Spotlight: Lynked by Bethany-Kris

Posted on February 3, 2014 by S.J. Maylee

Happy Release Day, Bethany-Kris! 😀

Lynked

by Bethany-Kris

He’d give up everything to keep her, in fact he did. But will she still be waiting on the other side when it’s over?

Genre: Contemporary erotic romance

Length: Full length – 93k

Publisher: Crimson Romance

Release Date: February 3^rd, 2014

Blurb: When a fighter’s path crosses with a beautiful woman, he’s positive the meeting will only end in her leaving his penthouse with sex hair and a smile—until life and the law steps in, inevitably linking their futures forever.

The accident that ended his fighting career wasn’t enough to keep former heavyweight mixed martial arts champion Devon Lynk out of the sport. His new business, Chaine Lynk, an exclusive fighting company, has made him millions through illegal gambling. Happy with his life, he never suspected it could be his downfall … until the morning after leads to something so much more than he expected, and he’s left with the weight of guilt and responsibility on his shoulders.

Veronica “Nic” Stacey made her way to Edmonton with the intention of starting life anew, but her first night in the city lands her in a stranger’s bed and things don’t quite go as planned. Waking up to find out her brother is in jail is one thing, but learning the man she slept with is also his boss is another matter altogether. With no knowledge of the city and nowhere to go, she’s left taking the only help offered: Devon’s.

With Chaine Lynk’s doors closed and Devon facing possible jail time for his involvement, reality takes a front row seat. Love and lust intermingle as he comes to learn what his business and choices have cost the girl he wants most—now he just has to fix it. But is it already too late?

Excerpt:

“What is your name, pretty girl?”

Something sinful crawled over every nerve Nic had in the best way at the voice in her ear. She couldn’t not respond to the hand suddenly holding tight to her waist. The heat of the man’s palm soaked straight through the fabric of her dress and seeped into her skin in the best way. She swore it travelled over her flesh with a tingling dance that had her burning hot instantly. Shooting him with a simpering grin, Nic turned her head just enough to check him out.

Tall and well dressed with broad shoulders, a muscled frame, and hazel eyes that seemed to pierce right into her soul, Nic was stunned for a second. The dark color of his skin stood out against the cream color of her dress and his fingers tightened, making her breath catch. Handsome was an understatement. This man was downright gorgeous in a way that made her pulse pick up and her sex ache.

There was a faint grin playing on his full lips and her gaze was drawn down to his hand still holding firm to her waist like it belonged there. No one had so blatantly approached her like he had throughout the night, not to mention physically touched her.

Actually, this man was the first to ever do that at all and not get an instant rejection.

Maybe it should have bothered Nic, but instead she found herself curious as to why he had approached her. After all, she hadn’t been actively trying to invite attention her way.

“Your name?” he asked again.

The roughness in his voice was almost mesmerizing. The flecks of green in his eyes seemed to dance under the lights, sparkling with suggestion and want.

“Nic.”

“What are your plans in the next five minutes?”

Nic turned to look back at the fight. The man did the same, watching as Jordan locked down hard to his opponent, pinning him to the mat with a chokehold that looked like it must have hurt. She’d thought seeing Jordan fight would turn her inside out with worry, but instead, Nic only found herself proud.

Maybe making the choice to come to Alberta had been the right one after all. Change was supposed to be a good thing, right?

“That depends,” she finally answered.

“On what?”

Once more, she met his gaze, feeling his hand gripping tightly to her waist and wanting to become lost in just the sensation of that action alone. Nic could feel her body wanting to press harder into his grip. Never had her insides reacted so strongly to another person. He didn’t let up a bit. Haze yielded behind them, tapping out hard against the mat. People started to cheer as their hands hit the cage. Jordan’s name rang out in the crowd louder and louder.

“On that.”

Her brother won.

The tuition was all but paid now.

Do something different. Those words rung in her mind like a toll bell.

What would it hurt to go home with this man? Nic wondered. Who would know what she had done? There wouldn’t be a soul to say anything bad. There would be no one judging her like they did back home. He clearly wasn’t a fighter if his clothing and attitude were any indication, so she was still following along with her brother’s only request.

What could it really hurt? Nothing. She was grown. Jordan would be celebrating his win. A single phone call to let him know she was fine would be enough until the morning.

“Come home with me,” he said, his eyes seeming to search hers for any sign of indecision.

Nic laughed an airy sound. “I don’t even know you.”

“I don’t bite.”

“Maybe I’d like that, though.”

“All right, I bite a little,” he teased.

She could easily say no, but she didn’t want to. That should have scared her. Whatever influence this man seemed to have on her was one she hadn’t experienced before. Nic was the rational one; a person who didn’t make irresponsible choices that would shine her in a bad light. Straight and narrow; white as a dove. Whoever this man was, he made her want to jump headfirst into the filth of sin without even thinking of possible consequences.

“Married?” he asked.

“Nope.”

“Escort?” The face she made must have given away how she felt about that comment. “Sorry,” he said.

Again, his mouth came dangerously close to her face, lips ghosting over the shell of her ear. Heat saturated Nic all over again and she shivered. Who was this man? She didn’t even care that his name had yet to be uttered. She wet her tongue with her lips.

“Come home with me,” he repeated, his voice turning down to a husky tone.

Nic bit her lip, her eyebrow rising in contemplation. “You’ll get me home in the morning?”

“In a private jet if you want, sweetheart; just say yes.”

“Yes.”

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Lynked-Crimson-Romance-Bethany-Kris-ebook/dp/B00I2ZY6T6/

All Romance ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-lynked-1407014-149.html

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lynked-bethany-kris/1118355494?ean=9781440579974

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/lynked/id807763869?mt=11

Author Bio: Bethany-Kris is a Canadian author, lover of much, and mother of two young sons, two cats, and two dogs. Between playing children, barking dogs, snuggling cats, and a hubby calling over his shoulder, she is nearly always writing something…when she can find the time.

Author Links:

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The Patented Nonsense of Donna Cummings author of I Do… or Die

Posted on April 29, 2013 by S.J. Maylee

I have a special treat for you today. You know those friends that cheer you up the minute they enter the room or in this case twitter stream? That’s Donna. I really enjoy this gal. Not too long ago I read one of her recent releases and I was not at all surprised when her writing had me smiling and giggling. For the rest of my FIVE star review of Donna’s book click here, but first enjoy getting to know Donna and her patented nonsense. 😀

I Do… or Die

by Donna Cummings

Published: December 10, 2012
Publisher: Crimson Romance
Genre: Contemporary Romance

SJ asked me to guest blog today because she’s a fan of my “patented nonsense”. Those are my words, not hers, although now that I think about it, she did repeat them with a great deal of glee once I uttered them. But the joke’s on her, because I haven’t had a chance to actually patent my nonsense. It is on my To Do list, though, right between “figure out a reason Brussels sprouts were invented” and “teach dust bunnies how to clean up after themselves”.

I wasn’t sure what to chat about, but fortunately, SJ sent me a few questions to help spark some ideas. And one of those questions was, “Which one of your characters would you most like to meet in real life?”

My first thought — naturally — was I wanted to meet every single one of my heroes. I mean, who wouldn’t, right? Heroes are one of the best parts of the books we write. But since that wouldn’t be practical, with so many of them vying for my attention, and me not wanting to hurt anybody’s feelings by slighting one hunk while draping myself over another one. . .

Ahem. What was the question again?

Oh yeah. The character I would love to hang out with is Shelby, the heroine of my romantic comedy/mystery I Do. . .or Die. And no, it’s not just because her guy, Ryan, would be hanging around too, although he is wicked sexy. They’re absolutely perfect together and I wouldn’t want to get in between them. (Stop that. You know what I mean.)

Shelby is funny, and slightly neurotic, and, thanks to her gigolo father, she’s got commitment issues, which she thinks she’s handling just fine, even when she’s not. Can’t you just imagine the fun conversations we could have? She also loves coffee, and cosmopolitans, and isn’t really a fan of cats, which gives us even more to talk about.

It’s always an adventure with Shelby around. Even when she’s not trying to cause commotion, she somehow attracts it. And she manages to do it with humor, a little snark, a fair amount of vulnerability, and an admirable bit of resourcefulness. I can’t think of a better way to spend a day than to hang out with her.

Here’s a little excerpt, where Detective Ryan Nichols is driving Shelby to her home, after she’s been shot at during a wedding where she’s the maid of honor. Before she can get out of the car, the window next to her explodes:

Before I could even scream, Detective Nichols threw himself at me, covering me with his body.

His strong, warm, protective, masculine body.

Glass particles sprinkled over us, glittering in the disappearing sunlight. The hole in the window amplified the sound of a car racing around the corner, tires screeching as it made its getaway.

I hardly had time to register that information before another thought rushed to the front of my mind. It wasn’t likely someone was trying to shoot him. In front of my apartment.

So that meant the gunfire I’d experienced that day—twice that day—

“Jesus! They are shooting at me!”

I popped up so I could see what was going on, and promptly had my head shoved back down.

“Shelby, stay down!”

He muttered something about people who didn’t have enough sense to keep their fool heads from being blown off. And it sounded like he might have been debating whether to let it happen, but then he couldn’t go on his vacation because of all the paperwork he’d have to deal with.

Not to mention my single brain cell spattered all over his car interior.

“I don’t think they followed us, but the shot came from back there,” Detective Nichols said, half to himself, twisting in the seat while keeping his body lowered over mine.

“Where? I can’t really see.”

My face was embarrassingly close to a certain portion of his anatomy. A part that was well worth investigating, but this wasn’t really the time, or the place. Although I was definitely developing an interest.

And it was clear that his interest was well, um, it was developing too.

“Sorry,” he said with a gruff voice, moving me away from the hot spot. He was still a professional, however, making sure that I was protected from the next round of shooting that might occur at any moment.

“This doesn’t make any sense,” I blurted. “I really don’t know of anyone who would want to shoot me.”

“Are you sure?” He sat up and re-holstered his weapon, even though I hadn’t seen him take it out. “I was pretty close to it at least once today. Only I wasn’t ready to get fired just yet.”

I gasped. “That is so mean. How could you even say that?”

“Maybe I was just trying to distract you,” he answered, grabbing the radio from the console, speaking in a coded series of numbers that made algebra equations seem easy to decipher.

“Oh,” I said, since he’d definitely distracted me.

Still, the absurdity of the whole situation blindsided me. Here I thought my worst problem of the day was going to be when I jabbed a hole in my pantyhose while getting ready to walk down the aisle for the fourth time.

But that was just a preview of coming events. Because I had been shot at, not once, but twice, and I was hot for the police detective who was probably debating whether to let the gunman prevail.

What else could I do but laugh?

It started out as a giggle, and then I was in the midst of hold-my-sides-it-hurts-so-much hilarity. It was impossible to stop.

Detective Nichols’s visage was stern, in control, but then I saw his lips twitch. I heard a strangled sound, and then he lowered the radio. He could have thought I was insane, but instead he had the sense to appreciate how bizarre this entire scenario was. And instead of telling me I needed to “calm down,” he joined right in with the fun and games.

He definitely qualified as the good surprise of the day.

“Oh, wow,” he finally said, wiping his eyes. “I can’t believe I’m sitting here laughing my ass off with you. Some cop I am.”

“This isn’t one of those reality shows, is it? One where I get to look like a fool at the end of it?”

“I can show you my badge again when I get back from checking the scene. And don’t worry about looking like a fool—”

I held up a hand, a dead ringer for a traffic cop. “Do not say what I think you’re going to say. You’ve already exceeded your mean quota for the day—”

“What?” Mischief flashed in his eyes. “I wasn’t going to say anything mean.”

“Oh yes you were. I could feel it.”

I could actually feel a little bit more than that. For some reason Detective Nichols seemed to enjoy these crazy exchanges of ours as much as I did. But we weren’t on a date, for heaven’s sake. He was investigating my friend’s attempted murder, only now it looked like he was going to be investigating my attempted murder instead.

My body temperature plummeted about forty degrees.

“Somebody’s trying to kill me, aren’t they?”

He didn’t try to pull me down toward safety, and he certainly didn’t try to pull any punches. “It kinda looks that way, yeah.”

Blurb

“Always a bridesmaid, never a bride” is Shelby Atwood’s personal credo. She’s managed to avoid commitment all her life – no pets, no plants, not even a long-term lease. Heck, she’s had colds last longer than her romantic relationships. How could she be any other way when she has a gigolo for a father?

But then gunfire erupts at the latest wedding she’s agreed to be in, and it ends up being the best thing to happen to Shelby’s love life. Detective Ryan Nichols is assigned to the case, and when the shootings don’t stop, he becomes her 24-hour bodyguard. Shelby wouldn’t mind except Ryan is too appealing, too sexy, and too happy to remind her of the raucous bachelorette party when she mistook him for a stripper.

Shelby’s plan is simple: find the shooter, have a fling with Ryan, and return to her non-committal life. Unfortunately, the shooter is very elusive. Shelby’s feelings for Ryan are way more than adrenaline-fueled lust. And returning to her normal life is now impossible since, despite her lifelong resistance, she’s managed to put her heart smack dab in the line of fire.

Bio

I have worked as an attorney, winery tasting room manager, and retail business owner, but nothing beats the thrill of writing humorously-ever-after romances.

I reside in New England, although I fantasize about spending the rest of my days in a tropical locale, wearing flip flops year-round, or in Regency London, scandalizing the ton.

My contemporary novella, Back on Track, part of the Strangers on a Train collection, released earlier this month from Samhain. Also available is Summer Lovin’, a free romantic comedy novella, and Lord Midnight, a Regency historical romance.

Links:

Website/blog: http://www.AllAboutTheWriting.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/@BookEmDonna

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Donna.Cummings.Author

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5349107.Donna_Cummings

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/bookemdonna

Buy links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AB3TBOC

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/i-do-or-die-donna-cummings/1114001417

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/i-do-.-.-.-or-die/id580981508