November 23, 2015

Release Day Blitz! Belong, Seven Year Itch #3 by Jennifer Foor


Ten years ago I fell in love with a married woman. I walked away so she could be happy, moving across the country to make sure I put space between us. We severed ties, and I promised myself I wouldn't look back. 

Since then I committed to someone else, and we have a child and a life many would wish for. Except, it's never been enough for me. There's always been something missing; something I never wanted to admit.

With my own marriage failing, I'm forced to go back to my hometown to bury the man who raised me. I never expected to see her there, and nothing could prepare me for what would happen the moment my arms wrapped around hers again.



~*~
"You have every right to assume this can't be anything more than a temporary affair. I don't blame you for being cautious, but there is something I want you to know."

She turned around, finally looking right at me with those hesitant eyes. "What?"

"I still love you." I swallowed the lump in my throat as the words came out, silently praying she wouldn't force me to leave. It wasn't every day that I told someone other than my wife I loved them, but in this instance it was the truest statement I'd ever made. "I feel like I've loved you for a lifetime. It’s true. I have loved my wife, but it’s not the same. It’s always been you, Rach. You’re the only woman I know I’ll never be able to let go of. Staying away was my only option. I did it to protect both of our lives, but there’s nothing standing in the way anymore. Please don't deny us a second chance." I paused one more time. "I need you, just as much as I think you need me."

Her shoulders relaxed, and I watched her purse fall from her grip and hit the concrete ground. She shrugged while staring into my eyes. Her lips were trembling, allowing me to almost sense the connection between us. "I'm not strong enough to be with you again. I can't handle anymore heartache. Being close to you scares me, because I’m tired of the pain and suffering."

I took two steps forward, breaking the distance between us. "I'm not capable of hurting you again, Rach. If you give me this chance I promise I won't let you down. Let me be your friend again, and whatever comes with it will be determined by both of us."

~*~



Jennifer Foor is an award winning Contemporary Romance Author. 
She is married with She's best known for the Mitchell Family Series, which includes ten books.two children and spends most of her time behind a keyboard, writing stories that come from her heart.


Excerpt & Giveaway! Perfectly Imperfect by Harper Sloan




Mirror, mirror ... who's the fairest of them all?

I still cringe when I hear that line. A fairy tale that had girls pretending they were the fairest, the most beautiful, and the most entitled. A fairy tale most couldn't grow out of turned my haunted childhood memories into a living nightmare. Girls who grew up believing that pile of garbage became the meanest of all 'mean girls.'

And those mean girls were right - it was a line meant for all the beautiful people in the world - and I knew the answer would never be me.

The women with long legs, flat stomachs, and perfect chests.

The type of women Kane Masters gravitated toward.

Well, that's definitely not Willow Tate.

No. That will never be me.

Because I'm completely imperfect.

And ... I hate myself.

I have no idea what Kane could possibly see in someone like me when he could have them.



~*~
“Are you nervous right now?”

I nod.

“Tell me why.” His demand, steady and calm, gives me the courage I need to tell him. To open a vein and bleed my insecurities.

“I’m not perfect,” I whisper.

“And neither am I, Willow. I don’t want perfect. What so many see as perfect, to me, is fake. Perfect isn’t achievable naturally. No one, and I mean no one, is perfect.”

I’m shaking my head before he’s even done speaking, but one long finger comes up and presses against my lips before I can speak.

“No, let me finish. There isn’t beauty in perfection. It’s as fake as the image the word projects. Beauty is found in imperfection, Willow, because to admit you’re not perfect means you’re admitting you’re not whole and absolute. When I think of myself, I see someone willing to admit he’s as far from complete as it gets because, in order to get to that perfection, I need to find the other part of me who will make my life better. To take all the faults I have and fill them, and only then will I be there. You see, the way I see it, the only way to become perfect is to find that perfectly imperfect person who brings it out of you.”

When he stops, I swear I might have stopped breathing. How am I supposed to respond to that? 

“Do you trust me?” he asks, his voice strong and sure.

“Yes, Kane. Nerves or not, I do.”

“Then let me show you what I see when I look at you.”

He brings his hands up, framing my face once again in a way I’m quickly becoming addicted to the feeling of. His warm eyes implore, begging me without words to let him continue. I do not intend to stop him, regardless of the butterflies currently taking over my system. I’m all in.
~*~




Harper lives in small town Georgia just a short drive from her hometown of Peachtree City. She (and her 3 daughters) enjoy ruling the house they dubbed 'Estrogen Ocean', much to her husband’s chagrin. Harper has a borderline unhealthy obsession with books; you can almost ALWAYS find her with her eReader attached. She enjoys bad reality TV and cheesy romantic flicks. Her favorite kind of hero--the super alpha kind!
Harper started using writing as a way to unwind when the house went to sleep at night; and with a house full of crazy it was the perfect way to just relax. It didn't take long before a head full of very demanding alphas would stop at nothing to have their story told.



Excerpt & Giveaway! Vegas Love by Jillian Dodd




Hollywood actress, Ashlyn Roberts, just had the worst week of her life. Her ex released a sex tape of them and just when she was convinced her current boyfriend was a keeper for standing by her side, he breaks up with her at a friend’s wedding. She’s planning to drown her sorrows in booze when she meets a sexy stranger as she’s leaving the wedding and they end up in Vegas, married. 

Cash Crawford is offered a dream job working with his brother as a junior talent agent. He’ll put his shiny new law degree to good use and make a bunch of money in the process. His first task is simple: Keep Ashlyn Roberts out of trouble and don’t sleep with her. 

Which might be kind of tough, since they definitely consummated their Vegas wedding. 

Will this one night stand end in the quickie divorce they promised each other? Or will they realize they got lucky in love?



~*~
She pulls me into a limo. “Where are we going?” I ask. Not that I care. At this point, I’d go just about anywhere with this girl. She’s amazing. And I don’t just mean the sex—which was practically mind-blowing. She’s gorgeous and funny as shit.
“Vegas.”
“I’m surprised you’d want to go there after—” She grabs my lips in her fingertips and shuts them, giving me fish lips. 
“Rule number one,” she says. “No talking about the past. Other than I’m going to say that the last two times I’ve been in Vegas have been big disappointments. Give me a minute. I need to make a call.”
“Who are you calling?” 
“Carter Crawford. He doesn’t know it yet, but we’re going to borrow his plane. I happen to know he’s not leaving here until tomorrow afternoon. Do you know him?”
“The best man?” I ask. I consider telling her that I know Carter quite well, since he’s my brother, but I don’t. She wants a no-names-kind-of night. Which is funny considering everyone knows the actress Ashlyn Roberts, who’s well-known for her blockbuster movie roles, red carpet antics, and bubbly personality. 
“After the breakup with Luke and before I started dating Zach, Carter took me to Vegas,” she says, causing me to tense up. Just the thought of her fucking anyone other than me—particularly my brother—threatens to rip me apart. How can I possibly feel so crazy jealous over her already? It was just sex. Wasn’t it? “I thought our trip would be romantic with a whole lot of hot and sweaty, you know, but nothing happened between us. His brother, Cade, is my agent, and he was just trying to cheer me up.”
I breathe easier, then let my lips graze down her neck. “If hot, sweaty, romantic Vegas is what you want, Hotass. It’s what you’ll get.”
“I need a wig though.”
“Why?”
“So no one recognizes me, silly. I have a fake ID. Sometimes, I just want to go out without it being a scene. Tonight is one of those nights.”
“I bet we can find you a wig in Vegas.”
“Ha, you’re right,” she says as I pull her on my lap and kiss her again.

We fuck on the plane.
Twice. 
Drink some more.

When we land in Vegas, we go directly to a store where she sends me in to buy a wig.
“What kind?” I ask. 
“Long and blond.”
“Hot,” I say. 
“While you do that, I’ll get us set up in a hotel.” 
When I get back in the town car, she tells the driver which hotel to take us to.
“I’ve never stayed here before,” she says, pulling on the wig. “You go get the key, okay? I told them your name was Harry Tripping and not to ask for ID.”
“That’s funny.”

We ride the elevator to one of the upper floors and enter a sprawling suite. “Very nice. You have good taste.”
“Only the best for our wild one-night stand.”
A butler appears out of nowhere. “Anything you need?”
“Nothing he can’t give me,” she says, pulling on my tie and giving me a naughty grin.
I send the butler away then lead her over to the windows. “Look at this view.”
“Ohmigawd! Look! The Bellagio fountains are starting!” She leans against the glass and looks down. “Wow. This is kinda trippy.”
I push my hips into her ass, somehow ready for round—hell, I lost count. Two times at the wedding, a blow job in the limo, joined the mile high club twice, so round—six. Doesn’t matter though, my Johnson is raring to go. I wrap my arms around her waist, kiss her neck, and finger her while she watches the fountains rise. She reaches back and slides her hand down my pants. 
“You’re hard again,” she says, seemingly surprised.
“You turn me on,” I whisper.
“Do me right here. I feel like I should say your name—but this is a still a no-names-kind-of night, right?”
“That’s what you wanted. I’m still calling you Hotass because, you”—I lift her skirt, slide off her panties, and slap her naked butt—“have a very hot ass.”
“Oh!” she says when I spank her. She guides me into her and as I start thrusting, she bends over more—putting her arms out and her hands flat against the glass. 
“This is like a fantasy,” she says, moving against me in time with the fountains. “Do you think when they do the big finale you can come?”
“I’d rather make you come.”
“Spank me again, then.”
I pull back, but not out, giving myself just enough space to smack her ass before plunging deep inside her.
“Oh, god! Do it harder! Oh, fuck, yes. Yes. Yes. Yes!”
And just before the fountains stop, she collapses against the window.
~*~



Jillian Dodd grew up on a farm in Nebraska, where she developed a love for Midwestern boys and Nebraska football. She has drank from a keg in a cornfield, attended the University of Nebraska, got to pass her candle, and did have a boy ask her to marry him in a bar. She met her own prince in college, and they have two amazing children, a Maltese named Sugar Bear, and two Labrador puppies named Camber Lacy and Cali Lucy. She is the author of the That Boy Trilogy and The Keatyn Chronicles Series.




Excerpt & Giveaway! Live Me, Pieces of Broken #1 by Celeste Grande



Broken…


Shattered…

How can you begin to live again when you’ve already been forced to…die?

Evangelina Ricci is trapped in a world that’s a never-ending nightmare, a constant ache in which consumes her every breath. Unable to bear the torture any longer, she does the one thing she can to take back control.

Run.

With her best friend Jace in tow, Evangelina attempts to escape her darkened past by leaving for college and diving head first into an aggressive schedule, determined with everything she is to make a name for herself. There’s only one problem—she can’t run away from the demons she struggles with. The demons that’ll forever be there, locked inside, battering her soul. Hiding behind a flawless façade, Evangelina faces her ghosts until her world is turned upside down, invaded by…him.

Blake Turner. Sweet, witty, flirtatious and drop-dead gorgeous, he finds Evangelina at every turn. Scared he’ll uncover the truth she keeps so well guarded, Evangelina tries her best to put on her act, deterring him like she has so many times before—only this guy’s different. He’s relentless. Utterly, absolutely and completely relentless. He sees her and he wants her and won’t stop until she’s his.

Will Evangelina succeed in pushing Blake away? Or will he break down her walls and be the person to make her realize life is worth living?


~*~
I drew my knees into my chest and began to sing. In hysterics, my fingernails gouged holes in the flesh on my shins. The words barely made it past my lips as salty tears invaded my mouth. Right here, I wanted to forget the person who did this to me, who made me this way.

You were only waiting for this moment to be free.

God help me. I couldn’t do this anymore. I just wanted to end it. That would be the only way to make it better. Free myself of the agony. Living this way just wasn’t worth it anymore. I might as well finish myself off all at once instead of shutting down one cell at a time.

I ripped the portals of torment from my ears and threw them down in disgust. “Please, God. Give me a sign. Something. Anything. What am I supposed to do?” I shivered, a weeping lump of flesh.

The silence around me was deafening. The only sound was the sporadic hitch of air that came from your chest after a good bout of hysterics.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Hitch.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Hitch. Hitch.

Frantically wiping up and down my face, I dragged myself off the lounge chair. Going to the perimeter of the roof, I peered down, wondering what it would feel like to free fall to the bottom. Take hold of my fate and say fuck it. Break these chains and finally be free.

I pulled myself up and over the cold cement rail and settled my back against it. Holding on, I stared down at the tiny cars as I inched up on my tippy toes and leaned forward. Maybe I could fly like a blackbird. Dragging my bottom lip between my teeth, I creeped further, teetering on the edge. My stomach lurched, and I swallowed hard.

Pussy.

Another breath and I pushed back, unable to go through with it. That prick wasn’t worth ending my life over. He’d already taken too much of me; I couldn’t allow him that as well.You were only waiting for this moment to be free.

~*~


Celeste Grande grew up loving words. From an early age, it was easy for her to open her heart through pen and paper and come away with something poetic. She never thought anything more than releasing her emotions would come of it though. A workaholic that can’t keep still, in her ‘real’ life, she’s a Certified Public Accountant who dreams of writing sexy books all day long. When she isn’t working, she’s reading, writing, mommying and being a wifey to the love of her life.
She lives in New York, still putting pen to paper and anxiously awaiting the debut of her first novel, Live Me, a new adult romance, in October of 2015.




November 21, 2015

Diana's Reviews!! A Kindled Winter by Rachel L. Demeter


“Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it’s Christmas.” — Dale Evans

A week before Christmas, Jeseca Reed sets off for Blue River, Oregon—her childhood home and a vault of tender memories. However, fate takes an unexpected turn when she’s left stranded in the mountains’ vast, untamed wilderness. Desperate and alone, she seeks shelter at a cottage and finds herself in the arms of a mysterious stranger.

Dr. David Drake was once a renowned cardiovascular surgeon. But a devastating tragedy has left him scarred both inside and out, unable to use his hands to operate again. For the past five years, his Blue River cottage has been his sole escape—a safe haven where he can shut out the world, bury himself in his grief, and reunite with his son’s memory.

Together they are summer and winter. Fire and ice. And yet a poignant connection forms between them. Jeseca awakens David and thaws his heart with a romance hot enough to melt snow. But before David and Jeseca can fully embrace each other, they must wade through darkness and confront the ghosts of their pasts …

Equal parts steamy and heartfelt, A Kindled Winter brings the spirit of the holidays to life with a passionate story of second chances and healing love. 



“Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it’s Christmas.” 

A Kindled Winter is a short story of two people who find love in unexpected circumstances. 

On her way to visit her mother for Christmas in Blue River, Oregon, Jeseca Reed stumbles upon Dr. David Drake, a damaged man who lives his life surrounded by loneliness. 

The two of them come from different worlds: after he lost his beloved family and the job he dedicated himself to, David got used to being withdrawn, guarded and being away from people. On the other hand, Jeseca is his opposite: she comes from a big city, she’s surrounded by people every day, she’s full of life. 
But the one thing they have in common is that both of them lost the people they had loved.

“Ever since the accident, he’d distanced himself from humanity—and rightfully so. He’d found a fragile contentment within his self-imposed solitude—and, in an unexpected twist of fate, Jeseca Reed was changing everything.”

I think that the author proved she can write contemporary romance as well as she does historical romance. Given the fact that the story is short, she kept it simple and very easy to follow. She focuses on the two characters and how their relationship develops: from two complete strangers, their relationship grows in just a matter of days. 

“Then David surprised himself and flashed her a genuine smile. It was the first smile he’d gifted anyone since the accident, and he momentarily felt his heart open to this strange woman.”

One thing I liked was the strong connection between Jeseca and David. She is capable to make him open up to her and confront his past, and realize that he may have a second chance at love and happiness after all. 

“Suddenly, David was struck with a ridiculous thought. He yearned to wrench away those hideous glasses, press his lips against the smooth patch of skin between her brows and inhale her lemony scent… 
I’ve been alone far too long…

I think the message the author transmits is that everyone should be given a second chance, because these are rare and we should take the opportunity to right things whenever they go wrong. 

I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a well-written novel or just a short story based on the things that really matter in life. 




I live in the beautiful hills of Anaheim, California with Teddy, my goofy lowland sheepdog, and high school sweetheart of eleven years. I enjoy writing poignant romances that challenge the reader’s emotions and explore the redeeming power of love.

Imagining dynamic worlds and characters has been my passion for longer than I can remember. Before learning how to read or write, I would dictate stories while my mom would jot them down for me. I hold a special affinity for the tortured hero and unconventional romances. Whether crafting the protagonist or antagonist, I ensure every character is given a soul.

I endeavor to defy conventions by blending elements of romance, suspense, and horror. Some themes my stories never stray too far from: forbidden romance, soul mates, the power of love to redeem, mend all wounds, and triumph over darkness.

My dream is to move readers and leave an emotional impact through my words. ♥

Excerpt, Author Interview & Giveaway! Out of Chances, Face the Music #4 by Shona Husk

 

Shona Husk’s sexy new adult series about emerging rock band Selling the Sun concludes this month with a story about a woman who doesn’t want to connect, a man who’s forgotten how and the friendships that save our lives.

Dan Clarke knows he doesn’t have a problem, regardless of whatever his band members, his friends, his family and everyone else thinks. Drinking isn’t keeping him from doing what needs to be done, and it helps keep the anger and pain of his ex-girlfriend’s betrayal at bay. If only she would stay away as well, but, since the band’s return to Fremantle, she’s everywhere-on the phone, in his apartment, at his parents’ house-begging for another chance, reminding him of how good they had been together, holding him hostage to the past. It’s no wonder he needs a beer now and again.

Indigo Matthews is all about control: she trains hard, she works hard and she plays hard. Men are for fun, not forever, and she will never end up like her mother, trapped and miserable. A huge Selling the Sun fan, Indigo knows when Dan wanders into her bar that he is a conquest that she has to make. But their connection is stronger than just sex, and regardless of her credo Indigo finds herself going back for more. Then truths about Dan’s life start to emerge, and Indigo finds herself in the one position she swore she’d never find herself.

A DUI, a drunk one night stand and an ultimatum from the band bring Dan’s life to a halt. Picking up the pieces is something he can’t do alone, and there’s only one person that he trusts to give a damn. The one person that he hurt the most. Indigo.

~*~
At the man’s table she stopped, hip cocked to the side. ‘My buddy over there says that you’re no one famous. I think you are.’

He smiled, but it was cautious. ‘Who do you think I am?’

‘I have five bucks that says you’re the bass player from Selling the Sun.’ There was no money on the table, and the guy she was working with didn’t give a damn, but that didn’t stop nerves from pushing her heart harder or her hands from feeling a little slippery on the tray.

‘And if I am?’ He leaned back and his smile broadened.

‘A free beer?’ She put the one he’d ordered on the table.

He nodded. ‘I am.’

‘Prove it.’ Anyone could say that they were.

‘Drivers licence okay? Or do you require a full hundred points?’ He was still smiling as though this was a game. ‘But that will only work if you know my name. Do you?’

‘What kind of fan wouldn’t, Dan Clarke?’

He lifted one eyebrow as he reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out his wallet. He flipped it open, covered his address with his thumb and showed her his name. Daniel Sean Clarke. ‘Happy?’

She nodded, more than happy. Her happy was doing its own happy dance. Now for part two of her daring plan. She’d never slept with any one close to famous, and while she’d fancied Dan from the audience of the concerts, he was here now, right in front of her. She could reach out and touch him. She resisted. Just. ‘What are you doing later?’

‘How much later?’ His blue eyes took on a guarded look, as though he wasn’t sure where this was going.

She didn’t buy that for a moment. He’d broken up with his girlfriend and he must get hit on all the time. Indigo checked her watch. An hour and a half left of her shift. That was probably too long, yet there was no way she could have him out the back of the pub in the middle of the afternoon—no matter how appealing that seemed right now.

‘I finish in ninety minutes.’

‘And then?’ He drew a line in the condensation on his glass, his gaze firmly on her. He was waiting for her to make it clear. Maybe he wasn’t that interested. She could walk away, opportunity taken and declined. But he hadn’t said no.

So she gave a shrug as though the outcome didn’t matter. ‘We do whatever two consenting adults feel like.’

‘Are you hitting on me?’

‘Did I not make it clear enough for you?’ Did he not want to be hit on or was he not as smart as he appeared? She didn’t like either of those options.

Then he smiled and gave her a slow, lingering look that seemed to take in everything, from the top of her head down to her ass. ‘Just checking … I get that free beer while I wait?’

She nodded. She’d kind of promised him that anyway. Was he more interested in the beer than her? She drew in a breath, ready to blow him off at the first sign of rejection. Get in first before she got hurt was her motto.

Dan picked up the glass and took a sip, his gaze still on her. ‘Well, I guess the only question left is your place or mine.’


Do you plot or just follow your muse?

A little of both. I like to know my characters and the main plot points before I start writing, but how I get to those main points is a mystery and there is often a bit of scene shuffling in the middle to get it all together.

Coffee, tea or wine?

Hot chocolate. I don’t like coffee or teas (except peppermint tea) and I don’t drink very often—I don’t mind a good chocolate martini, I have had bad ones ☹

Where did the idea for this story come from?

Out of Chances is book 4 in the series. When I wrote book 1 (Out of Rhythm) I know all the characters really well, but I hadn’t planned on writing their stories (of course when Escape Publishing asked for them I said yes). Dan was in a difficult situation. And I could’ve forced the story to take another route, but I haven’t shied away from writing real issues in this series (it’s NA and people are finding their adult feet, mistakes are made and people have to move on, that’s life). Dan was a complex hero, although some people may not see him as heroic at all, he does grow and change and realize his mistake which shows a strength of character.

Where is Fremantle, WA and why there not somewhere more well-known?

Fremantle is near Perth Western Australia. I chose to set the books there instead of Sydney or Melbourne because I love Freo (as the locals call it) and it has a great live and local scene. Lots of great bands got their start there, so it seemed like a good starting point for my fictional band Selling the Sun.

You seem to like heroes that are a little broken…why?

I don’t like my heroes or heroines to be too perfect. Flawed people are always more interesting—and we are all flawed in our own way. Even though I might write paranormal or sci-fi I want the characters to be relatable. When writing contemporary romance I want the reader to feel as though the character could be a friend or their neighbour or someone they went to school with.

What’s next?

I’m working on Ripley’s story (he is one of Dan’s friends). I’m also working on the sequel to Desire to Fall (science fiction romance), which is getting quite dark.



Join my new releases newsletter to keep up to date: http://mad.ly/signups/119074/join

SHONA HUSK is the author of the Shadowlands, Court of Annwyn and the Face the Music series. You can find out more information about Shona at www.shonahusk.com or follow her on Twitter @ShonaHusk, or Facebook www.facebook.com/shonahusk

Face the Music, a contemporary romance series, finishes in November 2015 with Out of Chances.

New SFR series coming soon with Desire to Fall.


On Repeat! Carrie Underwood - Relapse



November 20, 2015

Happy Release Day! Exclusive Excerpt & Giveaway: Fate by Rob Rosen



Eddie is in love. The problem is, Eddie’s in love with four men... four men simultaneously, that is. But who does Eddie love more? And can the heart feel for that many men equally? Ah, but it does have four chambers, so four seems the most logical choice... at least, of course, to Eddie.



Paula is Eddie’s famous mom. One by one, each of his lovers comes to work for her, their lives so connected that if one of them itches, another one scratches. But who will wind up with whom in this hysterically funny tale of life and love and friendship? In the end, it’s up to fate to decide what none of them could possibly have seen coming.

~*~
He didn’t say anything. There was a pause, and then he pushed himself up until his face was just above my own. I stared up into his eyes. The room was dark, but I could still make out the faintest shade of blue. “Say it,” he whispered.
“Say what?” I whispered back.
“Say that you wanted me to kiss you.”
His face moved in even closer. The room was hot, hotter still by the sheets and the blanket and him hovering above me. “I wanted you to kiss me because we were best friends and you were leaving me forever.”
He chuckled, the vibration travelling through the bed and up into my chest. “Not so forever though, huh?”
And then there was that kiss again. Only it wasn’t the kiss from before. Brian wasn’t seven anymore and this wasn’t a fleeting goodbye. In fact, this was more of a hello, nice to see you, let’s stay like this until our lips need a crowbar to pry them apart. And, guess what? There were no crowbars in the minifridge. Not even a fingernail clipper. Nope, all there was, was me and him kissing as if nine years hadn’t even been nine seconds and he didn’t have a girlfriend and our mothers weren’t in the next room.
If that previous kiss all those years earlier had been my first kiss, then the second one was one hell of an encore. My mom would kill for such an encore, in fact. You see, among everything else in the universe, it was unique and perfect and wouldn’t ever be forgotten, not when I was thirty, not when I was eighty.
When at last he broke free, his face still above mine, he smiled. “And why did you let me kiss you this time then?”
I pulled my hand up above the sheets and blanket and ran it through his thick mane of hair, just like I’d always wanted to do. “Because we’re best friends.”
His lips again touched down on mine before he resumed his position. “Are we?”
My hand caressed his cheek. There was a light stubble there. I wondered if he could grow a beard, or if he would in a year or two or six. “I don’t know what we are. It just felt like the right thing to say. Does that make sense?”
He nodded. “Do you believe in fate, Eddie?”
My body suddenly tensed and then relaxed. There was that word again: fate. It felt as if he had hit me with it. “You think fate brought us together again, or that it brought us together the first time?”
His hand also rose from beneath the covers before finding its way through my hair, his fingers lightly raking across my scalp, sending a million little goosebumps up my arm. “When I saw you standing in the parking lot earlier tonight, that’s the first word that popped into my head.” The kiss repeated. I was shocked that it was even more amazing than the last. “So do you?” he asked, when again he moved his lips away.
My eyelids fluttered open. “Do I what?”
“Believe in fate?”
Yes, I did in fact. Though I was scared to admit it. Scared that I’d be tempting it. I was sixteen. This was all new to me. And so I replied, “Well, my mom is pretty damned funny, but not worth travelling all the way from Pittsburg to see.”
“So that’s a yes then?”
I pulled him in, my arms wrapped tightly around him. I kissed him in reply. That felt safer than a yes. That felt more honest, at any rate. That felt, like I’ve said, perfect.

~*~


Rob Rosen is the author of the critically acclaimed novels, Sparkle: The Queerest Book You'll Ever Love, the Lambda Literary Award Nominated Divas Las Vegas, which was the winner of the 2010 TLA Gaybies for Best Gay Fiction, Hot Lava, Southern Fried, the Lambda Literary Award Nominated Queerwolf, Vamp, Queens of the Apocalypse, Creature Comfort and the Lambda Literary nominated Fate. His short stories have appeared in more than 200 anthologies. You can find 20 of them in his erotic romance anthology, Good & Hot. He is also the editor of Lust in Time: Erotic Romance Through the Ages, Men of the Manor, Best Gay Erotica 2015 and Best Gay Erotica of the Year, Volume 1. Please visit him at www.therobrosen.com and on Facebook


Excerpt & Giveaway! Something Like A Love Song by Becca Burton




One tragic night left Landon and Dylan’s dreams of happily ever after in apparent ruin. Forced to overcome physical and emotional trauma, the young lovers turn to a network of family and friends as they attempt to rebuild their lives. But can their one constant—their love—survive the changes both undergo on the road to recovery?


~*~
Landon's bed is in the center of the room, and Dylan’s heart begins to pound in his chest as he takes a step forward, hesitates. Landon looks so small, tucked into the middle of the bed, and everything about the scene is unnatural and wrong. His head is wrapped with thick bandages, for which Dylan is grateful—he isn't sure he could handle that. Just the thought of what's happening to Landon, to his fiancé, is enough to make his throat constrict, his chest tighten.

A ventilator tube parts Landon's lips, and his chest rises and falls in equal, rhythmic whirrs. IVs line his arms; the wires snake from under his hospital gown. His freckles stand out starkly against the unnatural pale hue of his skin, except where the deep purple of a bruise creeps from under the bandages and swells down to his left cheekbone. It seems impossible that only hours ago they were laughing in the park, holding hands and eating ice cream from the small corner stand; it’s like some distant memory, a fading dream. But the ache deep in Dylan’s chest, the way his stomach is knotting itself, the too-clean smell of the hospital burning his nose, Landon's face, battered and bruised—Dylan can't look away—all this is too real to be a dream, no matter how badly Dylan wants to just wake up, wants all this to go away and everything to be okay.

"You can touch him, if you want," Brittany says, her voice soft. "We need to make sure to reduce extra stimulation, to allow his brain time to recover, but it's okay to hold his hand."

Dylan looks up at her. Her smile is kind and understanding. Then he turns back to Landon and takes a small step forward. Landon's hand is right there, resting above the covers, and Dylan doesn't know why he's so nervous; he's held Landon's hand more times than he could begin to count. But, surrounded by machines and tubes, Landon has never looked so utterly fragile, as if he could shatter at the lightest touch.

"It's okay," Brittany says from behind him, and Dylan squeezes his eyes shut, tears pricking behind his eyelids. "You won't hurt him."

Landon's skin is cold; his hand is unnaturally still. Even in sleep Landon's hand would always find Dylan's, their fingers would curl together like a reflex.

Not now.

"I'm so sorry," Dylan whispers, holding on a little tighter. "I'm so..."

His voice catches, the words bottling up in his throat, unable to escape. Landon's chest rises, falls, in, out.

In, out.

"You're so hurt, and it's my fault," Dylan manages, his voice barely audible above the machines keeping Landon alive. "It's all my fault and I'm..." He exhales slowly. "I'm so sorry."

He swipes his thumb across Landon's knuckles, over the dips and grooves, and vaguely notes that Brittany has left them alone. He sinks down into the small chair beside the bed, not letting go of Landon's hand."You need to fight, okay? I need you here, with me, and I can't..." There's nothing left inside him except an empty, hollow feeling and the knowledge that Landon can't hear him. Landon’s engagement ring is in a dish on a table beside the bed, along with his watch, and Dylan fishes them out and tucks them into his pocket.

~*~


Becca Burton penned her first Nancy Drew fan fiction at the age of nine and has been an avid writer ever since. Currently working as a Neonatal Intensive Care nurse, Becca is a recent Oregon transplant from the Midwest. Becca has a weakness for coffee, the smell of old books, rainy days and her cat, Luna. Something Like a Love Song is her first novel.



November 19, 2015

Release Day Blitz! Excerpt & Giveaway: What Happens at Christmas by Jay Northcote



When two friends pose as boyfriends, could what happens at Christmas turn into something more?

Justin is recently and unhappily single. Christmas is coming, and he doesn’t want to face his ex alone at their office party. So Sean—Justin’s best mate and long-time secret crush—volunteers to go with him and pretend to be his new flame.

Sean has always lusted after Justin from afar, but there’s never been a good opportunity to ask him for more than friendship. Posing as Justin’s boyfriend isn’t a chore, and if Justin wants to rebound onto him, Sean’s more than willing. At the party pretence and reality blur, and a kiss on the dance floor leads to a night of passion.

In the aftermath, they both assume it was a one-time thing until fate intervenes. Stuck together in London over the holidays, they give in to temptation again. But what happens at Christmas stays at Christmas... right?


~*~
Justin’s phone chimed with a text, interrupting Sean’s train of thought.

Justin picked up his phone to read the message. “Ugh.” He put the phone back down without typing a reply and ran his hands through his hair.

“What’s up?”

Justin sighed. “It’s our work Christmas party next weekend. I’ve already got a ticket, and nearly everyone in the office goes, but it’s for partners as well. One of my co-workers, Jess, is bugging me to come, but I can’t face it. I bet Andy’s going to bring his new boyfriend. I know he’s a shit and I shouldn’t let him get to me, but the thought of him parading around with my replacement, and me being there on my own, isn’t very appealing.”

“Is it too late to find someone to take?”

“No, they don’t need final numbers till Monday.”

“Well, then. Take someone else and flirt like crazy in front of him. Show him you can do better and that you’ve already moved on.”

“But I’m not ready to date. It’s only been two weeks, and I’m still at the feeling-sorry-for-myself stage.”

“I’ll go with you,” Sean offered. “I could be your date. We could pretend we’ve got together and are a couple now.”

“Yeah?” Justin looked thoughtful. “Are you sure?”

Duh. It would hardly be much of a sacrifice to flirt with Justin all night. It would actually be a relief not to have to hide the way he felt for a change.

“Sure,” Sean replied. “I think I can manage to fake that I’m arse-over-tit infatuated with you. As long as it’s only for a few hours.”

“Gee, thanks.” Justin rolled his eyes. “You really know how to make an already-wounded ego feel better. But if you’re up for it, we should totally do it. Andy was always jealous of you before you went away. He saw you as competition because we lived together and were so close. I’d love to see his face when I walk in with you on my arm. I think he’ll hate it even if he’s moved on.”“Okay.” Sean rubbed his hands together, excited at the prospect of getting to piss off Andy. “Let’s do it! Text your friend Jess back and tell her you’re in—with a hot date.”
~*~


Jay lives just outside Bristol in the West of England, with her husband, two children, and two cats.

She comes from a family of writers, but she always used to believe that the gene for fiction writing had passed her by. She spent years only ever writing emails, articles, or website content. One day, she decided to try and write a short story–just to see if she could–and found it rather addictive. She hasn’t stopped writing since.