I’ll be referring to “hero and heroine” since that fits the examples I’m using, but this tension can also come from additional protagonists, such as from a love triangle, exes, or other main characters involved in the plot.

Characters show up in a story with enough personal history and emotional baggage to carry the book. But a plot with a workaholic hero or heroine can layer in lots of extra tension.

After all, how do you get a person’s attention when he or she is completely focused on the job? Or maybe worse, when there’s a line you can’t cross because that person is your boss?

I’ve written each of these storylines—in standalone books—in my Snowflake Valley series of sweet romances.

And honestly, I didn’t write these back-to-back storylines intentionally.

The first book (Snowbound with Mr. Wrong) tells the story of exes who had broken up over his workaholic tendencies. Ironically—and obviously, from the title! LOL—they’re now snowbound together. On Christmas Eve. With a trio of unrelated kids who, depending on their age, are scared, bossy, and hormonally cranky. Recipe for disaster, for sure.

The second book (One Week to Win Her Boss) features the first heroine’s sister, who works for the owner of a private ski lodge and has fallen hard for her boss. And who, unfortunately, has to agree to a fake dating relationship with him.

Believe me, in each book, the hero and heroine have each other’s attention! 😉

So, I’m not making it up when I tell you these books were amazingly fun to write.

Below, I’ll share an excerpt from Snowbound with Mr. Wrong (which my publisher has priced for 99 cents this month!).  First here’s a peek at the back cover of the book:

Snowbound with Mr. Wrong

Worst. Day. Ever. After Lyssa Barnett’s sister tricks her into reprising her role at Snowflake Valley’s annual children’s party, she doesn’t think anything can be worse than squeezing into her too-small elf costume. Then tall, dark, and way too handsome Nick Tavlock shows up to play Santa…and an unexpected storm leaves them snowbound in the isolated lodge.

The last thing Nick wants is to spend a cozy Christmas Eve with a trio of kids and the woman who dumped him. But as much as Lyssa frustrates him, he can’t stop thinking about her. And soon, he’s fighting very un-Santa-like thoughts of kissing a certain sexy Miss Elf under the mistletoe. As Nick starts to fall for Lyssa all over again, he knows it will take nothing short of a miracle to have Lyssa in his arms on Christmas Day.

Excerpt:

Lyssa plopped the large bowl of popcorn in the middle of the coffee table and distributed the thread and needles she had found in the linen closet upstairs. At this rate, she would have to make a list of items to replace for Amber.

Mollie and Tommy went to work enthusiastically, and even Brent pitched in without a word of complaint. It was watching Nick, though, that made her heart melt. Making Christmas decorations might not have been his “thing,” but he definitely had some skill at working with kids.

He helped Tommy thread a needle, guiding the little boy’s hand until he had slipped the thread through the needle’s eye. Flushed by his success, Tommy proudly insisted upon threading everyone’s needle himself.

When Mollie groaned in frustration after trying to add a half-dozen kernels to her thread, Nick showed her how to pierce the thickest part of the popped corn to prevent it from breaking.

And when it came time to drape the strands on the tree, he asked Brent’s opinion as to the best placement. She had never heard the quiet teen talk and laugh as much as he had in this short time.

She could so easily see Nick with children of his own…and hers… But she had already decided there was no point in dreaming about a future with him. Considering his single-minded focus on work, he could never be the man for her.

She got to her feet and, forcing a smile, said, “I think it’s time for some hot chocolate.”

Four voices rose in agreement, and she escaped gratefully to the kitchen. The more she saw of Nick connecting with the kids, the harder it was for her to watch and the more she wanted to stay away. Yet she knew this trip to the kitchen was only a temporary reprieve.

She just hadn’t realized how temporary.

She had barely started heating the milk in a pan on the stove when Nick entered the kitchen. He came to lean against the counter beside her. “Need something?” she asked brightly.

“Yeah. To tell you I forgot how much fun it is being around you. It’s been a great afternoon.”

She flushed. “No thanks to me. That’s all on the kids. They’re quite a bunch.”

“And you’re quite a woman.”

“No, I’m—”

He reached up and touched his finger to her lips. “Don’t do that, Lyssa. Don’t sell yourself short.” He moved his hand to trace her chin. A shiver tickled along her jaw. “You know what else I need?”

“Hot chocolate?”

“That, too. And this.”

He leaned down and brushed his mouth against hers. He tasted so like the man she had fallen for months ago. His kiss was so tender, so sweet, she couldn’t help but want more.

Another thought hovered at the edges of her mind, a thought she felt sure she didn’t want to know. Not now. Not here. Not when his taste and his touch and his total concentration on her were all exactly what sheneeded.

Book Links:
Amazon:  http://bit.ly/swmw-amz
Amazon Canada:  http://bit.ly/swmw-ca
Barnes & Noble:  http://bit.ly/swmw-bn
Entangled Publishing:  http://bit.ly/swmw-pg
iBooks:  http://bit.ly/swmw-ibooks
Kobo:  http://bit.ly/swmw-kobo

About Barbara

Barbara White Daille lives with her husband in the sunny Southwest. Though they love the warm winters and the lizards in their front yard, they haven’t gotten used to the scorpions in the bathroom. Barbara also loves writing, reading, and chocolate. Come to think of it, she enjoys writing about those subjects, too!

Barbara wrote her first short story at the age of nine, then typed “The End” to her first novel many years later…in the eighth grade. Now she’s writing contemporary romance on a daily basis. Sign up for her newsletter to keep up with the latest in her writing life:  https://barbarawhitedaille.com/newsletter.

And don’t forget to check out Snowbound with Mr. Wrong, sale-priced at $.99 during November!

Social Media Links:
Website  https://www.barbarawhitedaille.com
Newsletter  https://www.barbarawhitedaille.com/newsletter
Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/barbarawhitedaille
Twitter  https://twitter.com/BarbaraWDaille
Amazon author page  http://www.amazon.com/Barbara-White-Daille/e/B002J6B0QQ
BookBub:  https://www.bookbub.com/authors/barbara-white-daille
Entangled author page  http://entangledpublishing.com/category/barbara-white-daille/
Harlequin author page  https://www.harlequin.com/shop/authors/23759_barbara-white-daille.html

My son was born on the US Navy base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Of course, then it was a bucolic place… no prison, not much controversy, lots of activities for the many Navy families stationed there. His father was the Program Director of the American Forces Radio and Television Service on the base, probably the most unmilitary posting anyone could have. The base was a little enclave of un-reality in the midst of the Cold War.

My broadcaster husband and I had been married eight years. In that time, I’d had four miscarriages and after the last one we’d decided (as had my OB-GYN) that it was time to call it quits. When we got back to the states we’d consider other paths.

A few weeks later I got sick, very sick and headed to the emergency room of our base hospital. Before giving me any medication, my good friend and nurse at the hospital told me she had to give me another pregnancy test just in case. I told her there was no way I could be pregnant, I’d just had a miscarriage only a month before. But the test was done anyway.

I sat in the waiting room, miserable, nauseas, wishing to die… you know those awful flu symptoms. After a bit my friend came back into the room and knelt in front of me. Whoa, I knew right then I had some terrible condition and my last days on earth would be spent far from my family on an island which the USA considered a hostile country. But… there was a smile on my friend’s face.

“Honey, you’re pregnant. The doctor wants you to come back to his office. He says we’re going to get you through this one. Your due date is December 24th, and he’s already ordered the camels!”

The pregnancy was not without its scares. In my seventh month, I was hospitalized for a week for exhaustion… complete bed rest. Of course, they could have just told me to stay in bed at home, but they didn’t have much to do then and lots of beds were empty, so… I was coddled for a week in the hospital. The nurses brought a fetal heart monitor into my room every evening, so I could listen to my baby’s heart before I went to sleep. They thought that would sooth me. It was kind of them, but I still didn’t sleep. I just closed my eyes and listened to his little thump, ker-thump until one of the nurses quietly came into the room and wheeled the machine away. I then went back to the stack of books on my night table, books I knew I wouldn’t have time to read later… staying up the rest of the night.

Then we had a snafu (that’s military talk meaning ‘oops, that’s not right’). My OB had already decided the baby would be coming caesarian… I was an older mother (28! Were they kidding?) and of course there were all those miscarriages. But a few weeks before the procedure on December 24th, the Anesthesiologist flew off to the mainland for Holiday R&R and left his duties to one of the operating room nurses, okay for all the regular surgeries, but she didn’t feel comfortable doing an epidural. This caused a mad frenzy to find another doctor who could substitute. No luck.

While the hospital was flying around arranging the coming of my Christmas baby, my husband’s co-workers at the TV station decided to give me a baby shower present… a special screening of Jaws. The movie had just come out in the States, but the officer-in-charge had borrowed it from one of the visiting Navy ships which had access to all the new movies. All evening I sat in a director’s chair, my back killing me, pain building in my abdomen. But I watched that movie to the end.

A couple of hours later, my husband rushed me to the hospital with severe abdominal pain which miraculously stopped as soon as I was deposited in a bed in the ER. I wasn’t in labor, but no one knew why I was in pain. (We found out the diagnosis two months later… but was another story).

By this time, my doctor had had enough. He was delivering that baby, now. After spending the entire day walking the halls of the Obstetric wing waiting for my doctor to finish his other surgeries, we were ready. It was December 11th, two in the afternoon. The procedure began quickly using general anesthesia instead of the epidural that’s usually used, that baby had to be out of there fast! This meant the ‘taking’ of him began while I was only partially anesthetized. Ouch! I was in pain. But that didn’t mean I couldn’t be grateful to finally have a baby in my arms… a perfect baby with only one tiny flaw. The doctor had nicked his little belly when he was taking him from my womb.

One more glitch. We were stuck in the hospital… for more than a week. I didn’t have any milk and my son found the nipple both natural and man-made very odd and wouldn’t be coaxed to latch on to either one. And the type of formulae used in the hospital nursery wasn’t to his liking either. After more than a week, the doctor told me to take my son home and if I had any trouble, just come back. Our house was within sight of the hospital anyway.

On the way home, Jonathan (my son) began screaming, the first time I’d heard him cry. My husband suggested I try one of the dreaded bottles and to our surprise the baby latched onto the nipple and sucked the formula down like a champ. He’d just wanted to go home.

Now Jonathan is all grown up (41 years old) and has been in my heart a special Christmas Baby his whole life. He gets a ‘Happy Birthday’ on December 11th, but then we celebrate his birthday for the next two weeks until Christmas morning. I’m still waiting for those camels.

Happy Reading, ya’ll!
From a Texas transplant to the cold coast of Maine
Min Edwards

Stone Cold

The first novel in the High Tide Suspense series
http://amzn.to/1t2kbt8

Diana Jennings is running away—from her past, from her memories, from evil men who want her to suffer more. Stone Bay looks like just the place to hide, but will it be far enough? Has she found a safe place to heal? Or is she just endangering all of those around her?
Sam Gardiner is back home after an incident in Afghanistan, a place he wasn’t prepared for and should never have been. But his first day home he runs into trouble, Diana Jennings. A beautiful woman with secrets behind her vulnerable eyes. And Sam loves secrets.
Diana’s secrets making their way to idyllic Stone Bay, may be the death of them both.

*~*~*~*

About the Author

Min Edwards is the pen name of Pam Headrick, owner of A Thirsty Mind Book Design. She holds advanced degrees in Anthropology with a focus on archaeology and geography as well as geology and art. She’s published five novels in two series: Stone Bay Contemporary Romance and High Tide Romantic Suspense. And in early 2018, she has on her schedule two novels in her new co-authored archaeological series, as well as an historical women’s fiction, The Russian Phoenix, a prequel to Precious Stone, her last novel in the High Tide Suspense series.

You can visit with her or contact her on her website at www.minedwards.com. Her Amazon Author’s page lists her current titles published in digital and print format, Stone Bay, Stone Cold, Stone Heart, Stone Fall and Precious Stone.

You can also find her on social media:
Twitter @MEdwards Author
Facebook @Author Min Edwards
Facebook @TalonArcheo
Goodreads @Author Min Edwards
Pinterest @Min Edwards

Today is a rare chance for me to sit at my desk. All day. Well, after I have my first morning coffee with my dd across the street as we sit together and watch all the kids, other than the 4-year-old, climb into their bus for school. Then, it’s back to my place. Maybe I’ll start my day by clearing off my desk. I’ve let things pile up for a week. I can still see the monitor, so it’s all good, but since I have time…

I’m editing today. All day. Not my favorite thing to do, but I am enjoying the author’s story. I get the privilege of reading her words first. There’s not time for new words of my own, because I’m pushing up against the deadline to be finished with her work. Hopefully, this weekend I’ll be lost in my own writing.

All my Christmas presents are bought. All but my dd’s presents and a few things for the older ladies are wrapped (because my dd did the wrapping). I still have to make a few things—bracelets, a little sewing project. I’m feeling a little antsy about getting to those now.

I didn’t want any stress surrounding this holiday, but I’m beginning to feel the pinch in my neck. And I’m going to bed later and getting up feeling not so well-rested.

So, my question to you is:
How do you cope with the stress of the holidays?

Have fun with it. I’d love some nice nuggets of genius, but I’ll enjoy some silliness, too! 🙂

Greetings to Delilah and all her readers!

Thank you for letting me come over today and share a book with you. A Romance for Christmas is a sweet, feel-good holiday romance that reaffirms all you love about Christmas.

When the story opens, it’s Christmas Eve, and the end of a year in which everything Dara loves was lost. Everything but her little girl and a fierce determination to survive. When a cop brings Christmas to her door, he brings another gift she never expected to get.

“Mommy?” Christine’s young voice broke in on her thoughts.

Dara put down the romance she’d been re-reading, the favorite she’d had since she was sixteen. She’d sold all her others at a yard sale the previous week. “What is it, sweetie?”

“Why don’t we has a real tree for Chribmas?”

“Why don’t we ‘have’,” she corrected. “Come sit by me.” Dara patted the couch and tucked her chenille robe closer around her.

One arm around Matilda, her cloth doll, Christine climbed up beside her mother and cuddled.

Matilda’s going to need stuffing before long. Her head flopped forward, face against her flat chest. When did the lace on her dress get so ragged? Dara smoothed the doll’s dress. “Remember when Daddy went home to heaven before Christmas last year?”

Christine knuckled her eyes and yawned. “I ‘member.”

“And then Mommy got hurt in the car accident and couldn’t go to work?”

“Uh huh.”

Dara took a deep breath. “Well, it meant there was no money for a real tree this year. But I’m sure Santa will still bring you presents.” Gifts Dara bought by selling her entire collection of romance novels at a yard sale at her friend Sherilyn’s house. “And we drew a tree, right?” She pointed at the crayon-bright drawing taped to the wall. Construction paper ornaments decorated each branch.

“But it doesn’t smell like a Chribmas tree.”

Dara hugged her. “I know, baby. I know.”

“How will Santa leave his presents?” Christine pulled away and got on her knees. “He can’t put them under the tree, Mommy.”

“Oh, honey!” She ruffled her daughter’s hair, swallowing the lump in her throat. “Santa will find a way.” She leaned forward and kissed her little girl. “We should get you in bed so he can come. He can’t leave presents while you’re awake.”

Two ways to get this book free!

First, if you have Kindle Unlimited, you can get this book free. Second, if you buy the paperback for a friend, you get the Kindle version for yourself at no cost. Now that’s a bargain. Merry Christmas!

Kindle Unlimited https://amzn.to/1wpW8qE
Paperback: http://amzn.to/2nBb37J

FREE DOWNLOAD!

Here’s a free Christmas coloring book
for the kid in all of us!

https://kayelleallen.com/media/coloring-book-christmas.pdf

About Kayelle Allen

Author Kayelle Allen is a US Navy veteran and has been married so long she’s tenured. Come check out her site and learn about her books. She writes contemporary, plus Sci Fi with misbehaving robots, mythic heroes, role playing immortal gamers, and warriors who purr.

Website https://kayelleallen.com
Twitter https://twitter.com/kayelleallen
Facebook https://facebook.com/kayelleallen.author
Join the Romance Lives Forever Reader Group Download four free books and get news about books coming soon. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Merry Christmas, dear Delilah fans! The air is filled with the scent of sugar cookies warm from the oven. With a hint of cinnamon. Pine boughs and red ribbon line the mantel where a fire licks at the grate. Sparkling ornaments drape the fresh-cut evergreen that reaches the ceiling, its wide fragrant branches sheltering stacks of gaily wrapped gifts.

It’s the holiday vision, the perfect scene where Santa will stop briefly to drop magic into stockings. Loved ones will gather to smile, share delicious food, and part with tearful hugs. We believe it, expect it, and as adults try to recreate it for our children—and for ourselves.
There is nothing in the vision about bickering spouses, too much alcohol, or racking up credit card debt we can’t afford.

Sorry—but sometimes reality sucks. We’ve all experienced the let down when our expectations aren’t met. It’s not just others who sometimes don’t measure up—we often disappoint ourselves.

Well, I say it’s time to kick that whole sick set-up out of our lives. We’re grownups and we’re in charge. We know nothing is perfect. So why do we expect it?

A little child still lives inside us, never quite able to let go of those promises, not just for a perfect glowing Christmas.These fairy tales that we learned as a child sit deep in our hearts, murmuring at us in quiet moments about what we wanted and couldn’t have. If only…

As adults, each of us in our own style finds ways to comfort that little child in us. We hang up pretty sparkling lights, even if it’s just one strand over a doorway. One rainy cold Saturday, we bake cookies and take half of them to an ailing neighbor. We watch the sunset in late afternoon, its orange rays penetrating the windows, and think of other holiday seasons and congratulate ourselves that we’ve lived another year, that progress of some kind has been made, that life surely goes on no matter what.

We thank ourselves for our strength and courage. We acknowledge our frailty and suffering. We make promises to ourselves about one thing (or more) we can do better, what we can hope for, work for, and what we can care about.

It’s the biggest gift that money can’t buy—taking care of ourselves. Understanding. Acknowledging. Once we’ve clasped that warm fuzzy to our chest, we can open our arms to others who also suffer the human condition, who like us hold a dream that can never quite be fulfilled. Give it to yourself and then give it to others.

It’s in that spirit that I extend these stories to you. Share them with friends. They’re free at Smashwords or 99¢ at Amazon.

*~*~*~*

A Taste of Love: Yuletide in Roman Camp (Caerwin of Britannia series)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077LRJ9SH
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/759904 no coupon needed

A cruel wind blows across the midwinter lands of Northern Britain, flapping Senna’s cloak as she hurries inside the praetorium on the heels of the blustering Tutonius, legion cook and dear friend. In Rome, Saturnalia would last a week and include a day of relaxation for all the slaves. But, she sadly acknowledges, this is not Rome but a miserable outpost on the westernmost boundary of Roman-occupied Britannia.

Senna does her best to relieve some of her friend’s staggering workload as he prepares the holiday meal. The governor of all Britain will feast here tonight along with officers of three legions. Hurrying outside the fortress to the sprawling campgrounds of refugees, camp followers, and traders of all kinds, Senna shops for last-minute gifts for her enslaved Briton mistress Caerwin and food supplies Tutonius must have.
Upon her return to the kitchen, Senna blushes as Teutonius shares a moment of personal pleasure.

*~*~*~*

His Only Love – Novelette in the Caerwin of Britannia series (Gay Erotica)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077LJN49T
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/759899 no coupon needed

As Saturnalia dawns and Rome’s Legio XIV Gemina prepares for the midwinter celebration despite their station on the far western border of Britannia, Greek slave Antius faces the disaster he set in motion involving his beloved master and legion commander, Marcellus. He takes refuge with his young lover even as an intimate betrayal unfolds between trusted friends.

*~*~*~*

Christmas Hideaway

An Erotic Contemporary Romance Short Story
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019LLDAV4
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/685194 Use coupon code VC59V
Coupon good thru Dec 25

Caryn hadn’t expected a snow storm when she hid away in a remote cabin to lick her wounds. She also hadn’t expected an overbearing park ranger to confront her. But the snow kept falling and the temperature kept dropping, trapping her at his cabin. What could possibly go wrong?

*~*~*~*

Holiday Journey

An Erotic Contemporary Romance Short Story
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B019VLNZUU
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/675289 Use coupon code EC65A
Coupon good thru Dec 25

Flight delays, bad weather—what’s not to loath about holiday travel? Except this time there’s a man daring Giselle to do something she never imagined, something that exceeds her wildest fantasies. Is the temptation worth the risk?

About the Author

Please – if you enjoy these stories, lend a friendly hand and post a review—a few words helps other readers. Meanwhile, I’ll be up here in my home office staring out the window at the Ozarks woods, watching the wind in the trees and listening to my hound dogs bark at the deer. Voices will whisper in my ears as my hands move over the keyboard, and I’ll be thinking of you, dear reader, as I channel more stories onto the page. It’s a hell of a life, but somebody’s got to do it.

 

Once Upon a Christmas Moon
By Authors: Christine Young, C. L. Kraemer, Genie Gabriel

Buy at: Amazon
FREE at Kindle Unlimited

A collection of stories about the magic of romance at Christmas time.

TWELVE DAYS TO LOVE
When Archer Steele shows up at Calanthe Durand’s failing plantation with an alligator over his shoulder, Cali thinks she’s never seen a more handsome man. During the war she had to defend herself and her servants from both union and confederate soldiers. Independent and self-sufficient, she vows to never marry. But Archer Steele has different ideas. The first time Archer sees Cali in town, he feels an instant attraction. He decides he will do everything and anything to convince the beautiful Miss Durand he is worthy of her love. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, he gives her twelve gifts in hopes she will fall in love with him.

BOOTS AND BLADES
An ancient evil from the old country has arrived in the high desert of Oregon. Gnome children are vanishing then re-appearing, showing various stages of traumatization. Tiamoon, warrior gnome, will put her skills to use alongside Killian, a handsome warrior, also in need of a cause.

CHRISTMAS PAWSIBILITIES
With their world destroyed and their space ship malfunctioning, the dogizens of Planet Canid have little choice but to crash land on Earth. They face tortuous experiments at the hands of the Geeks in Green…or they can trust an eccentric inventor and his zany family to deliver the Canine Queen’s puppies and help them celebrate new lives.

Enjoy Excerpts from each story!

Twelve Days to Love
Christine Young

Near New Orleans October 2,1867

“Sam! Close the shutters on the back landing. I’ll get the front. Hurry. There’s a storm coming.” Calanthe Durand felt the small hairs on the back of her neck rise and shivers run down her spine. A big storm was on its way, probably a hurricane. Energy and fear poured through her like the pounding rain and flooding that accompanied high winds. Closing the house to the storm was imperative.

Cali took a moment to smile. She’d heard Sam grunt. He didn’t talk much, but she wouldn’t have survived the war or these last two years without Sam and his daughter Daisy. Both sides, the North and the South, had occupied their home. Daisy and Sam were family, the only family she had. She’d do whatever was necessary to protect them. Even with emancipation, life wasn’t easy for blacks in the south.

“I’ve got them, Miss Cali.” Daisy rushed past her and out the door. Wind whipped her hair and tugged at her dress. Branches torn from trees landed on the porch.

Cali followed, the storm swirling around her, her hair beating against her face. Her breath was ragged, and fast as her heart thundered. She pushed and tugged at her skirt, trying to detangle the fabric from her legs. “Get inside!” The tempest raging around them swallowed her voice.

“Not until we’re finished here.” Daisy fastened a shutter before moving on to the next one.

They worked together to protect the windows from the storm on the raised porch which stood five feet off the ground as wind howled around the eaves. A steady rain poured from the black sky, and lightning slashed the darkness.

Cali pushed dripping strands of hair that had slipped from her chignon away from her face. “I’ll light the candles. It could get dark here pretty fast.”

“Horses and livestock are safe for now.” Sam stepped beside her. “Hope it’s not a big one.”

“Hello up there. Hello, bonjour, anyone home?”

Hearing the voice from below, Cali left the protection of the house to lean over the porch railing. Below her a man stood, with cupped hands to his mouth and a dead gator slung over one shoulder a quiver filled with arrows on the other. “Hello. Can I get shelter from the hurricane?”

“Don’t know if it’s a hurricane.” Terrified of unknown men, Cali didn’t want to do the charitable thing. She pursed her lips, thinking, but all that came to surface was memories of troops commandeering her home. Good lord but she’d had to hollow out a bedpost to hide her jewelry. The soldiers had taken everything they could see. Sometimes she felt as if the war had ripped her soul from her body.

“Maybe not a hurricane. Could be just a bad storm, but I don’t want to be on the swamp right now. The water’s rising.” A loud roar and a thunderclap followed his pause. Behind him an old Cyprus tree crashed to the ground, uprooted by the wind. Read the rest of this entry »

Writing a Stocking Stuffer

When I was asked to write a holiday short for my publisher’s Stocking Stuffer series, I was a bit flummoxed. Most of the holiday shorts I had read were romantic bits of fantasy, usually revolving around a wedding or having a wish for true love granted. Since I write short stories and flash fiction about lawyers in love, with a dash of kink, I struggled to find a holiday connection.

I found it in football. Admittedly, I am a football fanatic. I was born and will die a Packers fan. I am a proud armchair quarterback who is planted in front of the TV for every game. And football is played during the holiday season, right? Often on the holidays themselves. So I had the elements of a story: Lawyers, football, romance. Now I just had to work that into a credible story. But something was missing. I needed a thread to weave it all together. So I pondered and I waited, and then I pondered some more.

One day, as I was scrolling through the news online, a story about the NFL’s concussion protocol caught my eye. And suddenly, I had my story. How about a romance between a lawyer and a football player? No make that a football player with a concussion. Better yet, a football player who was a part-time law student who was forced to make a choice–between football and the law, and yes, between football and a woman?

The story that evolved focused on the risks football players take while entertaining millions. Sure the rewards—the money, the adulation and fame—are great. But multiple concussions have been proven to have a long-term impact and it’s a negative one. And for a lawyer, that impact could effectively destroy a career before it even got off the ground. That’s the dilemma that faces NFL running back Tim Wheezer Douglas. While on leave from the game, recovering from his second concussion, he meets young lawyer Laura Adler and falls in love. Suddenly, the decisions he must make take on even greater weight.

I am going to stop there, because I don’t want to reveal the end of the story. Suffice to say that falling in love changes your outlook on a lot of things, especially your future and the path you choose to get there. I do hope you enjoy my holiday short story, A Touchdown To Remember, coming December 7 from eXtasy Books.

Best wishes for a joyful holiday season!

A Touchdown To Remember

It takes more than a hard knock on the head to keep running back Tim Wheezer Douglas down. When life pelts him with the proverbial lemon—a career-threatening concussion—he simply runs the other way, right into the arms of litigator Laura Adler.

When a second concussion sidelines Milwaukee Greyhound running back Tim Douglas, the rest of his life continues full-speed ahead. A some-time law student, Tim is faced with a classic Catch 22: Whether to continue to play football and risk a third and possibly life-altering concussion or quit the game altogether to pursue a career as a sports agent. He loves the game, but his priorities change when he meets Laura Adler, a sassy, sexy young attorney and rabid Greys fan. Their sizzling romp of a romance turns serious and Laura demands that he make a decision about football before she accepts his marriage proposal. Will Tim choose football or the law, and what role will Laura play in his future?

Excerpt:

When the band played its last song, Laura and Tim stopped dancing and Tim kissed her forehead, leaning into her. “Not sure where we are headed from here, babe, but I am quite sure we are going somewhere.” He smiled at her, his eyes lit with what appeared to be lust. “I think I’m falling…”

Laura interrupted him. “Tim, I really don’t have time for a relationship and neither do you. You’re right in the middle of the season. And I don’t do one-nighters.”

Tim pulled Laura toward him and settled his lips over hers. His kiss was gentle at first, then became more urgent. He cupped her chin and pulled her more firmly against him, his tongue probing, then dancing in her mouth.

As Laura was pulled into the passionate kiss, she felt her resistance melting away. Her loins were heating and her heart was pounding. I want this man, naked and primed to please. Wait. No way. I am not going there. Abruptly, she pulled away.

Still holding her in his arms, Tim studied her. “You don’t wait until the time is right for relationships, Laura. You make the time when the right relationship presents itself. I am willing to make time for you. Are you willing to make time for me?”

Available December 7 from www.extasybooks.com and all major booksellers.

 About Seelie Kay

Seelie Kay writes about lawyers in love, with a dash of kink.

The writer, editor, and author has more than 30 years of experience in law, journalism, marketing, and public relations.  Writing under a nom de plume, Ms. Kay’s wicked pen and overly inquisitive mind has resulted in six works of fiction, five of which are scheduled for release in 2017, including Kinky Briefs (2/24), Kinky Briefs, Too (6/2), The Garage Dweller (7/8), Kinky Briefs, Thrice (9/8), and a to-be-published holiday short, A Touchdown to Remember. This year, Kay also contributed to a romance anthology, Pieces of Us (11/24), which was released by The Nu Romantics. Kinky Briefs, Quatro will be released early next year.

When not spinning her kinky tales, Ms. Kay ghostwrites nonfiction for lawyers and other professionals.  She has also written for such publications as the Minneapolis Star, Kenosha News, Twin Cities Magazine, Virginia Lawyers Weekly, Illinois Legal Times, Wisconsin Opinions and the Wisconsin Law Journal. 

A graduate of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, and St. Louis University School of Law,  Ms. Kay also attended Northwestern University.  She has been admitted to the bar in Wisconsin and Missouri.

Ms. Kay resides in a bucolic exurb outside Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she shares a home with her son and enjoys opera, gourmet cooking, organic gardening, and an occasional bottle of red wine.

She is an MS warrior and ruthlessly battles the disease on a daily basis. Her message to those diagnosed with MS:  Never give up. You define MS, it does not define you!

Links:
www.seeliekay.com
www.seeliekay.blogspot.com
Twitter: @SeelieKay
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/seelie.kay.77