Love’s A Beach Blog Hop-and a Glimpse of Provoked

on August 16, 2012

Hi all!  Welcome to the very exciting Love’s a Beach Blog Hop.  I’m in the midst of copy edits for Provoked, which is Kane’s story that will be released on November 1st.  For a short time, it looks like the book is at a hugely discounted price…and since I’m never in the loop about these things, I truly don’t know how long my publisher will keep it there.  So, how about a quick glimpse at a scene in Provoked?  And I’m giving away a signed copy of my back list to a commenter on my blog here, as well as a copy on the main page of the blog hop.  Here’s the excerpt:

Kane peered down at her. “Amber?”

“Yes?”

“If you’re going to attack with whatever’s in your right hand, could you hurry it up? We need to get going.”

She started, her gaze slashing up to him. “How did you know?”

He shrugged. “What kind of a knife do you have?”

Her cheeks pinkened, and she drew her hand forward. “I have a pen.”

A blue ballpoint pen. He blinked twice, his gaze on the harmless tool.

Maybe it was the ridiculousness of the pen. Maybe it was the woman’s courage in planning to use it on him. Or maybe it was the sheepish half-smile she gave.

Either way, his heart rolled over.

Warmth flushed through him, so hot, so fast, his ears rang. His mind blanked. For the first time in centuries, his brain shut off. The woman was crazy. Stepping in, he grasped her chin, tilting her head back.

Her eyes widened, and then her gaze lowered to his lips. A soft sound of surprise emerged with her breath.

He dove in, allowing the animal within to awaken. For the first time in three centuries, there was no thought. All instinct ruled as his mouth took hers…no finesse, no calculation, just pure, raw need. He shoved her against the truck, his other hand clutching her hip as he went deeper.

Honeysuckle exploded along his taste buds as his tongue swept inside her mouth. Not gentle, not persuasive, just taking. Claiming.

And it wasn’t enough. Not even close to enough.

Pressing into her, body to body, heat to heat, something clicked. Beyond his brain, beyond his body…somewhere deeper.

Finally, he found home.

To purchase Provoked:

 

So, did you have a nice summer?  Was it summer where you live?  Any fun plans for fall?  To jump back on the hop, click on the picture below:

The First Excerpt of HUNTED…

on December 31, 2011

Hi all!  On the last day of 2011, I thought I’d post the first excerpt of Hunted.  Here it is:

The warrior in Conn roared to life, overtaking any rational thought.  He shot his arm up to grab her wrist and force the blade from his throat.  “Let go of the knife, Moira.”  Soft skin covered toned muscle under his hand.  He could tighten his hold and make her drop the weapon, but that’s not how this was going down.

“No.”  She took advantage of his movement and dug her heel into his thigh, clapping his ear with her free hand.

Pain exploded in his skull.  His temper howled.  Clutching his fingers into her hair, he jerked her head back.  The white column of her throat stretched.  She yelped in protest.  He lowered his head, his fangs elongating completely.  His lips enclosed her skin.

He struck.

Her entire body went rigid.  The knife clattered to the floor. 

He drank.  Honey and spice exploded across his taste buds followed by a punch of raw power.  His mind swirled.  Arousal, lust, fire whipped through him until the need to get inside her pushed all other thoughts away.  Quick swipes of his tongue sealed the wound and then his mouth was on hers, delving deep. 

She moaned low in her throat, pulling him toward her.  He released her arm, encircling her waist and tugging her forward.  Better.  Now he wanted her naked.  Heat cascaded from the woman.  His tongue tangled with hers, the little whimpers gasping from her boiling his lust even higher.

The boom of a gun being fired jerked him away.  He jumped around, using his body as a shield.  Kell stood in the entryway, calmly placing a Beretta in his waist.  Plaster dropped from the ceiling marred by a large bullet hole. 

Conn snarled.

Kell held both hands out.  At six and a half feet with midnight dark eyes and hair, the witch took a placating stance that had to be unfamiliar.  He wiped plaster off his shoulder.  “I know it’s deadly to mess with a vamp and his mate, but we really have to go.” 

The whirr of a helicopter startled Conn.  He hadn’t heard it arrive.  Not good.  “Where?”

“We’ve been summoned by the Council,” Kell said.  “Now.”

Moira leapt off the counter to land next to Conn.  “We’re already late.”

He grabbed her arm.  “I’m going with you or you don’t go.”  He needed answers.  If the stubborn witches in the room wouldn’t provide them, he’d go to the top.

“While he can’t see the Council,” Kell dropped his gaze to his cousin, “we could use his help.  At least until Daire and Adam return.”

Conn stilled.  “Daire and Adam?”  Kell and his two brothers served as the chief enforcers for the Nine.  Something huge must be going down if they all had been summoned at once.  Suspicion tightened his shoulders.  “Why are you with Moira, Kell?”  Conn’s voice dropped to an octave that should’ve warned his friend.  He’d assumed Kell was with Moira to await him, performing his duty as liaison and enforcer.  Perhaps Kell provided protection for Moira.  If his mate needed protection, someone should’ve called him.

Kell cut his gaze to Moira.  “I believe that’s a conversation between you and the Seventh, Kayrs.”

“Don’t call me that.”  Moira stiffened.  “You’ve no right to be pissed, Kell.”

Kell stepped forward, his eyes blazing.  “No right to be pissed?  Are you kidding?”  He swept his hand toward Conn.  “There’s a good chance I’m going to end up in a fist fight with one of my best friends because you’ve refused to get your life in order.  And now it might be too late to fix our world.”

One step had Conn in front of Moira.  “Don’t yell at her.”  A brawl was guaranteed at this point.  Though the first punch came from the brat behind him.  Two fisted and right to his kidneys.

“That’s it.”  Conn swirled around and ducked, tossing his witch over his shoulder.  She bellowed in surprise.  He pivoted, heading for the exit.  “Since I’m under strict orders from my king not to piss off the council, we’ll go meet with them now.  You can explain what the hell’s going on during the flight.”  He strode through the door and into the sun, not caring whether or not Kell followed.  Moira struggled, smashing her hands into his back.  “Then, mate, we’re going home.” 

Rage burned in his gut.  Moira’s family had power and knew how to wield it.  The second he forced her from Ireland, they’d declare war.

So be it.

Five Presents for a Vampire Mate

on December 1, 2011

Happy December! Yes, I write dark paranormals about vampires, shifters, and witches. But hey, just because they live in a dark and sexy world doesn’t mean they can’t enjoy the holiday season. The heroine of Claimed, Emma Paulsen, is a geneticist who finds herself mated to the king of the vampires. Although she’s rather busy, the woman loves Christmas. Here are the top five presents for Emma Paulsen:

1) A bat. Yeah, a Louisville slugger. The king is domineering and stubborn…his mate might need to clock him one once in a while.

2) A fan. The king is also sexier than heck. Dage can heat up a room.

3) Yoga for a Vampire Mate. The woman could use some down time. I mean, she’s been kidnapped by an evil vampire race, rescued by the sexiest vamp alive, and charged with creating a cure for a virus that may destroy her sister. Yoga might be good.

4) Immortality for Dummies. Emma is a scientist and thus feels the need to experiment a bit. In Claimed, she was rather curious about how quickly her thumb would heal if she broke it, not quite understanding that these things take time. One of the brothers…(well, you should read it). 

5) A personal shopper. Let’s just say that sometimes the king gets a little impatient when it comes to clothing. I’m not sure how many of Emma’s outfits hit the floor in Claimed, but there were a few!

The Cover for Hunted is Here–want a coverflat?

on November 24, 2011

UPDATE:  Congrats to Asa, Bonnie, and Mel for winning coverflats of HUNTED!

First, let me say happy holidays to those of you in the USA celebrating Thanksgiving.  While I rarely re-use posts, I wanted to show off the cover on my blog as well as the Darker Temptations blog.  If this is a duplicate for you…sorry about that!  But…I’m giving away signed coverflats to three commenters on my blog–random.org will choose names next week.  So…leave a comment.

If you’ve ever read my blog, you know I’m surrounded by family, which is such a blessing.  I’m thankful for my crazy family, my wonderful friends, my terrific readers, my agent and editor, and my writing buddies.  I have a few minutes here before I need to go make the appetizers to take to my sister’s house and wanted to post a blog today.

Well, I’ve been so busy with promoting CLAIMED and writing book 4 of the Dark Protectors, I haven’t had a chance to show off the cover for HUNTED, which I received last week.  Here it is:

Ready or Not

Moira Dunne is a witch–the quantum physics kind.  Time and space are her playthings.  Which might explain why her one-night stand from a hundred years ago has turned up to “claim” her–and request her family’s assistance with the war he’s brewing.  But the more she learns about Connlan Kayrs, the more she comes to think this is normal behavior for him…

There’s Nowhere to Hide

When Conn and Moira tumbled on the moonlit grass, Conn hadn’t meant to mark her for his mate for all time.  She was only twenty!  But it wasn’t easy to wait for her.  It was even harder to forget her.  So when he finally returns for his wicked-hot witch, he’s ready to let the sparks fly.  Even if he burns up in flames…

So…when you get the chance, draft a quick comment below for a chance to win a coverflat.  Are you celebrating Thanksgiving?  If so, what are your plans?  If not, what are you up to this week?  Everyone stay healthy and safe!

Capture CLAIMED and WIN the First ARC of HUNTED

on October 25, 2011

Hi all!  First, CLAIMED is out in the wild today!  Emma and Dage’s story is available in bookstores starting today…go out and hunt it down!  I thought I’d run a fun contest since CLAIMED is out there, and the winner will be sent the first ARC of HUNTED, which is book 3 in the Dark Protector Series.  All you have to do is take  a picture of CLAIMED on your e-reader, or find a copy of CLAIMED in a store, take a picture, and email it as an attachment to:

Claimed_darkprotectors@yahoo.com

You have until I receive the ARCs of HUNTED for me to draw a name.  HUNTED will be released on May 1, 2012, so I should have ARCs several months before that.  I’ll also feature pictures with photo credit on my blog once in a while. 

The e-format of CLAIMED should be downloadable starting NOW next Tuesday, November 1st for your computer or e-reader.  (Mine just downloaded to my kindle).

Here’s the blurb for CLAIMED:

While geneticist Emma Paulsen appreciates vampire king Dage Kayrs rescuing her from the evil, pasty, creepy Kurjan leader who wanted to mate with her, she wouldn’t have needed rescuing had the vampires not gone to war.  And while she’s willing to spend one night fulfilling her fantasies with Dage, no way does she plan to stick around for good.  Whether the king happened to brand her flesh or not.

That is until her pregnant sister, Cara, contracts a Kurjan virus that will not only destroy the baby but strip Cara’s chromosomal pairs until she’s possibly less than human.  A virus that turns shifters into werewolves.  A bug that requires science, magic and physics to be quashed.  Emma will have to suspend her every belief in science and to trust the vampires in order to save her sister.

Dage Kayrs has waited three centuries to find his mate.  As King of the Realm, he’s accustomed to diplomacy and design, although he’d rather rip his enemy’s head off than negotiate.  He’s tired of hiding his true nature.  He’s tired of being alone.  But the greatest challenge of his long life will be in learning to compromise enough to keep Emma, his learning to bend during a time of war when his oldest friends might become his greatest enemies.

If you read CLAIMED, please drop me a line and let me know what you thought.  Also, feel free to leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, B&N, Etc.  Thanks!