NaNo Day 3:
SS-2—3037 words

FYI, I’ll announce the winner of the gift certificate tomorrow. So there’s still time to enter. See details on my Contest page. ~DD

Bet you thought I was never comin’ back. Well, I have been busy. I just wrapped up the “super alpha” antho and shipped it–and no, I can’t tell anyone who made my final cut, because the wonderful folks at Cleis still have to give it their blessing. They have been known to kick a story.

Now, I’m joining NaNoWriMo to slam pages on the Shattered Souls sequel. I don’t know how to tell you folks how much I love this series. I hope you’ll give it a chance. I hope you’ll pre-order SS to give it a chance for others to find it, I believe in it that much. That being said, do you know I have a book coming out in just 10 days? The next Delta Heat story? That’s right. Have you heard me say the story’s all about sex? Yeah, for some reason my fireman and his pretty little sub can’t manage to be in the same room and not get busy. When Craig the cop was added to the equation all hell broke loose. I have a scene I plucked from pretty far into the book. What’s the lead up? Let’s see. Aiden, the fireman, is a Dom who’s a frustrated sadist. He can’t let go with his little subbie the way he wants for fear of hurting her. Enter Craig who gets off on pain. A menage made in heaven? You’ll have to wait and see. Here, Craig’s dealing out a little punishment to a very sorry Jenn. 🙂

Excerpt:

Jenn didn’t find Aiden’s car at the usual places—the apartment building or La Forge—so she drove to the firehouse. There, she found his black pickup parked outside. She pulled in beside it then let herself out. So she’d found him. But she still didn’t know yet what she’d say.

Hoping she hadn’t completely fucked up their relationship, she walked through the bay, down the hallway to the rec room. She peeked inside, noted the TV blaring and gave a wave to one of the men who started to stand. He knew her and eased back into his armchair.

The clank of weights dropping drew her attention. Moving farther down the hall, she stood at the door of the small gym room. Several other firefighters were inside, mostly sitting on benches and talking. One of them noted her appearance, slapped the man next to him, and suddenly they were trailing past her, leaving her alone with the man who pretended she wasn’t there.

The barbells he lifted in rapid succession were heavily weighted. He was sweating. Shirtless. Wearing just a pair of plain gray sweatpants and sneakers.

Her mouth watered because she wanted to lick at the sweat. But she shook herself. Aiden needed something from her.

Trying not to think about what she was doing, she went with her instincts. Her submissive heart. She strolled slowly inside, dropped her purse beside the door and closed the door before she stripped to the skin. Naked, she walked toward him and knelt beside the bench where he reclined.

Aiden continued to ignore her.

For her part, she ignored the hardness of the polished concrete floor beneath her knees. Other things weren’t so easy to push out of her mind as she waited. His body was so beautiful. So strong. A study in rippling, übermasculine muscle.

Every flex heightened her awareness of the things she loved about his body. The strength of his embrace. How safe he made her feel. The sheer power he kept tightly controlled every time he touched her. Aiden didn’t trust that strength. Not when it came to her. And she’d resented it.

But that restraint was a testament to his desire to protect anyone weaker than he was. Proof of his deep feelings for her. How selfish had she been to want to push him into losing his control for her own pleasure?

He settled the weights into their bracket then jackknifed to sit with his legs straddling the bench.

Jenn didn’t dare glance up. Not until he said something. Gave her permission.

“Why are you here?”

She closed her eyes. What was the right thing to say? Rather than the apology she wanted to give him, she whispered, “I’m here to be punished.”

After a long, pregnant silence, he asked, “Did you even lock the door?” Read the rest of this entry »