Wednesday, July 30, 2014

#RockingSummerRomance by Lisa Carlisle - Better Than Cake


Better than Cake

Lisa Carlisle
After the worst fight of their relationship, the last place Stephanie wants to be is a wedding reception. She still can’t get over what happened. Could their five years of marriage be destroyed after a blast of heated words? Johnny suggested separating. Separating! Now with her marriage on the line, she has to put on a brave face and pretend love is grand.
Johnny doesn’t know why he’d freaked out the way he had and is left with one emotion. Regret. He doesn’t want to lose Stephanie. He must find her and make things right.
Stephanie enters the reception, fearing the end of her marriage. Johnny has something else in mind—a much more decadent proposal that will turn her friend’s wedding into an event they’ll never forget.

A short erotic romance for only  99 cents! Perfect for a beach or summer read.

Buy Now at:


Excerpt
Who gets ditched at a wedding? Stephanie paused and took a deep breath before walking into her friend’s reception. Something like this could only happen to her.
Ditched wasn’t a strong enough description. “Maybe we should try separating.” Johnny’s words echoed in her mind, lashing her psyche raw with repetition.
Separating! She closed her eyes. Unthinkable.
It’s okay. You can do this. Stick it out for a couple of hours and then you can deal with the mess.
How would she explain her husband’s sudden absence? He was at the ceremony, but wouldn’t be at the reception. What would be a reasonable explanation? They were spending the weekend here in Cape Cod so it would be tough to feign a work or family excuse.
Illness. Yes, something about seafood. That would be plausible at a seaside resort. Food poisoning. She had an excuse—but it didn’t make her feel any better about the situation.
Beyond the Sea wafted out from the ballroom, appropriate for this Cape Cod seaside resort. She glanced up at the imposing exterior of the multi-level hotel. Her hand trembled so she clutched her silver purse tighter. She raised her chin to steel herself and entered the hotel.

Stephanie scanned the place settings to find hers. Mr. and Mrs. John Silvio. Table nineteen. She dropped her purse to her side, but her fingers still clenched it. The last place she wanted to be after a killer argument with her husband was a wedding. She forced herself to enter the reception area, squeezing through all those decked in suits and evening gowns. Searching the table numbers for nineteen, she followed them to the back of the room. She guessed she’d be furthest from the head table, since she was neither family nor close friend, but an old college roommate of the bride. She made her way to the back of the room, braved a smile, and introduced herself to the couples already seated.
“Hi. I’m Stephanie.”
“Elaine,” a heavyset woman with puffy blond hair said. “You’re alone?”
Great. Just fantastic. Starting right with the topic she wanted to avoid. “Yes. My husband couldn’t make it tonight. Something he ate earlier,” she babbled. “Probably the shellfish.” She shrugged.
The others introduced themselves as she sat down and peppered her with questions about where they bought the seafood. A few shared their stories of food poisoning.
It was going to be a long night.
Once the attention was off her, she replayed the fight for what had to be the fortieth time since it happened. After a ripple of snide comments evolved into a tsunami of a fight, she stormed away from Johnny and ended up talking to herself like a crazy person as she pounded through the surf.
“Separating? Why does he take a small argument and blow it up into something like this? How could he do this to me at my friend’s wedding? What the fuck!”
A couple of miles later, she had calmed down. It wasn’t all his doing. She was the one who’d dragged them here when he had other plans. Her fury decreased as the sun sank lower in the sky, replaced by a cloak of sadness.
She didn’t want to split up.
Her eyes began to water. How the heck would she make it through the night without breaking down? Her marriage could be over. How long could she sport a brave face before it dropped?
“Excuse me,” she said and hurried into the ladies room. She barely made it through the door before her eyes pooled with tears.
She grabbed tissues and blotted them, fixing her smudged makeup the best she could.
“You can do this,” she told her reflection in the mirror.
As much as she dreaded being at a wedding while her own marriage hung in jeopardy, she had to put her feelings aside for the sake of Caryn. She’d only get married once.
Hopefully.

* * * * *

Johnny caught glimpses of the ocean from the cab and couldn’t help but brood on what he had said to Stephanie down the beach this afternoon. A cold black cloak had surrounded him since, fastened with shackles of regret. The same question echoed in his head ever since.
Why?
Why had he freaked out the way he had? Said the things he had? The day had started out great. They woke up at the bed and breakfast and had the morning free before the ceremony. They’d rented bikes on the Cape Cod Rail Trail and had ridden past sand dunes and shacks, cranberry bogs and duck-filled ponds, villages and pine forests, and even a couple of lighthouses. The scenery was one thing, his beautiful wife riding alongside him something else. He could barely keep his eyes off her lithe body and on the trail.
When they’d stopped to buy sandwiches from one of the beachside shacks and had a picnic lunch on the beach, things were still good. It wasn’t until after the seaside wedding ceremony this afternoon that he’d opened his mouth and all kinds of stupid fell out. And for what? Something trivial, not something to throw away a marriage over.
Their argument had stirred weeks before. He resented her for dragging him to a wedding when he’d already had plans for his monthly camping trip with his buddies, He had stormed about it for days, but downright exploded on the beach earlier. Telling her she was too controlling, she shouldn’t speak for him and make him cancel his plans to do something she wanted. How his outdoor trips were how he decompressed from work and if she didn’t get it by now, she didn’t get him. She’d countered, saying he used the same justification for his softball games, and sometimes he had to suck it up and act like an adult. Snide comments had escalated into verbal jabs. Past grievances were drudged up as their defenses rose. Accusations flew, growing uglier, and digging up past perceived injustices, until finally, he had suggested a trial separation.
He still wasn’t sure why he’d said it. A heat of the moment incident, blurting out something to end the fight with something he didn’t even mean.
Her shocked expression had turned to one of hurt as she blinked back tears. Then she’d lashed back at him. “If you’re so shallow and selfish that you consider a weekend away from your buddies such brutality, then yeah, maybe we should.”
When she had stormed away from him across the beach, he had turned away thinking to hell with her and pounded through the sand in the opposite direction. It wasn’t until he had turned back several minutes later to see she was gone that he realized he might have made the biggest mistake of his life.

About the Author

Lisa loves stories with dark, brooding, isolated characters and tough, independent, caring heroines. Her reading tastes very widely and she’ll read almost anything—especially mysteries, romance, and non-fiction on any new topic of interest.

She is thrilled to be a multi-published author writing since she’s wanted to write since the sixth grade. Her travels and many jobs have provided her with inspiration for novels, such as serving in the Marine Corps in Okinawa, Japan, backpacking alone around Europe, or working as a waitress in Paris. Her love of books inspired her to own a small independent book store for a couple of years.

Lisa lives in New England with her husband and their children. She spends her days writing for corporate clients and her evenings writing stories and novels.

Visit her website for more on books, trailers, playlists, and more:

Sign up for her newsletter to hear about new releases, specials, and freebies:

Lisa loves to connect with readers. You can find her on:



Thanks Lisa for sharing,

Tina

Friday, July 25, 2014

Tina's Titillating Teaser - A Grace Wentworthe Mystery by M.Catherine Berg



Picture




Gracie Wentworth is back in the fold of Montgomery Group, her uncle’s private investigation firm. Her first assignment is a simple surveillance job of the rich and beautiful April Penfield, who tragically ends her life in an unforeseen suicide—smack in the middle of Beverly Hills. 


Gracie, hired by April’s father to unravel April’s motivation for sailing herself into perpetuity, finds herself steeped in Hollywood game show misfits, liars, intrigue and secret societies.


Amazon | B&N  | Smashwords

I've read this book and enjoyed it immensely.


Check it out and read M.C.'s free read -- Life in Fiction at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/179453


Thanks for sharing M.C.,


Tina
 

Monday, July 21, 2014

Adventure into the Wild West - Ace is Wild by C.B.McKee










Blurb
 

Uprooted from a small Texas town, Florence “Ace” Fox is stashed in a camp for orphans, Weirdness abounds with the director talking of wizards and casting spells. He even claims she’s possessed, and that the entity is sending her power levels off the charts.


Rebel Wizards learn of her strength and decide they can use Ace to their benefit and greed to gain control of The World!!  They plot against her.


In danger and on the run, Ace and her friends’ travel through the old west looking for a way to rid her of the entity. They discover that only the leaders of the wizarding world can help, but will she like their solution?


Jail, death, or powerless.
 
Excerpt.
 
“Do you realize you have a powerful energy field?” Saw spoke as if she hadn’t said a word.
Ace blinked. Her adopted Indian father had told her the same thing many times. A spiritual leader of his tribe, he had a connection to the other worlds in the universe. Few people she’d met outside the Native American community understood energy fields or auras. What should she say? Was this a trick to make her admit she had some type of evil powers? Then he’d feel justified in killing her.
“Yes, people have mentioned that before.” She tucked her bag under her arm readying herself to spring into action should he make any unexpected movement.
“You haven’t though been taught to control your abilities and become a full wizard.” His sentence, more of a statement of fact than a question, didn’t require an answer yet she couldn’t let it go.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. There are no such things as wizards and magic. Those are things for horror stories and fairy tales.” She voiced the opinion of every white person she’d ever met, stifling the truth of what she’d seen during her time with her adopted tribe.
Saw laughed.
The sound startled her and she leaned back. Her shoulders hit the back of the chair. She stared at the man.
Without trying, she suddenly noticed how energy pulsed around his body. A golden glow captured her immediate attention. The fear she’d harbor against him melted. She drew in a cleansing breath. The man had no desire to do her any harm. In fact he had only her best interest at heart.
How did she know that?
She straightened, easing deeper onto the chair. “You’re a shaman too, aren’t you?”
He grinned and raised an eyebrow of inquiry. “Similar, but not the same. For now, though, why don’t you tell me a little about yourself? Where did you pick up the entity residing within you?”
Ace shook her head, uncertain what the man was talking about. She had no other entity dwelling within her spirit. “I’m sorry. I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.”
He nodded. His piercing gaze nailed her, causing goose bumps to pop onto her skin. “All right, then tell me about your family. I believe your father and mother were killed when you were very young?”
The question revealed Mr. Harris had given Saw a brief history of her life thus far. “Yes, and then I lived with—” She paused not wanting to reveal the tribe she had belong to. They were good people and deserved to be left alone. “—a tribe of Indians for a while before I moved in with the minister and his wife.”
“That’s where Frank found you?”
“Yes.”
“And you had no desire to come here?”
She eyed him cautiously. If he she said yes, would he take offense? Again, the gold in his aura calmed her fears. Her mind formed a connection to her father. Saw wanted to protect her from others. Why? She didn’t have a clue. “I was happy there and saw no reason to leave.”
“Maybe, but here you are going to learn the power you truly possess.”
Ace frowned. Puzzling bewilderment gnawed at her gut. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
 
You can buy it at
 
 
 
And find out more about Ace  at http://wizardme.wordpress.com/
or follow C.B. on twitter @cbmckee


Thanks C.B. for sharing,


Tina

 

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

#RockingSummerRomance with Dany Rae Miller

 photo SoftShatterCoverfinal_zps6900b65e.jpg


IT’S NEW. IT’S FREE. AND YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE IT.

 

If sexy alphas and smart witches are your thing, you’ll want to hurry over to Dany Rae Miller’s website.

 

As she puts the final polish on Soft Shatter, she’s posting the entire 90,000+ word novel there for free. Chapters 1-10 are up now and you will get two new ones each week.

 


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THE BLURB

All Shavone Gentil wants is to find her runaway sister. When witchcraft fails to provide answers, she does what any practicing witch would do – use her sex appeal on wolves who might be able to help. She focuses on three wolves in particular: one wolf has been in love with her since childhood, a second who quickly falls under her spell and a third who could quite possibly be the most important person in her life.

 

THE WARNING

Soft Shatter contains explicit sexual content. In fact, all Wolven Moon novels are intended for mature readers, ages 17+, only.

 

Because it's adult material – with a much-anticipated four-chapter love scene, you’ll need a super secret password to get in. Go here to get your password: http://danyraemiller.com/soft-shatter/

 

Readership is growing fast. So, click over right now and help launch what could be the next sensational erotic romance series.

 

Dany Rae is all over social media these days. Find her on your favorite platform:





 

 

   
Thanks for sharing Dany,


Tina

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

A Dog's Story - Astro's Adventures on #RockingSummerRomance by Susan Day




 

Astro’s answers to my quickie questions:

Ice Tea or Lemonade:

I’m not allowed to drink ice tea or lemonade. I prefer to drink crisp clean water collected from rippling, babbling brooks set in the highest mountains. But tap water’s fine too.

 

Lake or Ocean:

As a dog I prefer the ocean – it’s a wave thing. I know there are waves on some larger lakes but let’s face it, nothing beats the running in and out, in and out, in and out biting waves! That’s awesome!

 

Sandals or Flip Flops:

I’m easy when it comes to footwear. I like to chew them all. Some sandals offer a bit more of a challenge – removing the straps and not choking on the buckles but then flip flops are so, so chewy. I can’t decide!

 

Sit in the Shadow of a Tree or on the porch:

As a very furry hound I prefer to lounge about under the shadow of a tree. This also gives me every opportunity to chase the cat whenever possible.

 

Ball cap or Floppy hat:

See footwear – I like to chew them all!

 

 

Here is the blurb to Astro’s first book (there are 7 altogether):

 

A secret organisation exists without detection and operates right under our very noses. Its sole purpose is to save dogs from neglect. It is manned by a tunnel digging terrier who carries a diamond encrusted nail file. A large dog for which the complexities of door handles are a complete mystery and who, instead, opens everything with his head. As well as, a commando, khaki wearing Blue heeler who is armed with a hunting bone and a smell grenade. And that’s just to name a few!

 

In The Great Escape, we meet Astro, possibly one of the most spoilt dogs in the world. He calls on this secret organisation to save him from what he falsely assumes is imprisonment and neglect.

 

When Commander Rocky, head of The Organisation, finds out that Astro is not telling the truth he decides to teach him a lesson. Rocky takes Astro to the one place all dogs dread, The Check Out!

 

However, things don’t go to plan and Commander Rocky learns that below the shallow exterior of a grey shaggy dog is a brave, kind hearted hero.

A hero called Astro.

 

 

500 word excerpt:

The Great Escape

 

Commander Rocky and Astro came out of the tunnel into the bright sunlight. Commander Rocky pushed Astro towards the office but Astro didn’t want to go.

 

“Look,” Astro whispered, “I think there’s been some sort of mistake. I’m a house dog. I live in a warm house with my own bed and food bowl. My owner wipes my feet when they’re wet and takes me for a walk every day. I mean I’m not really cut out for this type of thing.…”

 

Commander Rocky put his paw over Astro’s mouth, “If you want to return to your precious home, then I’d keep quiet if I were you and do as you’re told.”

 

Astro was silenced. He was very frightened.

 

The warden came around the corner with an old brown dog. Commander Rocky and Astro ducked behind a building and waited for them to pass.

 

“Where’s he taking that old dog?” whispered Astro.

 

“I’ll show you,” answered Commander Rocky and he trotted in the opposite direction.

 

He led Astro around the corner of an old building and then slipped in between a cyclone wire gate and a post. Astro followed but he was very scared. It was very dark inside the cell block. This shocking place smelt of strong disinfectant but there was another smell which was even more awful than Alfie: The smell of fear and despair. It took several seconds before their eyes adjusted to the dim light but when it did both dogs gasped at the horror of what lay before them.

 

“What is this place?” choked Astro.

 

He stared into long cages where shadows lay on concrete floors. Some trembled and others were as still as stone.

 

“Are they dead?” asked Astro.

 

“Not yet,” whispered Commander Rocky. “All the dogs in this building will be gone soon.” He gritted his answer between clenched teeth; he was so angry.

 

“All good dogs: some old and some young. This is how some humans deal with the problems they have with their dogs. If the dog chews the furniture because he’s bored; if he barks too much because he’s lonely; if he bites because he’s tired or scared or hungry, he can end up in here. It’s not fair and it makes my blood boil.”

 

Astro walked from cage to cage. He could see small dogs, white dogs, black dogs and a young puppy who was chasing his tail around and around and around but he wasn’t doing it for fun, he just couldn’t stop himself. All the dogs were different but they all had one thing in common. Their eyes were hollow and sad. They didn’t understand why they were in this dreadful place but they knew that their lives were doomed forever.

 

Astro gulped and nodded. He leaned closer to Commander Rocky and whispered, “But I’ve chewed up the furniture and I was so lonely once I chewed through the plug on the washing machine. I even peed on the rug every night for a week. My owner got angry but she wouldn’t send me here; she wouldn’t.”

 

Commander Rocky turned and looked at Astro. His eyes widened. He curled his lip.

 

“No, she wouldn’t Astro and that’s why I brought you here. You are a spoilt dog. Your owner gives you everything and looks after you better than most dogs. Look at these faces, Astro; do you think these dogs would complain if they had an owner like yours?”

 

Astro’s eyes began to well up with tears. He bit his lip.

 

Commander Rocky turned his head and wiped his eyes too. He cleared his throat. “Come on,” he ordered, “Let’s go.”

 

Astro stood still and turned and watched Commander Rocky walking away.

 

“Wait! We can’t leave them here. It’s not fair!” he cried.

 

“There’s nothing we can do for them,” Commander Rocky sighed. “The humans are too strong. They will catch us too, Astro, and then we won’t be able to help other dogs. The other Operatives are waiting for us.”

 

“I’m not going!” yelled Astro and he ran to each of the cages. “Don’t worry; I’ll get you out of here.”

 

He ran to the next cage, “Leave it to me.”

 

And the next cage, “I’ll help you.”

 

The dogs in the cages began to murmur and move forward. Commander Rocky shook his head and barked, “Come on, Astro, there’s nothing we can do!”

 

Then he heard a terrible bang. Commander Rocky leaned forward in the dim light to see what Astro was doing.

 

Astro was throwing himself at the cage doors and grabbing them in his paws and shaking them. Commander Rocky went to stop him, but when the first door flew off its hinges he realised that Astro might be on to something. He yelled to the others, “Send in the troops, we’re staging a break out!!”

 

 

 

Buy links:




 

 

Short bio:

Astro is a six year old shaggy dog. He was purchased from a pet store and has been pretty much spoilt rotten ever since. He knows that there are many unfortunate dogs in the world that are not as lucky as he is and so the idea for The Great Escape began. Astro likes to eat, run, carry a towel around the house and bark incessantly at nothing in particular. In short, he is a normal dog.

 

Susan Day – who does not own Astro but does many of the other dogs in the Astro Adventures series - is passionate about children's literature and wants to inspire children to follow their dreams. She created the Astro’s Adventures series and is currently preparing for publication the seventh book, Neptune’s Trident. Susan shares her home with dogs, in particular, Rocky, Stella, Alfie and Digger, two rescue guinea pigs, two bossy cats and a very patient husband.

 

 

Social media links:




 
Thanks for sharing,


Tina

Monday, July 14, 2014

#RockingSummerRomance -- A Promise at Dawn @jelquinnauthor




A PROMISE AT DAWN

(a 15,500 word story)

by Jane Leopold Quinn

 

 

BLURB

 

Their affair was scorchingly sensual

 

Faye Burke, recently widowed, retreated to the coast of Maine to grieve and reassess her future. Her favorite part of the day is watching the sun rise out of the Atlantic Ocean. It’s also when the man she considers her guilty pleasure runs along the beach.

 

Gil Farrelly, a successful painter, is trying to get his career back on track after the studio fire that destroyed everything. He starts his creative juices flowing every day by running on the beach. The lovely woman who watches him also gets his juices flowing and he’s determined to reinvent his career by painting her.

 

Faye’s combination of maturity and sensual vulnerability intrigue Gil and he wants to immortalize her on his canvas. She’s flattered, aroused and ultimately frightened of the emotions he incites. He claims not to care he’s younger by twelve years but she believes sooner or later he’ll come to his senses and seek out women his own age. Can Faye conquer her fears? Can Gil prove to her it’s not age separating them but her fear?

 

 

EXCERPT

 


With a clatter of easels, boxes of paints and glass jars of brushes, Gil set up on her porch. A stiff breeze swept across the space but a rattan wind screen at one end did a good job of protecting them. The day had started out cloudy and threatening rain and still held that promise. He had work to do before he could give in to the weather.


Faye had greeted him at the door, looking almost as adorable as she'd looked the night before. Today she wore light makeup and left her hair loose and wavy the way he'd asked her to. Denim cropped pants and a tight red sweater made her look like a teenager. She had to be in her early forties but it didn't matter to him. She was very attractive no matter her age. "Let's get started, shall we Faye?"


"Would you like some coffee or something else to drink?"


"Not right now but I'll take you up on that later, okay? Why don't you stand over there." He indicated the corner of the porch. "Lean one hip on the railing." When he came close, he was enthralled by the warm vanilla fragrance infusing her hair. He lifted a hand to touch the cloud-soft mass. She stilled, then shivered as if waiting for him to make a move. He wrapped his fingers in the silky strands.


She uttered a little cry, more of a whimper. Her lips parted, her eyes widened and met his with a flustered look. At that moment he wanted her fiercely. Before he'd known anything about her, she'd seemed fragile. He didn't know much more now but a woman who still wore her wedding ring a year and a half after her husband's death must have loved him very much. A woman like that would have depths of emotion.


He'd thought he was in pain from losing his studio and his work but Faye's was far more significant. He didn't want to see her grieve any longer but all he knew for sure was that he wanted to paint her for himself. He envisioned the scene in his mind. She was perfect for it. All that was left was to do her justice. Was it because he wanted to capture her beauty on canvas or because she got his juices flowing faster than any running could? He knew it was both.


He rested his forefinger under her chin and turned her face toward him. Giving her his most soothing smile, he said, "Relax, Faye, this won't hurt a bit. Now I'm going over there." He pointed toward his easel. "You're going to lean here." He tapped the railing. "And I'll start some sketches."


She gazed up at him with those incredible turquoise eyes, her confusion and longing speaking to him, raspberry-shaded lips pursed slightly. Mmm, the thought roared through his mind. Kiss her.


It's too soon.


She's not ready.


Just paint her.


 






A Promise at Dawn is available at Amazon

 

Amazon Reviews

 

"Good short story! Faye and Gil have very hot chemistry, and their story is heartwarming. I was surprised at the character development in such a short offering. Faye had suffered such a huge loss, and we were drawn in along on her new path in life."

 

"Ms Quinn paints a detailed portrait of a woman re-awakening after the loss of her husband. Her emotional state is handled quite deftly. This story has pathos, passion and humor woven together. Gil and Faye's story unfolds quickly and it's a scorcher."

 

Bio

 

Sensual fantasies were locked in my mind for years until a friend said, "Why don't you write them down?" Why not, indeed? One spiral notebook, a pen and the unleashing of my imagination later, and here I am with more than a dozen books published. The craft of writing erotic romance has become my passion and my niche in life. I love every part of the creative process — developing characters, designing the plot, even drawing the layout of physical spaces from my stories. My careers have been varied — third grade school teacher, bookkeeper, secretary — none of which gave me a bit of inspiration. But now I'm lucky enough to write romance full time — the best job in the universe!

 

Jane Leopold Quinn

My Romance:  Love With a Scorching Sensuality



Quickie questions:

Ice Tea or Lemonade?  -  Ice Tea
Lake or ocean?  -- Ocean
Sandals or Flip flops?   -- Sandals
Sit in the shadow of a tree or on the front/back porch?  --  Porch
Ball cap or floppy hat? -- Floppy hat

Thanks Jane, for sharing,

Tina