Excerprt & Giveaway! Catch My Heart: A Valentine's Collection by Lyssa Layne

No one said love was easy. No one said love was perfect. No one said love didn't hurt. No one said love would last forever. Follow these characters from your favorite Lyssa Layne books as they experience Valentine's Day in an unexpected, non-traditional fashion… Love is a Fire/Burst Into Flame - Andy Garrity lost the love of his life almost three years ago. Giving in to his daughter-in-laws, he decides it's time to get back in the saddle and go on a first date for the first time since high school. Before he even meets his mate, Andy's having second thoughts and ready to pass on this opportunity at love. Everybody's After Love/My Favorite What If - James Paul and Brianna Rossi are expecting their second child in less than a month. Brianna can't wait to have a daughter while James Paul is thrilled to have a new princess to spoil. Brianna has the perfect day planned for her husband until she’s blindsided in a way she never imagined. Loved by the Linebacker - Recovering from a torn ACL, Blake Purser isn't used to taking it easy. He also isn't used to not having his best friend, Camila Lemos, spend more time with her boyfriend and his brother Evan than him. His long-time on-again, off-again girlfriend, Molly Feiser, is doing her best to entertain him during the off season but Blake isn't prepared for her latest news. Holding the Other - Lee Maverick and Miranda Wallen are the king and queen of country music. The married couple have ruled the charts for the last ten years and fans love the chemistry between them. Before the night is over, this Valentine's Day will be one for the records. My Favorite What If - Sloan Talbott and Jacob "Smitty" Smith are spending their first Valentine's Day as a couple. In the short time they've been together, they've carved out the perfect nook for just the two of them. Having spent the last six months in Italy, it's time they head back to the States and learn to be together with their meddling families surrounding them 24/7. Love's not easy. Love's not perfect. Love hurts. Love doesn't last forever. Can these couples endure love at its ugliest or will it break them down more than they can endure?

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Sloan fingers walk up my chest, grabbing my shirt and forcing me to look down at her. Her eyes glimmer with sensuality and I know exactly where her mind is going. Leaning down, our lips barely touch and the passion is ignited. With a shrill squeal, I scoop her into my arms as though we’re newlyweds about to cross the threshold for the first time. Sloan nibbles on my neck and I moan as I walk us toward the bedroom, ready to christen our new bed. “You gonna give me the chance to marry you and do this for real?” I ask, already knowing the answer. “Not a chance in hell.” I chuckle as I set her on the bed, tugging my shirt off. “I’ll get you to change your mind some day.” Sloan pulls her own shirt off, leaving me licking my lips at the sight of her in just a black lacy brassiere. Teasing me, she runs her index finger from her collarbone between her breasts, licking her lips and keeping direct eye contact with me. The tip of her finger slips inside her bra and I bite my lip, wanting to replace her hand with mine, but am way too turned on by her own handiwork to stop her. “Maybe one day, when we’re old and gray,” Sloan says, drawing out her words and speaking in barely a whisper. She stands up, wiggling her hips and pushing her pants to the floor. Now she’s in just her black lace bra and thong. She turns her back to me, crawling over our king size bed and I reach out, running my hand over her perfectly tight runner’s ass. Sloan stops moving forward, placing her hand on top of mine and leaning up on her knees. Her back is against my chest, our bodies flush against each other’s and I squeeze my hand tightly around the handful in my touch. “I don’t want easy right now, Smitty. I want you, me, and passion.”

Lyssa Layne is first, and foremost, the proud momma to her precious daughter, AR. In addition to working full-time and being a mommy to AR, she is also an avid St. Louis Cardinals fan, a runner, blogger, and an infertility survivor. Having watched one too many medical dramas and being inspired by author Rachelle Ayala, who introduced her to the world of indie writing, Lyssa decided to try her hand at writing a romance story. Her attempt turned into the Burning Lovesick series. You can find Lyssa’s own interests throughout her stories although all stories are fictional.

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Excerpt & Giveaway! Even Angels Fall by F.L. Darbyshire

After suffering an unthinkable loss, Abbey Miller and her family move to Leeds to rebuild their lives and start again, but the pain and grief that Abbey carries with her is impossible to escape. As she finds herself becoming increasingly isolated from her family, she develops a firm friendship with Lucy, Nathan and Liam, who introduce her to a brand new and exciting world, far removed from all of her problems. But will her new friends bring her the light hearted relief she has longed for? Or will she find herself getting drawn deep into their dangerous and intoxicating world?

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Abbey is genuinely surprised at how easy it is to sneak out of the new house. She goes downstairs in her pyjamas to set up her alibi and make it seem as though

she is getting an early night, being careful not to make too much of a show and rouse suspicion. Once she is back in her bedroom, she gets ready as quickly and as

quietly as possible – occasionally creeping over to the door to listen out for approaching footsteps while doing her hair and make-up. There are a few brief moments of doubt when her conscience almost gets the better of her, but she is still so angry with Janet and Peter that those moments don’t last long. Her window opens fully and is more than big enough for her to climb out of, and her bedroom is thankfully on the side of the house that adjoins to the garage, the roof of which is only a metre and a half below. If that wasn’t the case, her mission might have failed.

Abbey throws her bag as gently as possible into the bushes below, before sitting on the windowsill and swinging her legs round so that she is facing outside. She carefully lowers herself down as far as she possibly can – and with a quick glance back – let’s go of the window frame. There is a dull thud as she lands and she

waits a moment, listening intently for any movement inside the house. Satisfied that she hasn’t been heard, she stands on her tiptoes and pushes the window to, so

that it is only open an inch. There is a drainpipe next to it that she can use to climb back in, but she will worry about that part later.

Abbey hurries across the garage roof, climbs down onto the garden wall and drops onto the driveway, looking back at the house one last time as she dusts herself off and dashes out into the street. There is still a part of her that can’t believe what she is doing but she won’t turn back now. 

Lucy, Nathan and Liam are waiting for her outside the Co-op down the road and their expressions flit between shock and admiration as she approaches.

“We didn’t know if you’d make it…!” Lucy shouts, as Abbey crosses the road towards them.

“I said I was coming didn’t I?” She greets Lucy with a hug; followed by Liam and Nathan – instantly forgetting about her worries and the huge amount of trouble she could potentially be in.

“I got some booze already… you like vodka right?”

“Sure, vodka’s fine…” Abbey isn’t much of a drinker so she can’t really say what alcohol she does like. She had turned 18 in February – two weeks before the move

to Leeds – and needless to say there wasn’t much celebration involved. 

It was a milestone birthday but it was also a stark reminder of what Ryan would never experience. He would never drink, never drive, never vote. He had died four days shy of their 17th birthday, so the last two have passed by with no real festivities

at all. They have become a more sombre occasion, and in a way Abbey feels as though she is betraying Ryan by getting older, almost as if she is leaving him

behind. She is moving forward, while he is frozen…forever sweet sixteen.

After a 15 minute taxi drive through Leeds, past the train station and out towards the bottom end of town, they stop at a modern, high rise building on the outskirts

of the city next to the water of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal. They pay the driver and approach the main door, where Liam presses a button for flat 38. There is a pause, then a click.

“Yeah…?”

Liam leans forward, putting his mouth right up to the speaker as he shouts in a stupid voice.

“EASY BRUVVAAAA…!” Whoever’s on the other end of the intercom responds in exactly the same way, and the buzzer sounds, releasing the door. Lucy rolls her

eyes as the four of them make their way inside.

They ride the elevator up to the ninth floor and walk down a long narrow corridor that is painted and carpeted in neutral colours. Various pieces of modern art hang on the walls and large free standing vases are placed sporadically along the passage way.

“Wow, this is really nice…” Abbey wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t something this up market.

“Yeah, Alex has a pretty high paying job…” Liam laughs and the three of them glance at each other as if sharing a private joke. Once again Abbey feels a little

left out, but at least she is here with them. They have included her by bringing her along tonight and she reminds herself that she should be grateful for that. 

As the four friends approach the very end of the hallway and flat number 38, Lucy reaches up to knock, but before she has a chance, the handle turns and the door

swings open unexpectedly. Abbey stares, wide-eyed and breathless, as everything around her fades into the background. Time seems to stand still and in that

fraction of a second, her whole entire universe shifts.

“What time do you call this…?” The man standing in the doorway asks his question in a deep Irish accent that flows so beautifully, it is almost surreal. He is tall,

with dark brown hair that is styled into a slight quiff at the front. He is wearing faded jeans, a grey V-neck T-shirt and a set of silver rosary beads that hang just past his chest. He is incredibly lean and toned, with the muscles in his arms standing out in stark contrast to his slender frame. He has incredibly chiselled features with a few days’ worth of stubble and the most piercing, electric blue eyes that Abbey has ever seen.

“We’re not that late! We just had to go pick Abbey up…!” Lucy kisses him on the cheek as she enters the flat and Abbey follows behind, smiling timidly. Her

heart is beating so fast it feels as though it is going to explode out of her rib cage. She had never really given any thought to what Alex or the others looked like…

she had never asked. So it is a complete shock seeing first-hand how unbelievably good-looking he is.

Liam enters the flat and Alex shakes his hand, slapping him on the back in greeting. Abbey can’t resist glancing back over her shoulder but she quickly looks away when she sees that he is still watching her. He greets Nathan in exactly the same manner, before shutting the door without once taking his eyes from Abbey’s face. She begins to feel uncomfortable under his constant stare and turns away shyly, desperately trying to control her blushing.

Fay Louise Darbyshire is a twenty eight year old, first time writer from West Yorkshire. Born and raised in Leeds, Fay finished High School at the age of sixteen and went on to enrol at Leeds College of Art and Design where she studied Media, Film and English. After graduating into the world of full time employment, her passion for writing remained and she spent several years developing film scripts and screen plays in her spare time, until finally deciding to adapt one of her stories into a book in late 2013. Her debut novel ‘Even Angels Fall’ was released at the end of 2014.

When asked recently how she wanted readers to feel whilst reading ‘Even Angels Fall’, Fay replied;

‘I wanted to challenge them and to challenge their opinion on the stereotypes they might have expected to see in this kind of story. I know a lot of reviewers said they felt conflicted. They knew that they shouldn’t really be rooting for the characters in certain parts of the book and that they perhaps shouldn’t be feeling sympathy for them, but knowing deep down that they are good people caught up in a series of awful situations meant they still wanted them to succeed. All of the characters make bad choices throughout the story, but I wanted the reader to understand the reasons behind those choices and the circumstances that lead them there. I wanted them to feel connected to the characters and to feel empathy for what they we’re going through, despite how extreme it may be…’

‘I like characters that are multi-layered and complicated, because that is real to me. They aren’t saints, but they aren’t villains either. It is never that black and white.’

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Excerpt & Giveaway! Scarless & Sacred, The Chicago War #3 by Bethany-Kris

Secrets and wars leave the deepest scars.

Evelina Conti has always worn a mask. She is an Outfit principessa, respected and adored. She wasn’t allowed to be anything else. Her father went from a grieving husband to the Outfit boss, and now that Riley heads the family, Eve is more suffocated than ever. No matter how much she hates it, the Conti princess still has a role to play. A little attention from Theo DeLuca seems innocent enough, but nothing is when it comes to him. And certainly not when everyone believes that Theo is out to kill her.

Theo DeLuca has a target on his back. His biggest problem is figuring out who put it there when everyone is aiming at him. He doesn’t need a woman causing him issues, but the Conti princess keeps showing up at the worst times, and he’s the one left saving her. Between the men surrounding him that Theo can’t trust, and the past he can’t outrun, Evelina might be the one thing he doesn’t have to question. But when Riley decides to use Eve as his next move, even Theo might not be able to save her.

The war in Chicago is not even close to being over. This game is deadly. Each hand played cuts another mark into someone else. The Outfit boss is struggling while the men around him are rallying. As the body count continues to rise, the families keep losing.

Sacrifices are a part of war. No one will walk away from this without scars.

***

PLEASE NOTE: Scarless & Sacred is not intended to be read as a standalone in this series. It is the third book in the series and should be read after the first two books. Trigger Warning: Scarless features graphic violence and scenes of past abuse.

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“I haven’t noticed you at church since your brother’s funeral.” 

Theo tensed in the driver’s seat and his hands gripped the steering wheel tight enough for his knuckles to turn ash white. “I’m not ready, I suppose.” 

“I get that.” 

Chuckles answered her back. 

“No, Eve, I don’t think you do. I’ve got a few things left to get finished, and when I go back, I’d like to get all of my confession out in one good, long sitting instead of three or four. Besides, confession is meant for those who don’t wish to repeat their sins. Mine are ones that won’t go away until others leave, too.” 

Evelina’s brow furrowed as she took in his words. He spoke about it so candidly, like he’d been thinking about it for a while. 

“Are you talking about my father?” 

Theo’s gaze cut to her as he took a corner sharply. “And if I was?” 

Evelina shrugged. “Look elsewhere for someone who cares, Theo.” 

“You care. Trust me, you do. Even the people we hate always manage to pull some sympathy from us, even if it’s just a little bit. Regardless of whatever you feel is wrong with your father, he’s still your blood, he still helped to put you on this earth, and you still love him, Eve. Simple as that.” 

“He didn’t care much about my mother these last few months.” 

Theo blew out a slow breath. “You’re not Riley. He’s not you.” 

“Is that how you feel about your brother or uncle?” 

“Hmm?” 

“Your brother and uncle. You were close to Ben but not really Dino. Is that how you feel about them, like your sympathy is greater for one, but still there in some way for the other?” 

Theo’s hands tightened on the wheel. “You ask a lot of questions.” 

“I’m a curious girl.” 

“Woman.” 

“What?” 

“You’re a woman, not a girl. You stopped being a girl years ago, Eve.” 

Evelina shivered in the passenger seat. The shadows of the passing street lights darkened Theo’s features. She couldn’t have hid the reaction even if she tried. Just the way his voice dipped into a lower cadence, and he passed her another silent look that said he could see she was very much a woman and not a girl was enough to make Evelina ache. 

And wet. 

“You did that on purpose,” Evelina accused. 

Her voice was weak. 

Or turned on. 

Theo raised a brow high. “I beg your pardon?” 

“That … that … right there,” Evelina struggled to say as she waved at him. 

Theo laughed under his breath. “Babe, I have no idea what you’re mumbling about, but all right. Whatever makes you happy, I guess.” 

“Stop it. You did do that on purpose, Theo. Just to distract me.” 

When his tongue snaked out to wet his lips as his hands slid across the steering wheel smoothly to take another turn, Evelina’s throat went dry. He handled his car easily, like he was holding onto feathers when in fact, the Stingray had one hell of an engine under the hood. She couldn’t stop the thoughts slamming into her one after the other as she watched him drive. 

Is that how he touches a woman? What do those hands feel like when they grab hard enough to hurt? Is that how he would touch me? 

Jesus. 

Evelina made a noise under her breath and turned her attention to anywhere but Theo DeLuca for a moment. 

“Eve?” 

“What?” 

Evelina had all she could do to ignore the heat between her legs and the air in her voice. She completely refused to even look at Theo again until she could manage to do so without contemplating how she could get his hands on her while he drove at the same time. 

Stop that right now. 

“I kind of did that on purpose,” Theo admitted.

Bethany-Kris is a Canadian author, lover of much, and mother to three young sons, one cat, and two dogs. A small town in Eastern Canada where she was born and raised is where she has always called home. With her boys under her feet, snuggling cat, barking dogs, and a hubby calling over his shoulder, she is nearly always writing something ... when she can find the time.

To keep up-to-date with new releases from Bethany-Kris, sign up to her New Release Newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/bf9lzD

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Book Promo! Rock Star Cowboys, The McLendon Family Saga #3 by D.L. Roan

The Mclendon twins are all grown up and-OMG-are they ever a double handful! Country music gods, these golden boys of Falcon Ridge are in for some tough lessons in family and love. When their beloved Papa falls ill, they are called home to the place that holds both their hearts and a painful secret. Can they face their past and heal their wandering souls, or will they turn their backs on the one person who can make them whole again?

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Hot holy damn! It’d happened. Connor stood at the foot of the stairs and tried to remember how to breathe. 

He’d never put much stock in the lightning bolt, earthquake hoopla their dads and Papa Joe fed them over the years about what they felt when they found Mom and Gran. Twenty-four hours earlier, he would have rolled his eyes at one of their stories, but the second he came down those stairs and saw Breezy curled up in his brother’s arms, he knew. She was theirs. Completely. 

There had been no lightning bolt, no thunder, not even a tremor. The pull to join them on that couch, however, had been like a subtle, vivid instinct seated deep within and impossible to ignore. 

He pressed his fist into the center of his chest where the feeling was still fresh and fluttering around like a caged bird begging to be freed. It was the most amazing feeling, comparable only to bringing life to a new song. 

The instant attraction he’d felt to her suddenly made sense. Her taste, her scent, the feel of her beneath him, had all felt so fresh and familiar. On some elemental level his body knew she was the missing part of him.

“You were right to cancel New York, bro,” Carson said, dousing his new revelation with a barrel of cold reality. “No way I could sing like this anyway.”

Connor studied his twin. “What are you doing?” 

“I’m going back to bed.” Carson groaned as he flopped back onto the couch and pulled a quilt over his legs.

“No. I mean, what are you doing with Breezy?”

Carson rolled his eyes and turned his back to him. “I was sleeping.”

“Car, I’m serious.” He walked over and snatched the quilt from his twin. “What kind of game are you playing with her?”

“I’m not playing any games.” Carson reached out and snatched the quilt back. “You were right, okay? Is that what you want to hear?”

“Right about what?”

“Me fucking everything up, Breezy, all of it.” Carson sighed, settling back into the couch, his face pinched in pain. 

Connor tried to read between the lines, unsure of what he meant. “I don’t understand,” he said, plopping down on the end of the coffee table.

“I’ve been a dick,” Carson said, sliding farther under the quilt. “What more is there to understand?”

That was an understatement. “Let’s start with why you’ve been a dick.”

Carson huffed, wiping his palm across his sweaty forehead. “Does it matter?” 

“Hell yeah, it matters.”

“I don’t want to fight anymore, okay? I want things to go back to the way they were between us, and for Papa Joe to get better. That’s it.”

“And what about Breezy? Are you saying you all of a sudden don’t believe the shit you’ve spouted about her for how many years now?”

“No. Maybe.” Carson stared at the ceiling, his lips pressing into a grim line. “Papa Joe told me some things last night that don’t add up.” Between coughing spells, Carson relayed the things their grandfather had told him, including his possibly cataclysmicmisconception about Ford’s visits with Charlotte. 

“Damn, Car. You don’t think he beat her, do you?” He searched through his memories, but couldn’t remember seeing any bruises. That didn’t mean there hadn’t been any.

“I don’t know,” Carson grumbled. “But if it’s true, I don’t know why she hasn’t told me to go to hell already.”

Connor shook his head. “I talked to her yesterday. She’s just as eaten up about everything as you are.”

A contrite look swirled in Carson’s eyes before he looked away, his fingers plucking at the stitches in the quilt as he spoke. “Did she, uh, say anything else? About yesterday?”

“Shit, Car. What did you do?”

“I didn’t—” 

“Did you kiss her?”

“No!” Carson snapped, searing him with a calculating glare. “Did you fuck her?”

“No.” Though, he may have if not for their Uncle Cade shooting down that drone. He’d never felt a spark, an electrical overload, like the one that arced between them. “She’s different. It’s not like that.”

“Are you saying you want her all to yourself, then? That you don’t want to share?” 

No sooner had Carson’s question reached Connor’s ears, than that very image appeared in his mind. Christ, she’d been so hot beneath him. He could only imagine what it would be like with her between them, naked and writhing and responding to them with that same passion. His cock responded to the fantasy and Carson took notice. 

“I didn’t think so.” Carson chuckled and rolled onto his side, turning his back to Connor again. 

Dammit. What was he going to say? He sure as hell wasn’t going to say no, but should he tell his brother how serious he was about her? If what he’d felt earlier was real, Carson would have to feel it too, wouldn’t he? But if they couldn’t even share a bedroom, how the hell were they going to share a wife? 

He didn’t have a clue what was going on inside his twin’s head. Whatever he was thinking, Connor wasn’t dumb enough to believe it was thoughts of forever. Not yet. But, if he had any chance of making that dream a reality, they had to start somewhere, right?

“I like her, Car. I like her a lot, and I want you to like her, too, but not if you’re screwing around. Not with Breezy. She’s not like the women on the road you can fuck and forget.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Carson grumbled into the back of the couch. “Look, I’m game for whatever you want, Con. Just let me know when and where.”

“I don’t want her to get hurt again,” Connor clarified. 

“I’m not screwing around,” Carson assured him, his irritation evident in his tone even as he struggled through another round of rattling coughs. “Damn, this cold is kicking my ass.”

What was Carson thinking? What had changed? “Do you think you can truly let go of the past and see where this goes?” he asked one final time. “Look at me and tell me that’s what you want.”

Carson rolled over, letting out a long sigh before he met Connor’s questioning gaze. “I thought that’s what I was doing.”

Connor studied him for a moment, seeing a mixture of resigned indifference and hesitant sincerity in his brother’s eyes. It was enough, for now. He gave his brother a nod of agreement and stood. “Okay,” he said and held his brother’s gaze. “But, if you do hurt her, I’ll be the one kicking your ass.”

      

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D.L. Roan loves combining fantasy with the real world, giving her readers more than just a book or romance, but a true adventure in love. Her characters are always real to her and she genuinely enjoys bringing them to life for her readers.

She's a native Floridian, a rare breed in a land of snow birds. Scuba diving and hunting for shark's teeth on the beach are two of her favorite things. Oh! And building sand castles instead of snowmen in December and sending pictures of them to all her snowbound friends. She loves rainy days, thunderstorms and is an avid dog lover. Yes, size matters. She hopes to one day add a big ol' floppy Great Dane to her family of hounds.

Check out the links in the back of her books for details about her secret fan group where she hangs out with her fans who get first dibs on all her sexy stories!

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Release Day Blitz! Excerpt & Giveaway: Submerged, Bound Together #1 by Lacey Black

One night. That’s all it was supposed to be.

Blake Thomas’ entire career as a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation has led up to this one job:submerging himself in a lifestyle of fast cars and even faster women. He’s deep undercover, building a case to bring down an intricate criminal ring of car thieves in Las Vegas, with no time to think about the one woman he can’t seem to forget. He never imagined his past would become tangled with his present, threatening to be his downfall.

Two years ago, Carly Mathewson planned for a one-night stand with a perfect stranger. What she didn't count on was being reminded of him every time she looked into the emerald eyes of the daughter they unexpectedly created. Since that night, she's devoted herself to keeping her life simple. But when her past refuses to stay buried, she's determined to do everything she can to keep it from jeopardizing what she's worked so hard to achieve. Suddenly, everything and everyone Carly has known aren't quite what they seemed.

Every present has a past. Before they can secure a future together, Blake and Carly are forced to admit that their lives are linked by so much more than just that one night. Without warning, they’re bound together for life.

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I let Carly lead us into her building and towards the elevator. Once inside, I push her against the wall because the thought of not feeling her pressed between the wall and my overheated body isn’t an option. I have a good eight or nine inches on her in height, so I lift her gently into my arms, lining up our mouths perfectly. Carly wraps her legs around my waist, her tight black skirt pushed up around her hips until I can feel the heat of her core through our clothes. My entire body is this close to having a Hulk moment right now as I fight the intense urge to rip my clothes clear from my skin with one tear.

The elevator makes the world’s slowest ascent upward before eventually depositing us onto her floor. She points without breaking our kiss, and I walk with purpose in that direction, unable to set her down. Carly fumbles with the small bag tied around her wrist, dropping her keys on the floor at my feet. A deep sigh against my lips makes me smile uncontrollably.

“I’ll get ‘em,” I whisper as I bend down, Carly still clamped firmly around my body. I slide the key in the knob and give it a turn.

Inside, my entire focus is on the woman wrapped around me. I barely remember locking the door as we shed clothes and shoes on our way down the hallway. When we finally make it to her bedroom, I let her delicious body slide down my own. Not because I want to, but because it’s the only way to rid us of the rest of the clothes we’re wearing. The friction drives me crazy with lust.

Before I make a grab for her skirt, I gaze deeply into those intoxicating brown eyes and ask, “Are you sure?” I already know that I am, but I have to make sure she’s one hundred percent on board with what I have planned.

“More sure than anything,” she whispers, eyes all full of licentious innocence.

I step forward and run my hands from her waist up her naked torso. Carly is wearing a black satin bra with white lace trim. It’s a beautiful contradiction of purity and naughty all rolled into this perfect little woman. And as she starts to unzip the zipper on the side of that skirt, I realize with a happy heart that she’s all mine.

For tonight.

Because all I can give her is this one perfect night.

Lacey Black is a Midwestern girl with a passion for reading, writing, and shopping. She carries her e-reader with her everywhere she goes so she never misses an opportunity to read a few pages. Always looking for a happily ever after, Lacey is passionate about contemporary romance novels and enjoys it further when you mix in a little suspense. She resides in a small town in Illinois with her husband, two children, and a chocolate lab. Lacey loves watching NASCAR races, shooting guns, and should only consume one mixed drink because she’s a lightweight.

Lacey’s debut novel, Trust Me, was released in August 2014 and has been an Amazon Bestseller twice for Free e-books, as well as #1 for Contemporary Romance. All of the Rivers Edge books have been bestsellers in the Romance and Contemporary Romance categories.

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In The Spotlight! Review & Guest Post: Goldenfire, Darkhaven #2 by A.F.E. Smith

In Darkhaven, peace doesn’t last long.

Ayla Nightshade has ruled Darkhaven for three years since the tragedy that tore her family apart. She has left her father’s cruel legacy behind and become a leader her people can believe in – or so she hopes.

Tomas Caraway is no longer a disgraced drunk; he’s Captain of the Helm and the partner of the most powerful woman in Darkhaven. He will do everything to protect Ayla and their adopted son against all possible threats.

But a discovery has been made that could have profound consequences for the Nightshade family. There is a weapon so deadly, it can kill even the powerful creatures they turn into. And now, that weapon has fallen into the wrong hands.

An assassin is coming for Ayla, and will stop at nothing to see her dead.

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Love and fantasy

When Darkhaven came out, I wrote a bit about fantasy and crime and why I think the two genres blend well together. So now, with the release of Goldenfire, it's romance's turn. What is it about love and fantasy that makes them complementary to each other?

It's probably worth saying, first, that not everyone thinks romance has a place in fantasy. I've come across several readers who would rather their fantasy focused 100 percent on people hacking each other to death with swords and 0 percent on people falling in love. Each to their own. But in my personal opinion, romantic relationships are so intrinsic to humanity that to omit them is to fail to capture the very realism those fans of blood and gore are looking for.

Obviously, this isn't to say that every character should fall in love. If the characters in a book are a microcosm of the human race then some will be interested in romance and some not. Some in sex and some not. But leaving love out of the mix entirely seems just as extreme a position to take as putting the entire focus of the novel on it.

I don't write fantasy romance; the plots of my books aren't based around two people forming a relationship. Yet despite that, my characters do tend to fall in love – often despite themselves. And this is where I think love and fantasy blend well together, and for much the same reason as murder and fantasy: they are all about heightened emotions. Fantasy throws people into life-or-death situations. Often, literally or otherwise, the characters in a fantasy novel are in a permanent state of war – whether on a worldwide scale or a personal one. And it's a well documented fact that in wartime, people fall in love more quickly. When you think your life may end tomorrow, you fling yourself into it with far less caution.

Not only that, but I always say that fantasy is the perfect vehicle for exploring both the best and the worst that we as humans are capable of. And love in all its incarnations falls into both categories. Love can lead us to act with utter selflessness. It can cause us to perform great, earth-shattering feats, albeit for the most personal of reasons. Yet, twisted and distorted, it can also become obsession and jealous rage.

If one thing is certain, it’s that people are a bundle of contradictions. We’re capable of being concerned at one and the same time with very important, weighty matters – regaining a throne, locating a magical artefact, saving the world – and our own fragile hearts. Not only that, but the balance probably shifts far more towards the personal and less towards the truly altruistic than we’d like to admit. Love is a very powerful motivator. And not just romantic love, either: our feelings for our partners, siblings, children, friends have a huge effect on what we say and do.

Perhaps the outcomes of those important, weighty matters depend more on our fragile hearts than we care to think.

Darkhaven, 3 years later

Ayla Nightshade has been through so much and fought so many battles to take her right place as a ruler of Darkhaven.

She’s revered and feared while she’s trying to keep together a kingdom that was never meant to be hers.

The enemies are willing to do anything to remove her permanently and, now, they seem to have found the perfect weapon.

No one can be trusted and, until the hired assassin is found, Ayla is confined to her castle where she’s safer than anywhere else. 

But, the mysteries haven’t all been solved and there are still secrets that will resurface, bringing more danger to an already dire situation.

Help will come from an unlikely ally who no one expected to step in and offer support.

This ranks among my favorite fantasy recently published series.

AFE Smith takes the readers on a journey in a world of fantasy where nothing is really what it seems, there’s a new mystery at every corner and the plot has enough twists and turns to keep you on the edge from beginning to end. 

The writing style is really good making the story fast-paced and easy to follow.

I highly recommend Darkhaven to everyone who’s looking for a good Fantasy. 

Just keep in mind that you have to start with volume one or it won’t make much sense and you won’t be able to enjoy the novels as you should. 

Happy Reading!!

A.F.E. Smith is an editor of academic texts by day and a fantasy writer by night. So far, she hasn’t mixed up the two. She lives with her husband and their two young children in a house that someone built to be as creaky as possible – getting to bed without waking the baby is like crossing a nightingale floor. Though she doesn’t have much spare time, she makes space for reading, mainly by not getting enough sleep (she’s powered by chocolate). Her physical bookshelves were stacked two deep long ago, so now she’s busy filling up her e-reader.

What A.F.E. stands for is a closely guarded secret, but you might get it out of her if you offer her enough snacks.

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