She leaned over to grab one side of the eight-foot-long banner that was supposed to say Merry Christmas, Twilight giving him a straight-shot view down the front of her sweater. She waited for him to pick up the other half. His eyes bugged. Joel stopped in his tracks, gaze fixed on Jana’s cleavage. His pulse jumped right off a cliff. Last night, this gorgeous creature was in my bed. “Joel?” “Huh?” “You gonna stand there all day with your mouth hanging open?” He shut his jaw, picked up the other end of the banner and followed her outside to drape it from the railing of the upper deck. “Before we anchor the banner securely, let’s make sure it’s even,” she said and hit the stairs for the lower deck so they could stand back and examine their handiwork. He followed her, hunching his shoulders against the cold air blowing off the water. Jana cleared the stairs ahead of him, turned and stared owl-eyed at the message on the unfurled banner above them. She gasped. “What’s this?” He stared up. The banner read Will You Marry Me? Seeing the words spelled out in red letters across the boat yanked the breath…
CHAPTER FOUR EXCERPT OF SOPHIE JORDAN’S THE VIRGIN AND THE ROGUE Something was not right. All throughout dinner the sensation, the aching discomfort, only grew. Following dinner, Charlotte excused herself and managed to make it to her bedchamber, where she hastily shed her clothes as though they burned her skin and climbed into bed. It was bad. Terrible. The queasiness was unlike any other time. The symptoms were different. More . . . pronounced. She curled into a ball and dragged the pillow between her legs, hugging it tightly. Usually she endured the twinges of pain until they passed. The slight cramping that was improved by hot water bottles and Nora’s tonic. She would keep to bed for twelve hours until it passed. This was not like that. This did not feel in any way endurable. She was vaguely aware of her bedchamber door opening and closing and footsteps approaching her bed. She inhaled and exhaled in slow, even drags of air, her fingers digging into the soft linen pillowcase. Her sisters’ voices carried to her ears. Even in her current condition, there was no mistaking the agitation in Marian’s voice floating above her. “What did you do, Nora? She…
Welcome to Fresh Fiction! We’ve been featuring the books you’ve worked on for so long, and we are so excited to learn more about the editors behind the books, as well as How to Write a Romance! Can you introduce yourselves, tell us how long you’ve worked at Avon, and your all-time favorite romance novel? Erika Tsang (ET): I’m Erika Tsang, editorial director of Avon Books. I just celebrated my 17th year here. My all-time favorite romance novel is… a very difficult question to answer. Jude Deveraux’s A KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR because I discuss that ending quite a bit. Then there’s Johanna Lindsey’s WARRIOR’S WOMAN, Julie Garwood’s THE LION’S LADY, Jill Barnet’s IMAGINE (there’s a genie!)…my list goes on and on. Nicole Fischer (NF): My name is Nicole and I started at Avon Books about 6.5 years ago. My favorite romance is… ok, that’s an impossible question for a romance editor! I don’t have 1 favorite of all time, I have top picks in each subgenre. But if I had to name one, the first title that pops into my head right this moment is IT HAPPENED ONE AUTUMN by Lisa Kleypas because I love sassy, feisty heroines who…

