We’ve all heard of these. Magic buttons, or at least spots that can lead to magic. And while they’re a bit of a cliché, there’s also some science behind them. Even better, for those of us who like to be amused, there’s some side notes science forgot. And here they are. Ear nibbles. Shivery and delicious, right? But equally awesome are sweet nothings, such as “You’re beautiful” and “I’ll load the dishwasher tonight.” There’s also nothing wrong with “Do you mind if I clean the entire house” and “I’ll take the kids for the day so you can do absolutely nothing.” (If there are any men reading this, let me assure you those last two are next level erogenous. You’re welcome.) Better known as the nape of your neck, though I’m not sure where the other napes are. People just like to specify, I guess. Anyway, there are a bunch of nerve endings there that are supposed to make nape touches amazing, and that’s probably why accidentally pulling hair out with a pony tail holder hurts so much. Which brings me to this: hair pulling should be done by the fistful. Which should be an erogenous zone by itself. A…
There are so many fun summer reads in the July Fresh Fiction Box Not to Miss, check them out! July’s Print Books: Everyone received at least 3 of these summer releases! Everywhere and Every Way by Jennifer Probst A Texas Soldier’s Family by Cathy Gillen Thacker Colton Cowboy Hideout by Carla Cassidy Puppy Love for the Veterinarian by Amy Woods Now and Then Friends by Kate Hewitt Nacho Figueras Presents: Wild One by Jessica Whitman The Billionaire Bachelor by Jessica Lemmon The Beauty of the End by Debbie Howells The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler July’s eBooks: Every box included all 4! The Vintner and the Vixen by Alexia Adams Remember the Night by Nicole Leiran Burn Down The Night by M. O’Keefe The Geek Gets The Girl by Michele Hauf Vixen’s Tale Every month, until June 2017, each box will showcase a new adventure featuring our mascot, Vixen. The tale is illustrated with a collectible postcard and button set. Vixen’s Tale #2: Bought by the Italian Magnate, A Billionaire Contemporary Romance Vixen was so clueless, she never imagined not learning the local language would get her in this much trouble. At least he had a beautiful smile under…
Best First Book Forget Tomorrow by Pintip Dunn | Entangled | Science Fiction | Young Adult Contemporary Romance: Long Brokedown Cowboy by Maisey Yates | HQN | Contemporary Contemporary Romance: Mid-length Him by Elle Kennedy, Sarina Bowen | Author Self-Published | Gay Contemporary Romance: Short The Nanny Plan by Sarah M. Anderson | Harlequin | Contemporary Erotic Romance For Real by Alexis Hall | Riptide Publishing | Erotica | Gay / Lesbian Historical Romance: Long Tiffany Girl by Deeanne Gist | Howard | Historical | Fiction Historical Romance: Short It Started With a Scandal by Julie Anne Long | Avon | Historical Inspirational Romance A Noble Masquerade by Kristi Ann Hunter | Bethany House | Historical Paranormal Romance Must Love Chainmail by Angela Quarles | Author Self-Published | Time Travel | Paranormal Novella Nice Girls Don’t Ride by Roni Loren | InterMix | Erotica | Erotica Sensual | Novella / Short Story Romantic Suspense Flash Fire by Dana Marton | Author Self-Published | Suspense Young Adult Romance The Anatomical Shape of a Heart by Jenn Bennett | Feiwel & Friends | Young Adult
This book is…not ordinary. I think it’s powerful. And emotionally compelling. And I hope so much you give it a chance. I can tell you why I think this, and hope this. I can describe Jem to you. He’s the hero of my heart. But I’m afraid if I say too much, you’ll move on without giving him a chance. Jem’s a construction worker. Okay, yeah, he owns the business, and wears a shirt and tie to work every day. But he wears them with jeans. And he learned the business with his hands before he ever considered being the brains behind it all. He’s alpha all the way. And he’s a single dad to a four-year-old who I wish I could hug. He’s a good dad. Involved. Aware. And firm, too, when he needs to be. And…Jem is…well, I hope you’ll give him a chance. I can’t imagine a romance reader not being glad they did. Then there’s Lacey. Sometimes I wanted to just do her hair and make-up, force her into an attention getting outfit and push her out the door. But she has Kacey for that. My job was to be patient. To let her have control….
Beck Townsend, retired Marine Corps special operative, is co-owner of a historic building in downtown Tucson, Arizona. The building is two-story, with retail stores in the front of the first floor, the Red Eagle Group offices in the back on the first floor, and condos on the second floor. The building I referenced while I was writing was the real historic Hittinger Building. I haven’t been inside the building, but I fell in love with the style of the outside. Anton Hittinger owned the property where this building was erected. It was a general-use commercial building for a variety of specialty shop tenants. Its elaborate facade ornamentation in the Italianate style was characteristic of the Victorian era. This style was very popular in the United States from about 1840 to the mid-1880s. The First Hittinger Block, as this group of buildings came to be called, with its large arched windows and dual-color brickwork, is an unusual and probably late example of the style. Also part of the truth-behind-the-fiction story is Mt. Lemmon, located on the north side of Tucson. The mountains in the Southwest are called Sky Islands. (If you think about it, “regular” islands are actually mountains surrounded by…
Howdy, Fresh Fiction fans! In my latest release, the friends-to-lovers erotic romance COWBOY PLAYER, Clark MacKinnon is a cattleman who’s working hard to make his family’s ranch a success. His childhood best friend Melody Santos has moved back to town. She needs a little money, so Clark hires her to help with the business. Problem? She’s all grown up and he can’t stop thinking about her. Sparks fly between the BFFs and soon they face a conundrum: stay safely in the friend zone or give in to passion and risk losing each other forever. Clark is the third MacKinnon brother from my Cowboy Cocktail series. He’s appeared in previous books as a flirt and prankster, the one who delivers the inappropriate line and unknowingly hits on his brothers’ girls. He is so much fun to write, not only because he’s a sexy, dirty-talking goofball, but because underneath it all he is steady as a rock, and just the dependable kind of man Melody deserves. Like all red-blooded American cowboys, Clark loves a good steak. I’d like to have him share his steak recipe (which coincidentally is the recipe I use at home). Take it away, Clark… CLARK MACKINNON’S STEAK RECIPE…
He hadn’t taken it well at all when she’d told him “it’s not you, it’s me.” This had to be the tenth text she’d gotten from him since last night. Give me another chance. Just tell me what you want from me, and I’ll give it to you. Seriously. He was too freaking perfect. But not for her. She’d known almost from the beginning things weren’t going the way they should. She’d kept putting off ending it because she didn’t want to go back to being lonely. But if she was honest with herself, being with Charlie hadn’t made her feel any less alone. She’d just been alone with someone else along for the ride. Staring at the large saguaro cactus in front of the window then the mountains beyond, she sighed and clicked off the message, slipping her phone back into her handbag and picking up her plate. As usual, her record for choosing men who weren’t suitable for her, one of whom had later turned into a husband, held true. The first serious relationship with a boyfriend had gone two years and come with an engagement ring she’d given back when she found him in bed with another…
Professor Trueblood watched from the door of Wesley Hall as they hurried down the concrete stairs. Once away from him, they walked slowly side by side. They walked through the warm night in silence. Then Melanie asked, “How’s your nose?” “It’ll live.” He sniffed. “I think the bleeding’s stopped.” “I’m sorry I hurt you.” “It’s nothing.” He looked at her. “Are you going to tell me what happened?” “Oh, Bodie,” she whispered. Her arm slipped around his back, her small hand warm on his hip. “It’s something terrible.” “I know. I saw.” “Not that. I mean…what I saw.” “What you saw?” “My dad. It must’ve been Dad. Or my sister.” Her hand tightened on Bodie’s hip. “God. He…he must be dead. One of them, anyway. I…damn it.” She sobbed. “I don’t know which one. But Dad, I think. When it happened last time, it was Mom.” Bodie stopped. He turned and stared down into her glistening eyes. Her sorrow made a thickness in his throat and a tight hurt in his chest. But her words… What was she saying? He tucked the handkerchief into his pocket and gently took hold of her shoulders. Too late, he realized he had blood…
For some unfortunate reason, many libraries are becoming increasingly noisier places, not at all the old “shhh” environments that existed years ago where wrinkled librarians waggled their fingers back and forth at you for even thinking too loud. Despite this change, there’s something about libraries that puts me in the mood to write, not to mention the mountains of traditional research that can be scoured up. This morning I was doing some work at a library in a relatively large city. I have generally found that periodicals rooms are the best places to get things done as the number of people that read physical newspapers continues to decline, leaving these areas the quietest. I normally try to write 1500-2000 words per day. Sometimes, hitting my goal takes as little as two hours and as many as ten to twelve. This morning I was off to a pretty good start, knocking down my first 1,000 in a little over an hour. That’s when I heard these two women talking to my left. We were separated by a book shelf, so I couldn’t see them. I try not to listen to other people’s conversations, but sometimes it’s hard not to, particularly in…
Can Supergirl kick Superman’s butt? I say yes, and here’s why: I live in a household of females. I believe God has done this to build my character, and not as a cruel joke. So I know firsthand the strength and battle prowess of women. Hence this post about My Favorite Female Superheroes of Pop Culture. Let’s start with Supergirl. She was created in 1959 to be Superman’s female counterpart. But in 2016, Supergirl became a force that overshadowed even Superman with the TV show Supergirl. Supergirl’s real name is Kara Zor-El. She is Superman’s cousin, and technically, an illegal alien. The Earth’s sun gives her amazing power—unimaginable strength, x-ray vision, heat vision, ice breath, invulnerability to nearly any human weapon, and the awesome capacity to fly. Like Superman, she is vulnerable to Kryptonite. Supergirl lives in National City under the name of Kara Danvers, and works for media mogul Cat Grant. Her true identity is masked by her geekish demeanor and, of course, glasses. To prove my point about the battle prowess of women, I am compelled to point out that Supergirl defeated Reactron, whom Superman could not. Wonder Woman’s real name is Princess Diana of Themyscira. She is…