Giveaway for release day — any ideas?
On the release day for A Boon by Moonlight, I think I want to run a contest for readers, make it a celebration for everyone. One of the prizes will be a copy of A Boon by Moonlight, natch, and I was thinking of offering a gift card as well, either Amazon or Starbucks. I’d like to have a third prize as well, and since I design jewelry on the side I was thinking of a willow tree pendant, since that’s Jerrek’s house symbol. Would that have any appeal to y’all, or should I rethink the whole thing?
*does the happy dance*
Just got a release date for A Boon by Moonlight — it will be out on March 1, yay! So you have two weeks to save up your pennies and buy my story of Zach Mayhew, ex-Marine and planet nursery owner, and the deal he cuts with a tall, handsome, and very snarky Sidhe noble to get his dying grandmother into Faerie. Oh, I cannot WAIT to see the cover for this one…
Nicola’s Sunday Shoutout: Kacey Hammell
Today’s Sunday Shoutout goes to Kacey Hammell, whose sizzling new erotic romance Dare is now available from Evernight Publishing and other purveyors of fine erotic romance. If you like a twist on the classic “quiet girl meets rich hunk” story, you’re going to love Dare. And now, here’s Kacey!
**An aRe Bestseller!**
Legal secretary, Olivia Warner enjoys being single and, aside from her closest gal pals, usually keeps to herself. But the night of her thirty-fourth birthday, she and her friends spend a fun-filled evening at a local bar where her friends dare her to approach a man, and spend the night with him. Olivia’s not one to turn down a dare, especially from her old college pals. She only hopes the man in question is in for some good conversation, because that is all she’ll give him.
Darren “Dare” Shalvis has given up on women. He’s tired of being chased for his money, good looks, and prowess in bed. He prefers to meet a woman who, for once, wants nothing more from him than mere conversation. If only the woman asking him to spend the night with her wasn’t his favorite legal secretary.
Accepting a dare has never been so tempting…
Story Excerpt
“Darren?”
Dare turned on the stool, surprised to see Olivia Warner in front of him.
She seemed different than she usually did at the office. He only ever saw her in black and white—high-collar blouses buttoned all the way to the top, long skirts or dress pants. Tonight, she was dressed in tight blue jeans and vibrant white V-neck t-shirt with an image of ruby red lips on the front.
He had to admit, he liked how those lips lay over her breasts.
At the office numerous times, he’d never had much of a chance to talk with her, but she’d caught his eye from the moment he’d seen her. He’d walked into the office and caught sight of her delectable ass encased in a black skirt as she bent over her desk writing on a memo pad.
An immediate image of his cock sliding in and out of her was his favorite fantasy.
He suspected, though, she wasn’t a woman that let a man get too close. From the first glimpse of her head on, she was a no-nonsense kind of woman. Her face didn’t show many emotions; she kept things pretty tight to the chest from what he could see. At the office, she was strictly business.
He’d seen her with other women when he’d first sat down at the bar. Manners made him tip his bottle in a form of hello.
He was surprised she’d approached him. “Olivia, hello.”
She smiled in return, her hands clenched together. “I need your help.”
Instantly on guard, Dare took in her nervousness and the perspiration along her upper lip. He gestured to the empty stool beside him.
“What is it?”
“Well, it’s a little embarrassing…” Olivia cleared her throat.
She signaled the bartender. “Ice water, please.” She turned back to him. “My friends have put me in a difficult position.”
The bartender set the glass in front of her. Dare placed a hand on her shoulder. “Hmm, sounds interesting.”
She gave a small laugh and lifted the glass for a drink.
Dare watched her lips as she drank. He wondered what they’d taste like. It was something he’d considered many times lately.
He was drawn to her, but unsure he’d ever act on it.
Her whole demeanor said ‘hands off.’ And he wasn’t sure he was ready for the challenge.
“Tell me about it.”
“I’ll cut right to the chase.” As he turned on the stool, their knees brushed. Neither moved.
He thought he saw her eyes lit up. Perhaps Ms. Warner wasn’t as immune as he thought.
“My friends brought me here tonight for my birthday.”
“Happy birthday.”
She smiled. “Thank you. The jury’s still out whether it’s happy or not. My friends decided that as a present they’d get me a man.” She blushed and reached for her drink.
“Go on.” Intriguing.
She set down her glass and continued, “They dared me. Dared me to find myself a man and spend the night with him.”
Women…who understood them? He’d only ever participated in dares when he was younger. He didn’t think anyone took them seriously anymore.
“And you need my help, how?” Dare’s heart rate accelerated.
She wasn’t asking him to…
She stared up at him, her gaze steady. “I need you to spend the night with me.”
If he hadn’t heard it with his own ears, he wouldn’t have believed it. This night was the strangest he’d had in a long time. It was as if he’d been offered a million dollars on a silver platter.
Of course, he wanted to spend the night with her. He’d fantasized about it many times. He just wasn’t clear on what exactly she was asking. He didn’t want any misunderstandings. “Are you asking me to spend the night with you to…” Dare cleared his throat. “…be with you?”
“Oh! No, yes, I mean no. Dammit, I’ve screwed this up.”
“Relax.” He put a hand on her knee. “It’s okay. Let’s try this—do you want me to have sex with you?”
Olivia groaned. Dare love that sound, and heat filled his groin.
Where To Buy
Evernight Publishing
Amazon
aRe
OmniLit
Bookstrand
About Kacey Hammell
The writer: Canadian author, Kacey Hammell is a multi-published erotic romance author who writes mainly in the Contemporary Erotic/Romantic Suspense genres. She is a true romantic at heart.
The Wife and Mom: Born, raised and still living in her hometown in Ontario, Canada, Kacey found true love with her husband. As a Mom of three, Kacey has made certain that each of her children know the value of the written word and the adventures they could escape on by becoming book-a-holics in their own right.
Where to find Kacey Hammell
Website
Facebook / Facebook Author Page
Twitter
Amazon
Goodreads
Pinterest
Win a gift certificate at Evernight Publishing!
If you head over to the Evernight Reader’s Group on Facebook and like an entry in today’s Flash Fiction Friday competition, you could win a $5 gift certificate from Evernight Publishing and use it to buy some of their splendid erotic romance or urban fantasy. The story with the most likes will win, and the GC winner will be selected from those who liked the winning story. (I do note that my story currently has the most likes — make of that what you will. :-D) You can like as many stories as you want, so come on over!
And if you don’t do contests or Facebook, here’s the snippet for your delectation. And yes, this may well turn into a full-fledged story set in Victorian London about a repressed police inspector who discovers he has a little something extra in his family tree, a dapper vampire/gadgeteer who is determined to draw the inspector deeper into the supernatural underworld of London, and a female American werewolf with her own agenda — whee!
Hester pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, giving Gerard an amused look from those whiskey eyes. “My kind tend to live on the fringe of polite society, Inspector. We don’t like humans all that much.”
“And yet you choose to live in a city full of them,” Gerard said tightly, clinging to the last shreds of his control. He would not turn into a monster, no matter what Luc had done to him. And he would not throw himself on this lush creature and rip her clothes open, feast on those alluring breasts, thrust himself into that tight, welcoming heat like…like…
She stepped closer in a slow, taunting sway. “We’re all animals, Inspector. I would think you’d know that by now. Some of us are just closer to the beast than others.”
He gritted his teeth. “You’re reading my mind.”
“No, your body.” Her hand reached down, cupped and held the now-throbbing bulge at his groin. “It’s a fascinating story. Why don’t you tell me more?”
At her touch, his control shattered. He grabbed her shoulders, his lips coming down on hers in a brutal kiss. He would regret this later, but for now he couldn’t care less.
Fabulous Friday Reads: Demon Tempted
Hello, darlings! I’m kicking off the second weekend in February by giving you the chance to spice up said weekend with a sexy tale of a demoted demon facing some sexy redemption in her new novel Demon Tempted, now available from Evernight Publishing and other purveyors of fine erotic romance. Check out the excerpt below for a teaser!
Demoted, Eva Jackson has had more than her share of lifetimes to play games with other people’s emotions. Now, devoid of her powers, she’s left with the feeling that there’s something more she’s missing.
Temptation was the one thing that always stood in the way.
Clay Quinones, her demon lover of old, is determined that Eva will walk the straight and narrow and learn the error of her ways. When danger looms, is it too late for these two star-crossed lovers to love one another again? Or will Eva’s past make it hard for a demon to be redeemed?
Story Excerpt
He positioned himself behind her and leaned in close, his face pressed to her ear. “Any time you call my name.” He nipped her earlobe. His words seemed incomplete to her, and she had to ask.
“Any time I call your name what?”
“It will bring me to you. We still have that connection.”
As he spoke, he’d placed his hands on the front buttons of her white shirt. Slowly he freed each one from its buttonhole until he spread her shirt wide. She was on display for him, and it thrilled her. Strong, capable hands undid the front clasp of her bra, and he pulled the cups away from her breasts.
Clay was right—there was a connection. There always had been, but she was determined to break it. To have him relinquish his hold on her one way or the other was her goal. But first … first she needed his touch.
The wet heat of his tongue made her whimper as he licked across her earlobe and then down to her neck. He grasped her breasts and tugged at the nipples in unison.
“Don’t stop the show, Eva.” His command ran through her head.
“You need to stop telling me what to do, Clay.”
Though she said this, she couldn’t stop even to prove him wrong. Her thighs were already coated in her juices, and more of it was spilling out in copious amounts as she thrust in two fingers and began to finger fuck herself.
“You have a full store out there, Eva. So are you going to be able to stop yourself from coming so hard that they hear every little sound you make?”
She sobbed and bit her lip. His words affected her in a way that she was sure he wanted. The thought of being the center of attention while coming was thrilling to her. He knew her every little secret.
“I want that, Clay, but not here…” she stuttered out, and swallowing, she tried to sound a bit more convincing, “not here.”
“Then I suggest when you start coming, you press your mouth to my arm and muffle the sound.” He kissed her hard and then nipped her bottom lip. “Now back to making yourself come for me.”
“This wasn’t for you,” she gasped out as the sensations originating from her hand radiated throughout her body. Liar, her body seemed to say.
“That’s my Eva, strong-willed and always ready for a fight even in the midst of a highly erotic situation.” He smacked his fingers against her clit, and she groaned. “Let me let you in on a little secret. This is always for me.”
She was too far gone to argue that point with him, and his smack just sent her into a hard orgasm. With a moan she pressed her mouth to his arm to try to stifle the sound of her coming. When her body finally stopped shaking, she shuddered and opened her eyes. Clay was still looking down at her with a smirk. She watched in awe as he brought his hand up from her pussy and licked his fingers clean.
“I’ve always adored how you taste, Eva.”
She tried to not let his words bring up the jealousies that she’d been holding on to forever. It was time to let those go, right? But the old adage of habits dying hard and all that jazz seriously did apply. She wanted to ask him why he had always seemed to be following after Lili if he adored and wanted her.
Jealousy. It had to stop, but how?
“Shut up and kiss me, Clay.”
He smirked more and leaned back in, kissing her deeply. He thrust his tongue into her mouth, letting her taste her juices as their tongues dueled. Sometimes it was better to not talk. She knew that now.
Where to Buy
About Nikki Prince
Nikki Prince is a mother of two, who’s always had a dream to be a published author in the romance genre. Her passion lies in raising her children as readers, gaming, cooking, reading and her writing. Her mother can now breathe easy about the child who used to get in trouble because she was hiding books everywhere and reading when it wasn’t appropriate.
Nikki’s a multi-published author with several epublishing houses. She loves to write Interracial romances in all genres, but wants to let everyone know to not box her in, because there is always room for growth.
Nikki’s also a member of Romance Writer’s of America National chapter (http://www.rwa.org) and OCC/RWA local chapter (http://www.occrwa.org), and is a member of the board as Co-Programs Director. She is also a member of the online chapter Passionate Ink RWA.
Where to find Nikki Prince
Marvelous Monday Reads: Lovers and the Fiend
Welcome to Marvelous Monday Reads, and our very first one goes to C.R. Moss, whose current story, Lovers and the Fiend, is now available from Evernight Publishing and other purveyors of fine erotic romance. Lovers and the Fiend is a story in Evernight Publishing’s Naughty Fairy Tale line. The characters, Jack and Kristina, appeared in C.R.’s short story Chasing Miss Kringle that’s in Evernight Publishing’s anthology Stockings and Suspenders. This is the first of a handful of stories she has planned for the NFT line that revolve around the world started in CMK and Lovers. C.R. says you don’t have to read the anthology story to read Lovers, but it’d be nice if you did. 😉 And now, here’s C.R!
Ex-cop turned private investigator, Jack Vorst, learns his elf girlfriend Kristina has been missing for a few days after being invited to an underground vampire club. He, too, is summoned to visit club Hexenringe and is taken captive. Jack finds Kristina bound and gagged in a human sized bird cage. They’re both thrust into a kinky world at the hands of Kol, the club owner. Kol, a vampiric beast, shifts into human form to be with Jack and Kristina and needs them to remember their pasts and to love him so he can return to what he used to be. Can Kol make the pair fall in love with him despite his current situation and the fact he’s keeping them captive or will they leave, making it too late for him to change all their fates?
Warning: ménage a trois, M/M, bondage, anal sex, sex toys, public exhibition
Story Excerpt
The handsome guy grabbed his pants, hurried off the stage and down the side steps.
Well, it’s either find my girl or appease any inquisitiveness toward being with a member of the same sex. Like maybe with Mr. Sexy who’s coming toward me.
Jack stopped several inches short of running into the dancer, who happened to be the same height as his six-foot frame. The man smiled. His dazzling gray eyes twinkled. The dancer reminded Jack of someone, but he couldn’t place who. The guy dropped his pants, grabbed the back of Jack’s head and planted his lips on his. The kiss was harsh, demanding, but the man didn’t seem to care, so neither did Jack. His free hand traveled down and cupped the bulge hiding in Jack’s jeans. Tingles raced through his body, and Jack wondered what the feel of the dancer’s hand on his naked cock would be like.
For the merest of moments, the man swept his tongue into Jack’s mouth. He tasted of a nutty, roasted flavor with a sweet tinge. Caramel? Perhaps. Jack made a note to find the beer the dancer drank beforehand and read the ingredients.
Loving the play of his tongue against his, Jack was about to reciprocate in the intensity of the kiss, but the dancer broke it off.
“I’m glad you approved,” the man’s tenor voice purred in a hint above a whisper.
Jack wasn’t sure if he meant how Jack didn’t mind the stranger planting one on him, touching him or the thought he had about what he’d been drinking, or all of it, so he just nodded.
“Come.” The man presented his long fingered hand with a charming smile.
Surprised how it didn’t faze him to accept it, he grinned, and where they touched, Jack’s skin sizzled. His knees seemed to weaken, and the only thought running through his lust-addled brain was that he’d follow the dancer anywhere, do anything the man wanted him to do.
The dancer winked, making him feel like his mind was an open book to him, and guided him to a door between the bar and stage. After stepping through the doorway, the man shut the door, encasing them in darkness. His hand tugged Jack’s. In silence, the dancer led him through the dark. How? He didn’t know. But in a weird way, Jack trusted him not to lead him astray.
Several feet in, the man stopped. “I am pleased you made the right decision to come here tonight.” His hot breath fanned Jack’s cheek.
Jack wished he could see the man and how close he actually was to him. If he moved his head, would he be able to kiss the guy in the thong? He cleared his throat. “Well, first off I came to find my woman. Secondly, your invitation seemed to be one I couldn’t ignore, and…” Jack paused. And what? Now that he was here, he found himself aroused and craving the man’s attention. Could he admit that aloud?
“And?” The man licked the edge of his ear.
Desire within Jack spiked, and heat fanned out from his ear and encompassed his neck. He gulped. “And now I think I want you.”
Where to Buy
Evernight Publishing
Amazon
All Romance eBooks
Bookstrand
About C.R. Moss
Hi! Thanks for having me here today. 🙂 My name is Chris, and I write under the names C.R. Moss for erotic and mainstream romance and Casey Moss for mainstream dark fiction (horror, suspense, urban fantasy). My professional bio for C.R.: “An eccentric and eclectic writer, C.R. Moss pens stories for the mainstream and erotic romance markets, giving readers Worlds of Possibilities when it comes to love.” Basically I write stories from the light and sweet to the dark and deadly with varying degrees of sexual heat. The bio for my other persona: Casey Moss delves into the darker aspects of life in her writing, sometimes basing the stories on reality, sometimes on myth. No matter the path, her stories will take you on a journey from the light-hearted paranormal to dark things unspeakable. What waits around the corner? Come explore…
Where to find C.R. Moss
Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Double D Ranch Tales
C.R. Moss e-mail
Link for Casey Moss
Nicola’s Sunday Shoutout: Doris O’Connor
Today’s Sunday Shoutout goes to Doris O’Connor, whose latest entry in the Giovanni Clan saga Too Devious to Tame is now available from Evernight Publishing and other purveyors of fine erotic romance. And now, here’s Doris!
Thanks so much for having me here today.
Hands up who likes sexy Italian men? How about feisty heroines, dynamic family relationships, hot sex, and a haunting love story? How about we throw in some beautiful scenery with a generous dash of danger, and twists and turns to take your breath away and keep you on the edge of your seat?
You do, do you? Well, it just so happens that book three of my Giovanni Clan series, has all that and more.
I touch on some tough issues in this story and we seem to have jumped a heat level as a result. When Jemima’s past catches up with her, it falls to cousin Giorgio to honor the promises he made in book two of the series. If you haven’t read the previous books, don’t worry, you’ll catch up. The stories stand on their own. However, if you feel the need to check them out, don’t let me stop you 😉
Too Hot To Handle, book one in the series is reduced to just 99 cents for a limited time only, and it happens to have one very sexy firefighter in it.
*grins*
Readers already familiar with the stories will recognize Jemima and Giorgio from book two. In Too Devious To Tame I delve into the mechanics of their relationship. These two have a past, and the choices they made come to haunt them in this book.
Will they make it through, and safely out of the tangled webs they’ve created?
When Giorgio Giovanni tracks the troublesome Jemima down in a hospital bed in Italy, he has one thing on his mind — revenge. However, the fragile woman he encounters is not the devious female he remembers. When it becomes clear that she is in danger, he risks everything to keep her safe.
Left for dead, Jemima wakes up in hospital, terrified, and with no idea of her identity. The angry man, who comes to claim her, is the only link to a shared past she can’t remember. A past that threatens to destroy them, and all she has ever held dear.
With danger all around them, and their sexual chemistry off the scale, can they find their way back to each other, or is the past too devious to tame?
Story Excerpt
Tears clouded her vision at the concern in his voice, and he swore and moved to untie her.
“No, I’m fine, really. Leave it. Show me how it should be, please. Help me to forget.”
He stared at her for the longest time, one large hand, hot and heavy on her belly, his gaze so intense it took her breath away. When he finally smiled, it lit up his harsh features. She didn’t catch the murmured Italian words he mumbled under his breath, but the kiss that followed had her curl her toes into the bed with the effort to not release herself from her bonds and bury her hands in his hair to make him hurry up and fuck her.
He was breathing as heavily as she by the time he released her, and she bit back a moan when he simply ripped the rest of her dress off her. Her bra and knickers followed the fate of her dress, until she lay in front of him naked, wet, and wanting. He ran his knuckles slowly up and down her tummy in ever widening circles, and then reached across to the ice bucket with a slow grin.
“Shut your eyes for me, cara.” His voice had dropped an octave, and her stomach dropped right with it, seeing him hold a couple of ice cubes in his fingers. She shook her head and bucked off the bed, when he flicked his hand over her breasts. Ice cold drops of water fell on her skin and trickled between the valley of her breasts. He licked the drops away, his warm tongue taking away the coldness left by the water.
“Shut your eyes, trust me. This will be so much better for you when you can’t see what I’m doing.” He kissed a path down her quivering tummy, and she blinked back tears at the tender way he caressed her abdomen. He paused to drop a long kiss just above her pubic bone, and his hot breath teased her wet folds. Her clit tingled, and she shut her eyes, as he renewed his request for her to do so. She couldn’t see what he was doing, but the bed dipped as he adjusted his weight again. His hot mouth closed over one of her nipples at the same time as the other was subjected to an ice cube being circled around it.
She gasped at the intense sensation, and Giorgio swapped sides. The difference between his warm mouth and tongue and the ice cube sent her body into spasms of need. She writhed under him, and he laughed. Again and again he repeated the process all along her body. A path of ice, followed by the warmth of his tongue as he licked the icy trails away, leaving fiery awareness in its wake. By the time he finally reached her pussy, she was hovering on the brink of orgasm. She whimpered her need when he pushed an ice cube high into her channel and then proceeded to lick around her clit, careful to never touch her when she needed him most. The melting ice cube mixed in with her own juices and trickled slowly out her hole. Her pussy clenched, and she didn’t recognize the needy voice pleading with him to please do something.
He blew against her slit and shouldered her legs wider.
“Così bello, e tutto mio.” He followed the words with a kiss, and she screamed when he pulled her clit into his mouth and swirled his tongue around it, at the same time as he pushed another ice cube into her empty channel. Her walls closed around the slippery object, and spasmed wildly as the first quivers of her orgasm hit. Giorgio groaned into her core and stepped up his sweet torture on her clit. When he pushed two fingers into her core, and massaged her sweet spot, the intensity of her orgasm hit her with the full force of freight train.
“That’s it, tesoro, fly for me.” He caught her scream of release in his mouth, and she could taste herself in the passionate kiss he gave her, dimly aware of him withdrawing his fingers and replacing them with his cock. Thick, hard, and so very long he filled her completely as he pushed into her swollen core, until he was seated to the hilt. She wrapped her legs around him and dug her feet into his calves to give him better access and to take him as deep as she could. He started thrusting, every move driving him deeper into her, and tumbling her right over the edge again, as her inner muscles contracted around his thick member. Faster and faster he pumped, his harsh breathing in her ear the most erotic sound ever, his hands and lips seemingly everywhere, arousing every little bit of skin he touched until her whole body was a mass of sensation. Again her body climbed toward that peak of sheer joy, and this time Giorgio was with her every step of the ecstatic journey they took together. Her eyes flew open, and she drowned in the rolling depths of emotion she saw reflected in his, as they came together in their explosive release.
When her body finally stopped shaking, she could taste the salt of tears in her mouth. Giorgio kissed them off her face, and he released her from her bonds, and pulled her into his embrace. She had to smile at his grumbled, “If this is pretending, then I hate to see what will happen when we do this for real.”
Where To Buy
Evernight Publishing
Amazon
Bookstrand
All Romance Books
About Doris O’Connor
Glutton for punishment would be a good description for Doris… at least that’s what she hears on an almost daily basis when people find out that she has a brood of nine children, ranging from adult to toddler and lives happily in a far too small house, cluttered with children, pets, dust bunnies, and one very understanding and supportive husband. Domestic goddess she is not.
There is always something better to do after all, like working on the latest manuscript and trying not to scare the locals even more than usual by talking out loud to the voices in her head. Her characters tend to be pretty insistent to get their stories told, and you will find Doris burning the midnight oil on a regular basis. Only time to get any peace and quiet and besides, sleep is for wimps.
She likes to spin sensual, sassy, and sexy tales involving alpha heroes to die for, and heroines who give as good as they get. From contemporary to paranormal, BDSM to F/F, and Ménage, haunting love stories are guaranteed.
Where to find Doris O’Connor
Fabulous Friday Reads: D.C. Stone
Today’s Fabulous Friday Read goes to D.C. Stone, whose new series Justice Demons kicks off with her smoking new book Feral Craving. If you like hot military men and even hotter romance, you’ve got to pick up this book toot sweet. And now, here’s D.C.!
Whew! Thanks for having me on today. I’m here to talk about the exciting new release for my first series, Justice Demons. Feral Craving is book one of the series, and involves Bari and Mackenzie’s quest to find love.
Feral Craving is book one of a series I deemed The Justice Demons. Justice Demons, you ask? Yes, it is a paranormal romance, where a group of Special Forces members find out they aren’t exactly human, and have been created by a Goddess to help ward of the battle of good and evil. Their sole job is to protect the world, keep things in balance, much as they did in the military.
Within Feral Craving, the first member finds his mate, someone he ran from nine years ago, thinking he was not good enough to have her. He wanted her life to be happy, and without doubts, something that he is not in shortage of.
Needless to say, while he’s been gone, she hasn’t had said happiness, and things have changed…
Bari has always felt a presence lurking deep inside of him, waiting to get out. After being injured in Iraq, where he was in-service with the Special Forces Team, he suddenly finds himself thrust back into his hometown, forced to face his past, and finds that what’s lurking inside of him is real, waiting, and running out of patience fast. What happens as the evil of his past merges with his wants of the future? What happens when the man and beast inside crave a female from his past? What happens when Bari learns that he is anything but human?
Story Excerpt
Without warning, the room started to spin; a sudden, wicked wave of dizziness assaulted him. Bari lifted a hand, reaching for the wall, and grunted through the nausea. He wobbled on his legs, tried to reboot his mind. Christ, not this shit again! He needed his head. He had to get away, but in a desert half the size of the US of A, he didn’t have any fucking options.
A sound—a whisper to his left. He snapped his head up. Nothing. Just air and trash. The whisper moved to his right, suddenly magnified. Like nails on a chalkboard. Bari whirled, lifting the pistol at his leg, his M-4 rifle now forgotten at his feet. The room spun without warning. He held the pistol in front of him, wavering, pointing at who the fuck knew and nothing all at once. He rocked back on his heels and blinked, and his vision immediately focused. His stomach still rebelled against the spinning sensation, and he breathed through the bile rising up his throat.
Bari narrowed his eyes as a shape started to form before him. Fuzzy, gray and brown colors mixed and swirled. He blinked, trying to make his eyes and mind decipher what took shape. It was huge, as big as he, but what the fuck was it? Lines of blue intermingled beneath its brown and gray spots and, as it grew clearer, he saw what he pointed his muzzle at. Adrenaline rushed him. It couldn’t be. But the image was unmistakable. He stared at the figure that stared back at him. Then, it vanished—the shadow of what he swore was himself, disappeared.
“What the hell?”
A whisper caught his attention to his left. Suddenly, he remembered where he was, then turned and lifted his SIG Sauer handgun. Tony’s eyes widened, and his hands lifted in the air, one leather-covered hand around his rifle.
“Fucking shit, Bari. It’s me.” Pushing Bari’s weapon away from him, Tony narrowed his own stormy gaze at Bari. “You tight, man?”
Bari clamped his jaw shut, not really sure how to answer.
Tony’s lips thinned, then he glanced over his shoulder and tossed his head back. “Let’s get moving.”
Tony nodded down another dark hallway. Bari shook his head, clearing it of the fear bubbling inside of him. His stomach gurgled and he swallowed, forcing the still rising bile down. Something was off, something he couldn’t quite grasp. He felt as if he had walked into a dream—ventured into a dark tunnel. But he knew better, knew that the sun shined high and bright—hot as hell, outside.
The house was filthy, filled with dilapidated couches and mounds of trash and bottles. It couldn’t have been occupied for long. Hell, the place didn’t even look livable for New York City rats. His task set on what lay ahead. Bari worked slow but efficiently cleared each room he passed. In his ear, he heard Mike and Tyler mark their rooms, bringing the four of them together once again as the halls connected. One room remained, its door closed.
They stacked up, lined up as they had outside, their weapons trained on the door, then busted inside. Bari scanned the room as he led the way, expectant and ready.
They were met with nothing. Not one damn person. Whoever had run into this house seemed to have just disappeared into thin air. Cursing, Bari dropped his guard, lowered his weapon, and paced the room. His mind scrambled over the reports they’d studied, trying to recall every detail and feeling as if he had forgotten something. All eyes of the team were on him, waiting for a decision.
With a frustrated growl, he ripped open the front of his vest and breathed deep, letting air fill his tight chest. A bunker was supposed to be here, somewhere, but they had seen no evidence of it. It was like they’d been set up to clear an empty house. None of it made a damn lick of sense.
“Shit, we should have found something here. Where in the fuck did they go?” His team answered with silence. Shaking his head, he pushed his helmet off and scrubbed a hand through his hair.
Mike pulled a piece of gum from his pocket, unwrapped and shoved it in his mouth. The sound of his chewing snapped through the room. “Yeah, Bari, this looks like a dead-end. Doesn’t make any sense.”
Grabbing his pack of smokes from his own pocket, Bari popped a cigarette in his mouth and lit it.
Needing to get some answers, Bari stepped around Tony. Adrenaline still rushed inside of him, his skin itchy with unused energy. He moved back down the hall and into the living area.
He glanced up. And time froze.
He would later tell himself he could have been faster, or ducked down. But Mike, a father with a six-year-old daughter back home, had followed behind him. So he didn’t move. Instead, he froze as the gunman stepped out from behind a door. Mike must have missed it. Fear stole up the back of his neck, the sensation reminiscent of a winding serpent. The gunman lifted his rifle. Low shouts rang out around Bari. Seconds ticked by like molasses dripping. Bari closed his eyes and braced for the pain, understanding he might not make it out alive. A shot rang out, the sound echoing through the walls. Pain exploded in his chest, his body. The cigarette he lit earlier dropped from his mouth, fell to the floor. He raised his eyes, meeting the gunman’s stare from across the room. Death sat in the man’s blank gaze, reflecting darkness, emptiness.
Bari felt consciousness slipping away. Funny how some people claim your life flashes before your eyes when you face death. Because the only thing that flashed before Bari’s was the life he never had and the woman who would’ve been in it: Mackenzie Walters.
Where To Buy
Amazon
Evernight
All Romance E-books
Barnes and Noble: Coming soon, follow along at D.C’s website to find out soon
About D.C. Stone
D.C. Stone is an e-book author and full-time fraud investigator when she isn’t diving into the world of Fiction.
She lives in the north-east with her incredibly supporting husband, two kids, and the all American black Labrador puppy. She’ll deny any association with the grumpy cat that also resides in the house, but he is there, never-the-less.
After serving eight years of service with the United States Air Force, she went on to transition into the world of Financial Crimes and became a lead investigator for many years.
Reading has always been a passion of hers, getting lost in a good, steamy romance one of her favorite past times. That passion took a back seat as soon as she discovered her own love for writing and recreating her own stories and characters. Her writing concentrates on Romance with specifics in Paranormal, Suspense and Erotica.
Now, when she isn’t trying to solve a new puzzle in the world of fraud, she is engulfed with coffee, her laptop, and all those crazy characters in her head. Trying to keep up with that crazy bunch is a skill many would yearn to have.
She is a member of the Romance Writers of America, New Jersey Romance Writers, and the Liberty State Fiction Writers. Come stop by on Facebook, Twitter or her website and say hello!
Where to find D.C. Stone
Break out the dancing boys!
Just signed a contract and submitted the cover art/blurb sheet for my novelette “A Boon by Moonlight,” which will appear in Evernight Publishing’s Romance on the Go line sometime this year. Huzzah!
And to whet your appetite, here’s the blurb I sent in with my cover art sheet:
Ex-Marine Zach Mayhew is willing to do anything for his dying grandmother. When she asks him to find a fairy ring in the forest and beg that she be allowed to spend her last days in Faerie, he obliges her (even though he thinks it’s nuts). But when a gorgeous Sidhe noble steps out of the ring and asks for a night in his bed in return, Zach learns that history has a way of repeating itself, and a boon asked by moonlight can have unexpected consequences for his heart.
Nicola’s Sunday Shoutout: Marie Medina
Today’s Sunday Shoutout goes to Marie Media, whose delicious new Romance On the Go novella Your Money or Your Life is now available from Evernight Publishing and other purveyors of fine erotic romance. Your Money or Your Life is the second part of Marie’s Tales of the Highwaymen series, and follows the adventures of Gerard, a highwayman who finds a sexy but bewildered man wandering in the forest and realizes that yet another person has fallen through the enchanted portrait from our world to theirs. Enjoy!
Thank you for having me today! I am very happy to share a little excerpt from Your Money or Your Life, book 2 in my Tales of the Highwaymen series. This trilogy was not meant to be one at all, but I loved two of the secondary characters so much that I simply had to give them both their own story and happy ending. All Mine, book 3, will be out January 30, but for now enjoy this steamy excerpt from book 2.
When Jacob fell moving a portrait in the museum where he worked, he was worried about damaging it. He never imagined he would fall into it and wake up in another dimension. Though his day does start to improve when a sexy masked man rides to his rescue…
Gerard thought his friends Adam and Eloise would be the enchanted portrait’s only victims, but when he finds a gorgeous but bewildered young man wandering in the woods, he realizes how wrong he was. Now he has to enlist the help of a man he can’t stand to put a stop to the magic, even though he’d much rather be spending that time in the arms of the sexy man now sharing his home.
Story Excerpt
Gerard couldn’t understand the world his new friends had come from. So many things sounded wonderful, but at times the cruelty of their world shocked him. “I’m sorry. You were afraid of being shunned or persecuted?”
Jacob nodded. “I never told anyone I was gay until I met a guy I wanted to date, usually. If I knew he was gay and knew he liked me, I’d let my guard down. I wasn’t ashamed, but I didn’t want to be judged. My town was very small, and no one who came out stayed long because the reaction in town was so bad. I moved when I went to college, and I was starting to feel confident about coming out.” He shrugged and looked around the room. “And now I’m here.”
“You’ve no need to fear anything here, I can assure you.” Gerard smiled. “And anyone who wanted to harm you in any way would have to get through me first.”
“So, you’re going to be my permanent champion? My dashing outlaw?”
Gerard guffawed. “Outlaw? I’m not quite that.”
“Aren’t you a highwayman? I asked about your mask, and Adam and Eloise said you were.”
“But not really an outlaw.” Gerard considered his statement. “All right, I do steal from people, but it’s not what you’re thinking.” He searched his brain for the name that Adam had mentioned several times. “I’m like Robin Hood.”
Jacob smiled. “Are you, now?”
Nodding, he said, “Yes. There’s a large gap between the very rich and the very poor here. There’s the king and the nobles, and then we have everyone else. There is very little social climbing, as Adam called it. I try to help where I can. We never take jewels or personal items, just money. And only from those who will not miss it. A few actually cooperate because they know the truth.”
“How many are in your gang?”
“Actually, without Adam, it’s just me for now. My men tend to retire when they get married. They need more stability in their lives and their incomes.” Holding up his hand, he gestured around. “The family that lived here abandoned it, claimed it was haunted. Hardly anyone will even come near it, so I live here comfortably enough. No one objects. I do odd jobs here and there, but most of the families I’ve helped see that I am well taken care of.” He grinned. “Got lots of other men’s wives cooking for me.”
“Sounds like an almost charmed existence, in its way.” Jacob laughed. “So, you’re looking for new recruits?”
“Are you volunteering?”
After a long pause, Jacob nodded. “Sure. What else am I going to do? It’ll at least be a way to repay you, earn my keep.”
Gerard raised one eyebrow. “All right, though I had several inventive ideas for how you could earn your keep.”
Jacob looked down for a moment, and then he slowly glanced back up. “Maybe you can enlighten me.”
Gerard tried his best to rein himself in and hoped Jacob would not notice his half-mast erection. “One night when you’re stronger.”
Jacob smiled as his eyes lowered again briefly. “But you have to keep me awake tonight, remember?”
The look in Jacob’s eyes had Gerard hard and ready in an instant. “I wouldn’t be a gentleman if I took advantage of my guest in such a way.”
Jacob moved closer, running his hand up Gerard’s thigh but stopping before actually touching his groin. “True, I’m probably not up to … certain activities … but it seems you’re ready for anything.”
“It’s been a while.”
“For me, too.” Jacob cupped him, but he wasn’t too aggressive. He ran the palm of his hand over Gerard’s shaft, locking eyes with him.
“We just met today. I don’t want you to regret this.” Gerard didn’t want to regret it either, didn’t want to care for a man and not be able to keep him again. But Jacob’s touch was like heaven.
Jacob examined Gerard’s leather pants, and then he began to unlace them. “These pants have been driving me mad ever since I first saw you. Even when I was confused as hell, they were distracting me.” He freed Gerard’s cock and stroked it. “I’m tired of hiding and being timid, denying my desires. I do not want a gentleman—I want the fantasy that rode up and saved me today.”
Gerard laughed low in his throat, arching up a bit as Jacob worked his cock. He wanted those lips wrapped around him, wanted to fuck that tempting mouth. “I don’t think I’ve ever been called a fantasy before.”
Jacob stroked harder, still looking into Gerard’s eyes. “Trust me. Compared to every other man I’ve been with, you’re exotic and exciting, a very wet dream come true.”
Gerard cupped Jacob’s face and ran his thumb over his lips. “Suck me off. I’ve been thinking about it ever since I pulled you up onto my horse.”
Jacob smiled and licked the head of Gerard’s cock. “I felt your cock against my ass. I think that’s what kept me from going crazy, grounded me to reality.”
Gerard started to reply, but then he groaned as Jacob’s mouth engulfed him. Their banter had him aching, and Jacob’s mouth was hot and sweet. Gerard couldn’t believe this amazing man had called himself timid. He knew how to suck cock, bringing Gerard right to the edge but then easing off in a sweetly tortuous way.
Jacob’s tongue teased up and down the vein on the underside of Gerard’s cock. He ran his fingers through Jacob’s chestnut brown hair, loving the way the man moaned as he sucked. Jacob seemed to be enjoying himself very much. After Alexander’s betrayal, Gerard had believed he would never be able to inspire this kind of desire, but Jacob was proving him wrong.
Where To Buy
Evernight Publishing
Amazon
All Romance eBooks
Bookstrand
Find me on Goodreads!
Book 1: Stand and Deliver: Available now!
Book 2: Your Money or Your Life: Available now!
Book 3: All Mine: Coming January 30
About Marie Medina
Marie Medina was born in northern New England and raised by her pale, mysterious godfather in a dark gothic mansion on the edge of her small, sleepy town. He didn’t turn out to be a Bronte hero or a vampire, as she thought when she was very young, but he is her best friend and the standard by which she measures all her heroes (and suitors). She has been writing since the age of eleven and has no intention of stopping anytime soon.
Nicola Cameron Writes 