Two Great Authors – Sharing the Love H0p

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In this time of Valentine’s, I want to share the love by letting you know about two science fiction romance authors whose writing I love: Janet Miller and Cathryn Cade. I looooove Janet Miller’s Gaian series, where the men from Gaian perform a special ceremony to try to find their wives. And then there’s Cathryn Cade, whose Orion series is set on a cruise liner in space–a confined space for lots of things to go wrong…and right.

For my giveaway this hop, I’m asking you to give these authors some love. And while you’re at it, check out their great books!

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The Best Romance – 24 Karat Romance Blog Hop!

24Karat

I have a question for you. But first, make sure before you leave that you check out both the giveaways below and when you do leave, you’re headed for one of the other great sites on this hop! Now here’s the question:

What is your favorite sub-genre of romance? Do you like billionaires or bikers or rock stars or shifters or historical romances or something else entirely? I want to know!

It’s fine to give more than one answer. 🙂

For me, I like a lot of different sub-genres but I tend to focus on one at a time and read it voraciously and then move on to another.

And now for an excerpt from my latest romance release, The Reluctant Billionaire:

The Reluctant Billionaire

Stopping in the kitchen doorway, Rhys watched Sophie bustle around the room putting things away. It looked like too much work for one person, but all of his cooks along the line had insisted they didn’t need help.

He liked watching her move. She had a grace to her, a smooth sureness about where she stepped and where she put each object. He never would have thought watching someone clean a kitchen would be sexy, but she made everything sexy.

Finally, he decided he’d moved from casual voyeur to peeping tom. It was time to let her know he was there. “Do I smell chocolate chip cookies?”

Sophia jumped. “You scared me to death.”

“I’ve been here a few minutes.” More than a few. He sauntered into the room, his hands shoved into his slacks. “You were really focused on your work.”

“Well…of course.”

He stopped a couple of feet away from her. “Cookies?”

Her cheeks turned pink. As she pulled a plastic storage container off a shelf, she said, “You were right about the cookies. Thanks for the tip.” She opened the top and the scent of fresh-baked chocolate chips wafted out.

Before she could give him a measly two cookies again, he stuck his hand in the container and grabbed a handful.

“Hey!” Sophie pulled the container out of his reach. “Those are for Mr. Blackwell.”

He shoved one in his mouth. Should he tell her he wasn’t who she thought he was? It might be more fun to see how long it took her to figure it out. “Mmmm.” As he moaned in pleasure, he caught a glimpse of her face–bright pink, rapt, a little glassy-eyed, gazing at his mouth. What was his little cook thinking of?

After swallowing, he held one cookie out. “Want one?”

“I shouldn’t.”

He stepped closer. “Why not?”

“A minute on the lips, a lifetime on the hips.”

It took him a second. “You aren’t suggesting you’re fat.”

She turned a darker red. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

Rhys grabbed her arm. “You aren’t fat. You’re perfect.” His voice dropped. “Perfect and incredibly sexy.”

Her eyes grew wide.

Leaning closer, he said, “You believe me.”

“But–”

He got closer and closer. Another second and their mouths would touch. “No. You believe me.” He felt her breath against his lips. “You’re perfect.”

Rhys bridged the small gap between them and kissed her, his heart beating loudly in his ears. She kissed him back for a second, then another, then just when he was ready to pull her fully into his arms, she stepped back. He stepped forward, not wanting to let her go, and crowded her against the counter.

Sophie put her hands on his chest. “I can’t.”

 

Ebook360 When BBW Sophie begins her new job as chef in William Blackwell’s mansion, she wants a new start. Her last job led to a romance with her billionaire boss which ended in heartbreak. This time, she swears she’ll stay away from workplace romance…a vow that’s put to the test when she meets the enigmatic Rhys, one of the mansion’s gardeners.

William “Rhys” Blackwell might be a billionaire, but he still loves digging in his gardens. When he meets Sophie he feels instantly attracted to her. But Sophie says she doesn’t want to date anyone from the mansion, and Rhys knows that goes double for him, so he keeps his identity quiet. Maybe if she gets to know him first, she’ll change her mind.

In the midst of the growing attraction between Sophie and Rhys, they have other problems to deal with, too…a lawsuit, a billionaire ex-lover and more. In the end, there’s just one question: what are they willing to risk for a chance at love?

Discounted for a limited time.

Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes and Noble Nook
All-Romance Ebooks

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What Makes a Man Wonderful? – Winter Wonder Man Hop

Sexy athletic bodyWhat makes a man a “wonder man?” It would be easy to point to extraordinary feats that different men (both real and fictional) have performed over the years to aid or protect their loved ones. But when I think about what makes a man wonderful to me, it’s the little things that matter. Is he there when I need him? Does he show up when he says he’s going to? If he says he’s going to do something, does he follow through? It’s these little things that I think make a wonderful man.

Do you have a wonderful man in your life? He could be a significant other or he could be your father, son, or brother-in-law. He could even be an ex you still remember in somewhat fond terms. If you feel so moved, please share in the comments what characteristics make your wonder man wonderful.

Below is an excerpt from my latest novel, The Reluctant Billionaire, in which Rhys (the billionaire) shows his own wonderful qualities. Also, don’t miss the giveaways before you hop away to your next site. There’s one below for this hop, and another here. If you check out the other giveaway, don’t forget to come back here in order to continue your hop. Thanks for visiting!

The Reluctant Billionaire Excerpt

“What did he do to you to make it too painful to see him?” Rhys said.

Her eyes filled with tears. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

She’d made it to the opening in the treehouse floor when Rhys grabbed her arm.

“Tell me. Please. Because right now I’m imagining awful things.”

The truth was pretty bad, although who knew what he was thinking. She didn’t want to talk about it though.

“Please,” Rhys said.

Sophie gazed at the tree, trying to forget that Rhys was behind her. “He told me he loved me, and that we’d get married. I was a fool, and I believed him, so when we slept together I didn’t always make him use protection.” Make that never. She’d never insisted. She’d been stupid blind with love for him. “When I got pregnant, he gave me a stack of bills so I could get an abortion.”

She paused. “I told him I didn’t want an abortion and that I didn’t see the point, since we were going to get married. That’s when he laughed at me and told me it had all been a lie to get me into bed.” She’d been so gullible. What had made her think a rich, good-looking man would marry a round-in-the-middle cook?

Rhys squeezed her arm, just a little. “And the baby?”

“Miscarriage.” She spat the word out, trying not to think about what it meant. “I’m sure he was happy. Took me a while to get myself together again. Then I found this job, and here I am.”

Rhys put his arms around her from behind and hugged her. “That’s terrible.”

She put her hand on one of the arms around her. She’d gotten plenty of hugs from her family when she’d lost the baby. Somehow, this felt different. Maybe because Stanford hadn’t once consoled her. And now this man who hadn’t even known her then was giving her what she’d needed all along.

Sophie leaned her head back and rested it against his chest. “It’s over. But sometimes I still think about my little baby. I wonder if it would’ve been a boy or a girl, and what it might have grown up to do. And I wonder if I would have lost it if he’d kept his promises.” She’d never know. But she’d always wondered if the stress of losing him had somehow hurt the baby.

Rhys squeezed her tighter. They sat like that for a while. Then he loosened his arms and said, “Let’s get back.” He helped her find the wooden slats so she didn’t fall climbing out of the tree house. When they’d both reached the ground, he put his hand on her back and steered her down the path.

“Isn’t this away from the house?”

“We’re taking another route. There’s something I want to show you.”

They wound through the wooded area and emerged into the sun. More gardens and wild patches ranged for as far as she could see. “This is all Mr. Blackwell’s?”

“It is.”

“He must love the outdoors.”

Rhys didn’t say anything, just guided her down another path through shrubs and flower beds bursting with reds and pinks and purples. They seemed to be edging back toward the house, though she couldn’t see it through the trees.

“Here we are,” Rhys said.

They stepped into a small clearing still wild with clover and pretty little wild flowers scattered through the grass. As they stepped closer, she could see the ring of stones and the unhurried flight of ten…no, twenty, maybe even thirty…different butterflies.

“It’s beautiful,” she said.

“I built it thinking someday my kids could come here and play. These flowers are designed to attract butterflies, and we’ve done other things as well to make this a sort of butterfly refuge.”

She took a few steps closer. Butterflies flew all around her.

“I would think, wherever your little baby went, it might be something like this.”

Sophie blinked back tears. She’d often wondered about where her child had gone. “Thank you.”

Rhys put his arms around her again and kissed the top of her head. They stood like that for a while and eventually, a butterfly landed on one of Rhys’ arms. It flapped its wings lazily not far from Sophie’s face.

She’d never been anyplace that felt so peaceful. This is exactly where she’d have wanted her child to have gone.

Sophie rubbed her cheek against Rhys’ arm. “Thank you,” she said again.

Quietly, without talking about it, they disentangled themselves and left the butterflies. Rhys took her down a different path that led back into the forest.

“You can go there anytime,” he said at length.

“I think I will.”

He walked her all the way to the kitchen door before wandering back into the garden. She still thought she needed to avoid a relationship with him. But was she making a big mistake in pushing him away?

 

Ebook360 When BBW Sophie begins her new job as chef in William Blackwell’s mansion, she wants a new start. Her last job led to a romance with her billionaire boss which ended in heartbreak. This time, she swears she’ll stay away from workplace romance…a vow that’s put to the test when she meets the enigmatic Rhys, one of the mansion’s gardeners.

William “Rhys” Blackwell might be a billionaire, but he still loves digging in his gardens. When he meets Sophie he feels instantly attracted to her. But Sophie says she doesn’t want to date anyone from the mansion, and Rhys knows that goes double for him, so he keeps his identity quiet. Maybe if she gets to know him first, she’ll change her mind.

In the midst of the growing attraction between Sophie and Rhys, they have other problems to deal with, too…a lawsuit, a billionaire ex-lover and more. In the end, there’s just one question: what are they willing to risk for a chance at love?

Discounted for a limited time.

Amazon US
Amazon UK

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A Billionaire-Laden #Giveaway

Emma South’s new novel Writing Our Song will be out soon, and to celebrate, she’s giving away Clive Christian 1872 for Men, a $50 Amazon Gift Card, and a $25 Gift Card. And she’s gathered together several other authors (including me!) who have each donated three copies of a novel for an amazing zip file of romance.

Here are the books you’ll get if you win one of these prizes:

* Remember Our Song – Emma South
* Saltwater Kisses – Krista Lakes
* The Arrangement – Abby Weeks
* Random Acts of Trust – Julia Kent
* The Object of His Desire – PJ Adams
* How Not to be Seduced by Billionaires – Marian Tee
* I Married a Billionaire – Melanie Marchande
* Forever Innocent – Deanna Roy
* Magic Academy – Jillian Keep
* Skin Deep – Dez Burke
* The Upside of Being Let Down – London Casey
* The Reluctant Billionaire – Danielle Duncan
* Fight For You – Adriana Hunter

How to enter? Just use the Rafflecopter below!

First prize:
1x 1oz (30ml) bottle of Clive Christian 1872 for Men valued at $190.00 plus aforementioned ebooks for your kindle (.mobi files)

Second Prize: 1x $50 Amazon Gift Card (email) plus aforementioned ebooks for your kindle (.mobi files)

Third Prize: 1x $25 Amazon Gift Card (email) plus aforementioned ebooks for your kindle (.mobi files)

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