Six Sentence Sunday, a taste of "Now and Forever 1, a Love Story"

Here is a snippet of my newly released sensuous, not formulaic, contemporary romance, "Now and Forever 1, a Love Story":


His fingers tangled in her long hair as his other arm pulled her closer to him.
"Remember, you promised to come back," she said.
"I‘ll love you forever, Callie. I‘ll be back to make you my wife and then we can do this every night," he said, kissing her.
 
After this last dangerous tour of duty, they would get married, settle safely on a base somewhere and begin their life as husband and wife. Though he promised her he would come back, it was a promise he couldn‘t keep.

Buy Links
Amazon  
(See 4.5 Star review on amazon.com)
All Romance eBooks
Secret Cravings Publishing

A little bit about the book:

Callie Richards was no stranger to heartache. Her parents were killed when she was sixteen. Left with her older sister, she fell into a romance with good-looking, Kyle Maine. They became engaged and Callie’s future was set until he was killed in Iraq. Two years later, she pulls herself together to get her Master’s degree and restart her life on her own.

Working and studying at Kensington State University, Callie meets Mac Caldwell, the handsome dean. Together they fight a deadly campus drug ring with heart-breaking results. This is an emotional story, not a cookie-cutter romance, that will make you laugh and cry as Callie struggles to make a new life, find love and her happy ending.

Thank you for stopping by.
Click here to go back to Six Sentence Sunday.

Sweet Saturday Samples

 Here is a short excerpt of my sweet contemporary romance, "Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights":

As he was walking along, something moving in the lake caught his eye. He stopped. No, he was not mistaken; someone was swimming in the lake, alone. He saw shadows in the moonlight as the lone swimmer moved back and forth between the ropes holding the float and the stairs to the dock. Then the swimmer disappeared under the water and came up, then went under again. This time he didn’t see the swimmer reappear. The person could be drowning and no one would know!
Mike raced down to the dock, ripped off his clothes and dove in
wearing only his boxers. When he broke the surface, he heard a
scream.
“Don’t come near me!” Sunny hollered.
Mike stopped and looked at her.
“Sunny? Is that you?”
“Yes. Stay where you are.”
“What are you doing in the lake alone so late at night?”
“I’m skinny dipping. Stay where you are.”
“Skinny dipping? Alone?”
“Of course alone!”
“You’re not waiting for Gavin, are you?” he asked, jealousy
and suspicion tightening in his chest.
“No. Don’t be ridiculous. But I’m not dressed, so please keep
your distance,” she said, bobbing up and down by the rope.
Mike swam closer.
“Looks like I have you just where I want you,” he teased as he
slowly closed in on her.

Get "Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights" ebook at:
Amazon
Nook
Astraea Press (all formats)

A little bit about the book:
Caroline “Sunny” Davis has it all, a rich husband, career as a well-known artist and a big, beautiful house, she has everything except happiness. Fleeing from a philandering husband, she returns to her family’s cabin in the woods. Looking to reconnect with happier times while she sorts out her life, Sunny is surprised to meet up with someone she hasn’t seen in twenty years.


Mike Foster, her friend, her protector from childhood is more handsome and devastating than ever. Tempted almost beyond endurance, can she resist him…if it’s for his own good? This story about rekindled friendship will warm your heart. 

CLICK HERE TO GO BACK TO SWEET SATURDAY SAMPLES. 

Friday Focus on New Works

Here's a taste of my work-in-progress, "The List":

Her palms were sweaty, her heart was beating rapidly and her mouth went dry. Carrie Tucker was about to face her first pitch on her romance novel to an editor and she was scared, scared shitless. She entered the small room set aside from the rest of the writer’s conference for editors to meet with writers. She spied a short man with glasses sitting behind a desk. He must be Paul Marcel, editor for Rocky Cliffs Press.

            Carrie straightened her skirt, made sure her blouse was slightly unbuttoned but not too revealing. She took her manuscript and synopsis and walked in, feeling anything but confident.

She sat down across from him and smiled. He smiled back and looked down at a printed sheet.

            “You’re Carrie Tucker?”

            She nodded.

            “Tell me about your book,” he said, sitting back, watching her.

            Just as she was about to open her mouth, a man strode into the room.

            “Paul! Wait. We need you in the conference room,” the man said.

            “I’m just about to hear a pitch, Grey, can’t it wait?”

            “Sorry, Jeremy is only here for an hour and if you want that loan…”

            Paul looked at Carrie and smiled again.

            “Miss Tucker…Carrie, I’m sorry but we’re going to have to reschedule this pitch. I have a meeting with an investor…can’t put off,” he said, looking down at the papers in his hand, “I have your contact info here. I’ll get in touch.”

            With that, Paul marched out of the room with Grey Andrews right behind him. Carrie stood up and put her hand on Grey’s arm.

            “Hey, Mister, you ruined my opportunity to get my novel published! I’ve been waiting six months for this chance to see Paul Marcel,” she shot at him.

            Grey turned to look at her. His blue eyes took in the shoulder length honey hair, the intense green eyes and the nicely rounded figure and smiled.

            “Give it to me,” he said, reaching for her manuscript, “I’ll make sure he reads it.”

            Before she could move, the handsome man with salt-and-pepper hair and a trim physique snatched the manuscript out of her hand and was walking quickly out of the room. She trailed along behind him, trying to speak, but soon he was lost in the crowd.

            What just happened here? Where’s my manuscript and who was that guy? Carrie found a cup of coffee and a chair. Everyone was rushing around, looking for various lectures and rooms where they were meeting with agents, editors and publishers. She watched the bustle die down as people found their places. She sat there wondering what she was supposed to do now. Her manuscript was gone and she had no interest in the workshops, lectures and marketing advice panels addressing attendees. She looked at her watch, four pm. She’d wait a while and see if Paul Marcel reappeared.

            By six o’clock, most of the people had cleared out. Workers were stacking chairs and knocking down tables. Famous authors were chatting among themselves as they packed up and moved to the door. Still no Paul Marcel. But the good-looking guy wearing a camel jacket and charcoal gray pants who grabbed her manuscript came into the center hall, looking around. He spotted her and sauntered over.

            “Glad you’re still here,” he said, his eyes looking directly into hers.

            “And?” she said, trying to ignore the little shiver running up her spine.

            “I gave your manuscript to Paul and he promised me he’d read it tomorrow.”

            “Why should I believe that?” She asked, noticing how broad his shoulders were, trying to keep her gaze on his face.

            “Because I’m the silent investor in his publishing house. He wouldn’t lie to me. I’m Grey Andrews,” he said, offering her his hand.

            “Carrie Tucker,” she said, losing her small hand in the warm, dry flesh of his powerful one.

            “Carrie, I invest in green companies, very interested in ebook publishers now. Would you be willing to join me for dinner and tell me what you know about ebook publishing, from an author’s point of view?”

            He’s smooth, gotta give him that.

            “How do you know you want to talk to me? I might be new to this business.”

            “I read some of your book, your synopsis and biography. You’re a good writer, can’t be that new.”

            “An advertising copywriter, not the same thing,” she corrected him, fascinated by the wry grin on his perfect lips.

            “Maybe not. But the work you submitted…I read…was well written. You’ll probably get published and be pretty successful at this.”

            “So you want my opinion?” She asked, impressed he had read her work.

            “If you don’t mind. Can I pay for it with a nice dinner?” He asked, moving closer.

            “Why not?” She agreed, feeling warmth in her body growing as he neared.

            “How about Le Chien D’Or?” he asked, mentioning a chic French restaurant.

A Sexy Interview with Callie Richards from "Now and Forever 1, a Love Story"

"Today I am privileged to have Callie Richards in the studio with me for an interview about the new book she's starring in called, 'Now and Forever 1, a Love Story'.  Welcome Callie..."

"Thank you...what did you say your name was?"

"Adora Smutz."

"Thanks, Adora."

"First question, Callie. What is your favorite sexual position

with Mac?"

"What? I didn't think you were going to ask those kind of 

questions. Uh...Jean didn't say anything about this...well,

let’s see *blushes*, that’s a very personal question. Do I

have to…where’s Jean? Do I…okay, just this one, all right? 

I guess my answer would be…umm, in bed?"

"What your favorite part of Mac's body?" 

"Hey, what kind of interview is this? I thought I  was 

hawking the book Jean wrote about  us? She said this would

be easy. She lied! No fair…but…now that you ask…I

suppose his chest would be right up there. But that’s it! No 

more personal questions!" 

"When did you know you wanted to sleep with him

 "Wait a minute! I just said no more of these types of 

questions!" *gets up* 

"Okay, okay – different question. When did you know you were in love with him?"

" Pretty fast. Like almost the first day at work when he held

my hand instead of shaking it. He was…he

was…just…*blushes again*, overpowering.

"Mac’s a jealous guy, isn’t he? How do you feel about

that?"  

"Just a minute, here. I thought this interview was going to 

be about the drug gang. Where’s that double-crosser, Jean?

I’m going to strangle her! Okay…I know I promised. Mac is

pretty jealous and I don’t mind. *blushes again* He loves

me, ya know? So it’s okay." 

"You blush a lot, don’t you? Why?"

" I guess I do. *blushes AGAIN*, maybe because I’m shy 

and a very private person. Jean knows that, so why did she

arrange this interview? She's gonna get it." 

"Only three more questions to go. Did you know Jonesy

picked you out so that Mac would fall in love with you?"

"Well you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to see she kept

pushing us together. Of course Mac missed it…but I knew.

She kept assigning me to his projects and grinning like a

schoolgirl when Mac showed any interest in me. It was

pretty obvious, but I didn’t mind. She was right."

"So you knew Mac…fancied…you?

"Fancied? What kind of word is that? Did Jean tell you to

use that? Tell her to get a thesaurus, will you? Please. Of

course I knew he…uh…liked me. He kept looking down

my blouse and pretending not to *giggles*, men are so silly

that way. They honestly think we don’t notice! Not just that.

He was nice to me…extra nice to me, right from the start.

            "So his being nice to you won your heart?"

"Not just that…the fact that he’s a hunk didn’t hurt. I

mean…I’m not immune to his good looks. Really, he’s

a…turn-on…kind of…at least for me. *blushes again*. But

it was…a bunch of things…made me fall  in love with him."

                "How long after you knew him did you sleep with him?"

"I told you that was enough with those personal questions!

JEAN! JEAN! Come out here!You set me up…never told

me the questions were going to be so…so probing…so 

personal *smacks Jean in the upper arm*. I’m out of here

and don’t ever ask me to do an interview again. Sell your

own damn book. As for you…*turns to the interviewer*,

Don’t you think about anything but sex? *gets up, puts on

her sweater and walks out the door*.

            *Calls after retreating Callie* 

            "Thank you, Callie! That was Callie Richards, heroine of “Now and Forever 1, a Love Story by Jean Joachim.” 

About the Book

Now and Forever 1, a Love Story

Callie Richards was no stranger to heartache. Her parents were killed when she was sixteen. Left with her older sister, she fell into a romance with good-looking, Kyle Maine. They became engaged and Callie’s future was set until he was killed in Iraq. Two years later, she pulls herself together to get her Master’s degree and restart her life on her own.

Working and studying at Kensington State University, Callie meets Mac Caldwell, the handsome dean. Together they fight a deadly campus drug ring with heart-breaking but victorious results. This is an emotional story that will make you laugh and cry as Callie struggles to make a new life and find love with a new man.

Bonus - You'll get 1,000 words from "Now and Forever 2, the Book of Danny" also.

Buy Links

Amazon 

ARe

Secret Cravings Publishing

TUESDAY TALES - FREE READS!

TUESDAY TALES are short stories written by a variety of authors around one them or prompt word. Today the prompt varies by author, J. Gunnar Gray and I used NECKLACE, J.F. Jenkins used WEDDING RING and Kay Springsteen used ROCKING CHAIR. My installment of  "Mint Chip" is at the end:

Click on the author's name to go to the blog where the story resides.

J. Gunnar Gray 
The rolltop was not locked. Inside were the usual nooks and cubby holes, pencils and Aunt Edith’s embossed stationery, even an old ink well and fountain pen, both dried. Nothing looked as if it required a six-pin tumbler with serrated top pins.

J.F. Jenkins 
Most people are surprised when they find out I’m a morning person and an evening person. Truth be told, I’m a bit of an insomniac. 
Kay Springsteen
Emma sat on her front porch in an old rocking chair, the one she had used to rock her babies to sleep back when she’d been needed.Next to her was the walnut table crafted by her husband, Sam, right after they’d been married.

Jean Joachim 
Mint Chip, Chapters 1-8

MINT CHIP

Chapter Nine

            “I’ll read Annie while you do Gordon,” Nina said.

            Clint read the words he wrote for Gordon, the father, to say to his daughter. Nina read the daughter’s words. They read the speeches several times but neither one was pleased.

            “Something is missing,” Clint said.

            “There has to be a special connection between a father and daughter, something that happens…a symbol. We need a thing here, I think.”

            “I only have a son and two brothers. No sisters. Guide me on this one, Nina. What would there be between a father and daughter, season tickets to their favorite team?”

            Nina laughed.

            “Maybe, but that’s not very sexy.”

            “You said that word. I told you not to say it, but you did,” he said and leaned over to kiss her.

            “Okay, okay. I’m thinking here, Clint,” Nina said, gently pushing him away.

            Clint got up and put on another pot of coffee. It was almost time to break for lunch but the work on the play, “Happy Family” about a family that wasn’t, was rolling along beautifully. Nina’s brow furrowed as she sat deep in thought on the sofa wearing nothing but one of Clint’s big shirts. She chewed on the end of a red pencil as her  mind worked.

            “We could use a family necklace…”

            “Family necklace? Like an heirloom?”

            “Exactly.”

            “Tell me more,” he coaxed.

            Nina’s face clouded up and her eyes got bright. Clint watched her as the coffee pot gurgled and hissed its way to a fresh, full pot. She sat in silence trying to compose herself.

            “What’s wrong?” he asked.

            Nina shook her head as if to shake the tears from her eyes and the pain from her heart.

            “A bad memory.”

            “Tell me about it. Maybe we can use it,” he urged.

            She looked sharply at him, then smiled.

            “Some of the best stuff comes from real life, at least real emotions, Nina. You told me that yourself.”

            “I did. Don’t know if I’m ready to have my painful past trotted out on the stage.”

            “We’ll doctor it. Come on. Tell me,” he said, slipping his arm around her.

            With Clint’s big arm pulling her into him, she felt safe and her reticence melted away.

            “I lost my virginity on the young side…”

            “Ooohh, tell me more!”

            “Clint!” she said, punching him lightly in the arm.

            “Sorry, sorry. Go on.”

            “I was in love. He was my high school boyfriend, a darling guy, very sweet. Not unlike you,” she said with a mischievous glint in her eye.

            He beamed at her.

            “We did it in my room. Clay climbed in my window and we did it when my parents were away. My grandmother was staying with me and my little sister. We were quiet as mice and she’d never have suspected except we fell asleep in my bed. In the morning my grandmother came in and discovered us, naked in my bed.”

            “Wow! Must have been some fight.”

            “There was and my grandmother never forgave me. She looked down on me after that, refusing to speak to me for a long time. She told my parents, too. My mother wasn’t as shocked as Grandma because Clay and I had been dating for over six months. She liked him. But Grandma didn’t agree. It caused a rift in the family as my grandmother no longer felt comfortable in our house.”

            Clint looked at her and took her hand.

            “The big blow-up came…the last time she ever came to see us. It was at Thanksgiving and I was home visiting from college. My mother had a beautiful garnet necklace she had been given by her grandmother. I always coveted that necklace and counted the years until it would be mine. My mother decided since I was 21 it was time to pass the necklace to me.”

            “A necklace…across three generations. I like that,” Clint put in.

            “You might think so. Grandmother was there when my mom got the necklace and came into the living room. As mom fastened it around my neck, my grandmother yelled an unpleasant word at me and ripped the necklace from my neck. She ranted about me not deserving it  as the necklace broke and the lovely garnet stones scattered across the floor.”

            “Oh my God!”

            “She called me a whore and stomped out of the room, got in her car and drove away. She refused to visit if I was there and my mother refused to invite her if I wasn’t. She died about three years later.”

            “What happened to the necklace?”

            “I gathered up all the stones I could find and my mother had them restrung with pearls in-between each one. I still have it and it’s one of my favorites. I wear it often.”

            “What a story,” he said, hugging her tightly to him.

            “You can have it if you want,” she said, closing her eyes.

            “Maybe not exactly, but it gives me an idea. Do you mind if I use a necklace between Annie and her dad?”

            “Not at all,” she replied.

            “Good. Coffee’s ready,” he said, opening his arms to release her.

            She sat back feeling weak as the painful memory slowly left her mind. When she turned around, Clint was standing next to the sofa, handing her a cup of coffee.

            “Just the way you like it,” he said.

            She smiled up at him and took a sip.
                                 
                                  *****
Attention writers: want to join us on Tuesdays? Email me at sunnydaysbook@gmail.com.


My Books
 Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights 
All Romance eBooks - $3.99
Astraea Press - $3.99 
Amazon - $4.99
Barnes & Noble - $4.99

Now and Forever, a Love Story $5.50
All Romance eBooks
Secret Cravings Publishing






 

Do you know what a "Slippery Dick" is?

     Research is supposed to help writers be more accurate, right? I want my writing to be authentic. I took shooting lessons to write about learning to shoot a gun. I contacted an old friend, an expert on horses, to gather facts to write two scenes involving riding a horse. Little did I know when I researched fish you can catch in St. Thomas and eat, I'd ending finding the laugh of the year instead.

     I found the slipper dick fish! Yes, there really is a fish called the slipper dick. I located one of the funniest videos ever with a man telling you about the slippery dick fish, with a completely straight face. I roared with laughter.

     The best part is at the end, so view it, have your laugh of the day, but don't turn it off until you hear about the size of the slippery dick...the fish that is!

Slippery Dick Fish video - click here