Sometimes we get a quirky character in our head and he fits in to stories as a “comic relief” standup to one of our other hero characters. But this character is fully developed and understood by not only the writer, but the reader as well. I’ve found that fans love them.
I once had my cover looked at by a publicity person, and she said, “Well, he’s not the usual handsome and bare-chested guy, so I guess this book won’t do well.” She wanted to promote one of my other books.
While it’s true, my character, Fredo, his formal name being: Special Operator Alphonso Manuel Esquidido Chavez, doesn’t have what we would call “handsome” face and long tanned torso, his heart is his best feature. That, and he never gives up on the things he believes in.
This was a refreshing change for me to write a character with a unibrow he didn’t think manly to tweeze, a cratered face and wide nose, who didn’t eat anything green but cilantro and chilis, and show him as a sexy hero because of his heart and not his body. I even got fan mail asking me when his book would be out, and wondering why I hadn’t written it yet. He does appear in all other 15 of my SEAL Brotherhood books.
I get the most fan mail about Fredo. In the prequel novella, Fredo’s Secret, he learns he’s sterile. Fredo’s Dream is a continuation of that story in a full length novel to give him his Happily Ever After.
For a limited time, the eBook version of this book will also contain the prequel.
Here’s an excerpt:
They pulled up in front of the house. Fredo sucked in air like his life depended on it. He felt a paw squeeze his left shoulder.
“Tell her, man. Make sure you take that burden off you. If it’s her story, she has to unburden herself. But you don’t take that on for her. You can’t save her from everything. And you’re tough, Fredo. You’re the toughest motherfucker I’ve ever seen on or off the battlefield.”
Fredo didn’t know why, but he thought of something funny.
“Until this thing about the baby, you know what was the toughest challenge I ever had?”
“What?”
“Getting my pants on with a stiffy. Damnedest thing, I’ve been fuckin’ hard ever since she touched me that first time on the cruise. That first time I knew she wanted me for me.”
“See? Normally, I’d give you a ration of shit for that one. But that’s good. Focus on that.”
Fredo glanced down at his lap and grinned as his boner came back to life.
“Some men fuck better scared, so think about that and not what you might find out, either now or later. Doesn’t matter. She loves you. You know—hell, the whole platoon knows—she loves you. Whatever happened, I’m sure there was a good reason. And you know what I think about the testing. Just get yourself goddamned tested, asshole. You’re like those new recruits who cry when they get their first Wompa Shot.”
“Okay, I’m ready.” Fredo grabbed his duty bag and got out of the Hummer. He leaned back into the window to accept Coop’s final words of advice.
“Suck it up, Buttercup.”
Why couldn’t it have been something manly?
“Fredo, you don’t do this, and I’m gonna get Danny and Kyle and T.J. and Jones, and we’re gonna hold you down and tweeze that fuckin’ unibrow. Who knows, under all that hair, you might be a handsome man!”
He swore but was much more pleased with this “normal” sendoff. He started laughing to himself and then remembered one more thing and ran back to the window. “There were two things I struggled with. You won’t believe what the second one was.”
“You wear pink women’s underwear and were hiding it from your wife.”
“In your dreams.”
“Not my dreams, asshole.”
“I actually learned to get used to tofu and stir-fry vegetables. I actually got to like the taste of some green in my diet. Can you believe that?”
Coop shook his head and started the vehicle, shouting back, “Go fuck your wife, Fredo, and quit pulling my leg.” He drove off with a low rumble, screeched his tires at the corner, and was gone. Just before he disappeared, he held up his middle finger.
About the Author
NYT and USA/Today Bestselling Author Sharon Hamilton’s SEAL Brotherhood series have earned her top author rankings of #1 in Romantic Suspense, Military Romance and Contemporary Romance. Her characters follow a sometimes rocky road to redemption through passion and true love. Her Golden Vampires of Tuscany earned her a #1 ranking in Gothic Romance.
A lifelong organic vegetable and flower gardener, Sharon and her husband live in the Wine Country of Northern California, where most of her stories take place.
