Equal measures of excitement and dread – #EroticRomance #99cents #MFRWHooks

Raw Silk is still on sale this week, so I thought I’d share another excerpt from my debut erotic romance. This bit is the first meeting between my heroine Kate O’Neill and the dominant hero, Gregory Marshall. I definitely wouldn’t call this a “meet-cute”. Kate concludes, quite accurately, that Marshall is an arrogant bastard. Still, that’s not enough to curb her interest.

You can grab this this 90K word novel for only 99 cents at your favorite bookstore. Sale ends on the 9^th of May, so don’t delay!

Blurb

“You were born to this. You may not understand, yet. You may not believe. But I will teach you.”

When software engineer Kate O’Neill leaves her lover David to take a job in Thailand, she embarks on a sensual journey that will change her forever.

In the glittering City of Angels, Kate becomes sexually involved with two very different men—a handsome and debauched member of the Thai aristocracy, and the charismatic, dominant proprietor of a sex bar. With Anand Rajchitraprasong, she discovers her own almost unlimited capacity for erotic pleasure. Meanwhile, Gregory Marshall shows her what she has hidden from herself: a deep desire to submit, to surrender herself body and soul to someone with the power and compassion to master her.

The Hook

[Note: this novel is set in the year 2000 in Bangkok, Thailand]

She was so intent on her tasks that she did not hear Malawee approach. She started at the Thai woman’s respectful voice.

“Miss Katherine, Mr. Edward asked me to see if you were available. He’s meeting with a client and would like you to join him.”

“Of course,” said Kate, stifling a surge of frustration. She turned on her screensaver, and followed Malawee to the conference room.

She knocked then opened the door. Harrison sat at the far end of the polished table, a look of annoyance on his face. Sitting beside him was a man of unusual appearance—disquieting, she thought, then questioned the source of her reaction.

The man was European or American. He dressed casually, entirely in black—black shirt with an open collar and tight black jeans. He had long, straight hair, also black, pulled back in a ponytail with an ornate silver barrette. Kate thought she saw a flash of silver at his throat. His long fingers, clasped before him on the table, were similarly adorned with silver rings.

Strong planes shaped his tanned face—broad forehead, high cheekbones, resolute chin. His mouth, at the moment, framed a smile, but Kate thought that she caught a twist of irony in his expression.

As she entered, he turned his attention to her and she saw his eyes—a shocking, unexpected blue under heavy black brows. Intense, piercing, and completely without restraint, any sense of politeness or etiquette. He continued to hold her gaze for an awkward moment. Then Edward broke in, clearing his throat.

“Ah, Katherine. Thank you for taking the time to join us. We need your technical expertise.”

“Of course,” she said softly, seating herself several chairs away from the man in black. She was aware that he was still staring at her, and still smiling.

“Katherine, this is Gregory Marshall, one of our clients.” The man in black rose and bowed, a polite gesture, yet somehow unconvincing. Kate saw that he was very tall, well over six feet. “Mr. Marshall, Katherine O’Neill, our new director of software development.”

“My pleasure,” said the man, perfectly civilly. So why did she feel he was mocking her?

“Mr. Marshall is the proprietor of one of the foremost establishments in Patpong.”

“The red-light district?” she blurted out then nearly bit her tongue in embarrassment.

“The entertainment district,” countered the man in black smoothly. “The Grotto is just a go-go bar, offering the same types of entertainment available in many places in the city. However, I am trying to make it more distinctive, more creative, more—interesting. That’s where DigiThai comes in.”

“Yes,” her boss cut in, trying to recapture the conversational initiative. “Six months ago we designed and installed a custom multimedia system for Mr. Marshall’s bar, The Grotto. Video-walls and cameras, a simulated aquarium with computer-graphic inhabitants, acoustically-driven digital kaleidoscopes—very elaborate.”

“And very successful,” said Gregory Marshall, with a broad smile that bared his straight, white teeth. “I’m very pleased with your work. It’s just that now I want to go further.”

“Mr. Marshall has some novel ideas, but, as I have been telling him, they are barely feasible, technically. And certainly not for the price that we have been discussing.”

Always attracted by a technical challenge, Kate found herself interested. “What do you have in mind, Mr. Marshall?” she asked, in her most professional tone of voice.

“Well, now…” The man’s voice was melodious, controlled, expressive. The voice of an actor. He riveted her with his gaze again. She stared back at him, proudly, rebelliously, not willing to be cowed. Eventually, he continued his speech, without looking away from her.

“Three-dimensional imagery is what I am looking for. Something like the holograms one sees in science fiction movies. My girls are already fantastic, but I’d like to project more fantastic images still, images from people’s dreams and nightmares. They should be mysterious, evocative, erotic and disturbing. Furthermore, I would like to somehow link these images to the music, so that my customers will see reflections or echoes of the emotions aroused by the beat and the melody.”

Kate was silent for a moment. As she gathered her thoughts, Gregory Marshall watched her attentively. Finally, she spoke, choosing her words carefully.

“Three-dimensional imagery on a two-dimensional screen has now become inexpensive and commonplace. Projected 3-D, though, still requires costly hardware, and custom software— the sort of thing available only to Disney or Spielberg.”

She paused and took a deep breath before continuing. “I do have some familiarity with this area, though. I did some related research when I was in grad school—”

“Would you be willing to work on this for me?” interrupted Marshall, clearly excited. “I believe that I can make you understand exactly what I want.” He paused dramatically. “What do you say, Kate?”

Part of her bristled at the liberties he took, using her name so familiarly on such short acquaintance. Part of her warmed in response to that very familiarity, the tone of persuasive intimacy.

Beyond those reactions, she had to admit she was eager for the opportunity to pursue her ideas on the problem. She’d had to put her 3-D project aside after defending her thesis. Employers in the U.S. were seeking more practical innovations.

As for the chance to work for Gregory Marshall—well, that notion filled her with equal measures of excitement and dread. He was an arrogant bastard, that much was clear. The way he looked at her—without a shred of respect, as though she was some sort of peon, his to command! Yet at the same time, that challenging gaze made her pulse race. 

 

 

Buy Links

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Raw-Silk-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B0DF6Q2S2B

Amazon CA:

https://www.amazon.ca/Raw-Silk-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B0DF6Q2S2B

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Raw-Silk-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B0DF6Q2S2B

Kinky Literature: https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/1666-raw-silk-a-sensual-journey/

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1611408

Paperback (Amazon): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DKJ2PW92

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/218068923-raw-silk

Add on Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/raw-silk-by-lisabet-sarai-2024-09-01

Be sure to visit the other authors participating in today’s Book Hooks hop!

Review Tuesday: The Other Family by Cheyenne Blue -- #LesbianRomance #SlowBurn #ReviewTuesday

The Other Family by Cheyenne Blue

Blue Books and Iron Foundary, 2026

Danika Evershed opens her door to a stranger, and her world falls apart.

For the past year, she has been struggling to accept the sudden death of her husband Chris. Her responsibilities to her eight year old daughter Camille keep her grounded, just barely, but grief and insomnia have taken a heavy toll. Then a woman close to her own age appears, claiming that Chris had been her partner for the past nine years, including fathering a daughter a few months older than Cami.

Danika doesn’t want to believe Kim Varga’s story. She can scarcely imagine that her beloved husband would have orchestrated such a massive betrayal. The evidence is overwhelming, though. For nine years Chris led a double life, spending two weeks each month with each woman and child.

How can the two widows possibly adjust to such an impossible scenario? Each would like to pretend the other does not exist, but that’s not really an option, especially as Cami and Bella bond and it becomes abundantly clear that they truly are sisters. Cautiously Kim and Danika move from co-existence to friendship and then beyond, as they begin to recognize their mutual attraction.

The premise for The Other Family is perhaps far-fetched, but once the reader accepts the literal duplicity of Chris Evershed, the rest of the book feels inevitable. As usual, Cheyenne Blue portrays the gradual development of Danika’s and Kim’s relationship with delicacy and insight. The sub-title, “A slow burn Sapphic romance”, is extremely apt. I felt that the pace fit the characters and their situation. For one thing, both Kim and Danika are devoted to their daughters, and they’re always aware of the girls’ proximity—as well as concerned about how Cami and Bella might feel about their mothers becoming romantically involved.

I write explicit erotic romance, and like reading it too, but I still found The Other Family arousing and satisfying. Ms. Blue can pack more passion into a kiss than many authors offer in a full-out love scene.

Many aspects of the book delighted me: the complex and subtle play of emotions; the women’s warm and supportive relationships with their parents and their female friends; the lively and realistic portrayal of the two daughters; the snapshots of the Australian countryside when the families go off on holiday together; the total acceptance of queer partnerships and non-traditional families. I particularly liked the fact that Ms. Blue did not make a huge issue out of the fact that Danika had no previous lesbian experience. Love has to do with individuals, not genders. When you’re deeply connected to another person, expressing that physically becomes natural. Danika is brave, allowing herself to express her attraction to another woman, but this is not one of those horrific “straight to gay” tropes.

My one complaint about The Other Family is that Danika and Kim were not as different from one another as I would have liked. The chapters of the novel alternate between the two, but I found that they didn’t have really distinctive voices. Sometimes I needed to go back to the start of a chapter to remind myself who was the current POV character.

Of course, this might be somewhat deliberate. This is not an “opposites attract” story. In some sense, we can believe that Chris would have chosen women who had significant similarities for his two partners.

In any case, this issue did not significantly detract from my overall satisfaction with The Other Family. If you enjoy lesbian romance—and if you have a bit of patience—I think you’ll enjoy it.

Compromised by Design – #HistoricalRomance #GuestBlogger #Giveaway

This sounds like such a fun book! Where did you get the initial idea? ~ Lisabet

To tell the truth, I got the initial idea from a short story I’d just written for a writing contest for the Hampton Roads Writers’ conference. The short story involved a young lady who was bound and determined to marry a gentleman that she met once and fell in love with, but for whom her father had a great dislike. So to get her own way, she arranged for the gentleman to sneak into her bedroom and compromise her so that her father would have to let them marry.

Sound familiar?

But as I was writing the short story, I got one of those “what if” moments. What if the lady tried to get herself compromised, but she sneaked into the gentleman’s room, got compromised, then discovered it was the wrong man? I was so enthusiastic about the idea that as soon as the short story was done, I started writing As Long As You’re Mine.

Mind you, the title is one of the few things that’s remained the same through draft after draft of this book, as is the name of the hero, Rafael Beauregard. But the heroine’s name and a lot of her character have changed over the years. I began writing this book in 2012, but after initial queries got me nowhere, I went on to other books over the years. But I’ve always thought about ALAYM and have had a real fondness for the work.

So much so that after the past year, when I broke my shoulder and couldn’t write at all for more than six months, I thought about ALAYM. It was a perfectly good romance—well, not perfect as my editor pointed out in a very long conversation about what I needed to do to fix it—but my shoulder was better, I could write for short stretches at least, and the book was already written for all intents and purposes. All I had to do was edit it.

And because I wanted to have at least one book published within the year, I brushed it off, took all my editor’s advice, and finally published As Long As You’re Mine on March 31 of this year. Don’t you love it when a wild and crazy idea turns out to be a good one also?

Blurb

A scandalous mistake…or a wicked way to happiness?

Hoping to compromise herself, Lady Amantha Easton sneaks into the bedroom of her would-be suitor only to find a total stranger there—a totally handsome, charming stranger to be sure—but not at all the man she plans to marry. She leaves his room with her reputation intact—barely—only to fall victim to the gentleman’s charms in a public place. Now Amantha must face the fate she’s tried to avoid—marriage to a man who will never love her.

All Rafael Beauregard wanted was a warm bed and a good night’s sleep…but what he got was an unexpected romp with a beautiful vixen and a fiery kiss that left him wanting more. An excellent trade, except now he’s got to marry Lady Amantha, one of the most willful women he’s ever met. So Rafe’s challenge is to persuade her that marriage to him might be the best thing for them both…once he convinces himself.

Excerpt

“Oh, Raif!” She could scarcely breathe now. “That…feels…so good.”

“I thought it might. You’re awful sweet.” His low, sleepy voice sounded odd under the covers. On the verge of asking if he was well, she lost the thought when he lifted his head from her breast and crushed his lips to hers.

All else forgotten, she wouldn’t have cared if the house burned down around them. His lips were hot, insistent. Then he plied the seam with his tongue, softly urged it to part for him. She had no desire to resist and soon he had buried his tongue deep in her mouth. A tentative stroke of her own brought a growl of encouragement, and she abandoned herself to explore his willing mouth. She did things she’d never dreamed she’d do, with Raif or anyone else. And she only wanted more. “Oh, Raif. I never thought it could be like this.”

He chuckled. “How soon you forget, Jenny.”

“Jenny?” Amantha froze, her blood turning to ice in her veins. “Who’s Jenny?” Sudden anger lit a fire in her, and she pushed him away. “How many women were you expecting in your bed tonight, Raif?”

“What?” The sleepiness had flown from his voice. “You’re not Jenny?”

“You expected me to be?” This was a nightmare. They weren’t even married and Raif was being unfaithful to her.

“I didn’t expect anyone in my bed.” He threw off the covers and fumbled at the bedside table.

“What do you mean you didn’t expect me? We had planned this, Raif.” What the devil was the man playing at?

“We?” A match flared as he lit the lamp, the sudden light after the darkness almost blinding her. She put her hand up to shield her eyes.

“What do you mean, we?” He sat up in the bed, rubbing his eyes. “Who are you, sweetheart?”

The voice, now unmuffled, certainly did not have the superior tone of Raiford Tolbert. Slowly Amantha lowered her hand to find a man with dark hair she’d never seen before peering at her.

Dear God, what had she done?

About the Author

Jenna Jaxon is a best-selling author of historical romance, writing in a variety of time periods because she believes that passion is timeless. She has been reading and writing historical romance since she was a teenager. A romantic herself, Jenna has always loved a dark side to the genre, a twist, suspense, a surprise. She tries to incorporate all these elements into her own stories.

She lives in Virginia with her family and a small menagerie of pets--including Olive, an almost silent cat, Earl Grey, a very curious bunny, and a Shar-pei mix dog named Frenchie.

Blog: http://www.jennajaxon.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenna.jaxon

Instagram: @passionistimeless

Bluesky: jennajaxon1.bsky.social

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@passionistimeless

TicTok: @jennajaxon1

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jenna-jaxon

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jenna-Jaxon/author/B005CHPBD2

Twitter/X: @1jennajaxon

Book Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GS54DPYB/ref=sr_1_2

Jenna Jaxon will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.

 

You never forget your first – #FirstNovel #Inspiration #MFRWHooks

First novels are products of passion. No one pushes life aside and sits down to generate thousands of words of prose without deeply personal reasons. While many first-time authors deliberately weave auto-biographical elements into their books, rookie novelists who pen stories intended as pure fiction also tend to reveal more about themselves than they’d planned.

We write about what excites us, what moves us, what matters. First novels often have a level of authenticity lacking in more polished work. Passion compensates for failings in craft due to our inexperience.

I began Raw Silk on a whim, but it quickly became an obsession. The immediate inspiration was Portia da Costa’s Black Lace title Gemini Heat, which I found on the book swap shelf in an Istanbul hotel in 1998. In those days, the Black Lace imprint advertised itself as “erotic fiction for women, by women”. As I closed the cover of Gemini Heat after my second re-reading, my heart still pounding from arousal, I wondered whether I could write something in a similar vein, capturing the intensity and joy of my own sexual awakenings. If I did, might Black Lace publish it?

Breathless with excitement, I pounded out the first three chapters of Raw Silk in a couple of weeks and sent them off via air mail to the Black Lace editor in London. Then I let go of the outcome, returning my attention to the other aspects of my life—marriage, job, friends, and so on. I received a formulaic post card from the publisher a few weeks later, advising me that my submission had been received and cautioning me that due to the large number of manuscripts to be vetted, I might not hear from them again for several months. I shrugged, not having expected more.

Two days later I got an email from the Black Lace editor, offering me a contract for an 80K word novel.

My first reaction was astonishment, my second panic. What did I know about writing a novel? Then I re-read my first three chapters, and passion took over. The story of Kate’s erotic odyssey in the exotic City of Angels poured out of me onto the page, almost without effort. I finished the initial draft in a matter of weeks, producing thousands of words with barely any revisions.

The first edition of Raw Silk was released by Black Lace in January 1999. The book has since been reprinted by several other publishers including Blue Moon Books and Totally Bound. Over the years, through multiple editing rounds, I’ve managed to smooth some of rough edges off my original amateurish prose. With each edition, too, I’ve deepened the romance elements, at least partially due to changes in the market. (Even Black Lace rebranded itself as a romance imprint.) The current edition is in many ways a typical erotic romance, chronicling the development of a committed relationship and offering a happy ending. Indeed, the bonus chapter included in the latest edition serves up a wedding!

Still, as Kate struggles to understand and accept her own desires through experiences with multiple partners of both sexes, the focus is as much on the journey as on the happily-ever-after. At the same time, she learns that love and lust are not easily separable, one of the most profound lessons in my own life. Depending on your inclinations and disposition, you might categorize the book as romantic erotica or erotic romance.

My personal view? The category doesn’t matter. Read the book for what it is, the very first of the fifteen full-length novels I’ve produced so far: intensely emotional, exuberantly sensual, and despite its explicitness, somehow innocent.

First novels are acts of love.

If you’re curious, the book is currently on sale, discounted from the usual price of $5.99 to only 99 cents. I hope you’ll check it out.

Blurb

In a foreign land, a woman discovers exotic new realms of the senses.

“You were born to this. You may not understand, yet. You may not believe. But I will teach you.”

When software engineer Kate O’Neill leaves her lover David to take a job in Thailand, she embarks on a sensual journey that will change her forever.

In the glittering City of Angels, Kate becomes sexually involved with two very different men—a handsome and debauched member of the Thai aristocracy, and the charismatic, dominant proprietor of a sex bar. With Anand Rajchitraprasong, she discovers her own almost unlimited capacity for erotic pleasure. Meanwhile, Gregory Marshall shows her what she has hidden from herself: a deep desire to submit, to surrender herself body and soul to someone with the power and compassion to master her.

The Hook

It was already past seven o’clock in the evening when she arrived back at her house in Bangkok. Ae had left for the day. Kate found a note, in the maid’s childish block-printed English.

Mr. Marshall call 3 o’clock. Please call him 02 243 0657

She felt a rush of pleasure. Gregory had never telephoned her before. Still, she was annoyed to note that her heart was pounding and her mouth dry with nervousness as she dialed the number and listened to the repeated rings.

She was almost ready to hang up when he answered. “Hello. Marshall here.”

“Gregory, it’s me. Kate.”

“Kate!” She heard warmth in his voice, and relief. “Where have you been? I was concerned about you.”

“I had to get away, away by myself to think. The time at the hotel was so—intense. And confusing. I needed to sort things out.”

“I understand.” The voice on the other end of the line was uncharacteristically gentle. “I pushed you hard the other night. Maybe too hard. It seems to come so naturally with you that I forget your inexperience.”

“No,” she answered, almost whispering. “It wasn’t too hard. I see a little more clearly now, how it is between you and me. I see myself more clearly.”

“Ah, Kate! You have so much to learn! If you still want this, of course.”

“I do want it. I want you.” She found herself blushing at her forwardness.

“And I want you, Kate, in ways you probably cannot begin to imagine.”

She recalled her night of lurid fantasy as he paused.

“Or maybe you can. Still,” he continued, “I think I will give you some time to recover. And next time, perhaps, offer a lesson that is less physical.”

Kate felt a stab of disappointment.

“Don’t worry,” Gregory laughed, as if he had read her thoughts. “You won’t find it easy. So, how about next Saturday night?” he asked. “Will you make yourself available?”

“Of course,” Kate answered, thinking that it would be a long week.

“I will send you instructions. I will expect you to obey.”

Kate was silent, wondering what new indignities he would contrive for her.

“Till then, Kate, be well.” His liquid voice was like a caress. “Goodnight, my eager little slave.”

Buy Links

Ebook is only 99 cents until May 9^th! (Regular price $5.99)

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Raw-Silk-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B0DF6Q2S2B

Amazon CA:https://www.amazon.ca/Raw-Silk-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B0DF6Q2S2B

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Raw-Silk-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B0DF6Q2S2B

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1611408

Paperback (Amazon): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DKJ2PW92

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/218068923-raw-silk

Add on Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/raw-silk-by-lisabet-sarai-2024-09-01

Be sure to visit the other authors participating in today’s Book Hooks!

Charity Sunday: Protecting the children - #Immigration #LegalAid #CharitySunday

I just returned home from a ten-day vacation, only to realize that today is the last Sunday in April! So unfortunately I did not have the opportunity to create a sign-up list for other authors who might have wanted to participate in the April Charity Sunday blog hop. Next month, I promise!

Meanwhile, Charity Sunday stalwart Dee S. Knight emailed me to ask whether I’d forgotten to post the list! Please visit her Charity Sunday post here: https://www.nomadauthors.com/blog/2026/04/25/charity-sunday-travis-manion-foundation/

For today’s event, I am showcasing KIND – Kids In Need of Defense (https://supportkind.org). Worldwide, and especially in the U.S., immigrants and refugees are facing unprecedented scrutiny and draconian, sometimes violent or inhumane, enforcement. Children suffer more than anyone, not only from the physical rigors of detention but also from the psychological and emotional impact of being separated from their families. The latter can create life-long trauma that will prevent these kids from leading peaceful and productive lives.

KIND has a highly-focused mission: to protect and support unaccompanied migrant children. The organization provides pro bono legal representation for youth faced with the complexities of immigration law; social services to help children integrate into a foreign culture; policy initiatives to advocate for more sane and compassionate immigration legislation; and international awareness campaigns to highlight the problems of unaccompanied children worldwide.

Please visit KIND’s website to learn more about their work. For April’s Charity Sunday, I will donate two dollars for each comment I receive on this post. Note that the post will remain open for comments until May’s Charity Sunday.

For my excerpt, I’m sharing a bit from my story Divided We Fall. I wrote this in 2017, shortly after Trump’s first election victory. The story presents a world in which inter-group hostilities are deliberately fostered in order to undermine organized resistance. This trend has indeed come to pass.

Things are much worse than I ever imagined.

Do what you can. Leave a comment. Share this post. Practice compassion.

Excerpt

Please note that this excerpt contains racial slurs. This is deliberate in order to portray the hostility between the characters.

There are no walls. Just IEDs, trip-wire bombs and snipers. We’ve learned a few things from the jihadis.

The Santa Anas whip at the white rag attached to my broom handle as I cross Vermont. No-man’s land. Black hair tangles in my eyes, obscuring my vision. I should chop it all off, maybe even shave my head. That would be safer. Would look scarier, too. Pathetic how vanity survives, even in the most desperate situations.

Afternoon shadows stripe the broken pavement. The only vehicles visible are burned-out skeletons, picked clean by scavengers from both barrios. I dart from one to the next, keeping a good distance away from the blackened hulks while still trying to use them for cover as I approach the Niggertown gate. Any one of them could be booby-trapped, though that would break the unwritten rules that have allowed us Viets to co-exist with the niggers. So far at least.

I don’t want to be here. I’ve got no confidence my truce flag will buy me any kind of safety. But what can I do? My little brother’s disappeared, last seen headed toward the black ghetto. We searched every corner of Viet Village. Unless he’s deliberately hiding―not likely given his age and his usual good behavior― he must have wandered outside the bounds.

The many kinds of harm he might meet scroll through my mind like credits for some old movie. I force myself to slow down as I approach the West Century intersection, the only un-mined street leading east into Niggertown. Gripping my flag in one hand, I raise the other high to show I’m unarmed. It’s true, aside from the switchblade hidden my boot. I don’t step out of the abandoned grocery my family calls home without that knife. When I sleep, it hangs from cord around my neck, nestled between my breasts. Older Brother calls me Blade-Heart. He thinks it’s a joke, but his nickname suits me. I might ask Uncle Pham to tattoo it on my bicep.

“Freeze, bitch.”

I’m expecting the challenge, but still, my stomach does a queasy flip. I remain motionless, as instructed, keeping both hands visible. A tall, lean figure steps out from behind some pollution-rusted shrubbery in front of a ruined apartment building. He carries his Kalashnikov like it’s another limb, one which he points directly at me. Funny how there’s never enough food, but no problem getting guns.

“What you doin’ here? This ain’t your territory. You get your gook ass back ‘cross the street before I kick it back!”

Though the guard talks tough, I can see he’s young, maybe younger than I am. He fixes me with a belligerent glare and brandishes his weapon like he’d just as soon shoot me as not, but there’s a softness to his mouth that lets me imagine him smiling. Using his left hand to draw an ugly blade from his belt, he strides in my direction.

He wears threadbare jeans and a faded camouflage shirt, open to the waist. The inky skin on his bare chest gleams with sweat, despite the brisk wind. The paler flesh of a scar slashes across his chest, just above his left nipple. That must have been a dire wound, close to fatal. He might be young, but he’s no stranger to battle. None of us is, these days.

Please leave a comment – for the children who are our collective future. And do visit Dee’s post!

On Vacation!

Image by Peter Olexa from Pixabay

Hello, Readers! I’m off in the tropics this week, enjoying some well-deserved R&R. I’ll be back next week.

Meanwhile, if you’re looking for something new to read, check out my Books page:

https://www.lisabetsarai.com/books.html

You can search by genre, by length, by series… or if you need inspiration, just click the button labeled “Surprise Me!”.

You can also browse my extensive set of free erotic and romantic reads at https://www.lisabetsarai.com/freereads.html

See you next week!

Only a man, beaten down by sorrow — #PNR #EroticRomance #MFRWHooks

For today’s MFRW Book Hooks blog hop, I’ve got a bit from my short paranormal erotic romance Hot Spell. My hero, Aidan, has a dangerous gift. He can control fire – kindle it and suppress it. But he has discovered through a terrible accident that if he gives in to desire, his partner will suffer the consequences and be burned to a crisp.

Blurb

The flames of passion are more than metaphor

Comfortable and at home in nature, Sylvie doesn't mind being alone in the wilderness. But she's not the only being haunting the glades and the trails. The stranger she encounters bathing in the stream near her camp obviously wants her, but refuses to act on his desire. Aidan is cursed with a power he fears will destroy her if they surrender to their passion. Can Sylvie refrain from tempting him?

The Hook

“How did you find out?”

Sylvie and Aidan sat opposite one another, across a table littered with dirty dishes. The meal had been more substantial and appealing than Aidan had promised. He’d augmented the chili with wholegrain bread, chocolate chip cookies and red wine from a box on the shelf above the stove. Sylvie was full as well as a bit tipsy.

“More wine?” Aidan seemed to ignore her question.

“No, thanks, I’ve had more than enough. But tell me—please. I’ve never heard of a Fire Elemental.”

Aidan leant back in his chair and sighed. “All the time I was growing up, I felt…different. There were things I could do… At the same time, I was limited in some ways. I couldn’t read books unless I wore leather gloves. Otherwise, the paper would char. I couldn’t swim. Even with my head above water, I couldn’t really breathe. I was an only child. My mom died when I was born and my dad… Well, I guess at some level he blamed me. Anyway, I lived a pretty solitary life until I met Alisa.”

He trailed off, obviously beset by painful memories.

“I’m sorry. Forget I asked. I should mind my own business.”

“No, no—you should know. I want you to know.” He squared his shoulders and leant forwards, skewering her with his gaze. Sylvie felt naked. No, she wished she was. “After—the accident—after Alisa was gone—I was pretty insane for a while. I ran off into the wilderness. I didn’t care what happened to me. That’s when I discovered I could start a fire with a simple effort of will. I learned that I had other talents, too. I could fly, or something close, riding the wind to go where I pleased.”

Excitement skittered down Sylvie’s spine. “That first night, at the creek, you disappeared…”

Aidan nodded. “I knew I had to get out of there. I wanted you way too much for safety. Anyway, I woke one dawn, curled under a tree, to discover that the forest was blazing around me. I hadn’t started this fire. It was probably a lightning strike. Somehow I knew that I could stop it if I wanted to. All I had to do was control my breathing and concentrate. Within minutes, the flames dwindled and died away.”

“That’s when you decided to become a warden and a fire fighter.” Sylvie could see the logic behind his choices, even though they hadn’t really healed him.

“Right. When I returned to civilization, I did some research. It turns out that Elementals—creatures who embody and control the forces of nature—feature in the mythology of quite a few Native American tribes. Not just Fire Elementals, either. That’s how Native Americans explained the upheavals and disasters that afflicted them. Floods, windstorms, landslides, earthquakes—these were the deeds of dissatisfied beings who controlled water, air or earth. Elementals are a bit like the Greek or the Norse gods—personifications of natural phenomena. But it appears that Elementals are real.”

He slumped back into his chair as if the tale had sapped his strength. Despite his stature and his poise, his handsome, rugged features and powerful body, he didn’t look like a god. Sylvie saw only a man, beaten down by sorrow and guilt, weary from the effort of suppressing his basic needs.

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