Interview Ani Gonzalez Author of The Christmas Countdown
Happy holidays to all! Give a big welcome to Ani Gonzales, author of The Christmas Countdown. Have a seat and grab an insulated mug. I’ve got hot chocolate, hot cider and coffee. Choose your pot, they’re labeled. Pick your choice of a Snicker-doodle, Chocolate Chip or Peanut butter cookie from the plate. Yep, I baked them myself. Lets find out a little about Ani and The Christmas Countdown. Thanks for joining us! Psst… don’t forget to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway at the bottom of this post!
Thanks for featuring my book, The Christmas Countdown, on the blog. It’s a fast-paced, hilarious and adorable sweet holiday romance which was a blast to write and I’m super excited to share it with readers.
My pleasure. Now tell us what defines you as an author? As a person? Are they one and the same?
I’m known for my funny, quirky small towns, my madcap situations, and my creative use of folklore and traditions. This new series, for example, is set in the Holiday Lake, Minnesota, a town that celebrates Christmas 365 days of the year. It takes place in December, so things are already pretty crazy. I take things up to 11, however, when my event planner heroine, Nat Quinn, is asked to arrange a perfect family Christmas in twenty-four hours. Nat is known as “The Christmas Queen,” but is she up to the job and the romance that is coming her way?
What is Christmas like where you live? Don’t be shy, tell us your secrets.
I’m originally from Puerto Rico and Christmas is a HUGE deal down there. The holiday season starts with Thanksgiving and doesn’t end until late January with the Feast of St. Sebastian. It’s one big non-stop party.
What inspired this particular story?
I lived in Minnesota for two years and spent a ton of time traveling across the Midwest. One of our road trips took us to the town of Amana in Iowa. It was settled by German immigrants and still retains its original Bavarian architecture. As soon as I saw those adorable gingerbread buildings (and the many, many shops selling Christmas ornaments) I knew I had my holiday town.
Why should we read this book/series and what sets you apart from the rest and makes your book/series unique?
Definitely the mix of humor and heart. My books are funny and lighthearted, but also heartwarming., and there’s always a little twist or a surprise at the end.
What’s your favorite part of being an author?
I get to live in the worlds I create! My readers always say that they would love to move to my little towns and I get to live there all year round. It’s fantastic.
Speed Round FOR A LITTLE ADDED FUN: (one word only answer): Yep, I know torture for a writer!<evil laugh> And she can’t do it. LOL Oh well we don’t care. It all for fun!
Favorite Christmas Movie: A Charlie Brown Christmas
Favorite Christmas Book: The Christmas Pudding by Agatha Christie
Last Christmas or Holiday Book Read:
Favorite color: Orange
Stilettos or flipflops or elf shoes: I live in the Midwest so Uggs are the preferred footwear right now.
Coffee or Tea or Hot Chocolate: Constant Comment tea from Bigelow
Ebook or audiobook or paperback: Ebook!
Pencil or pen or candy cane: Pencil, so I can erase mistakes.
Favorite Christmas Carol or song: Carol of the Bells, particularly the Lindsey Stirling version from last year. I also love Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s Sarajevo 1985.
All-time Favorite Christmas Present: A cowboy Barbie I got when I was ten. I wrote a holiday story based on her, One Night in the Chupacabras Ranch, and you can get it by signing up for my newsletter.
Favorite dessert: Strawberry pie.
Christmas Candy or Cake: Collin Street Texas Fruitcake. It’s the best.
Favorite Thing To Do to Relax During the Holidays: Watch Hallmark Movies
Champagne or gin or eggnog: I have a favorite recipe for Puerto Rican coconut eggnog. It’s delicious and it’s on my blog.
Paranormal or Historical: Both!
Wonder Woman or Top Model or Tinkerbell: Tink for the win!
Favorite Christmas or holiday TV show: The Grinch!
Hot or cold: Cold!
POV: Third person
I’d die if I don’t have: Candy Corn (that’s why my other series is all about Halloween!)
Review or Not: Review!
Holiday Lake
satisfied. That was one action item taken care of.
mahogany cabinet that served as the study’s bar and grabbed a bottle of scotch
and a glass. A perfect Christmas with his kids. This was worth celebrating.
and poured the amber liquid into the glass. The cut-glass pattern made
everything sparkle, which was rather festive. Now all he had to do was get the
kids on the plane. Everything else would be taken care of.
giving his children the perfect Christmas, there was more to his feeling of
jubilation. He smiled as he realized that the quirky holiday decorator had
improved his mood. She seemed almost entirely too Christmassy to be real, but
she also appeared to be someone you could count on, a quality that was lacking in
this world.
feeling the fiery liquid slide down this throat. That had been a good
negotiation.
forward to the next one. As Nat had said, everyone wanted the perfect Christmas
and it wasn’t all that easy. An eleventh-hour version would, he was certain,
encounter a few challenges, and he had a feeling he would enjoy maneuvering
through them with Ms. Quinn. He felt a lot more confident after talking with
her, like a weight had fallen off his back.
studio, all well-tailored slacks and glossy hair. She definitely wasn’t the
slouchy sweater and Ugg boots type.
packing,” she said, a tinge of worry in her voice. “They sound really
excited. Is she going to do it?”
Cyrus replied. “Did you have any doubts?”
exclaimed with a happy smile. “She was dead set against it. How did you
convince her?”
and bottomless margaritas,” he replied.
accurate. Ms. Quinn had given in when he’d mentioned his kids. That had been
her weak spot. It made sense that a holiday specialist would be a sucker for
kids. They were the point of her job, after all.
know about this Nat Quinn, Leah?” He asked.
fantastic,” Leah answered, eyes shining. “You know Christmas is not
my thing, so it takes quite a lot to wow me.”
Jewish, and she’d worked for some of the wealthiest families in Manhattan and
London. She was notoriously hard to impress.
hired me one week before Christmas and I was blown away. We drove up to the
lodge and it looked amazing with a ten-foot-tall tree, garlands everywhere, and
Mrs. Hagen’s favorite vintage German decorations. Ms. Quinn even found the
large old-fashioned bulbs that Mrs. Hagen wanted. She had an intact set and
everything.”
At least he wasn’t demanding rare Christmas lights and antique ornaments. Ms.
Quinn was likely relieved about that.
was divine,” Leah continued. “The main restaurant has an
all-year-round holiday buffet with a citrus cranberry chutney that is out of
this world. You can use it as a sandwich spread for the leftovers too.”
dreamy as she described the food.
makes this amazing Black Forest cake with cherry Kirsch.” Leah gave a deep
sigh of longing. “It has so much alcohol you can’t drive after you eat it,
but it is delicious. Absolutely worth being housebound afterwards.”
back for the food?” Cyrus asked, swirling the amber liquid in his glass.
by an awkward silence.
“Er, not exactly. The town is lovely and the people are, um, quite
pleasant.” She paused. “Particularly Ms. Quinn. She even gave us some
Chinese food for Christmas Eve dinner, which was very thoughtful.” Her
eyes grew dreamy again. “The kung pao chicken was delicious. I hear the
place closed though, which is a pity.”
hope Ms. Quinn can whip us something similar despite the time constraints.
Given what we’ve given her to work with, we’ll be lucky if she can find a
Christmas tree.”
Noah’s dad—”
her mouth, eyes wide.
raised a brow. “Who’s Noah?”
across her cheeks. “No one. I’ll, er, go check on the kids now.”
the room.
Leah had been working for him for almost two years now, and she’d become part
of the family. Yet he’d never seen her blush, not once.
be a lot more interesting than he’d expected.
computer. A picture of his kids popped up on the screen. It was from the last
time he’d taken Jack to the FDNY open house. His son stood in front of a fire
truck grinning widely while his sister made bunny ears behind his head.
picture, partly because he’d made it to the field trip for a change, but mostly
because Jack was wearing a t-shirt that read “Firefighters Like It
Hot”, seemingly oblivious to the double entendre.
Internet browser icon and waited for the program to load. An e-mail came as he
waited. The sender was Nat Queen at TheChristmasQueen-dot-com and the subject
line read “Contract for Immediate Signature.” The words were
punctuated with a dozen exclamation marks.
was quite efficient, a woman after his own heart.
opened, he typed in “Nat Quinn Holiday Lake Minnesota.” A
surprisingly large number of sites popped up, most of them featuring the
Christmas Queen motto and a mistletoe crown logo.
was a busy gal. She’d appeared on various morning shows, giving holiday
decorating tips. She wrote a column on how to plan the perfect holiday. She had
authored numerous magazine articles on virtually every challenge one could
encounter during the holidays, and at least three of the articles dealt with
gravy consistency. She had done sets for holiday movies.
a beach holiday. The poor woman must be exhausted. She even had a sponsorship
agreement with a candle company. The ads boasted that her Citrus Cranberry
Christmas Delight Candle was their all-time best-seller.
things one could be remembered for.
TheChristmasQueen.com, and was immediately assaulted by loud music, The
Carol of the Bells, if he was not mistaken.
admirable Ms. Quinn had one serious character flaw: She was one of those people
who had pop-up music on her website.
scrolled down. There was another mistletoe crown logo, a recipe section, and
several pictures of lavishly decorated houses.
Ms. Quinn could put on a show. She’d even done a party with a real sleigh and
live reindeer. He peered at the computer screen, jaw dropping in disbelief as
he counted the animals. Eight reindeer, all suitably labeled. She’d done a
holiday party with eight reindeer.
Christmas in a day.
site. She had social media accounts with current pictures of the town. It had
snowed recently and Holiday Lake could rightfully claim that it would be a
white Christmas. The bakery that Leah loved was shaped like a Swiss chalet with
twinkling lights and a giant Black Forest cake replica in front.
it turned out, was re-opening. Leah would no doubt be overjoyed. The Bavarian
Brathaus sounded intriguing and the Holiday Lake Inn would be sponsoring a
Christmas carol concert tomorrow night. The kids would enjoy that.
have a fetish for measuring things. All their statistics were carefully noted
on the various websites. They’d received sixteen inches of snow last week. The
Holiday Lake Inn’s all-you-can-eat turkey buffet had served seventeen gallons
of citrus-cranberry chutney on December 26 of last year. Year-to-date, the tree
farm had sold eight hundred and twenty-two trees.
social media accounts and checked all the friends lists, but try as he might he
could not find what he was looking for.
Leah’s mysterious Noah.
pictures of Nat Quinn. The Christmas Queen seemed surprisingly shy. No pictures
of herself on her website. No selfies on her social media. Nothing.
images search tab and found that the local Christmas tree vendors had a picture
of her. The image was blurry, so all he could make out was a slender woman
standing next to an enormous Christmas tree, but clicking on the picture took
him to the tree seller’s website.
Quinn had filmed a television segment with Northstar Tree Farm, which had aired
on the Minneapolis public television station. The tree farm had the video on
its website.
back to watch.
woman with bright red hair, green eyes, and a loud cheerful laugh. She knew
more than any human being should about decorative conifers, and she could make
a Christmas wreath in five minutes flat. She liked Balsam firs because they
looked shaggy and natural, but she admired the Fraser fir’s longevity. She
wielded a chainsaw like a pro and she did not like artificial trees. As far as
she was concerned, they were an abomination in the eyes of the Lord. She owned
thirty-seven ugly Christmas sweaters and her favorite featured an
unhappy-looking antlered Chihuahua. And she was single.
smiling. Nat Quinn was adorable.
about Christmas.
choice for this job. Even the single part. Not that he cared, of course, not personally.
It just left her free to concentrate on the job.
consideration here, the job.
He scrolled up. He could swear he’d seen—
the top of the website. There it was in all its glory—The Northstar Tree Farm’s
Christmas tree counter.
“zero.”
Zero balsams. Zero Frasers.
he pulled up Nat’s email, opened the contract, and affixed his electronic
signature.
what the Christmas Queen would do.
Visits: 246
Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged Ani Gonzales, Contemporary Romance, Romantic Comedy, The Christmas Countdown by Tena Stetler with comments disabled.
Dating Rules by Keeley Holmes
Give a warm welcome to Keeley Holmes, author of Dating Rules – Book two in Serendipity Series.
Pull up a chair, grab a drink of your choice from the cooler, a Chocolate Chip or Peanut Butter cookie from the plate, and let’s find out a little about Keeley Holmes and her Dating Rules.
Are you ready for this?” Daniel asked as he handed me a gun. He was grinning
like an idiot, the green of his eyes twinkling.
passed me a gun? Did they seriously believe I would take part in this?
Parker looked at me only once and then addressed all of my friends.
shocked to see her here.
so it should be fun.”
why would a date include everyone else? Unless he didn’t want to be alone with
me? And, importantly, why would a date include the pain from getting shot?
up, men against the women and see who are the strongest.”
the ground.”
them. I was surprised to see Frank here; I was shocked that he could get away
from Daniel’s evil aunt long enough to be here. I didn’t know the other man in
the group but his eyes were as red as rubies as he focused on Parker. His
purple hair was already squashed under the helmet. Strange colours for eyes and
hair, but it suited him.
throwing a helmet my way.
and I guess the one rule is to try and aim above the groin.”
at Malcolm. I’d seen Lacey flirt of course, but not like this. There was an
anger behind that smile. Some flirt. More anger. Who was this man, and what had
he done to my friend? He was the man crisis she was going through. “And you are?” I asked.
family friend,” Daniel informed me.
Lacey?
groin if you agree not to hit my tits,” Lacey told him.
could get quite hard.”
it did get hard…” Lacey mocked.
Cock talk, already… Jesus.
but he didn’t say anything.
tits take up half your body, where are we going to hit?”
Learn to cover it otherwise you won’t be using it.”
sheepishly.
all you get. I know you, you’ll continue to fire at my dick because you love it
so much.” He aimed that comment at me.
and shuddered.
Agreed?”
“Watch me kick arse out there.”
finger and turned to them. “Right, they might be stronger than us physically,
but we’re more cunning… we could use that…but then, this is shooting and
men can shoot and they’re stronger… Shit.”
at anything and everything that moves,” I hissed.
whistle. It blew, and the shooting started.
area. Balls whizzed past my head. A thought that should never enter one’s mind,
but it made me grin.
on the floor holding her leg and rocking back and forth trying to throw off the
pain. If it hurt that bad, I wasn’t going to get hit.
obstacle I’d hidden behind. I could see a leg near a pile of tires. How did I know
who those legs belonged to? It could be one of the girls… I breathed deeply, my
eyes surveying the area. Red showed as the leg moved. Red coat. That meant it
was Mark.
pulled the trigger.
from her hiding spot.
duck and run for cover behind a tree.
actually made my legs feel numb. How the hell did you run on jelly legs?
fucking terrifying…and strangely exhilarating.
my gun at a very open Jake. I fired. It hit the mark, dead centre in his chest.
“Sweet Jesus!”
hid behind the tree, grinning as Lacey and Jake left the area.
screamed and then seconds later, Malcolm cursed. They were dropping like flies
and this meant I had a chance of winning.
It was wonderful having you with us today. Please feel free to stop by anytime. Good Luck with Dating Rules!
Visits: 276
Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged Dating Rules, Keeley Holmes, Romantic Comedy, Serendipity Series by Tena Stetler with 2 comments.
Lost on the Road to Love with Kay Harris!
Give a warm welcome to the talented and prolific Kay Harris, author of Lost on the Road to Love, released yesterday, March 14, 2018!
Pull up a chair, grab a drink of your choice from the cooler, a Chocolate Chip or Peanut Butter cookie from the plate, and let’s find out a little about how you were Lost on the Road to Love. Thanks for being here Kay, I see you brought guests.
Yes, Henry Rushton and Chelsea Morrison from Lost on the Road to Love.
Wonderful, the more the merrier, I always say. Why don’t you tell us about writing Lost on the Road to Love? Was it fun or difficult? Do your characters always act as you expect? Are you a plotter, or fly (write) by the seat of your pants?
Writing Chelsea and Henry’s story was like getting to give all your favorite clothes and toys to your little sister and brother. Chelsea became important to me when I was writing “Don’t Let Him Go.” Like Jack, I came to see her as this adorable little sister with a fierce will. I wanted all the best for her.
Henry first came into my life in the Love on Tour series when he was just a baby. Henry is the son of the couple in the very first book I ever wrote. He and his parents hold a very special place in my heart. So getting to write about them again was a special treat for me.
I am a pantser, not a plotter. When I wrote this story Chelsea and Henry grabbed me by the nose and dragged me along for the ride. This may be the most character-driven story I’ve ever written. I wasn’t sure where it was headed until we got there. It was a very enjoyable journey!
Oh, I know exactly what you mean, I too am a pantser and my characters control the story. Okay, who wants to go first?
The gorgeous hunk setting next to me cleared his throat.
I guess I will, since I need to leave in a few minutes for an appointment.
Gee don’t sound so enthused. I don’t bite you know, well maybe just a little in fun. LOL
Tells us about the real you— What event in your past has left the most indelible impression on you?
My father is a rock star – like an actual rock star. I grew up loved and privileged. I’m not complaining about any of that. My dad was stable, didn’t have a drug problem, didn’t sleep around. He’s as normal as they get – except for the whole rock star thing. Anyway, when I was growing up girls flocked to me, not because they like me for me, but because I was the son of a rock star. It made me a little…leery of women.
What do you most value?
I value honesty above all things. I try to live a life true to myself and I try to always tell the truth to others. I want the same thing in return.
What is the type of woman you want to spend the rest of your life with?
This is going to sound so awful…so awful…but…someone like my mom. I don’t mean that in the ‘I want her to take care of me’ way. I mean that my mother is honest, genuine and never fails to be truly always herself. I want a woman like that.
What do you consider most important in life?
Family comes first for me. Then my career – not this stupid show I am doing just for some cash, my career as a writer. I want to make it. And I want to make it on my own, which is why I use a pen name. We’ll see how that goes…
What is your biggest secret?
Right now my biggest secret is that I have it bad for my best friend.
Thank you Henry. I see you looking at your watch, gotta go, huh? Thanks so much for being here. Chelsea you’re up next. Who are you really?
Geez…don’t start off easy or anything! I am a filmmaker, a sister, daughter, friend. I am a geek, and proud of it. I am a person who stands up what I believe in. And I am a hopeless romantic, though I hide that down deep.
Who were the biggest role models in your life?
My brother, Jack, who will go to great lengths to do what is right and my sister-in-law, Candace, who is one fierce woman.
What kind of man do you want to spend the rest of your life with?
I don’t know. I feel like that’s not really in the cards for me. I like men. I like to be with them. I am especially good at being friends with them. But I have a hard time picturing a forever situation. If I did find that guy he would be a lot like my best friend Henry. Oops. I probably shouldn’t have admitted to that.
What kind of man would you never choose?
An arrogant chauvinist, like my boss. Yuck.
What is most important to you in life?
My family for sure. I have great parents, two awesome brothers and one incredible sister-in-law. I am super lucky. After that, it’s my career. I live to make movies!
What is your biggest fear?
That my best friend is going to figure out I’m madly in love with him and take off.
I glanced toward the door Henry left through, and back to Chelsea and wink. Your secrets safe with me.
Kay, tell us a little about Lost on the Road to Love.
Take two best friends, add some benefits, and it may take a map to find their way to love.
On the road for eight months as part of the crew for a travel show, Chelsea Morrison expects to work hard, endure long nights, and enjoy some wicked adventures. But she doesn’t expect to fall head over heels for the show’s star.
Henry Rush, son of a legendary rock star, is leery of women. He learned early they only want him for the fame that rightly belongs to his father. But when an intense friendship with Chelsea leads to so much more, he has to confront the one thing he’s avoided all his life.
Can these two friends navigate their way to a happy ending?
How about a peek between the pages of Lost on the Road to Love?
“Let’s get out of here,” I suggested, scooting out of my side of the booth.
“Good idea.” Henry threw a few bills on the table, got up quickly and, to my great surprise, grabbed my hand and pulled me to the door.
We were moving fast as we approached the reporter and photographer. It wasn’t until we were squeezing past them in the doorway that the reporter spoke. “Hey, aren’t you—”
Henry ignored him and moved his large body so the photographer didn’t stand a chance of getting a good shot. Then, still holding onto my hand, he ushered me through the door and out onto the sidewalk. We moved swiftly away from the café, not looking back until we were almost a block away.
“Well done,” I said, slowly easing my hand out of Henry’s grasp.
Henry held on, giving my fingers a gentle squeeze. “I learned young how to evade the press.”
“I bet.”
“Where do you want to go?”
I looked at the buildings of Manhattan in the gray hours of early evening. The temperature was starting to drop, but it was still over seventy degrees, and for once, I was quite comfortable in my tank top and light cardigan. I had no qualms about making a long journey. “There,” I said, pointing at the Empire State Building.
Buy Links:
AMAZON, B&N, AMAZON CA, AMAZON UK, AMAZON AU, and THE WILD ROSE PRESS.
About the Author:
Kay Harris has had a diverse career with jobs ranging from college professor to park ranger. Now she adds author to her repertoire. Kay writes romance novels that contain a little bit of sweet, a dash of sexy, a touch of heartbreak, and a whole lot of fun!
Kay grew up in the Midwest and has since lived all over the western United States including Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California. She loves to hike, is obsessed with museums, and enjoys taking her extremely tall and very handsome husband on adventures.
You can find her at:
WEBSITE: http://www.kayharrisauthor.com
BLOG: https://www.kayharrisauthor.com/blog/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/KayHarrisAuthor
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKayHarris/
GOODREADS: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15060640.Kay_Harris
BOOKBUB: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/kay-harris
It was wonderful having you with us today. Please feel free to stop by anytime. Good Luck with Lost on the Road to Love!
Visits: 17
Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged Contemporary, I Want Morrise, Lost on the Road to Love, Romance, Romantic Comedy by Tena Stetler with 20 comments.
The Pit and the Passion: Murder at the Ghost Hotel
Give a warm welcome to M.S. Spencer, author of The Pit and the Passion: Murder at the Ghost Hotel just released on January 22, 2018!
Pull up a chair, grab a drink of your choice from the cooler, a Chocolate Chip or Peanut Butter cookie from the plate, and let’s find out a little about MS Spencer and The Pit and the Passion:Murder at the ghost Hotel.
Thanks so much for letting me talk to your readers about my new mystery romance The Pit and the Passion: Murder at the Ghost Hotel. Set on Longboat Key, Florida, it features an unexpected skeleton, a quirky romance between an arrogant though talented writer and a beautiful reporter, and a complicated set of clues that lead to a deadly secret long hidden by the most famous circus family in the world.
At midnight, in the darkness of a deserted hotel, comes a scream and a splash. Eighty-five years later, workmen uncover a skeleton in an old elevator shaft. Who is it, and how did it get there? To find out, Charity Snow, ace reporter for the Longboat Key Planet, teams up with Rancor Bass, best-selling author. A college ring they find at the dig site may prove to be their best clue.
Although his arrogance nearly exceeds his talent, Charity soon discovers a warm heart beating under Rancor’s handsome exterior. While dealing with a drop-dead gorgeous editor who may or may not be a villain, a publisher with a dark secret, and an irascible forensic specialist, Charity and Rancor unearth an unexpected link to the most famous circus family in the world.
Ohhhh… this sounds good!
The Pit and the Passion: Murder at the Ghost Hotel
In this peek between the pages, Charity runs into Rancor (literally) on the beach late at night. Longboat Key is a barrier island, 12 miles long and maybe a mile wide. At the northern tip lies Beer Can island, basically a sandbar. Just south of it is a wide swath of beach that ends in an eroded cliff. It is often deserted and gives the visitor a view of an enormous sky. A perfect place for a tryst.
Excerpt (PG): The Man on the Beach
The Milky Way spread a swath of cream overhead. One small cloud trundled across the sky. Behind it peeped a gibbous moon. The beach was wide here, sweeping south in a twelve-mile-long arc but ending only a few yards north of her at a severely eroded cliff.
Not a soul stirred on the sand, except for a couple of willets picking their way along the edge of the water. She turned and headed toward the cliff.
Someone had left a beach chair out. She sat and watched the waves, listening to the chittering of the sandpipers and the putt-putt of a trawler far out. She assumed the rustle behind her was a ghost crab and kept quiet, hoping to catch a glimpse of it. She loved the way they would stop, half in and half out of their holes, their eyestalks waving. They’re so sure they’re invisible.
Charity?”
She jumped straight up, knocking the chair backward.
“What th—?” Her heart pounding, she turned. At that moment, the cloud shrouded the moon, and in the sudden darkness she could only make out a form.
“Who…who’s there?”
“It’s me. Rancor. Rancor Bass.”
She held out a hand and encountered a broad chest, lightly furred. She pulled it back quickly. “Are you…are you…”
He snickered. “Naked? As a matter of fact, yes.”
She backed up. A splash told her that her brand-new sandals were likely ruined. She vaulted out of the water and landed between two bare arms.
“Easy there, Charity. I hardly know you.”
“Stop it, Mr. Bass. And let me go. If I were you I’d drop that conceited tone. I wouldn’t be caught dead in your arms.”
His voice came low, laughter licking at its edges. “You don’t feel dead to me. In fact”—she tensed at the touch of a finger on the inside of her elbow—“you feel very much alive. And quite…fresh. Call me Rancor.”
“Rancor Bass, you leave me alone.” She tried to walk around the shadow, but an arm snaked out and caught her. She opened her mouth to scream and found two lips smothering hers. She stood quite still, fear and…something else…oh my God, desire?…taking over her senses.
He let her go. “Couldn’t resist. Wanted to see if those defensive walls could be breached.” He sat down in the chair. The moon came out from behind the cloud and cast a pale glow on his hair. “You’re a tough cookie, Charity.”
She wanted to deny it, to tell him how vulnerable she could be, but knew that would be very stupid. She wanted to kiss him again but knew that would be even more stupid. So she settled for a grunt and walked away.
He didn’t follow, and as she reached the dunes, she felt an unexpected twinge of disappointment. Could this man be the one? Nah. Still, preoccupied by this novel notion, she decided to skip the police station and go straight home. As she turned into her condominium parking lot, the obvious question finally occurred to her. What the hell is Rancor Bass doing naked on the beach in the middle of the night?
Buy Links:
Wild Rose Press, Amazon, ITunes, Kobo, Barnes and Noble. and Google:
About the Author:
Although M. S. Spencer has lived or traveled in five of the seven continents, the last thirty years were spent mostly in Washington, D.C. as a librarian, Congressional staff assistant, speechwriter, editor, birdwatcher, kayaker, policy wonk, non-profit director, and parent. After many years in academia, she worked for the U.S. Senate, the U.S. Department of the Interior, in several library systems, both public and academic, and at the Torpedo Factory Art Center.
Ms. Spencer has published eleven romantic suspense novels, and has two more in utero. She has two fabulous grown children and an incredible granddaughter. She divides her time between the Gulf Coast of Florida and a tiny village in Maine.
Contacts
Blog: http://msspencertalespinner.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/msspencerromance
Twitter: www.twitter.com/msspencerauthor
Google +: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+MSSpencerauthor
GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/msspencer
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It was wonderful having you with us today. Please feel free to stop by anytime. Good Luck with The Pit and the Passion: Murder at the Ghost Hotel!
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Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged Humorous, M.S. Spencer, Mystery, Romantic Comedy, The Pit and the Passion: Murder at the Ghost Hotel by Tena Stetler with 13 comments.
