WHAT INTERESTING THINGS HAVE YOU DONE IN YOUR LIFE?

Most of us have visions of very different lives when we are children. We want to be princesses, kings, movie stars or millionaires. Then life gets in the way. We forget to dream, forget to play, forget we ever wanted to be brilliant and amazing.

In my life I have been everything from a small business owner, to a massage therapist, to a stay home mom, to a tarot card reader, to a romance writer. In many ways I loved all my different choices. They each said something about my personality; they each added something to my growth as a person.

In The Artist’s Way, Stella Cameron consistently asks the reader to choose several different career paths. Name five other things you could do with your life, she urges in just about every chapter. And even the rich and famous can find their road in life curves in many different directions. Here are just a few:

Matthew McConaughey intended to become a lawyer.

Jimmy Stewart started out as an architect.

Nicole Kidman was a massage therapist in Australia (A job dear to my own heart.)

Dan Brown was a singer-songwriter and even released two CDs in the early 90’s.

Mike Rowe from the TV series, Dirty Jobs once sang with the Boston Opera. (Makes me want him more now…lolol)

Graham Chapman of Monty Python studied at the London School of Medicine and Dentistry.

Gene Simmons of KISS fame taught elementary school in New York’s Spanish Harlem district.

Angelina Jolie once aspired to be a funeral director. (Yes, I can see it.)

Eva Longoria studied to be a physical therapist.

Steve Martin considered being a philosophy teacher before getting into comedy.

Tom Cruise briefly attended a Franciscan seminary and aspired to become a Catholic priest.

So what interesting things have you done in your life?

A Taste of Winter
Gia Dawn
Red Masks, Book One

For the ladies of the Red Masks pleasure waits behind every door…and no one is ever who they seem to be.

When Alaina accepts an invitation to the Charleston South Carolina’s premier sex club, she has no idea the stranger who makes her scream with pleasure is her micro-managing ex-boss, Ryan. And while she could not stand his domination on the job, his domination in the bedroom takes her to whole new levels of pleasure as he forces her to submit to his every decadent demand—including a threesome with his old friend and her new employer, Zayne.

But while Ryan knows Alaina’s true identity, she remains unaware of his deception until the masks come off and she is faced with a decision. Can she continue to submit to his will now she knows who he really is? And when he proposes a lifetime contract, can Alaina sign on the dotted line?

 A Romantica® contemporary ménage erotic romance from Ellora’s Cave

Ryan Marquis stared in displeasure as his cell phone rang. He had a strict policy of no business between the hours of six on Saturday night, and noon Sunday, that brief block of time set aside every week to satisfy his need for rest and relaxation—along with some decadent indulgence when the need arose.

He frowned as the phone rang again, noting it was now three minutes after the hour, before picking it up to see who dared break into his personal time, his frown twisting into a semi-smile as he noted the number and answered.

“Bon nuit, mon cher,” came a husky voice across the line. “I have someone for you tonight. Someone you have been waiting for.”

His heart pounded in uncharacteristic excitement, his fingers tightening around the phone, a weakness he stifled in an instant. But his body proved a traitor to his discipline, every nerve buzzing, every muscle tightening in anticipation as thoughts of the night ahead wove dark and dangerous pleasures through his mind.

Was it her? Finally, after all this time, had she accepted his invitation?

Alaina Winter.

He’d been unduly fascinated with the frosty blonde ever since he’d hired her two years before. Not only was her work exceptional, the woman had an unnatural ability to match him on a professional level, her wall of politeness so thick she’d refused to break no matter what he’d thrown at her. And every time he heard her precise Southern voice across the phone, agreeing to his every ridiculous demand without a single hesitation, he became more and more obsessed with finding a way to make the ice queen melt.

It wasn’t a thing he was proud of in any manner. He deplored his need to feel her tremble in his arms, hear her cries of pleasure as he stroked his teeth across her skin…drive his flesh so far between her legs she’d beg him to stop while he kept her bound and still beneath him.  His need had grown so distracting he’d finally taken action.  He’d petitioned Madame Manette Brisson, the proprietor of the Red Mask Society, to issue Miss Winter an invitation to come and play—an invitation she’d ignored for so long he thought she would never send a reply.

So what had fueled her sudden acceptance? The lady was up to something, he understood in a heartbeat, remembering their last conversation. And whatever she was up to, he planned to enjoy the ride.

“Monsieur Marquis? If you are unavailable, I will find someone else to keep the lady occupied.” The woman on the other end of the line sniffed, her voice chill with censure.

“Not if you value your life,” he finally answered, his own voice throaty with rising excitement.

“Then I expect you here at eight o’clock sharp. Don’t disappoint either of us by your absence.”

Ryan’s laughter rumbled from his throat. “I never disappoint, Madame. Is my room cleaned and ready?”

“Mais certainment. Do you have any special requests for the evening?”

This time he didn’t bother to try and control the surge of want that throbbed between his legs, spreading them to make room for his growing erection, his hand dropping to rest on the lengthening mass of flesh.

What instruments did he need to make her scream in pleasure?

“Leather,” he answered with grunt of satisfaction. “Black. New. Enough to bind her to my will.”

“I will see it done,” said the woman in a whisper before the line went dead.

Lime green, my ass, he thought with uncharacteristic delight as he pocketed his phone and headed home, the taste of winter already tantalizing on his tongue.

Here is a quick history of my story as a writer:

After several deaths in the family and a health scare of my own, I quit writing back in 2008 after releasing several titles with Samhain Publishing. When my son was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes–young adult onset–in May of this year, I did what any good mother would. Cried for several days and then went to check out the Brenda Novak Auction where I bid on, and won, a three chapter critique from Ellora’s Cave!! I pitched to the lovely Julie Naughton at the Readers and Writers weekend sponsored by Lori Foster and Duffy Brown in June, and voila, the Red Masks Series was born. The first in the series, A Taste of Winter, will be releasing November 8 2013.

www.GiaDawn.com