... always time for a nice cup of tea and a good book!: sneak peek

Friday, 28 February 2020

Sneak Peek: BEEFCAKES by Katana Collins #Beefcakes

Things are about to get sticky...

Beefcakes, an all-new hilarious, second-chance standalone romance from Katana Collins, is coming March 24th and we have the FIRST sneak peek!

I might as well permanently add the label "Ex" to my name. I'm an Ex-Mr. Universe. Ex-Mr. Olympus. An Ex-Hollywood Stuntman. But no one from my small hometown cares anything about that. They only care that I'm the ex-boyfriend to the beloved Mayor's daughter, Elaina Dyker.

And now, ten years later, I'm back, helping my siblings run my mother's bakery while she takes on chemo. What should have been a routine cupcake delivery turns into utter chaos when the bachelorette party thinks I'm a stripper. And what's worse? Elaina is the maid of honor.

But the meme about us sure went viral fast. My small hometown has become positively infested with tipsy bridesmaids looking for my erotic cupcakes.

Now Hollywood's knocking again—and this time they want me and my ex, Mr. Beefcake and Ms. Prude, to star in a reality show.

It could solve all my problems—except her.

Pre-orderyour copy today!

Be notified FIRST when Beefcakes is live: http://bit.ly/2QQe0wM

Excerpt

I arched my brow at her. “I bragged about knowing you so well…but man. I did not see this almond croissant massacre coming. What do you have against almonds? Or was it the amount of butter that offended you? Because as a fitness expert, let me tell you butter isn’t the enemy. Sugar is the enemy.”

She laughed. “I, uh…I might have some anger management issues.”

I took the bag from her and peeked in. There were knuckle marks against the outside of the croissant. Literal knuckle marks. I barked a laugh. “Elaina Dyker. Did you punch the croissant?”

She laughed, pressing her lips together as though this would hide the fact that I saw her adorable little giggle. She brought her thumb and forefinger up beside her temple. “Maybe a little.”“Did you even try a bite?”

She shook her head no. “I like my routine. I like my daily lunch of yogurt and almonds.”

I made a face. Because she had to be exaggerating. Sure…she liked them. But having that same thing every day? Even chocolate cake every day would get tedious. “You can like yogurt and almonds but still indulge every now and then, you know.” I reached in and pinched off a piece of the smashed croissant, holding it out toward her lips. “C’mon. Live a little. I promise you, it is actually healthy, if that’s your concern.” Not that she needed to be concerned about that. “Almond flour. Gluten free. Grain free. Only two net carbs. The only sugar is the honey in the honey roasted almonds and the natural sugar in dates.” Her eyes grew wide at that and I knew I had hooked her.

She reached out her hand to take the piece of croissant from me, but I pulled back. “Nuh-uh,” I teased. “We can’t have your fingers getting sticky. Might ruin that fancy suit you’re wearing.”

She rolled her eyes, but parted her wet lips, her tongue peeking out just enough for me to place the croissant on top of. She moaned as soon as it hit her mouth, and her eyes fell closed as she slowly chewed and swallowed. “That’s…that’s healthy?”

I nodded. “See? I’m not just a pile of muscles. I’ve got some talent, too.”

Her head fell to the side. “I never said you weren’t talented. I just wish you wouldn’t show off quite so much of your other assets.”

I grinned. “I thought you liked my assets?”

“I do,” she answered absentmindedly, then immediately shook her head, realizing what she’d said. “I mean, I did.”

About Katana

As an author and a story-teller, it is the lifeblood to which my ideas take flight. And I believe

giving credit where credit is due. Occasionally someone (ie – my husband) will try to secretly switch out my beloved regular coffee for decaf. I always know the difference. ALWAYS (I’m looking at you, SEAN).

I am incapable of achieving the perfect ponytail. I’m dyslexic. I can never wear white without spilling on myself. And I’ve never read Pride and Prejudice (gasp!).

When I was younger and stole my mother’s Harlequins to read beneath the covers with a flashlight (seriously, did we ALL do this? I think we did.), I wanted to read about the tough as nails heroine. The perfectly imperfect girl with quirks and attitude and sass. And the anti-heroes who were anything but “Prince Charming.” Forget the knight on a white horse… give me the bad boy on a motorcycle.

So, now, I write those romance novels I craved to see on the shelves all those years ago—the sassy heroines. The badass heroes. I spend my days in the throes of my imagination, and am loving every minute of it. I can travel anywhere and become anyone I want to be. One day, I’m a mechanic in Boston and the next, I’m a vampire stripping in Las Vegas.

Since penning my first novel back in 2012, I’m now an international author with 15 published books, in a wide range of contemporary romance genres–(Paranormal, New Adult, Small town, Erotic Suspense… you name it!).

After living for a decade in Brooklyn, NY, I took the plunge and moved to beautiful (although kinda chilly) Portland, Maine. I now live full time in ‘Vacationland’ with a kind of mean cat, a mellow chihuahua, and a very NOT mellow lab-pittie mix. Oh, yeah… there’s a husband who draws comics somewhere in that mix, too. I can usually be found in a coffee shop with my nose in my laptop wearing fabulous (albeit sometimes impractical) shoes.

I love connecting with readers and fellow sassy storytellers, so feel free to drop me an email at katana.collins@gmail.com or connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (@katanacollins). You can find a list of my available books over on my Bookshelf or if you’ve already read a book, it would make my day if you wrote a review!

Threats, complaints, and criticisms should go to comments@fbi.gov.

Wednesday, 15 January 2020

SNEAK PEEK - Unexpectedly Yours by Rebecca Shea #UnexpectedlyYours

"Unexpectedly Yours is absolutely SWOON-WORTHY! Sweet and sexy and so romantic! Prepare to be swept away by Andrew and Grace!"

- A.L. Jackson, New York Times bestselling author

UnexpectedlyYours, an all-new intense and sexy standalone office romance from USA

Today bestselling author Rebecca Shea, is coming January 27th and we have the first

sneak peek!

One night of unbridled passion.

It was the only thing Andrew McPherson and Grace Morgan could afford.

Intense.

Sexy.

Unforgettable.

They promised they would never see each other again, but fate had other plans.

Andrew's entire life has been spent working toward one goal—to own the top advertising and public relations company in the world. He's driven, ruthless when it comes to business, never letting anything stand in his way . . . until Grace.

Grace has worked hard to build her advertising career. She's fiercely talented and dedicated to her clients. Grace has no interest in getting involved with a man when she knows her focus should be on her career and paying off her mounting debt.

Andrew knows better than to get involved with a woman who is completely off limits, but he never backs down from what he wants, and he won't stop until Grace is his . . . only this might cost him more than he's willing to give.

Sneak Peek:

The office is just starting to come alive when I slide into my cube. The weather—on top of it being the first day after a long holiday weekend—has everyone getting a late, lazy start. I fire up my laptop just as Jamie comes gliding across the floor, carrying two cups of coffee. I smile at her, and she smiles back. I wouldn’t know what to do without her.

“You always have my back, don’t you?” I say as she shoves the cup of steaming cardboard at me.

“Always.” She side-eyes me sarcastically. “Except when you ignore my texts and calls for an entire weekend.”

I glance away from her and hold the coffee between both of my hands, letting the contents of the cup warm my fingers. “Guilty,” I manage between sips of the hot liquid. “And I’m sorry. It’s just been so crazy, I don’t even know what to tell you or where to start—”

She cuts me off in her endearing, commanding way. “How about we pick up where we left off on Friday.” Her eyebrows raise knowingly, and I pinch my eyes closed, feeling awful for ignoring her.

I glance across the office and notice that Drew’s office lights are still off, which means he hasn’t arrived yet. I heave a sigh of relief, knowing that he’s not here and I can catch up with Jamie before he arrives. I stand up and reach for Jamie’s hand.

“Conference room,” I tell her, nodding toward the dark room. I drag her down the hall and the room lights up when we enter thanks to the motion sensors. I close and lock the door, drawing the privacy screens next so people can’t see us.

Throwing herself into a chair, Jamie grins at me. “Must be good if we have to talk about it in a conference room.” She spins in her chair like an excited little girl.

“I can’t have anyone in the office knowing about this,” I tell Jamie seriously. “I can’t have this jeopardize my career or have anyone thinking I’m doing anything inappropriate,” I start.

Her eyes widen like she knows this is going to be juicy, but she says with all seriousness, “I know. I didn’t mean it like that—”

“Jamie,” I cut her off. “I need you to promise me you’ll keep this under wraps. I need this job, I love this job. I’ve loved this job long before Mr. McPherson bought the company…”

“Is that what you call him? Mr. McPherson?” she interrupts with a giggle. “Deeper, Mr. McPherson,” she jokingly says and I roll my eyes. “Okay, sorry. I’ll be serious now.” She straightens up in her chair and pulls her coffee to her. “Tell me everything.”

I sit next to Jamie and start from Friday night. I tell her about the elevator, our night at the hotel, condo shopping, dinner, furniture shopping, and even about our picnic. I tell her I confessed about my money problems, problems even Jamie doesn’t know the gritty details of. She knows I’ve got shit to take care of, but she doesn’t know the extent of it. Jamie listens intently as I tell her everything. When I finally finish, she simply stares at me.

“Damn,” she murmurs, dazed. “You guys jumped right into this, didn’t you?”

I can’t do anything but nod my damn head in response. “I know, and it fucking scares me.”