Sunday Snippet: The Ex Files

Hi!

Some crazy weather this week. Back and forth, rain, sun, warm, cool. Welcome to Ohio. LOL

At least rainy weather lets me catch up on television shows I missed when they aired originally. My current obsession is Strike Back. Stonebridge and Scott kind of own my heart at the moment. J

Tonight's post if from a fun little short story, The Ex Files. Effie helps Reed out of a tricky situation and he returns the favor. J

Here's the tagline:

Effie Stone helps Reed Rettos avoid an ugly scene with his ex-girlfriend and halfway falls for him over coffee. When an old flame contacts Effie, she asks Reed to return the favor. Reed hesitates, not sure he wants to get tangled up in more drama, but he's very smitten with Effie and agrees to make it clear she's got a new man in her life…even if only for a night.

And here's the snippety peek…

Reed woke up, sixth-sense tingling, and chucked his jeans. He tiptoed into Effie's room at the exact moment knocking sounded on the door.

He shook her awake. "Game's on." He mussed his hair and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Ready?"

She threw off the covers and crawled out of bed. Reed followed her to the living room, but stayed out of sight. The persistent knocking hadn't stopped.

"Yeah, I'm coming. Hold on." Effie unlocked the door and yanked it open. "John. What a surprise. You do realize it's only six a.m., right?"

He propped a shoulder on the door jamb, effectively making it impossible for her to close him out. "I knew you wouldn't mind. Just got back in from 'Bama. Thought we could start the weekend off with a bang."

Reed took that as his cue. Mussing his hair up a little more, he stumbled around the corner. "Effie? What's going on? You need to come back to bed—" He stopped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Who's this? Your brother?"

Effie laughed. "Um, no. Reed, meet John. My ex." She emphasized the last word.

Reed nuzzled her neck then stuck out his hand. "Nice to meet you? Did you leave something behind?"

John's countenance changed, going from affable to closed off. "What is this, Effie? You're with this guy now?"

Effie eased away from Reed, but kept her arm around his waist. "John, it's been over six months. Did you think I'd never find anyone else?"

I love writing fun little instant sparks and seeing where things go. Effie and Reed don't want the attraction, but they're not fighting it all that hard either. J

That's it for this week. Happy reading.

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Calling Bull

Hello! First up, I'm happy to say I'll be celebrating twenty-four years of marriage as of tomorrow, April 22.

I'm lucky enough to have found a great guy who puts up with my overwhelming need to write and create. He may not always get the why, but he gets the need and stands behind me. Pretty great, no?

Happy anniversary, wonderful man!

Tonight's post is from a short story entitled, Calling Bull. It could expand out to a full novella, but right now the characters are focused on each other in three scenes. A fourth is niggling in the background but hasn't fleshed itself out yet. J

Here's the tagline:

No one knows Ivy better than Ward. A fact she truly hates sometimes. But when he pushes her into a corner, she either comes out swinging or learns to forgive and forget.

Here's the snippety peek…

"Bullshit!"

"Bullshit!"

Ward's mouth snapped shut the same moment Ivy's dropped open.

Her finger jabbed him in the chest. "I called it first." She whirled around and stalked toward the door.

Ward snorted. "You did not. I've been calling it for years, Ivy. Years." He drew the word out for emphasis.

She stopped, her shoulders going squared. Her head tilted to the side and Ward braced for impact. Or an uppercut to the jaw.

Neither came.

Ivy slowly turned, facing him and holding his gaze. He'd be damned if he'd look away first.

He didn't have to. Ivy got a faraway quality in her eyes, and when she opened her mouth, she spoke very, very quietly.

"Your words may be true, but this time, Ward…this time you crossed a line." Her gaze snapped back, clear and focused. "And I'm definitely putting you on notice. Do not ever go there again."

She calmly turned around and exited the room. Not even slamming the door as usual.

His nostrils flared. He wouldn't have to go there if she'd just take a damn moment and think before she acted. Just once.

Right. Ivy rarely thought anything through, working on pure instinct and gut reactions. He'd been harsh, bringing up her partner's death, but hells bells, she'd damned near gotten a rookie killed with her balls to the wall, high speed chase last night.

Gotta love it when your immediate superior knows exactly which button to push to get a reaction. LOL

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Down in Mexico

April 14, 2013

Hello! After having temps that dipped back down into the brisk and brr!, we got some lovely weather again today. YAY! Rest of the week is looking good, too. Again…YAY!!

Tonight's post is from a current release, Down in Mexico. I'm working on the follow up and wanted to revisit Lars and Kiernan. I have a special place in my heart for this couple and their story. J

Here's the tagline:

Kiernan Darby spends five long years playing dead, living life in limbo, but it lets Lars Rademacher do his job and eliminate members of a lethal crime syndicate. Lars tracks Kiernan down in Mexico and their reunion is sweet…until Lars reveals a pesky detail he forgot to mention.

And here's the snippety peek…

Kiernan Darby had spent the last five long years on her own.

She'd built up a solid clientele at her diving school—tucked away from the truly touristy parts of Mexico—and she restored boats on the side. Sailboats only—nothing with engines. She kept a low profile about the restoration…she couldn't afford to draw the wrong kind of attention to herself.

She'd disappeared without a trace for a reason and needed it to stay that way.

Flat on her back, refinishing the hull of a sadly neglected thirty-two footer, Kiernan looked through the decay to the beauty it could be again. She hummed along to some salsa music blaring from her Mp3 player and worked to remove a patch of dry rot. Maybe her sixth sense kicked in…or plain old self-preservation, but she looked sideways through the stripped-to-the-studs bottom portion of her shed to see a pair of bare feet—bare male feet—making their way along the outer drive and headed toward her.

An eerie feeling gripped her and she scooted out from under the boat, slowly and quietly, keeping those incredibly awesome legs within her sight. She stepped toward the open bay door, her gun a quick grab away, and ended up shocked speechless by what she saw.

Sort of saw. The sun glared from behind, but she had no trouble making out the bad Hawaiian shirt, unbuttoned to show a glimpse of the buff male form underneath, nor did she miss the beat up denim cargo shorts, complete with frayed hems. The hair threw her. Long and shaggy, the trade winds created a mad-scientist type look that warred with the aviator shades hiding the rest of his face.

Even with all that, she knew who had found her. Time hung, and the hand hovering close to the hidden gun quickly dropped to her side as his name hissed out on a breath. "Lars."

He took a step toward her, but stopped just short of touching her. "Hey." The grin that lit his face had her own answering back.

"Hey." Her eyes squinting, she watched him remove his shades and toss them over his shoulder.

"Everyone believes you're dead." His hand lifted, but stopped, like he couldn't be sure she wouldn't disappear if he touched her. "I thought you were dead."

"I am dead." And she had to stay that way.

He finally broke down and reached for her hand, holding it in his, his thumb making circular motions over her skin, sending tingles along her arm. The look in his eyes, those wicked, wonderful blue eyes, took her breath away. The naked expression and myriad of emotions in his almost undid her. As usual, when things got intense…they communicated without speaking.

Five years.

Yeah.

Why?

You know why.

It sucks.

Yeah.

I thought…

I know…you had to.

He would've spent all his time looking for her instead of the people who 'killed' her.

They both knew it.

A ghost of a smile hit his eyes.

But not anymore.

No?

No. It's safe. You're safe.

Kiernan almost buckled, her relief palpable. "So…it worked." She waited a beat. "Took you guys long enough."

Lars laughed. And, God, it sounded wonderful. She'd missed that almost more than anything else.

"It wasn't easy chasing down everyone in that little operation."

She could only imagine. And she didn't want to know how many they'd lost doing so. It would make her depressed.

She smiled instead…because she hadn't lost him. "God, it's good to see you." She tugged Lars forward and wrapped her arms around him.

He was solid. Real. Here.

They were free.

It finally hit her.

Free.

To be together.

And she wanted him. Needed him.

Now.

Right this moment.

*sigh* Needless to say their reunion gets hot and heavy lickety split. LOL

Click to buy

Hope you enjoyed! That's it for this week. Happy reading.

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Toying with Desire

April 7, 2013

Hello! Had a lovely, lovely spring weather day. Sooooo nice to get outside and enjoy it. All day long. LOL

Tonight's post is about Toying with Desire, a manuscript about halfway completed. Carly and Zeke have been so much fun to write. And Carly's best friend Todd is a hoot to make up dialog for. :D

Here's the tagline:

Carly Johnson, a savvy business owner who sells sex toys, isn't looking for love…her track record is terrible. But when she meets Zeke Moran, under less than stellar circumstances, sparks fly and Carly wants to take a chance…but first he has to get over his preconceived ideas about her career.

And here's the snippety peek…

"Just what in the hell do you think you're doing?"

Carly Johnson looked up from the conversation she'd been engaged in to see what caused all the fuss...or whom.

Oh my. Yum in the flesh. Tall, with dark hair that brushed his shirt collar and muscles that moved nicely underneath the fabric. Oh, and about a days growth of stubble on his face.

She had a weakness for that.

Mr. Scruffy Good-Looking stormed past the tables, headed in her direction. Apparently his question had been for her.  

Carly blinked and tilted her head sideways a bit. What did he mean?

She'd find out soon enough. Scruffy Good-Looking stopped just inches from her, standing toe to toe, up close and personal like.

"You've got no right telling my sister—" He broke off abruptly.

Must've realized every eye in the room had become trained on him. Like he'd sold tickets to a floor show…and he'd just offered himself as the main attraction.

He took a moment and lowered his voice with a visible effort. "You've got no right telling her…well…what you told her."

Carly didn't look away from the angry man. Shocked at his verbal attack, she noticed two things. All attention focused on them and Todd, her best friend, had risen from his seat and stood, watchfully, ready to do battle.

She held her hand up and shook her head. She didn't need assistance. It did her proud that although he remained standing, he relaxed his stance.

And that let her focus on Mr. SGL. Who happened to be still in her face. "First? Step. Back." Carly spoke quietly, but her tone brooked no argument. "Invading my personal space does not guarantee I'll listen to, or hear anything, you say." When he took a step backwards, she breathed a little easier. "Thank you."

She pushed away from the bar and glanced around to see all eyes still on them. "Second? If you'd like to discuss whatever your drama is, I'll be happy to accommodate you." She threw up a warning hand when his mouth opened again. "But let's take it outside, okay?" She didn't wait for his answer…just neatly sidestepped around him to head for the door.

"Why?" His voice rose again. "Afraid to answer in front of all these good people?" It was almost sneered instead of spoken. "Scared they'll think less of you?"

Carly turned. "Oh…I'm not worried for me." She'd known most of the people in the bar over half her life. "I'm not ashamed of what I do." She smiled prettily.  "I was actually trying to spare you the public humiliation of making a complete ass out of yourself, but hey…a little late for that." She shoved at the door. "I'll give you five minutes…then I'm outta here." Again, she didn't wait for a response. She walked outside and let the chilly night air cool her down.

Ohh, boy. Zeke's got his work cut out. I have a feeling Carly is not at all what he expected. LOL

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin