On the joys of writing naked - #sensuality #pansexual #polyamory @insistentwinter

By Dierdre Winter (Guest Blogger)

I love my job, but when I come home, I am wound up with adrenaline, my mind tangled with the issues of the day. I need release.

My favorite ritual of the day is undressing in front of the full length mirror in my bedroom. I pull my blouse loose from my pencil skirt, my fingers scrambling over the buttons; with every button I undo, I feel more and more liberated from the rigid confines of my professional life. As I unzip my skirt and let it fall to the floor, a second self emerges. I consider my body, now clad only in black sheer and lace, and I feel a growing sense of peace. I no longer have to be in charge, I am free to whimper and moan, to quiver and shudder, to fall back helpless onto the bed.

I unclasp my bra and throw it to the ground, soothing the harsh red lines marked on my skin. I peel off my stockings and toss my thong into the laundry with my toe. Release is coming, my body can feel it with every fiber of its being.

But, I like to stretch it out, make an evening of it. I love to feel it build in my body like a tidal wave until every piece of my body is involved. I love it when I can feel the pressure in my toes, in my ear lobes and everywhere in between. I love to bring myself just to the edge before pulling away even when my soul cries out hungrily.

I throw a robe loosely over my shoulders, not bothering to tie it up. As I wait for the water to boil for my tea, I can barely resist sliding a hand down my smooth skin to soothe the throbbing want pulsing through my veins. But, I must hold off. I need this energy for writing.

I have always been a writer, but it wasn’t until I found erotica that I found a consistent eagerness to write. I make my fantasies come to life, developing the characters and the situations by translating them from fragmentary images into stories I can imagine happening in real life. Although the physical act of sex is an important part of my writing, I find it becomes more erotic when I can recognize the characters as people who could very well be my co-workers, my neighbors, my fellow shoppers at the grocery store. In other words, I want the sex to flow from the story.

Because my fantasies tend to include open and uninhibited sexuality that transcends traditional gender and societal roles, my stories tend to take on that characteristic as well. Like my fantasies, my writing features pansexual and polyamorous relationships. I enjoy the complexity and the possibility of these relationships.

I am attracted to writing about women who are waiting for something exciting to happen in their lives. In many ways, I can relate. I spend many of my nights waiting, wondering who will step out from the shadows and make my fantasies into reality.

I recently completed my first novel called Lost and Found. It is about Dr. Grace Jones, a professor of Archeology suffering through the icy cold winters that come with working at the University of Minnesota. On top of the bothersome cold, she can no longer deny that her life is lacking the adventure it once had. As she's preparing for another Friday night alone, she gets an email from her mentor, Michael Hill, asking her to meet him in Guatemala where he believes he's found a treasure that will set the world of Archeology on its head. When Grace arrives at the camp, she is welcomed by Nick, Graham, and Susanna who make up the rest of Michael's team. As they chase the find of a lifetime, Grace must face her past, her fears, and her demons. Blazing hot days lead into steamy, sultry nights as the group searches the Guatemalan volcanoes for a long buried Mayan treasure.

Heat was the inspiration that started the whole story. I wanted to tell a story bathed in the unrelenting power of the sun. I wanted my characters to be sweaty and desperate to get out of their clothes. I wanted my main character to come from the cold and thaw out in the heat, shedding her protective clothing as well as her inhibitions. With that central idea in place, the details of the story began to emerge.

I had such fun writing this novel that immediately began on my second, which I hope to publish next year. It is about a woman, Lila, who moves to a small town to be a live-in nurse for an old man. For years, she’s been struggling with the death of her husband and the difficulty of raising her young son alone. Much like Grace, Lila is reborn and renewed by her experiences. She makes connections, sexually and emotionally, with the people she meets there, finding kindred spirits in the most unlikely places.

In all my work, I try to remember that erotica is literature and I spend as much time on the themes, the characters, and the stories as I do on the sex.

About the Author

Dierdre Winter is a first time novelist happily learning and working through all it takes to be a writer. She is also a teacher, a fitness fanatic, a dog owner, and an artist. She lives alone, near enough to Toronto to enjoy the city, but far enough away that she can have a backyard and a little house to herself. She can be found on twitter, and all over the internet @insistentwinter.

Her first novel is available on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited and can be found at: https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Found-Pansexual-Polyamorous-Adventure-ebook/dp/B07XVRTQ2R/

Looking Back - #FirstNovel #AmWriting #SelfPublishing

Twenty years ago last month, I published my first novel.

I’ve shared the story dozens of times, in my long bio and on various blogs—how in November 1998 I picked up a Black Lace novel from the book swap shelf at my Istanbul hotel, was hooked by the intense emotion and free-wheeling sexual variety I found within, then got the urge to write something in the same genre. I dashed off three chapters of Raw Silk and sent them (by postal mail, of course) to England, pretty much on a lark. I had no expectations. The form letter I received in response, thanking me for my submission but warning me that due to the size of the backlog I might not hear anything for several months, didn’t surprise me in the least.

On the other hand, when I got email from the Black Lace editor three days later, offering me a contract, I was stunned. Now I had to actually write the novel, a minimum of 80,000 words. The publisher wanted to know when it would be finished. Honestly, I didn’t have a clue.

In the two decades that have followed, Raw Silk has seen four different editions. Meanwhile, I’ve published ten other novels (if you define a novel as a work of 50K words or more). Not that impressive a history, I guess, especially compared to many of my colleagues. Of course, I’ve also produced dozens of shorter works, ranging from flashers to novellas. In addition, I’ve edited both multi-author and single-author erotica anthologies.

Although pretty much all my work falls into the general category of erotic fiction, I’m otherwise eclectic. I’ve played with a wide range of genres, including BDSM (my first love), erotic romance, paranormal, science fiction, suspense, steam punk, historical, gay and lesbian. My tales range from literary erotica to pure smut, with everything in-between. For many years I worked mostly with a romance publisher, and chafed against the constraints of that genre. The rise of self-publishing has freed me to write whatever inspires me—which usually means stories that would make some romance readers squirm.

Not long after the release of Raw Silk, I found the EroticaReaders & Writers Association. I was looking for a way to promote the book (a very different enterprise in 2000, before the rise of social media). ERWA wasn’t what I was seeking, but it turned out to be what I needed. Though I’d been writing for self-expression all my life, I’d never imagined a career, or even an avocation, as a published author. I knew next to nothing about either the erotica genre or the nuts and bolts of the publishing world. The community I found here, the acceptance, support, knowledge and creativity, have helped me to develop my skills, to nurture my erotic imagination, and to market and sell its products.

Many people have remarked that being an author is a lonely business. I think that’s even more true if you write a denigrated, socially sanctioned genre like erotica. ERWA offered a delightful antidote to that loneliness. Some of the people I care most about in this world are folks I’ve come to know in the online world of ERWA. A few of these dear friends I’ve met in meat-space, but I know many of them only through the warmth of their emails, the generosity of their critiques and the arousing and challenging fiction they share.

I was in my forties when I published my first erotica, reliving and embroidering on the sexual adventures of my twenties. My early tales were fueled by cherished recollections and personal fantasies. I penned that first novel in just a few months. Passion poured out of me, onto the page. I wrote whatever pushed my own buttons, with no censorship and little focus on craft.

Now that I’m in my sixties, my motivations have shifted, but not as much as you might think. I still write to turn myself on. If I’m not aroused, how can I expect that of my readers? These days, though, I have a bit more distance from my work. I feel far more in control. Like a sculptor, I start with the raw material of ideas and mold them into the shape I envision.

As I mentioned earlier, the decision to self-publish has given me new energy and self-confidence. Perhaps as a result, in the past few years, I’ve found myself conquering what I’d always thought were intrinsic limitations to my writing skill.

For instance, I used to complain that I suffered from “narrative inertia”. What I meant was that once I’d written a story, I found it very difficult to make significant changes. I felt as though the story had chosen its own form, had set itself in stone, permitting me no more than cosmetic modifications. Attempts to alter the structure, the plot or the ending left me dissatisfied and deeply uncomfortable.

Those feelings have mostly disappeared. I’ve taken old tales with ambiguous, even tragic, conclusions, and revised them to end happily. (The market far prefers happy conclusions.) I’ve taken short stories and expanded them into novellas. My words and ideas now seem far more malleable than they did in the past.

Then there's the fact that I always swore I couldn’t write a series. By the time I’d written “The End” on a novel, I really was done. I had little inclination to revisit the characters or their worlds. In a couple of cases, I had thoughts about follow-on books, and deliberately left threads to be followed, but somehow I couldn’t motivate myself to start on Book Two.

Then I wrote a book purely for fun, which turned out to be pretty popular (Hot Brides in Vegas). Almost as soon as it was published, I had more outrageous ideas about the characters, so I started a sequel. The Vegas Babes series is now up to four books, and I just started working on Book Five.

Nobody is more surprised by this than me.

Twenty years is a long time—nearly a third of my life on this planet. I’ve never made much money as an author. Given my other responsibilities, I’ve never been able to devote the sort of time necessary to publish regularly. Still, I do congratulate myself on my staying power. Through the ups and downs, I’ve continued to write and publish—and continued to participate in the erotica community.

I sometimes wonder whether I’ll still be here when I am in my eighties.

Stay tuned!

Review Tuesday: Luke's Redemption by Anni Fife (#eroticromance #review #alpha)

 

Luke’s Redemption by Anni Fife

The Wild Rose Press, 2016

Katya Dalca has known for years that her mob-connected father is a cold, controlling bastard. When she overhears his promise to marry her to a Russian gangster, that is the last straw. She runs away to New Orleans, taking a flash drive full of incriminating data as insurance.

Ex-Marine Luke Hunter has an assignment: get the memory stick from Katya and deliver it to his boss at King Security. His family history with drug abuse only reinforces his determination to succeed in this job. Luke doesn’t plan to seduce Katya, just get close enough to snatch the drive, but she enchants him so completely he cannot resist taking the innocence she offers. When magic of their night together drains away in the chill light of dawn, Luke realizes the enormous mistake he’s made. Pocketing the memory stick, he turns his back on his new lover and disappears, leaving Katya confused, grieving, and, as she later discovers, pregnant.

Luke’s Redemption is Anni Fife’s debut novel. It displays the tell-tale passion of a first book. Although many of the tropes are familiar (loss of virginity to a soul-mate, secret baby, and so on), Katya’s intense emotions keep the book fresh and indeed, quite harrowing. Time and again she is betrayed and abandoned, but stubborn courage plus her devotion to her daughter keep her from giving up. Ms. Fife writes Katya’s sections of the book in the first person, making the heroine’s agony all the more immediate.

The sections from Luke’s point of view, in contrast, are written in third person. When I noticed this discrepancy (about halfway through the book), my first thought was that this was an editing problem, but the distinction is consistent throughout the novel. The third person narrative has the effect of distancing the reader from Luke’s feelings. I wonder if this is why the author made this artistic choice.

The book covers a period of more than six years. Since this is a romance, Luke finally does overcome Katya’s (justified) distrust to create the conditions for a HEA. My personal opinion? He doesn’t deserve her.

I read a lot of romance reviews that comment on the reader’s reactions to the characters as people. Most of my reviews, in contrast, tend to focus more on the literary characteristics of a book.

In the case of Luke’s Redemption, however, I found myself disliking Luke enough that it interfered with my overall appreciation of the story. As he tries to win Katya’s love, he repeatedly promises her honesty, respect and protection—then fails to deliver on these promises. He’s a conceited chauvinist who treats her like a weakling and refuses to allow her to make her own decisions. Meanwhile, he acts as though he’s blind to the threats she faces from the dark, criminal forces arrayed against her. In the final crisis, he watches helplessly while she single-handedly subdues the vilain.

Luke is also unpleasantly bossy in the bedroom, in a way that I (an avowed fan of BDSM) find distinctly non-erotic. 
 

Despite my feelings about the hero, I actually liked Luke’s Redemption quite a lot. Ms. Fife writes clear, vivid prose that moves the story along at a brisk pace. Katya’s emotions carry the book. It’s inspiring to watch her build a life after having it shattered by her encounter with Luke. Their mutual chemistry is so strong that you want her to reconcile with him and experience some happiness. He’s such an extreme alpha, though, that I found this outcome a bit hard to believe.

If it ain't broke... (#bdsm #eroticromance #giveaway)

By Ashe Barker (Guest Blogger)

Thank you for inviting me over today to chat about the re-release of The Dark Side. This series was my first attempt to write anything more steamy than a birthday card and I was delighted with it. I’ll always be proud of how well the books did and the fabulous reviews they received. I am eternally grateful to Totally Bound for accepting them and for taking a chance on the unpublished rookie I was back then.

So, if it ain’t broke, why mend it?

As I wrote The Dark Side I had no idea if anyone but me would ever read the books. I knew next to nothing about the world of publishing or professional writing, so although my editor did a fabulous job of making the books fit to be seen among decent folk (or should that be indecent folk?) there were always aspects of the story I felt could be improved. There were scenes I thought about writing but left out, and ways in which I believed the connection between Nathan and Eva could be deepened. The re-release was a rare opportunity to have my time again and complete the job.

There’s new content in each of the three books, but I won’t spoil it by saying exactly what. Suffice it to say we see yet another quirk in Eva’s already complex nature, and aspects of Nathan which I hope will endear him to readers even more. He’s a hard Dom, stern, demanding and insanely sexy. We lose none of that, but the additional content helps to bring out his caring nature a little more.

There’s also a whole new epilogue to conclude the story. This picks up a loose end which always bothered me so I feel the series is better rounded now.

Series Blurb

The Dark Side trilogy charts the sensual journey of academic musician Eva Byrne as she struggles to overcome painful shyness, sexual inhibition and personal tragedy. Lonely, unsophisticated, desperately seeking love and approval, Eva is easy prey for sensual and experienced Nathan Darke.
He wants her submission, and he knows how to go about getting it. Eva is quickly caught up by the whirlwind of his effortless seduction, though she has her own reasons for agreeing to join him in his world of pain and pleasure, on the dark side.
Inexplicably fascinated and at the same time totally frustrated by his new submissive, Nathan is increasingly drawn to her as she opens up in his hands and he realises there is much, much more to his latest playmate than he ever could have imagined.
The Dark Side charts the turbulent relationship between Eva and Nathan as their mutual fascination builds. They both discover what surrender truly means as together they explore the fragile bonds of desire, trust, risk and reward, and the destructive power of betrayal.

Darkening, Book 1 in The Dark Side Serial

Who knows where pain ends and pleasure begins?

The chance of a new life out in the wilds of the Yorkshire moors sounds too good to be true to shy musician Eva Byrne. Stifled and smothered within the cocoon of her brilliant academic career, Eva yearns for something different. Something real and exciting. Something she can feel.

Excitement. Passion. Pleasure. She finds that sexy, enigmatic Nathan Darke can provide all these and more when she moves into his home as violin tutor to his young daughter. But Eva’s sensual encounters with her demanding, domineering new employer quickly evoke her deepest fears, as he introduces her to the trauma of submission and marks her with his particularly dark brand of love.

But will Eva’s natural curiosity and thirst for new experiences be enough to withstand the sting of Nathan Darke’s exquisite touch? Will simple surrender be enough as he challenges her every inhibition, taking her on an erotic journey of self-discovery and liberation?

Darker, Book 2 in The Dark Side Serial

Can Eva outrun the secrets of her past, or is surrender her only choice?

Eva Byrne’s first encounter with the darker side of Nathan Darke’s sensuality ends in disaster. Frightened, hurt, betrayed, she struggles to regather her shattered confidence—in him, and in herself.

Desperate to continue her journey of exploration and self-discovery, Eva has to convince a skeptical Nathan that she’s worth the trouble. And that she can learn to submit to him. When she is forced to reveal elements of her past she has preferred to keep hidden, both her brilliance and her vulnerability are laid bare. Will Nathan accept Eva as she is, and help her to become the woman she longs to be, or will she face yet another rejection?

Terrified and intrigued in equal measure, Nathan has no idea how to deal with the exquisitely enigmatic Eva Byrne. Should he cut his losses and run, or allow their relationship to continue, and watch as Eva’s delicate beauty unfurls in his hands?

Fascinated and ensnared by Nathan, Eva longs to taste what he offers and her erotic journey continues. But how much will she have to surrender to him in order to liberate her own desires?

Darkest, Book 3 in The Dark Side Serial

When his past destroys Eva’s trust in her Master, can he win her back?

As their turbulent, complex relationship deepens, Nathan Darke is increasingly aware that Eva Byrne has become much more to him than his submissive. She’s in his home, in his family. And in his heart.

Eva hasn’t found it easy to trust, to believe in herself and in a relationship that might last. But happiness, once so elusive, is within her grasp. Nathan is her Master, her lover and her soulmate.

However, no sooner do they manage to find a fragile balance between them—a way of entwining both their worlds—and start to build a future than their past comes crashing back to destroy their emerging love. Jealousy and hate brutally shatter Eva’s and Nathan’s delicate trust in each other, and their life together crumbles.

Can they overcome the crushing pain of betrayal and deceit to regain some sort of future together, or are some wounds just too deep to heal? Are some risks too great? Some rewards just not enough? 

Excerpt from Darkening

He breaks the kiss to start nibbling his way down my neck. As if not finding the angle to his liking, he suddenly, effortlessly lifts me from the chair, turns and lays me down with my bare back flat on the table top. He holds both of my wrists in one hand, pinning them to the table above my head and, standing between my legs, leans over to look down at me, stroking his other hand the length of my body from neck to waist.

“Beautiful… Holy fuck, so lovely,” he murmurs before he leans down to take my right nipple between his lips.

I squeal, the shock jolting through me even though I had sensed what he was about to do. His body weight and his hand around my wrists hold me in place as he continues his work. The sensation is everywhere, starting at my nipple, which is now painfully engorged. The tingling pulses radiate out through my whole body, connecting as if by some sort of internal electric current to that spot between my legs, which is now drenched. It feels exquisite, acute, intense, forbidden and overwhelming. I arch my back, pushing my breasts toward his mouth, his tongue, his teeth, this source of ecstatic pleasure.

One or two ill-fated fumblings from other students when I was a teenager at university did nothing to prepare me for this. I have never, ever felt anything remotely like this before. I might have read about it, known the theoretical possibility was out there, somewhere. Happening to other women—women who were attractive and had lush, sexy bodies and soft, wavy hair. But this is here, now, happening to me.

I feel the hard table beneath my shoulder blades as I writhe under his skilled lips, his expert tongue and teeth, desperate for more. And he knows what he is about—he knows what I need and he has more for me. Opening his mouth wider, he takes more of my breast in and sucks hard, first one side then the other. He slides his free hand, palm up, between my shoulders and the table to raise me up, giving him easier access with his mouth, his tongue, his teeth. Gently grazing my now helplessly sensitized nipples with his teeth, he suckles me relentlessly, nipping slightly harder, just enough to hurt, maybe—I’m not sure where pain ends and pleasure begins now. What does it matter, anyway? He can do whatever he wants to me as long as he doesn’t stop.

He is no longer holding my wrists—he has no need to because I’m lying boneless under him, spread across his kitchen table, pleading wordlessly for…for what? More? Less? The ecstatic pleasure tinged with a hint of pain is so intense now that I can only moan, ride the waves of sensation pulsing from my breasts out through my fingers and toes, each wave bigger, heavier, more compelling than the one before until I am writhing with need.

“I can’t. Please, it’s too much…” Is that me? Or someone else whimpering nearby?

“Yes, you can, you are. Don’t fight it, sweetheart, come for me. Now. Come now.” His words—insistent, soft and low, seductive—are breathed into my ear before he returns to my breasts, nibbling and sucking mercilessly, building the tension, increasing the sensations coursing through every part of me, winding me tighter and tighter until I burst, screaming out loud as fireworks explode in my head, my groin, everywhere as the earth shifts beneath me. My inner core clenches violently, the wetness surely flooding across the table. I feel I am falling, floating as the tension is released and I hear myself moan in delighted satisfaction, drifting back down toward reality.

Me, the girl who can’t bear to be touched. Somehow—God only knows how it happened—I have just spent the last ten minutes spread out half naked on Nathan Darke’s kitchen table, his hands and mouth all over me until I totally lost control, and he watched me thrashing about in the throes of my very first orgasm, right in front of him. Christ! How wonderful, how intimate. How unlike me. And he’s achieved all this without so much as a button of his coming undone.

Buy Links

Darkening is FREE at Totally Bound and All Romance 

until 30 April 2016!!

Darkening  
Amazon US  
Amazon UK  
Barnes and Noble 
All Romance  
Totally Bound

Darker  
Amazon US 
Amazon UK  
All Romance  
Totally Bound

 
Darkest 
Amazon US  
Amazon UK  
All Romance  
Totally Bound

About Ashe Barker

I’ve been an avid reader of fiction for many years, erotic and other genres. I still love reading, the hotter the better. But now I have a good excuse for my guilty pleasure – research.

I tend to draw on my own experience to lend colour, detail and realism to my plots and characters. An incident here, a chance remark there, a bizarre event or quirky character, any of these can spark a story idea.

I live in the North of England, on the edge of the Brontë moors. When not writing – which is not very often these days - my time is divided between my role as resident taxi driver for my teenage daughter, and caring for a menagerie of dogs, tortoises. And a very grumpy cockatiel.

I have over thirty titles on general release with publishers on both sides of the Atlantic, and I have several more in the pipeline. I write M/f, M/M, and occasionally ring the changes with a little M/M/f. All my books feature BDSM. I write explicit stories, always hot, but they offer far more than just sizzling sex. I like to read about complex characters, and compelling plots, so that’s what I write too.

I have a pile of story ideas still to work through, and keep thinking of new ones at the most unlikely moments, so you can expect to see a lot more from me.

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Looking for Mr. Wonderful

By Ali Baran (Guest Blogger)

Thanks so much for inviting me, Lisabet. My very first book came out this month, and I'm excited. It's sexy and romantic and just a wee bit different, because it's a May-December romance.

I've always been a reader and I love romances. I found a stash of them in a closet as a young teen and I was hooked. Then I discovered hot romances. (Does anyone really think a teen doesn't know about sex? Yet my book comes with that adult reader warning.) It also didn't take me long to figure out that romances in books didn't follow real life. Why not?

Okay, so there's this fantasy involved. Maybe I've been the bridesmaid too many times, but Mr. Wonderful seems to be Mr. Close-Enough for a lot of my friends. Really? Why? I'm waiting for Mr. Wonderful and I refuse to settle for Mr. Close-Enough. I've dated those guys along with Mr. Hope-You-Lose-My-Phone-Number, Mr. Did-You-Ask-Your-Mother-First, and Mr. You've-Got-the-Kids-This-Weekend. Enough! I want Mr. Wonderful!

My mom's BFF is an author, and one night we got into a discussion about what makes a guy great. She was talking about characters, and I was talking about real life. Before the evening was over, she suggested that I should write romances and promised to mentor me through the whole thing. The idea clung to me until I finally decided I'd try doing it. I wrote one and sent it to her. Oh my! She called me up and said to meet her for coffee. She had printed out about half of the manuscript, handed me markers, and a 3 x 5 card with a color key.

I discovered all the important things like head hopping and point of view. By the time I was done, I was sick of those characters but I learned some important lessons. I played with some characters in my mind until something began to congeal.

It all happened one night when I was out with a female friend and realized there was this other couple... My imagination just took over. Was the man with his daughter, granddaughter, or was she his girlfriend? My father is slightly older than my mom, and my boss is married to a much older man - what's the attraction? Could I be attracted to an older man? What would it take? Then I was out with some co-workers for lunch and this guy walked into the restaurant. He was impeccably dressed, silver haired, and handsome. Enough that he caught the eye of just about every female in there. Bingo! I had my hero.

If that man had asked me out for dinner, I would have said yes - even though he was wearing a wedding band. Of course I look for the "band"! At that point, I would have said yes to just solidify my hero. No, I don't date married men, but he had my curiosity piqued. Considering there's a courthouse not far from there, I assumed he was a lawyer. The average man doesn't walk around in a suit like he was wearing. It took me a few more days of playing with that man's image in my mind. Then one night I sat at my computer and began to type. The story just came together.

Each time I finished a scene, I'd email it to my mentor and she'd email it back with highlights. But when I was done, I was thrilled with what I had written and so was my mentor. I knew nothing about publishing so I leaned once again on my friend. She told me about Lost Goddess Publishing because she knew the owners, and I submitted my manuscript. I was thrilled to be accepted.

I'm not looking for a man who is that much older, but in writing that story, I realized I could see myself with someone like him. Maybe age is just a state of mind. Do our hearts even care about age? And what is sexy? What makes a man sexy?

Naturally I want a man who looks good and takes care of himself. But I also want more than a chest-beating set of muscles on two legs. We all want men who care about us and appreciate what we have to offer, but maybe I'm different because I want brains to go with it. I want a man who reads and can discuss things. I want to be fascinated by dinner conversation over bubbles transmitting data, nebulae that was discovered, a lost civilization or colony, or even a new book about a war hero. And if he can't make it exciting, I don't want to hear it. There's more to life than just sex and being able to enjoy the time spent with another person is important.

Besides, sex isn't anything new. We've been doing it for thousands of years. Maybe the difference is women today have a choice. We aren't innocent girls being wed to men we don't know. We want someone who knows how to please us. Maybe that's why Randal is so delicious. He knows how to please Tessa, truly enjoys pleasing her, and he also appeals on an intellectual level. (And having money doesn't hurt either.)

The writing bug has bitten me, and the characters for another hot romance are playing in my mind. My mother is shaking her head in shame and has made me promise not to tell my aunt. Because my aunt will probably think that I'll burn in hell over it. But Mom is telling all her friends that they have to read my book because she's raised such an open-minded daughter.

Tessa is my first book but it won't be my last. Tell me what you think is the magic behind finding Mr. Wonderful and what makes him different. If you leave a comment with your email address, I'll toss your name into the hat this month for a $20 gift certificate to Starbucks. The winner will be drawn on Christmas and announced on my blog. http://alibaranauthor.wordpress.com

Warning: May December romance for the mature reader

Blurb

Years of wisdom have taught Randal that it's not the destination but the journey that makes everything worthwhile. When the tentative friendship between silver fox Randal and young Tessa bursts into lust, it ignites a passionate affair that leaves them both trembling. There's nothing more fulfilling than a beautiful woman in the arms of a man who can appreciate everything she has to offer.

As Randal embarks on a second career and Tessa is preparing for her chosen field, Randal's daughter flounders in a sea of depression. When Randal's love for his daughter is pitted against his love for Tessa, can there be a winner?

Excerpt

In the water, Randal didn't act like an invalid. Those piercing blue eyes sparkled and his body was ripped, better than any guy Tessa had dated. The man was damn sexy, and in the week she'd known him, she'd grown to like him – maybe too much. Way too much. Aside from a few thin, pink scar lines over his knees, no one would have believed he was living in a wheel chair.

He trapped her against the side of the pool and held her prisoner between his arms.

She turned and faced him. Now she stared into those beautiful blue orbs and caught the grin that crinkled the skin at the outer edges of his eyes. "You have the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen."

"And you have a beautiful body."

She inhaled as he drew himself nearer. His breath flowed over her face. She closed her eyes and she prayed he'd kiss her.

A finger touched her jaw, and she opened her eyes. He was inches from her with a warm smile on his face. Heaving in a deep breath, she hoped to cool the sensation building in her, but she couldn't stop it. She tried to imagine his lips on hers. His finger traced her entire face, including her lips. She parted her mouth and touched her tongue to his roaming finger.

"Damn woman. You're giving me an erection."

She cast her gaze toward his trunks but she couldn't stop the grin that was pulling on the edges of her lips.

His finger went down her neck and followed the edge of her bikini top. Her chest rose with his touch. Heat flowed through her, settling between her legs. She had never been one to have casual sex, but she was not a virgin. Right now, she wanted fulfillment. She tried to tell herself that older men weren't usually capable of sexual intercourse, but somehow she figured this man was quite capable. His fingers splayed over her breast. And a moan escaped from someplace deep in her throat. She wanted to wrap her legs around his waist and pull him closer to her.

She pushed past him and headed for the stairs. She had to get a grip on her feelings because inside she felt as though she was about to shatter into a million pieces.

He followed her. "Tessa, I'm sorry if I've offended you. I meant no harm."

She turned and touched her fingers to his lips. "We're adults."

"Don't leave. I won't do it again. But seeing you has awakened something inside of me."

"Yeah. I know that feeling." She walked up the stairs and found a towel before turning back to him. "Do you need help getting out?"

"No, not yet. I need to swim some more. I try to swim every morning that I don't have therapy. You just aren't here. So to answer your question, yes, I can get in and out by myself."

She settled onto a chaise lounge and watched him in the water. He was as graceful as a dolphin as he swam lap after lap. She couldn't help but admire his body. Even his legs had beautiful muscle definition. Inside, she still quaked. There was something about him - something dangerously sexy, and she felt it to her toes.

Buy Links

Amazon: http://amzn.com/B00QCX6BVQ

All Romance: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-tessa-1693820-149.html

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tessa-ali-baran/1120868487?ean=2940149846382

Lost Goddess Publishing: http://www.lostgoddesspublishing.com/

About Me

I'm young, single, college educated, and looking for Mr. Wonderful. I'm also a minimalist. The less I have, the less I have to clean! Some people save for Christmas, but I save for vacations. I'll go wherever it's warm with plenty of sun and water. Some women collect shoes ﾖ I collect bathing suits. The last time I counted, I owned forty-two suits. Why do you think I try to stay in shape?

I've always been an avid reader, and there's nothing I love more than a sexy romance. My e-reader stays packed with books. By day, I'm tame and conservative, but once I leave work, the real me emerges. I always have a hunky guy calendar hanging over my desk at home. I kept February up until April rolled around. He was just too delicious. Some guys are worth the fantasy. I want a guy in real life who can kiss me and make my toes tingle. So far it hasn't happened anyplace but in books.

So there you have it. I'm about as exciting as my pet goldfish. The big difference is that I have a computer, a muse, and I know how to use both. I don't think Goldie gives much thought to having Mr. Golden swim into her life and she's already got the castle. I believe she's missing out on a lot of fun!

Visit me online:

http://alibaranauthor.wordpress.com