The Arrangement Excerpt

It's time for an excerpt. The Arrangement will be released next Friday. Enjoy!

     Masculine laughter floated from the direction of the kitchen. Hearing the voice of Ted Flynn, the husband of her best friend, was no surprise. But the other male…Asher Hollister.… She’d know that laugh anywhere though she hadn’t seen him since the annual Flynn New Year’s Eve party six months ago. Asher’s laughter was rich and husky and rolled over the listener like a sensual fog. Ariadne stiffened and froze in the process of entering the beach house, the sliding glass door open only a few inches. What the hell was he doing here? She whipped around to glare at her best friend Erika Flynn. Crossing her arms over her chest, she said, “You promised me he wasn’t coming this year.”
     Erika winced. “Ted invited him, but he turned down the invitation. He must have changed his mind.”
     Ariadne sighed. She wondered if she could sneak up to her room, pack her bags and leave without him noticing. This was supposed to be a much needed vacation for her. The last thing she needed was to have to deal with the animosity that existed between her and Asher. She’d intended to stay for two weeks. She doubted the two of them would last that long before weapons were drawn.
     That they would cross swords was inevitable with only the four of them inhabiting the house. She avoided him when possible, but that was difficult since they often traveled in the same circles. Sometimes she felt like she lived in a soap opera town inhabited by a limited number of citizens. But the funny thing was that Asher seemed capable of getting along with everyone with the exception of her. Everybody loved him. Especially women. For some unknown reason, he had been an ass to her since high school.
     “Might as well get it over with,” Erika said, laying a comforting hand on her arm.
     Ariadne glanced down at herself. The two of them had been lying around on the beach while Ted went out to grab dinner. The purple one piece she wore was dry. Only a small amount of sand clung to her legs and ankles.
     She opened the door the rest of the way and the two of them skirted the dining table and entered the den. It was a large open area separated from the kitchen by a curved bar. Ted leaned against the kitchen counter, bags of takeout behind him. His long legs were stretched out in front of him. His shaved head and goatee gave him a tough guy look though he was one of the nicest guys she’d ever met. Asher sat on a barstool facing him. The two men had been friends since elementary school. The same could be said for her and Erika. Prior to Erika marrying Ted two years ago, her run-ins with Asher had been minimal. After the marriage of their best friends, she really had to work to avoid the odious man. Whether he was avoiding her or not, she wasn’t certain. He seemed to relish their encounters. It was just another reason to hate him. She liked her life on a calm even keel. Some might calling it boring, but she’d choose ennui over calamity any given day.
     Asher grinned at the sight of them. His lips tipped up on the left first before spreading to the other side. It was a slow, calculated move. His pale green eyes lit up in wicked delight. Ariadne’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. She just knew he was thinking of some cruel taunt as his gaze flicked over her from top to bottom. “Well, if it isn’t my sweet belle and Miss Prim and Proper.” She didn’t have to guess which one she was.
     Erika rushed forward and received a warm hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Ash, it’s good to see you.”
     Ariadne hugged her beach bag to her chest. “Ash,” she said with a nod. It was as much of an acknowledgement as he was going to get out of her.
     “Ari,” he murmured, knowing she’d never given him permission to use that abbreviation of her name. Only friends and family called her Ari. He was neither. “You look supremely overdressed for the occasion.”
     Her swimsuit was conservative. It was true. It had a modest scoop neck and rose up high to cover her back. There was even a ruffle skirt that hid the tops of her rounded thighs. Erika had commented that it would have been better suited to a five year old. That was different. Erika was a friend. She was allowed to criticize her wardrobe. Bristling, she replied, “I shopped for a string bikini but the stores sold out to your cadre of busty girlfriends.”
     He arched a dark brow before bursting out in laughter. “Well, you do have the impressive upper endowments I so adore.”
     That was another habit of his that she hated. Her insults never seemed to hit their mark. He always laughed it off. It didn’t help that he had the sexiest laugh known to man. The man was infuriating. Ariadne growled. “You-”
     “Come on, guys,” Ted interrupted. “Don’t get started. Erika and I don’t want to spend two weeks listening to you bicker. Ash, you promised to be on your best behavior.”
     “What?” He lifted his arms and shrugged. “That was a compliment.”

August 7 is almost here

There's not much time until the release of The Arrangement. I love the cover.

BLURB

For Ariadne Morris, it was enough that her boyfriend dumped her for her cousin, but then she finds out that they plan to announce their engagement at the annual family reunion. Spending time at the beach with friends seems like the perfect getaway. Unfortunately, Asher Hollister, her high school nemesis, shows up.

Asher Hollister enjoys riling up the ever so proper Ariadne. When he learns about her situation, he offers her a solution--marry him. The marriage will help him repair his reputation before his father runs for governor. He tells Ariadne that the marriage will be temporary, only Asher already knows that he never wants to let her go.

The Arrangement

So my next book will be called The Arrangement. The release date will be August 7. I'll post the cover art, a blurb, and an excerpt in coming weeks. Keep enjoying your summer!

Disappearing Books and Other Stuff

Some of you may or may not have noticed that some of my books disappeared off Amazon and other sites. (Friends, Winning Dawn, The Matchmaker, and Possessed) All of those books were published with Sugar and Spice. They decided to return the publishing rights to their authors and took down the books on July 1. I haven't decided all the specifics of what I'm going to do about them yet, but I will republish them in time.

For those of you waiting to hear more about Haven & Scott, I haven't picked a publication date, but it will be out this year. The wait won't be too long.

Last, but not least, I should mention another release that I have planned. I'm waffling on the title, but have chosen thus far to call it The Arrangement. This one is for those of you out there who just want a novel about regular people set in a contemporary time frame. At one point, I'd planned to have it out this weekend, but who knew self-publishing could be so exhausting? Look for this one to be out by the end of the month or August at the latest! More details on this to come very soon.

And lest we not forget, Happy Independence Day! Have a happy and safe weekend.

In Anticipation of...

In anticipation of the release of Karizma & Devin this Friday, I thought I'd post another excerpt for those of you still on the fence about whether or not to purchase it. It's already available for preorder on Amazon.

So before we get to the good stuff, I'd like to give a little history. I actually finished Karizma & Devin last year. I wrote it before Sienna & Jakob. The latter story was supposed to be a short introduction to the series. Sienna & Jakob ended up being longer than I intended. I've been waiting a while to get Karizma & Devin out so I'm really excited about this release.

I have many favorite parts in this book. Here's one of them:


     “I don’t know why you’re pushing this. We’re not right for each other.”
     His brows rose. “What makes you say that? I think you’re perfect.”
     Stunned at the compliment, it took her a moment to reply. “Well, you don’t like dogs. And…I’m certain that we don’t have the same views on marriage. Why did you register?”
     He shrugged broad shoulders. “To be honest, I was sick of dating. It’s time consuming and exhausting. I just want some uncomplicated companionship. That includes someone to warm my bed. You should fill the position adequately.”
     She sucked in a deep breath. “Just when I think you might not be crazy, you say something off the wall.”
     He grinned. “We can’t all be the same, can we? I think sometimes it’s called genius.”
     Karizma grunted. She noticed with alarm that he had moved closer to her. He was very large and well-built for someone who made his living with computer systems. The sleeves of his jacket barely seemed to contain his shoulders and biceps. She faltered back a step.
     “There’s nothing wrong with me, Karizma. So there’s no need for you to think you’re going to find a way out of this marriage.” He advanced on her until her back was against the wall. “I don’t know what your reasons were, but in the end, we both wanted to be married. Like I said before, we have details to straighten out, but I’m sure we can come up with some mutually satisfying terms.”
     “You didn’t seem interesting in negotiating before.”
     “You didn’t try. You leapt up and ran off after I was honest enough to admit that I didn’t want a dog tearing up my carefully manicured lawns. Oh, and I had the audacity to admit that I wanted to fuck you.”
     “Okay, that right there! Stop saying things like that.”
     “You’re not a virgin, are you?”
     “No, but we’re strangers. We need to get to know each other better. I mean, who knows, after the probationary period, we may not even want to stay together.”
     Devin grunted. “I know. You’re mine. I like the idea of it.” He placed his hands on either side of her on the wall, caging her into his embrace.
     She placed a hand on his chest and immediately wished she hadn’t. He was as hard as he looked. She applied gentle pressure to push him back. He leaned into her touch and shifted his hips closer. Swallowing, she said, “I’m not someone you can bully into doing what you want.”
     “So negotiate with me. I want to fuck you Friday night and every night thereafter. What do you want?”
     She glared at his unreasonable request. “I want time to get to know you before we get physical.”
     “How much time? Ballpark it for me.”
     “A month.”
     He let out a bark of laughter. “The entire probationary period? I’ll give you twenty-four hours.”
     “You call that negotiating?”
     “Give me a counteroffer.”
     “Three weeks.”
     “Three days.”
     “Two weeks.”
     “Two days.”
     “You’re going in the wrong direction,” she said between clenched teeth.
     “Fine. Five days.”
     Suspecting it was the best offer she would receive, she nodded. “Five days.”
     “Are you on birth control?”
     “Yes.” She was on pills. Though newer forms of birth control were available, she had bad reactions to them.
    Devin moved even closer until only a hairsbreadth of space remained between them. “We’re both clean. So when we fuck, I won’t use condoms.”
     She started shaking her head. The idea of him coming inside of her was incredibly intimate. She was already wondering how she could finagle her way out of the five day agreement. “Why take that chance?”
     “I’m non-negotiable on this point.” His hips rolled forward, almost but not quite touching her. “The thought of filling up your sweet pussy with my cum-”
     She slapped her hand over his mouth. “We need to discuss frequency. How often will you want to have sex?”
     “I told you. Every night. Every chance I get.”
     “Be realistic. I propose once a week.”
     He laughed. “Not nearly enough. This is another non-negotiable for me.”
     She glared at him. “I’m sensing a breakdown in these talks. You have to give me something.”
     His eyes lowered to her lips. “Maybe I should give you a taste of what to expect.”
     “No thank you.”
     He smiled. “You’re not a virgin but you’re not very experienced. Or you’re deluding yourself. You don’t like me, but you’re going to love fucking me.”
     She laughed at his arrogance. “Of the two of us, I’d lay odds on you being the delusional one. I don’t want you. The only reason I’m going through with this probationary period is so that when it’s over and I leave your pompous ass, Bioexpa will find me a more suitable match.”
     His chuckle was deep and husky. Leaning down, he rested his forehead on hers. “When I get you beneath me, spread your legs wide, I’ll slide inside so deep you’ll feel me for days. And that will be just the beginning. You’ll crave my cock day and night. And if you beg nicely, I’ll give it to you.”
     He sounded so confident. Karizma shook her head. He was crazy. She’d never want him. “Never.”
     “Apparently never is next Wednesday.”

Karizma & Devin Blurb and Excerpt

I am having such a difficult time right now concentrating on what to finish writing next. Fortunately, the next story in the Bioexpa series had been finished for a while.

Blurb

The year is 2100. Wise people marry by registering with Bioexpa Data Match. The matchmaking company has such a near perfect record that choosing your own mate is now considered tantamount to marrying a blood relative.

Karizma Woods has been dreaming of being matched by Bioexpa since she registered at eighteen. When it finally happens, she thinks it's a dream come true. That is until she meets Devin. Only a few minutes in his company has her convinced that she wants nothing to do with the arrogant jerk.

Devin McIntyre registered for practical reasons. He was tired of dating. All he really needs is a woman to warm his bed. Karizma suits needs perfectly. Too bad that she seems determined to leave him at the end of their thirty-day trial period.

Excerpt

     “K, if you’re going to ride with me, you’d better hurry,” Shari called as she pulled on her coat.
     Karizma gulped down her morning nutritional shake, suppressing a wince at the bitter aftertaste. “New and improved, indeed,” she grumbled, glaring at the label. No matter how many times they claimed that, the acrid taste of vitamins was always the finishing note. She tossed the can into the wide mouth of the recycling bin under the kitchen sink. Their apartment featured many of the latest and greatest appliances. The bin quickly sorted the can and crushed it into a tiny cube. Later when they removed the trash, it would be in a bag with other aluminum materials.
     She hurried to the door and grabbed her coat and scarf out of the closet. Her work at the animal shelter didn’t pay well and she had a ways to go before she’d saved up the money for a vehicle of her own. Until then, she had to either use public transportation or ride to work with one of her roommates. Fortunately for her Shari and Daphne never seemed to mind giving her a ride. “Thanks, Shari.”
     Outside their door sounded and the two women exchanged a look. They knew the significance of those chimes. A Bioexpa Data Match drone waited on the other side of the door for one of them. “Daphne!” they called in unison.
     They had all registered with Bioexpa DM. Who didn’t? If you wanted to find your soul mate, the person you were practically guaranteed to love and have a happily ever after with, you registered. The success of regular marriages was rare. But Bioexpa DM marriages survived a whopping ninety-nine point nine percent of the time. For that reason, registering at the age of eighteen was highly recommended by the government. Though almost no one was selected for a pairing at such a young age, the earlier a person registered the better. It took time to find a perfect match. The average age was twenty-five. If you weren’t picked by the age of forty-five, it was generally believed that you were a lost cause. The only person Karizma knew who hadn’t ever received a match was her uncle. Since he was a serial cheater, it was completely understandable.
     Karizma was twenty-five. Both her roommates were twenty-eight. The drone could be here for any one of them. Daphne came running, buttoning her blouse along the way. Her sleek black bob flowed around her face before settling, not a single hair out of place. “Did I hear what I think I heard?”
     “Uh huh,” Shari said with a slow nod.
     “Well, open the door,” Daphne said impatiently.
     Gulping, Shari entered the security code to unlock the door and then placed her hand over the hand scanner. The portal swept open and sure enough a drone floated at eye level in the hallway. It was the first time Karizma had seen one in person. She had heard about it from her sister Charm and her friend and coworker Allison. It was silver and shiny almost to the point of having a mirror finish. It was about nine inches in diameter and about three inches thick.
     It bobbed and dipped as it moved forward. The three of them stood around it and waited to see which of them had been chosen. A circular beam of blue light shot out of the bottom of the drone.
     “Karizma Penelope Woods, please place your left hand into the beam of light,” said an electronic voice.
     Karizma expelled an excited yelp while her roomies released groans of disappointment. Trembling, she extended her hand until it was under the light. A tone sounded and the beam passed over her hand in a wave pattern.
     “Identification verified. Karizma Penelope Woods, you are hereby married to Devin Michael McIntyre. His contact information has been sent to your communication slate. Please make arrangements to meet and begin your probationary cohabitation period.” There was a brief pause. “Please do not move as you are fitted for your wedding band. You will feel a slight warming sensation.”
     She bit her lip as a ray concentrated on her ring finger. A silver band appeared. The metal was warm on her skin. In the center there was a thin strip of pink light circling the entire band.
     “You may withdraw your hand. For questions or further information, please visit the Bioexpa Data Match website.”
     The drone zipped out their door and away. Karizma was practically bouncing with excitement. She’d been matched! Three years ago her sister had been matched at twenty-seven. For Charm and James, it had been love at first sight. It had been the same way for Allison and Adam.
     “I wonder what he’ll be like. Probably tall, with skin the color of milk chocolate, and dark eyes. And he’ll have a cool profession where he helps people. He’ll be a teacher or a fireman or-”
     Shari growled. “Spare us your daydreams. Come on, some of us still have to get to work.”
     She looked at her roomies. “I’m sorry. I got carried away.” They had only been sharing the apartment for a year. She was the last to move in since their old roommate was matched. And now she would be leaving also.
     “No, you have every right to be excited,” Daphne said. “Congratulations.” She folded her in a quick hug.
     “Yeah, congrats,” Shari muttered, but she smiled and slugged her in the shoulder to show that she was happy for her. Still, on the ride to work Karizma kept her speculations about her husband to herself. But thoughts of what he looked like and the romantic adventure on which she was about to embark buzzed in her brain all day.
   
***

     Devin stared down at the silver band with the blue stripe of light on his left hand with some relief. This would neatly solve his problem with Destiny. They had a dinner date tonight and he’d been trying to come up with an easy way of dumping his girlfriend of six months. Destiny was beautiful. She was a plus sized model, which actually only equated to her being only a size twelve. She was smart, successful, and ambitious. Of late, her ambition had been to become his wife.
     As if he wanted to marry. Devin was incredibly wealthy. He’d made his money from his tech company. As a hobby, he liked to buy and sell stock and he had been very fortunate in the choices he had made. Though Destiny had her own money, he was aware that she was approaching an age where she would need to retire. And he didn’t relish the idea of being viewed as her retirement plan. He had no delusions about her feelings for him, or his for her. They were not in love. They had shared a momentary passion and on his part it was over.
     So a month ago he had registered with Bioexpa DM. Purchasing that bit of stock had made him a fortune. Though Devin had no interest in love or marriage, it occurred to him it would be more convenient and probably less expensive than conducting brief affairs. The time saved looking for a partner alone made getting married worthwhile.
     He’d been at work for an hour when his receptionist had informed him of the drone hovering outside his office. He had soundproof walls and had not heard the tone the drone emitted. Yes, he thought, running his finger over the smooth silver ring. This would resolve his situation with Destiny and all the other gold digging hopefuls quite nicely.
     He touched a finger to his desk to open the browser tool and went to the e-mail address he’d used in his registration with Bioexpa to find out his wife’s contact information. It occurred to him that he could also do a background check on his wife, but he wasn’t that curious. His demands were few. He didn’t require love or affection. As long as she could satisfy him in bed and didn’t embarrass him in public, she would meet his needs.

Karizma & Devin

Here's the cover art for the next book in the Bioexpa series. I've set a tentative publication date of June 12. I'll post the blurb and excerpt soon. Enjoy your weekend!