Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

The theme for this week’s Snippet Saturday is first love. I looked at all my titles and couldn’t find one that would fit. After some thought, I decided I’d post an excerpt from Make That Man Mine. Jack is the first man Emma falls for and she’s determined to make him the last.

Make That Man Mine by Shelley Munro

Emma marched into the offices of George Taniwha & Co. the next morning, a woman with a mission. After spending her twenty-fifth birthday with her girlfriends and not one man in sight, she’d come up with a resolution. With the help of her tipsy friends, she’d decided to go for it.

Get Jack Sullivan to notice her or bust.

A smile—was that too much to ask for? No, dammit, it wasn’t. And that would be just the start. She intended to progress from there—from a smile and good morning to down and dirty sex. Her breasts tingled at the thought and a swooping sensation spiraled through her lower belly. Of course, she wouldn’t go as far as stalking the man, but she wasn’t going to be a shy little wallflower either. Emma Montrose was coming out of the shade and going after the man she wanted. She was going to act like the fictional taniwha on George Taniwha & Co.’s letterhead—formidable and determined, ready to scare Jack into thinking her way. By the time she was finished, he was going to know she was interested. Then he could take the next step.

She drew herself up. No. That wasn’t right. She wasn’t letting him slide out of her sights without a fight. She’d take the second and third steps and as many other steps as the situation required.

Emma pushed aside several possible scenarios, concentrating on and visualizing the one she wanted. A secret smile curled across her lips as she fluffed her short curly hair.

Two lovers.

Emma and Jack.

Horizontal dancing.

Heat seeped into her face at the thought. Emma yanked out her office wheelie chair, plonked her butt on it then grabbed up a pile of envelopes off the desk to fan her face. This brave new Emma might embarrass her a little, but she’d try to keep up.

The front door of the office opened, and Emma straightened abruptly, her backbone hitting the back of the chair. Well. No time like the present to put her plan into action.

Emma put her best receptionist manner into practice and flashed a smile. “Good morning, Jack.”

The man froze like a possum in headlights, giving Emma the opportunity to look her fill. He was tall and built like a rower with powerful shoulders, slim hips and a butt that she’d really like to get her hands on. His hair was shiny black, halfway between short and long and in need of a cut, making her fingers itch to smooth the messy strands away from his face. A dreamy sigh squeezed past her lips. The man was blessed with sun-kissed skin, no matter what the season. She often wondered what he looked like beneath the layers of clothing. Did the gorgeous olive tones that were a legacy from his Maori ancestors extend all over his body?
Hopefully she’d be in a position of knowledge soon.

“Morning.”

The word came out as a grunt, but it was a definite improvement on being treated as part of the office furniture. Emma forced away the sudden surge of nerves and looked him straight in the eye. “Are you here to see George?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.” Emma’s breath caught, her lungs filling with his seductive scent—something that reminded her of the mystical Orient with hints of orange and patchouli and a healthy dose of masculine musk. Emma found herself staring. Holding his gaze felt like poking her finger into a hot fire. Dangerous. Crazy. A challenge. Sorta made a girl wonder what it would feel like to have him thrust deep in her womb. A sensuous shiver swept through her body and arousal soaked her panties without warning.

Emma gulped and licked lips that were suddenly dry. All that from merely passing pleasantries. What would happen if they were naked? Together? Get a grip, she thought sternly as her hormones went haywire. A cough cleared her throat. “I’ll let him know you’re here.”

Hmmm. Not bad for the first time. She’d do better with the next meeting.

Purchase from Ellora’s Cave or Amazon Kindle

To read more Snippet Saturday excerpts follow the trail below:

Shelley Munro
Vivian Arend
Taige Crenshaw
McKenna Jeffries
Lauren Dane
Ashley Ladd
Mari Carr
Shelli Stevens
Lissa Matthews

The theme for this week is author’s favorite scene. This was a very difficult assignment for me because I have lots of favorites. In the end I chose a scene from Make That Man Mine. The heroine, Emma, has had a crush on Jack for a long time, and she’s decided it’s time to make a move. A work assignment brings opportunity, but she hasn’t exactly thought everything through. Neither has Jack. They’re both stumbling in the dark, and that’s very dangerous!

Make That Man Mine by Shelley Munro

An hour later, the hostess led them from the resort reception area to their room. She pushed the door open and stood back to let them enter.

“There’s only one bed,” Emma blurted.

The hostess stared at her in bemusement, making Emma realize she’d stumbled at the first hurdle. Of course, they’d be expected to share a bed. This was a week for couples and sex. After all, her mind dwelt on sex.

“He snores dreadfully,” she muttered to the hostess, taking petty revenge for the hurt he’d inflicted on her earlier. Just a job. No romantic ideas, she mocked silently as she detoured around the bags the porter had deposited in the middle of the floor. She didn’t have any romantic ideas. All she wanted was sex. “I suppose I can always pull out the earplugs as a last resort.”

“I do not—”

Emma stepped up close to Jack and gave into the temptation to run her fingers through his hair. The dark locks slithered through her fingers like a piece of fine silk. The strands felt as soft as they looked. “Of course you do, but that’s part of your charm. Too many good points and I’d get bored. I mean you’re good at sex. Very good. Great stamina. What more could I ask of a lover?”

Jack made a choking sound deep in his throat as she trailed a hand across his broad chest. Her fingers tingled while her pulse leapt at her daring.

“Can I help you with anything before I leave?” the hostess asked, amusement coloring her voice. “Remember, the welcome party starts promptly at midday. We would like you to make an appearance for a short time so we can outline the activities for the week. After that, you’re free for the rest of the afternoon to partake in all the facilities we have here at the resort. We want you to be rested for our gala dinner tonight.”

“Thanks,” Emma murmured, carrying on with her exploration while she had Jack captive and within touching distance. “We have everything we need.”

The door swung shut with a soft click.

“That’s enough,” Jack growled. “She’s gone now.”

Emma drew a sharp breath, gathering up her courage. “You need to kiss me.”

“What?”

Was that panic she saw in his dark eyes? “We’re meant to be a couple,” she explained, starting to enjoy herself. “We’ll have to kiss at some stage to make sure we look the part. I think we should practice. We don’t want to give ourselves away.” Her heart thundered loudly and blood heated every inch of skin on her body. She was hyperaware of his strength and masculinity.

Jack glanced at her mouth and immediately her lips tingled as though he’d touched them. His chest rose as he sucked in an audible breath. Yep, she’d definitely put the fear of God into him. His mouth worked, but no words came out, then before she could take another breath, he grabbed her. Their lips smashed together and parted just as quickly. Jack jerked away from her, and they stared at each other, both breathing hard.

“That was not a kiss,” Emma said breaking the pregnant silence. Frustration washed through her, leaving her feeling totally cheated. The mission she’d set for herself was going to be trickier than she’d first envisaged.

Jack scowled. Emma supposed he meant to frighten her like he scared everyone else he came into contact with. It wouldn’t work. She was on to him. “Come here. I want to show you how we should kiss in public.”

When he didn’t move, she closed the distance between them. She placed her hands on his shoulders. They were tense. Like touching blocks of cold rock except for the dragon tattoo. For some reason that was hot. “You’re very cold.”

“Get it over with.” Jack’s eyes flashed with enough temper that she knew not to push him any longer.

She stood on tiptoes and gingerly pressed her lips against his. He didn’t move but he didn’t cooperate either. Time to move this experiment along. Emma opened her mouth and brushed her tongue across the seam of his mouth. A groan rumbled deep in his chest. Oh, yeah! Score one for the home team. Working on pure instinct, Emma moved her lips persuasively against his. She nibbled his bottom lip, then soothed the nips she’d inflicted on him with a swathe of her tongue. Jack’s arms came around her without warning, tugging her off-balance so his muscular chest flattened her breasts. He tipped her head back and moved his lips over hers with an expertise that made her toes curl. She gasped taking in his masculine taste, a hint of mint and the tang of the sea. He tasted so good—better than she’d ever imagined. Then his tongue slid inside her mouth, and she was addicted. Her breasts peaked against her bra as their tongues slid together in a sensuous dance. Jack pressed her closer and to her delight, she found he was interested. A hard-on. With a subtle twitch of her hips, Emma pressed against his sizeable erection. Her eyes fluttered shut to savor both the sensation and her triumph. Emma Montrose had turned on big, bad Jack Sullivan.

Jack pulled away as abruptly as he’d grabbed her. They stared at each other for a long drawn-out moment. Emma’s tongue snaked out to lick her lips and his dark eyes followed the movement. Game, set and match, bad boy.

Purchase from Ellora’s Cave or Amazon Kindle

To read more Snippet Saturday excerpts, follow the trail below:

Mari Carr
TJ Michaels
HelenKay Dimon
Eliza Gayle
Shelley Munro
Lauren Dane
Jody Wallace
Vivian Arend
Shelli Stevens

I really admire the people who review books–it’s a job I couldn’t do. I have to admit that before I wrote, I never read them. These days I read my own, of course, but I’ll usually flick through the other reviews that come through at the same time. A review doesn’t usually sway my purchases, but if I see lots of good reviews, sometimes I do get tempted to buy. I never search for reviews before I buy a book. Do you check out reviews before you purchase a book?

I’ve received reviews recently for House of the Cat and Make That Man Mine.

Megan at Veiled Secret Reviews says, “With an abundance of lovable characters playing against a backdrop of stars and alien worlds House of the Cat is a rollicking thrill ride that will keep you turning page after page…With so many secondary characters steeling your heart and the mystery of Ry’s origins to unravel I can only hope that Ms. Munro plans another visit to the exciting world of House of the Cat.” 4 Dragons. Read the full review here.

Hockeyvamp at Bitten by Books says, “I was totally enthralled with this short novella from start to finish. The erotic play between the two main characters was both flirtatious and arousing. The perceptions of themselves as less than desirable because of the flaws they saw within themselves could be both accepted and desired by the other. I only wish that this had been a full length novel as the sexy and fun banter between the main characters was very entertaining.” 4 1/2 Tombstones. Read the full review here.

In sale news, my story Wild Child has been chosen as one of the stories in All Romance ebooks’s 28 Days of Heart charity campaign to benefit the American Heart Association. The stories will be released in February 2010 and Charlaine Harris, author of the Sookie Stackhouse series is doing the forward. Very exciting!

My book, Make That Man Mine comes out at Ellora’s Cave on 15 June. My story features a special shapeshifter called a taniwha. Most of you probably don’t know what a taniwha is, so my TT today is about taniwhas.

Thirteen Things about Taniwhas

1. A taniwha is a creature from Maori mythology. It lives in lakes, rivers or the sea. Legend says there’s a taniwha living at every bend of a river.

2. The best description I can come up with is a water dragon.

3. According to legend many looked like serpents, had wings and they ate people. Sometimes they liked to kidnap women and live with them, treating them like a wife.

4. Other stories say the taniwha are guardians who protect the tribe or iwi.

5. In 2002 work on a road in the Waikato region (south of Auckland, New Zealand) was halted because locals said a taniwha lived there. Public interest was high. Some cheered for the taniwha while others thought it was political correctness gone mad! This stretch of road has a high death rate and local Maoris have long blamed the taniwha for all the deaths.

6. The taniwha who killed, kidnapped and ate people needed to be destroyed. Enter the taniwha-slayer. These brave men lured the taniwha from his den, captured and killed them. They were considered big heroes.

7. Witi Ihimaera, the author of The Whale Rider, says that he has a kaitiaki (guardian) which is a taniwha. Her name is Hine Te Ariki and she lives in the Waipāoa River. The movie Whale Rider is amazing. If you haven’t seen it check out the link.

8. My upcoming release, Make That Man Mine features a shapeshifting taniwha called Jack Sullivan.

9. Jack Sullivan works for a private investigation firm in Auckland, New Zealand. It’s called George Taniwha & Son. Guess what George and his son are?

10. Blurb: On her 25th birthday Emma Montrose decides it’s time to show bad boy investigator, Jack Sullivan she’s more than an efficient secretary. She’s a woman with needs, and she wants him.

Jack is a taniwha, a shifter, who requires women to satiate the sexual demands of the serpent within. Nothing more. Then work forces the reluctant Jack and ecstatic Emma undercover as a couple. Thrown together, pretence and reality blur generating hot sex laced with risk…

11. Of course, since this is an erotic romance, I added a twist…

George glanced at the calendar pinned on the wall then cast his attention back to Jack. “There’s a blue moon coming up. It might fall before the mission is completed.”

Jack filled in the blanks. The blue moon would erode his powers and make it difficult to remain in human form. Without constant sexual stimulation, he’d shift into a taniwha, the legendary monster from Maori mythology. Jack snorted at the thought of being trapped in taniwha form in the middle of a mission. It had happened to other shifters on George Taniwha’s staff but not to him. He imagined the pandemonium if a change occurred in the middle of the bustling resort. His lips curled in disdain.

Little did New Zealanders know, but the species taniwha survived and lived among them. Jack didn’t intend to be the first taniwha to make headlines in the New Zealand Herald. No way. No how. If he had to find a woman to keep the monster at bay, then that’s what he’d do.

12. Of course things don’t work exactly the way Jack plans. He’s partnered with Emma, and she is determined to get her hands on the man who has caught her eye. Little does she know about the beast Jack harbors. He’s not just grouch and growl, he’s bite as well!

13. Make That Man Mine is available for sale from Ellora’s Cave on 15 June. If you like your reading hot and would like to armchair travel to New Zealand to experience life with a different kind of shifter, this is your book!

Do you think you’d like a taniwha in your local lake or river? What are your favorite armchair travel destinations? Do you pick fiction or non-fiction books when you armchair travel?