by Angela Smith | May 24, 2016 | Guests
Make Me Whole by Kaithlin Shepherd
Callaway Series
181 Pages
Published: September 8, 2015
Published by: Hot Tree Publishing
Blurb:
Take the journey with the oldest Callaway brother as he finds and fights for true love.
Surviving the unimaginable, Jamie Caldwell finds herself at a crossroads. Her only chance at a full recovery sends her to Montana. Anxious but determined, Jamie is resolute on her mission to break free from her past, leading her into the care of Cole Callaway. Instantly, everything changes. Jamie knows the cowboy has the ability to help fight her demons, but opening up to him also gives him the power she’s just not ready to relinquish.
Returning from Afghanistan a different man, Cole Callaway is damaged. His new mission leads him to supporting wounded veterans and helping them get back some of what they’ve lost. With his own demons to battle, every day is a trial, but the moment Jamie Caldwell walks into his life, his focus and aim changes. Cole faces the biggest challenge of his life: Make Jamie stay in Montana and if he has his way, into his bed.
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Excerpt:
He sat down beside her on the swing and heard her sigh when their thighs touched. Maybe his brother had been right; maybe she needed him more than she cared to ask. “You don’t get a sky like this in the city. It’s so beautiful and clear,” she said, avoiding eye contact with him. He was pretty sure she had no idea she was making his insides heat just by sitting beside her.
“After my dad died, I used to come out here to think about whatever was going on in my head. When I came back from Afghanistan, I didn’t want to talk to anyone, so I hid in the cabin in the mountains and would go outside at night to look up at the sky. It was the only thing that brought me peace.”
Cole asked himself where that had come from. He never talked about Afghanistan and he sure as hell didn’t talk about how hard it had been for him to come back to the ranch. But talking to Jamie, it just felt right.
“That must have been hard. I know a lot of ex-military guys who didn’t adjust that well to being back home.” Her voice was soft and kind, and unlike others who had tried to get him to talk, she didn’t pity him or try to mother him. She just cared.
He took a deep breath and a sip of whiskey before he continued. “You know, it’s funny. It wasn’t so much returning home that was hard, it was seeing everyone look at me differently, as if I were broken or something. I was injured. I lost friends over there, and then I came back here and people looked at me with pity. I just couldn’t deal with that very well, so I devoted a lot of my time to building the clinic.”
He was opening up to her, not because he wanted her to talk about what had happened, but simply because he wanted to share things with her, and that was a first for him. She turned around on the swing to face him, putting her hand on his forearm, and he felt the electricity of her touch down to his toes. Before she could take her hand away, he covered hers with his. He didn’t say anything, just waited for her to share what she wanted him to know.
Meet Kaithlin Shepherd~
Kaithlin Shepherd was born and raised in Canada where she learned to figure skate and crafted a love affair with coffee. Growing up in a household filled by strong-headed women, she learned early on that life is what you make it.
You’ve probably never met a bigger country music fan and in the words of Brooks and Dunn, she’s a die-hard ‘George Strait junkie.’ Constructing a world away from her real life, Kaithlin loves the feeling of creating a universe where her fans can forget about everything in their life.
She loves writing about hot alphas and doesn’t shy away from turning up the heat with scorching hot sex scenes.
Connect with Kaithlin~
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by Angela Smith | May 22, 2016 | Guests
After Love by Kathy Clark
An Austin Heroes Novel; Book 1
266 Pages
Published: January 19, 2016
Published by: Loveswept
Blurb:
A pulse-pounding tale of two wounded souls tempted by a dangerous proposition: new love.
DEA agent Nick Archer puts his life on the line every day. A former Marine, he fears nothing . . . except commitment. Nick has no trouble finding women eager to warm his bed, and no problem sending them on their way the morning after. Relationships don’t mix with risky careers, a fact Nick learned the hard way after his marriage fell apart.
He’d go it alone if it weren’t for his new K-9 partner—and the stunning trainer who makes Nick sit up and take notice.
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Excerpt:
They lay there, their limbs entangled, their skin slick with sweat.
“I made a chocolate cake for dessert,” she said, her voice muffled against his neck.
“I thought this was dessert.” He nuzzled his face into her hair. “It was delicious.”
“Hmm…I’m glad you liked it.” She stirred, pulling away from him. She took the red, white and blue crocheted throw off the back of the couch and wrapped it around herself.
Nick took that as a sign that it was time for a break. He got up, wincing as he levered himself up from the hard floor. “I’m getting too old for this.”
“Next time, we’ll go to my room.”
She said it so casually, he almost missed it. But his heart quickened at the promise there would be a next time. He’d been afraid this would be a one-time shot. But he wasn’t sure he was up for another round so soon. “Right now?”
“No, not now. Maybe Harley will need a refresher course sometime soon.”
Nick felt uncomfortable standing naked in front of her while having what appeared to be a serious conversation. “Hold that thought.” He returned to the kitchen, stepping over Harley who had moved into the living room to be closer to them. Nick pulled on his jeans and stuck his underwear in his pocket. He put on his shirt, but didn’t bother buttoning it. He was about to go back into the living room when Jamie walked in.
She had wrapped the throw around her, under her armpits and tucked in between her breasts. The open weave of the crochet allowed tantalizing peeks at the bare skin underneath. She filled their glasses with the rest of the wine, handed him one, and sat at the table.
Nick remained standing, but he leaned forward on the back of the chair he’d sat in earlier. “Now, about that refresher course.”
“That’s what I was talking about earlier,” she said.
“Your proposition?”
“That makes it sound sleazy. What I have in mind would be mutually satisfactory for both of us.” She hesitated.
He waited.
“I’m not looking for a relationship,” she finally continued. “I’ve been in love, and it was wonderful. It’s the after love part that brings pain. I worried every time Mike left the house. And when my worst nightmare happened, it was suddenly all over…the love…the laughter…someone to cuddle with at night and to celebrate the holidays with…and the sex.” She wiped away a tear that had trickled down her cheek. “I’ve had a great love. I don’t need another. I have the farm, the dogs, my brother, and a busy life.”
There was another pause. Nick waited patiently, still with no clue where the conversation was going.
Jamie met his gaze steadily. “I have to be honest with you. I don’t need love any more. But I miss the sex. You and I get along okay. I just thought…”
Nick cocked his head as if he hadn’t heard her correctly. “So, I’m your booty call?”
She shrugged. “You don’t have a girlfriend, do you? Who would we be hurting? Just some hot sex…and no strings. And it’s all temporary. I can end it whenever and you can do the same. Isn’t that every man’s dream?”
“Well, yes,” he answered reluctantly. “But…”
“And tonight was good, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, but…”
“Then why not?”
Nick’s first thoughts were that this was the craziest idea he’d ever heard…from a woman. It sounded like something he would suggest. His own experience with love had ended badly, too. He understood her concern that there was nothing but pain after love. He definitely had no plans for any type of permanent relationship either. It was just a little unnerving to think about it in such clinical terms.
But then, she was right. Sex without responsibility was perfect world…especially if it was with Jamie. Why was he hesitating? He was being offered an endless dessert tray…without calories.
“Are you serious?” he asked, still concerned that this was some sort of test, or a game whose rules he didn’t know.
“Absolutely. Of course, I would expect your discretion. I work with a lot of law enforcement agencies, and I need to protect my credibility. And then there’s my brother…” She shook her head. “He would never understand.”
“Probably not,” Nick agreed. He still wasn’t sure he did. But, hey, who was he to turn down a beautiful woman who needed sex? If she wanted a businesslike arrangement, he was up for it. Nick held out his hand.
Jamie smiled and heaved a relieved sigh. She took his hand and shook it. “Then we have a deal.”
“I guess we do.”
She stood and gathered her clothes.
“I’m taking Harley to Grammy’s to meet the family tomorrow. Plus, I’ve got the boys, and my brothers should be there, too.”
Jamie clipped the leash on Harley and handed it to Nick. “Let me know how Harley does.”
“Uh…I will.” He retrieved his gun off the refrigerator, slipped his feet in his tennis shoes and squatted down to tie them. When he stood back up, Jamie handed him his socks and practically pushed him toward the front door. “Why don’t you come with us? I’m not sure how he’ll act around kids, and it would be good to have to along to keep an eye on him. I can’t vouch for the company, but I guarantee the food will be great.”
“I don’t know. What would your grandmother think?”
“That I just got a new K9 partner, and this is part of his training.”
She considered it for a moment. “I suppose I could go. Sundays are always slow.”
“Great. I’ll pick you up around eleven.”
“I’ll be ready.”
They paused in the doorway. What exactly did one say to someone he had just fucked but who had now become a secret partner…of sorts? A handshake? A kiss? He bent down to kiss her, and she turned her face so it landed on her cheek.
Jamie squatted and gave Harley a hug and a goodbye scratch on the ears. “You take care of your man,” she told the dog. “Keep him safe and make me proud of you.”
Harley wagged his tail and nudged her with his nose.
She stood and tightened the throw around her. “Goodnight, Nick. Drive carefully.” She started closing the door.
Nick nodded and was left no choice but to cross the porch and head toward his truck. With his underwear in one pocket, his socks in the other, and his unbuttoned shirt tails flapping in the wind, he had a sudden flash of empathy for all the women he had sent away after a casual fuck.
And he didn’t like it.
Praise for After Love
“Fast-paced, riveting . . . Playful dialogue between Nick and Jamie certainly kept me entertained, and I loved every moment they were together as their banter increased the sexual tension between them. . . . [The author] did justice to their instant and intense chemistry.”—Harlequin Junkie, on After Love
After Love is the first book in the Austin Heroes series about three brothers, a DEA agent, a Texas Ranger, and a Homeland Security Agent. The second book Almost Forever comes out in July, and I can’t resist sharing the gorgeous cover of Justin, the Texas Ranger.
A cold case leads to blazing-hot temptation in this novel of romantic suspense from bestselling author Kathy Clark. For readers of Nora Roberts and Karen Robards, Almost Forever pairs a rugged lawman with a woman who may just be a murderer.
Meet Kathy Clark~
Kathy Clark is the pen name of the writing team of Bob and Kathy Wernly. Kathy had almost two dozen books published by Harlequin, Dell, Crown, and others before her husband offered to do all the marketing and write the first drafts. Who wouldn’t eagerly accept that kind of free labor? Since 2012, Kathy and Bob have self-published nine novels, including the award-winning YA time travel series, Time Shifters, and a New Adult series called Scandals. They also self-published an erotic romance and had another erotic romance novel published by Loose Id.
They currently have a six-book contract with Random House for their Loveswept line. The first three books were in the Denver Heroes series and were published in 2015. In 2016, they launched their Austin Heroes series with the first book, After Love, coming out in January. This series is about three brothers, one a DEA agent, one a Texas Rancher, and one an agent for Homeland Security. Almost Forever will be out in July, and Another Chance comes out in November.
Kathy and Bob love the sand and surf of Florida or the Caribbean when they travel, but they also enjoy their view of Pikes Peak from their home in Colorado.
Connect with Kathy~
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by Angela Smith | May 21, 2016 | Guests
Unhidden
The Gatekeeper Chronicles; Book 1
320 Pages
Published: December 29, 2014
Published by: Team D Enterprises
Blurb:
It’s not always easy to differentiate between the good guys and the bad guys, especially when your heroine is a trained killer and she may be falling in love with her evil hunter…
Emma Hayes, a former military Special Forces Operative turned mercenary-for-hire, finds her tightly controlled world turned upside down when she is attacked by horrible monsters.
Emma must use every skill in her arsenal to stay alive as she tries to solve the mystery of why she has been targeted. Her list of enemies keeps growing – from Zane Shayde, an evil Mage, to a secret branch of the US government – and she doesn’t know if there is anyone left she can trust.
To complicate matters further, Emma is inexplicably drawn to Zane in a way she doesn’t quite understand, even knowing her life is forfeit if captured. Who is he and why does he have this affect on her? How can she fight a being that calls to her, body and soul?
Emma is left haunted by questions, doubts and fears as to why she has been targeted, when they will come for her next, and how she will possibly be able to survive against an enemy she doesn’t understand.
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Excerpt:
The highway was empty, but Lilly continued to swerve randomly because an unpredictable moving target was harder to hit. The chimera threw another firebomb, and Lilly avoided it by mere inches. Realizing it wasn’t having much luck with this tactic, the creature tried a different approach. The chimera flew lower until it could peer through the missing rear window of the car.
“Oh, shit! It’s going to blast us,” I realized.
“Not if I blast it first,” Jason responded. He aimed the grenade launcher I had been using earlier, but the chimera was faster. It let loose a burst of flame from its throat. Lilly tried to stay ahead of it by speeding up yet was only partially successful. The tail end of the flames still reached the back of the car. I had ducked behind the seat, but Jason was still intent on aiming his weapon, and the molten phlegm touched his arm.
Jason’s scream of pain pierced the night, but the sensation also caused his hand to spasm and depress the trigger before he dropped the weapon. He landed a perfect shot right to the chimera’s head, although when the smoke cleared, the creature was still coming. The grenade didn’t seem to have seriously injured it, but it must have been enough of a nuisance to cause the creature to fly farther back from the car.
“Jason! Are you okay?” It sounded like a stupid question even as I said it, but I didn’t know what else to say. He clearly wasn’t okay. He had managed to put out the flames; however, the skin underneath was charred black and melted. He clutched his wrist, his face twisted in an agonized grimace.
The chimera came at us again, but this time, it rammed its full body weight into the side of the car, tipping it onto two wheels for a moment before the car righted itself again.
“We can’t stay out in the open like this,” Alex said.
“I know, I know. I’m working on it!” Lilly turned off the highway and onto the Brooklyn Bridge.
The network of steel cables that crisscrossed the historic bridge framed the roadway like a prison, making it impossible for the large chimera to fly alongside or directly above the car without slamming into the cables. The chimera was forced to pace us along the outside of the bridge over open water.
Alex shifted in his seat, pulling out his rune-carved staff. He rolled down the window, pointing his staff down toward the churning, black waters below. He muttered indecipherable words under his breath, his green eyes developing a deep luminescence I was learning signaled the use of magic.
Nothing happened at first, then a roaring began, like the sound of a freight train. It rapidly grew closer, louder. Jason and I leaned toward the window, trying to figure out what Alex was doing, when a geyser of water shot up from the East River, rising hundreds of feet into the air. It slammed into the chimera with such force the beast howled and went spinning through the air toward us.
The chimera was pitched violently into the steel cables of the bridge. Several cables snapped, and the bridge swayed slightly under the impact.
“You’re going to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge!” I screamed in horror, slapping Alex in the back of the head. “Figure out another way to kill that thing without destroying an iconic landmark.”
About the Author~
Dina Given lives in rural New Jersey – home of farms, horses and the largest hot air balloon festival in North America – with her husband, two crazy kids, and one rescue dog. She is an exercise enthusiast and avid lover of food and wine (hence the need to exercise).
Dina also works full time for one of the largest healthcare companies in the world. She attributes her ability to juggle family, work and writing to her obsessive, hyper-focused, Type A personality.
Connect with Dina~
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by Angela Smith | May 20, 2016 | Guests
Merciless Ride by Chelsea Camaron
The Hellions Ride Series; Book 3
210 Pages
Published: October 7, 2014
Published by: Chelsea Camaron
Blurb:
***Although this book is part of a series it can be read without reading books one and two.***
Mercy is no friend of mine. Karma, she has yet to show kindness to me.
The hits just keep on coming for Tessie Marie Harlow. She has never had an easy life. Her mom disabled, her dad long gone, and a single mom raising a rambunctious little boy, that’s Tessie’s world.
Her childhood aspirations to be a nurse long since disappeared after a college spring fling both blessed and burdened her with a baby boy. Dropping out of school, she returns to her hometown and begins to settle in. Getting the only job she could as a bartender she spends her days caring for her son and nights serving the Hellions Motorcycle Club and their affiliates.
Tired of waiting for Rex to grow up, she’s faced with the bane existence of her life until one night changes everything. In the darkest hour of her merciless ride through life, she’s saved by a quiet, laid back Hellion.
Andy ‘Shooter’ Jenkins has always been around. Too wrapped in Rex she has never really noticed him before. He has never been loud or known to have the girls hanging all over him. He is a mystery. A chance encounter brings him to her rescue not once but twice.
The Desert Ghosts Motorcycle Club are in town and bring their own brand of chaos right to Tessie’s door. Forced into her day to day life, Shooter is doing everything he can to shelter and protect her as lines are crossed and a war between two clubs begins.
Secrets revealed putting two brothers in the Hellions Motorcycle Club at a serious crossroads in their lives.
This is not a ride for pleasure. This is not a ride for safety. This is not a ride for love. This is a ride for endurance. Mercy has never once shined her grace down for these two, but in the midst of the danger and lies can they learn to rely on one another and ride it out together?
*Intended for mature audiences only* 18 and older
This series contains strong language, strong sexual situations, and violence. Please do not buy if any of this offends you. This is not meant to be a true or exact depiction of a motorcycle club rather a work of fiction meant to entertain.
This is a full length novel with a HEA, no cliffhanger. Each book in the Hellions Ride series is a stand alone novel. Although best read in order it is not necessary.
Series Order:
One Ride
Forever Ride
Merciless Ride
Eternal Ride
Innocent Ride
Buy Links:
Meet Chelsea Camaron~
USA Today Bestselling author Chelsea Camaron is a small town Carolina girl with a big imagination. She is a wife and mom chasing her dreams. She writes contemporary romance, erotic suspense, and psychological thrillers. She loves to write blue-collar men who have real problems with a fictional twist. From mechanics to bikers to oil riggers to smokejumpers, bar owners, and be-yond, she loves a strong hero who works hard and plays harder.
Connect with Chelsea~
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by Angela Smith | May 19, 2016 | Guests
True Blue SEALs: ZAK
SEAL Brotherhood Series
261 Pages
Published: February 20, 2016
Published by: AL Publications
Blurb:
Zak and Amy are destined for each other. After successfully passing the BUD/S training, and helping to stop a San Francisco terrorist attack, Zak goes to the arena of war with the rest of his SEAL Team 3 buddies, to return a changed man. Amy will have to negotiate the pain in her heart as she works to discover the man she loved going off to war is still the man of her dreams, and only if she can convince Zak he still is that man.
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Excerpt:
His hands smoothed up and down her upper arm as he stared at the ceiling. He’d made the first step to do something important with his life by becoming a Navy SEAL. His new family, the Brotherhood, healed and filled so many holes in his soul. He felt the honor of serving with men who would gladly die for him, without thinking about it. He was indeed one of the lucky ones. Now, he was about to do the next big thing in his life. He was “securing the target,” bringing Amy into his life not just as a girlfriend, but also as a mate and life partner. He’d even been honest with her. If she couldn’t take the intensity of his family now, couldn’t deal with the stress and loss and tears that sometimes came with the job, along with the joy of doing something more important than all of them, he’d have to walk away.
And, as hard as it would be, he’d do it. He’d make sure he didn’t give up on his shot to become one of the best of the best, and to serve his country proudly with honor.
They were to meet Carter at an omelet house for breakfast. He and Amy noodled around in the shower until they were going to be very unfashionably late. He was always the one to have to turn down the heat so they could keep to a schedule. Amy would have been fine just staying in bed the whole time.
She made a point of showing him she wasn’t going to wear panties, “just in case.”
“This is going to be a painful day for me, I can see.”
“I have the cure for that pain,” she whispered.
“Indeed you do.” Her hopeful face was seeking out a message he wasn’t going to give her. “You’re here to learn about my community. And before you tell me you learned all you need to know in that bed,” he pointed to the tussled sheets behind him, “I need to show you things. Things that are important for you to know. I’m doing this for you, Amy.” He added a smile he’d almost forgotten to show.
She got that little flighty look as she continued dressing and then examining the floor, turning her head from side to side, the pouty smile on her face, just reminding him that he really wasn’t in control. “Zak, I hope you’re not tired of me already,” she whispered to her bright red toes.
“Not a chance, sweetheart.” He grabbed her and held her tight. Lifting her lips with fingers gently under her chin. “Stay just the way you are. Insatiable.” He kissed her. “Sexy as hell.” He kissed her again. “Riding my cock all night long like last night. I’m going to be ruined when you have to go back.”
“Then keep me here.”
Her clear brown eyes were honest, unflinching. He knew she was ready to take that step through the doorway with him. As long as everything else worked out for these next two days, he’d be able to convince her to get married before he deployed. That was the mission. That was the target to be acquired.
Meet Sharon Hamilton~
Sharon Hamilton is a NYT and USAToday bestselling author most known for her SEAL Brotherhood series.
Her Golden Vampires of Tuscany are not like any vamps you’ve read before, since they don’t have to go to ground and can walk around in the full light of the sun.
Sharon’s Guardian Angels struggle with the human charges they are sent to save, often escaping their vanilla world of Heaven for the brief human one. You won’t find any of these beings in any Sunday school class.
All of Sharon’s books are available on eBooks (most formats), print and Audible.
A lifelong organic gardener, Sharon lives with her husband in the Wine Country of Northern California, where most of her stories take place. When she’s not writing, she’s getting verra verra dirty in the mud or wandering Farmer’s Markets looking for new Heirloom varieties of vegetables and flowers.
Connect with Sharon~
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