UPDATE: The winner is…Beckie!
*~*~*

I’m one of those people. I love Mondays. Monday, not Sunday, is the start of my work week calendar. It’s always a day filled with optimism. I have a countdown of items on my calendar/To-Do list and strive to accomplish as many of those items as I can during the week.

Some folks hate Mondays. The kids, once school starts, will bemoan every single Monday until the following summer. It’s a given. Even as a school kid, I loved Mondays, though. I always had my notebook cleaned out, fresh paper added, pens and pencils refilled/sharpened. I loved a weekly “fresh start” to make things better.

This week, on Wednesday, the kids will be back in school. It’s going to be hard adjusting to those early morning wakeups again, the scrambling to get the animals taken care of before everyone heads to the car. We’re good organizers, though. We manage to get everything down to a tight routine so there’s time for everything–chickens fed and released from the coop, goats and horse fed, bunnies fed and water replenished. Breakfast out of the way. Girls’ hair prettied up and outfits sparkling. Then there’s the silence when they race to the car for the trip to school. That’s my time to take a deep breath, drink a cup of coffee, and wander over to my computer to begin my day.

This Monday is a bit different. I begin a low-carb diet for the next couple of days before my PET scan tomorrow afternoon/early evening. The 20-year-old has promised me sticky notes all over the kitchen, with messages to prod me into behaving. Things like: “Only meat and veggies on Monday and Tuesday.” “No coffee past 4 P.M. on Monday.” “No food at all past 10 A.M. on Tuesday!” There are too many rules for me to follow on my own to make sure my PET scan is as accurately recorded as it can be, so they (my dd and the 20-year-old) decided to sticky-up the kitchen for me. It’s so funny, actually.

I’m hoping next Monday’s only worry is making sure all the alarms are set to get us out of bed for the morning school scramble. I like the normal hubbub. Tomorrow’s is…unsettling, but we’ll get past it.

So, that’s my bit of oversharing for the day. Let’s get to the contest!

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me what your favorite day of the week is and why!

Report Card

Last week…

1. The big thing that happened last week was that I met with the oncologist. He talked to me about omental caking, told me I very likely have cancer, so I’m letting go of the hope it’s just an infection. We talked about next steps to get a more definitive diagnosis and treatment plan. I hate that I have to wait even a week for what happens next, but oh well. He did give me better pain meds. I’m sleeping well and napping quite a bit.
2. I worked on edits for one author.
3. I swam almost every day. It’s the best thing for stress and mental health.
4. I saw a lawyer to update my will. Just in case…
5. I continued working on decluttering my art room.

This next week…

1. I have a PET scan scheduled on Tuesday. They’ll shoot me up with radiation and take pictures to get a better idea of where cancer may be hiding. Then I’ll be scheduled for a biopsy. I guess they need to know what to biopsy before they go in there. Who knew!?
2. I will finish editing one author’s manuscript and edit the next one in line.
3. I’ll work on finishing the next Delta Fire novella, Ignition. I only have a couple of chapters to write, and I think I can get through it while I wait for whatever procedures I will be going through. I didn’t make any progress on it this last week, but I was too busy napping. 🙂
4. I’ll continue swimming and trying to watch what I eat!
5. I’ll continue working on some small art projects while I declutter my art room.

Open Contests

On the Delilah’s Collections website!

1. In One Picture: Michal Scott’s “My Heavenly Phantom” (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win a FREE book!
2. In One Picture: Ava Cuvay’s “What that Alien D Do” (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. In One Picture: Cameron Allie’s “Claimed by her Naga Bodyguard” (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win a FREE book (3 winners!)
4. In One Picture: N.J. Walters’ “Perfect Stranger” (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!

Here, on this site!

1. Gabbi Grey: What a Difference Seven Years Makes (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Cecilia Tan: A Recipe for Steamy, Steamy Steampunk (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Cottagecore Aesthetic/Trad Wife…? — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Gabbi Grey: Having a little fun… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
5. Word Search: Back to School… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
6. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Peach Flower — Win an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Courtney Kinder!
*~*~*

I didn’t put much thought into today’s post. I opened my favorite stock photo site, saw that they had a category called “Pantone Color of the Year for 2024,” and skimmed through all these lovely photos of peach-colored things. I found a blossom I love and decided that was enough work. It’s pretty. You’ll like it. And who can complain about a pretty, neutral peach, huh? Sometimes, their colors of the year are a bit out there (I love it when they do that!). It’s fun seeing designers try to make up rooms using the year’s color when it’s something like neon green or eggplant.

Anyway, I’m having a quiet weekend. Next week’s the PET scan so we can determine where the cancer is. I’m hoping I don’t light up like a Christmas tree. That would suck. Even better would be if I disappoint them and I’m a boring little pop of this and that. *crossing my fingers*

In the meantime, I’m working a little, playing some Fishdom on my phone, and napping a lot. Other than abdominal discomfort, I’m feeling pretty good (popping Hydrocodone at night helps a lot!). I’m even getting my daily swims in.

So, back to the contest and the flower… For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle then tell me your favorite flower and color. Mine is a bright yellow sunflower. They’re so happy looking. Red is my favorite color in all its permutations (magenta to sunset orange).

I posted the next “In One Picture” blog on the Collections website, and then had to open a blank white screen for my blog. I don’t have anything to talk about today. I’ll be doing some editing, maybe take care of some administrivia, resting when my body tells me to, eating when I get hungry. Nothing ambitious for sure.

I wish everyone good health, happiness, and the love of family and friends—I say this as the 10-year-old lets out an enraged scream somewhere upstairs. I can tell a “help, I’m hurt” scream from one of her frustrated, louder screams. I’m ignoring it because mama is up there and can handle it. It’s the last week of summer for the kids. They should be chillin’ and making the most of it. Youth is wasted on the young. LOL

So, here’s a pretty blue flower for you. I looked for a calming image, something I wish I could sniff. The flowers in our yard, other than the evening primroses that bloom at the end of day, are gone for the most part, dried up by the heat. Leaves are raining down like it’s Fall because it’s so hot and dry. The one good thing is the heat is keeping the pool warm. I’ll swim after the sun is behind the trees this evening. By swim, I mean ride a pool noodle as I bob around the pool. Again, no ambition, just chillin’.

Have a lovely day, everyone!

UPDATE: The winner is…Janelle!
*~*~*

The family has been so wound up with things related to me that it’s nice that the focus is back on normal things. Today was Open House for the local schools. The 15-year-old and the 10-year-old are getting their schedules and school supplies. They’re meeting the new crop of teachers they have to endure (that’s the 15-year-old’s attitude—LOL).

In past years, the 10-year-old liked for me to make her lunch every day because I’d make it interesting. She loved pulling out hummus and veggies, leftover curry from the previous night’s dinner, Indian lentil dishes she ate with naan bread or crackers, yoghurt, fruit, and all the creative things I could think of to make her lunch interesting for her. This year, she’s moving into middle school where they have choices, so she told me she might only need one of my special lunch bags a week. I guess it makes her feel more grown-up or something. I don’t know. I enjoyed spoiling her with good food. She’s not a baby anymore. 🙁

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me if you enjoy or enjoyed this time of year, getting kids ready for another school year!

UPDATE: The winner is…flchen!
*~*~*

Hello Delilah!  Thank you for inviting me here today to share my new release! It comes out next week, but I wanted to give your readers a sneak peek. Love on the Clock is a new anthology I’m partaking in, and it is about…wait for it…relationships formed at work.  I have to admit I like this setting.  You can fit so many tropes into it: enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, rivals-to-lovers… Okay, there are others.  But you see what I mean.

I, of course, sought the advice of my Plot Whisperer (I swear I can plot stories on my own, and I have a few coming up that will prove that).  Still, I sought help.  I needed a short story in a workplace.  Oh, and I wanted to set it in the small town I’ve created.  And it’s a gay romance.  Plot Whisperer rolled her eyes (can you see an eye roll through chat with people on opposite sides of the world? I say you can…).  We went through any number of different potential places of employment.

We settled on an architect’s office.  With…wait for it…an architect.  Then we figured he needed a coworker.  Specifically, an interior designer.  Oh, and the two had to be complete opposites.  The designer is (stereotypically) a peacock, while the architect is strait-laced.  Dresses more like a funeral director.  Doesn’t do color.  Yeah sure…but you know the designer is going to take issue with that.

Throw in a demanding client, a tight deadline, frayed nerves, and a cantankerous photocopy machine and…voila. A rom-com short story set in a workplace.

Man, did I have fun writing these two characters! In my beloved favorite town.  The story is so tight that I couldn’t include cameos. Have no fear, though.  I suspect these two will turn up again.  Anyway, I hope readers fall in love with Orlando and Knight.

Thanks, Delilah, for letting me visit!  I would love to offer a $5 Amazon GC to one lucky commenter.  Let’s talk settings!  I have to write another workplace romance later this year – where would you love to see one set it?  Random will pick the winner so go ahead and comment!

Love on the Clock

Never mix business with pleasure

This collection of CEOs, assistants, partners and consultants have forgotten Office Rule No.1.

Whether it’s passion over the printer, scandal in the stationery cupboard or loosened ties in the boardroom, these co-workers are getting hot under the collar.

Join us around the Romance Café water cooler to discover the latest office scuttlebutt.

Authors:
Clarice Jayne
Sharon Michalove
Keighley Bradford
Kristine Charles
Élodie Garroway
Lisabelle Chretien
Katherine Moore
Harper Michaels
Sonja Flowers
Abigail Sharpe
Toni Bolton
Francis Black
Gabbi Grey

The anthology will only be available for a limited time.

Links:
Universal Link: https://books2read.com/tnrc2024loveontheclock
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Love-Clock-Romance-Anthology-Collection-ebook/dp/B0CLN4864V
Add it to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/200569229-love-on-the-clock

The Office Hotshot by Gabbi Grey from Love on the Clock…

Orlando

I’m a go-getter. Right out of interior design school, I’ve landed a plum job in a well-regarded architecture firm, and I’m ready to help the lead architect meet his deadline. Except the man’s a jerk, strung so tight it’s a miracle he hasn’t exploded. Offering a little stress relief is practically a service to humanity. But in the dark in the copy room, Knight’s a lot more human than I thought. Now stress relief isn’t the only thing I want to give him, and I’m dreading the day I’ll have to leave.

Knight

I’m working under a tight deadline, and all I want is peace, quiet, and an assistant who doesn’t give me lip. Right now, I have none of those things. The new hire is perky, pushy, and unfairly attractive. One hot encounter in the copy room isn’t breaking my oath to never get involved with a subordinate, right? Unfortunately, that one interlude leaves me craving more. What’s so special about Orlando, that he’s making me think about breaking all my rules and asking him to stay?

This is a 15k word gay romance novella with a successful architect, a quirky younger interior designer, and a cantankerous photocopier.

About Gabbi Grey

USA Today Bestselling author Gabbi Grey lives in beautiful British Columbia where her fur baby chin-poo keeps her safe from the nasty neighborhood squirrels. Working for the government by day, she spends her early mornings writing contemporary, gay, sweet, and dark erotic BDSM romances. While she firmly believes in happy endings, she also believes in making her characters suffer before finding their true love. She also writes m/f romances as Gabbi Black and Gabbi Powell.

Before I get into my latest release, a bit of news…

I met with the oncologist yesterday. And yes, I have the Big C. And it’s metastatic, which means the place where it was detected isn’t where it originated. I’ll get a biopsy either this week or next then I’ll meet with the oncologist again, and we’ll set up a treatment plan. I’m not feeling all doom and gloomy. That’s not me. He’s pretty cool actually. No fluffy talk. And he’s optimistic about outcomes or at least the fact I’m not going anywhere any time soon. We’ll take it a step at a time. In the meantime, I’ll keep doing what I always do—write, edit, and have fun with the family. I still have a least another month of pool time, which is a blessing. I always feel renewed after swimming. I’m a Cancer (a positive use of that word!) and a water baby. I’d appreciate your good vibes, prayers, Reiki (you know who you are! *wink*) and well wishes. I’ll need them for when I’m not feeling my best. However, I told the family we’ll make fun where we can. If I go through chemo, I want them to find the most outrageous and funny bandanas they can. Last night, the SIL found some funny head coverings that look like porcupine hats or grass hats. He gets the assignment. 🙂

Back to the new release. This is the last of the refurbished/republished stories in the Delta Heat/Delta Fire stories. The next one I release, Ignition, will be a new story. Yay! This one, with Gage as the lead is my favorite in the series. He’s my favorite kind of hero to write—gruff, burly, and ready to fall like a ton of bricks for the right woman. I hope you pick up a copy and that you enjoy it! ~DD

Rapid Entry

Order your copy now! | Read an excerpt!

Firefighter Gage Eastwood doesn’t hesitate to race into his neighbor’s apartment to put out the fire there. Of course, some hesitation might have given him the time to realize he was buck-naked. He’s a professional, so he can overlook the fact she’s in her underwear, but after a nosy neighbor snaps some pictures of them, the fire and his naked heroics go viral.

Shy Viviana Moore is a bestselling romance author. She might write about kink, but she’s never done anything kinky. So when her hotter-than-hot savior invites her out to his sex club, La Forge, she doesn’t admit at first to her lack of actual kinky experience. Soon, she has more than enough material for a whole new series as well as some hands-on experience of her own, and Gage is wondering if she’d let him be her muse…permanently.

Note: This book was previously published.