Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Jules Bennett | Exclusive Excerpt: TWIN GAMES IN MUSIC CITY
Author Guest / April 16, 2021

Damn it. She hadn’t meant to let that slip. How could she pretend to be her sister, even going so far as to dress like her and wear glasses, and yet not be able to simply hold her tongue? Hannah squared her shoulders and stared across the table. Will Sutherland was so damn sexy, that’s why. He had her so flustered she couldn’t think. All of this was his fault. How could she keep up her disguise when all she could think about was raking her fingers through that hair to see if she could mess it up? Those lips, which were now thinned with frustration, seemed soft. Was he a good kisser? She hadn’t felt much of an attraction toward any man in a long time. Why did this man, of all the ones in her world, have to grab her attention? She’d hoped that pretending to be Hallie would tamp down some of the heat she felt whenever he was near. No such luck and now she’d gone and blown her cover. As if she needed more problems. She’d known switching record labels would be difficult, no matter which one she chose. Mags ruled this town and she…

Brenda Jackson | Exclusive Excerpt: THE MARRIAGE HE DEMANDS
Author Guest / April 12, 2021

Brianna Banks entered the attorney’s office the next morning. “Good morning, Lois.” The older woman glanced up at Brianna and smiled. “Good morning, Brianna. You’re early.” “Is Mr. Cavanaugh in?” “Yes, he’s here, and since you and Mr. Outlaw are the only two needed for the reading of the will, we can get started as soon as he arrives.” Lois Inglese then leaned over the desk and said in a low voice, “I didn’t know Ellen had a son. Did you?” Brianna drew in a deep breath. She liked Lois. Had known the fifty-something-year-old woman all her life. The one thing she also knew was that Lois had a pen­chant for gossip. More than once, Lois had gotten in hot water with Mr. Cavanaugh for discussing things that should be confidential. “I’d rather not say, Lois.” Brianna checked her watch. “If you don’t mind, I’ll take a seat over there and wait.” Lois’s smile faded when she realized Brianna would not divulge any information. Brianna crossed the room to take a chair by the win­dow that overlooked Eagle Bend River. Although she had known about Ellen’s son, Lois was the last person Brianna would admit anything to. She’d also known…

Naima Simone | Exclusive Excerpt: BACK IN THE TEXAN’S BED
Author Guest / February 2, 2021

Wiping her hands on a towel, Charlotte turned to Faith, smiling as the manager typed out a message so fast on her ever-present phone that her thumbs blurred. “What’d you need?” Charlotte asked. “You, your effervescent personality and beautiful face.” “Do you want me to clue you in on how pimp-ish that sounds, or are we just going to ignore it?” Char­lotte drawled, quirking an eyebrow. “Ignore it.” Charlotte snickered, then grinned. As she had been headhunted from the California restaurant where she’d been working, so had Faith, from her native San Anto­nio, to run Sheen. Faith had created a name for herself as a Jon Taffer in heels. Not that Sheen had been failing and needed rescuing when Faith had been brought on several weeks ago and prior to Charlotte’s hiring, but the owners had wanted to make sure their venture hit the ground running from the beginning. “Okay, give. I have nearly a full restaurant of hun­gry customers to feed,” Charlotte said, crossing her arms. “What’s up?” “What’s up is I just heard from a source who shall remain nameless that the food critic from the New York Voice magazine will be dropping by Sheen next Tues­day.” Astonishment…

Nadine Gonzalez | Author-Reader Match: SCANDAL IN THE VIP SUITE
Author Guest / January 15, 2021

Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Author-Reader Match” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Nadine Gonzalez! *** Writes: SCANDAL IN THE VIP SUITE: How did it get so scandalous? A missing diary sets it all in motion. But first, meet Julian Knight, a British-Jamaican actor, maligned as the face of toxic masculinity, and Nina Taylor, a Haitian-American writer, at a career impasse. Their paths cross over a holiday weekend in Miami, Florida. When Nina peeks into the luxury hotel suite that should have been hers, she’s caught by the room’s occupant, Julian Knight. The Hollywood bad boy quickly offers a compromise: why not share? But soon, the paparazzi is jumping to scandalous conclusions. Even as the world speculates about them, they manage to carve their private little oasis. Until the entries of a lost diary leave them exposed and rips them apart. About: Enjoying life. It may be the Caribbean in me, but I am all about good food, good books, good times with family, wine, chocolate, coffee, and cocktails. I enjoy dressing up even if it’s just to stay in….

Sophia Singh Sasson | Exclusive Excerpt: RUNNING AWAY WITH THE BRIDE
Author Guest / January 5, 2021

What am I thinking? He had spent most of yesterday rehashing all the poor choices he’d made in life, and today he’d made two more spectacularly bad decisions: the first to crash Pooja’s wedding, and the second to get involved with Divya’s escape. Last night he’d been at his condo in Los Angeles, unable to sleep. He barely recognized the furniture in the place, let alone remembered how to operate the overly complicated coffee machine. He owned a condo in every major city where he had to spend time for his business. He was tired of hotel rooms, yet none of these condos was home. The closest he’d come to feeling grounded was living with Pooja for three months. But when he’d been with Pooja, all he’d been able to think about was all the things that didn’t work in their relationship. After she’d left, he’d been unable to stop thinking about how great things could’ve been between them. He’d woken up in a cold sweat this morning, wondering whether he’d die alone in one of his ubiquitous condos. Living on his airplane, jetting from city to city was getting old. He wanted a place where he belonged; he wanted…

Brenda Jackson | Exclusive Excerpt: THE WIFE HE NEEDS
Author Guest / December 11, 2020

“What do you mean she’s not coming?” Garth asked, speaking into his cell phone, while rubbing a frustrated hand down his face. He had arrived in Santa Cruz ex­pecting the woman selected by the dating service to be there already. She wasn’t. “I got a call from the dating service,” Charm said. “Evidently there was some kind of mix-up in the dates. They regret their error and are hoping you will consider rescheduling.” Anger rose, heating Garth’s face. A mix-up in the dates? He expected better from a company that prided itself on being the best in the business. “Since there’s no reason to remain here, I’ll let Regan know I’ll be on the plane with her when she leaves two days from now.” “Why?” Garth frowned. “Why what?” “Why are you coming back home? Don’t you think Cash can handle things while you’re gone?” Garth rolled his eyes. “Of course, I do. Had I thought he couldn’t, I would not have left him in charge.” “Then let him do it. It will make him feel important to the company.” “He is important to the company, Charm. All of you are.” “Then take the time off you so rightly deserve….

Jayci Lee | Exclusive Excerpt: OFF LIMITS ATTRACTION
Author Guest / December 3, 2020

His shoulders tensed at the thought of her dancing with other men, looking the way she did tonight. He blew out a breath through his nose and deliberately drew his shoulder back down. It was none of his god­damn business whom she danced with. “Like I said, sometimes impulsivity leads to the best sort of fun.” Taking on a life of its own, his thumb drew soft circles on her lower back. “How else would we have had this great opportunity to build rapport?” “Now it’s rapport-building?” She held his eyes and her lips lifted into a Mona Lisa smile. “This keeps getting better and better.” With their heads bent close to hear each other, the sexy-as-hell hint of whiskey on her breath was driv­ing him wild. He lowered his head imperceptibly to breathe in her scent, and she shivered in his arms. She felt the magnetic pull, too, and it was damn hot. When her eyes searched his, he slowly angled his head until their lips were mere inches apart. Both of them drew back as though lightning had struck them. They were dancing in the middle of a crowd. They couldn’t do this. Breathing roughly, they gazed at…

Danielle Dresser | Gratitude in 2020 + LSA Giveaway!
Author Guest / November 16, 2020

2020 has been a YEAR. I know I don’t have to go on and on about the trials and tribulations associated with it, but with the US Thanksgiving holiday next week, I decided to practice gratitude and think about the things I’m grateful for… some of these are silly, some are serious, and some are, of course, books. Keurig K-Cafe Coffee, Latte, and Cappuccino Maker  This was one of our early pandemic purchases and it has made my life so much better. I’m not saying I stopped going to Starbucks, but having the ability to make delicious lattes at home with just a few pushes of a button has changed my life–and probably the lives of the two people I live with, who know I must be caffeinated to be remotely pleasant. Harlequin Desire Category Romances 2020 will be the year of desire for me… Harlequin Desire, that is. Between the recent cover style revamp and the current crop of authors writing for this line, Harlequin Desire romance novels have saved my life this year. When things began in March, I was in a huge reading slump, and the comfort I found in reading about outrageously beautiful and unfathomably wealthy…

Maisey Yates | Exclusive Excerpt: CLAIMING THE RANCHER’S HEIR
Author Guest / November 10, 2020

“You like it. My testosterone. You’d like to be poisoned by it, admit it.” “There’s that sense of unearned self-confidence,” she said, her heart hammering steadily against her chest. “Right on time.” “It’s not unearned. I watch you. When we fight. Your face gets all flushed.” “That’s called anger.” “Why? What is it about me that makes you so damned angry?” “You… You are just…a useless, base ape.” “Base?” He asked the question with a dangerous sort of softness to his voice, and it made her trem­ble. “That’s what you think? That I’m like an animal who can’t control himself?” “Yes,” she spat. “I know all about you and your reputation. You get drunk at the bar, you pick up women every night of the week.” “I don’t get drunk,” he said. “That’s not me.” “Maybe that’s how you see yourself, but it’s not what I hear. I hear that you’re just a big, dumb, blunt instrument. You might go on and on about how you pulled yourself up by your bootstraps, but your daddy made all this happen. You might wear a cowboy hat, but there’s a silver spoon in your mouth the same as mine. So don’t you…

Janice Maynard | 20 Questions: SLOW BURN
Author Guest / November 3, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  SLOW BURN 2–What is it about?  After a terrible tragedy, Jake Lowell flees his home. But he leaves behind the girl he loves. 3–What word best describes your heroine?  Adaptable. . . 4–What makes your hero irresistible?  He feels things deeply, even when he can’t show his emotions. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  For Nikki, it’s her mom. Jake turns to no one. He lives life on his own. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book?  I had to brush up on New Jersey, because I haven’t spent time there. 7–Are you a plotter (follow an outline) or a pantster (write by the seat of your pants)? Pantser all the way! 8–What is an ideal writing day for you? Putter in the morning, chores, email, etc. Then hit the writing hard in the afternoon. If my husband has night meetings, I’ll write a lot more after dinner. 9–Do you listen to music while you write, need total silence, or do you have the TV on? Total silence. . . 10– How do you approach research?  I Google everything!! And I mostly write…