Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

My Christmas story, Christmas is Coming is now out at Ellora’s Cave.

Here’s the blurb:

Christmas is coming. Give your lover the gift of pleasure…

Gaby Montgomery works for Fancy Free as a condom designer. Recently she’s been designing sex toys and testing her inventions with fellow designer Marc, but they’ve parted ways. The timing couldn’t be worse because she’s stuck without a willing test subject for her sexy products.

Gaby’s roommates Liam Richardson and Fletch Darcy both want a serious relationship with her, and now that she’s free, it’s time to make a move. But how do they decide which one will date her? Fletch finally suggests they share. Liam is skeptical but agrees the scheme might work, which allows Fletch to move on to step two of his romance plan. Fletch doesn’t just want Gaby, he wants Liam as well.

The loving is hot, their days full of fun product testing, exquisite pleasure and laughter. Everything is perfect until the outside world intrudes, putting their budding relationship under stress. This time their love and friendship might not stand the pressure.

Publisher’s Note: Want to have more fun with the characters in this book? Then pick up Fancy Free!

Purchase from Ellora’s Cave

Shelley’s Shoutout Corner

Don’t forget that Maria Zannini’s Do It Yourself Christmas continues until 22 Dec.

Author Beth Revis is doing an Epic Giveaway at her blog.

Cari Quinn has a new release called Unwrapped at Loose-Id. Unwrapped is a contemporary menage. If you like spicy hot reads, this one sounds like a good one.

In a few hours, the final story in my Middlemarch Mates series: Twin Trouble comes out at Ellora’s Cave.

Middlemarch Mates started out as a little 15,000 word Quickie called Scarlet Woman. Positive I’d written the best-ever story I emailed it off to my editor. When she emailed me back, it wasn’t a contract offer. She’d sent me a revise and resubmit instead. She liked the characters, the idea and the plot elements but thought I had too much plot for a short story.

Back to the drawing board.

I rewrote the story, doubling it in length, and the Middlemarch Mates series was born—the story of a leopard shifter community who lives secretly amongst humans in a small country town called Middlemarch.

My series bears an element of truth because the real town of Middlemarch has a shortage of women of marriageable age. To combat this shortage they held a singles’ ball to attract women to the area.

At the same time news articles started appearing in our New Zealand newspapers about sightings of an alien black cat in Canterbury. (That’s near Christchurch where the earthquake recently struck). I decided to combine these ideas and came up with Scarlet Woman.

Saber Mitchell is at his wits end. His four younger brothers Felix, Leo, Sly and Joe are out of control. He’s determined to marry them off at the inaugural Middlemarch Singles’ ball, except it’s Saber who ends up caught like a fish on a hook. Once he meets Emily he’s determined to keep her.

The next Mitchell brother to meet his match is Felix. He runs into Tomasine, a reporter the locals have dubbed Peeping Tom.

There’s an assassin running loose in Middlemarch and she has Leo squarely in her sights.

Logically, the next characters to get their own story should have been Sly and Joe, the Mitchell twins, but they didn’t seem old enough to find their happy-ever-after. Luckily the Mitchell brothers have lots of friends. Saul, their neighbor, stepped into the fray followed by Duncan and Jonno. All three men found their mates. Then it was Leticia’s turn – (I still get tears in my eyes when I read this one).

Still not quite ready for the twins, I introduced some new characters—tiger shifters who moved into the area. Brother Rohan and sister Ambar took over the village store and created more than a little turmoil with their arrival. In fact something that occurred after their arrival left Saber and Emily (from Scarlet Woman) reeling and this led on naturally to the tenth book in my series, Blue Lady.

Finally, it was time for the twins. I thought about them long and hard. Originally I’d planned a different story but the twins are both so cheeky I decided to be really mean and made them suffer. I hope you’ll enjoy Twin Trouble and their journey to happiness.

Here’s the blurb:

Man wanted: confident and charismatic, a virtuoso in bed and capable of supporting a woman in her quest for freedom.

Shifter Kiera Pascoe is desperate to foil her brothers’ plan to ship her back to England. She needs help, and hunky Joe Mitchell is the perfect applicant. Joe misses his twin Sly, and Kiera presents a diversion from his isolated state. From the start, hunger explodes between them and sparks fly with each intoxicating touch. The sex is fun and challenging—mutual ecstasy with a little spanking and kink.

Sly arrives home unexpectedly, creating chaos with their erotic hijinks. Emotions tangle and create a dilemma for all three. Joe has feelings for Kiera and wants to keep her. Kiera worries about exchanging one set of pushy males for another while Sly lusts after his twin’s lover. Two sexy shifter twins and one gorgeous feline woman—they’ve got trouble in Middlemarch and it’s gonna take time to unravel the steamy muddle.

Purchase at Ellora’s Cave

A final note: I wanted to have an even number of stories—an even dozen. To thank all my readers, I’ve written a free story called Lightning Strikes Twice. It is due for release on 25 April and is set at the same time as Scarlet Woman. Don’t forget to watch for Lightning Strikes Twice and download your free copy at Ellora’s Cave on 25 April.

Happy reading,
Shelley

The topic for this week is “In Between” and I immediately thought of Leticia’s Lovers. Leticia had a rocky road to love and her story remains one of my favorites. I hope you enjoy this snippet from Leticia’s Lovers.

Leticia’s Lovers by Shelley Munro

Morning came all too quickly. They shared a quick shower with only mild groping before they both dressed for work.

“Will you come and stay tonight?” Gavin asked.

Charlie tossed his damp towel aside and strode the two steps needed to reach Gavin. “The idea of not being with you hadn’t occurred to me.” He dragged Gavin into his arms and kissed him, not roughly but slow and gentle, pouring every writhing emotion inside into his kiss. When he lifted his head they were both breathing hard.

“Damn, I wish I didn’t need to go to work,” Gavin said with a glance at his wristwatch.

“I know the feeling. Do you have time for a coffee at the café?”

“No, I have a patient arriving in half an hour. I’ll have to prepare the surgery.” Gavin lifted his head, glancing toward the surgery with a frown. His shoulders tensed beneath Charlie’s hands. “Fuck.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah.” Gavin didn’t sound very certain.

Charlie heard the tap-tap of shoes and turned to the door. “Your patients come to your bedroom? Is there another door I should have locked last night?”

“The one to the surgery waiting room,” Gavin muttered. “I forgot to check it. I had other things on my mind.”

“Gavin, I thought I’d—” A decidedly feminine form skidded to a halt in the doorway.

Leticia—the woman from last night. Today she wore tight jeans and a formfitting T-shirt in pale blue. She wore a cap on her head, her blonde hair poking through the back in a long ponytail. What little color she had in her face flooded away when she took in both Gavin and Charlie. They both wore trousers but neither had donned shirts and they stood way too close to try the casual friends ploy. The scent of sex hung on the air and the rumpled bed gave more than a hint of how they’d spent their night.

Leticia’s brown eyes swept over Charlie, coming to rest on the mark. His skin prickled as if she’d physically touched him and he automatically covered the raised site with his fingers.

“You marked him?” The pain in her voice had Charlie wanting to comfort her. He noted it had the same affect on Gavin. Collectively they took a step toward her.

Leticia slapped her hand over her mouth and backed up, her eyes wide with panic and betrayal.

“Leticia, it’s not what it looks like,” Gavin said.

“Oh yeah?” Bitterness filled her words. Her eyes swept over both of them, skimming their bare chests and the obvious marks on their shoulders. “He bit you too. You can’t—I thought we…oh hell.” Leticia turned and fled.

Purchase from Ellora’s Cave or Amazon Kindle or All Romance eBooks

To read more Snippet Saturday excerpts follow the links below:

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

I have a special guest today–Lynn LaFleur. Lynn is a fellow author at Ellora’s Cave, and she’s thinking purple in honor of her Lavender Lace series and her release, Two Lovers For Molly. Lynn is giving away a download from her Ellora’s Cave backlist today. See below for details of how to enter the draw.

Thirteen Shades of Purple

1. Heather
2. Lavender
3. Orchid
4. Lilac
5. Eggplant
6. Plum
7. Violet
8. Wisteria
9. Amethyst
10. Thistle
11. Iris
12. Grape
13. Hydrangea

Two Lovers for Molly by Lynn LaFleur
Book 3 of Lavender Lace Series

Blurb

A chance meeting with Julian Forrest changes Molly Ross’ mind about her bad luck with men. Julian is not only gorgeous, but intelligent and charming. Finally, her luck with men has changed.

Julian loves the sexy underwear Molly buys at a store called Lavender Lace that makes his mouth water every time they make love. It takes less than a week for him to know he’s falling in love with her.

Then Lane Edison comes back into Julian’s life. Despite being apart for a year, one kiss from the handsome man and Julian tumbles. He wants both Molly and Lane, but doesn’t know how that can happen…until he reads a threesome scene in a book Molly is writing.

Molly loves Julian, yet feels an instant attraction when she meets Lane. Discovering the two men were once lovers is a huge turn-on for her. When Julian suggests a ménage a trois, she’s more than willing for the two men to fulfill all her fantasies.

Purchase Two Lovers For Molly

Visit Lynn’s website

CONTEST
Prize offered: Winner’s choice of download of any of Lynn’s books. To enter the draw either ask Lynn a question about writing or her series, tell us your favorite shade of purple or mention something that’s purple.

This week’s theme is black moment. According to Complete Idiot’s Guide to Getting Your Romance Published by Julie Beard, the black moment is the point in a romance where the relationship appears doomed because the characters are unable or unwilling to resolve the core inner conflicts keeping them apart. Neither the characters or reader can see how the problem will be resolved.

Every romance has a black moment, and they usually come toward the end of the book. Since I don’t like to give too much away, I thought I’d take an excerpt from Leticia’s Lovers. I think many readers hesitate to pick up this story because the heroine has FIV, the feline version of AIDs. Although the story is sad—I cried while I was writing it and I picked on Leticia during this story with an entire series of black moments—I do manage to give her a happy ending. You’ll just have to trust me on this.

Leticia’s Lovers by Shelley Munro

Morning came all too quickly. They shared a quick shower with only mild groping before they both dressed for work.

“Will you come and stay tonight?” Gavin asked.

Charlie tossed his damp towel aside and strode the two steps needed to reach Gavin. “The idea of not being with you hadn’t occurred to me.” He dragged Gavin into his arms and kissed him, not roughly but slow and gentle, pouring every writhing emotion inside into his kiss. When he lifted his head they were both breathing hard.

“Damn, I wish I didn’t need to go to work,” Gavin said with a glance at his wristwatch.

“I know the feeling. Do you have time for a coffee at the café?”

“No, I have a patient arriving in half an hour. I’ll have to prepare the surgery.” Gavin lifted his head, glancing toward the surgery with a frown. His shoulders tensed beneath Charlie’s hands. “Fuck.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah.” Gavin didn’t sound very certain.

Charlie heard the tap-tap of shoes and turned to the door. “Your patients come to your bedroom? Is there another door I should have locked last night?”

“The one to the surgery waiting room,” Gavin muttered. “I forgot to check it. I had other things on my mind.”

“Gavin, I thought I’d—” A decidedly feminine form skidded to a halt in the doorway.

Leticia—the woman from last night. Today she wore tight jeans and a formfitting T-shirt in pale blue. She wore a cap on her head, her blonde hair poking through the back in a long ponytail. What little color she had in her face flooded away when she took in both Gavin and Charlie. They both wore trousers but neither had donned shirts and they stood way too close to try the casual friends ploy. The scent of sex hung on the air and the rumpled bed gave more than a hint of how they’d spent their night.

Leticia’s brown eyes swept over Charlie, coming to rest on the mark. His skin prickled as if she’d physically touched him and he automatically covered the raised site with his fingers.

“You marked him?” The pain in her voice had Charlie wanting to comfort her. He noted it had the same affect on Gavin. Collectively they took a step toward her.

Leticia slapped her hand over her mouth and backed up, her eyes wide with panic and betrayal.

“Leticia, it’s not what it looks like,” Gavin said.

“Oh yeah?” Bitterness filled her words. Her eyes swept over both of them, skimming their bare chests and the obvious marks on their shoulders. “He bit you too. You can’t—I thought we…oh hell.” Leticia turned and fled.

Purchase Leticia’s Lovers from Ellora’s Cave or Amazon Kindle

To read more Snippet Saturday excerpts follow the links below:

Mari Carr
Shelley Munro
Vivian Arend
Taige Crenshaw
McKenna Jeffries
TJ Michaels
Lauren Dane

My special guest today is Leah Braemel, a friend and fellow author at Carina Press and Samhain Publishing. Leah has a new release out called Texas Tangle. It’s currently locked and loaded on my reader, and I can’t wait to find time to read it. Meantime, I asked Leah a few probing questions about herself and her writing. I think she deserves a medal – any woman who lives in a household of males is definitely braver than me!

Tell us a little about yourself and how you started writing.

That’s good that you asked for me to tell a little, because there’s not much to tell. I’m the only Canadian-born member of my family – my mother, father and sister are all English. I’ve been married for 32 years and hope to last another 64 (only half-kidding on that one) and have two sons who have just finished school (one high school, one college) but still live at home. Oh, and I have a cat, Spike, who is very disgusted that my lap is often taken by my laptop instead of him. (If you noticed, they’re all males, even the cat. So no frilly stuff in this household. They won’t even allow flowers on the wallpaper, the upholstery or the curtains. Plain colors only please. Talk about testosterone poisoning.)

As for my writing…I wrote my first story when I was around seven. My sister and I were addicted to a brand new science fiction show called Star Trek. (Yes, this is during its first run, before it was known as “The Original Series.” My sister was so enamored of it that she started writing her own scripts. That was the first time I twigged to the fact that people wrote books, that I could write down the stories that I’d tell myself when I went to bed each night. I wrote down one of my ideas and showed it to my sister who was my very first critic. She was also my last critic because after that horrific review (which was probably dead on the mark) I vowed to never show anyone my writing Ever. Again. And I didn’t. For close to 40 years. Oh, I wrote lots of non-fiction manuals for my job, and I wrote newsletters and articles and such, but my fiction I kept hidden and didn’t dare show anyone until the mid 90s. I can’t remember why I trusted that particular friend with my writing but she told me I should try to get published. But I blew her off. “Everyone’s trying to get a book published, I wouldn’t stand a chance” I told her. And I kept that stance until about 2004 when I met a lady on line who was trying to get published. I showed her a bit of my writing and she also encouraged me to get published. She became my critique partner, but after opening her first critique I wondered how the heck she thought I could get published, there were comments made on every line. Of course, she was right on the money and soon I’d learned about showing versus telling, and passive verbs versus active verbs. Then she did the unthinkable. Because I’d been waffling about actually submitting any of my work to an editor or agent, she issued a dare. Next thing I knew I was registered for the 2007 RWA conference and had an appointment with an editor who asked to see a partial of my story.

Your new book, Texas Tangle, is a ménage a trois. What attracted you to write a ménage a trois?

Hmm, that’s a good question. Texas Tangle wasn’t supposed to be a menage until Brett walked in as a secondary character. Then one thing led to another, LOL, and the story demanded it. Menages are always a challenge to me because although I do know a few couples (triples?) who have had them in real life, they’re not generally socially acceptable. After Private Property came out, I had a reader mention that she’d loves to read about menages that end up turning long term, so I played around a bit with Texas Tangle to see if I could find a situation where I could see it being an obvious solution that all parties could live with.

Where did the idea for Texas Tangle come from?

Partly from a trip to Texas I took a few years back, and partly because I love the rural way of life (I was raised on a farm.) As for Nikki’s being robbed, that’s drawn straight from real life — being robbed, excuse me, burgled, steals more than your belongings, they steal your peace of mind. I’ve known quite a few women very similar to Nikki and a couple like both Brett and Dillon, so when I started writing the story, they just seemed naturals for that setting.

What do you tell people when they ask you about writing love scenes or ask the inevitable question of your husband – do you do all that stuff?

It sometimes depends on how I’m feeling or how they ask. Most times I laugh it off and say I have an active imagination and my husband grins and says he loves being my research assistant. There have occasionally been people who are a little more judgmental in their questioning so I have to bite my tongue and not ask them if they would ask Jeffrey Deaver or Harlan Coben how many people they’ve killed in real life researching their stories. (Not that I’m comparing myself to Mr. Deaver or Mr. Coben, of course.)

What is your favorite thing to do on a lazy Sunday?

Depends upon the season — throughout the winter, sitting inside by the fireplace, curled up beside my hubby watching a movie. In the summer? If it’s too hot, then I’m sitting inside curled up beside my hubby writing while he watches golf.

What tip would you give to an aspiring writer who is just starting their writing journey?

Write! Seriously. You can’t find your voice until you’ve written for a while. And if you do plan on getting published at some point you have to have something finished to submit to an editor. That can only be accomplished by writing until you can type those two lovely words “The End.” (Then the editing begins, but that’s another story.)

If you want to know more about Leah, her website is at http://LeahBraemel.com and her blog is at http://leahbraemel.blogspot.com. They can also follow her on Facebook or on Twitter.

And here’s an excerpt from Texas Tangle

Brett reached for Dillon’s front door then stopped. Why couldn’t Dillon have been home? At least that way he knew he could control himself. Even though he’d stayed away a full month, he still hadn’t gotten her out from under his skin.

Get it over with. Give her the news, then stay far away.

He lifted his hand and after a moment’s hesitation, knocked on the door. Maybe he’d get lucky, and she wouldn’t be here. Maybe she’d gone into town with Dillon.

The door creaked open, and there she was, wearing one of the white shirts he’d left behind, a pair of cut-offs beneath. She’d left the top three buttons undone, giving him a tantalizing view of her cleavage. His cock punched against his zipper at the thought of unbuttoning the rest of the buttons, of spreading the fabric wide and tasting her nipples.

Why didn’t he just cut off his balls and hand them to Dillon on a plate?

“Brett?” She looked startled to see him. “Come on in.”

He followed her into the kitchen, watched her fiddle with the coffee maker. Nikki never fiddled and, more importantly, she wasn’t looking at him. He made her nervous. Did she worry he might try something on her again?

His fists clenched at the thought that he might have scared her, made her think he might take what she wasn’t willing to give.

“I didn’t mean to drive you away.” She made a gesture of impatience. “I’m sorry, I’m being selfish. I just…I’ve missed you.”

The heated blood racing through his veins headed south when she smoothed her hands down her front, tightening the fabric over her breasts, accentuating that she wasn’t wearing a bra.

Did she realize how beautiful she was with the color high in her cheeks when she blushed? Longing spun his senses until he felt like he’d been caught in a twister, especially when she turned those soulful eyes on him. The lost tone in her voice cut right through him, pierced defenses he didn’t know he’d erected.

Purchase Texas Tangle from Carina Press

Leah is giving away a download of her ebook Private Property to one lucky commenter. All you need to do to enter the draw is either ask Leah a question or tell us what you say to people who give you a hard time about reading romance. The winner will be announced on Wednesday 14th of July.

Writers – have you ever had trouble writing a love scene and keeping track of limbs? Carina Press author, Kathleen Dienne has written an excellent post about writing love scenes and making sure your characters don’t do the impossible.

Here’s the link to Keeping Track of Elbows: Writing Sex Scenes

PS. Don’t forget to check out Kathleen’s book Her Heart’s Divide

My special guest today is Natalie Acres who has a new release out today called Bridled and Branded. An intriguing title, isn’t it? Bridled and Branded is a a western MFM contemporary romantic suspense. I asked Natalie a little about her writing.

What attracts you to writing cowboy/western stories?

Give me a big green tractor, a cooler full of ice cold beer, and a couple of strong cowboys to toss a few hay bales around and I’m a happy girl. I love reading and writing about the sexiest of all men–cowboys.

Wow, sounds good to me. Where did you get the idea for your story Bridled and Branded?

My love for horses inspired Bridled and Branded. I’d love to read a western with a strong heroine steadfast in her commitment and love for training/showing horses but just as dedicated to her cowboy hero. Bridled and Branded materialized because this novella is the kind of short western romance I’d like to read.

What writing tip would you give to an aspiring writer just starting on their writing journey?

Believe in yourself.

Great advice! Tell us about Bridled and Branded.

Lynlee Lewis is an old-fashioned girl who might as well take the lead in a modern day romance. She met a boy, when he was just a boy. She fell in love, but he barely noticed. Now, Lynlee wants to place a woman’s brand on Blaine McCain, but will his past prevent her from staking a claim?

Lynlee’s storybook romance isn’t without its villains and obstacles. Add in the fact that Blaine rarely travels behind a bedroom door without company and Lynlee wonders why she’s so taken by the cowboy in the first place.

Throw in a deadly situation and Lynlee finds herself in the midst of danger when a knife is shoved against her throat. Worse still, the man behind the blade is traveling with a wife who is no stranger to Blaine McCain. And they want to turn Blaine’s life upside down with a package full of problems.

The following excerpt is unedited pending final approval:

“You wanted our attention,” Rhett began. “You got it. What do you want?”

Blaine released him. “Yeah, what’s so damn important that you’d go to this extreme?”

His eyes watered. “My Sarah Beth passed away last week.”

“She what?” Rhett asked, compassion settling in his eyes, which Blaine had rarely seen.

“She passed away.”

“What happened?” Blaine asked, feeling a little odd since he had been one of the participants in the ménage experience with Rhett and Sarah Beth.

“She jumped off a bridge,” Sarah Beth’s husband explained.

“She did what?”

“Told you she was touched in the head,” Rhett reminded Blaine.

“You’re the one who brought her home,” Blaine said, jumping to his feet and backing away before her husband took an opportunity to deck him. “She wasn’t even that pretty, best I remember.”

“Blaine McCain, I ought to kick your ass right here,” Lynlee said, studying her captor. “Sir, I’m sorry for your loss. I really am. It’s a shame these two didn’t have a gentleman’s sense of values to keep their cocks in their pants, if not their hands, but you see here, you can’t blame your wife’s actions on two men who barely knew her.”

“Lynlee, so help me God, I don’t need your eloquent way of taking up for me,” Blaine said.

“No, you don’t. What you need are some manners and maybe even a conscience, but I doubt you’ll find either tonight.”

Rhett snickered. “You got that right.”

Lynlee extended her hand. “I’m Lynlee Lewis, by the way. We met at the party, and you said your name is Scott Sanders, but I take it that’s not your real name?”

“Yes,” he said, taking her hand. “The name is Scott Sanders. Sarah Beth was my lovely wife.”

“Well, I’m sure she knew how much you loved her,” Lynlee said, backing away from the situation and making it evident in the finality of her tone. “Gentleman, I’ve had a long night. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Blaine looked at Rhett and then Scott. Rhett nodded and Blaine said, “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll say your peace and leave.”

Scott shifted his weight. “I wanted to look directly at the two men responsible for Sarah Beth’s downfall and see if I found even a smidgen of remorse. I blame you for what happened, and I can’t understand what she ever saw in either one of you.”

“Good thing,” Rhett said. “I don’t buck that way.”

Blaine ignored his friend and addressed his enemy. “I’m walking Lynlee back to her camper. If you go near her again,” he paused, set his jaw, and then grated out, “I will harm you in a way you’ll never forget.”

“I don’t want an escort, Blaine,” Lynlee snipped. “And I sure don’t need you to hold my hand.”

“Well, ain’t that a blessed shame? Besides, I need you to hold mine.”

Natalie Acres is the best selling author of the Cowboy Sex Series which includes Sex Party, Sex Games, and Sex Camp. She’s also the author of the #1 Amazon Best Selling Western/Erotica title Cowboy Boots and Untamed Hearts which now has a sequel, Cowboy Boots and Unfinished Business. To find out more about Natalie Acres, visit her on MySpace at www.myspace.com/natalieacres. To view more information on Bridled and Branded go to: http://www.bookstrand.com/bridled-and-branded

Copyright © 2010 Natalie Acres

I’ve just sold book number nine in my Middlemarch Mates series. That’s right. Another story about the black leopards who live in Middlemarch, but as the title suggests, this particular book is about tigers. Tiger By The Tail is Ambar’s story and it’s a menage a trois with two men and one woman.

Here’s an unofficial blurb:

One plus one equals three.

Tiger shifter Hari Daya takes one look at Ambar Patel’s photo and is smitten. Further research heightens his fascination. An arranged marriage would work, except the lady isn’t buying and tells him to take a hike.

Ambar is already involved with human Jake Quinn. Casual pleasure and lovin’ works best for her since she dreams of traveling the world and delving into new experiences. The frisson of heat and desire she feels for Hari is unacceptable. There will be no tiger mate for her.

Jake Quinn has no idea either his lover or his new friend are shifters, but there sure as hell is something weird going on in his head. As much as he enjoys sex with Ambar, he’s thinking about Hari too. Suddenly there’s kissing and togetherness way past his comfort zone. The slide into sinful pleasure with both Hari and Ambar is easy—it’s the relationship dynamics that give them headaches and make them wonder if they’re making a huge mistake.

I don’t have a release date as yet, but it should be out in the next few months.

This week’s theme is explosions. I’m using artistic license this week. LOL – my excerpt from Sex, Spies and Sapphires includes the word “explode”…

Sex, Spies and Sapphires by Shelley Munro

“Kiss me.”

“I’ve never met anyone as bossy as you before.”

“And you like it,” she retorted. “You like a woman who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to go after it.”

She wasn’t wrong. Her independent streak and sassy mouth were the first things he’d noticed about her. Once again he thanked his lucky star for arranging their paths to cross.

“Are you just going to stare at me with a dopey smile? If Mr. Mark saw it, he’d demote you in an instant.”

She smirked. “I might suggest he promotes Chester to your job. Chester is so cute.”

Thomas moved so quickly she squealed. He whipped her over his knee and applied his hand to her naked backside. “Take it back.”

“Make me,” she said, laughter lurking in her husky voice. Sarah turned her head so she could see his face and pursed her lips. “I dare you.”

Little vixen. She knew just how to push him, which buttons would make him explode into action. He fondled her buttocks with his large hands, fascinated by the color contrasts in their skins. Sarah was pale where he was darker, tanned from spending time outdoors. Thomas bent to place a kiss in the middle of one pale buttock before leaning back against the headboard and slapping her ass.

“Oh!” she said with a squeak.

“Is that daring enough for you?”

Sarah waggled her ass. “Do it again.”

Shaking his head and laughing at the same time because of her outrageousness, he applied his hand again. The crack when hand met flesh was loud even though he hadn’t hit her hard. A rush of blood to her butt cheeks made them glow a soft pink. Sarah squirmed a little, the wriggling moves rubbing against the flared head of his penis. Thomas bit back a groan, knowing if he loosed the sound, Sarah would construe it as a weakness and think she’d won in this battle of wills. Thomas was determined to come out victor, just as he was determined to get his hands on the sapphire before Sarah. He knew she was after it even though they hadn’t discussed the matter.

He tapped her ass again, letting his hand linger on her stinging flesh to savor the heat. Sarah lifted into his hand and rubbed. The minx created a kiss of friction across his erection with the sly move, wringing a chuckle from him.

“What am I going to do with you?” he asked, his voice close to a groan.

“Love me,” she said. “You’re going to love me.”

He was doomed. Absolutely doomed.

Purchase from Ellora’s Cave.

To read more excerpts follow the Snippet Saturday trail:

McKenna Jeffries
Vivian Arend
Ashley Ladd
Shelley Munro
Taige Crenshaw
Mari Carr
Kelly Maher
Eliza Gayle
Victoria Janssen