I’m running TWO contests.
1) The newsletter contest (see September 16th’s blog for the details) continues until the 30th!!
2) The second is my usual thing. You post a comment here today and you’re eligible for a free copy of this story.

I don’t know if you know it or not, but I wrote three short stories related to the Dark Realm books. They are only available in ebooks. I don’t have an official copy I can transfer, but I will give away a copy of the story in a .pdf file for one winner to read. It was one of the first erotic shorts I ever wrote and I so completely loved doing it that I decided, even though they don’t pay, I couldn’t stop. Enjoy the excerpt! Poor Malcolm is the Revenant who gets the snot beaten out of him at the start of Darkness Captured.

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A lone rogue vampire mingles among his hunters in a blood bar, undetected…until a beautiful woman snares his attention. Suddenly, he’s running, leading her on a chase until she corners him, stake dangling from her slender fingertips. Now he has two choices: play it sexy or safe?

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Malcolm crouched behind a cinder-block pillar of a wrought iron fence, counting the seconds after the last footfalls faded.

Slowly, as the danger passed, his heartbeats settled to a steady rhythm. He drew a deep breath. They’d come close to catching him this time.

He’d been spotted in a known blood bar just outside The French Quarter, a lone rogue vampire among the elite Born trolling for meals with their enslaved, made minions in tow.

If he hadn’t paused to watch one in particular, he might not be in his present predicament.

She’d been playing with her food, ruffling the young man’s hair as she whispered in his ear—and pinned Malcolm with her pale silver gaze.

The challenge in her eyes, along with her feline grace and her strong resemblance to the woman who’d turned him, had caught his interest. The pale hand that smoothed slowly down the chest and stomach of her prey had kept Malcolm ensnared, wanting to see how far she’d take her little game.

She had no interest in the man she teased. When her palm slid down to cup his burgeoning sex, Malcolm had felt the squeeze she delivered all the way to his toes. That same embrace rendered her playmate pliant, rutting into her hand, and ready for whatever she chose to do next.

A quick flick of her slender fingers and she delved inside his trousers.

Malcolm had slipped off his stool then, his dick slowly filling as she slid her lush lips along the young man’s cheek and nibbled on his ear. While the man pulsed his hips, Malcolm tightened, wanting to rake his cock forward and back.

Her lips curved, her eyes narrowed—and Malcolm grew furious with the vampire’s teasing. If she wanted to arouse him, she’d succeeded. If she wanted more than a puling human boy, then she’d played the wrong hand.

Malcolm had forced his gaze away in time to notice she hadn’t been the only one staring at him.

The privileged ones’ gazes had met over the heads of their blood hosts, almost imperceptible nods were shared, and slowly the Born had gracefully faded from the sides of their hosts.

He’d been made. How, he wasn’t sure. Perhaps one of them had recognized him from one of the “mixed” bars, where free rogues and the Born intermingled on neutral ground. However, the how wasn’t important. Escaping was a matter of life or death.

Quickly, without a backward glance at the bitch who’d tried to trap him, he’d slipped out a side door and run like hell.

Malcolm knew better than to tweak the tails of vipers, but once in while in his long, solitary existence he enjoyed reminding them he was there—untethered from their shackles, free to choose his own path just as they did.

He’d been created free, as a human; he’d rejected the tender leash his mistress had offered when she turned him. “Serve me,” she’d pleaded. Although sorely tempted by her beauty and sweetness, he’d refused, knowing the risk, resisting her allure with iron determination. Knowing he’d be forever hunted.

A crisp footstep sounded behind him, and he whirled, straightening to face this hunter.

Before him stood the Born vampire who’d teased him almost to extinction. Now, a long, wooden stake dangled from her fingers.

She was blonde and slender, every muscle honed by her low-carb meals and the activity demanded by her hyperactive metabolism—and sex, lots of it.

Her glittering glance swept down his body, and he braced apart his legs, hoping to reignite the heat he’d witnessed earlier. She’d been hungry, aroused as she’d played with the boy as she’d teased him. He could use that. When her gaze paused over the juncture of his thighs, his lips stretched slowly.

Her fingers tightened around her weapon, and her gaze slashed upward to deliver a glare. Her own thighs, encased in dark sleek leather, tensed as she stayed loose on her feet, ready to pounce whichever direction he chose.

Malcolm remembered well the way her thin silky tee had clung to her breasts back at the bar, ripe little nipples popping against the fabric. “Sorry I interrupted your meal,” he murmured as he leaned back against the pillar, his fingers sliding into the pockets of his jeans as though he wasn’t standing a hairbreadth from death.

Her lips curved, lush and full despite the stretch. “You don’t think I’ll have any trouble finding a replacement, do you?” she asked silkily.

He let his eyelids fall halfway closed as he made a leisurely stroll down her body. “None at all,” he murmured. “But will any one of them satisfy you?”

Her chin rose and pale blonde hair brushed the tops of her shoulders. “I don’t know,” she said, her voice sliding deeper toward a sultry lisp. “It’s so hard to stop with just one.”

There they were again—those little spikes, stabbing at her shirt. Malcolm eyed them, his lips pursing at the thought of pulling one lush nipple into his mouth. When his gaze met hers again, the hard gleaming challenge had heated.

She swallowed, almost unnoticeably. To draw moisture into a suddenly dry mouth?

Maybe he could earn a reprieve yet. “I was on the prowl tonight,” he said, keeping his voice soft. “I’ve already fed. Maybe we could trade.”

“I have to kill you,” she said flatly.

“Because your coven demands it?” He canted his head. “Do you always follow the rules?”

“You’re a rogue—dangerous if left to roam.”

“Perhaps I’ve never met my true mistress.”

“You’re free. You resisted the allure of the one who turned you, so don’t pretend you’d even consider changing your spots now.”

His lips quirked at her quiet intensity. “I bet you colored inside the lines when you were a child.”

“You think I lack imagination?”

“No, I think you like to please.”

He almost smiled at the scowl that pouted her lips and narrowed her pale eyes. “I could take you. You’re all alone. One on one, I might win,” he drawled, noting the way her glare darkened with the insinuation she might not be the victor.

Her fingers clutched the stake tighter. “You’re not helping your argument.”

“I’m just saying…I’m willing to battle you on different field. If you’re strong enough, maybe you can leash me.”

“A different field? Do you really think I’d let you go anywhere.”

“Follow me.” With that, he spun on his heels and leapt, clearing the fence to stand on the other side of the bars. “My place is just down the road.”

Not bothering to wait and see what she decided, he walked away, nonchalantly, knowing he was baring his back to her stake. However, he’d had a feeling about her earlier when she’d stared above the spiky red hair of her host. Malcolm had felt the air crackle with sensual awareness.

The soft thud behind him made him smile. Her steps trailed his, not overtaking, and he breathed easier.

At another gate, this one enclosing the courtyard of the house he’d rented for the summer, he turned and swung it open, waiting for her to pass.

Her face still tight, her lips crimped into a slight frown, she stepped quickly by him and waited as he closed it, trailing him again when he walked to the front door.

Maybe she was simply waiting to kill him once they were out of sight. But he didn’t think so. The scent of her arousal wafted in the air, mixing with the heavy perfume of roses from the neighbor’s garden. Delicious, sultry—she’d be his, if he was clever enough.

His dick filled again, pressing insistently against his jeans, reminding him that while he’d satisfied his bloodlust that night, he hadn’t had sex in while. Little miss vampire would ease the ache tonight.

Inside, he didn’t bother turning on the lights, didn’t pause to politely offer her a drink of another sort. Instead, he strode up the staircase to his room overlooking the gardens, knowing she’d follow. The stiff steps behind him said she was angry at him and herself for being led by her hungers—unable to contain her curiosity about what exactly he offered.

In the bedroom, he pulled apart the curtains and let moonlight flood the room. He heard her step inside, keeping close to the doorway. With his gaze on the courtyard below, he said, “My name is Malcolm.”

“Do you think by giving me a name to accompany your handsome face I won’t follow through?”

He glanced over his shoulder and gave her a smile. “I’m giving you a name to call when I make you come.”

I prefer some manly fluff—under the arms, across the chest—but the eyes have it here. So what if he shaves everything? Maybe he really is a swimmer and doesn’t want all the fur slowing him down. Maybe his girlfriend doesn’t like the friction against her own skin. Maybe he really is as young as he looks and he hasn’t grown any yet. I’ll forgive him. If he trained those pretty eyes on me, I’d be tongue-tied and blushing. And doesn’t he kinda look a little like a young Tom Cruise—when he was still charmingly cheeky?

Happy Monday! 😉

First, I have to get thank you’s aside. “For what?” you might ask.

My straight-to-Kindle experiment, Pleasing Sir, is a success due entirely to your support. I let you know when the book was out—you bought it, wrote reviews, clicked on tags—and it rose high enough on the erotica chart that others who don’t know me as well took a chance and ordered it too!

Then there’s Four Sworn, which is still on MBaM’s top ten list and is sitting pretty in the Kindle store too!

I’m hoping you will all work some magic for my print book, Darkness Captured, which released this week. Remember, if you’ve read it and are moved to tell somebody about it, please post a review on Amazon’s or Barnes & Noble’s websites. They do matter! You can influence whether some other reader decides to buy it.

So, back to business. I finished Breaking Leather this week! If you liked Four Sworn, you will love this one as well. The Kinzie brothers kidnap their dream girl and there’s tons of sexy persuasion goin’ on to get the girl to say yes! I’ve shared some sneak peeks with the folks on my yahoo group, and they seem eager to read more. 😉

I’m working through the final typeset pages of Ravished by a Viking. I can’t wait to share more of the story with you! And I have some fun things planned that have to do with the launch of that book. So stay tuned!

I’m back to writing the the follow-up story. Chapter One gave me an inordinate amount of grief. But I worked and worked to get it right. What do you think about a proud Viking who’s been sold into sexual slavery? Uh-huh. Thought so.

This next week I’ll have little ones underfoot, but I still hope to blast through Chapter Two and Three. Wish me luck! And thanks again, chicas!

“The requirements of romantic love are difficult to satisfy
in the back seat of a Dodge Dart.”
Lisa Alther

I pulled this from my The Goddess Within mini-book. Seemed like a good jumpstart to a conversation. Agree or disagree? What constitutes romantic love?

The cliche would be chocolate and flowers. A slow, gentle wooing. I have to admit, I’ve never—not once—experienced that sort of love in my life. I think that’s due to my personality. I always preferred to be “handled”, if ya know what I mean. I tend to challenge guys. Even if they’ve been that romantic man with someone else, they’re the rough and ready guy for me, or they don’t last long.

What’s been your experience? What’s the most romantic thing that’s ever happened to you? By your definition!

The newsletter contest (see September 16th’s blog for the details) continues until the 30th!!

Background Work
By Christine Price

So, I probably didn’t have to come up with the Society for In Darkness Bound. (For those who haven’t had a chance to pick up a copy quite yet, I won’t ruin any surprises by telling you that the Society is a shadowy organization that investigates the disappearance of our main character, Chris). But having “a cop” investigate everything just didn’t sit right for me. What do I know about police procedures, besides what I’ve seen on TV? And really, in a paranormal thriller-romance, do “mundane” authorities really work? Are they enough, especially when encountering all of the wonderful, creepy strangeness that can stalk you from the darkness?

Hence, The Society.

Don’t get me wrong, the focus of the book is our main characters, Chris, Vance and Simon, as they try to navigate the dim hallways and deep-seated psychosis of their captor. But I felt like I needed something more. Something to flesh out my world and offer that extra layer of “WTF is going on here?” The Society gave me a chance to do that. I got two very cool secondary characters out of the bargain as well as another way to express myself through a mysterious conglomerate of people that’s not inherently evil (maybe).

I found as I was writing In Darkness Bound that I came up with a lot of background material for the Society. Most of which doesn’t make it into the book. While the romance was forefront in my mind, I had this elaborate background slowly forming. Not including it, but knowing it was there, was like having their extra support net while I was scaling the trapeze of my first novel-length project. I felt like I had a brand new world I’d constructed, though the book was set entirely in New York.

It also gave me the perfect excuse to expand from a single book into a budding series, but I’ll get into that at another time.

Some of my favourite authors seem to have done the same thing, and it’s always drawn me deeper into the world. Take Sherrilyn Kenyon for example. In her first book, Fantasy Lover, you had no idea that she was going to delve into the world of the Dark Hunters, save for the barest hint when Kyrian walked by. Yet, I have a feeling that she had the entire cosmology at least marginally planned out when she was writing it and it made the book so much more interesting for me in retrospect. Or even Frank Herbert in Dune. You learn next-to-nothing about the Bene Gesserit (save that they’re evil old women with precognisance and a serious love of eugenics), but it’s everything left unsaid that makes them appealing and mysterious. By not going into great detail about them, Herbert gives them power, because nothing is more powerful than your reader’s imagination.

What do you think? Can you tell when an author has done the background work, even when it might not go into great detail? Does it entice you? Pull you in? Make you want to learn more? Or is it just a little irritating when they don’t just spill their guts and tell you what’s going on?

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Data Collection by Dalhousie, Dr. Donna L.

Patient 331 New, confused. His powers unknown.

Patient 289 No longer viable in the test pool, he remains in isolation.

Patient 77 Reclassified to staff status. Useful, malleable.

Confined in a sterile research facility and treated like a lab rat, Chris is alone and terrified. His special powers are his only escape, allowing him to psychically connect with other patients.

Alone in his cell for longer than he can remember, Vance is hungry. When newcomer Chris makes a mental connection, Vance is intrigued and soon wants more than just conversation.

Chris and Vance seek comfort with each other, and with Simon—the only staff member who’s shown them a hint of compassion. Their relationships develop during stolen moments, and they turn their thoughts to escape. But as Dr. Dalhousie’s madness spirals, more than cell walls threaten to keep them apart…

BUY HERE

I spent yesterday with my cousin and his partner, walking around downtown Hot Springs. We had lunch at a tea room I hadn’t known existed. Went to an art exhibit in one of the old, converted bath houses. Trailed through a bath house that was converted to a museum, and then went shopping at an antique store. I came home with a lithograph, a print, costume books, and a silver and mother-of-pearl necklace. Lovely day all in all. On our way home, I took them to a catfish restaurant. They’re from Seattle and hadn’t had that southern fried delicacy—if you can imagine that! Then of course, since we were so hot and tired from all the exercise, we turned on the night light and jumped into the pool for a swim.

I was in bed by ten o’clock. And awake and posting this at three!

I’m thinking I must have hit at least three of those “Simple Delights” from my mini-book yesterday. Here’s another: checking the stats of Pleasing Sir.

Thanks to everyone who bought the book and made my “straight-to-Kindle” experiment a success. I’ll be doing that again!

Wynter selected a winner from among yesterday’s posters, and that person is…Brandy W! Brandy, Wynter will send you a book later today! ~DD

The newsletter contest (see September 16th’s blog for the details) continues until the 30th. Today’s blog contest winner is posted at the bottom of this blog. Thanks to everyone who played and wished me well! ~DD

Is First Person Too Close for Comfort?

by Wynter Daniel

Thanks to Delilah for inviting me to guest blog here today. I am in awe of the staggering number of great erotic romances she has published.

Like most erotic romances, all my stories are written in third person. This is a given for most authors. I have written stories in first person, years ago when I dabbled in the young adult market. Most YA stories are presented in first person, although I’m not exactly sure why. I guess first person brings the reader in closer with the protagonist and so many teenagers want so desperately to feel a part of something, even if that something is fiction.

But erotic romance and erotica are a whole different animal from YA. As a writer, putting pen to paper (or fingers to keys) and expressing intimate sexual expression is definitely easier when those expressions are happening to him, to her, to John or to Nancy. When you inject me, I or my, it all feels so personal. Same goes for readers, I think.

So imagine my surprise when I started writing a short erotica story in first person. Sometimes a character just comes to me and I have to immediately work on the story. I wrote the first scene of Customer Service—my upcoming Exotica release with Ellora’s Cave—in one sitting, not even very aware that it was in first person.

I went back the next day and tried to rewrite it in third person, but it was as if my muse had turned his back on me. The scene fell flat. So I went back to the original and kept going. It turned into one of those pieces that practically wrote itself. I suppose sometimes the story takes over and the author is merely the channel.

The heroine is a professional mystery shopper, someone who tests customer service in stores and restaurants, a job I have dabbled with on occasion over the past five years. Maybe that’s part of the reason it felt so natural to write in first person. (Not that I have EVER had an experience similar to my protagonist!)

Customer Service is also more erotica than my usual erotic romance.

But you be the judge. Customer Service releases on September 30. Here’s a little about it:

Mystery shopper Carly Weber’s husband divorced her for a snooty sales woman, leaving Carly with a bruised and battered self-image. When she evaluates a new sex toy and lingerie store, she finds much more than kinky gear. One by one and then together, two hunky salesmen pleasure her and give her the best customer service of her life, restoring her confidence in the process.

You’ll find an excerpt HERE.

Comment on my post and I will enter you in a drawing to win my last EC Quickie, Getting Even with Warren.

From DD: The winner of the blog contest prize package is (by random number generator)…Natalie! Natalie, be sure to email me with your snail mail address. Congrats!