LOVE FOR THE HOLIDAYS

LOVE FOR THE HOLIDAYS

by Noelle Adams, Samantha Chase, Rachel Curtis and Zoe York

BLURB for LOVE FOR THE HOLIDAYS:

From fake relationships to secret affairs to best friends falling in love, everything changes at Christmas.

This holiday bundle includes five stories, from steamy to sweet, including two new, exclusive stories from New York Times bestselling authors.

HOLIDAY HEAT by Noelle Adams - After being hit with heartbreaking tragedy, Carrie has thrown herself into a hot, secret relationship with Matt. With Christmas approaching, she realizes she might want even more from her sexy, damaged artist, but the boundaries around their relationship make anything deeper than sex impossible. A new, steamy romance.

MISTLETOE BETWEEN FRIENDS by Samantha Chase - Lily and Cam have been friends all their lives, and their relationship has never been romantic. But when they pretend to be dating so they can spend the holiday with their families in peace, they realize their fake romance might actually be real. A new, sweet romance.

THE CHRISTMAS COTTAGE by Samantha Chase - Spending the night trapped by a blizzard in a romantic Christmas cottage with the man she's loved for years has Lacey wondering if fairy tales really do come true. A sweet romance.

EIGHT CHRISTMAS EVES by Rachel Curtis - One Christmas Eve, Cyrus Owen, the over-indulged teenage son of a wealthy businessman, finds ten-year-old Helen on the side of the road. Eleven years later, he is desperately in love with her. This is how it happens... A mostly sweet romance.

WHAT ONCE WAS PERFECT by Zoe York - For Laney, the worst part of returning to her hometown for Christmas is confronting Kyle, the man who broke her heart twelve years ago. When they rediscover their perfect chemistry, Kyle has to convince Laney to let him back into her heart. A steamy romance.

Excerpt from MISTLETOE BETWEEN FRIENDS by Samantha Chase

“Focus, Lily!” he snapped and then immediately apologized for his tone.  “The holidays are here, my friend.  That means that there will be a steady stream of parties and get-togethers that we are going to be forced to go to and will have potential spouses thrown at us from every angle.”

“Personally I’m waiting for them to just position us at the foot of the driveway with mistletoe over our heads and signs taped to our chests that say ‘Please marry us’.”  The thought sent a shiver down her spine because she was really only partially kidding.  Lately her mother had really seemed to kick up the campaign to marry Lily off.  Not a day went by where Lily wasn’t asked if she’d met anyone decent or what her plans were for the future.

Dealing with her mother was an exhaustive full-time job within itself.

“I think it’s safe to say,” Cam began, breaking into her train of thought, “that neither of us is looking forward to another holiday season spent ducking and weaving through get-togethers to avoid the match-making patrol.  Agreed?”

“Agreed.  But what choice do we have?  Other than packing our bags right now and both of us moving overseas to get away from the insanity?”

“I’m being serious here.”

“You’re always serious, Cam.  I’m trying to get you to break that habit.”  When she got no response from him she sighed with annoyance.  “Okay, what do you have in mind?”

“We take ourselves off of the market.  If we’re involved with other people, they can’t spend their time trying to marry us off.”

“But we’re not involved with other people; that’s the problem.  Isn’t that what we’ve been talking about for the last hour?  I’m so confused…”

“You’re not confused, Lily, and don’t play the ditzy card with me,” he said patiently.  “I’m saying that we pretend that we are involved.  We.  You and me.”

Buy links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Love-Holidays-Christmas-bundle-ebook/dp/B00GH2TTR0/

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-for-the-holidays-noelle-adams/1117334641

All Romance eBooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-lovefortheholidaysfivebookchristmasbundle-1338079-166.html

The authors will be awarding a $25 GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour!

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Noelle Adams, Samantha Chase, Rachel Curtis, and Zoe York are four bestselling authors of fun, smart, and contemporary romance, from sweet to sexy, who are collaborating on this holiday anthology.

Beginning on December 11, LOVE FOR THE HOLIDAYS will be on sale for just $.99!

Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/UNVyuN88VEQ or embed code:

Author websites:

http://noelle-adams.com/

http://www.chasing-romance.com/

http://rachelcurtisauthor.com

http://zoeyork.com/

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CASSIE SCOT PARANORMAL DETECTIVE BY CHRISTINE AMSDEN

Cassie Scot Mystery Series

by Christine Amsden

Interview with Christine:

What is the first curse word that comes to mind?  How often and why do you use it?

Damn. I use it too often, to be honest, whenever any little thing goes wrong. My son is starting to say it. We'll probably both need to go on the quarter system soon.

 How would you spend ten thousand bucks?

Alaskan Cruise. Or Mediterranean. Choices...choices...

What are 5 things within touching distance?

My mug of Crystal Light. My audiobook player (A big clunky thing with big buttons for the blind and physically handicapped. I'm legally blind and listen to most of the books I read for pleasure.) My to-do list. An mp3 player. Some random wires.

Do you have a crush on anyone?

I'm very happily married. (I don't think you can have a crush on your own husband. At least, it doesn't feel like the crushes I remember from my single days. It feels infinitely warmer and safer.)

What is your least favorite word?

I won't say or type it but it's four letters long and begins with a 'c.'

CASSIE SCOT: PARANORMAL DETECTIVE, book one, Blurb:

Cassie Scot is the ungifted daughter of powerful sorcerers, born between worlds but belonging to neither. At 21, all she wants is to find a place for herself, but earning a living as a private investigator in the shadow of her family’s reputation isn’t easy. When she is pulled into a paranormal investigation, and tempted by a powerful and handsome sorcerer, she will have to decide where she truly belongs.

Excerpt From CASSIE SCOTT: PARANORMAL DETECTIVE:

When we went back downstairs, I noticed a door leading to a screened-in back porch and started to turn the handle when my hand froze on the doorknob. My whole body stiffened, and my mouth went dry, so it took me several tries to alert Evan to what I'd seen.

“I found her,” I finally managed, in barely a whisper.

Nancy Hastings, Evan's sixteen-year-old cousin, lay in a pool of her own blood, eyes vacant and staring. Her hair had been a rich, luminous brown but was now matted with blood. It looked as if her throat had been torn out.

“No!” The cry tore from his throat and before I had a chance to stop him, Evan was inside the room and leaning over the body, looking for any sign of life, and probably destroying any trace evidence the police might have collected. But I couldn't blame him. I would have reacted precisely the same way, if it had been my family. As it was, I had to wipe away tears before I could get to my phone and call the sheriff. The need for secrecy had passed.

“Sheriff's department, this is Jane Conway.”

“Jane, it's Cassie. You need to get out to Belinda Hewitt's house right away. There's been a murder.” I hung up before she could ask for more details.

Slowly, Evan rose to his feet and made his way back into the house with me. He had smeared the blood and left footprints on the floor, but somehow none of it had ended up on him. Or if it had, then he had some way of removing it.

“The police are on their way,” I said, not sure if he would be upset with me for calling. Probably not. He looked too shocked to care.

“Yeah.” He leaned against a wall and closed his eyes.

“You should call your uncle.”

“Can I borrow your phone?” Evan asked. “Master Wolf doesn't believe in phones.”

SECRETS AND LIES, book two, Blurb:

Cassie Scot, still stinging from her parents’ betrayal, wants out of the magical world. But it isn’t letting her go. Her family is falling apart and despite everything, it looks like she may be the only one who can save them.

To complicate matters, Cassie owes Evan her life, making it difficult for her to deny him anything he really wants. And he wants her. Sparks fly when they team up to find two girls missing from summer camp, but long-buried secrets may ruin their hopes for happiness.

 Excerpt From SECRETS AND LIES:

The door opened with a jingle, and something in the air told me my day had just gone from bad to worse.

“Edward,” Victor said, as if greeting an old friend.

I faced my former father for the first time since he had announced his intention to disown me. He looked just as he always had, with straight dark hair, brown eyes, a long, angular face, and a wide, curving mouth – curving downward into a frown, that is.

If Victor was the last person I had expected to see in the diner that morning, then my former father was the last person I wanted to see. Even now, with Victor explaining my part in his unusual scheme for revenge, I didn't want my former father nearby. I didn't want his help. I only hoped Nicolas and Juliana hadn't broken their promise and told him about the life debt, or I would never hear the end of it.

The air crackled with visible tension. Sparks of shimmering red fire danced around my father's head. Behind the counter, Mrs. Meyers twisted her hands together anxiously, as if afraid her diner might burn down. Her fears were not unjustified.

I stepped boldly between them, facing my father. “What are you doing here?”

“We need to talk,” he said.

“I have nothing to say to you. You disowned me, remember?”

The color seemed to drain from his face as he stared past me, at his oldest enemy.

Victor raised his water glass in a mock toast. “I've known for some time. If it makes you feel any worse, so does everyone else in town who hasn't been asleep for a week. Or at least, they guess.”

“I don't care what you think you know. Stay away from my daughter.” With that, he grabbed my arm with a hand hot enough to leave a reddened imprint on my skin, and dragged me through the kitchen to the employee room at the back. Only then did he release my injured forearm.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 

Christine Amsden

Award-winning author Christine Amsden has written stories since she was eight, always with a touch of the strange or unusual. She became a “serious” writer in 2003, after attending a boot camp with Orson Scott Card. She finished TOUCH OF FATE shortly afterward, then penned THE IMMORTALITY VIRUS, which won two awards. Expect many more titles by this up-and-coming author.

  

Website: http://christineamsden.com/wordpress/

Blog: http://christineamsden.com/wordpress/?page_id=200

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChristineAmsden

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Christine-Amsden-Author-Page/127673027288664?ref=hl

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1030664.Christine_Amsden

Google+ https://plus.google.com/u/0/117845642477854934607/posts

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FORBIDDEN FUTURE - A TIME TRAVEL ANTHOLOGY AND GIVEAWAY

Forbidden Future

A Time Travel Anthology

Publication Date: September 12, 2013

Publisher: Masquerade Publishing

Genre: Time Travel/Fantasy

Cover Designed by: Raphyel M. Jordan

FORBIDDEN FUTURE is on sale through Saturday, December 7, 2013 for only  99 cents!

"Jump"

by Jon Bradbury

Jesse Kendall's fiancee is missing, ever since she answered a strange ad. His only lead is a deserted warehouse downtown. In that warehouse he will find so much more than he bargained for.

"Road Trip"

by Matt Mitrovich
Four friends drive to a college party and take an unexpected detour into the future.



"Society"

by Terra Harmony
Take a ride on the 'Energy of the Future', where society gets a fresh, clean start – no matter who they have to leave behind.



"Forbidden Future"

by James Wymore

A time machine technician has given his whole life to the pure scientific pursuit of the study of time travel.  When his personal life falls apart, he decides to risk it all and take a trip into the future.  First, he must remove a failsafe blocking the machine from traveling to the future.  What could be so bad that they tried to stop anybody from seeing it?


"The Mountains Haven't"

by Kade Anderson

     The people of the town of Dignity go about their daily lives, trying to scrape out a meager existence from the dirt and the dust of their land, never taking notice of the mountains that loom in the distance. To the others, the mountains are benign, as harmless as the grass their cows graze upon. To the town's Watcher, Julia, the mountains hold the key to a far greater mystery.

Amazon  |  Goodreads

Jon Bradbury

Jon Bradbury is the writer of 11 erotic romance eBooks including Sugar Daddy and Worst Kept Secret. He lives and works in Reno, Nevada. He is a full time writer thanks to the never ending Great Recession. He is currently and probably permanently single.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter 

Matt Mitrovich

Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. His new short story "Road Trip" can be found in Forbidden Future: A Time Travel Anthology. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

Terra Harmony

Terra is author of the eco-fantasy novels in the Akasha Series, 'Water', 'Air', 'Fire' and 'Earth', as well as the Painted Maidens Trilogy. Terra was born and raised in Colorado but has since lived in California, Texas, Utah, North Carolina, and Virginia.  Terra has served a 5½ year enlistment in the Marine Corp, has earned her bachelor's and master's degree and presently runs the language services division of a small business. Terra currently lives in a suburb of Washington, DC with her husband of 14 years and three children.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter

James Wymore

On a lifelong search for fantastic worlds hiding just out of sight, James Wymore writes to explore. With three books and six short stories in print after just one year, he continues to push the boundaries of imagination.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

Kade Anderson

Kade Anderson is a writer from Atlanta, Georgia specializing in science fiction, fantasy, and occasionally finance.  "The Mountains Haven't" is her first published short story, but she has also written two novels and co-written several screenplays, including the upcoming web series Life Online.  You can read the less interesting bits of Kade's writing on her blog or follow her on Twitter.  Both feature frequent references to her habit of buying more books than she can read, and pictures of her pet rabbit, Epinephrine.

Website  |  Twitter

JeriWB, Editor

JeriWB writes short stories, creative nonfiction, and psychological suspense. The rough Idaho mining town she grew up in populates her literary landscape. She also works as a freelance editor.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

James Lauren & Michael Trimmer

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CHRISTMAS IN MINNESOTA

By Lyn Horner

I was born in San Francisco, California, but moved to Minnesota with my parents when I was not quite four years old. My mother was from Montgomery, a small town fifty miles southwest of Minneapolis, where we lived. The town had been settled mainly by Czech immigrants in the latter half of the 19^th century. They called themselves Bohemian rather than Czech because they came from Bohemia, a former kingdom in the Holy Roman Empire, now a portion of the Czech Republic.

Every Christmas we drove down to Montgomery to my Grandma and Grandpa Novotny’s house, where we gathered with my aunts, uncles and cousins. Occasionally the drive could be treacherous on icy roads, but Daddy always got us there safely, although I sometimes suffered bouts of motion sickness. My stomach still acts up that way now and then.

Grandma was a wonderful cook, as were my mom and her three sisters. The main dish was never turkey; rather, it varied between chicken, duck or goose which were either purchased at the local butcher shop or brought home by Grandpa, the uncles and my older male cousins. They all loved to hunt and fish. Grandpa was also a fur buyer, meaning he bought skins from hunters, stretched and cleaned them before shipping them off to buyers in the east. The basement was his work room, and there was a strong odor down there. The cousins and I had strict orders never to open the basement door.

Not that was cared. We were too busy chasing each other around the house, playing hide and seek, tag and whatever games we favored back then. Of course the kitchen was off limits unless we wanted our bottoms paddled. The cooks did not like kids underfoot, a sentiment I understand now that I have a few grandkids of my own.

By the time dinner was on the kitchen table – a table now sitting in my kitchen – we were all drooling over the heavenly smells. After filling our plates we spread out in the parlor and kitchen, some at tables, others on the couch or chairs, balancing the delectable feast on our laps. The house was small, you see, but we didn’t mind. The more the merrier!

Later, when dinner had been digested, partly at least, came dessert time. Oh, the cakes and pies! My mom was the official pie baker. That woman made the best pie crust, light and flaky as any French pastry. She never used a recipe, just did it from memory. I gave up trying to copy her technique decades ago.

Shortly before sundown, which came around 5:00 or 5:30, it was time for us to say goodbye and head home to the city. I can’t remember if Grandma and Grandpa ever gave me and their other grandkids any Christmas gifts, material ones that is, but they gave us the best gift of all, a Christmas family gathering to remember,

Now I’d like to share a bit of my Christmas short story:

CHRISTMAS COOKIES FOR TRISTAN

Tristan tensed when he saw a striking auburn-haired woman hand her coat to a butler in the penthouse foyer and walk into the crowded living room. He’d never met her, he was certain, yet he felt instantly drawn to her. Despite his avoidance of female companionship over the past two years, his pulse quickened and the chatter of partygoers faded away as he watched her.

She wore a cranberry red dress with tiny cap sleeves that went surprisingly well with her mahogany hair. Smiling brightly, she exchanged air kisses with Johanna Cantrell, their hostess and Tristan’s distant cousin, who had opened up her lavish Park Avenue suite for this early Christmas party. So gracious of her, everyone agreed. Of course they all knew tonight’s party was aimed at garnering backers for the lady’s upcoming mayoral campaign.

The redhead had arrived unescorted. Was she a personal friend of Johanna’s or some high-placed business executive who might be convinced to throw her support behind the candidate? Tristan doubted it was the latter. She didn’t look old enough to fill such a role.

Curious to discover her identity, he edged his way through the crowd and followed the woman down a hall toward the kitchen, admiring the slender curves revealed by her subtly flowing skirt. Members of the catering staff buzzed past like worker bees, carrying empty food trays to be refilled and filled ones back out to the buffet table in the spacious living room, or salon as Cousin Johanna called it.

Pausing in the kitchen’s open doorway, Tristan leaned against the door jam and observed the redhead as she held out a large Christmas tin to a portly, bearded man in a white chef’s uniform. 

“Please arrange these cookies on a tray and set them out with the other desserts,” she said in a low, smoky voice reminiscent of actress Kathleen Turner’s.

The man scowled. “Madame, I personally prepare all food for every event I cater, including the desserts.”

“Oh, but I baked these especially for tonight as a gift for Jo . . . I mean Mrs. Cantrell. She told me to bring them back here for you to serve.”

“I doubt that, young woman,” the pompous ass sneered. “That good woman knows I never allow anything prepared by another hand to be served at one of my events.”

“Are you calling me a liar?” The redhead’s voice shook slightly, either with distress or anger.

Having heard enough, Tristan strode to the woman’s side. “There you are. What’s taking so long? I want one of your famous cookies.”

She turned her head and stared at him with eyes as green as the emerald broach pinned to her demurely cut bodice. A light blush bloomed on her cheeks, lending her ivory features a delightful glow. “Do I know you, sir?”

“Not yet, but I’ve heard of you . . . and your cookies.” Lifting the rather heavy tin from her hands, he extended it to the uncooperative chef. “My good man, set out the lady’s cookies on your best tray. Mrs. Cantrell is waiting to try them. So am I.”

Available exclusively from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Cookies-Tristan-Lyn-Horner-ebook/dp/B00GHP4PXU

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lyn Horner

Lyn Horner resides in Fort Worth, Texas with her husband and several very spoiled cats. Trained in the visual arts, Lyn worked as a fashion illustrator and art instructor. After quitting work to raise her children, she took up writing as a creative outlet. This hobby grew into a love of research and the crafting of passionate love stories based on that research.

The author says, "Writing a book is much like putting together a really big jigsaw puzzle. It requires endless patience and stubborn determination to see your ideas come to life, and once hooked on the process, you're forever addicted."

Find out more about Lyn and her books here:

http://www.amazon.com/author/lyn.horner.award-winning.books

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CHERYL ROBINSON BLOG TOUR AND GIVEAWAY

Like Mom

by Cheryl Robinson

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LIKE MOM Blurb:

Determined to lose weight, Nevada Pearson participates in a twelve-week clinical trial for a new diet pill. Nevada thinks if she’s slim, her life will be so much better. She won’t have to wear dark clothes to hide her big belly and can kiss the plus sizes good-bye. Her husband will stop ogling every skinny woman in sight, and she’ll stop accusing him of cheating. She won’t have to worry that he’ll leave her the way her dad left her mom. She can stop ranting on her YouTube channel about being fat. She’ll get promoted at work. Her fifteen-year-old daughter will want to lose weight, too, instead of staying holed up in her bedroom eating junk food and surfing the Internet for a cure to her social anxiety. But Nevada isn’t prepared for what happens next and how quickly her life changes—and it has nothing to do with her amazing weight loss.  

Cheryl will be awarding a $50 Amazon Gift Card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. 

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:
http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/03/virtual-super-book-blast-like-mom-by.html

Excerpt from LIKE MOM:

Nevada

This upcoming year is the year,” Claude said. “If I don’t get promoted, I’m leaving.”

“And going where?” I asked. I had a right to know, unless he planned on going alone, and then I truly had a right to know.

“I don’t care where: wherever I can get a job. What, you want to live in Indiana forever?”

I shrugged. “I wouldn’t mind. I mean, it’s what I know.”

He rolled his eyes dismissively at me. “Let’s dissect what you just said—”

I crossed my eyes after I turned my head to the side. No, let’s not. Sometimes, I just wanted to tell him to shut up with all of his change-your-life stuff. I had Oprah for that, and she was much better at motivating me than Claude was. Listening to her made me think I really could change my life. Listening to him made me think I’d made a mistake by marrying him in the first place, and that I’d messed up my life forever. But I’d felt the same way on our wedding day, so nothing had changed.

“I don’t want to dissect it.”

 “But what you just said is how a lot of people feel. A lot of people stay with something just because it’s familiar. It’s what they know. May not even be something they want. Next year should be the year of the unknown. That could be the title for my first book; I need to write it down.” He searched the table for something to write on because once he sat down he wasn’t getting up until after he finished eating. “Do you have a pen and some paper?”

I got up and grabbed the first sheet of paper I saw and handed it to him along with a pen and then sat back down. Before he wrote on the paper, he turned it over. “Do you need this?”

“It’s just a blank sheet of paper, isn’t it?”

“It’s a shipping notice from Curl—.”

I snatched the paper out of his hand—close call; it was the shipping notice from Curl Junkie for the box of hair products UPS had delivered that day. Claude would have a fit if he saw that I’d spent over a hundred dollars on stuff for my hair. But I had to spend at least a hundred dollars to get free shipping, which made sense while I was filling my online shopping cart with more stuff, but the more I thought about it, I only wanted the Daily Fix and the Smoothing Lotion, which would’ve been forty-nine dollars, and the flat rate shipping was only seven dollars and twenty-five cents, so basically, I paid fifty-one dollars more to save seven dollars and twenty-five cents. But it made perfect sense to me at the time.

Amazon purchase link:

http://www.amazon.com/Like-Mom-ebook/dp/B00FW6PYD0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1381848472&sr=1-1&keywords=Like+Mom

 

Cheryl Robinson, Author

Cheryl Robinson is a native Detroiter currently residing in Central Florida. She started her literary career as an independent author, publishing two books before eventually landed a publishing deal with Penguin/NAL Trade. She published six novels with NAL Trade and two more novels as an independent author. She is currently working on her next novel. Visit her Website at cherylrobinson.com, where you can read her blog and enter her monthly blog contest.

Website link

http://cherylrobinson.com/books/like-mom/  

Thanks for stopping by! 

COMPROMISING MISS TISDALE BY JESSICA JEFFERSON

COMPROMISING MISS TISDALE

By

Jessica Jefferson

COMPROMISING MISS TISDALE Blurb:

  

Ambrosia Tisdale is the very picture of propriety and the epitome of what a respectable young lady should be. Haunted by a memory and compelled by her family, she pursues perfection to a fault.

The Earl of Bristol, Duncan Maddox, has returned to London after years of familial imposed exile. As the second son, he has led a life filled with frivolity, leisure, and a healthy dose of debauchery. Now his older brother has died, leaving the family’s flailing legacy in Duncan’s unwilling arms.

At the behest of his uncle, Duncan is advised to do the one thing that could provide instant fortune and respectability – he must marry. But there is only one prospect who meets the unique requirements to solve all the Earl’s problems – the lovely Miss Ambrosia Tisdale. But securing the prudent daughter of a Viscount’s hand proves to be more challenging than this scandal ridden second son of an Earl has bargained for.

With scandal, extortion, treachery, and even love itself threatening to keep him from his goal, will Duncan succeed in compromising Miss Tisdale?

COMPROMISING MISS TISDALE Excerpt :

She had stumbled upon the library.  A fire in the hearth threw a faint glow over leather lined volumes that filled floor to ceiling book shelves.   Lavishly upholstered plush arm chairs sat upon Aubusson rugs scattered throughout the room.  A settee was positioned across from a giant stone faced fireplace where a shirtless man sat warming his hands.

Shirtless man?

Ambrosia blinked.

 Certainly, her eyes were playing tricks on her. 

Then the shirtless man turned his head, his eyes meeting hers.  

It wasn’t a hallucination-he was real.   She hadn’t been expecting to find a partially dressed man, and he obviously wasn’t expecting to be found.   It was but a moment before the man’s expression began to soften and a wicked smile slowly crept across his lips. 

 A smile that stole the breath right from out of her. 

 Every gently bred fiber in her body screamed to turn around and run straight out the door.  Hundreds of years of proper English rearing had produced a base instinct to flee when in the presence of an unknown male (especially one with so little clothing).  But then he stood up, cautiously, the way one does as if not to startle a deer.  Standing, he was clad in nothing but buckskin breeches, the dim light from the flames playing over the sculpted muscles and sinew of his shoulders and chest. 

Breeding be damned, her feet simply refused to budge. 

About the Author

Jessica Jefferson

Jessica Jefferson makes her home in northern Indiana, or as she likes to think of it – almost Chicago.  Jessica originally attended college in hopes of achieving an English degree and writing the next great American novel.  Ten years later she was working as a registered nurse and reading historical romance when she decided to give writing another go-round.   

Jessica writes likes she speaks, which has a tendency to be fast paced and humorous.  Jessica is heavily inspired by sweeping, historical romance novels, but aims to take those key emotional elements and inject a fresh blend of quick dialogue and comedy to transport the reader into a story they miss long after the last page is read.  She invites you to visit her at jessicajefferson.com and read her random romance musings.

http://www.jessicajefferson.com/

Like me at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-Jefferson/

Follow me at https//twitter.com/authorJessicaJ

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HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. I suspect each of you do also. No matter how perilous life seems at times, we are much better off than many others. Our daughters will be joining us to celebrate a traditional dinner with turkey, cornbread dressing, gravy, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, spinach souffle, asparagus casserole, and pecan pie with ice cream for dessert. Oh, dear, I think I gained weight just writing the menu. Hero is preparing dinner, except for the pie which Darling Daughter 2 is bringing. I'm bringing my appetite. ☺ DD2 is gluten free and vegetarian, and DD1 has allergies. Both are allergic to sweet potatoes in case you wondered why they aren't on the menu. I'm allergic to pumpkin. For years I cooked with those things in mind but now I've turned the kitchen over to Hero. He takes all that into consideration when he plans the meal. Impossible to have every dish suit every person, but he does an amazing job. The gravy and dressing are made with vegetable stock, so our vegetarian can eat it.

Are you one of those brave souls entering the Black Friday crush? Darling Daughter 2 and I will be plotting our shopping strategy. We will venture out and bravely wend our way through throngs to get the gift for which Hero had dropped hints. Hints? They would have broken my foot if they had landed there. ☺

We won't forget to give thanks for all the blessings that have come our way this year.

Thanks to those of you who have read my books, told friends about them, and have left reviews. You are the best! 

I am so lucky to be doing what I love day after day. 

Me doing what I love

In the meantime, here are my literary accomplishments this year:

(hint, hint) Books make lovely gifts and can save all that weaving through crowds.

Just order online from Amazon for print and ebook and from Smashwords and others for ebooks. The print book will arrive in your mail box and you don't have to spend gasoline, time, and energy. You'll please the recipient while you save yourself all that bother.

BLUEBONNET BRIDE has proven one of my most popular books and stayed in Amazon's top 100 western romances for many weeks. It's the third in my Men of Stone Mountain series. My friend Nelda Liles generously gave me the bluebonnet photo from shots she took at the Ennis Bluebonnet Trail. The woman's photos is from iStock and Hero combined the two.

TABITHA'S JOURNEY is a novella I enjoyed writing and received excellent reviews. It's the first novella I've written in a few years, and is a spin off of the Men of Stone Mountain series. Many readers enjoy a shorter read. Do you think the girl on the cover looks as if she's a proper Boston beauty who traveled west? She's a mail-order bride. I've always wanted to write a mail-order bride story, and this one has a twist.

Frankly, I like writing longer books so I can include more devious machinations. I like lots of mayhem and murder in my books, don't you? Oh yes, and always a happy ending.

For the first time I bundled three books into a boxed set at a reduced cost to the reader in the MEN OF STONE MOUNTAIN set. This set contains two award winning books, BRAZOS BRIDE and HIGH STAKES BRIDE..

THE MOST UNSUITABLE COURTSHIP received excellent reviews and I'm still promoting it. If you haven't read this third book in the Kincaid series, please do so now. The hero of this story is Storm Kincaid, younger half brother of the sisters in the first two books. The heroine is a bit different, as she is from Bavaria and has just learned English. This cover is by Kim Killion.

At www.audible.com, BRAZOS BRIDE, narrated by Valerie Gilbert, is available. It's also available from Amazon. I love the way Valerie has brought the story to life. This is the first time I've had an audio book. I'll be telling you more about that with an audio sample next week. As I mentioned above, this is an award winning book.

Eight friends and I also bundled a boxed set of our books titled NINE WAYS TO FALL IN LOVE. We had so much fun with a month long launch party and met some wonderful readers.

Thanksgiving turkey in Stetson courtesy of Lyn Horner

On a personal note, I'm thankful we moved into a snug little home near many of my friends and near stores and restaurants and everything we need. I love our house and location. Now, if I could just get everything unpacked and in its place, I'll be even more thankful.

Our current home is an hour closer to Darling Daughter 1 and thirty minutes closer to Darling Daughter 2, so we see both of them more often. Another reason to be thankful!

I hope recalling your year brings smiles to your face and happiness to your heart. I wish you a bountiful year to come.

Thanks for stopping by!