These beginning days should have revealed so much of what I was getting into. His sense of humor is still raunchy and he still loves to play pranks. But I was a blissfully blind girl with a crush. I only knew he was fun and nice to me, even if he didn’t ask directly for a date. It seemed we fell into a pattern. My mom took me to the football games (a major sign that I liked him because I HATE football) where I would watch him play (in the band) and then he would drive me home. We classed the night up by stopping at McDonald’s to share an order of fries on the way home. I think he liked me just because I was a cheap date.
Fast forward through high school where we dated almost constantly (minus one brief stint where he went stupid for a redhead) though we didn’t see each other quite as much after he graduated a year before me. Then, shortly after I graduated, he asked me to marry him. I said yes and we decided to move in together (and *insert gasp here* live in sin.) My mother was dead set against this idea claiming that he would never really marry me. I ignored her and followed my heart.
I have to say, I haven’t been sorry. We did get married not long after moving in together. Then we bought a house and began our family. And I am constantly reminded of the fun loving guy I dated in high school when he makes perverted comments and pulls pranks (mainly on his mom these days.) And I am constantly thrilled that I’ve spent the last 20 years with him. I can only imagine what we’ll do together in the next 20 as I continue to feather bits and pieces of hubby into the heroes I put on paper.
About Tangled in Tulle
Lori Mullins yearns to shake off her past and live free of shadows and fear. Yet her only shot at obtaining the capital to launch her business rests in a man she met during a lie. A man whose voice alone turned her from jaded escort to giddy schoolgirl. A man who almost died because of her.
Trevor Masters can call off his search for the woman he loves. The woman he dreamt of while comatose. The quest for her heart, however, is only beginning. The trick will be convincing her he doesn’t blame her—and that she deserves to accept herself as the woman who holds his heart.
Business negotiations land Lori in a heavenly hell. Heaven that Trevor is close enough to touch. Hell that she’s planning her first designer wedding. His. And something’s not quite right. The kind, compassionate man she fell for all those months ago, the man who’s engaged to another, seems intent on wooing her…
Excerpt from Tangled in Tulle, book 1 in the Tulle and Tulips series.
“I can’t do this.” Lori Mullins reached over and pushed the button to lower the top on her best friend’s convertible despite the chilled Miami air. A Christmas carol jingled from somewhere in the distance, though it was over a month away.
Inside the car-fume-scented parking garage fear squeezed her lungs faster than walls moving in on a claustrophobe. She needed fresh air, reassurance, courage. The confidence she’d had as an operative for a clandestine arm of the CIA had dehydrated into a pea-sized shell and been squashed.
“You can,” Misty didn’t acknowledge the cooler air sweeping away the heater’s warmth as she pointed toward the automated doors across the parking garage. “Just go into the lobby, walk to the elevator and push the ‘up’ button.”
“Then when the doors open…” Lori trailed off, lost for a moment in the squeals of tires, the slam of doors and beep of an alarm, the stink of exhaust and rubber. She may not have been the highest level Whitestone operative, her final mission as an escort may never make sense, but she’d had a one-hundred-percent success rate on her jobs. Self-doubt had never been in her cache of attributes. Until now.
Until the last one, which had cost her the man she’d loved, ended her career and nearly claimed her life.
“You see the man who can grant your dreams,” Misty put in when Lori said nothing more.
“If only it were so simple.” Past success meant nothing. For that matter, few things from the past mattered beyond their power to impact her future.
“You shouldn’t be afraid of this.”
But she was. Maybe if she’d talked about why asking Trevor Masters for help was so tough she could’ve convinced Misty to pitch the business plan. The fact remained that while Misty was interested in working with her as the head floral designer, Tulle and Tulips Designer Weddings was Lori’s chance for a new beginning. A new life and talking about Trevor meant thinking about the part of her past she was trying to escape.
“You’ve covered every angle of the business plan. Your projections are smart and conservative.”
“But…”
Misty speared her with a hard glare, cutting off her arguments. “If Trevor Masters is half the businessman you claim, he’ll see your brilliance and will have no choice but to back you.”
“Except wedding planning has absolutely no relation to technology.” And he has every reason to want to turn me away. “I shouldn’t have contacted him.” Not that she’d gotten past his new assistant.
“Successful, smart business ventures are one and the same no matter what name you put on them.” Misty reached over Lori and opened the door. “Get out. Go. I’ll be here when you’re ready.”
Putting into words what could happen, why facing Trevor was so painful, hurt more than thinking about it—and that was plenty debilitating—so Lori nodded once and swung her legs from the car. The click of her heels on the concrete vibrated up her thighs. The vibration reminded her of the first time she’d taken this same path to see Trevor Masters.
The assignment to accompany the CEO to a business dinner had seemed simple, yet her life had been forever changed.
Misty reached for the button to raise the car top. Holding Misty’s certainty close, Lori grabbed her briefcase and torture forged determination. “You can be a real pain in the ass.”
“Eh. What good’s a friend if she can’t give you a kick in the keister on occasion?”
“No good at all.” The Misty inspired, cheek-stretching smile erased Lori’s concerns and fears. Misty was the single person who’d stayed permanent in her life, and had known she worked for the government. She’d been the one to help her heal and discover a sense of freedom from the past.
Even if the freedom wouldn’t last, Lori laughed. Feeling stronger, she crossed to the doors and approached the elevators. Three times she stopped, turned and contemplated running away.
A bell chimed. The doors opened to reveal the posh marble elevator she’d once felt comfortable in.
Comfortable.
She smirked and stiffened her spine.
As the doors closed, cutting off her retreat, Lori’s mind slipped back to the last time she’d pushed that button to take this ride.
The knee-length, form-hugging cocktail dress finished off with delicate jewelry and rhinestone covered stilettos whispered seductive power and made her feel strong. Or maybe that came from the anticipation of seeing Trevor again.
He captivated her. Had from their first meeting. Still did.
Serious-minded with a reputation for caring first and foremost about business, he’d allowed her glimpses of his melted-fudge heart. He’d laughed with her and shared casual dinners with her. He’d pulled her in until she cared more about the man than the job.
He’d become emotionally dangerous.
That last night together, with the city lights caressing the waters lapping at the beach, while they sat on the couch in the apartment off his office sharing pizza and tingling from sex, she’d become the dangerous one. The weapon.
She’d almost gotten him killed because she’d failed to discover Madame V’s goals or how far she’d push things to win.
Only after she’d returned to the Elegant Entertainment mansion had she overheard Madame V, her boss of the moment, boasting about how Lori had helped ensure that Trevor would sign a high-profile contract before the night—and his life—were over. She’d only barely managed to get back to Trevor’s office in time to stop his suicidal rush into traffic.
The elevator chimed with the announcement of Lori’s arrival.
Her heart slowed to a crawl. I should have found another backer.
The doors opened. In slate-gray suit pants, a crisply pressed, pale blue shirt which matched his eyes perfectly and a tie a shade darker stood the man she’d longed to see. Dreaded to see.
Trevor.
She took a step. Stopped.
Her heart trembled within its shrinking cage. Hopes, doubts, fears coalesced and lodged into a word barricade in her throat.
His long, narrow face, frozen in an I’m-on-a-mission-and-won’t-be-swayed stare, captivated her as quickly as it had the first time. Like the first time, she knew the secret to his success had to lie in part in his skill at hiding his thoughts, because knowing he was on a mission didn’t help without knowing what mission.
Not knowing made erecting defenses impossible and she needed all of them she could muster.
“Lori.” Her name, soft and even, with no inflection or hint of emotion, served as a backhand to the cheekbone. Sharp. Blinding. She shouldn’t have come to him. She should have listened to the fifteen banks unwilling to take a chance on her in the current economic climate.
Nikki’s most recent release is TANGLED IN TULLE, the first book of a new wedding planner series. Find information on this and Nikki’s other stories on her website at www.nikkiduncan.com.
Diane Burton
Intervention
I met my husband on my first and only blind date arranged by three married friends who wanted company in their misery—er, happiness. Our initial contact was a phone call that lasted over an hour and it wasn’t one sided with me doing all the yakking. We found we had so much in common including the fact that we lived across the apartment complex parking lot from each other. With me working regular hours as a teacher and him working swing shift at a steel mill, we weren’t likely to meet without our friends’ intervention. He asked me out for a drink (I think he was hedging his bet in case I was a real dog). Something clicked because the drink extended into dinner and then on to a movie. Best first date I ever had. I didn’t learn until later that a commercial I enthused about during dinner was for his company’s competitor. He obviously didn’t hold that against me as we’ve been together for nearly forty years.
About Switched, a futuristic romance
Kidnapped by aliens? By mistake? When a wise-cracking Earth girl is beamed aboard an alien starship, she meets a regular Mr. Spock. The captain’s well-organized life is turned upside down by the free-spirited Terran. Fate brings them together. Treachery tears them apart.
Excerpt from Switched
The captain walked over to a small alcove. A short shelf jutted from the wall about waist-high. “Would you care for refreshments?” he asked. “Perhaps a cup of xephod tea. You may find it quite soothing.”
“What, no Earl Grey?” Jessie smirked. “Captain Picard would offer Earl Grey.”
He rubbed the bridge of his nose then looked at her. Was that pity in his eyes? “If it eases your mind to believe this is a Star Trek convention, so be it. As Ensign Drakus pointed out that is a popular pastime for aficionados of what you Terrans consider science fiction.” He held out a steaming container.
She accepted the handleless cup and stared briefly into the depths of deep red liquid. “This isn’t some sort of drug, is it?” She sniffed. The fragrance reminded her of cinnamon and citrus. “Like you’d tell me if it was,” she muttered in self-derision.
“I will drink first to ease your mind.” He raised his own cup, inhaled the aroma, and took a swallow.
“How long before you keel over?”
He stared at her.
“Okay, okay. Just joking.” She sipped the aromatic liquid. Pure, unadulterated pleasure flowed over her tongue. As she swallowed the tea, warmth coursed down her throat and radiated outward. The tension in her neck and arms disappeared, leaving behind tranquility. “Whoa. I could really use this after a long day. I’d give my eyeteeth for some to take home. Is this stuff legal?”
The tight muscles in his face relaxed and he smiled. Good God, what a smile. The corners of his eyes crinkled in amusement. For a moment, she thought he looked familiar. But, as she stared at him, his smile disappeared and an intensity came into his eyes. Those tingly feelings started skitting over her skin again.
“Alliance Space Fleet regulations prohibit illegal substances aboard starships,” he pontificated. He had to spoil things by sounding like her dad again.
As he perched on the arm of a chair, his uniform stretched over the hard muscles of his thigh. She nearly choked on her tea. Geez, Jess, get your mind above his waist.
“You still do not believe, do you?”
“What?” Distracted, she picked up another carving. This one had antlers, a duckbill, and webbed feet.
“That is a rumiduck. It is native to my planet, Serenia.” He paused, thoughtfully. “Perhaps it is better you do not believe. That will cause you less anxiety. And if you do return to your home, you can convince yourself this was all a dream.”
“Whoever carved these had a wonderful imagina—” She whipped her head up. “What do you mean if I return home? Look, mister, I have a business to run, a loan that rivals the national debt, car payments on a truck older than me, and the IRS wants their thirteen hundred dollars in estimated taxes by next Thursday so you damn well better figure out how to get me home.” She inhaled sharply, trying to catch her breath. The calming effects of the tea had completely disappeared.
When he began to stroke his whiskerless chin, she forgot everything. Her anger, her fear. She stared at his face. Having received a few whisker burns, she wondered what it would be like to kiss a man with a face so smooth.
A jolt ran through her. What am I thinking?
“I like your spirit, Jessica Marie Wyndom.” His killer smile, coupled with his smooth baritone, struck a resonant chord deep within her.
Whew. That tea must be an aphrodisiac. Her emotions were running amok.
“You are not fearful like the others.”
Again, cold trickled down her spine. She bobbled the carving of a unicorn, the only beast she recognized. “Others?”
“Periodically, we orbit your planet. The younger members of my crew like to listen to your rock-and-roll music.” He grimaced. “I admit the music is better than the raucous sounds from Zorf. Of course, none can compare to the soothing quality of the music from my home planet, Serenia.”
Zorf? Serenia? He’s into play-acting a little too deep.
“On occasion, I have indulged my crew by allowing them to transport a rock star aboard. Like you, many thought this was a science-fiction convention. However, we did not disabuse them of that concept.”
“Why aren’t you letting me believe?”
He smiled—that killer smile again—which made her heart do a little tap dance. “You are different.” Before she could ask how, he went on. “Our purpose is research. We are observers of civilization. Yours is a primitive culture, much like we were once. We find Earth…interesting.”
She’d humor him. Maybe he had to deliver his whole spiel before admitting this was all make-believe. “Okay, if you’re really an alien from a galaxy far, far away, how come I can understand you and your crew?” She gave him a triumphant look.
“The universal translator I attached behind your ear provides two-way translations. It converts our terms into comparable concepts in your language. The Alliance is comprised of many planets whose inhabitants are of various races and species. Our translators enable us to communicate with one another.”
When he tapped the black spot behind his ear, she noticed his long, slender fingers which, like his hands, were devoid of hair.
“Without our universal translators,” he continued, “it would be impossible to communicate with the members of the Alliance or to understand the inhabitants of the primitive planets we research, like Earth.”
She ignored the reference to primitive. “So, you’re like—voyeurs?”
He frowned. “Observers.”
“This is too much. Ne
xt, you’re going to say you want to impregnate me to carry on your species because your planet is dying.”
He arched that eyebrow again. “Why would I wish to mate with an inhabitant from such a primitive culture?”
“Talk about adding insult to injury,” she huffed with exaggerated affront. “First, I’m kidnapped by aliens—by mistake, no less. And now you’re telling me no sex?” She gave him a droll look. “Bummer.”
Switched is available in e-format at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
For more information about Diane Burton—out of this world adventures—and her books, visit her website: www.dianeburton.com.
Jenna Ives
Only an Englishman Would Do
When I was 11-years-old, my 8-year-old cousin and I used to sit around my bedroom like typical young girls and daydream about what our husbands would be like. She vowed to marry Donny Osmond when she grew up, but I always insisted that I was going to marry an Englishman. Fast forward a dozen years: I’d become a real working girl, living far from home in New York City and working at a TV network job I loved, when one Saturday night I walked into a bar with two of my girlfriends and met this handsome Englishman! The minute he and I started talking, it was like we’d known each other forever. We married two years later. To this day, my cousin still teases me about it! And no, she did not marry Donny Osmond.
About Snow White and Her Seven Lovers
Snow White And Her Seven Lovers, is an erotic version of the classic fairy tale, which has our poisoned, amnesiac heroine moving in with the ER doctor who saved her life and his six best friends. It’s only until she regains her memory and can figure out who tried to kill her, but never underestimate the powerful attraction of seven gorgeous guys.
How I Met My Husband: The Real-Life Love Stories of 25 Romance Authors Page 8