Thursday, September 12, 2019

Captivate Me!


I’ve already told you that Captivating in Love is one of my favorite Maverick stories to date! For some reason, I always knew Rosie was meant for Gideon. The problem was always getting Gideon to admit it, too. Now, Bella and I are so pleased to bring you their story. And you’ll get to see all your favorite characters from Fearless in Love all over again! Have more fun with Matt and Ari and Noah! And of course, Rosie’s little boy, Jorge? 
Gideon Jones came back from war a changed man. Though the Maverick Billionaires claim he’s one of their own, he knows he doesn't deserve to be part of their tightly knit unit. Just like he doesn't deserve Rosie Diaz—an amazing mother…and an utterly captivating woman that he can't stop dreaming about.
Rosie Diaz pulled herself out of the foster care system and made a great life for herself while raising Jorge, the son she adores. Only one thing is missing—a good man, one she can respect and love with her whole heart. A man exactly like her best friend’s older brother Gideon.
When Rosie and Gideon agree to take care of Matt and Ari’s son, Noah, while the couple is on their honeymoon, they have no idea of the havoc two matchmaking little boys can create. Not to mention the steamy kisses that Rosie and Gideon can’t help but steal from each other as their connection deepens and grows. But when mother and son are threatened, Gideon will stop at nothing to protect them. Will he finally believe that he truly is Maverick material…and worthy of Rosie and Jorge’s love?
Pick up your copy of Captivating in Love today!
Here’s an excerpt for you to enjoy!
Captivating in Love, Maverick Billionaires, Book 6
© 2019
Chapter One
Gideon Jones was so good with Jorge and Noah, two six-year-olds who made enough noise to rival a herd of stampeding cattle. As he handed each boy a cube of bread, Gideon gently encouraged the boys, showing them how to stretch out one hand with the bread in the center of the palm. They were both so attentive, while their bodies quivered with the attempt to stay still long enough for the peacock to feel safe eating from their hands.
Rosie Diaz’s heart melted as she watched from the picnic area, where a huge tent provided shade for the tables and dance floor that had been set up for her best friend’s wedding. Ariana Jones had first met Matt Tremont when she agreed to be his young son’s nanny. Ari showered Noah with love—and it wasn’t long before Ari and Matt were in love too. Though Rosie knew their happiness hadn’t come without struggles, their relationship was still a fairy tale come true to her. She couldn’t be happier that her friend had found love.
It was a gorgeous, sunny Saturday in August as Rosie’s son, Jorge, and Ari’s son, Noah, hunkered down before the peacock, his magnificent tail feathers trailing behind him. When Ari and Rosie had been teens together in foster care, this what they’d dreamed of—that their children would end up being best friends.
Rosie and Ari were sisters of the heart—along with their friend Chi, who had also been a part of the foster care system. Rosie had met them when her parents died in her early teens. She loved Ari for her eternal optimism and her loyalty to her brother. She loved Chi for her strength. When her foster family couldn’t say her Chinese name—Zhi Ruo—correctly, Chi had adopted their pronunciation as her own, saying it was a powerful name, like Tai Chi.
Rosie believed the three of them would be best friends forever and ever. They’d seen her through the dark days when she was eighteen and pregnant and alone after her baby’s father had abandoned her. They’d seen her through Jorge’s birth when she was nineteen. Jorge’s biological father—DNA being his only contribution—was the one who’d taught her not to trust men. At least until she’d met the Mavericks. In the same way that Ari and Chi had taught her the loyalty and goodness of friends, the Mavericks had taught her the goodness of men.
As much as Rosie wished her parents were still alive, she wouldn’t change any of what she’d gone through. She couldn’t imagine her life, her world, without Jorge.
Her son was the light of her life, an amazing little human being. Sometimes she couldn’t believe he had come from her. She and Ari and Chi had raised Jorge to be the confident, outgoing, loving boy he was.
So how could she regret anything? Especially on such a beautiful day when true love was all that mattered. As a wonderful bonus, she was finally getting to spend time with Ari’s brother. Gideon was so patient with the boys, never yelling, never snapping.
With adults, Gideon didn’t talk much, didn’t smile much. But when he played with Noah and Jorge, it was as if he became the man he would have been if he’d never been scarred by his time in the army, if he’d never lost touch with Ari. When he was with the boys, he became the funny, amazing, big brother Ari had always talked about.
The kind of man to whom Rosie could so easily lose her heart.
Maybe she’d already given him a tiny piece of her heart, especially when she watched him in unguarded moments like this with the boys.
He hadn’t yet changed into his tux and was still dressed in jeans and a T-shirt that showcased every rippling muscle. He was a vision of rough, raw, sexy power, accentuated by blue eyes and dark blond hair worn short, as if he’d never completely left the military behind. He could see right into you with those eyes. Or right through you as though you didn’t exist. Rosie longed for him to look at her, really look at her, to see what was on the inside. He made her warm all over. He made her aware of every beat of her heart. He made her want to trust a man again.
Just then, the peacock stretched out his long neck and pecked the bit of bread from Jorge’s hand. Rosie’s little boy wriggled with delight, pressing his lips together to suppress the squeal of joy dying to get out. Gideon smiled his approval, ruffling Jorge’s hair. Then he urged Noah forward, his nephew all big eyes and wonder as the peacock grabbed the bread out of his hand too.
It didn’t matter that Ari wasn’t Noah’s birth mom; Gideon treated him like he was his own blood. No one ever used the word stepson. Ari was simply Noah’s mom, Gideon was his uncle, and Matt was his dad. There was so much love among them all, it made Rosie gooey on the inside.
Ari and Matt had decided to have their wedding at the petting zoo and open-air puppet theater in San Jose because it was Noah’s favorite spot. They’d rented the whole park for the day, and the wedding itself would take place on the stage. Rosie and Gideon were currently in charge of Noah while Ari was getting ready in the bridal tent.
Rosie, as maid of honor, would need to get herself ready soon, but there had been so many last-minute things to check on. She wanted everything to be absolutely perfect. And she knew that Gideon, who would be giving Ari away, wanted perfection just as much for his sister’s big day.
With the docent looking on, Gideon showed Noah and Jorge how to carefully stretch out a hand to pet the peacock’s brilliant blue neck. The boys were clearly awed by the bird’s magnificence, by his feathers, by the way he ate from their hands and let them touch him.
Though Gideon was ten years older, Ari claimed that when they were kids, he’d never treated her like she was an annoying pest. Instead, he’d played games with her, taken her to the park, made her laugh until her stomach hurt. Rosie supposed that because their mom had been an addict, Gideon had grown up fast, taking care of the two of them.
When he was eighteen, he’d enlisted in the army, wanting to make enough money to help Ari and their mom with living expenses. But he couldn’t have predicted their mother would move them around so much that he’d lose track of them—or that he wouldn’t get notification of their mom’s death until she’d been gone six months. By then, finding Ari while stationed in the Middle East had been impossible. Despite searching for her after he got out, it had taken sixteen years since the day he’d joined up for them to find each other again, after Matt had hired a private investigator to find Ari’s long-lost brother.
Rosie would have loved Matt just for that, even if he wasn’t such a great guy on top of it. The fact that he was a billionaire—along with his four best friends, the Mavericks—was irrelevant. Although, she thought with a small smile, she wasn’t going to lie and say she hadn’t enjoyed flying on his private plane last month.
“Sorry I haven’t been helping you take care of the final wedding details,” Gideon said, his deep voice surprising her. Rosie had been so lost in her thoughts she hadn’t realized Gideon had left the boys with the docent, who was explaining about peachicks and peacocks and peahens to her rapt audience. “The boys were so excited about the animals,” he added, “I wanted to get them started.”
“I’m glad you did.” She turned to smile at him. “And I haven’t needed any help. Fortunately, the caterers are great. They’ve got everything set out the way Ari wanted.”
Gideon was so tall, broad-shouldered, and powerfully muscled that being this close to him made her shivery inside, her breath catching as her heart beat fast enough for her to feel her pulse in her fingertips. There was that ancient cliché—he stole my breath. That’s what Gideon did to her.
Not that he seemed to have even the slightest clue what he did to her—or any woman, for that matter. Rosie couldn’t remember ever seeing him flirt with anyone, and though he was a devastatingly good-looking man, his hard shell was so intimidating that Rosie had yet to see any woman bold enough to flirt with him either. Even when they played water polo in Ari and Matt’s pool or jumped on Noah’s trampoline, and she’d catch Gideon looking at her, she wasn’t able to read what was in his mind. Did he think she was pretty? Did she make his heart race the way he always sent hers into overdrive?
Gideon hid all his emotions behind a wall no one could scale.
He had been deployed in the Middle East for seven years, and though he hadn’t spoken to anyone, not even his sister, about his experiences during those years, it was obvious they’d left their mark on his heart—along with deep, dark shadows in his eyes.
Only with Noah and Jorge did Gideon seem to be his true self. Rosie longed for him to be this way all the time, not just with the boys. She longed for him to relax and laugh with her the way he did with them.
But, just as with every time before, when he caught her eyes on him, his immediate withdrawal was like a physical punch. The smile died on his lips, his blue eyes turned into dark, fathomless pools, even his body seemed to grow rigid. As if he’d turned to stone. As if he couldn’t allow himself happiness with anyone but the boys. Even with Ari, whom he clearly loved with everything in him, he held something back.
It broke Rosie’s heart. If only they could all have happy endings. Matt, Ari, herself…and especially Gideon.
Grab your copy of Captivating in Love for the rest of Rosie and Gideon’s love story!

Congrats to Sharon G., winner of the autographed set of the autographed set of the first 3 books in the Maverick Billionaires, which includes Breathless in Love, Reckless in Love, and Fearless in Love.
For this newsletter, I’ve got POD copies of She's Gotta Be Mine and Baby, I'll Find You. These two have the old covers, but they are the same fun read! Entry date is Oct 14. This contest is an exclusive perk for newsletter subscribers. So be sure to join our newsletter for the scoop on how to enter to win She's Gotta Be Mine and Baby, I'll Find You! Plus you get free books just for joining!
Check out all the current freebies, starting with Dead to the Max, Max Starr Series Book 1, as well as The Girlfriend Experience, The Fortune Hunter, Revenge, It Must Be Magic!

Friday, August 23, 2019

Love me or Leave Me


First there was Neal and Rebecca in Show Me How to Leave You. And now we’re going to add Ella to the mix in Show Me How to Love You! Neal and Rebecca and Ella… Or is it Neal and Ella? Or Neal and Rebecca? Who knows what’s in store for Neal?? And maybe Rebecca will get her comeuppance! We can only hope!!

A divorced man, a widowed woman.
They aren’t looking for love. But that’s exactly when love comes knocking.
Neal Thomas walked out on his cheating wife, and he’s not looking for a replacement. Until an encounter on a long-distance flight with an enchanting woman leaves him rethinking his empty bed. Suddenly he can’t stop looking… and wanting.
Ella Hammond nursed her husband of thirty years through a debilitating illness. Now, after a year of grieving his loss, life is all about her kids, her grandkids, and caring for her elderly mother. Yet there’s a lonely piece of her heart that wonders if romance has to end now that she’s widowed and over fifty.
In a fateful meeting with Neal on a plane, Ella embarks on a sensual journey she never thought possible. But Neal has appetites Ella’s not sure she can satisfy.
How far does Neal want to take her? How far is Ella willing to go? And how will Neal’s ex try to sabotage their budding relationship?
Can two people who have loved and lost find a second chance?

Read an excerpt on the website! Or just jump right in and grab your copy of Show Me How to Love You!


Be sure to pick up your copy of Show Me How to Leave You if you haven’t read it. Catch up on Neal’s life leading to that fateful moment on the flight to Chattanooga!
Congrats to Maritza F., winner of the autographed set of Courtesans Tales!

For the next newsletter contest, let's go for an autographed set of the first 3 books in the Maverick Billionaires! Don’t forget, Maverick Billionaires 6, Captivating in Love, will be coming your way on Sept 12! This contest is an exclusive perk for newsletter subscribers. So be sure to join our newsletter for the scoop on how to enter to win Breathless in Love, Reckless in Love, and Fearless in Love! Plus you get free books just for joining!


Check out all the current freebies, starting with Dead to the Max, Max Starr Series Book 1, as well as The Girlfriend Experience, The Fortune Hunter, Revenge, It Must Be Magic and Breathless in Love! I’m going to be switching things around so grab them before they’re gone!

Saturday, May 25, 2019

Show Me...


I've got a brand new Naughty After Hours erotic romance novella for you this month! An After Hours Naughty Bite, as I like to call them. If you read A Very Naughty Christmas, you'll remember in the epilogue that something strange was going on with Neal Thomas (hint, hint, his wife wanted to sleep with his boss!! Covering mouth in shock!!). Neal’s story is so big that it’s going to take two parts to tell it. So first get the scoop on Neal and his wife in Show Me How to Leave You. And that's just going to whet your appetite for Show Me How to Love You.

A man with a bewitching wife. And a huge problem.

Neal Thomas’s wife found The Club, an exclusive establishment catering to those with unconventional tastes. First, they went there to watch. Then they went there to be watched. And it fired up their love life beyond his wildest imaginings.

But now Neal’s wife wants to do more. With other men. While Neal watches.

Suddenly it isn’t so crazy hot anymore, and Neal has to ask himself if he’s enough for his wife.
Now he has to decide. Does he love her? Or does he leave her?


You can read an excerpt on the website! Or just jump right in and grab your copy!


Congrats to Jeannette T., the winner of the autographed set of the complete Castle Inc Series.
For the next contest, let's do a double, Open Invitation Series and Somebody's Lover Trilogy. These are the old Berkley books, which I’ll autograph, and they each include a trilogy, so six stories in all! This contest is an exclusive perk for newsletter subscribers. So be sure to join our newsletter for the scoop on how to enter! Plus you get free books just for joining!


 Check out all the current freebies, starting with Dead to the Max, Max Starr Series Book 1, as well as The Girlfriend Experience, The Fortune Hunter, Revenge, It Must Be Magic and Breathless in Love! I’m going to be switching things around so grab them before they’re gone!

Just a note, just for fun. I cannot for the life of me figure out why Blogger shows up with so many different sizes and fonts. I mean, I use all the same size and font, but it comes out mixed up! Weird!

Friday, January 18, 2019

Are you ready for more Kate & Joe?

I hope everyone had a fabulous holiday season and a great New Year! And here’s to a marvelous 2019!

You've gotten to know Kate and Joe in both It Must Be Magic and One Crazy Kiss. And now I’ve got their love story for you in You Make Me Crazy. Plus our whole cast of crazy Mystery of Love characters will return, including my favorite, Grandma Blue. I truly adore Grandma Blue. She reminds me a little of my own mother, although, my proper British mother would definitely NOT say some of the things Grandma Blue does. You’ll also revisit with Madison and T. Larry, Jack and Opal, Tanner and Lili. And all the fabulously fun characters in Hideaway Creek! 

Here’s a taste of what to expect from Kate and Joe in You Make Me Crazy!

Google Search: How to persuade a woman dead set against relationships to have a relationship with you, particularly when you’re a funeral director?

Joe Swann wants the whole shebang—marriage, kids, the white picket fence. And he’s determined to go after the woman he wants—Kate Carson.

Joe’s not your typical bad boy. But he’s very very bad for Kate because he’s nesting. And that’s a scary thing for a career-minded woman. Besides, right now, Joe’s life is a complete mess—especially considering the hastily buried body Kate and Joe stumble over—and the smartest thing Kate can do is steer clear at all costs.

If only his kisses didn’t set her on fire and his touch didn’t drive her crazy. How’s a girl—even a career woman—supposed to resist?


Read an excerpt on the website: You Make Me Crazy

Grab your copy today!

Kindle | Kindle CA | Kindle UK | Kindle AU

To celebrate, I’ve put It Must Be Magic on sale for free! So if you haven’t read it, grab it in time for You Make Me Crazy. And don’t miss One Crazy Kiss, the prequel.




Congrats to Jennifer H, the winner of the autographed set of the corset anthologies, Unlaced and Laced with Desire! Up next, let’s try the complete Max Starr series, that’s 5 POD books autographed for you! This is one of my favorite series. This contest is an exclusive perk for newsletter subscribers. So be sure to join our newsletter for the scoop on how to enter! Plus you get free books just for joining!

Check out all the current freebies, starting with Dead to the Max, Max Starr Series Book 1, as well as The Girlfriend Experience,The Fortune Hunter, Revenge, It Must Be Magic and Breathless in Love! Wow, that's a lot of freebies! Snap 'em up!
 

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