Have a Decadent Christmas!

Here's a look at what new holiday delights Decadent Publishing is serving up this Christmas, to keep your winter nice and toasty... and they're even offering you a freebie (see below)!

A Very Russian Christmas 
by Krystal Shannon

For most of her adult life, bodyguards have shadowed Ksenia Sharanov, daughter of a Russian mobster. Her one serious relationship left her broken hearted when she learned he only sought her father’s power and money.

A ski vacation with her college roommates ends on a terrifying note. Her father’s enemies have been following her more closely than anyone could have anticipated. The mistake will cost a life…but will it cost her heart? Or will she find love in the arms of a complete stranger?

Matt O’Reilly, a retired Marine, generally keeps to himself. Working as a deputy in a small country sheriff’s office, provides just enough seclusion for him to cut himself off from his family’s pity and the heartache of losing his wife. He never thought love would be in the books for him again. Will the sudden arrival of a spunky dark-haired Russian beauty change his mind?

Coming Soon!

~*~

Dillon's Gift 

by A.J. Hawthorn

Stacy hasn’t celebrated a Christmas in years and has no reason to change her ways.  Dillon can’t understand why the most giving person he knows refuses to join in the holiday cheer.  He cooks up a plan that will leave them no choice but to spend the holidays together.

Yet, he doesn’t know Stacy as well as he thinks and there is an equal chance that things could backfire. An intentional gag gift mix up, a sexy game of Truth or Dare and a blizzard bring two friends together for a Christmas to remember.

Coming December 11!

~*~

Island Bound 

by Kiru Taye

Marriage has stripped their relationship of its thin, rose-tinted coating, and bared their monochromatic existence for what it was. Will Joshua and Christy get a second chance this holiday season?

When Christy Inemi-Spiff discovers that the man she vowed to love and honor has no such feelings for her, she is determined to cut her losses and move on with her life. A quick, quiet divorce is all she wishes for Christmas.

However, Joshua has other ideas. He’s not ready to walk away yet, especially when he doesn’t understand why Christy wants out of their marriage. So he demands she agree to spend a quiet Christmas on a remote African Island with him, hoping they can salvage their relationship. If she still wants a divorce after these two weeks, he will let her go. But not before he’s had his fill of her.

But with the sparking tension between them, and the secrets behind the disintegration of their marriage threatening to explode, will either of them get their wish? Or will this season of good will show them what really lies at the bottom of their hearts?

The first from Decadent's new Ubuntu line, coming soon!

~*~

Hot Winter Kiss

Irish Kisses Book 4

by Joanne Kenrick

Hot winter kisses to warm broken hearts….

Sick of tending to everyone else’s needs around the holidays, divorced barmaid and granny Sandra ferries it from London to Belfast. All she wants for Christmas is some peace with a romance story in front of a roaring fire in a remote Irish castle. What she gets is a most unexpected Christmas present from her friends at Bell’s—A 1Night Stand with a young Irishman.

Can she hack it in the real world of romance, or are life’s complications and treacherous snowstorms best left to the pages of a book?

Newly widowed Ardan Draighean owns Ballygalley castle. Once run as a hotel with his late wife, the stone building now serves as a home for him and his son. After hearing about Madame Eve’s matchmaking skills, he contacts her in search of the perfect match. Although much older than him—by fifteen years—Sandra is his ideal woman. He be damned if he’ll let a good story get in the way of his happy ever after with her.

Hot winter kisses are all this couple needs to stay warm this Christmas, but will the heat stay long after the magical season of mistletoe has finished?

~*~

And don't forget, I have a Christmas romance with Decadent, myself - my All Romance eBook bestselling novella Unwrapping Scrooge, available on ebook, Nook, Kindle, (and more!), and in the paperback anthology Yule Be Mine vol 2 along with three other Decadent holiday novellas!


Bestselling author Kale McKinnon is a modern Scrooge – eccentric, misanthropic and reclusive, made bitter by the coldness of his wealthy family. But when optimistic Canadian graduate student Molly Gillis visits Oxford and invades his space, he realizes Christmas is about to change for him forever. But can he make her stay, and force himself to un-Scrooge enough to be the right man for her?

HOLIDAY CONTEST!

To help you treat yourself right this holiday season, Decadent is offering a giveaway for this post! Comment this week and tell us how you plan on staying warm this holiday season, and Decadent can offer you 'Any Decadent Publishing holiday ebook of the reader's choice'! I'll draw a comment at random this Friday afternoon (4pm EST).

And don't forget, Decadent is also having their "Give a Reader a Reader" bloghop (on now), with a grand prize of a Nook ereader to one lucky reader along with BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS! 

Charity: A Cowboy Romance for Thanksgiving

The holiday season is approaching fast, but before you break into the Christmas romances there's still Thanksgiving. Luckily, I have a book for that, too - Charity, a short erotic-romance for the turkey season!

Charity Miller has spent her whole life in an urban island surrounded by the wilds of Montana where she’s never ventured too far from her plans. But when she heads into the Big Snowy Mountains to square a land deal one chilly November, her normally-professional self fades away. Maybe it’s the mountain air or finally quitting her diet. Or maybe it’s “real-live-cowboy” Joshua Rollings and his many attractions that has her off balance.

Whatever it is, this Thanksgiving could give her a reason to be thankful for the rest of her life.

"It will definitely put you in the Thanksgiving mood!" 
- You Gotta Read Reviews.


Excerpt:

The next morning broke bright and clear, and Charity’s mood was considerably lighter than the day before. Despite being awakened by what sounded like a very chipper Kate Rollings singing an ear-splitting song to her housekeeper about a bicycle built for two, Charity had slept quite well.

She had an odd, heavy sensation that made her limbs feel like they were filled with warm syrup, but it wasn’t unpleasant. And she had faint memories of several dreams that were less than PG-13. When Joshua showed her to the room the night before, Charity noticed the odd way he’d looked from her to the bed and then averted his eyes. Clearly it must have put some very scandalous ideas in her head. Nevertheless, the fresh, cool air inspired sleep and the dreams were satisfying enough.

The bed was huge and comfortable and the room cheerful and airy. Charity was grateful to have her own bathroom and shower and paused a moment to look out the big windows over the pasture lands while drying her hair. It wasn’t snowing and there was barely a wisp of cloud in the sky, so viewing the property in question might even be a pleasant task. When Joshua informed her that the Retreat was accessible by Jeep, instead of horseback as she’d initially feared, she almost started to look forward to it.

Over a mountainous breakfast of eggs and ham that would have made her personal trainer gag, Joshua related some of the land’s history to Charity while his mother concentrated on buttering enough toast to fill an army.

There was a lodge located on the property dating back to 1946. It had replaced the first cabin built by Eli Rollings in 1869, which, by then, had been used as a hunting camp by generations of Rollings men. Joshua told her that there wasn’t much left of the original site aside from an old stone well. It seemed the previous masters of the Rollings spread, Joshua’s grandfather and father, always suspected times would force them to sell the valuable land at some point, so they’d made sure the only thing left there was the new lodge and fond memories.

“There’s still the old grown-over sinkhole where the original outhouse used to be,” Joshua teased with a chuckle as she climbed into his four wheeled truck, “if you’d like to tour that.”

“I think I can do without that, thanks,” Charity responded with a laugh. “I’m a bit of a history buff, but more of the public television variety than the kind that snoop into pioneer plumbing or lack thereof.”

“City girl,” he teased, slamming the truck door and reaching for his seatbelt. She smiled when he finally tossed a Stetson on, thinking the image was now complete.

~*~

Available now on Kindle, Nook, and other ebook formats, for only $1.99.

Find it on GoodReads!

Charity is also available in my ebook/paperback collection, ALL I WANT: The Anne Holly-Day Collection. 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Looking for a Halloween Romance?

Available on Nook, Kindle and eBook: 
Like Magic, an erotic-romance for Halloween - now only $1.99!

Ian Hannigan was having the worst day of his life. A real estate prospect turned out to be a prank, his car has been stolen, and he’s stranded in the worst neighborhood he can imagine on Halloween night. If he believed in magic, he would swear he’d been cursed. Nothing could possibly make this day any worse or better… That is, nothing but Raven, a mysterious occult shop owner who not only claims to be a witch, but insists that she summoned him as the answer to her aching loneliness. Ian’s night just got a lot weirder. And his love life just got a lot more interesting.

18+

Snippet:


It was nearing midnight when Ian woke alone. Someone was lighting fire crackers in the alley below the window. He wondered, rather belatedly, whether the police had ever shown up and was surprised with himself for having dozed off in a strange bed on such a night. His car could be in the harbor by now, but oddly, he didn’t have the will to care. Stretching his overused back muscles, he figured the orgasms he enjoyed that night were nearly worth the loss.

He sat up in the unfamiliar bed noticing with a smile that Raven had covered him with the soft quilt before wandering off to wherever she was. It was a small gesture, but an unbelievably sweet one to a man who hadn’t been tucked in often enough as a boy. Had she kissed him on the forehead when she did it? He was willing to bet she had.

~*~
Also available in ebundle and paperback in All I Want: The Anne Holly-Day Collection!

Welcome, Suzzana C. Ryan

Earlier this month, my friend and colleague JL Oiler visited to talk about her newest release Glimpses of Midnight, vol 1. Today, her colleague (and my new friend) Suzzana C. Ryan talks about her new book, the continuation of the series, Glimpses of Midnight, vol 2.

Glimpses of Midnight: Decadence 

By Suzzana C Ryan Cyrus 

Bellefleur ruled the underworld but couldn’t rule his mate, Alkmene, a gorgeous succubus. The feared ancient vampire could crush a legion of humans but found it impossible to tame one redheaded beauty. Their tumultuous union periodically resulted in the succubus fleeing the underworld in an attempt to anger him. She’d do what she did best and that was ravish human men with her temptuous body. Her prowess in bed was her curse. It was at times like these Cyrus followed her into the world above.

This time, however, when she ran from Cyrus, she found a portal in time, traveling to the year nineteen-fifty-seven, looking to hide. But Cyrus could sniff out an opening in the time line.

Alkmene found herself a dark, handsome lover, a fallen archangel, who was ripe for the plucking. But she never figured on his lovely human conquest falling into the mix. Emmy Harris was an up and coming Hollywood starlet and the biggest thing to hit tinsel town in ages. Now Emmy became a pawn in the wicked games Cyrus and Alkmene played.

In a world called South Hedonism, all vices, indulgence, decadence, obsession and perversion flourish. All creatures foul, evil and corrupt exist in the evil inner cities. They come and go between both worlds and love to play above. But they always return. Hell has its advantages. 

Here’s book two of Glimpses of Midnight. Here you’ll meet Cyrus Bellefleur, the dark under lord. I love him, evil with a very twisted sense of humor and a mate that tries his patience on a daily basis. She’s a beautiful red headed succubus named Alkmene.

Definition Succubus: a female demon or supernatural being appearing in dreams, who takes the form of a human woman in order to seduce men, usually through sexual intercourse.

She was Cyrus’s first big mistake. Silly vampire, he expected such a creature to be faithful. Let’s note his second mistake, falling in love with the spitfire and third, Carina, his half-breed daughter. And might I add, a quite prolific creature who disobeys her father, well a hell of a lot more than your mother.

Okay we’ve got the evil family. What’s next on the agenda, a slew of creatures, time travel, thousands of cities existing in the darkness, Labyrinths, erotic sexual encounters and a dose of evil. Then we have some inhabitants, going top side, creating unrest, havoc and death in the human world. Did I mention, Cyrus encourages and condones such behavior. Awe its hell, baby, and well its fun. Did I say that.

As one of the writers involved in this wonderful collaboration, I get too engrossed in my characters and in the world that JL Oiler and I have created. Did I tell you I have an obsessive personality, enjoy wicked evil things, love erotic poetry, ghouls, vampires, witches, werewolves and they live in my head, yeah, on a daily basis. Is this redundant? LOL, not to worry, last time I looked things that go bump in the night don’t exist. Hm, gotta raise an eyebrow here, in my brain they do exist.

You must read Glimpses of Midnight, Volume One, here you will encounter Carina, the half-breed orgasm-seeking daughter. Really, she’s running creatures ragged, in pursuit of the perfect orgasm. You meet, the two humans who venture into hell and pay the price. You’ll enjoy the wickedness of JL Oiler has created and her talent of getting three, count them three in one bed. She a master at ménage, and has taught me a thing or two. Oh, sorry I get lost a lot, smiles.

Well, fellow humans, time to wrap it up, got some serious writing to do. Look for Glimpses of Midnight, Volume Three, Obsession and then Four Perversion. See those heading, we won’t let you down, I promise.

Kisses and hugs…
- Suzzana C Ryan
http://www.suzzanacryanromanceromanceauthor.blogspot.com

Worthy Cause: Fill the Shelves!

Fill The Shelves is the brainchild of a small group of writers - but we were all readers first.  Kids who tucked into corners and forts and crannies at our school libraries, harassed the librarians for something new to read, fed our imaginations with the worlds we found in the pages.

Not one of us can imagine growing up without books.

The basics: School librarians compile Amazon wishlists for their school libraries. FTS puts willing donators in touch with these wishlists, the donors order the books and Amazon sends them directly on. It's a very simple way to help many, many children.

When I was a child, there were a simple handful of things that mattered to me: Writing, drawing, roaming outdoors, and, most of all, reading. I was blessed with a mother who read voraciously, and teachers and librarians who were there every step of my education with book recommendations. We were not a wealthy family, so I relied heavily on my school's library and our neighbourhood book mobile program to feed my growing interest in books. Through these portals, my life as a reader became essential to my life as me. If it weren't for books, I would not be who I am today.

Like the FTS organizers, I can't picture childhood without books.

This new charity came to my attention last week, as it was started by a number of indie authors I know online. I'm not affiliated it with it in any way, but I wanted to help spread the word. As readers/writers/humans, it is in all our best interests to engage kids with reading, to keep school libraries up to date, and to help teacher-librarians foster literacy. So far, the org has been a smashing success. As of last time I looked, $4,500 worth of books have gone to libraries in need!

But there are now three new school libraries added that need support.

If you're a school librarian or would like to help, please, check it out!

Promo: Not My Mother by Ashley Rae

Not My Mother: A Memoir

Genre: Memoir/Non-Fiction

Release Date: July 13, 2012

 
By the age of twelve, Ashley Rae had survived incest, child abuse, and the deaths of both her biological parents. Born to Baptists but raised by Buddhists, Rae found peace and healing on a Pagan spiritual path while obtaining her college degree and starting the career of her dreams.

Rae thought the hardships in her life were over...until she lost her job, started a new relationship, and found out she was pregnant with another man's child all in the same week. Terrified of cesarean surgery, Rae vowed to give birth to her child at home – but first, she had to find one.

Alternately haunting, humorous, and heart-warming, Not My Mother: A Memoir follows Rae over a nine-month quest to break her family's generational pattern of abuse and victimhood in order to become for her unborn child the mother she had always wanted for herself.

Excerpt:

From the moment Dad rushed us through the dark living room, too quickly for me to see her body, I'd been looking for my mother.  Even after her funeral in Virginia, I kept looking for my mother.  She came to me in my dreams and told me it had all been a mistake, and she wasn't really dead at all.  I'd wake up and jump out of bed in a hurry to continue our conversation, then freeze and fold in half, hyperventilating as reality hit me.

At twenty-two, I had not yet explored how the violence that I couldn't remember witnessing affected my life and my relationships.  Ike died when I was five.  Mom hated him.  His mom loved him.  I, on the other hand, had never given myself permission to have feelings about this man who'd loved me and killed my mother. Until I saw him staring back at me through my mirror in the flickering light of a white candle.

Buy Links:

Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords

Ashley Rae has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Central Florida and resides with her precious 3 year old in gorgeous Sarasota, FL.  She leads weekend retreats for psychics, kids, and writers, and teaches workshops on using writing as a self-healing tool, developing intuition, and about The Incredible Vagina, which is simply the best title anyone has ever come up with for any class, ever. She is presently working on her second memoir, tentatively titled “Sentence Interrupted: Memoir of a Moody Mama.” Also a professional psychic, energy healer, and a Love-Your-Life Coach, there is plenty to check out on her website at http://AuthorAshleyRae.com.

Love at First Bite by Jessica Coulter Smith

Today I have Sean from Love at First Bite with me.

So Brian, being gay in a small town must be hard. Have you ever wished you weren’t?

There were times in the past I wondered why I was born this way, but I’m comfortable being me. If people can’t handle the fact that I’m gay, that’s their problem, not mine.

So what’s it like being with a vampire?

Different. I can honestly say I’ve never with anyone like Brian before. But then, that isn’t just because he’s a vampire. I know the moment he enters a room, without even looking. And when he bites me – it’s incredible!

You wouldn’t change anything?

Well, the idea of growing old while he stays the same bothers me sometimes. We haven’t really discussed the possibility of him turning me, but I know it will come up in the future.

And it wouldn’t bother you to be a vampire?

Honestly? No. It would allow me to be with the man I love for eternity. What’s not to love?

You’re that certain he’s “the one”?

Oh yeah. I can honestly say that I can’t see myself with anyone else, ever. Brian is amazing, and I don’t just mean the intimacy,  but that’s pretty wonderful, too. He completes me.

 
Well, thank you for stopping by, Sean. I can’t wait to hear more about your story.

Love at First Bite by Jessica Coulter Smith

Available Now from Changeling Press

When Sean discovers Brian is a vampire, he’s ready for love at first bite.

Sean has spent his life in the small-minded town of Willow Grove. Given his preference in sexual partners, finding romance has always been a challenge – until Brian.

When Brian walks into Sam’s Place, the first thing he sees is Sean and he knows he has to have him. When he takes Sean back to his place, he reveals his true self and hopes that Sean will accept him -- fangs and all.

Excerpt

I glanced at my watch and realized I didn’t have much time before I had to be at work. With a groan, I slipped out of bed and dressed.

“What’s wrong?” Brian asked in a groggy voice.

“My car is still at the bar, and I’m going to be late for work.”

“So take mine.”

“Are you sure?” I couldn’t imagine driving the sleek machine he owned.

He chuckled. “Not like I’m going to use it anytime soon. I may not sleep all day, but I am stuck here until the sun goes down.”

“Thanks. I’ll bring it back as soon as I get off work.”

“Good.” He smiled. “I can’t wait to see you again.”

I warmed from the inside out at his words and knew I had a goofy grin on my face. Blowing him a kiss, I grabbed his keys and left. I had less than half an hour to go home, shower, change and get to work. I think it was safe to say I would be late.

* * *

Forty-five minutes later, I pulled into the parking lot at work, grabbed my bag and rushed inside. I’d already called the secretary to let her know I was running behind.

Thankfully, she hadn’t asked any questions.

“Any messages, Jane?” I asked as I hurried by her desk.

“Just one, from some guy named Brian.”

I felt my face flush and grabbed the note from her. She gave me a knowing smirk as I walked off. Thank goodness Jane was cool with me being gay. If anything, it made me her favorite guy in the office. She never had to worry I would hit on her.

When I got to my desk, I put my stuff down and picked up the phone. Brian answered on the first ring.

“It’s about time,” he said playfully.

“Miss me already?”

“You bet.”

“I’ll swing by your place when I leave here, probably around five-ish.”

“Bring a change of clothes. I liked you staying the night.”

“Me too,” I murmured with a smile.

“So… I’ll see you when you get here.”

“See you then.”

He hung up and I logged into my computer. As I skimmed through my email, I saw something from my boss. When I opened it, I groaned. My project was now due tomorrow instead of next week. There was no way I could get the CAD drawings done in time. It would take a miracle. I’d been pacing myself for my original due date, not expecting such a radical change.

I picked up the phone and called Brian back. “Hey, I’ve had a change of plans.”

“Find someone hotter?” he joked.

“No, that couldn’t happen. But work did… I have a project due tomorrow that wasn’t supposed to be finished for another week. If I don’t stay and work on it, I’ll never get it finished.”

“So, I’ll bring you something to eat and we can spend a little time together later tonight.”

I smiled, glad he understood. “That would be great.”

After we hung up, I was still smiling. Not only was he excellent in the sack, but he was accepting and flexible with my work schedule. I couldn’t have asked for more in a partner. Not that we were at that stage yet. At least, I didn’t think we were. I hadn’t thought to ask when he saw clients, but I’d bet he saw them at night. Otherwise, how would he get to the office? I hoped I wasn’t cutting into his work time.

Textbook Romance is on GoodReads!

If you're interested in reading Textbook Romance, you can add it to your TBR on GoodReads, including the ebook, Kindle and now paperback editions. You can also review it there, too!

Chase after love? As a single mother, Professor Liberty Sullivan knows better. Between her flighty mother and a disastrous history with men, she's pretty much soured on the whole concept of romance. Personal freedom and self-reliance are her new guiding mantras. Raising her son and being a career star are the most important things now.

Then she meets Seth.

An ex-cop who’s making a new life for himself and his daughter, Seth Webster has every reason to play it safe. Then he meets Liberty. Prickly about love, following some crazy anti-romance curriculum, she still makes Seth's heart pound. And a lifetime of cop instinct tells him he's about to teach Liberty that this romance will be anything but by the book.

Thanks for reading!

Happy (Upcoming) Birthday, Rebel Ink!

This weekend, Rebel Ink Press turns two years old! 

Come celebrate with RIP and the Rebel authors. There's a Facebook "Meet the Writers" event on Friday (by invite only, so if you'd like an invite let me know!), and a blog hop all weekend long, starting at Rebel Reasoning. I'm pretty sure there will be excerpts and prizes all over!

Best of all, Rebel titles will be 25% off this weekend long AllRomanceEbooks!

(Including my own five Rebel titles, I hope!)

 

And don't forget the Writing Contest Rebel is running - deadline is August 25th!

Happy Birthday, Rebel Ink!

A Guest Promo from Lee Ann Sontheimer Murphy

From the top of the hill crowning our backyard, I looked out over an amazing vista.  Somehow the neighborhood seemed different from that view but best of all I had a panorama of sky.  I watched the clouds puff across the blue sky.  I watched the birds wheeling high and fast.  And I saw the airplanes headed for the local airport.  Flight captivated my attention and I wished I too could soar into the heavens.

My desire is part of the inspiration behind my new release from Rebel Ink Press, Guy’s Angel.  In my second full length historical romance, my heroine, Lorraine Ryan longs to fly.  The story is set in 1925.

Guy’s Angel – Lee Ann Sontheimer Murphy 

When a young woman really believes the sky is the limit, amazing things can happen…


Lorraine Ryan wants to fly airplanes so she heads for the local airstrip in 1925 to make her dream come true.  Most of the flyboys think she’s cute but a woman’s place is in the home, not the cockpit.   When Guy Richter steps up and offers to teach her to fly, she’s captivated with both Guy and flight.  He nicknames her “Angel” and takes her up into that wild blue yonder.  Before long, they’re deep in love.


Love, however, isn’t always enough……


Guy, a former World War I flying ace, is haunted by his past. His demons include his war service, the death of his only brother in an accident the previous year, and the Valkyries that he evaded in France who trail him in the hopes that they can complete his destiny.  But his dreams lie with Angel and as they grow closer and closer, he soon realizes that if anyone can save him, it’s his Angel.

Excerpt:

When she got in sight of the airfield, she slowed her fast pace to a casual walk, plastered a lit Camel to her lip, and sauntered toward the hanger, eager and with more anticipation than she ever remembered having at Christmas.

Just outside the single hanger, her old shyness reared up and tried to choke her but she pushed it away, swaggering in the boots to show a confidence she didn’t feel now. When she walked inside, just three fellas were there, the older one who first spoke to her, Guy, and another man.

“Good morning,” she called out, hoping her voice didn’t betray her nerves.  Maybe Guy didn’t remember, she thought, maybe he changed his mind.

“Hi, Angel,” he said, relieving her worries. “Come meet the rest of the gang, the ones here, anyhow.  In case you forgot, I’m Guy, Guy Richter. This here is Pete but we all call him “Pop” because he’s the old man around here and this other goof is Charlie.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Charlie said, standing up to greet her.  “I like the duds, Angel.”

“Thanks, it’s nice to meet you too.”

In short order he introduced to some of the others, a kid too young to have been an ace in the war named Teddy, a fellow named Stan, who Guy called ‘Joe College’, and another man who ducked his head he said was Art. When Art turned on his heel, she noticed he was missing an eye and figured he might have lost it in the Army Air Corps. Two or three other young men hung around, kicking the dirt with their toes and staring at her as an awkward silence descended.

“She can’t fly like that,” the old man they called Pop growled. “She’d need goggles, a jacket, gloves, a leather helmet and she ain’t got any.  Better go home, kiddo.”

She shook her head.  “I ain’t going to scram.  I’m here to fly.”

“Leave off her, old man,” Guy said but he didn’t sound angry despite the harsh words. “She’s all right.  She looks to be close enough to Jimmie’s size she can wear his gear.”

“And I suppose you just happen to have all of it with you?” Pop growled.

“Yeah, I do,” Guy said.  “I brought it with me just for her.”

“And you’ll let the dame wear your own dead brother’s stuff? Jesus Christ on a crutch!”

Angel – because here she sure didn’t want to be just Lorraine – looked from one man to the other, more than a little upset they appeared to argue about her.

“Mind your beeswax, Pop,” Guy said, sounding irate for the first time. “C’mon, Angel, let’s get you ready to fly.”

He beckoned her to follow so she trailed behind him out to a flivver where he lit a smoke before he dug out the flying gear.

“Did I do something wrong?” she asked. “I didn’t mean to make anybody sore.”

Guy blew out smoke and shook his head.  “It ain’t you, honey, it’s just Pop. He's like a bear sometime, that’s all. Don’t get your knickers in a knot over what he said.”

“Okay, I won’t.  Thanks, Guy.”

“Aw, don’t mention it,” he said as he reached into the car.  “Here, try the jacket and see if it’s close enough to fit.”

The brown leather aviator jacket dwarfed her, much too large but she tugged it into place.

“What do you think?” she asked, pirouetting for him.

“It looks swell,” Guy said. “It’s big but you look better in it than Jimmie ever did.”

She looked down at the jacket. “Did it really belong to your brother?”

“Yeah, it did Angel.”

“What happened to him? Did he die in the war?”

Guy’s face darkened but he shook his head.  “No, we both made through the war but he bought it down at Kansas City, at the motorcycle board track not long before it closed last year.”

Angel remembered reading about a terrible accident, one in which the motorcyclist lost control of his speeding bike and veered off the track into the crowd. He died on impact and so did three of the viewers.  “I’m sorry.”

Guy shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t sweat it.  He’d like a pretty girl to wear his gear. Here, get the helmet on and the goggles so we can fly.”

His casual compliment pleased her but she didn’t say anything about it. She managed to pull the tight fitting leather over her head and put the goggles in place.  Now she felt like a giant insect and as she followed him out to the waiting plane, she figured she must look like one too.  She had one more question, though, and she turned to Guy, lips parted to ask it.

“So you were in the war too?”

He hesitated but just for a moment before he nodded.  “Yeah, I was but it was a long time ago and a long way off.  Come on, Angel baby, if you want to fly, let’s fly.”

Links:

http://www.amazon.com/Lee-Ann-Sontheimer-Murphy/e/B004JPBM6I

http://www.allromanceebooks.com/storeSearch.html

http://www.bookstrand.com/lee-ann-sontheimer-murphy

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/lee-ann-sontheimer-murphy?keyword=lee+ann+sontheimer+murphy&store=ebook

A Page In The Life: http://leannsontheimermurphyblogspotwriterauthor.blogspot.com

Rebel Writer: Lee Ann Sontheimer Murphy: http://leeannsontheimermurphy.blogspot

Seanachie Stories: Tuesday Tales And More: http://seanachiestories-tuesdaytalesandmore.blogspot.com