Legal
by Bree Dahlia
Publication Date: June 20, 2016
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Comedy
Taboo. Wrong. Off limits.
I know the drill. I know the rules.
But damn, if he doesn’t get under my skin.
And into my bed.
There’s no reason for a woman like me,
Successful, established, independent,
To ever be sleeping with a younger man.
A younger man with a hard, rugged, sculptured body.
A body that can go all night.
All night.
I can’t resist, can’t turn him down.
Can’t walk away.
Because I’ve never known pleasure like this.
Chase Nolan walked into my life and disrupted my perfect little world.
And made it so much better.
Enjoy it while you can, Jillian.
Because there’s no way there’s a future for us.
After all, is he barely even legal?
** Full-length standalone romantic comedy meant for adults only **
About Bree Dahlia
Bree Dahlia resides in the Midwest, a place known for its steamy summers and bitterly cold winters.
A fan of the sultry heat, she can be found playing outdoors until the temperature drops. Once the cold hits, she spends her time reading or writing next to the fireplace with a hot drink in her hand.
Specializing in strong spirited women and the hot alpha males who love them, her stories range from lighthearted romances to sizzling erotica, with many shades in between.
Love in real life does not always have a happy ending, but that is what her psyche craves and what is most often reflected in her stories.
Book Title: Through Fire (Portland, ME, novel #3)
Author: Freya Barker
Genre: Contemporary Romance & Woman's Lit
Release Date: July 19, 2016
Hosted by: Book Enthusiast Promotions
Violence corroded her…
Obedience defiled her…
Fear kept her chained…
Freedom is hard to embrace when she’s never learned to trust. Yet in the span of a second, she grabs a single opportunity and runs toward it. Straight into the sanctuary of a pub at the end of a wharf.
She doesn’t understand the concept of friendship. She’s never felt the connection of a relationship. She’s as innocent as the driven snow and yet tainted with corruption. Still, she finds herself surrounded by people who accept her, without even knowing the first thing about her.
But one of them is determined to dig deeper.
He treasures his friends, yet he’s steered clear of committed relationships. He likes his life comfortably predictable and entirely controlled. Until it isn’t. For months he’s avoided interacting with The Skipper’s newest addition. Perhaps realizing that once he looked deeply into those liquid brown eyes, he wouldn’t be able to turn away.
When his present and her past puts them both on the brink of change, they are forged through fire as one.
“Can I see?” His voice is right behind me now and I can almost feel the heat coming off his body.
Still without turning, I drop the peeler and hold my arm out to the side, slowly pulling up the sleeve of my sweater. He steps into my field of vision and wraps one of his large hands around my wrist, pulling my arm out further so he can see. It’s nothing. At least nothing compared to some marks I’ve carried. Still, the hiss of his breath over the raised blister on my forearm seems to burn itself into my skin, and I lightly tug at my arm. He releases it instantly.
“Did you put something on it?”
He settles his back against the counter, his arms crossed over his chest and it would be rude not to look at him. Although his voice sounds gruff, almost curt, his blue eyes only convey concern.
“I did,” I confirm. “It doesn’t hurt. Much,” I add, not quite sure why I felt the need to.
“Have you taken anything for the pain?”
I shake my head forcefully. “No.” No way in hell will I take any drugs. Not even if my arm was on fire.
I can feel him examine me closely and I keep my eyes focused on what my hands are doing. “Make sure to keep it clean. When those blisters open, it can easily get infected,” he finally says.
This time I simply nod. He seems satisfied with that and takes a look at the recipe while I pick up the peeler again.
For the next half hour we work in relative silence as we finish cutting the ingredients and toss them in the large pan, which is now ready to go in the oven. Tim’s easily taken charge and it’s obvious he is no slouch in the kitchen. I have to admit I feel more relaxed today than I did yesterday. Or even this morning when I should’ve been excited about meeting Viv at her apartment—my apartment now—but was worrying about the day ahead instead.
“I can teach you.” Tim’s statement, out of the blue, startles me. “Cooking, I mean. I’m no chef, but I can handle the basics.”
I’m not able to mask the flash of excitement at the prospect. Pam had tried but, with the constant interruptions at the shelter, I’d had a hard time staying on task. I quickly straightened my face, though, the moment I started thinking about the logistics. It would mean being alone with this large man for stretches of time. And where? At the apartment? Here at The Skipper? No. I can’t. I know enough to know that if a man offers you favors, it’s for good reason. Usually favors in return. Otherwise what would he get out of it?
“Why?”
He seems a little taken aback by my question. “Because you want to learn. You said so. Never too late to start. And if I’ve learned anything in my years it’s that regret is the one true failure. Besides,” he says with a shrug of his massive shoulders, “I like cooking. I don’t do it often enough.”
“Okay.” I slap my hand over my mouth but it’s too late to hold back the inadvertent response.
His eyes twinkle with amusement. “Good.” He nods with a smile, before turning back to the stove.What have I gotten myself into?
Idiota.
Freya Barker inspires with her stories about 'real’ people, perhaps less than perfect, each struggling to find their own slice of happy. She is the author of the Cedar Tree Series and the Portland, ME, novels.
A recipient of the RomCon “Reader’s Choice” Award for best first book, “Slim To None,” Freya has since published eight books. She continues to spin story after story with an endless supply of bruised and dented characters, vying for attention!
Surrender to Love
by J.C. Valentine
Night Calls #3
Publication Date: July 19, 2016 (re-release)
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Erotic, Romance
BUY:
Synopsis: After finding herself out of luck and out of love, Patricia Jacobs has written off the male species. No one but her father has ever given her the love and devotion she knows she deserves, and she’s sick and tired of it. Until she collides, literally, with a man whose devastating smile and seductive charm that should be considered illegal, destroys her plans. He’s everything she’s ever dreamed of in a man: handsome, intelligent, successful, they share a love of cars and best of all; he looks at her like she’s his light in the dark. What more could a girl ask for?
Jonathon Bradshaw, destroyed by a past that has haunted his every waking moment for the last five years, isn’t looking for a serious relationship, until he meets Patricia. Sweet, saucy and as hot as the summer is long, Jon can’t deny the draw he has toward her. For the first time, he has hope. Determined to shake the ghosts of his past, Jon focuses on forging a future with Patti, but he’s always been a master at standing in his own way.
When Jon’s past refuses to be forgotten, will Patti be able to live with the truth about the man who’s stolen her heart?
EXCERPT- SURRENDER TO LOVE
Jon stepped into Carnal with a blonde on one arm and a brunette on the other. Stepping in beside them, his best friend and wingman, Travis, motioned to the dance floor, and then melted into the throng with his own date.
Music vibrated through his body as Jon carved a path through the crowd toward an empty table in the back. He seated the women, and then squatted down between them, motioning them closer so he could speak without shouting. “What can I get you ladies to drink?”
“Grey Goose,” the blonde told him, smiling demurely with lips so thick and glossy they screamed sin.
“Martini, dirty.” The brunette seated to his left wrapped her hand around his neck and pulled his face to hers. Their mouths meshed, and she slipped her tongue inside his, wasting no time letting him know where she expected this night to end.
Jon pulled back with a lazy grin and wiped the excess moisture from his lips with his fingertips. “That’s an order I have no problem filling. Don’t go anywhere.”
“Don’t worry, baby,” the brunette cooed. “The only place we’re going tonight is down.” Her gaze shifted to his crotch and Jon laughed, amused.
“Promises, promises. I’m going to hold you to that,” he swore.
Striding up to the bar, Jon found a sliver of space and positioned himself there, raising his hand to call the bartender’s attention.
While he waited, he took stock of the place. The downtown club was buzzing with energy. Colored lighting flashed intermittently over the oblong dance floor. Loud music from every direction pulsed in his ears. There were half-naked bodies everywhere, dancing, groping, and draping themselves over the bar. It was a veritable cesspool of debauchery, and he loved every bit of it.
The bartender was finally making his way over when the seat beside him opened up and a warm, lithe body slid in alongside him.
Jon couldn’t help but appreciate the view. Long, pale hair flowed down to a curvaceous backside and lean, tone legs clad in a pair of tight, white jeans dangled from the stool she perched on. From the back, she was enough to stir him to life. He wondered what effect she would have on him head-on.
When the bartender approached his end of the bar and looked to him first, Jon shook his head and tilted it toward the blonde beside him. “Take care of her first. I’ll wait.”
The bartender nodded, uncaring of who went first, and shifted his attention to her. Turning on her seat, the friendly smile she wore turned shy when she looked up and met his eyes.
How cute. “Hi,” he said, deliberately dropping his voice lower.
“Hi.” She smiled demurely, her long lashes touching her cheeks when she dropped her gaze.
“What are you having?” Jon asked, using the volume of the music as an excuse to slide in a little closer. He rested one arm on the polished counter and leaned into it, smiling down at her as her mind worked to keep up. He gestured to the man waiting for them expectantly.
Her cheeks colored and she cleared her throat. “Give me two rum and cokes, a long island and Sam Adams,” she called out to the bartender who was waiting patiently for their order.
While he hurried off to fill it, Jon took the opportunity to fix her with a wide smile. “You look nice tonight,” he told her, allowing his eyes to make a slow perusal down her lush body. Unfortunately, he couldn’t keep his eyes from making a second pass over her chest where her breasts were on full display beneath the simple black tank top.
“Thanks,” she said amicably. She flipped her long hair over her shoulder, eliminating the soft, silken screen obstructing his view of shapely shoulders covered in perfect alabaster skin. “I’m Patti,” she said, turning in her chair and offering him her hand.
He took her delicate hand in his and brought it up to his lips, pressing a kiss to the back of it. “It’s a pleasure, Patti. I’m Jon.”
“Nice to meet you, Jon.”
“Definitely.” They smiled at one another, lost in each other’s eyes, until the bartender returning with the drinks broke the spell. “It’s on me,” he told him, then waved him away. Jon would come back to make his order after he was through with Patti.
“Thanks, but you didn’t have to do that.”
Jon helped her gather up her drinks, holding them hostage to keep her around a little longer. “I wanted to,” he said, casually slipping his hand around her tiny waist to guide her through the crowd. She smiled up at him, her pale green eyes sparkling beneath the strobe lights.
She led him to a round table surrounded by several women, one of whom was very much pregnant. Patti bent to unload the drinks and smiling faces turned to greet her. Their expressions turned curious when they took notice of him hovering behind her.
“Okay, girls, I believe I got everyone.” Patti slapped her hands together, then jumped around when she remembered he was still there. “Oh! My bad. Forgot the beer.” She snatched the drink from his hands and took a long swallow.
All eyes were on him, and Jon shifted uncomfortably. “Aren’t you going to introduce us to your friend?” asked the one that looked like she was about to rupture amniotic fluid at any moment.
He watched as Patti’s chest rose and fell, a nervous laugh escaping her as she set her drink on the table. “Piper, Poppy, Jules, Sheila, Lynn,” she said, pointing her finger at each of them. “This is Jon. Jon, this is Lynn, Sheila, Jules, Poppy, and Piper. Thanks for buying the drinks and helping me carry them,” she said quickly. “I guess I’ll see you around?”
She plunked down in her chair, effectively dismissing him, but Jon had other ideas. “Hi,” he said, stepping forward with his hand out. “It’s nice to meet you.”
The one named Piper took his hand in hers, her face bright. “Hey, I didn’t recognize you at first. Must be the lighting,” she said brightly, waving her hand at the colored lights hanging overhead. “You grew up with Tate. I’m his wife, Piper. We met in Vegas at the convention.”
Jon’s smile grew in recognition. “That’s right. I remember you now. Wow,” he said, looking down at her swollen abdomen. “You guys didn’t waste any time. When are you due?”
She laughed, running her palm over her stomach lovingly. “About five weeks left to go.”
“And Tate let you out of the house?” he asked, stunned. If she were his wife, he wouldn’t let her within an arm’s reach of a club. They were too unpredictable, too unsafe, too everything.
“I don’t think I gave him much of a choice,” she said with a giggle.
“She threatened to serve his balls to him on a silver platter,” Poppy leaned in and shouted. “Hey, Jon. How’s it going?”
He nodded to her. “It’s going. Where’s Felix tonight?”
Her eyes clouded over and she sat back, her hand reaching out to fiddle with her drink. “At home, I imagine.”
Jon’s brows rose at the coldness of her tone, but he didn’t bother to follow up. He was there to have a good time, not be drawn into female drama.
“So wait,” the one across from him, Sheila, said with her palms facing out in front of her. “You two know each other?”
“They work for me,” Jon said, making a swiping motion with his finger at Poppy and Piper.
“And how do you know Patti?”
“Oh, he doesn’t. We just met up at the bar,” Patti explained.
“You work fast, huh?” Sheila remarked, waggling her eyebrows suggestively at him.
He shrugged. “What can I say, when I see something I like…” He trailed off meaningfully. Patti’s eyes lifted from the table and he caught them, holding her trapped in his gaze for one
long, intense moment. He wanted her to know he was interested, and judging by the flush of her cheeks, she’d heard him loud and clear.
His smile fell when a pair of arms suddenly wrapped around his neck.
“Hey, baby, I was wondering where you disappeared to. What are you doing all the way over here?”
Patti glanced over her shoulder at the sound of feminine voices. It took her a second to assess the situation, and he watched as her nose scrunched in disgust. When her eyes slid back to him, she wore a blank expression and for some reason, that put a knot in his stomach.
Jon turned his head and found himself looking at two sets of annoyed eyes. “I was just getting ready to head back.” He patted the arm wrapped around his neck and she took the hint, releasing him and moving back a step. “Why don’t you go order the drinks for me and I’ll catch up in a minute?” He gave his dates a small, encouraging smile, hoping they’d leave quickly.
They did, reluctantly. He watched them go, his mind turning over how to explain what had just happened. He couldn’t come up with a damn thing. Hoping to appear nonchalant, he turned back to the table, the heat from the women’s eyes threatening to scorch him. The only one who wasn’t looking at him was Patti. He swallowed tightly. “I should get back,” he said slowly. “To my, uh…”
“Friends?” Patti asked pleasantly, though the look she turned on him made him feel like the biggest dick who ever existed.
“Right, friends,” he said regretfully. Standing, he cast a friendly smile around the table, but the only one he was really interested in seeing it was the woman who refused to look up at him. “Have a good evening, ladies.” With nothing left to say that wouldn’t make him look worse than he already did, he moved through the crush of dancers to find his dates.
DON'T MISS THE FIRST TWO BOOKS IN THE SIZZLING NIGHT CALLS SERIES!
STRANDED (Night Calls, #1)
#FREE:
THAT FIRST KISS (Night Calls, #2)
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ABOUT J.C. VALENTINE
J.C. Valentine is the USA Today and International bestselling author of the Night Calls and Wayward Fighters Series and the Forbidden Series. Her vivid imagination and love of words and romance had her penning her own romance stories from an early age, which, despite being poorly edited and written longhand, she forced friends and family members to read. No, she isn’t sorry.
J.C. earned her own happily ever after when she married her high school sweetheart. Living in the Northwest, they have three amazing children and far too many pets and spend much of their free time together enjoying movies or the outdoors. Among the many hats she wears, J.C. is an entrepreneur. Having graduated with honors, she holds a Bachelor’s in English and when she isn’t writing, you can find her editing for fellow authors.
ENTER THE GIVEAWAY
Encender 
J. Kowallis, the only girl of four children, grew up in northern Utah with a head full of wild stories (most often unreal). At the age of 9, she wrote her first poem, a dedication to E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web. It was so intriguing, her third grade teacher requested to keep the original. Between living in various fictional worlds, and spending time on her studies, she managed to graduate from Weber State University’s creative writing program. She now lives in Utah with her Mini Schnauzer, Etta, and spends most of her time still bouncing between this world and the fantastical while enjoying delectable über-dark chocolate and lavender baths. She enjoys dreaming about, flying to, and writing about distant lands (real or unreal).
