Just in time for your weekend reading enjoyment…

I have another story back “out there” for you to enjoy! If you love sexy mmf-flavored menage with some light BDSM, this will be your perfect cup of tea. I’ve included an excerpt from the opening scene below. My heroine is newly divorced and sick and tired of crying over it. Her eye is set on getting the handyman next door into her bed, and she’s not shy about tricking him to do it!

Also, there are several contests from Heather, Desiree, Susan & Allie, still open, below this post! Be sure to hit each one on your way out the door! Have a great weekend!

Handy Men

Two very handy men mend a divorcée’s broken heart…

Rather than cry over spilt milk, a newly divorced woman throws caution to the wind and decides to seduce her neighbor’s handsome handyman.

Jeff isn’t stupid—Pamela tossed those screws into her sink to get his attention! The fact she’s beautiful and vulnerable convinces him she needs “special” attention. When he has her hot and horny, he surprises her with his partner Casey and a threesome.

What starts for Pamela as a wild, no-holds-barred fling quickly gets stickier as the guys push for something lasting.

Get your copy here!

And remember what’s coming next week!

Coming August 31st!

When coming between three brothers, it’s best to just let go.

Angelina Flores lived a perfect ranch-kid childhood, complete with three princes on horseback who treated their housekeeper’s daughter like a princess. At age eighteen, the fairytale came crashing down when she realized she had to choose between Brand, Nate and Eli McAffee.

And when she did choose one–she lost all three.

She’s older now. Wiser, thanks to her college education and a few years’ distance. A distance she’d planned to maintain…until her mother begs her to fill in at the ranch while she takes care of a sick relative.

The minute her boots hit the front porch, the memories come flooding back, right along with the hunger. It’s tough to put the past behind her when temptation is so close. Especially since the brothers seem bound and determined to woo her. Separately. Together. Whatever it takes to keep her right where she belongs–in their arms.

Pre-order your copy here!

Excerpt from Family Values…

For Angelina Flores, stepping across the threshold of the MacAfee ranch house was a moment filled with both nostalgia and pain. The dull thud her boots made on the natural, planed-oak flooring was a familiar sound—and not one she’d heard anywhere else. The faint smells of beeswax and Pine-Sol mixed with the scent of the freshly cut roses in the Mexican crockery atop the rugged fireplace mantel. If she closed her eyes, she could imagine herself at ten years old, running with her muddy boots through the family room to tell her mother about her day, about the animals and the cowboys—her new friends, who’d let her ride behind them on their tall horses.

Her childhood had felt enchanted. And she’d had three handsome princes fawning over her, showering her with pretty clothes and dolls. Even then, she’d dreamed of growing up and having a fairytale wedding, and when they’d teased her and asked her which one she’d choose for her husband, she’d asked why she couldn’t choose them all.

How prophetic that now seemed. As, when she’d approached graduation from high school, two of the McAfee men had suddenly let her know of their individual interest.

Oh, she’d been flattered. And thrilled. Until the moment she’d realized she really would have to choose. Then she’d been filled with dread, because she didn’t want to hurt any of them, and she didn’t know how she could favor one over the other, especially when she was also interested in the third.

Angelina shook her head to rid herself of the painful memories and entered with trepidation, wondering what her welcome would be like once the brothers returned home. The last time she’d been here, in this room, she’d been led through it by a hard hand clamped around her upper arm. She’d been escorted crying and half-dressed back to her room off the kitchen, and then her door closed in her face.

The next morning, she’d been taken by the same hard-faced man through the back door to his Expedition parked beside the porch. The chill in the morning air not nearly as cold as his final goodbye at the Dallas airport.

She’d been eighteen, and the only place she’d ever called home was her home no more.

Angelina took a deep breath and stepped farther into the room. She set her suitcase on the floor beside her and tilted her head to listen for any sounds of movement in the house. Her mother had said the MacAfee boys were at an auction in San Angelo, and that she’d have the place to herself for the weekend, to acclimate and to shore up her nerves.

“Mama, you know why I can’t be there,” she’d said in the early morning hours, holding back her hair and squinting at the digital alarm beside her bed.

“I have no one else I can trust, mija. It’s been years. Things have changed. You have changed. No one will say a word about the past. Have I ever asked anything of you, Angel?”

Angelina’s shoulders had slumped. “I don’t know if I can go there,” she’d whispered.

“I know it will be hard, Angel. I know. But you must take my place and look after the boys while I am away. Do this for me, please?”

She’d taken a deep breath and gripped her cellphone harder. “How long? How long must I stay?”

“Your Aunt Cecilia is having a hysterectomy. I might be weeks.”

Angelina shook her head. Her stomach twisted in a knot, and sudden nausea made her skin clammy. “I’ll have to call my boss. Damn, he’ll probably let me go. I just started there.”

“Gracias, mija. You will see. You worry for nothing. The past is the past.”

But the past wasn’t so distant that she didn’t feel the same longing as she gazed around the room for dreams she’d shattered when she’d followed her heart to make the biggest mistake of her life. And she would never forget the shame.

After picking up her bag, she trudged toward the kitchen and beyond it, to the small bedroom that had been her own when she was a child and the world had seemed such a bright place, full of romantic possibilities.

But princes didn’t exist, at least not in her realm. And she wasn’t a starry-eyed chatterbox anymore, eager to sit on certain cowboys’ knees. She was a college graduate. Had her own job—maybe. Her own place. She’d made a life for herself. The fact she still felt pangs of loneliness late at night when she went to bed alone was something she’d eventually outgrow. Someday. And somewhere far from the MacAfee ranch.

Note: this is a long blog but worth it!

Leave me a comment. Someone will win a $10 GC plus one of my ebooks of their choice.

Ready for some history? In 2004 I finally sat down to write a book. It would be the realization of a dream finally come true. And of course, it would be easy peasy. Nothing to writing a book, right? I think  my head still hurts from banging it on the desk!!

First of all, I had planned to write a straight mystery, because, along with my mother and sister, those were the books I had always read. I even had that first book plotted out, chapter by chapter. So computer, I said, here I come.

Turns out writing a book is a lot harder than it looks. After three months I still had only three chapters written and the head banging began. But then I read Cry No More, by Linda Howard, and a whole new world opened up to me. I wasn’t meant for mysteries. I was meant for romantic suspense. So back to the computer I went, and I wrote that first book in an effort to create a hero as memorable as Diaz in Cry No More.

And I wrote it in a week! 85K words!

Of course, I was the only one who thought it was so wonderful. But it did prompt me to reach out and find the local RWA chapter, which is where I met the fabulous Delilah Devlin and was privileged to be in the critique group with her. The  biggest thing I learned? I had a lot of work to do on that book.

Time marched on. I wrote other books. Eventually a publisher even bought some of them. Wow! I was a published author. But that first book that began my writing life, Run For Your Life, still sat on my hard drive, getting constantly revised.

After five years it was finally contracted as Target and it became the initial book in a series called The Protectors. Well, time marches on and the four-book series did okay, but it became outdated and my style of writing changed and, I hope, improved. So this year my editor at The Wild Rose Press and I dusted it off, I revised every one of the books (one of them with a whole new twist) and we are rereleasing them as Guardian Security. Four hot, suspenseful stories. Four hot, hot heroes.

Take a look. OH, and Run For Your Life/Target is now Moving Target and is set in the town where I lived in Texas for sixteen years, and Quinn’s house is actually my house. Just so ya know!

Oh, and be sure to let me know if you think Quinn is oh so sexy.

Moving Target

Kathryn Burke knows only that she has to get far away as fast as she can. In a frantic, cross-country odyssey, she transforms from pliable Kathryn to feisty, determined Kate Miller, staying one step ahead of the killers on her trail. Then Fate delivers her into the hands of a dark knight with a tortured past. The safety he offers is as tempting as he is. After having his perfect life ripped apart, recluse Quinn sees protecting Kate as his chance for redemption. He never plans on wanting the guarded beauty, never mind falling for her. Denying the explosive chemistry between them is useless, and as danger closes in he must fight to expose the killer or risk history from repeating itself.

Silencing Memories

Just when architect Lindsey Ferrell thinks she’s gotten her life back on track, the terrible nightmares return, and out of nowhere, a stalker sends note to her office. Photos follow, then emails, and she can’t dismiss the threat any longer. Hiring security seems the logical answer, but there’s nothing logical about her body’s reaction to the sinfully sexy expert bent on keeping her safe. Guardian Security partner Nick Vanetta believes there’s more behind the situation than a simple fixation, and he wonders if the answer is buried somewhere in her past. As they dig deeper into her family history, the sizzling attraction between them burns hotter and the job becomes much more than playing bodyguard to this headstrong woman. To protect the woman he loves, he must find the stalker…before it’s too late.

Killing Lies

After her husband was killed and she lost her unborn child, Sarah Madison believed she’d never find love and happiness again. Instead, she has channeled all her energy into her job as assistant to the sexy CEO of Guardian Security. When he proposes a marriage of convenience, the chance to become a mother is tempting, and so is her new prospective husband. His only flaw—the distance he keeps between himself and his sweet little daughter.

Reno Sullivan’s life is a mess. His first marriage was based on a lie, and the fiery death of his wife left him to raise a baby—a constant reminder of his wife’s deceit. He desperately needs someone to mother the child and take charge of his personal life, and his no-nonsense assistant is perfect for the job. Unfortunately, the alluring woman in the bedroom next to his chips away at his determination to maintain the hands-off clause in their agreement and the ice around his heart. A near-tragedy and Reno’s fear of love could kill Sarah’s hopes of turning their fake marriage into happily ever after…

Check them out here:

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=The+Guardians+Desiree+Holt

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Desiree+Holt+The+GUardians?_requestid=499583

https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Guardian+Security+Desiree+holt+Google+Books

UPDATE: The winner is Jennifer Beyer!

* * * * *

So, this title, Family Values, was totally tongue in cheek. If you’ve read me long enough, you know that sometimes I have to have fun with a title: Fournicopia, Between a SEAL and a Hard Place, Sm{B}itten—for that one I even offered pronunciation advice, smuh-bitten… If you can’t have fun…

Anyways, Family Values is the last of the previously written Lone Star Lovers stories I need to release. Anything you see in the future from that series will be a brand new story. And I do plan to write a couple more of my naughty cowboy menages. Just don’t ask me when.

Family Values releases August 31st, so if you haven’t read it, go pre-order it! I really like this story. It’s hot. It’s sweet. You get to “see” many of the characters from the previous stories in the series in a lovely epilogue… Plenty of reasons not to miss this one, got it?

Read the opening of the story below, but if you’d like to win one of the prequel stories in the series, let me know whether you’re ready for more Lone Star Lovers, and if you’ve got a hankerin’ for a particular theme, say a stepbrothers crossover or a SEAL crossover. Let me know! 

If you’re curious about the rest of the series, just click on the covers!

Family Values

When coming between three brothers, it’s best to just let go.

Angelina Flores lived a perfect ranch-kid childhood, complete with three princes on horseback who treated their housekeeper’s daughter like a princess. At age eighteen, the fairytale came crashing down when she realized she had to choose between Brand, Nate and Eli McAffee.

And when she did choose one—she lost all three.

She’s older now. Wiser, thanks to her college education and a few years’ distance. A distance she’d planned to maintain…until her mother begs her to fill in at the ranch while she takes care of a sick relative.

The minute her boots hit the front porch, the memories come flooding back, right along with the hunger. It’s tough to put the past behind her when temptation is so close. Especially since the brothers seem bound and determined to woo her. Separately. Together. Whatever it takes to keep her right where she belongs—in their arms.

Pre-order your copy here!

Excerpt from Family Values…

For Angelina Flores, stepping across the threshold of the MacAfee ranch house was a moment filled with both nostalgia and pain. The dull thud her boots made on the natural, planed-oak flooring was a familiar sound—and not one she’d heard anywhere else. The faint smells of beeswax and Pine-Sol mixed with the scent of the freshly cut roses in the Mexican crockery atop the rugged fireplace mantel. If she closed her eyes, she could imagine herself at ten years old, running with her muddy boots through the family room to tell her mother about her day, about the animals and the cowboys—her new friends who’d let her ride behind them on their tall horses.

Her childhood had felt enchanted. And she’d had three handsome princes fawning over her, showering her with pretty clothes and dolls. Even then, she’d dreamed of growing up and having a fairytale wedding, and when they’d teased her and asked her which one she’d choose for her husband, she’d asked why she couldn’t choose them all.

How prophetic that now seemed. As, when she’d approached graduation from high school, two of the McAfee men had suddenly let her know of their individual interest.

Oh, she’d been flattered. And thrilled. Until the moment she’d realized she really would have to choose. Then she’d been filled with dread, because she didn’t want to hurt any of them, and she didn’t know how she could favor one over the other, especially when she was also interested in the third.

Angelina shook her head to rid herself of the painful memories and entered with trepidation, wondering what her welcome would be like once the brothers returned home. The last time she’d been here, in this room, she’d been led through it by a hard hand clamped around her upper arm. She’d been escorted crying and half-dressed back to her room off the kitchen, and then her door closed in her face.

The next morning, she’d been taken by the same hard-faced man through the back door to his Expedition parked beside the porch. The chill in the morning air not nearly as cold as his final goodbye at the Dallas airport.

She’d been eighteen, and the only place she’d ever called home had been her home no more. Read the rest of this entry »

UPDATE: The winner is Jennifer Beyer!

* * * * *

Next Thursday, Reined In , Book 7 in the Lone Star Lovers series, releases—again. Yes, it’s another of the stories I got the rights to from Samhain when they closed their doors. If you’ve never read it before, then you can pretend it’s brand new. 🙂

This one’s a standalone, so you don’t have to have read any of the series to fully enjoy it. I’ve included an excerpt below to tease you. You’ll get to know my heroine and her two cowboys pretty well by the time you get to the end of the chapter, and then you can imagine what sorts of games they play as they rush toward their Happy Ever After!

If you’re curious about the rest of the series, just click on the covers!

*~*~*~*

Contest

For a chance to win one of the stories above, answer me this:

Do you think you could love living on a ranch?

*~*~*~*

Reined In

Who says a cowgirl can’t have it all?

Stormy is a rancher’s daughter through and through, and although she went away to college, her soul is firmly rooted in home ground–and the cowboys she grew up tormenting. When she hears her father might be selling the ranch, she packs her bags and high tails it for home, terrified she might never get another chance to lasso the heart of one of her cowboys before the hands scatter to the four winds.

For Cam and Joe, foreman and wrangler on the ranch, Stormy was a pain in the seat of their Wranglers. But when she roars back onto the ranch, the spoiled brat they remember emerges from the cloud of dust in skin-tight jeans and spike heels and all grown up.

It only takes a hot second to figure out she’s hell-bent on seduction. But if she thinks they’re going to make it easy for her to pick which cowboy she wants most, she’s sadly mistaken. And who says she has to choose one?

Pre-order your copy here!

Excerpt from Reined In…

The little red Miata ground to a halt, kicking up caliche to pepper the porch’s underskirting like shrapnel.

Joe Halloran suppressed a grin and tipped up the cowboy hat riding low over his brow with a lazy finger. Minutes ago, when the sound of an engine had screamed down the long private drive, he’d groaned because this was his first break of the day and he really wasn’t up for company. But as soon as he’d seen who it was, he settled deeper into his rocking chair.

Trouble had arrived. And about damn time.

Without moving from his chair, he slid his boots inches to the left on the porch railing to get a better view as the driver ground the gearshift into park. Joe glanced to the side. “What the hell do you suppose she’s doin’ here, Cam?”

Seated beside him, his buddy grunted from beneath the hat he had dipped low enough to shade his entire face. “Not a clue. Suppose her old man let somethin’ slip?” Read the rest of this entry »

I can’t believe another month has flown by! The first week of July was so totally fun and refreshing! I spent it at a retreat with some author friends of mine, and while my page count wasn’t huge, it was worth it just to be with other authors who “get” how strange this calling is. 🙂

I’m ending the month feeling odd. I’m tiring fast. My head feels heavy. My thoughts are hard to corral. I’m sure it’s the stupid heat. As much as I love the summer because I love to swim, I’m ready for cooler weather. I’m housebound for most of the day because I just melt when I step outside.

Anyways, I just wanted to jump onto my blog to remind you about the stories I’ve released this month—two brand new, two refurbished treasures, plus a collection I’m proud to be a part of.

The refurbs of Lone Star Lovers will end in August. No new stories have been written, but then again, that depends on what you might like to see me do next. Are you ready for more lusty, sharing Texas men? I’m thinking about writing a story about step-siblings inside a ranching family, finally taking the plunge. What do you think? Or how about a crossover between my Uncharted SEALs and Lone Stars, with a SEAL who returns, knowing his former lover is married to his best friend… Let me know!

New in July!

Happy Ever After for a SEAL and a bounty hunter requires true dedication…

A former military dog handler, now Montana bounty hunter, Jamie Burke’s still trying to adjust to life with a live-in boyfriend. With a testy personality, Jamie’s circle of friends is very small, and includes one very loyal canine best friend. Which is how she likes it. She also likes uncomplicated, but her feelings for her boyfriend, Sky Reynolds, are anything but simple.

With ex-SEAL Sky away on a weeks-long mission, she jumps at the chance to work with the Charter Group again, happy to do anything to keep her too busy to worry about him. She heads to Mexico with her dog Tessa to be part of a team working to discover the whereabouts of a cache of weapons stolen from the Army. She’s thrilled when Sky meets her at the airport.

However, Sky’s not happy Jamie’s in the middle of this op. Having nearly lost her months before, he’s going to stick close. Not a tough job it turns out, since they’re staking out a beachside mansion from the mansion next door. Things heat up as they reconnect, but Jamie and Sky both worry about their future, until a cartel arms dealer arrives and bigger worries mount…

Get your copy here!

* * * * *

Sometimes a cowboy needs a little help—or three brothers—to snare a wife…

Sam Logan’s boys have a bad rep in Two Mule, Texas. Most of it earned. When it becomes clear his foster sons won’t settle down without a nudge from him, he issues his challenge. Find a wife…

The oldest, Johnny, already had his eye on Mean Ellie Harker. Sam’s challenge just gave him the gumption to ask her out. However, before he makes his move, the twins kidnap Ellie from under his nose. Now, he has to compete with three brothers for the woman he wants.

Ellie thought her prospects were drying up until Johnny Logan finally untangled his tongue and asked her out. When his brothers kidnap her and take her to the ranch, she’s furious…then intrigued by the thought of four men bent on showing her what being their’s would be like.

Get your copy here!

* * * * *

In On Fire, today’s top erotic romance authors don’t skimp on love or lust–they are entwined in tales that will make pulses pound and hearts race. Bestselling editor Rachel Kramer Bussel takes us inside the passions of couples who go above and beyond in their pursuit of sexual and romantic satisfaction, exploring the racy to the outrageous during their many arousing adventures. You’ll treasure the sex toy exploration in “Every Second of It,” find paranormal pleasure in “Masquerade,” and be transported to “A Place As Beautiful As This.” You’ll go “Beyond the Blindfold,” find out what lurks in the “Art of Darkness,” and delight in discovering “The Sweetest Thing.” These steamy stories by Kristina Wright, Delilah Devlin, Giselle Renarde, Kay Jaybee, Victoria Blisse, Jade A. Waters and others are perfect intimate reads to enjoy with your lover or for your own pleasure.

Get your copy here!

* * * * *

Sophie Keaton’s love life is a disaster. Too busy with her art gallery and weekends spent with the Army National Guard, she rarely has time for a date. Her orderly existence takes a twist when her Army National Guard unit gets a new Company Commander, Captain Gage Jenkins, who dislikes the idea of women in the Army, particularly her, and proceeds to make her weekend drill miserable. To bolster her self-esteem, Sophie finally takes her love life in hand and goes out on a date. Unfortunately, her date ends up in the emergency room with an allergic reaction to her cat. Her mooch of a brother, Bryce, feels sorry for her and offers to take her out to pick the “perfect man”. When she finds Mr. Perfect, she spends a passionate night with him, but awakens to discover that Mr. Perfect is none other than her new commanding officer!

As a member of the Texas Billionaire’s club, Gage has watched every one of his college buddies tie the knot. Although he’d met every challenge the group set in the early days, he resisted the last one—finding the perfect wife. Now, with his hands full expanding his construction business and whipping his new Army Guard command into shape, he has plenty of excuses to avoid that particular commitment. However, when he moves next door to one very attractive, very sexy woman, he finds himself deliciously distracted. When he discovers that woman is the same klutzy lieutenant he’s been dogging from day one, he’s not angry. He’s amused. And intrigued.

When the pair are challenged by their warring pets and matchmaking sergeants, the rules of Love and War get complicated…

Get your copy here!

* * * * *

Two bad boy cowboys need a little tutoring to learn how to love…

Fathers know to keep their daughters close whenever Sam Logan’s twin sons come to town. Those two hell-raisers have a bad rep in Two Mule, Texas. All of it earned. When it becomes clear his youngest sons won’t settle down without another nudge, Sam reissues his challenge. Find a wife…

There’s only been one woman who could hold their attention for more than one night, but she’s been out of reach. Their former teacher’s a little too worried about a pesky morals clause to let them close. But they’re older now and ready to prove to her that sometimes rules are meant to be broken…

Molly Pritchet thinks her path is predetermined: to always be a child’s teacher, never a mother or a wife. Until the two boys who tempted her way back when crash back into her life. Overwhelmed by yearnings she’s long suppressed, she’s swept along on a tide of forbidden desires.

Get your copy here!

Coming in August!

I have four releases planned for August, but I’m still waiting on the cover for one, so for now, feast your eyes on these three! If you’ve been waiting on a glimpse of the other polyamorous relationships in Two Mule, there’s a sweet scene at the end of Family Values…  You can click on Reined In and Family Values and pre-order those two. I’m not done writing With His SEAL Team, Part 5 just yet. But hint: Mom and Dad are coming for a visit!

Ready for another full-size novel? Something with plenty of sexy Texans, humor, emotion, humor—yeah, we’re baaaack!

My sister, Elle James, and I are back with the last installment of the Texas Billionaires Club! This one features another sinfully sexy, rich Texan, who meets Ms. Right, who just so happens to live next door.

Is your reading slate set for the coming weekend now? Have fun!

Love & War

Sophie Keaton’s love life is a disaster.  Too busy with her art gallery and weekends spent with the Army National Guard, she rarely has time for a date. Her orderly existence takes a twist when her Army National Guard unit gets a new Company Commander, Captain Gage Jenkins, who dislikes the idea of women in the Army, particularly her, and proceeds to make her weekend drill miserable. To bolster her self-esteem, Sophie finally takes her love life in hand and goes out on a date.  Unfortunately, her date ends up in the emergency room with an allergic reaction to her cat.  Her mooch of a brother, Bryce, feels sorry for her and offers to take her out to pick the “perfect man”.  When she finds Mr. Perfect, she spends a passionate night with him, but awakens to discover that Mr. Perfect is none other than her new commanding officer!

As a member of the Texas Billionaire’s club, Gage has watched every one of his college buddies tie the knot. Although he’d met every challenge the group set in the early days, he resisted the last one—finding the perfect wife. Now, with his hands full expanding his construction business and whipping his new Army Guard command into shape, he has plenty of excuses to avoid that particular commitment. However, when he moves next door to one very attractive, very sexy  woman, he finds himself deliciously distracted. When he discovers that woman is the same klutzy lieutenant he’s been dogging from day one, he’s not angry. He’s amused. And intrigued.

When the pair are challenged by their warring pets and matchmaking sergeants, the rules of Love and War get complicated…

Amazon | Nook | Kobo | IBooks | GooglePlay | Print

UPDATE: The winner is…Debra!

* * * * *

On Wednesday—tomorrow, folks—the last of our Texas Billionaire Club romances hits the stores! And even though I only list the Amazon link below, it’s EVERYWHERE. Sis (Elle James) and I are super-excited to share it. Because, #1 – this is a story we co-wrote; #2 – it’s funny; #3 – many of the funny Army situations we write about are things that actually happened to us; and #4 – it’s the first story we EVER wrote. Of course, the original version was full of all our newbie mistakes, so it took some time for us to revise the heck out of it. Still, the story at the core of this romance was always one we loved.

So, if you love those Alpha Texas guys, love funny situations, love dogs & cats, and love to sink into a series with a group of guys who fall hard for Ms. Right, you will love Love & War. It’s a nice, long, feel-good read. And it’s sexy, have no fear!

Enjoy the excerpt below and if you haven’t already pre-ordered your copy, do so today! You’ll want to sink deep into this one!

If you leave a comment below, you’ll be entered to win one of the three prequel stories below. Happy reading! ~DD

Love & War

Sophie Keaton’s love life is a disaster. Too busy with her art gallery and weekends spent with the Army National Guard, she rarely has time for a date. Her orderly existence takes a twist when her Army National Guard unit gets a new Company Commander, Captain Gage Jenkins, who dislikes the idea of women in the Army, particularly her, and proceeds to make her weekend drill miserable. To bolster her self-esteem, Sophie finally takes her love life in hand and goes out on a date. Unfortunately, her date ends up in the emergency room with an allergic reaction to her cat. Her mooch of a brother, Bryce, feels sorry for her and offers to take her out to pick the “perfect man”. When she finds Mr. Perfect, she spends a passionate night with him, but awakens to discover that Mr. Perfect is none other than her new commanding officer!

As a member of the Texas Billionaire’s club, Gage has watched every one of his college buddies tie the knot. Although he’d met every challenge the group set in the early days, he resisted the last one—finding the perfect wife. Now, with his hands full expanding his construction business and whipping his new Army Guard command into shape, he has plenty of excuses to avoid that particular commitment. However, when he moves next door to one very attractive, very sexy woman, he finds himself deliciously distracted. When he discovers that woman is the same klutzy lieutenant he’s been dogging from day one, he’s not angry. He’s amused. And intrigued.

When the pair are challenged by their warring pets and matchmaking sergeants, the rules of Love and War get complicated…

Get your copy here!

Read an excerpt!

It’s all his fault!

Sophie Keaton’s boots slurped in the mud as she trudged onward, while mentally listing the numerous reasons she resented the new captain. He was autocratic, judgmental, unfeeling, overbearing… The list continued as she concentrated on putting one sore foot in front of the other to keep up with the long column of shadowy figures in front of her. Her head hurt from the weight of her helmet, and her shoulders ached from carrying the fifty-pound rucksack she had slung across her back. With her hands fully occupied carrying an M4A1 rifle, she couldn’t satisfy an itch that was beginning to grow under the elastic bands of her underwear. With each step she silently repeated her mantra, It’s all his fault!

The rain had fallen hard enough before the sun set to wash away the last trace of mosquito repellent she’d used, and a scourge of the winged creatures hovered around her, feasting on her exposed skin. The weather was unseasonably warm—even for springtime in Texas. She could feel the steam rise from the rain-soaked grass, plastering the heavy layers of her uniform to her body, and adding to her ever-increasing misery.

Her platoon’s training schedule specified an afternoon road march between the rifle range and their camp. That wouldn’t have been so bad, but the morning’s weapons qualification firing had taken longer than expected, stretching late into the afternoon.

Sophie was reaching for the field radio to request transportation to take her soldiers back to camp, when the new Company Commander, Captain Jenkins, arrived in his government-issue, desert-camouflaged HUMMV. The vehicle had the top and doors removed in deference to the heat, which made it an easy task for him to climb out in a hurry. He leaned over to say something to his driver then strode in Sophie’s direction.

She snapped to attention and executed a sharp salute, returning her arm to her side when he returned it with his more masculine, and muscular, version.

“Lieutenant Keaton, what’s the hold up? You’re an hour behind schedule.” Read the rest of this entry »