Thank you to Delilah for sharing her blog with me! I’ve never really been a big believer in the adage, write what you know. That doesn’t apply to mystery or thriller authors, so why should we feel hemmed in as romance authors? But sometimes, writing what is close to our heart can be a magical experience. So it’s not so much a rule but a wonderful suggestion. And of course, research can bring the knowledge that runs secondary to a bang-up idea.

When it comes to military romance, though, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that I’d be writing what I know. My husband is a senior NCO (Non-Commissioned Officer) in the Canadian Armed Forces, and I couldn’t be prouder of his service. But, but, but … there was that little voice at the back of my head, wanting to be extra careful not to inadvertently write something that I shouldn’t. And so I didn’t write a military romance at first. Not until we started to talk seriously about the SEALs of Summer Military Romance Superbundle did I tackle writing one of my favourite sub-genres to read.

I thought I was safe, writing about SEALs. Different nationality. Lots of series potential there. No temptation to write similar stories, closer to home.

Ha. How wrong I was. Ever since finishing Fall Out, my novella in the box set, I’ve been plagued with plot bunnies for a series set around a Canadian army reserve unit. Soldiers who have civilian lives as well. Cops, firefighters, paramedics, contractors and park rangers who all serve their country as well. I wasn’t sure how my husband would take the idea, but when I brought it up, he just smiled and told me it sounded great. *phew*

So I’m thrilled to announce that Pine Harbour, a small town contemporary romance series with part-time military heroes, will launch at the end of August. Here is an excerpt from Book 1, Love in a Small Town.

EXCERPT:

IT was bad enough that after going through a very public divorce from the man Olivia still loved, she had to serve him breakfast four times a week. That she looked forward to those mornings…well, that wasn’t great either. But Rafe worked two jobs and lived in a tiny one room apartment. And the other option for eggs and bacon was his mother’s cafe.

Liv shuddered at the thought of spending even one morning a week with her ex mother-in-law. So she couldn’t fault Rafe for keeping his regular stool at the diner she worked at, even if it didn’t help the official party line held by all six hundred people in their small town of Pine Harbour—that their split had been her fault and Rafe was faultless.

The former point was true. The latter was not. Parsing the difference with the town busy-bodies was a futile effort, though, so she let the whispers slide. They just added to the steaming pile of crap that was her life.

But the absolute worst was that today, Rafe had brought a date to breakfast. To her diner.

And she’d serve him eggs and paste on a smile, but then she was calling a real estate agent. Whatever cosmic joke had made her fall in love with Rafe Minelli had dealt its final punchline.

He wasn’t in uniform today—either of them—but he still looked achingly good. Faded blue jeans that she recognized from the irregular rip on one of his solid thighs. Old enough that she’d washed them many times. The denim would be soft, and when he turned around, his wallet would be clearly imprinted in his back right pocket. And even though she wanted to grab a butter knife and gouge his heart out, first she wanted one more look at his magnificent ass.

Because she was a glutton for punishment, and Rafe delivered in bucket loads. Tall, dark, and handsome didn’t do him justice. Olivia grabbed a wash cloth and wiped down the counter as she watched him guide his date to a booth under the window.

No! She wanted to shout. You sit at the counter and ask me if it’s been busy. I bug you that you need a hair cut and we both remember that time I gave you a trim in the bathroom. How you slid your hands under my shirt and teased my nipples while I squealed for you to hold still. The walk down memory lane cut sharper than usual because it wasn’t shared. Even though she knew she needed to move on, let go of Rafe and start dating again, she wasn’t prepared to see him do just that. And the pretty blonde woman sitting across from him twisting the shit out of a sugar packet was wearing one of his plaid shirts, so Olivia couldn’t even pretend it was a breakfast meeting—not that Rafe would ever have business that needed to be discussed in a diner.

He was a full-time police officer and a part-time soldier. Had been a full-time son and a part-time husband, too. No room for a wife, definitely no room for a side job. No, this was definitely a morning-after-a-sleep-over breakfast and Olivia had to serve him fucking coffee. She wrenched the carafe from the warmer, grabbed two menus from under the counter, and pasted on her sweetest eat-shit-and-die smile before squaring her shoulders and approaching the couple.

“Coffee?”

They both nodded and Olivia silently lifted each of their white ceramic mugs and poured. For someone who just got laid, Rafe didn’t look happy. His eyebrows were pulled together, hooding his gaze, and he had faint dark circles under his eyes. Maybe he was realizing just how awful a human being he was to bring…

“Do you need to see a menu, Natalie?” His voice sounded strained too. He dumped two creamers in his cup and stirred roughly.

Natalie, huh? Olivia swung her gaze to the other woman. She looked nervous. Had he told her that he used to be married to their waitress? Used to wake her up with his tongue and his hands and his love, but not as often as he didn’t—he’d have to be home for that—and now they pretended to be friends a few times a week?

“I’ll just have some toast, please,” she said quietly.

Rafe sighed. “Don’t be silly.” He looked up at Olivia, his dark brown eyes unreadable. “Two breakfast specials please, one with bacon, one with—” He broke off and turned back to Natalie. “Sausage? Ham?”

“Sausage, I guess. Look, I can just wait for my friend outside, we don’t need to have breakfast.”

“It’s fine.” He reached across the table and squeezed her hand before looking back at Olivia again. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“We’re swamped,” she said breezily, waving at the mostly empty diner. “I’ve got ketchup bottles to refill and napkins to stack, so—”

“One minute, Liv.” He pushed out of the booth and towered over her. “In private.”

He didn’t wait for her to respond, stalking to the small office behind the washrooms like he owned the place. Well, he could wait. She had a job to do, even if it wasn’t exciting or overly important.

“Natalie, is it? How did you want your eggs?” Rafe wanted his over-easy. At some point in the future, she’d forget all the stupid little things she knew about him. She hoped. Hadn’t happened yet.

“Scrambled. And rye toast if you have it.”

“Sure thing. Be right back.” She went straight to the pass through window, dinged the bell and tacked the order up on the carousel. Frank gave her a knowing look from his perch at the grill. “Shut up,” she told her boss without malice. “I need five minutes.”

“I’ll holler if anyone comes in, I guess.”

If anyone came in, they’d pour themselves a cup of coffee and wait. She wasn’t worried. It wouldn’t be the first time Pine Harbour had heard Rafe and Olivia Minelli have a knock-down, drag-out fight. Probably wouldn’t be the last. Another reason she needed to leave. This couldn’t be her future—petty jealousy and tension filled terse conversations with her ex. She took a deep breath and shoved the office door open.

WANT TO READ MORE? Everyone on my mailing list will be given first dips on Advance Review Copies of this novel at the end of July.

I have a Pinterest inspiration board for this series, and my Facebook reader group, the Wardham Ambassadors, have seen more of the above scene.

Want to know more about my books? Visit my website or connect with me on Facebook

I have been a storyteller since I learned to write. I still have the first two short stories I wrote in the first grade. My very first story had a shape shifting witch and a sea monster. My fascination with fantasy and magic started at that early age and continued on, fueled by a diet of fantasy and fairy tales—the darker, the better. I haven’t yet seen Maleficent, but I’m looking forward to it, it’s the kind of movie I would have loved as a kid—and still love as an adult. Summer movie fare is all about escapism and adventure and the summer of 2014 is shaping up to be a memorable one with heroes, villains, quests and, at the heart of most every story, a romance. But let’s talk about fairy tales, as they are particularly near and dear to my heart this summer.

Fairy tales have made a huge resurgence in popular culture in the last decade. We’ve seen retellings of everything from Cinderella to Hansel and Gretel, in both blockbuster films and on television and cable. It’s not surprising that we’re starting to see stories of the villains being told—after all, sometimes the evil characters are the most interesting… right? And sometimes, they turn out not to be evil at all.

I just edited my third collection of erotic romance fairy tales for Cleis Press and it is darker, edgier and, I think, even better than the previous two collections, Fairy Tale Lust and Lustfully Ever After. A Princess Bound: Naughty Fairy Tales for Women goes where I haven’t gone before, bringing a BDSM twist to the fairy tale genre. Since this is a genre that is one of my first and enduring loves, I wanted to create a one-of-a-kind anthology for readers like me, who grew up heavily influenced by fairy tales and longing for both the nostalgia of those fantasy tales and a little something.. sexier.

Fairy tales tap into our deepest fantasies and darkest desires, weaving both the magical and historical into larger than life adventures of courage, quests, true love and good conquering evil. A Princess Bound has all of the classic fairy tale elements, along with sexy, kinky romance!

Here is an excerpt from the lovely, erotic story “Sealed” by Laila Blake:

When James Edward Dowascath met his future wife for the first time, he was a young lad of nineteen years, strong and full of dreams and desires. When he met her again, seven years later, the years of waiting and thinking of his one true love had turned him prematurely grim and solitary.

The first time, it was by chance. He had spent a long day at a cousin’s wedding in Kirkwall—a loud event with too many people, and his aunts pushing him towards young women who all laughed too loudly at the boys who were fool enough to make advances while the girls were in packs. He’d found himself by the sea that evening, letting the sound of the waves wash his ear canals clean. And there she was, naked and bathing in the ocean, scattering the moonlight about herself like liquid silver. He had called to her and she had smiled—that beautiful, innocent smile that she still had. They had made love on the wet sand in the surf, where he had made her kneel on all fours. Afterwards they had cleaned themselves together and she had lain in his arms and she had begged him not to let her go. But James had not understood, had smiled and promised without knowing what she’d meant. He was not a man who believed in fairy tales and old myths.

The next morning, he woke up to the high tide licking at his feet and the girl was gone. He waited for her for weeks, night after night but she never came back and James grew bitter and lonely as the seasons passed.

Seven years later, he was a different man. He owned the family house and lived alone, a fisherman who nobody had called ‘young man’ in years. His lined and dour face seemed to suggest a man far older than his twenty-six years. And one night, it was another full moon, he was awoken by a rap at the door.

There she was, his girl. Unlike him, she had not changed, not at all, she was still naked and soft and she still shimmered in the moon-light. Her eyes met his and her hand, still cold and wet, ran over his saddened, aged features as though she could wash the years away.

“Why did you let me go?” she asked. And that night, he tied her to his bed and he made her scream and writhe and beg and whimper like he had never seen a woman before, in pleasure he hadn’t known was possible. In the morning, her wrists and ankles had been red with rope burn and she’d told him what to do: how to find her skin and how to burn it so that the pull of the ocean could not draw her away from him like the tide.

While I can’t wait to see Maleficent for my own entertainment, it does put in me in the mood to edit a collection of erotic fairy tales based on villains. What do you think? Would you like to read an anthology of erotic romance where the evil queen finds true love (and lust) and that twisted little fellow Rumplestiltskin meets his match in an erotic battle of the wits? Hmm…

Where you can find A Princess Bound: Naught Fairy Tales for Women:
Cleis Press: https://www.cleispress.com/book_page.php?book_id=604
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Princess-Bound-Naughty-Fairy-Tales/dp/1627780351/
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-princess-bound-kristina-wright/1116957211?ean=9781627780353

More about Kristina Wright:
Website/blog: kristinawright.com
Facebook: facebook.com/kristinacw
Twitter: twitter.com/kristinawright

By the time this blog posts I’ll be in St. Thomas, USVI. I’m there for my nephews graduation from high school.  As I go for the milestone, it brings back thoughts of my own high school graduation and the emotions I was experiencing. The excitement of becoming “an adult and heading out on my own to college” and “fear of the unknown of leaving what I knew “. All these bombarded me then and now in hindsight of many years later and heading for my nephews graduation I would never have imagined I would be where I am now. I’m happy and proud of what I accomplished.

The graduation of my nephew is triple special. It is the anniversary year of my big sister (his mother) and my anniversary year. For the graduation the graduating class invites  the anniversary classes to walk as special guests and my sister is doing that. She will walk in the same year her son is graduating. In the future the 3 of us will share anniversary years although they are decades apart. While you are reading this, I’m hugging my nephew tight and telling him how proud I am of him. And in a few days when he walks to get his high school diploma I will be the proud aunty who will be weeping in joy. Happy Graduation Memories my wonderful nephew.

****

Taige Crenshaw is a multi-published author with books available at Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Liquid Silver Books, Loose Id, and Totally Bound. Taige has been enthralled with the written word from time she picked up her first book. It wasn’t long before she started to make up her own tales of romance. With novels set in today, in alternate dimensions, or in the future she writes with adventure, fun sassy heroine’s, and sexy hero’s. Always hard at work creating new and exciting places Taige can be found curled up with a hot novel with exciting characters when she is not creating her own. Join her in the fun, frolic, interesting people and far reaches of the world in her novels. You can find out more about Taige at her website: https://www.taigecrenshaw.com or blog: https://www.taigecrenshaw.com/blog.

Immortal Bloodlines — When temptation rises giving in is the more than sweet.

Buy here

The nostalgia bug bit me not long ago. Maybe it’s pre-menopausal hormones. Or it could be my fan-girl obsession with Miranda Lambert and her reminiscence-themed songs, “House That Built Me” and “Automatic.” Add to that my recent visit home to the small Midwest town I grew up in, and that bug really got a hold of me.

As I traveled through town, I caught a glimpse of the abandoned brick liquor store my friends and I used to haunt because of its massive candy and ice-cream inventory. (Well, at least it seemed massive at the time.) Once a week, my widowed mother would give me what she could—fifty cents, or seventy-five if she’d clipped enough coupons. It would be a humid summer afternoon, and the neighborhood gang would traipse barefoot and sunburned down the hill and slip into the air-conditioned store. (Ah, such a luxury. At home, we only had a single fan to share among a family of six.) I would stand for long sessions drooling over all the candy choices, picking my favorites, counting my pennies and nickels to assure I stayed within my budget.

During that recent trip, there were two old-fashioned candies that came flooding back to me as soon as I spied that store: B-B Bats and Kits.

Mmm, do you remember them?

B-B Bats were taffy on sticks, and Kits were small packages of four individually wrapped squares of the same kind of taffy. They came in vanilla, peanut butter, strawberry, and chocolate. Chocolate was my favorite, while strawberry and vanilla scored a close second. I never chose peanut butter. Ick.

Anyway, the memory of that sweet, chewy taffy remained with me until I returned from my trip. I wondered and hoped and prayed…do they still make them? So I did an internet search and got an instant hit—an awesome website, Old Time Candy, that sells old-fashioned candy, retro toys, and party-favor gadgets from your childhood. It also provides the history of when they began making each product, what company manufactured it, and who has taken over the production, if at all.

I learned that B-B Bats were introduced in the 1920s in Johnson City, New York by Fair Play Caramel Company. They are still available in four flavors (again, no peanut butter for me!), and can be purchased online and shipped right to me! How cool.

Kits were also made by the same company, and are still available, as well. I’m ordering a stock of them both for my kitchen candy drawer, and I plan to introduce them to my future grandkids…whenever that happens. (Hint-hint, my dear kiddos!)

So you see? You really can “go home again.”

To prove it to yourself, allow the memories to flow and go explore Old Time Candy. What nostalgic candy, food or toys do you remember from your childhood?

Bio: Titania Ladley is an erotic romance author published with Ellora’s Cave, Samhain, and Red Sage. She writes in multiple genres including contemporary, paranormal, historical, LGBT and BDSM. Visit her on the web at https://www.TitaniaLadley.com

_______________________________________________________________________________

Links for candy:
B-B Bats
Kits
Old Time Candy

Hi, my name is Vivi and I’m a single romance writer.  This is not, sadly, nearly as much fun as it sounds like it should be.  Dating as a romance writer can have a few awkward moments (like the guys who read your books and think they are a manual for dating you… completely ignoring the fact that my heroines are shape-shifting lionesses who might have different preferences in their mates than I do).  The good news is whenever something excruciatingly awkward happens, I can always shrug it off as “maybe that’ll be funny in a book someday” – there is no shortage of good material coming at me in my Quest for Lurve.

One thing that I’ve noticed in my romantic misadventures that definitely carries over into my books is that you can learn a lot from a first kiss.  There’s no faking chemistry.  Either you’ve got it or you don’t.  Not saying that it can’t grow or change over time – I believe it absolutely can! – but sometimes you just can’t tell until that first lip lock if it’s gonna be amazing or lackluster to start with.

Recently I’d been seeing a long time friend in a sort of not-sure-if-this-is-platonic-or-not dating limbo.  I didn’t know whether he was someone I wanted to be really dating or not – until we sort of accidentally kissed (don’t ask how this happens, I later described it to a friend as feeling as if I tripped and landed on his mouth).  At that moment everything became clear.  I knew.  With absolutely certainty.  Whammo.  We were Just Friends.  There was no magic.  No spark.  Just a sort of bewildered how did that happen hanging in the air.

Luckily, it isn’t always like that… and luckily that isn’t what happens in my new release.  My heroine Lila doesn’t know what she wants before she kisses her completely unsuitable suitor Santiago – but as soon as she does she has that instant moment of clarity.  She knows.  And boy, does the chemistry ignite.  Here’s a little peek at how one Jaguar’s Kiss can shake Lila’s world:

**

“So you don’t think you’re giving anything up, is that it?”

That was it. No sacrifice. How helpful he was. “Exactly. What would I be giving up?”

“A thousand opportunities.” He spun to face her, dark eyes flashing in the night, all that contained ferocity suddenly erupting with startling intensity. “The chance to be something more than what others would make you.”

“So I can be what you would make me instead?” She turned to face him head on, throwing her chin back to growl up at him. “Everyone wants me to be their version of what I should be. Even you.”

“Then what do you want? Who do you want to be?”

“I don’t know! Don’t you see? If I wanted something more than this life, maybe I would go after it, maybe I would be brave, by your definition of the word, but I don’t. I never have. So what’s so terrible about what I’m doing? What am I giving up, Santiago Flores? What is supposed to stop me from doing what I’ve always known I would when the time came? What is it you think I’m supposed to want?”

“Me.”

He gripped the nape of her neck, his fingers tangling in her hair as he pulled her toward him, his other hand cupping her jaw, tipping her face up to meet him as his lips closed over hers, firm and fierce and demanding and—oh my God, so exquisitely perfect.

She’d been kissed before. Of course she’d been kissed before. In twenty-three years as the pride’s resident flirt, she’d kissed dozens of guys in a sort of playful almost-platonic way that was all the other shifters would dare. She’d even gone a bit further with a few humans who didn’t know Roman to be afraid of him—until her instincts had reared up and put a stop to it.

She knew perfectly well what lips were for, thank you very much. But all those kisses. All those affectionate busses and eager lip locks. They had never been this.

The rest of the world simply melted away until there was only Santiago. He nibbled, sucked, coaxed and teased until she opened for him and his tongue stroked into her mouth, a question she answered with her own, angling her head for more. She’d ceased to exist outside this kiss. There was only his heat, his strength, the pull of his body, and her need. God, her fierce, impossible need for more of him.

She wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling herself against him so their bodies aligned, a gasp escaping her mouth at the feel of all that delicious heat. Her other hand slid up his chest and around to palm the back of his neck, holding him there in case he had any rogue thoughts about pulling away. Away wasn’t allowed. Only closer, harder, deeper and more.

And he was very good at those words.

**

Sometimes a kiss can change everything.  Have you ever had a paradigm-shifting kiss?  Do you love to read about those whammy moments in books? 

Thanks so much for having me today, Delilah!

**

To get what he wants, he’ll have to rattle her cage…

Lila Fallon, the Lone Pine Pride Alpha’s only daughter, has been betrothed since childhood to marry her father’s chosen successor. The match is designed to maintain peace by shoring up any cracks in pride solidarity.

She’s always known she would do her duty—she just never expected to meet a man who would tempt her to throw it all away.

As a black panther, Santiago Flores couldn’t be a less suitable mate for the Alpha’s purebred lioness daughter. But that doesn’t change the fact that for every one of the five years he’s been with the Lone Pine Pride, he’s been head-over-heels in love with her. And when the Alpha announces that Lila’s indefinite engagement is about to end in a very definite marriage, Santiago is through holding his peace.

From their very first kiss, Santiago rattles Lila’s neatly ordered world. But can a lioness who’s always lived to please everyone else risk everything to please herself?

Warning: This book contains tempting lone-wolf jaguars, lionesses who long for fairy tale endings, arranged marriages, tangled emotions and a pride full of trouble.

Buy Links:
Amazon | Samhain | B&N

Vivi Andrews is an award-winning paranormal romance novelist with a travel addiction. Born and raised in Alaska, she currently lives in Manhattan when she isn’t bouncing around the globe. Whether at home or on the road, she’s always at work on her next happily-ever-after. For more about her books or the exploits of a nomadic author, please visit her website at www.ViviAndrews.com, or find her on Facebook and Twitter.

I think as readers we all have those sex scenes that stand out in our minds. Some may stand out because of the number of people involved while others may stand out because of a certain bodily uniqueness as can be found in many sci-fi erotic romances. But recently I realized that within my own books and across the many sex scenes that move my main characters’ relationship forward, I had a particular favorite in each one.

In my debut erotic romance, Masque, it was the Violet Room. In this story, all seven colored rooms offer the heroine a different sexual experience, but by time she reaches the Violet Room which involves sex toys, she and the hero have progressed enough in their relationship to make the experience exciting and tender at the same time, especially when they discover that someone has watched!

In Passion’s Poison, it was the icicle scene. The lovely thing about setting an erotic romance in New Hampshire is that there is this fifth season called Mud Season and this is when the temperatures start to warm up, turning the dirt to mud, only to have a snowstorm sweep in and freeze everything up again. This pattern repeats itself a couple times before spring really hits, so icicles from the melting and freezing are a common occurrence. When Zach and Bea find themselves in his hot tub on the deck, with icicles within reach, he decides to create that natural pattern on Bea.

In my latest release, Passion of Sleepy Hollow, it was the first mirror scene. Yes, there are two, and they are very different because of when they take place in the story and the timing in the relationship. Braeden realizes that Katrina has no idea how beautiful she is, so he takes it upon himself to sit her down in front of a mirror and prove to her how amazing she is. That is, how amazing every inch of her is. I had no idea he was going to do that, but I’m really glad he did.

To give you a taste of what I mean, I have included a sample below. Enjoy.

Always, Lexi

Recluse Braeden Van Brunt is not happy to be the Headless Horseman…until he meets Katrina Van Tassel, owner of the Sleepy Hollow Inn, whose allure bewitches him from the front desk into the bedroom. When he discovers Kat and the village of Sleepy Hollow are cursed to exist in the present day for only one weekend a year, he realizes the sacrifice he must make if he wants to keep her.

Katrina Van Tassel lives between slivers of time. She thought she was through grieving her betrothed’s death, but her dreams flare to life when his mirror image arrives, requesting a room. Drawn to Braeden, she is taken to more erotic heights of intimacy than she ever imagined, but she can’t be sure if her heart is with him or the love from her past.

Knowing he must conquer both time and ghosts to keep the only woman he’s ever loved, Braeden must put the past to rest. But the dead may not rest in Sleepy Hollow.

Excerpt from Passion of Sleepy Hollow

Braeden opened the door to Kat’s bedroom to find her tying the neckline of the loose garment she wore to bed. Her hair was barely plaited from a long day of it escaping its confines. The glow of the lantern next to the bed lit her night clothes, teasing him with her curves.

She glanced up and sucked in a breath. Her attraction to him, when she allowed it to surface, made him feel as if he were her dream come true. He stood straighter, keeping the lantern he held behind him and a tight grip on the towel that lay low on his hips.

Her gaze covered his body and his cock responded. When she finally met his eyes, she swallowed. “I could have warmed up some water for you.”

“That’s okay. You can warm me up now.”

Her mouth shut at his statement and he smirked. For such a tough lady, she could be so sexy when caught off guard. “Would you unbraid your hair for me, Kat?”

“My hair?”

He smirked. “Yes, your hair. You know. Those long, blonde strands you keep tied at the back of your head.”

“Why?”

Had no one made love to this woman? Had no one ever shown her how beautiful she was? “Do you have a hairbrush?”

“Of course.” All bustle again, she moved to her chest and pulled out an old hairbrush. “Do you need it?” She glanced at his head.

He probably did, but that wasn’t what he wanted it for. “In a minute.”

He set down the lantern, picked up a straight-back chair that sat against the wall and placed it facing the armoire. Opening the floor-to-ceiling piece of furniture, he centered the chair across from the large oval Victorian mirror. “Sit.”

Puzzled, she started to obey.

“No, wait.”

She froze in place.

“Take your nightgown off.”

“My what?”

“That long shirt you’re wearing.”

“You mean my shift?”

He nodded.

“But I don’t have anything on underneath.”

He let his smile grow. “Exactly.”

The blush that rose to her cheeks transformed her from beautiful to a glowing goddess. “I can’t do that.”

He stepped next to her and took the brush from her hand. “Yes, you can.” Without giving her a chance to think, he grasped the edges and lifted the garment over her head. She lifted her arms and allowed him to have his way.

She was all curves, and seeing them for the first time all at once was breathtaking. He moved the nightstand closer to the chair so the lantern would illuminate her clearly. Then he took her hand and guided her to sit, forcing himself not to touch all the places he craved. This was about her.

Once she was seated, he moved the other lantern from the floor and set it on her bureau. When he turned back to look at her, she was bathed in a yellow glow.

Her gaze met his and the uncertainty he witnessed made him want to crush whoever had made her think she might be anything less than gorgeous. He forced his body to relax. She could simply be shy.

Best way to help that was to distract her. Without hesitation, he unfolded the towel from his hips and set it on the floor to the side of her.

“Braeden.” The word was a whisper.

“Yes.” He stepped in front of her, his cock as hard as permafrost and level with her mouth. It was almost too much to ignore, but he kept his control. He lifted her chin, forcing her to move her gaze to his face. “You’re lovely, Kat.”

Her brows furrowed. “Really?”

“Look for yourself.” He stepped aside.

She did. He watched as she studied herself in the mirror. Did she see what he saw, substantial breasts with dark, rosy areolas? Did she see the softness of her pale skin and the way it tightened inward at her waist before flaring enticingly to her hips? Her legs… Damn, her legs were fully shaped and begged him to nestle between them.

She moved her gaze away from the mirror and looked at him. “I’ve never looked before.”

His cock jumped as multiple images flashed through his mind of the two of them with a mirror over a bed. He had to control himself. He squeezed the brush in his hand and focused on what he intended in the first place. “Sit back and watch the mirror.”

PASSION OF SLEEPY HOLLOW Buy Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Ellora’s Cave

For more information about Lexi Post:

website:  https://www.lexipostbooks.com/
Blog:  https://www.happilyeverafterthoughts.com/
twitter:   https://twitter.com/LexiPost
Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/lexipostbooks
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6915542.Lexi_Post
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lexi-Post/e/B00EBLAFLI/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1392417984&sr=1-2-ent

One of the best parts of writing is playing the ‘what if’ game. For my Annwyn series this meant weaving fairy history with our own. What if all the big plagues were caused by problems in Annwyn?

What if changelings were the offspring of a human and fairy but born in our world instead of Annwyn? What if people with psychic abilities were actually changelings?

While once those kinds of talents would’ve been marveled at they would’ve also become feared or considered the work of the devil with the rise of Christianity. At the same time people would’ve stopped believing in the old gods, or fairies.

Of course fairies still came to our world, they still got together with humans and changelings would’ve still been born; only now most of them have no idea what they are.

This is the predicament the hero of The Changeling Soldier finds himself in. Isaac knows he doesn’t fit in. He sees things (fairies) that no one else does and he gets visions of the future. And they are visions he can’t change so they aren’t particularly useful. Worse he has been dreaming of a battle fought with swords in a snow covered filed all of his life. And the dream is becoming more frequent.

It doesn’t scare him though, not the way it should as he’s begun to see it as his destiny. He can’t change it anyway so why fight it? However leaving the only world he’s ever known to live, and fight, in Annwyn is not a small decision, or one to be made alone.

Here’s a little bit of Isaac’s dream.

Isaac was never ready for the biting cold or the exhaustion of this dream, even though he must have experienced it hundreds of time. Snow was falling, dusting his clothes, and the battleground was silent. Battles weren’t silent. They were noisy and confusing as hell.

He drew in a breath, the cold cutting his lungs, and took a moment to orientate himself. His palm rested on the snow where he was kneeling. His other hand was wrapped around the hilt of a sword; the blade was coated in blue, sticky gore. That he was holding a sword didn’t bother him now, but it still felt wrong in his hand. He was used to guns. There were no guns here.

The blue was more concerning. Blood? It smeared skin and leaked from the wounds of the other fighters. It had to be blood even though people didn’t bleed blue. It wasn’t human blood, though. It was fairy blood.

The sword grew heavy in his hand, and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to hold on to it for much longer. Exhaustion and cold seeped through his body. As he exhaled, his breath clouded. He glanced around looking for a change in the dream, but everything stayed as it always was. He knew this place and had fought this battle all his life, yet things were clearer, sharper now. When he’d been a child, the death had been hidden from him.

He squinted against the glare of the sun on the snow. The battle was over. Around him were the bodies of the fallen. Their pretty faces would never smile again. They looked so young, too young for this. Everywhere he looked, bright blue stained the snow.

Usually he’d wake up now. He waited for the jolt, but it didn’t come.

The Changeling Soldier is book 2.5 in the Annwyn series. Book 1, The Outcast Prince explores another aspect of being a changeling as the hero, Caspian, has the gift of psychometry and has always known what he is…however that hasn’t made his life any easier. Book 2, Lord of the Hunt, takes you to Annwyn and book 3, To Love a King, will be out in October

Her time in the mortal world is running out…

After fleeing Annwyn three centuries ago, Ella built a life in the mortal world making gowns for European royalty and playing in mortal intrigues. Now those Courts are long gone, and she dresses Hollywood starlets. Mortals come and go, but Ella always ends up alone. She longs for the home she left behind.

He’s been dreaming of the coming battle all his life…

Isaac Norton is a returned soldier. Now home, he’s restless and his recurring dream is becoming more frequent: he’s fighting on a snow-covered field stained with blue blood. When he sees Ella, he knows she isn’t human. And she knows what he is, a changeling.

Ella can give Isaac the answers he needs, but there will be a price to pay: his soul.

Buy links:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-changeling-soldier/id867308013?mt=11
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebook/the-changeling-soldier-1
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-thechangelingsoldier-1490614-143.html
https://www.amazon.com/Changeling-Soldier-Annwyn-Shona-Husk/dp/0992423929/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1119556060?ean=9780992423919