Nineteen-year-old Onaiza Shahid is a loner and a dreamer, bookish and socially isolated. A chance ramble into chatting software changes everything. The words of a stranger compel her. Addicted and falling fast, their secret love changes her life. But will the idealistic teenager get her happily ever after?
Born on October 17, 1990 in Islamabad, Pakistan, to a government officer and a homemaker, Xunaira J, as a child dreamed of being a writer.She always loved writing short stories and has been active on Helium (www.helium.com) as a creative writer. She has been a blogger and been writing articles on relationship and family for a long time.When she was young, she used to write for US Magazine. Currently, Xunaira is doing her Bachelors in Mobile and Ubiquitous Computing and writing at the same time. The name of her first book on Amazon Kindle is “The Cursed City” while her second book is a book of collective short stories which will be published in October, 2013. Meanwhile, She is working on another Mystery/Romance novel which is almost reaching completion. She is anticipating to publish it sometime next year.
Audience: NA – Genre: Tragic Romance – Formats: E-book and Paperback – Publisher: Xunaira J. -Editor: Michelle Browne – Date of Published: 20th November 2014
His eyes told her what his tongue could not.
Nineteen-year-old Onaiza Shahid is a loner and a dreamer, bookish and socially isolated. A chance ramble into chatting software changes everything. The words of a stranger compel her. Addicted and falling fast, their secret love changes her life. But will the idealistic teenager get her happily ever after?
As a thirteen year old teenager, Xunaira J. aspired to be an author someday. From short stories to novellas, she has written them all but as an adult now, she has published two short stories and is now aiming to publish her first Novel, Before Time, scheduled for November release. Xunaira resides in Islamabad, Pakistan and enjoys a hot cup of cappuccino, a good romance novel and her favorite music from the 80’s. Apart from that, when she’s not working on her current literary project, she loves developing mobile applications and studies as a software engineer.
TITLE – Before Time
SERIES – The Time Series
AUTHOR – Xunaira J.
GENRE – New Adult / Tragic Romance
PUBLICATION DATE – 22nd November 2014
PUBLISHER – Amazon
BOOK SYNOPSIS
His eyes told her what his tongue could not.
Nineteen-year-old Onaiza Shahid is a loner and a dreamer, bookish and socially isolated. A chance ramble into a chatting software changes everything. The words of a stranger compel her. Addicted and falling fast, their secret love changes her life. But will the idealistic teenager get her happily ever after?
As a thirteen year old teenager, Xunaira J. aspired to be an author someday. From short stories to novellas, she has written them all but as an adult now, she has published two short stories and is now aiming to publish her first Novel, Before Time, scheduled for November release. Xunaira resides in Islamabad, Pakistan and enjoys a hot cup of cappuccino, a good romance novel and her favorite music from the 80’s. Apart from that, when she’s not working on her current literary project, she loves developing mobile applications and studies as a software engineer.
A boxed set of seven romantic novellas by seven award-winning authors experienced with writing about the men of the West.
Always, Cowboy by Allison Merritt
Blurb
The past is better left behind, unless it offers a brighter future.
Brody Longtree’s first love was bull riding, but he loved beauty queen Libby Dempsey equally as hard. When she turned down his marriage proposal, everything from his rodeo career to his love life went to hell. His love ran too deep for blame, so he made the best of what life threw at him. Things finally get back on track…and then she almost runs over his dog.
When her pageant dreams died in an embarrassing display of nerves, Libby made a new, cowboy-free life for herself. One where she could train other girls who want to be pageant princesses. One that doesn’t give her any reason to dwell on what might have been with Brody until his dog bounds into her heart. And she bounds into Brody’s bed.
Despite the differences in their lives, they mesh together, the way Brody always knew they would. No matter what, he’s waiting until he’s certain Libby is ready to get married before he asks again, but their relationship comes under fire when one of her friends reveals a secret about a little girl Libby is awfully attached to—a girl who’s the right age to be Brody’s daughter.
Excerpt
Under that snap front western shirt, did he still sport six-pack abs? She couldn’t count the number of times she’d helped him out of a similar shirt and put ice on his bruises after a ride. Or how often they’d parked at the lake and explored one another under the stars.
“Hot?” Brody asked.
“What?”
“You’re flushed. We could go sit in the stands, maybe catch a breeze.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Can I ask you something, Lib?” Brody rose. His dark eyes were serious and a few lines bracketed his mouth. “Why’d you come tonight?”
Libby swallowed hard. “You asked me.”
“Really?”
“I only live an hour away and I didn’t have anything else to do tonight.” Tell him you miss him.
“You used to be more honest.” He slipped his hand around her wrist. “You missed me.”
“I—” Electricity buzzed through her from his touch. “Maybe a little.”
“Maybe a lot.” He pulled her into his arms. “You wouldn’t be here otherwise.”
About Allison Merritt
A love of reading inspired Allison Merritt to pursue her dream of becoming an author who writes historical, paranormal and fantasy romances, often combining the sub-genres. She lives in a small town in the Ozark Mountains with her husband and dogs. When she’s not writing or reading, she hikes in national parks and conservation areas.
Allison graduated from College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri with a B.A. in mass communications that’s gathering dust after it was determined that she’s better at writing fluff than hard news.
A broken cowboy with nothing left to lose…except his heart.
Dash Connaway is hell-bent down a highway to nowhere. But he can’t outrun fate. Just a few months ago, he’d had a new album shooting up the country music charts, a luxury tour bus prepped for gigs in 39 cities, and a live-in girl friend he’d been thinking of asking to marry him. Now he’s just another drifter with an old guitar, a beat-up pickup, and a dog named Bill for a bed mate…until he meets Maggie McCain.
Maggie isn’t your ordinary Oregon rancher. She’s more into organic gardening and hand-spinning yarn from the fleece of her prized alpacas than breeding stinky old cattle. She’s a nurturer, a giver, so when Dash steps into her life from nowhere, she’s ready to trade in her solitary existence on the farm in favor of a husband to grow old with and a passel of children to care for.
But when she learns the real reason for Dash’s commitment to life on the road, she’s faced with a difficult choice and a lesson in the fallacy behind the old saying “Cowboys don’t cry.” Only time will tell just how potent the healing power of love can really be.
Excerpt
“It’s a girl,” he pronounced cradling the newborn alpaca in his arms.
The woman wiped her grimy chin with the back of her grimier hand. Tears tracked through the dirt on her cheeks. “You did it.” She pushed to her feet, but her legs looked none too steady. She picked up the rifle and leaned on it like a crutch.
Dash went to her, ready to catch her if she fell. “We did it,” he corrected.
“Yes, we did.”
He smiled and reached out to her free arm. It was meant to be a celebratory brush, a comfort…but it lingered a moment too long. The air changed.
Without warning, she swung her rifle up and rested the barrel against his chest. “Now who the hell are you, and what are you doing on my land?”
About Vickie Taylor
Vickie Taylor published her first book in 1999 and quickly rose to the ranks of national best-selling and award-winning author. She enjoys all types of books, but especially paranormal, suspense, and western contemporary with the unifying theme being romance. Vickie always enjoys a good love story. She is the author of sixteen published novels and is a four-time nominee for the Oscar of the romance world, the Romance Writers of America Rita award. When she’s not writing or reading, she’s usually out riding horses, training search and rescue dogs, or volunteering with her local humane society. She is an avid supporter of the campaign to preserve America’s wild horses, and her latest release, Cowboys Don’t Cry is the first book in a new series featuring her beloved mustangs. Sign up for her newsletter to be notified when the next book in the series, The Horseman’s Widow, coming October, 2014, is available. Vickie loves to hear from readers and can be contacted via the methods below:
Website (where you can also sign up for her newsletter announcing new releases.) | Facebook | Twitter
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A Cowboy’s Heartby Leslie Garcia
Blurb
Teenage lovers torn apart by betrayal. Have seventeen years changed everything—or nothing?
Star-crossed lovers in their south Texas hill country high school, torn apart by a best friend’s lie, a mother’s cold hatred, and a father’s lack of trust…
High school junior Illy Kingston turns to varsity football star and cowboy in training Gil Salas when her father, a Border Patrol agent, is killed under suspicious circumstances.
Their hormone-fueled, all or nothing affair ends when betrayal tears them apart.
Years, later, Illy returns home, at loose ends after her disastrous marriage to a reality show rock star ends with an embarrassing photo gone viral and a divorce.
When Gil and his mounted Border Patrol make an unannounced civic call at a local elementary school, Gil is shocked to see Illy lurking in the shadows, threatening to upend his existence once again.
The old passion still burns—but neither can go back to the innocence of their high school affair. Illy swore never to love a man wearing a uniform that didn’t involve jeans, a western hat, and boots. Gil has a price on his head.
And star-crossed love doesn’t usually work for cowboys, either.
Excerpt
He stopped abruptly. Illy had told him to stop, and he hadn’t thought she meant it. The memory of her reacting to him, caressing him, wanting him, stormed back. And then, when Emma called, she’d turned off and fled in a fury.
Did she think he’d seen the picture? He’d seen it online, like the entire world had, according to all the social media. What if she thought he was just acting out what he’d seen? No matter how much the photo enraged and sickened him, he could only imagine her horror that her marriage was over, but that episode never would be.
Did she feel strange at all, being in his arms after that very public display with her ex-husband? His heart thudded dully. She must know he’d seen the picture, but what would it do to her if she knew the truth?
He closed his eyes. She was out of his life, and that was best for him. Because truth be told, he didn’t know if he could take her again and not remember the second most painful night of his life. The night he’d happened on Illy making love to her rock-star husband in public.
About Leslie Garcia
Leslie P. García grew up lost among a crowd of six siblings and a menagerie that included more than twenty horses and ponies, uncounted dogs and cats, possums, raccoons—even a lion and monkeys. Then she moved to Texas, fell in love, was disowned—and embarked on her real adventures, raising 4 children, teaching hundreds, and loving 9 grandkids through forty years of marriage. The fabric of that colorful life has always been writing. In A Cowboy Heart, Leslie celebrates two of her passions—cowboys and the ever present chance at redemption in spite of past mistakes. Leslie loves hearing from readers and can be found all over cyber space, including these places:
Can two people, one horse and the power of love cure a little girl?
Angela French blames herself for her daughter’s lack of voice. Determined to do anything to correct the situation, she seeks out Jake Kyncade, the owner of The Heartsong Ranch.
Jake Kyncade hides his own sorrows behind his no-nonsense demeanor. Helping children becomes one way to correct his past. Using equine therapy, he sets out to make a difference.
Can Jake help Angela’s dreams come true or will Jake’s past bring more heartache? Will love save them all?
Excerpt
With Taylor asleep on the couch, Angela snuck the magazine out of her daughter’s sleeping hands before carrying her to her bed. After making sure her baby was tucked in, she turned out the lights and went to the kitchen. She sat down at the table to study the article about the horse whisperer. The photos gave off a peaceful feeling—so much so, she longed to jump into the images. Along with the horses, there were shots of children laughing and petting the animals. The article mentioned a little boy with Down’s Syndrome whose language increased after a week of animal therapy. The Heartsong Ranch. Even the name sounds encouraging. Dare I get my hopes up?
One photo in particular captured her attention. The owner, Jake Kyncade, wore jeans and a cowboy hat as he stood next to the ranch sign. She took a deep breath as butterflies circled in her abdomen. He’s sexy. Very different from Mike. Mr. Kyncade has this wounded look in his eyes. I wonder what his trauma was. I’ve gotten better at noticing it in others. Still, he’s good looking. Probably married with his own children.
About Melissa Keir
Melissa Keir has always wanted to be an author when she wasn’t hoping for a career as a race car driver. Her love of books was instilled by her mother and grandparents who were avid readers. She’d often sneak books away from them so that she could fantasize about those strong alpha males and plucky heroines. In middle school and high school, Melissa used to write sappy love poems and shared them with her friends and still has those poems today! In college her writing changed to sarcastic musings on life as well as poems with a modern twist on fairy tales and won awards for her writing. You can find many of these musings along with her latest releases on her website and blog.
As a writer, Melissa likes to keep current on topics of interest in the world of writing. She’s a member of the Romance Writers of America, Mid-Michigan RWA Chapter, and EPIC. She is always interested in improving her writing through classes and seminars.
Melissa doesn’t believe in down time. She’s always keeping busy. Melissa is a wife and mother, an elementary school teacher, a movie reviewer, an owner of a publishing company as well as an author. Her home blends two families and is a lot like the Brady Bunch, without Alice- a large grocery bill, tons of dirty dishes and a mound of laundry. She loves to write stories that feature happy endings and is often seen plotting her next story.
She’s decided to make some bad choices this weekend.
Susie Howell has always done what her family expects of her, but they don’t know about the divorce papers she’s just signed, or the secret torch she carries for sexy ranch hand Cash. When keeping the secret gets to her, she flees her brother’s wedding reception. Determined to live a little, she swipes the nearest truck from the ranch and heads to Sin City.
Cash Acosta has worked hard for everything he has, and nobody is taking off with his truck. When he sees it driving away, he jumps in—and becomes the unwilling passenger of a ready and willing woman he’s forbidden to touch. Hell-bent for trouble, the boss’s sister has already earmarked him as one of her “bad choices”.
And Susie intends to get what she wants.
Excerpt
“So that’s why you’re runnin’.” Under the parking lot lights, his eyes were pitch black. He thumbed a tear from her cheek.
She tried for a more ladylike sniffle, blinked away her tears. Nodded, for lack of a better reply.
“When I hear a beautiful woman wants to make some mistakes, my gut instinct is to help her out with that.” His thumb brushed her lower lip. “Hearin’ she’s single…that’s another checkmark in the pros column.” Hypnotized, she barely breathed as he cupped her jaw in his fingers and that gaze riveted on hers. “Seein’ her cry? What choice do I have?” He bent to her, his lips hot and strong, skilled as they teased hers apart, his tongue waking feelings she’d forgotten. And Lord, it may be too soon, it may be wrong, but she wanted. Wanted Cash, his hands, his mouth, his… She grabbed onto his hard shoulders, slipped her hands up his neck, buried her fingers in that thatch of hair. And kissed him like there was no tomorrow. Of course there was. Sexy, brooding, womanizing Cash wanted her, and he’d be hers, at least for this trip.
About Autumn Piper
Born and raised in itty-bitty Rifle, Colorado, Autumn Piper studiously avoided trouble…but is now inclined toward it, particularly in her novels. She thinks the best things in life are funny, and the runners-up, romantic.
An admitted carb addict, Autumn writes, edits, manages two teenagers, two cats, a box turtle with a huge personality, one husband and many supersize houseplants, and does the cooking and cleaning when forced to.
He’s running from heartbreak. She’s chasing after love… Their hearts will never be the same.
Paige Morgan has lived her entire life in the glare of her fraternal twin sister’s star. Although the sisters are as different as sun is from the moon, Paige fell in love with the same man as her famous swimsuit model sister. When country superstar Chase Jordan is dumped at the altar by her twin, Paige sees an opportunity to go after the one thing of her sister’s she’s always wanted. She finds Chase in Cabo San Lucas nursing his broken heart in the true country song fashion—with a bottle of Jose Cuervo—and reminds him of the desire he once felt for her. Will this singing cowboy change his tune as they set the tropical nights on fire? Or will Paige be the one singing the blues when her sister shows up wanting her man back?
Excerpt
All of his hopes and dreams shattered on what should have been the happiest day of his life. Today, instead of settling in for their two-week vacation and only getting out of bed to eat, he was nursing a bottle of Jose Cuervo. Why had he come here? His brother was right; he could have easily eaten the cost of the trip. Chase had insisted that he had to escape for a little while, lick his wounds and come up with a plan before he had to go back on tour in a few weeks. Jack accused him of wanting to punish himself. Why else would he go to the place he and Kayla were to have their honeymoon? Had he come here to remind himself of what should have been? He shook his head, hoping to dislodge the thoughts, and turned to gaze out the other side of the bar.
A woman stood on the walkway staring at him through a pair of Aviators. Her long blonde ponytail shimmered in the sun like spun gold. He narrowed his eyes. Was he now hallucinating?
She entered the bar and headed toward him. Sitting on the stool beside him, she removed her sunglasses to reveal a pair of expressive hazel eyes. “Surprise.”
“Paige? What the hell are you doing here?”
About Sara Walter Ellwood
Although Sara Walter Ellwood has long ago left the farm for the glamour of the big town, she draws on her experiences growing up on a small hobby farm in West Central Pennsylvania to write her contemporary westerns. She’s been married to her college sweetheart for over 20 years, and they have two teenagers and one very spoiled rescue cat named Penny. She longs to visit the places she writes about and jokes she’s a cowgirl at heart stuck in Pennsylvania suburbia. Sara Walter Ellwood is a multi-published author and publishes paranormal romantic suspense under the pen name Cera duBois.
Photographer Alannah Murphy refuses to be tied down. She watched her parents struggle to hold onto their dairy farm until it killed them. The mere thought of the same fate makes her shudder. When she meets rancher Sterling Gentry she has to face her fears, or lose him.
Sterling Gentry longs for someone to hand his ranch down to. Like his father before him, he has sacrificed everything to hold onto the land his ancestors settled. But finding Ms. Right proves harder than he imagined. Then he meets Alannah Murphy with her big city ways. How he can ever take a chance with a woman exactly like his mother, who abandoned him when he was a child?
Despite their determination to stay the course they’ve each chosen, attraction pulls them together as steadily as a nail to a magnet. Can these two find a way to mesh Alannah’s need for freedom and Gentry’s desire to hold onto his land?
Excerpt
Still snapping photos, the woman approached him. When she came within speaking distance, she waved. “Hello.”
“Who the hell are you? And what are you doing in the middle of the road? Don’t you know better than to stand in the way when somebody’s herding stock?”
Her mouth opened and closed a couple times. “I didn’t think—”
“Hell no, you didn’t think,” Gentry shouted. “Damn it anyway.”
“I’m sorry,” she said in a small voice. “The shot was just so good…”
The shot? She’d ruined hours upon hours of exhausting work because she’d wanted a picture? Who the hell would do something so stupid?
Only a damn greenhorn.
For the first time he noticed her get-up. A straw hat only a city girl would wear, floaty pink top with tiny straps that left her bare shoulders exposed to the unforgiving Arizona sun, cut-off jean shorts and red cowboy boots. Daisy Duke personified. He shook his head in disgust.
Reality crashed over him.
The New York photographer his mother had enticed out here, hoping an article in The Cowboy magazine would bring attention to the Santa Gertrudis cattle they raised.
Damn.
About D’Ann Lindun
Falling in love with romance novels the summer before sixth grade, D’Ann Lindun never thought about writing one until many years later when she took a how-to class at her local college. She was hooked! She began writing and never looked back. Romance appeals to her because there’s just something so satisfying about writing a book guaranteed to have a happy ending. D’Ann’s particular favorites usually feature cowboys and the women who love them. This is probably because she draws inspiration from the area where she lives, Western Colorado, her husband of twenty-nine years and their daughter. Composites of their small farm, herd of horses, five Australian shepherds, a Queensland heeler, two ducks and cats of every shape and color often show up in her stories!
D’Ann loves to hear from readers! Please contact her at:
Bree never thought her dimwit act, military grade mace, cattle prod, or dumping a ton of stinky manure on Jaylan’s head would encourage his pursuit. Who knew a Coletti warlord would think of being zapped with a cattle prod as foreplay? Or a determined opponent only heightened his enjoyment of the chase?
The chase comes to an abrupt halt when the Tai-Kok attack Tucson, forcing Bree to team up with the Coletti warlord to stop them. Suddenly plucked from Earth by a crazed Tai-Kok commander, Jaylan and Bree find themselves stranded on a hostile alien world, and being tracked by a deadly Askole assassin. It’s really no time for the two of them to fall in love.
~Excerpt~
A thick cloud of dust obscured the landscape. A shadow moved in the dust.
The shadow became a form.
The form became a man. Holy Mother of God! I hit the emergency beacon on my belt and bolted. I hoped Pops was monitoring the frequency.
Jaylan’s powerful body slammed into me, knocking me down. He locked his arms around me in an unbreakable hold. “You will not escape me again.”
I squirmed against his crushing grip. “Wanna bet?”
Jaylan’s teeth scraped lightly across my neck.
Sheer blind panic overwhelmed me. If he took my blood, he could find me anywhere, anytime he wished. “No! Let go of me, you stinky, manure-covered bastard.”
“It ends now,” Jaylan purred in my head, and sank his teeth deep into my neck.
My body tightened as a pleasure-pain roared through me. The pleasure increased with every draw until my panties were wet and my pussy throbbed. “Stop! Damn you. Stop!” I beat frantically at his mind.
Jaylan suddenly stiffened. “Your blood is most unusual.”
Oh crap. Was my secret about to be exposed? “Really?How strange.” Through our link, I felt him swish my blood around his mouth as if he was savoring its very essence.
“Who is your father?”
“Hank Benson.”
Withdrawing his fangs, Jaylan licked the wounds on my neck and growled. “No. Your father is Coletti. You will tell me his name.”
“He’s dead. What difference does it make?”
His fingers clamped painfully around my jaw. “His name.”
One look at the menace glittering in Jaylan’s eyes, and I almost peed my pants. “My mother called him Thor.”
Jaylan jumped to his feet, dragging me with him. “How did he die?”
“He was trampled.”
“By what?”
“Horses. Mom got him hired as a stuntman in her Viking flick. He was a piss-poor rider. He fell off his horse and was trampled.”
“That is not possible. He was Coletti,” Jaylan corrected sharply.
“So you knew him?”
“Yes.”
There was a fleeting second of inky blackness, and we were standing in the war room of a Coletti battle cruiser. Yippee-ki-yay. Escaping just got a tad bit harder.
Six muscle-bound warriors snapped to attention. When the overpowering stench of horse manure hit them, they all took an instinctive step backward.
A horde of flies buzzed merrily around Jaylan’s shit-covered head.
Who knew flies could be teleported? I waved a hand in front of my face. “Wow, someone really stinks, don’t they?” I batted at the nasty critters. “Y’all have a fly swatter?”
The warriors stared at me in disbelief.
With a big smile, I gushed, “I’m Bree, and I think you know stinky guy here. The poor thing is a bit accident-prone. Right, honey bunny?”
His big hand wrapped around the back of my neck, and Jaylan bellowed in my head, “Not another word or I’ll throw you on the table and complete the mating bond now.”
“You’d do me in front of them?” I wrinkled my nose in disgust. “All covered in manure?”
I was a 9-1-1 dispatcher for thirty-one years and to keep insanity at bay, I took up writing. Not to worry. The insanity isn’t catching – much. Other than the addiction to chocolate and the twitch in my left eye, I’m good.
Lana Martin had a simple life, uncomplicated by the things that normally plagued her friends. But then terror struck and she found herself the unwilling plaything of a sexual deviant. Under his control, she is forced to endure things that would have crushed most people, but somehow she managed to stay alive long enough to be rescued and return to a normal life.
Only life would never be normal again for Lana, because she came out of the ordeal with an unsettling knowledge that she had never been truly happy before. The deeply terrifying events she had endured had done something she hadn’t expected; they had awakened something dark inside of her, a lust that could only be satisfied under the protection of a black hood. She found that only in that darkness, could she truly be free from her inhibitions.
When Daniel Morrow, the man who had held her captive is released from prison, Lana’s nightmare begins again, and she fears she will never be safe again. Her life, her future now relies on one man, the man she had once dismissed as unable to satisfy her longing, her former boyfriend Sergio Marsilis. Follow along with Lana as the darkness is awakened inside of her, and then as she searches for the one thing that has always eluded her, perfect sexual freedom.
Lana Martin had no idea if she was in fact on his visitor’s list or not, but the letter she had received in the mail indicated that she was. He had been brief with his short letter. No hello, no apology, just a simple line that told her she was on the list. Whether the action itself had been borne of arrogance or some continued intent to inflict pain, she didn’t know any more than she knew why she was standing here now.
The uniformed woman behind the glass – most likely bullet proof, she presumed – only took a second to verify her name and then motioned to a door to Lana’s right. A low buzzing could immediately be heard, followed by the dull clunk of the door’s locking mechanism being disengaged. She crossed the short distance and pulled the door open. It opened into a small room that was cut in half by a thick glass wall. Every three feet, the wall was sectioned by wooden partitions. A chair sat between each set of partitions and she could see a phone on either side of the glass in each section as well. Hollywood had apparently gotten this visitor’s room right in the movies, because it looked just like the ones she had seen on television.
There were seven places for visitor’s to sit with a corresponding chair on the other side of the glass for the prisoner they were visiting. Two of these sections, both off to Lana’s left, were already in use. A guard motioned for her to take the chair directly under the red stenciled 6, one chair from the end. As she took the chair, she saw why she had not been searched before coming in here as she had been expecting. There was no slot or opening of any kind in the glass. The visitors couldn’t pass anything along to the prisoners even if they were inclined to try. So no cakes with a file inside, no pack of Marlboros or even so much as a pinup poster of Christy Canyon, the old school porn star could be given to the prisoners here. And clearly they couldn’t even hear through the glass, thus the necessity of the phones.
The separation between her and the man who would be soon sitting across from her and the safety it implied did little to ease her fears. It wasn’t him she was afraid of, not in this moment. He had done unthinkable things to her and if given the chance he would probably do worse, but it wasn’t what she knew he was capable of that scared her. She was more afraid of why she was here in the first place. She had asked herself that several times on the drive over, and again at the building’s front doors, but she still didn’t have an answer for it and that scared the hell out of her.
Tom Tinkerton would absolutely flip his lid if he knew she was here. Hell, if he even knew about the letter, she was certain something most horribly final would have already happened to the man she was here to see. Tink had that sort of pull, and she couldn’t fool herself into thinking he wouldn’t kill the man if he knew he had contacted her at all.
She glanced back at the door and the guard standing beside it, wondering if there was still time to just get up and leave. But time wasn’t the issue. She didn’t want to leave, not yet anyway. And then he was sitting in front of her, inches away and separated only by a wall of glass. Daniel Morrow, the man who had reached deep down inside of her and ripped out her very soul. What had remained, what had been revealed, she still couldn’t fully define or understand, but when she saw him retrieve the telephone, she did the same and waited for his voice to come through the line.
“Lana, I knew you would come.”
That same smooth voice she had come to loathe while she had been in his captivity still held within it the same confident undertone she had recognized at the very beginning. In this setting, with any and all chances of danger absent, it was as if she was hearing his voice for the first time, and the way her name rolled off of the tip of his tongue was somehow incredibly alluring. She wanted to bolt for the door, but she couldn’t move, trapped there in that chair by his mesmerizing stare.
“I want you to do something for me,” he said, his penetrating eyes locked on hers. Was he serious? She wanted to scream at him, tell him he had no right to ask anything of her. Instead, she continued to sit there in silence, her gaze still fixed on his. She couldn’t say anything.
“I want you to slip your hand under the table while no one is watching and touch yourself.”
She felt the anger threaten to boil up from inside her, but it was only a threat, so she tried to make herself feel surprised, but that too was nothing more than a wasted effort. Had she really expected anything different? Had she really wanted anything different? She looked down at her hand and then she did feel genuine surprise. Her hand was slowly moving toward the edge of the table.
“I have to go,” she managed, without looking up at him.
It was all she could do to keep from running as she left the room and then crossed the lobby. Once outside however she broke for her car. Lana dropped her keys twice before she was able to get the car unlocked. When the door mercifully closed behind her, she started the engine and took out her phone. Before she could hit the send button after scrolling down to Tink’s name, her hand was already between her legs. A low moan escaped her lips as she heard him answer the call.
“If you can sneak away for a bit,” she whispered into the phone, “I really need you inside me right now.”
During the day I work as a senior portrait photographer and a graphic designer. I’m also a college student who loves zombies, vampires, and werewolves. Anything supernatural I am drawn to along with Starbucks frappes! I spend my free time watching The Vampire Diaries, The Walking Dead and True Blood.
My favorite genre to write is erotica and it’s strongly recommended by my readers to make sure you have your sham wow panties on because my stories will leave you with moisture in the very best of places.
Many a dream can be realised with a little forethought. The characters in this quartet of stories are intelligent, sensitive and literary. They are also supremely voyeuristic and open-minded. Their intelligence is counterbalanced by inhibitions, which they can only lose by premeditated seduction scenarios, which relate intimately to their professional, creative and cultural lives. The great effort each couple puts into arranging a scenario seems to enhance the quality of the experience. A great source of inspiration for this and other works has been the novel The Girl Beneath the Lion by André Pieyre de Mandiargues.
Seductive Semaphore: Fashion Designer Bethesda and journalist Hector live opposite each other, with windows facing. They make initial contact through visible, provocative gestures. Soon afterwards, they get direct contact when Hector assists Bethesda with her folio. She invites him round to model for some of her fashion creations, and proceeds to seduce him. The seduction continues with a ritual visit to a sports centre, and then to a beach. They leave it open as to whether their relationship could ever become long-term.
The Heroine and the Author: Dreamer Hecate discovers she has a terminal illness. She wants to make the most of the time she has left by being celebrated in literature as a charismatic, legendary figure. She meets Ferdinand, a ghost writer, who is happy to undertake this massive project with her. In the process, She gets an idea of his physique through jogging and the fitness centre. Then there is a seduction scene inspired by the literary models of Sappho and Donne. Being ‘open-minded’, they make a pact for each one to go and have a sexual adventure – his hetero, hers lesbian. Their relationship is enhanced by this extra dimension.
Dreamtime Sensuality: Romona, highly literary and highly inhibited, goes to an exotic island location. She deeply desires a passionate encounter. At the Pension where she stays, she meets Stefano, who fulfils her requirements exactly. The proprietress of the Pension picks up on Romona’s shyness, and gives her reassurance, including some practice in the art of kissing. Romona orchestrates an elaborate beach seduction scenario, and they are both fulfilled. They never meet again, but their exchange of emails and text messages goes on indefinitely.
Dancing with Danger: Verona is a Scriptwriter and Gareth an archaeologist. They both have ‘retreats’ near the coast, and discover their common interests. Verona contrives a half-seduction on a deserted beach, wearing 18th century retro gear – related to their common interests. After some further encounters, they give each other a ‘dare’ to go and have a really risky encounter with someone really dodgy. Gareth finds a young woman on the run. Verona has a rapturous encounter with someone who gets hauled in by the police, suspected of terrorism. She uses her charm on the interrogating police officer to extricate herself. So Verona and Gareth both meet up again, to tell their respective tales.
EXCERPT
Hecate read some verses of Sappho, which she felt totally appropriate to his slender grace, so nearly androgynous. She quoted a phrase demanding his fixed, concentrated stare into her eyes. The eye contact was clinched Hecate’s introduction was a quote from her.
Ferdinand responded to the prompt; he knew what he had to do—gradually, at intervals, he removed his garments one by one as she breathily read the hypnotic, seductive phrases.
His garments came off with ease and grace, he obviously had some long-repressed desire to do this. At last, he stood before her, beautiful, naked, and slender. Somehow, his spirit prevailed over his earlier reticence, he shed his shyness with his clothing. Since she saw him in trunks, Hecate anticipated this moment with such relish. If the pool had been empty when they were there, she would have taken them off there, or in the shower. Perhaps something could happen, or even be premeditated in the future, on a deserted beach, secluded amid the dunes.
She handed him a volume of the collected poems of John Donne. “Now, I think you know which one I want you to read me. Hmm…while we’ve been working together, I bet you’ve had some reveries of me undressing, you undressing me.”
“I have to admit that is so and I know which poem you mean, it’s Elegy Nineteen—To His Mistress Going to Bed.
“We really are on the same wavelength darling. I had learned of that poem as a young girl, with a desperate desire one day to enact it. Every word of it struck home as I disrobed alone, for years I yearned for that lovely partner to give me those instructions live.”
Ferdinand beamed, then quoted from near the end of the poem referring to the poet’s nakedness at the beginning of the action. Then he proceeded to read, with his lovely, hypnotic voice.
He really made Hecate’s girdle feel like Saturn’s rings As she undid her sash and cast it down, she felt her abdomen was bathed in heavenly light, visible only to spiritual eyes.
The request to remove her ‘breastplate’ gave her an etheric shudder. Taking off the brooch at the top of her dress felt like casting away a shield, affirming that strife and combat had been replaced by love.
In response to the exhortation to unlace, she felt deliciously nervous as her fingers twitched on her zips and buttons.
As the gown went off following the next command, Hecate felt she had emerged from a perennial cocoon, that she was the sun liberated from the constricting veils of night.
As for a ‘coronet’, Hecate was only wearing a slide, but removing it certainly helped her locks flow freely.
It was great to feel liberated from footwear; earlier on her high heels had felt so sexy. But now her stockinged feet tingled with electric desire.
With her underwear, admittedly she found nylon, calico and silk sexier than linen, but the word, so sensually uttered, really relevant. (from The Heroine and the Author – Story 2)
About the Author
1940. Resident in the UK. Writer of poetry, literary criticism, speculative fiction and romance. Main poetry collection Prickling Counterpoints (1998); poems published in online International Times. Main speculative works High Wired On (2002); Rock Bottom (2005). Translation of Spanish epic La Araucana, Amazon 2013. Romances: Self’s Blossom; Explorations; Further Explorations; Therapy Rapture; Darlene, An Ecstatic Rendezvous (all pub Extasy (Devine Destinies). Singer-songwriter/guitarist. Main CD albums Bacteria Shrapnel and Kaleidoscope Concentrate. Many tracks on You Tube, under ‘Dave Russell’
The hunky young PhD knows all about seduction, but what does he know about love?
Reagan Cassidy is settled in her life. She has a thriving interior design firm, an upscale condo, two cats, and a goldfish. As a favor to her uncle, she agrees to team up with his marine archeologist friend to validate and retrieve a nineteenth-century journal, reputedly that of a passenger aboard the doomed schooner Twelfth Sun. Finding a hunky twenty-five-year-old coming out of the shower in her hotel room wasn’t part of the deal, but it’s hard to complain…
Dr. Elijah Cross is cocky and he knows it. He enjoys trading barbs with the lovely Reagan. Barbs, and some innuendo. He can tell she’d rather get back home to her business than stick around for the extended treasure hunt they’ve been talked into, but he’s fine with the situation. At least, until the “clues” start getting personal.
Reagan finds Dr. Gorgeous is as skilled in matters of the heart as he is behind the lectern. Throw in a series of clues which mean more to Elijah than he’ll explain, several odd-ball competitors out to win the journal, a saboteur, and a lavish seaside mansion, and Reagan has enough trouble keeping her head straight, let alone her heart.
WARNING: Younger man, older woman, nautical riddles and romance.
GIVEAWAY:Author is giving away 3 ebooks of Weathering Rock CLICK HERE to ENTER
EXCERPT
“My dad’s father was part gypsy. Besides, the sea is in my blood.” Elijah turned onto his side, locking his good leg over hers, holding her in place. Pushing up on one elbow, he stared down at her, abruptly serious. “Did you know a good marine archaeologist could spend his entire life studying a single wreck and never be bored? Never feel the need to move onto something else?” He stroked her cheek, brushing her hair aside. “That’s what I want to do with you, Reagan. I want to spend my days and nights learning about you. Everything about you. What you think. The way you smell…” He leaned forward, inhaling the light scent of the honeysuckle oil she’d used in her bath.
Ping! Warning claxons flared in her head. Elijah, playful and teasing she could control. Elijah, serious and romantic meant trouble.
“The way you feel.” His fingers tracked down her arm and hooked into the flimsy belt holding her robe shut. “The way you taste.” His mouth closed over hers at precisely the moment he tugged open her robe.
AUTHOR INFO
Mae Clair opened a Pandora’s Box of characters when she was a child and never looked back. Her father, an artist who tinkered with writing, encouraged her to create make-believe worlds by spinning tales of far-off places on summer nights beneath the stars. She snagged the tail of a comet, hitched a ride, and discovered her writer’s Muse on the journey. Mae loves creating character-driven fiction in settings that vary from contemporary to mythical. Wherever her pen takes her, she flavors her stories with conflict, romance and elements of mystery. Married to her high school sweetheart, she lives in Pennsylvania and is passionate about writing, old photographs, a good Maine lobster tail and cats. Discover more about Mae on her website and blog atwww.MaeClair.com
At the age of forty-four, Blaise Blankenship believes her own opportunity for romance has long since passed until she accidentally lands in the lap of a sexy stranger. She and the handsome Latino connect over an afternoon at a local bookstore, sharing their love of erotica. Blaise is swept away by an impetuous, hot, “no last names” night together. But the morning after reveals a truth she can’t ignore—or avoid.
Excerpt
His gaze roamed the stacks. “Interesting place. I enjoy book shops, but I’ve never been here before.”
“It’s one of my favorite spots. I love to come and browse, just sit and read.”
“I read so much for my job, I’ve gotten out of the habit of reading for enjoyment. I miss it.” He pulled a book from the shelf and showed her the spine. Lady Chatterley’s Lover. “This is one of my favorites.”
Suddenly, it became difficult to breathe. “Yes.” She forced the word through her constricted throat. “That’s an amazing novel.”
Constance Chatterley could only find sexual fulfillment with gamekeeper Oliver Mellors. This man, whoever he was, would make a perfect Mellors.
And she would be Lady Chatterley?
As he stood holding the D.H. Lawrence volume, Blaise imagined his large hands stroking her, caressing her body. She quivered, her panties moistening.
Look away, look away!
Quickly, she redirected her gaze to his face. His lips quirked in a little smile. Oh, God, had he guessed where her thoughts had wandered? “Umm, I take the bus all the time, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before.”
He nodded. “I usually drive to work and back, but my car’s in the shop and I couldn’t catch a ride with anyone, so…” He extended his hand. “I’m Guy, by the way.”
“Hi, I’m Blaise.” When they shook hands, she again flashed to the image of him touching her in more intimate ways.
He replaced Lady Chatterley on the shelf. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your reading.” He nodded at her book. “Cupid’s Delight. I’m not familiar with that one. Any good?”
Blood rushed to her cheeks. Oh Blaise, don’t be a baby. She cleared her throat, flustered by the feelings this man brought out in her. “Too early to tell. I haven’t started it.”
“It sounds intriguing, doesn’t it?” His gaze held hers and excitement fizzed through her.
She swallowed hard and nodded. “I think so, too.”
With a tilt of his head, Guy indicated the red velvet loveseat wedged into the corner. “Maybe we could sit, read it together.”
Her breath hitched, and her heart thumped so hard she’d have been surprised if he couldn’t see her blouse flutter. Had this man actually asked to read erotica with her? Yes.
And was she going to agree? Yes!
Author Bio
Nona Raines became hooked on romances when she first picked up “The Flame and the Flower” by Kathleen Woodiwiss (and she’s not telling how long ago that was). Romances may have changed since then, but her love for a good love story has not. She’s been writing off and on for years, but it was only when she joined the Central
New York Romance Writers Association that she finally gained the support and confidence she needed to complete a manuscript.
Nona lives in upstate New York with her many pets and is currently working on her next novel. A former librarian, she enjoys reading books of all genres and discussing them with others. Her books include The Man Series (One Good Man, Take This Man and Her Perfect Man) from The Wild Rose Press and Uncollared from Loose Id. Her transgender romance His Kind of Woman was a GLBT finalist in the 2014 DABWAHA competition sponsored by the Dear Author and Smart Bitches, Trashy Books review blogs.
Malfunction Erotica is one of the largest marketing platforms for self-published authors today. As part of the MaE team, you retain all rights to your manuscript. We are not a publishing house. Every author at MaE is a self-publishing author. You keep 100% of your profits.
As a marketing platform, we offer any authors that are part of our team full support when it comes to marketing and growing their brand.
Below is a list of all the benefits authors working with us receive:
50% discount on all tour packages (cover reveals, release day blitz, promo, tours, etc.) through MaE Book Tours and Promo Stars Services.
Cover Designs starting at $25.00 (prices based on the author’s vision of their cover and difficulty of putting it together.) To view our cover portfolio click here.
*As a self-publish author, you are not obligated to use all of the services mentioned above. You are more than welcome to use your own editing team or have your cover designed elsewhere, if you wish.
Interested?
Check out the link to our Submissions page below the giveaway 😀
{MaE Open for Submissions Giveaway}
This is our largest giveaway yet and we have to take the time to thank everyone that signed up to be a part of it. Please make sure you take the time to stop by each author’s/blogger’s page and show them some love ^_~
Title: Before Time
Born on October 17, 1990 in Islamabad, Pakistan, to a government officer and a homemaker, Xunaira J, as a child dreamed of being a writer.She always loved writing short stories and has been active on Helium (www.helium.com) as a creative writer. She has been a blogger and been writing articles on relationship and family for a long time.When she was young, she used to write for US Magazine. Currently, Xunaira is doing her Bachelors in Mobile and Ubiquitous Computing and writing at the same time. The name of her first book on Amazon Kindle is “The Cursed City” while her second book is a book of collective short stories which will be published in October, 2013. Meanwhile, She is working on another Mystery/Romance novel which is almost reaching completion. She is anticipating to publish it sometime next year.
![clip_image003[1]](https://i0.wp.com/lh3.ggpht.com/-eUh8YZKy7BY/VA2BDswTNaI/AAAAAAAAk74/zwsTrwdpiBQ/clip_image003%25255B1%25255D%25255B3%25255D.png "clip_image003[1]"){kind=small}
![clip_image004[1]](https://i0.wp.com/lh5.ggpht.com/-KMwEDJZTF00/VA2BGlqtx2I/AAAAAAAAk8I/n6Bb3K1XInU/clip_image004%25255B1%25255D%25255B3%25255D.png "clip_image004[1]"){kind=small}
![clip_image003[1]](https://i0.wp.com/lh5.ggpht.com/-nD75mbOpbnU/VAyY8-uFi2I/AAAAAAAAk4A/xodZnEtwTCU/clip_image003%25255B1%25255D%25255B3%25255D.png "clip_image003[1]"){kind=small}
![clip_image004[1]](https://i0.wp.com/lh6.ggpht.com/-Yr6gpWTeBuQ/VAyZBujz8xI/AAAAAAAAk4Y/7xNjPR_OxSc/clip_image004%25255B1%25255D%25255B3%25255D.png "clip_image004[1]"){kind=small}
Book Reviews 