by Sunniva Dee
“Are you okay, Arriane?” Christian interrupts from outside. “Shit, whose idea was this anyway?” he says to Jason. “Sure, it’s Arriane, but still—we locked him away with another girl.”
“She’s fine, Christian,” Leon answers for me. “We both are. I won’t hurt her.”
A short silence follows. “Arriane?”
“Um, yes. No worries,” I manage. Aware that Christian’s respect for our boss equals mine, I add, “Leon’s back. He’s himself again.”
Leon’s hand reaches out. Locks the door from the inside and slinks up to my neck. Gently, he guides me into his apartment with a palm curving at my nape, right below the ponytail.
Neither of us reacts when Christian’s concerned voice repeats my name from the hallway. When they remove the barricade in loud shuffles against the floor.
“You want to stay?” Leon whispers. “Keep me company?”
He stares at me in that special way. His look is not one of love or adoration.
I know better than to accept his offer.
It would be madness.
And yet—
I nod.
Annnd, cue the exuberance!
As always when I write acknowledgments, my heart brims with gratitude. It takes a village, they say, and man, is it true. It’s one thing to write the book, but another to polish it into something worth reading. So, so many have helped me with this.
My author besties are my besties for a reason. I’m so grateful to have met all of you already during my first book, Shattering Halos, and I’m blessed to continue our friendship and the slaughtering of each other’s manuscripts in the name of quality. The mere thought of not having you in my life makes me anxious!
My thanks below are listed not alphabetically, but in the order you read the Pandora Wild Child drafts.
D Nichole King: I love you for making my manuscript bleed. For your patience and the time you’ve put into Pandora, I can never thank you enough. You’re always there for our online “work dates,” for our exchanges of joys and grievances. I’m so grateful for your swift replies, recommendations, suggestions to word choices, restructuring, logical solutions when I’m struggling—for your friendship. Thank you!
Debra Ann Mastick: this time around you had your own debut baby to tend to, but I truly appreciate the time and effort you still put into Pandora Wild Child. Your comments make me laugh, and I’m happy that my writing still causes you to blush. Thank you!
Laura Thalassa: I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. I’m so grateful to have you along for the crazy ride that we’re on. Your honesty, your enthusiasm, and your incredible eye; I need you like air and water—and like my Mac. In the midst of your own crazy deadline, you still took the time to critique this baby. Just like you did with the former one… and the one before that. Thank you!
Cheryl McIntyre: I turn to mush when I think of you. Your friendship, your input, your mentorship from before I released my first book. It’s no secret that your books are among my all-time favorites, and I’m so grateful that you find my novels worthy of enthusiasm. Your eye is uncanny, and Pandora Wild Child deepened and changed from your feedback. Oh, and light bulbs; you and Edison are geniuses. Thank you!
Dawn Decker: I told you once what an incredible editor I detected behind Cheryl’s books. Now, I am lucky to have you read and suggest edits to mine! I’m excited and nervous when I read your feedback—because you find issues no one else discovers. You, Dawn, hoist my work that extra step up. Thank you!
Renee McMillan: this is the third book you’ve betaed for me. Your excitement and feedback, your questions and the way you got lost in Pandora… I am so lucky to have you with me on this journey. Among my most cherished moments are the lunch breaks we’ve shared; I adore watching you devour my novels, because—I read you like an open book. See what I did there? Thank you!
Rachel Spurlock: I’m thrilled to have you as my beta reader and honored that you dropped the thousand-pager you had just started to read Pandora. Your right-on analysis of the characters blew my mind, and I loved that you finished it in twenty-four hours. Thank you!
Holly Baker: you are my blogger girl, the one who’s been with me since the very start! You betaed Shattering Halos. You betaed Stargazer. And now you’ve betaed Pandora Wild Child too. Your feedback and enthusiasm inspire me to keep getting better. Thank you!
Sunniva’s Angels: oh, my sweet group of loving ladies who patiently listen to my rants and my euphorias. Your feedback on Pandora Wild Child makes me giddy, and with your encouragement, I moved forward top speed with Leon’s Book. Thank you!
My readers: last but not least, I bow my head to you. It is for you—you—that I write. Thank you!
xoxo
Sunniva
Originally from Norway, I moved to the United States in 2001. I hold a Master’s degree in languages and taught Spanish at college level before settling in as an adviser at an art college in the South.
I write impulsive heroines, bad-boys, and good-boys running amok. Then, there’s the intense love, physical and emotional attraction beyond reason—sensory overload for the reader as well as for my characters.
Yep, so New Adult fiction is my genre, sometimes with a paranormal twist—like in “Shattering Halos,” published by The Wild Rose Press in February 24th 2014 and in “Stargazer,” estimated release date, November 2014 from the same publisher. “Pandora Wild Child” is my first self-published title, very soon to be followed by “Leon’s Way” (December 2014/January 2015.)
Newsletter:
This is my no-spam new-releases-only newsletter: http://bit.ly/sunnivasreleases
Where to find me:
Website: www.sunnivadee.com
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/SunnivaGR
Facebook: http://bit.ly/SunnivaFB
Twitter: http://bit.ly/SunnivaTW
Pinterest: http://bit.ly/SunnivaP
Instagram: http://bit.ly/SunnivaInst
SHATTERING HALOS (released February 21st): http://bit.ly/SH-US-Amazon
STARGAZER (est. release November 2014): http://bit.ly/StargazerGR
LEON’S WAY (est. release December 2014/January 2015): http://bit.ly/sunnivasreleases