Friday, August 30, 2013

A FEW LINES FROM… ANGEL DE` AMOR




His Betrayal Her Lies by Angel de`Amor
                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                        

She moved to her dresser, opened the bottle, and rubbed the lotion all over her body, paying special attention to his two favorite places to nibble—her neck and legs. The butterscotch skin, brown eyes, and petite body that were reflected in the mirror as she massaged her legs made her feel extra sexy. She stood and did a little sensual dance as she opened her underwear drawer, selected a striking red lace thong, and slipped it up her legs.
Some teeny devil must have been sitting on her shoulder urging her on. “Yeah, this thong is all the clothes you’re going to need.” She pulled her four-inch red pumps out the closet and slid them on her feet. “Sorry, babies,” she told her aching feet, “but I gotta look good tonight.”
She snatched her wallet out of her purse off the nightstand and her Blackberry off the bed as she walked to the living room closet. Wrapping up in the long, black, fox fur coat would protect her from the chilly November weather.



“Please stop back next week for a few lines from Connie Vines.”

Sunday, August 25, 2013

All in the Family

Coming soon from Books We Love Publishers  


“That’s my witness?” Couldn't be more than six or seven –
what could a kid that age tell them? Still better than nothing.
“Hi.” Callie knelt next to the child – eye to eye so to speak. “What’s your name?”
“Berry.”
“Berry, that’s pretty. What’s your full name?”
“Huckleberry Kane.”

“Huckleberry! How’d you get a name like that?” Callie darn near bit her tongue. One of these days she’d learn to think before she spoke. Although the kid didn't seem to take offense. 

Saturday, August 24, 2013

All in the Family - Coming Soon

Taking over the police chief’s job in her hometown should have been easy for Callie Johnson. At least that's what she thought. After working in a big city, small town crime would be a breeze.  What a surprise when she arrives to find her grandmother, the judge, accused of murder. As if that wasn't enough she’s attacked while walking to her car. Between criminal investigations, her nutty family’s antics and her Aunt Beatrice Lulu's matchmaking, Callie definitely has her work cut out for her. Will her grandmother be exonerated? What other surprises were in store for her?  Can Callie ward off her aunt’s unsuitable suitors? More importantly, can she find the person who attacked her? 


EXCERPT:

Usually Callie enjoyed dinner with her grandmother. The judge never ceased to amaze her. She kept a busy schedule, yet still managed to keep house and entertain regularly. Where or how she found the time to clean, cook, and bake was beyond Callie. Lately, though, Gram had been getting on Callie’s case almost as bad as her mother and sister about getting married.
She pulled into Gram’s drive and groaned. Not only would she have to deal with her grandmother, mother, and sister, Aunt Beatrice Lulu was here. Not her favorite person. She eased out of the car. May as well face the music.
Callie’s grandmother greeted her at the door. “How’s the new Police Chief?” Gram’s smile beamed with pride. One thing she’d give Gram credit for, she was proud of her children and grandchildren.
“I’m doing well.” Callie hugged and kissed her. “How are you?”
“Ah, you know how it is. Busy. Jim Landry thinks I should retire.”
“Maybe you should. Take life easy. You've certainly earned it.” Callie suppressed a grin. Truth be known, Jim Landry was sweet on Gram.
“And just what would I do with my time?” Gram put her hands on her hips and frowned at Callie. “You young people think everything is solved by retiring.”
“Well, you could travel. Or you could spend more time with Jim.”
Gram waved her hand, but Callie caught the blush on her cheeks before she turned away. “Posh. What makes you think I need to spend more time with Jim?”
 “Well you’re always telling me I should get married. Maybe you should consider it.”
“I was married, remember? And to a very good man. No way could I replace him. Get married, the very idea.”
“Gramps has been gone a long time, Gram. And Jim’s every bit as good. He’s sweet on you, you know.”
Commotion from the other room saved Gram from answering. Callie followed her into the living room.
Aunt Beatrice Lulu sat in the middle of the floor. Everyone stared open mouthed, looking scared to speak.
“What in the hell are you doing on the floor?” Gram covered her mouth to keep from laughing. “Are you okay? Do I need to call 911?”
“No. You don’t need to call 911. Help me up, for God’s sake.”
“What the hell are you doing on the floor to begin with?”
“I fell. What does it look like?” Aunt Beatrice Lulu took the hand Gram offered.
“I can see that. But what happened?”
At that moment, Aunt Beatrice Lulu spotted Callie. Oh boy, here it came. Her nasally voice grated on Callie’s nerves. Okay, it wasn't her fault, adenoids or something caused it, but it was still annoying. Sometimes Callie thought her aunt exaggerated it. Maybe she didn't, but right now it sounded worse than usual, and Callie wasn't in the mood to listen to her, even if she sounded normal.
Why couldn't everyone just let her live her life? What made them think they could tell her what to do? Aunt Beatrice Lulu wasn't the only one. Oh no, Callie’s mother, her sister, heck even Jim Landry weighed in on what she should do with her life or what man she should meet. Everyone was always setting her up with blind dates.
Beatrice Lulu. What kind of name was that anyway? And don’t anyone dare shorten it to Aunt Bea or Aunt Beatrice. Oh, no. It had to be the whole name, or everyone would catch what for.
Callie remembered when she was little-she called her Aunt Bea once. Wasn't that what Opie Taylor on Andy Griffith reruns called his aunt? Callie thought it was cute. Lord above, you’d of thought she’d put a curse on her aunt or something. She thought she’d never hear the end of it.
That woman ranted and raved for almost an hour about how her name was Beatrice Lulu, not Bea, not Beatrice. It was the name she was born with, the name she was christened, and the name she’d die with. It’s the name she expected people to use. Obviously she was proud of her name, but did she have to go on so? Callie never made that mistake again. No, ma’am. From then on she used her whole name and so did everyone else. All except Uncle Ed, that is.
Callie would never forget when her aunt met Uncle Ed. She about fell out of her chair laughing. Aunt Beatrice Lulu stood there staring at him like she wanted to bash him over the head or something.
Uncle Ed is a big man.  Big--like six feet six or more. Most people are overwhelmed by his height. A giant of a man, he towered over everyone and his shoulders, lord above, they were almost as wide as the doorway. And he had this loud, bellowing voice that vibrated off the walls and back at you. His black curly hair fell in a curl on his forehead, and bushy dark eyebrows sat above the roundest, darkest blue eyes Callie’d ever seen. His straight nose, mustache, square jaw, and creases at the corner of his eyes, as well as his tan, gave him a rugged appearance. Sexy. Ruggedly handsome. Magnum PI or the Marlboro Man. 
Aunt Beatrice Lulu didn't look impressed. Not that Uncle Ed noticed. He just walked right up to her. “Well, aren't you a pretty little thing?” he said. “Bet you got a pretty name to match.”
Callie’d never heard anyone refer to her aunt as pretty before. Or little. Nothing about her aunt was little. Okay, she wasn't huge, but suffice to say she had some added bulk. Nothing Callie’d call pretty about her. Aunt Beatrice Lulu’s nose was too big for her face, her lips too small, and her squinty dark brown, almost black, eyes looked beady at best. She pulled her mousy brown hair so tight into a bun on top of her head-Callie swore it pulled every wrinkle out of her face. She usually sat with her arms crossed over her ample bosom and resting on her paunchy stomach. Nope, nothing pretty about her. Portly, but not pretty. But obviously, Uncle Ed thought differently.
He stood there, admiring her, and she continued to glare at him. “Well, sweetheart, do you have a name or not?”
“I do, and it’s definitely not sweetheart.” She harrumphed and turned away, looking at everyone and everything but him.
Uncle Ed wasn't going to be put off. Oh no, not him. He put his big hands on her shoulders and turned her right back around to face him. “Now, why you wanna be rude like that? I just asked your name.”
The room grew deathly quiet. Everyone focused on Aunt Beatrice Lulu and held their breath, Callie included. No one talked to her aunt that way, and they sure as heck didn't touch her. She just stood there. Speechless. Callie’d never seen the woman speechless before.
“You going to tell me your name, or do I got to ask these other folks?”
“Beatrice Lulu.” Her mouth curved upwards in a slight smile. Aunt Beatrice Lulu hardly ever smiled. “Beatrice Lulu Roberts.”
“Well, now Bea, was that so hard?” He moved his left hand to her check and stroked it.
Aunt Beatrice Lulu flinched from the touch. “I said my name is Beatrice Lulu, not Bea.”
Uncle Ed let out a big hardy laugh. “Ain’t nobody called by their full name these days. What you think people got time to say Beatrice Lulu?” he dragged out the last syllable and slid his finger along her cheek toward her lips. “You think people got nothing better to do or talk about. They gotta waste time calling you by your full name? My name’s Edgar Leroy Eberhardt, but do people call me that? Hell no, they call me Eddie or Ed. And that’s what you can call me.”
Aunt Beatrice Lulu pushed his hand away, positioned her hands on her hips, and tapped her foot.
Uh, oh, Callie thought, here it comes.
“Well, Mr. Eberhardt, if you don’t like calling me by my full name, fine. Don’t! Don’t call me nothing.  In fact, don’t talk to me at all. Think I care? My name is Beatrice Lulu.” She started her rant. “It’s the name I was born with…
Next think Callie knew, Uncle Ed pulled her aunt against him and kissed her right on the lips. The whole room let out a gasp. Callie thought she cursed. Someone said, oh hell. Might well have been her. The shock of the moment sent everyone agape.
Finally, he pulled away. Not that Aunt Beatrice Lulu resisted. Not once did she try to push him away. Nope, in fact, she leaned into him and put her arms around him. “Well, now,” he said. “How about you and I go get some dinner, Bea.”
Callie’d never seen her aunt so flustered, let alone speechless. She just stood there staring at him. Everyone held their breath waiting for her usual angry outburst.
“Oh, dear…” She patted her hair as if it were out of place. “Where would you like to go, Ed?”
That was it. No rant. No rave. Just complete surrender and off they went. That’s how their relationship began. Not six months later, they married. Never thought they’d see the day Aunt Beatrice Lulu met her match. Of course, Uncle Ed called her Bea, but he was the only one allowed to call her that. She remained Beatrice Lulu to everyone else.
“There’s someone I want you to meet, Callie.”
“I don’t have time to meet anyone, I’m too busy.”
“But, this one’s different, Callie.”
As usual, Aunt Beatrice Lulu found the perfect man. Right! Callie’d met those perfect men before. Not one of them lived up to her aunt’s description, and not just physically. Sincere, trustworthy, considerate. Ha, the first one turned out to be a crook, the second was married, and the last one so egotistical he didn't even like himself. 

Friday, August 23, 2013

A Few Lines from… Kathy Fischer-Brown's Winter Fire

graphic
Winter Fire
"Get back!" he shouted. "The ice won't hold you!"
She whirled around in alarm.
And in that split second, he saw her eyes. Those startled doe's eyes. Zara Grey!
In the next instant, a crack—like a musket shot—echoed through the ravine. She reeled as the ice heaved up beneath her amid an angry surge of black water. And then, her face frozen in a look of surprise, her mouth open in a semblance of a silent scream, she disappeared through the widening breach.
His gaze fixed on the roiling chasm, Ethan hurled himself down the slope. She surfaced—flailing arms and legs, and gasping desperately for air—churning up the black water into an icy froth. She grasped at the splinters of ice.
"Keep your head up!"
Racing along the bank, he ripped off his deerskin jacket and hurled it, along with his rifle and belt into the snow. If she went under again, she'd be trapped. Already the current had taken her, sweeping her like a bobbing cork toward the opposite bank where the ice was thicker.
"Keep your head up!"
But the frenzied movement of her arms had slowed. She gasped at the water along with the air. She could barely keep herself afloat. As if she had made a conscious choice to surrender herself to a stronger power, he saw the spirit drain out of her. An eerie calm settled over her eyes as her gaze met his, then she slipped under again without a struggle.
Without stopping to think, Ethan tore off his shirt and moccasins, and dove through the opening.

Visit Kathy’s website: http://www.kfischer-brown.com
Stop back next week for A Few Lines from… Angel de' Amor

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

What happened to English grammar?


I mean seriously – did people forget what they learned in school? Or are they not teaching it anymore?

I’m specifically referring to the use of I and me. I read it in books, see it on television, face book and hear it constantly.

Do people really not know the proper use of pairing the two words with an and between them. Joe and I – Joe and me. 
I seldom hear me anymore. It’s always and I. 
I was taught if you weren't sure which to use, I or me, to simply leave off the first part – Joe and.
Pretty simple really. Joe and I went to the store – Leave off Joe and – I went to the store. Correct. 
Come to the store with Joe and I – leave off Joe and – Come to the store with I??? Seriously, would anyone speak that way?  Of course not, you’d say Come to the store with me. So obviously me is correct. 
But that’s not what people are saying, or writing.
I watched a program the other night on the Hallmark Channel. They consistently used and I. Didn't matter that it was incorrect.
Is this what’s being taught in our schools today? 
Is this the new language? 
I know many publishers are doing away with commas. In fact, The Chicago Manual of Style has changed using a comma after and in a series. I’ll have bacon, eggs, and toast. Why?  Apparently The Chicago Manual of Style has replaced The Elements of Style (Strunk and White) and that's what publishers use today.
 I know sometimes commas are overused, especially in run on sentences. But there is a need for them. Commas indicate pause. I've read sentences  more than once so they’d make sense, because of a lack of commas.
 What is this world coming to?
Are people too lazy to speak  and write properly? Aren't there enough editors knowledgeable about grammar to correct these errors?
Or do people think it sounds better to use and I?



Friday, August 16, 2013

A Few Lines from Bride of the Baja by Jane Toombs






Bride of the Baja by Jane Toombs
After a long ride Alitha was untied, pulled down from the horse and carried to a hut, where she was pushed inside and left alone in the darkness. She lay huddled on the ground for a moment listening to the sounds around her—the pounding of the surf, the drunken shouts of the men, the neighing of horses, the barking of dogs.

Coming Soon! Find this title and Jane's other books at: http://bookswelove.net/janetoombs.php

Please stop back next week for a few lines from Kathy Fischer-Brown.

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Love on the Rocks

 “I hate to do this, but I see no alternative.” Jordan took a deep breath and pushed him over, rolling him like a barrel while trying to avoid cutting him on the sharp rocks. It wasn't
 easy, but at least she managed to move him.
“Come on!” She tried to encourage some life from his limp body.  Far enough away from the waves, she leaned down to give him mouth to mouth, hoping to bring him around. His long straight nose, eyes set wide with bushy eyebrows, and the grin on his lips, even in his unconscious state, sent a ripple of excitement through her.
 Not a handsome man, but something about him stirred deep inside. Resisting the urge to run her fingers through his curly black hair, she leaned down to his mouth. When her lips touched his and opened them slightly, something familiar tugged on her heart. She hadn't touched a man's mouth in, what, three years. This wasn't exactly the way she imagined touching them again. Not that she ever imagined it. Never even thought about it. She’d had enough of men to last her a lifetime.
“Good grief, Jordan, you’re supposed to save him, not make out with him. What’s the matter with you?” The sound of her voice startled her. She hadn't meant to speak out loud. Fortunately, he didn’t hear her. She blew in his mouth again.
His chest heaved. He coughed, spluttered, spit water, and opened his eyes.
His gray blue eyes sparked something in her, bringing out emotions she hadn’t felt since long before Derek. Her stomach lurched. She moved away, avoided his touch. He tried to sit up. Looked around.

Friday, August 9, 2013

A Few Lines From Shattered Dreams by Janet Lane Walters




Without a glance at the waiting patient, she strode to the counter. The aroma strengthened. Hadn’t been her imagination. She turned her head and stared at the man wearing the green cotton examining gown. She gripped the edge of the counter. Blood rushed from her head.

“You’re dead.” The words slashed the silence. This couldn’t be happening.
“Hardly.”


The voice sounded like the one from her dreams. She opened her mouth to ask where he’d been and what he’d been doing for the past twelve years. She sucked in a shallow breath. Asking that question would only stir the emotions she had frozen.

“Don’t bail on me. Sit down.”

Her fingers had no feeling. Waves of darkness dimmed her vision. The edge of the counter disappeared. Her knees buckled. Blackness engulfed her.


* * *


“Manon!” Rafe Marshall leaped from the examining table in time to catch her before she hit the floor. He cradled her against his chest. “Didn’t mean to scare you,” he whispered. Why did she think he was dead? He knew news of his accident had been kept quiet because the police believed he’d been deliberately forced off the road. Who had told her? Had the informant been the driver of the dark car his rescuer had seen speeding from the scene?
Find Shattered Dreams at Amazon
Janet can be found daily at http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com/
Stay tuned. Next week Just a Few Lines features Jane Toombs

Friday, August 2, 2013

   CELESTE HARTE GLARED at the twenty-nine candles on her birthday cake. She’d squandered her last fourteen birthday wishes asking for a fairy tale romance, and her life still read like an instruction manual. The frog she’d hoped would turn into a prince—God rest his soul—had been a cheating toad. Leaning her hands on her glass-topped kitchen table, she puffed out her cheeks and blew. I wish I’d meet a man who would turn my life into a sizzling romance novel.


            “Easy.” Marianne Joest raised an auburn brow as she swiped cream frosting from her blouse with a manicured nail. Closing her eyes, she sucked her fingertip. “Mm. Next best thing to an orgasm.”
            “My life is half over, I haven’t made love in I-can’t-remember-when, and you talk about orgasm?”
clip_image002             “Half over?” Marianne snorted. “And I thought Susan was the drama queen.” She cut two slices of cake and handed Celeste one. 
    Celeste shook her head. “It’s loaded with fat.”
            “Dammit, Cee. This is carrot cake, a vegetable with frosting. You’re thin enough no matter what Harry said, and twenty-nine isn’t the beginning of menopause.”