuck else was going to be at this damn
party, but he wasn’t in the partying sort of mood. Truth be told, he hadn’t
been in that mood for over a decade. It was almost enough to make him call the
whole thing off, but the knowledge that Jules would have no problem bringing
the party to him got him moving again. Not to mention the potential intervention
he needed like he needed a hole in the head.

At least if he went there, he could hang out for the appropriate amount of time, make his excuses, and slip out while everyone else was occupied. Two hours, tops.

Feeling significantly better, he pulled on a pair of his favorite old jeans and a
T-shirt and grabbed his keys. It struck him as he walked out the door that he
was thirty-fucking-four years old. How the hell did that happen? He
shook his head. He knew damn well how that happened. One day turned into a
week, a month, a year, a decade. All while he kept on keeping, the world
changing around him, but never changing enough.

He glanced at his watch. “Two hours starts when I get there.”

New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Katee
Robert learned to tell her stories at her grandpa’s knee. She found romance
novels at age twelve and they changed her life. When not writing sexy
contemporary and romantic suspense, she spends her time playing imaginary games
with her children, driving her husband batty with what-if questions, and
planning for the inevitable zombie apocalypse.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads

Start the Series Today

COVER REVEAL! ENGAGE BY DREW ELYSE

September 26, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

Coming October 27th

Add to Goodreads now

Once a Disciple, forever a Disciple.

They came for her in the night.
When she wakes, she’s in a cell.
She has no idea if it will help, but it is the only option she has:
She tells them she belongs to the Savage Disciples MC.

A Disciple will fight like a savage when it counts.

Years ago, he lost everything.
Now, the club is the only thing Jager allows himself to care about.
Nothing matters but his Savage Disciple brothers.
At least, until she arrives and he has a decision to make.

This biker has no idea what choosing to engage could mean to a Disciple’s daughter.

Drew Elyse spends her days trying to convince the world that she is, in fact, a Disney Princess, and her nights writing tear-jerking and smutty romance novels. Her debut novel, Dissonance, released in August of 2014.

When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found over-analyzing every line of a book, binge watching a series on Netflix, doing strange vocal warm ups before singing a variety of music styles, or screaming at the TV during a Chicago Blackhawks game.

A graduate of Loyola University Chicago with a BA in English, she still lives in Chicago, IL where she was born and raised with her boyfriend and her prima donna pet rabbit, Lola.

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RELEASE BLITZ! BULL RIDER’S BABY BY NAOMI NILES

September 24, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

Fiercely independent and determined, Meli left New York City and a broken life behind only to discover the playboy, Blake Temple, champion bull rider. Jill, her drinking, drugging, sleep-around sister offered temporary shelter, while Blake renamed her “Silver” for her graceful form and silvery blonde hair, and offered her an entire life. Could she surrender and allow herself to be loved? Only Maudie’s Café in the backwoods of southern Louisiana could offer her the anonymity she sought. So, she left them all behind and found a future of her own. But will love be a part of it?

AMAZON US I AMAZON UK

RELEASE WEEK! OBSESSION BY ANN MAYBURN (@Barclay_PR and @AnnMayburn)

September 23, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

Release Week Celebration: OBSESSION by Ann Mayburn!

What happens when a borderline sociopath and a stage five clinger fall in love?

Leo, a hardened criminal, believes he’s incapable of love until he meets Hannah. Soon he becomes obsessed with the sweet college girl and he’ll do anything to keep her. OBSESSION is great for fans of Anna Zaires’ Twist Me series and A. Zavarelli’s Boston Underworld series.

Visit one of the following blogs September 19^th – 23^rd for reviews and more:

September 19^th

Books According to Tabby

Books, Dreams, Life

Bound by Books Book Review

Candi’s Bookshelf

Carol Kittie Reviews

Close Encounters with the Night Kind

Happily Ever Chapter

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September 20^th

Archaeolibrarian – I Dig Good Books!

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September 21^st

The Voluptuous Book Diva

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September 23^rd

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Underneath the Covers

Title: Obsession

Author: Ann Mayburn

Genre: Erotic Romantic Suspense

Release Date: September 20, 2016

Format: Digital

Hannah
All my life I’ve only wanted one thing, someone to love me and someone who will let me love them in return. This seems like a simple request, but I was born to parents who wished I had died of childhood leukemia instead of my younger sister and have ignored me no matter how much I tried to please them. I’m starved for affection, addicted to the feeling that someone cares about me, and this has led to a love life filled with either boys that I’ve scared off or men all too eager to take advantage of me. I thought I would never find a man who could feed my craving for constant attention, and then I met Leo. He fills the void inside of me, haunts my dreams, and does things to me in bed that are so good they’re probably illegal. I can only pray I don’t scare him off once he figures out just how needy I really am.

Leo
There are very few people in this world I’ve ever been able to form an emotional attachment with, but the moment I saw Hannah I knew she was mine. We were bound together by fate, our paths crossing first as children, then as adults, each time marking me. She doesn’t know it but I’ve been watching her for a year now, studying her, stacking the deck so when I do make my move there’s no way she’ll ever escape me. But my world is a harsh, cruel place and the cartel I work for demands absolute loyalty and trust, a loyalty Hannah has not yet earned in the dangerous eyes of my employers. There is only one way to ensure Hannah’s absolute devotion, and I hope that she doesn’t hate me forever when she finds out that not only have I brainwashed her into loving me, but that I don’t feel an ounce of guilt about doing it.

She’s mine, only mine, and I’m keeping her forever.

Grab your copy here: iTunes | Google Play

Read and Excerpt from OBSESSION:

As I scanned the dance floor, I was surprised by how many couples were dancing so close you couldn’t slip a feather between them. The sexual energy was thick, and I squeezed my legs when a pulse of blood rushed between them. My nipples tingled and I shifted on the couch, tugging my skirt again to make sure I wasn’t flashing anyone.

“Hannah,” Joy said as she elbowed me in the ribs. “That guy is totally checking you out.”

“What guy?”

“That scary-looking one with the sexy hair and psycho eyes.”

“Who?”

“Heavy brow, broad forehead, square jaw, and hair that Thor would be envious over.”

I followed the direction of Joy’s pink-painted fingernail and it didn’t take me long to figure out who she was talking about.

I’d always inwardly snorted when I’d read the description of a woman being struck dumb by the sight of a man, but I wasn’t anymore—’cause I could barely breathe.

He was fascinating, and I found myself unable to look away.

Dressed in a pair of faded jeans that fit his athletic figure like a glove, his body was bigger and stronger than that of any other man around us, including the bouncers. As best I could tell in the club lighting, he had long, thick golden-brown hair that fell to his broad shoulders in messy waves, framing an unusual face that was roughly masculine, all carved cheekbones and thick jaw. Not a pretty boy by any means, or even a boy at all. No, this guy was one hundred percent confident man. His chest appeared impossibly broad and his torso tapered down to a trim waist. Everything about him seemed to reek of health and vitality.

While my gaze wandered his body, my attention was drawn to his solid right wrist, which had a black leather band wrapped around it. I found the sight of that black band incredibly sexy and wondered when the hell I’d developed a fetish for men’s wrists. My breasts grew heavy and this odd…carnal urge began to burn in my belly

The air around me thickened as our gazes met and he strode through the crowd to our table, drawing people’s attention like a magnet. He wasn’t conventionally attractive, his features too heavy, the lines going across his broad forehead too thick, and his nose broken too many times, but he was charismatic in a way I’ve never experienced. I couldn’t blame the crowd for turning to watch him as he stalked towards us. He prowled like a beast and his intense, direct stare turned me on even as his approach made me increasingly nervous.

“Bet he’s got a really thick dick,” Kayla whispered as we all silently watched him.

By the time he reached our couch, we were full-on staring at him, but it was Kayla who spoke first with a flirty little, “Hi.”

Ignoring her, he held out his hand to me and commanded in a deep voice, “Dance with me.”

It wasn’t a request, it was an order, and I felt a sense of almost relief that I didn’t have to worry about making the decision of saying yes or no. How odd. I must be drunker than I thought because I wasn’t alarmed by his domineering manner in the least. Instead, a fuzzy warmth tingled through my body as he kept all of his attention solely on me, despite Kayla’s obvious pouting at being ignored.

After a quick glance at my friends—Joy was staring at him as if he was Channing Tatum doing a full strip tease in front of us—I placed my hand in his, and then tried to jerk away as an electrical charge zapped between us.

The mysterious man gently led me out of the seating area with his hand resting lightly on my lower back, his good manners a direct contrast to his rough image.

Alcohol obliterates the filter between my mind and my mouth so I found myself blurting out, “Why do you want to dance with me?”

He drew me closer, then dipped his face down to nuzzle my ear as he said, “Because you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. What’s your name?”

I desperately wanted to believe him, but a lifetime of being told I wasn’t good enough reared its ugly head and twisted his words inside of my mind, making me hear them as a mocking insult.

“My name’s Hannah, but you don’t have to give me a line. Why did you really ask me?”

He jerked back and looked down at me with a curious expression. “You don’t believe me?”

Anger, mixed with a disconcerting desire, had me tugging away from him. “I don’t want to dance with you anymore.”

When I tried to let go of his hand, his gaze cleared and, for the first time, I felt like he looked at me, really looked at me—then he gave me an utterly charming smile that flooded my panties with desire.

“I guarantee you do.”

Holy hell, I think a small climax fluttered through my clenching sex.

Examining him closer, I was once again reminded that he was a solid man with a presence as big as his frame, drowning me in his heat. When he placed his hand gently beneath my chin and forced me to meet his gaze, I couldn’t find the strength to resist his unspoken control. We studied each other for a moment in the flashing lights of the club, desire curling low in my belly as I drank in his harsh good looks. This was a confident, powerful, intimidating man. The exact opposite of my usual type of guy. I liked smart, quiet, and nerdy. Or at least I used to. My throbbing clit assured me that my tastes in men had changed.

Big time.

Now, mature, dangerous, and built like a professional wrestler seemed to be my preference.

In a way, he did actually remind me of a professional wrestler my cousin used to watch, Triple H. Same heavy brow and deep-set eyes, along with a good dose of menace. The man holding my face as gently as could be was the kind of men others feared, but not me. I had the strangest sense that he’d protect me, if I let him.

He raised my hand to his lips and gently brushed them over my skin, then, when his tongue flicked out to taste me, my nipples became so hard they ached. “One dance. Let me show you how good things will be between us.”

“Will be?” I rolled my eyes even as my panties were wet with desire and my pulse throbbed with growing need. “You sound awfully sure about that.”

“Baby girl, one thing I can promise you is that I’ve never been as sure about anything in my life. Enough talking, I’ve waited what seems like an eternity for this moment. I need to touch you.”

A tremble of need raced through me and the thought and the thought of rubbing my drunk and horny body against his seemed to be the best idea I’d had in ages.

Other books by Ann Mayburn:

Exquisite Trouble

Before I met Smoke I’d never been kissed, really kissed, by a man, let alone a biker sex god bent on taking my virginity and my heart. I got dragged into the deadly world of the Iron Horse MC by my crazy twin sister who is engaged to the club’s President and even crazier mom who only cares about herself. Smoke has been assigned by the club to keep me safe even though he’s everything that I should be afraid of.

He’s the kind of man who lives by his own rules and does whatever he wants whenever he wants, but he treats me like I’m something rare and precious, not a socially dysfunctional basket case who has no idea how to love, but needs him more than her next breath.

Not that my feelings matter, because if we don’t find my mother soon, the only thing I’ll have to be worried about is who is going to kill me first.

Note- This is Part One of Two for Smoke and Swan’s story. The second book, Exquisite Danger, is out now and is the conclusion of Smoke and Swan’s story within the Iron Horse MC series.

Grab your copy: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iTunes

alexandrs-cherished-submissive-cover

Alexandr’s Cherished Submissive

7 years ago

From the moment Alexandr Novikov met the young auburn haired woman bartending at her uncle’s pub in Ireland, he’d been fascinated by her delicate beauty and fiery spirit. Unfortunately, he is in no position to offer her the kind of safe, normal life she deserves so he attempts to put her from his mind for her own good. Something easier said then done when a deal is struck between the Novikov Bratva and the Irish Cleary Gang, an arrangement that includes Alex and his men being on twenty-four hour bodyguard duty with the object of his forbidden desires.

Jessica Venture came to Dublin to spend some time bonding with her birth mother’s family, a connection she desperately needs after losing her adoptive parents within a year of each other back in the States. The last thing she expected was to fall in love with a handsome, mysterious, and sometimes scary man who was well known for his sexual appetite, but rejected her attempts to seduce him.

There are outside forces that will do anything to keep them apart, and Jessica will have to make a desperate choice that will change their lives forever.

Warning: There is light bondage, domestic discipline, spanking, and a F/F scene that is a voyeuristic Doms delight.

Author’s Note: This is part One of Two for Alex and Jessica’s story. In Alexandr’s Cherished Submissive we get a look into the past and the events that shaped Alex and Jessica into the people they are today.

Grab you copy: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iTunes

About Ann Mayburn:

From a young Ann has had a love affair with books would read everything she could get her hands on. As Ann grew older, and her hormones kicked in, she discovered bodice ripping Fabio-esque romance novels. They were great at first, but she soon grew tired of the endless stories with a big wonderful emotional buildup to really short and crappy sex. Never a big fan of purple prose, throbbing spears of fleshy pleasure and wet honey pots make her giggle, she sought out books that gave the sex scenes in the story just as muchd etail and plot as everything else-without using cringe worthy euphemisms. This led her to the wonderful world of Erotic Romance, and she’s never looked back.

Now Ann spends her days trying to tune out cartoons playing in the background to get into her ‘sexy space’ and has accepted that her Muse has a severe case of ADD.

Ann loves to talk with her fans, as long as they realize she’s weird, and that sarcasm doesn’t translate well via text.

Follow Ann:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Amazon | Goodreads

This was a good read but there were a few things that weren’t my cup of tea. I love BDSM relationships and books but I am not a fan of Daddy/daughter roles. Just not my thing.

Leo and Hannah are both damaged in ways that make them wrong for a lot of people and so right for each other. Hannah has been deprived of the thing she wants most in the world, love. When she sees it she tends to be very clingy. Leo knows that she is the one and he will do anything in his power to make sure she is his.

This book has some dark elements to it so be aware of that but I would definitely recommend you take a chance on this couple. You might want to take a walk on the darker side.

BOOK BLITZ! MY FAIR BOGAN BY CHARMAINE ROSS

September 23, 2016January 8, 2019 romancebookwormLeave a comment

Buy now Only on Amazon. Only 99 Pennies!

Blurb:

What is a Bogan? Answer: an uncouth or unsophisticated person regarded as being of low social status. And that’s where the fun begins!

Contemporary romance and best-selling author Charmaine Ross sweeps readers away with another heart-pounding romance with an unlikely ‘My Fair Lady’ meets ‘Cinderella’ twist.

Being picked off the streets and thrust into the political arena of disgraced politician Drake Wilson is challenging on so many levels. But Sally Foster is up for a challenge. Besides, chances like the one on offer doesn’t come to girls like her. Ever. She has to grab this chance with both hands and succeed for the sake of her family. She’s used to handling hard situations, but she’s never had a situation quite like the gorgeous Rhys James, Drake’s assistant, educating her day in night out. Her instant attraction is all consuming — and totally off-limits.

Rhys’ perfect world is turned upside down the moment Sally Foster blunders her way into Drake’s ‘Education for the Masses’ political campaign. If Rhys can succeed and transform Sally Foster, he can transform anyone and Drake’s policy will be funded to help thousands. The challenge isn’t so much the jaw-dropping elocution lessons, or Sally’s colourful language, or even her metamorphosis into an exquisite beauty at the hands of Drake’s personal image professionals. The challenge is keeping his hands and rebellious desires at bay.

Sally is fiery, tempestuous — and the most refreshingly honest woman that has ever walked into his life. Rhys must keep Sally at arm’s distance, but the more they spend time together, the more difficult that becomes.

What’s a girl to do when she’s way out of her league and temptation is just too great to ignore?

A beautifully written contemporary romance story that will sweep you off your feet.

Read An Excerpt…

She peeked out into the hallway. The house was very quiet and very empty. She knew her way to the front door, but that was about it. She’d been taken promptly to her room last night as it had been so late. Her clothes would have to be in a laundry, which would logically be on the first floor towards the back of the house. She flew down the stairs, the carpet making her steps silent and as she reached the foyer, the front door opened before she could dash away unseen.
Rhys stepped inside. His navy business suit hugged every hot-point of his body. The pants stretched on long, lean legs, the jacket enhanced the square line of his shoulder and leanness of his stomach. He wore a crisp white shirt that was tucked neatly into his waist. He smoothed his tie as he moved through the door. He was as suave today as he had been yesterday at the Town Hall. She didn’t realise business suits could be sexy, but on Rhys, it certainly grabbed her attention.
His mouth twitched before he quickly hid it beneath a serious veneer. He cleared his throat. ‘I see Sue found something for you to wear.’
She crossed her arms over her chest. ‘Yes, but light blue track-suits borrowed from five foot nothing Malaysian ladies isn’t my size or style. Look, the legs finish half way down me … my … leg.’ She indicated the hem of the pants flapping about her shin. ‘I was tryin’ to find my clothes from yesterday but they went missing. These were the only things I found and I’m not wearing ‘em any longer than I have to. I look bloody ridiculous.’
Drake came through the door then and also stopped short when he saw her. ‘It is you.’ He peered at her, eyes narrowing and wiggled a finger at her. ‘I almost didn’t recognise you without those sludgy black lines beneath your eyes. You’ll need to do something with that hair, though. Those dark roots make your hair look all greasy. Definitely need to get your hair done before the media catch you looking like that.’
Sally ran a self-conscious hand though her hair. She would have bought hair dye but she’d run short last week. The kids had been hungry when she’d picked them up from school and she’d taken them to Maccas as a treat. They didn’t get many of them.
Sally latched back onto Drake’s voice. ‘Get Mel in, can you Rhys. I can’t have her going around with hair like that. The media are on the look-out for her. Especially O’Brien. You know Suzie, you could be pretty with the proper hair and make-up. Anyway, we’ll see. Come along, there’s no time to lose; I’ve promised Ian Armstrong from Political Correspondent on the ABC you’ll attend an interview sometime in the near future. Marcy Dovenich just called and wants an interview. I can’t believe I’m saying this. The word is getting out about you already!’
Drake shuffled past Rhys and Sally and into an office adjacent to the foyer Sally hadn’t noticed before now. He hovered in the doorway, nose deep in a folder he held. ‘Rhys, you’ll need to start with elocution. And please, make sure to teach her to talk from her mouth. Not her nose.’ He made a face and shuddered before closing the doors on them.
Rhys really needed to have to talk to Drake about the way to spoke about Sally. Drake was known for being able to talk around a deaf man, but he seemed to be totally clueless when it came to Sally. It wasn’t as if this was a half-baked plan. They’d been preparing something like this for a year now. Maybe it was just the circumstances in which Sally was engaged were dubious. And that was completely Drake’s fault.
‘I also don’t have any make-up.’ She swiped her fingers over her face, as though she was embarrassed.
She was fresh-faced, her skin still pink from her recent shower. Without the barrier of that thick black gunk around her eyes, she looked—vulnerable. Young. She smelt of her recent shower. She’d used a florally shampoo with something vanilla-y. There was also a hint of something else that wasn’t artificial. Cinnamon. Her personal brand.
The door to the office opened and Drake poked his head out. ‘Oh and Suzie … don’t think about stealing anything. I have digi-cams located all through this house. I see everything.’
Sally stared open-mouthed at the now shut door. ‘Did he just accuse me of stealing?’
‘Just warning you off stealing. It came out all wrong. Listen.’ Rhys grasped her upper arm as she started to stalk toward Drake’s door. He was surprised at how strong she was for such a slight woman. He let his hand slide down her arm to hold her hand. Warm, soft fingers linked his, fitting together just like they were always meant to. He reluctantly let her go when she stopped walking, liking the feel of her simple touch. ‘Let’s get started. Clothes first, okay?’
She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder at the door. ‘’e’s gunna get it one day.’
‘Temper, Sally.’
A muscle worked her jaw. ‘How can he say that? I haven’t even been here for a day and ‘es accusing me of stealing! Do I look like someone who’s gunna rip ‘im off? Well, do I?’
She didn’t look anything of the sort. She looked like an oversized kitten you didn’t want to anger dressed in a ridiculous, ill-fitting track-suit. Her cheeks were flushed with indignant red, instead of that beguiling pink and her luscious mouth was stretched into a tense line. He liked it when her lips were softer, plumper. They were like that when she didn’t think anyone was looking at her. When she relaxed. She had very kissable lips when she was relaxed. He suddenly wondered what it would be like to press his lips against her pillowy soft mouth. Wondered if they would feel as good as they looked.

Keep Up With The Author…

Charmaine’s first foray into romance was as a fourteen year old where she fell hopelessly and eternally in love with her hero as only a teenager can. Instead of watching movies and staying up late, she would go to bed at eight thirty and continue her very romantic, very safe, love affair.

Since then, she has fallen in love with many heroes, some less safe than what her teenage brain could possibly imagine. After earning a Fine Art’s Degree, a Diploma of Secondary Education and a Diploma of Marketing, she worked as a Graphic Designer in various advertising agencies and as well as in-house marketing roles and is currently involved with digital marketing and everything web in her current position. But she always returns to writing.

Although she has travelled, she always returns to her home town of Melbourne and lives with her husband, two children and two cats in the ferny-greens of the Dandenongs. If she’s not working on her latest romance and falling in love with yet another hero, you’ll find her reading, watching and basically indulging in her addiction to any story on any media type she can get her fingers on.

You can find information about her latest releases as well as excerpts on all of her published books here:
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Happy Reading!