Rockstar Romance!

🎶 ONLY FOR THE MOMENT 🎶

If Only 3

Rock Stars

Rock stars. BDSM.

You love them in my IF ONLY series. Know where else you can find them? In a series I’ve loved since it began. Dani Wade’s Backstage Pass. I’ve loved the men of BP, one after the other (especially Sean!). If you haven’t read this series, I highly recommend it. Especially Sean! (LOL, can you tell I have a thing for Sean? Who wouldn’t love an Irish Dom with great rhythm? J)

And did you know Dani’s heroes appear in one of my books? That’s right! The same place my IF ONLY heroes first appeared, in NAUGHTY LITTLE CHRISTMAS. Don’t miss it, a little touch of Christmas to cool your hot summer down (or heat it up more, if you’ve never met Damien!). 

🍾 🍾 🍾 It’s that time! 🍾 🍾 🍾

ONLY FOR THE MOMENT will be here on JUNE 11th!!! This month I’m giving away ***two*** signed paperback sets of the entire IF ONLY trilogy. Comment on my Facebook page with your favorite rock-star book boyfriend (and show your authors some love by including a link to their book if possible!).

I’ll choose TWO winners on FRIDAY, JUNE 29th. Don’t miss out!

(Likes and shares with your romance-loving friends appreciated but not required!)

📖📖📖

ONLY FOR THE MOMENT

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2J00QrX

iBooks: https://apple.co/2H3Vfiy

B&N: https://bit.ly/2H0L66e

Kobo: http://bit.ly/kobo_oftm

Google Play: http://bit.ly/gp_oftm

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/Gdreads_oftm

He can tie up all her objections, but what about her heart?

Kennedy O’Connell’s life is perfect—a great job, plenty of friends, a brother who loves her. The chaos that ruled her childhood is gone, and she couldn’t be happier. Unfortunately, her mischievous streak tends to get her in trouble, and when she walks into her favorite spa to find a sexy Australian rock star taking her place, she can’t resist a little fun.

Isaac Anschau has spent five years chasing his dream. His rock royalty status can’t be denied, but his demons are catching up with him—he’s burned out, his creativity decimated. Until a redheaded vixen decides she wants to play, and he discovers a way to leave his nightmares behind. There’s just one problem: Kennedy is dead-set against submitting, despite the way she melts when his Dom side comes out.

They’ve got nothing to lose by walking away, and everything to gain if they give in to the raging hunger between them. Baring their bodies would only take a moment. Baring their souls could take a lifetime.

Sexy BDSM

I can’t remember what my first BDSM romance read was. I can tell you who my first favorite was, though: Cherise Sinclair. Her Shadowlands series, with sexy Doms and women who match them in strength and love, are perennial favorites for me.

The series is up to twelve books, but oddly enough, my favorite has always been #2, Dark Citadel. The schoolteacher, raised naive and totally unsure if she really fits in the world she’s so desperately interested in, was always uniquely relatable for me. And her cop Dom, widowed and scarred, has the perfect touch of asshole in him. (Yes, I do enjoy a touch of asshole attitude in my heroes, but only if he’s redeemed of his asshole ways by the end, LOL!)

Have you read this series? Which book is your favorite? Does a dominating cop and a sweetly shy schoolteacher sound like a story that would hold your attention?

Art

Art can be found anywhere—on canvas, on the sides of buildings, through a camera lens. It can also be found on skin, and not just in the form of tattoos. When Isaac (Only for the Moment) waltzed into my brain while writing Only for the Night, I had no idea that his fascination with rope would lead me to art.

What do you think?

Images by Homo Inanis and NFGphoto. See license here: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Inspiration!

Friday Inspiration

I’m thinking about a nightclub scene in the next IF ONLY book, something sexy and sensual and definitely leading to…well, you know. ;) I’ve been garnering “inspiration” from the couple in this video.

Whew! I think I need a drink!

Photo Inspiration

I’ve been working on my assassin book this week. Levi is so damn rough — and so damn sexy. I wanted to share the image that has inspired this week’s scenes. Every time I see this picture, my gut clenches!

Hop over to my FB page and take a peek, tell me what you think.

August Giveaway

I’ve still got Ireland on my mind! This month I’m giving away a gift pack I brought back from my trip specifically for one winner, including:

* A journal from Trinity College Library, home of the Book of Kells

* Whiskey-infused chocolate from the Jameson Distillery on Bow Street, Dublin

* Seed packets from the poison gardens at Blarney Castle

* “Hot Irishman” Irish coffee mix

* A signed paperback copy of DECEIVE ME (featuring my very own Irishman, Fionn McConnough)

* A signed paperback copy of Dani Wade’s Backstage Pass Anthology, including one of my favorite Ireland-set BDSM romances — and boy, is it hawt! — STRIKING A CHORD (check this great series out here if you haven’t read them yet: http://amzn.to/2v4xbdp )

What do you have to do to win? Share a little secret with me…what accent do you find to be the sexiest in the world? Irish? Australian? Cajun? Inquiring minds want to know! And you get double the entries if you share a gif or video clip that includes an example. J

*** Likes and shares with your booklover friends are appreciated but not required! Contest ends

Only for the Weekend UPDATE!

We have a cover -- and it's gorgeous! What do you think? I've also set up preorders. You can go ahead and order your copy of Only for the Weekend on Amazon right now for 99 cents. I'll have the book up on other retailers within the next couple of weeks, and will add the links to the Bookshelf page as they go live. The links will also be in my monthly newsletter.

So when will your copy arrive on your e-reader? DECEMBER 4TH! As I announced in my newsletter, I've had some health issues this summer that pushed my schedule off, and I wanted V. and Jane's story to come out a little closer to the other book in this mini-series, Hank and Sage's story (out the first week of April, 2016). Since the books go together, I figured a little delay now was better than a bigger delay between them. But this novella is definitely hot enough to wait for! I think you'll love Vincent and Jane--their chemistry is explosive. I had to take a few breathers between scenes, let me tell ya.

Oh, you want to see? Hmm...Okay, I guess I can share. ;) How about an excerpt?

* * *

Straightening her shoulders, his sister met his gaze. "I got a call from Jane last week."

Vincent's gut tightened. "Jane?"

"Yes, Jane," she said impatiently. "My best friend, Jane? You are so hopeless."

"I hope not, considering you brought me here to do you a favor. I know which Jane you're talking about." As if he could ever forget. He rubbed his thumb and forefinger over his eyes, hoping to hide exactly how much he remembered from his too-observant sis. "Get on with it."

"She's been...unhappy with her current relationship for a while. Actually, she hasn't been happy with her last couple of boyfriends, but I didn't really understand why until she called to tell me she and Lane had broken up." Kennedy's mouth twisted into something not quite a smile, not quite a frown. "We got to talking about what, specifically, was the problem--"

V. put his hand up to ward off the rest. Jane's relationships were the last thing he wanted to discuss. The history between him and Jane--history his sister knew absolutely nothing about, he was pretty sure--might be water under the bridge, but that didn't mean he wanted to think about her with anyone else.

Kennedy wouldn't be denied, though. "No, Vinny, this is important. See, we were talking, and I started to realize that some of their...compatibility issues are because Jane is...uh...submissive."

Fuck. Now he was starting to get the picture. His fingers started a steady beat on his thigh as he struggled to bring his racing thoughts under control. "And you want me to talk to her about BDSM."

There weren't many secrets between him and his sister. When she'd read 50 Shades and started questioning things, he'd openly discussed his natural need to dominate and what that might look like in a hypothetical relationship. Though ultimately not drawn to the D/s dynamic herself, Kennedy was well-educated enough to recognize the tendency in her best friend.

"Not exactly."

"Then what exactly?" He couldn't keep a bit of bite out of his words.

Kennedy took a deep breath as if steeling herself against something. Not a good sign. His gut tightened again.

"Jane actually asked about hiring an...escort that could dominate her." V. thought the top of his head might just fly off. "She didn't. You didn't," he growled.

"No, idiot," she insisted, her words as loud as his were low, "I didn't." She stared into his eyes, but she wasn't really seeing him, he could tell. "She wants to learn but doesn't know anyone in the lifestyle. She didn't know what to look for if she went to a club, and didn't feel safe with a stranger."

V. wasn't quite ready to give an inch. The thought of Jane with a stranger--okay, with anyone, but especially a stranger--made him feel like his blood was boiling in his veins. "She wouldn't know an escort either."

"But I would." Kennedy shrugged. "That was it. She thought, this being Vegas, that I might've met someone in the lifestyle that she could trust. A personal recommendation, so to speak."

"You told her no, obviously."

This time her stare connected, but she didn't speak. She just waited, her determination ticking like a clock between them, until the truth finally smacked him between the eyes.

"You're hiring me?"

"She's my best friend, Vinny. I'm not gonna hand her over to have sex with just anybody!"

"And you're not handing her over to have sex with me either." Frustration drove him to his feet to pace across the room until the floor-to-ceiling windows stopped him. If only Kennedy knew. Jane would probably prefer to castrate him, even now, ten years later. She certainly wouldn't want to be vulnerable to him, not the way a sub was vulnerable with their Dom. Even considering it was an enormous mistake. He scrambled for anything that might deter her.

"Jane's just a kid." Ten years his junior, like Kennedy was.

"She's not a kid. She's my age, and I have sex all the time."

He shot his sister a withering look. "Now stop that shit right now."

Kennedy's eyebrow cocked up. "The sex?"

"Telling me about it." He shuddered. "It may or may not happen, but I do not need to know."

Kennedy's smirk was salt in the wound. "My brother the perv is freaked out by his baby sister's vanilla sex life."

"Yes. Very."

It took a moment, but eventually he was able to join a smirk with Kennedy's laughter. His sister's amusement eased some of the tension stringing his body tight, enough that he could return to the couch. Kennedy patted his leg when he sat beside her.

"She's always had a bit of a crush on you, ya know."

He kept his sigh inside. Damn right, he knew. What Kennedy and especially Jane didn't know was that the feeling had always been mutual. Which spelled certain disaster if he gave in to what his sister wanted.

He didn't say it aloud; instead he deflected. "Jane isn't a one-night-stand kind of girl." He knew that much--all too well.

"She's not looking for forever, just a quickie intro to BDSM." She tilted her head, seeming to consider her words. An impish grin tugged at her lips. "Well, not a quickie, really, but you get the idea."

His frown probably made him seem like a stuffy old geezer, but what the hell... "Yeah, I get it." All too well. Perversely, the assumption that he was available to be used for the night bothered him. "Thanks, Sis. I'm good enough to stud out but not good enough for more than one night?"

He mentally kicked his own ass. Why was he even arguing about this? He didn't want more than one night. He'd always said so, a fact Kennedy quickly reminded him of.

"'Commitment takes time,'" she quoted.

He'd said those three words so many times, and never regretted them. His band had been all the commitment he had room for besides Kennedy. It had always been true, but now Weekend Washout was on hiatus for who knew how long--at least until Chad came back from gallivanting around Europe with his latest lover. V. and Hank were exploring a new solo project, true, but even then, he had way too much time on his hands.

But not time for a commitment, V. You're not commitment material. If you were, you'd have taken Jane up on her offer ten years ago, whether she was sixteen or not.

No... Okay, maybe. He really didn't know. He'd like to think he was a better man than to take advantage of a sixteen-year-old girl's infatuation, but this was Jane they were talking about. And whether it was ten years ago or now, the thought of having her for far longer than a single night reverberated in his chest with more force than the echo of his bass drum.

"Vinny." Kennedy closed her eyes, probably praying for patience. When she opened them again, determination shone through. "Jane is a sweet person who's just trying to find her way through this." She sat forward. "You're my brother. I trust you, and most of all, I trust you with her. Please, just... Please help her."

V. thought about her words for a long moment, thought about his first faltering forays into a nonvanilla sex life, how much easier it would've been if he'd had a guiding hand. He considered the pleading in Kennedy's eyes, and the fact that she might hand him his balls if he said no. And finally, he let himself picture Jane, the pretty sixteen-year-old he'd rejected and the quietly beautiful woman he'd seen in Kennedy's frequent pictures. Could he really let Jane make herself vulnerable that way with anyone else? Could he turn his back knowing she wouldn't be safe? Because she would continue to explore; that much he knew. He wouldn't have been able to stop his own search, safety or not. Jane needed to find her answers, but no way in hell could he allow her to do it alone.

His sigh was pure capitulation. Kennedy heard it and smiled.

"All right," he told her, "I'll do it--but on one condition." He thought about that a moment. "Two, actually."

Kennedy's triumph dimmed a bit. "Okay."

"Anonymity. I don't want her knowing who I am. No, Kenn," he said firmly before she could interrupt. "This could affect your friendship later. She could feel awkward, avoiding you if she thinks I'll be there." He normally had no issue with having sex with a woman he'd just met, if they both knew the score, but not Kennedy's best friend. It wasn't the only reason for the caveat, but it was a good one. The other... Well, Jane would never knowingly let him near her, much less trust him if she knew he was the one with her, not after what had happened between them. "Anonymity is a must."

Emotion warred in Kennedy's eyes, but she finally gave in. "You're the right person for this job," she told him, conviction shining in her eyes. "I guess what she doesn't know won't hurt her. She'd never see any other guy I picked again, right?"

"Right." He said the word she wanted to hear even though he didn't think it was necessarily true. If they hit it off, Jane would probably see another Dom again. Not him, though. She wouldn't see him the first time if she knew.

Kennedy reluctantly nodded. "And?"

He squared his shoulders. "And no sex."

"But--"

V. shook his head. "I can teach her what she needs to know without it. Hell, some subs get more of a release from the submission than they do an orgasm." For him D/s was all about the sex, but that wasn't the case across the board. "Jane is vulnerable, and I won't take advantage of that. I can't."

"So...you won't touch her at all?"

"Oh, I'll touch her." A lot, probably. More than was good for his sanity. "But no full-on sex."

Kennedy agreed, but the uncertainty wrinkling the corners of her eyes said what she wouldn't say aloud. No sex meant Jane's fantasy might go unfulfilled. But he'd rather give her something and leave them both unscarred than indulge himself in something he'd dreamed about for longer than had been appropriate and hurt Jane in the process. If Kennedy knew the whole story, she wouldn't have any doubts. All V. had doubts about was his ability not to go too far. This was Jane, after all. The woman he'd fantasized about dominating since she was sixteen years old.

Heaven help him.

* * *

Don't forget, you can go ahead and reserve your copy of Only for the Weekend now on Amazon. And don't worry--I'll remind you when it's almost here. :)

*

Jane Jacobs is ready for a change. She’s determined that a history of lackluster relationships and even more lackluster pleasure will end this weekend, when she meets the Dom her best friend has set her up with. Exploring dominance and submission with her blind “date” could answer all her questions—and help her forget the one man she wants to master her.

With his band on hiatus, Vincent O’Connell grabs the chance to visit his sister in Vegas, but she wants a favor more than a family reunion. V.’s not above indulging himself with a willing sub, but when he realizes the sub is his sister’s best friend, Jane, all his instincts scream at him to back out—and fast.

V knows Jane; she’s young, pretty, sweet. Definitely sub material—for someone else. But one look at her on her knees and all the reasons to avoid her disappear. She needs a Dom to guide her, and he needs to indulge himself with just a taste. After all, it's only for the weekend.

Funny Friday: Spank Me

;)

*This is a Pinterest find. To see the original pin by kris16LE, just click the pic.

What I've Been Reading

You can find out a lot about an author from what they read. After all, who wants to read a paranormal romance by an author who doesn't read paranormals? Or an erotic romance from someone who doesn't read them? We expect certain things from certain subgenres of romance, and we want them followed -- or broken, but only in a "break the rules but make me like it" kind of way. So what have I been reading? Lately I haven't had a lot of time to read, but I try to sneak in something now and then. And I'm glad I did last week when I picked up The Reluctant Dom by Tymber Dalton based on a recommendation from an FB group. When I read the blurb and realized yes, one of the characters will probably die in this book, I was torn. I love happy endings, always. But I also love dark, gritty, angsty books as well. The deeper and more edgy the emotions, the better I like it. So I clicked the button and waited for the book to download to my Kindle.

Lord a'mercy! I've read quite a bit of BDSM, both for pleasure and in my day job as an editor, but very little of it comes close to what Dalton managed to create here. The depth of the pain, love, and longing in this story tore my heart apart and put it back together. It was beautiful, it truly was. I highly recommend it, and to convince you, here's the blurb from Amazon. :)

Love hurts...if you're lucky.

Kaden's dying, but before he goes he has one problem to solve -- he must ask his oldest and dearest friend, Seth, to take over as Dom and Master to his beloved wife, Leah.

Seth has always seen himself as the perpetual screwup and Kaden as the strong and steady one, so his friend's request rocks his world. He also knows there's no way he can refuse Kaden this.

Now Seth finds himself immersed in a role he's far from comfortable with -- inflicting physical pain to provide emotional comfort to the woman he's secretly loved for years. Can he deal with his crushing gried over the impending loss of his oldest friend and still learn the skills he must master in time to become The Reluctant Dom?

What struck me, beyond the truly heart-rending situation the characters found themselves in, was the title character, Seth. He is in every way reluctant -- reluctant to lose his friend, reluctant to face his true feelings for Leah, reluctant to step up to the plate when he's always thought of himself as the perpetual screwup. He's both your typical alpha male and not, at the same time. He drew me to him and made me believe he could do what Kaden asked of him even when he didn't believe it himself. Great job, Dalton!

Even the subject matter (and I don't mean the BDSM) was handled in a gentle, compelling,  painful, healing way. Death is hard to deal with in a romance, even in paranormals or romantic suspense where danger is all around and you know, you just know someone isn't gonna make it out of this alive. But death is all around us, and Dalton shows us both the torture and the gift the process brings to our lives. It both rang true and had me screaming, "No! No! No!" by the end. And yet, Kaden and Seth and Leah enriched my life too. I'm glad I read it. You should too. :)

Check out this and other Tymber Dalton books at the author's website here -- and prepare for a passionate ride, in more ways than one!