September Sizzles…

Five authors, five prizes, five blogs, and one grand prize!

Enter to win your chance at a signed book from the author’s backlist and a chance to win $150 in book money from the online retailer of your choice…Read on for details…

Cruel Enchantment by Anya Bast

He moved closer and her whole body stiffened. “So we’ve established that you killed Aileen and you’re lying about the circumstances to save your pretty ass. We’ve also established that I’m unable to kill you. The only question that remains is how I should make you pay.”

His gaze raked her up and down and his body reacted. His too big clothing hid her curves, but he’d had enough of a tantalizing glimpse of them during her shower to let his imagination run wild.

The very last thing he should be doing right now was remember the way her body looked behind that frosted glass. It was almost worse than having her naked. The image behind the shower door hinted at lush breasts—an overflowing handful—a narrow waist that flared into a generous, curvy bottom, and shapely legs.

He wanted to find out for sure, using his hands and maybe his tongue, too.

He’d brutally suppressed the urge before, tamping down the attraction he felt for her because it wasn’t right. Now, in the violent wake of what Emmaline had told him and his subsequent confusion over whether or not it was true—all that want came rushing back at him. It didn’t matter that it was horribly misplaced.

And damned if he could remember why he shouldn’t give in to it.

* * * * * * * * *

He was looking at her without anger in his eyes for once.

Okay, maybe there was a little anger in his eyes, but she had the feeling that the anger—for whatever mystical and unbelievable reason—wasn’t directed at her, but at himself. And anger wasn’t the only thing in his expression right now; there was hunger, too.

And that was all for her.

Her heart thudded so fast and so hard she thought it might break her ribs. What the hell? His behavior had changed so quickly she practically had whiplash.

“Aeric?” she whispered. She wasn’t even aware his name had slipped past her lips until it was out there. She didn’t know what to do with this sudden turn of events . . . although her body sure seemed to know. Her mind was awhirl with confusion, but the rest of her was quite aware that the man she’d wanted and fantasized about for so long was inches away from her . . . and seemed to actually want her back.

“Fuck,” he growled, bracing his hand on the wall right near her ear and moving closer to her. “This is not a good thing.”

“No.” She licked her lips—a nervous habit she’d had since she was a kid, no matter what guise she used. “This is not a good thing for either of us.”

His mouth almost brushed hers when he spoke. Her body flared to life, singing to almost painful arousal. Her nipples leapt to hard little points and she ached between her thighs. This man seemed to either terrify her, piss her off, or plunge her straight into animalistic heat.

His voice was a low growl, laced with anger. “I should chain you to my bed in charmed iron and take my revenge that way.”

She closed her eyes, her breath shuddering out of her. “I wouldn’t object.”

His eyes narrowed like a hunter’s sighting prey—and, boy, was she ever. Wounded, limping prey at that. She had no chance. “Don’t you have any shame?” he asked in a low, harsh voice.

“Not where you’re concerned. I never have.”

He eased her against him and dropped his mouth to her throat. Goose bumps erupted all over her skin. He nipped her flesh and then licked the small hurt. As though he wanted to punish her, but couldn’t make himself do it…..

Visit Monica’s blog… the next author up in the September Sizzles contest…

September Sizzles…

Would you like to win a signed copy of Hot For The Holidays and Wicked Enchantment from Anya? Just leave a comment to enter. Commenting also enters you to win a $150 GC to the online book retailer of your choice (we must be able to purchase a gift certificate from within the US.) If you visit each participating author’s blog and comment, that increases your odds of winning. Visiting/commenting at each participating author blog will get your five entries. However, only one comment per blog.

Rules:
· Contest runs through 9/17/2010
· One comment/entry per blog
· Winners to be posted by 9/30/2010 on the participating authors’ blogs
· You must check back at the authors’ blogs to see if you have won-if you don’t claim your prize within one week, you forfeit your prize.
· One comment per blog
· Void where prohibited
· Please make sure to abide by hosting author’s standard contest rules.

AJ and Pax work together as undercover operatives for a government agency of bad-boy bikers known as the Wild Riders. And though they play as hard as they work, both men are looking for the one woman who can tame them…

Danger may temporarily bind the three together, but it’s their shared passion that will lead them to the ride of their lives: love.

“Burton stands out in this genre not only because she can write super-steamy sex scenes but because her plots, characters and subplots are engagingly complex. This latest work is a prime example of Burton at her best: heart-melting characters, erotic interludes that further the plot and an ending that is sure to melt the readers’ hearts.”
~ Reviewed by Rhomylly Forbes, RT Book Reviews, Top Pick!

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Yowza!

You should see some of the books over there, y’all. And yes, RIDING THE NIGHT is one of them! Also books by many of my absolute favorite authors. The list makes me drool.

Head on over and enter for a chance to win one of your favorites! Here’s the link

Also, don’t forget you still have a chance to enter to win a copy of RIDING THE NIGHT over at Closetreader’s Blog! Contest ends there on Friday.

I thought I’d give you the entire first chapter to tempt you before release day. Here’s the last part of Chapter One (See blog post here for Part One of the Chapter One Excerpt, and see blog post here for Part Two of the Chapter One Excerpt)

AJ and Pax work together as undercover operatives for a government agency of bad-boy bikers known as the Wild Riders. And though they play as hard as they work, both men are looking for the one woman who can tame them…

On vacation, AJ and Pax run into AJ’s high school sweetheart, Teresa. While they’re catching up at Teresa’s bar, a fight erupts between two biker gangs, leaving one man dead and Teresa’s brother wrongly accused of murder. With no proof and Teresa as the only eye witness, the trio points their Harleys toward the annual bike rally in South Dakota in hot pursuit of the real killer…

Her life in jeopardy, AJ and Pax become Teresa’s fierce protectors. But a past trauma keeps Teresa guarded, unable to trust them–until AJ and Pax uncover her secret and vow to do anything to help her heal. And in their arms she discovers a sensual desire that knows no boundaries, a passion strong enough to overcome her tragic past and awaken a force that brings both men to their knees.

Danger may temporarily bind the three together, but it’s their shared passion that will lead them to the ride of their lives: love.

Excerpt after the jump:

She let go and AJ shook his hand.

Pax laughed. “I guess you can take care of yourself, can’t you?”

She nodded. “Damn straight.”

“Ow.”

Teresa rolled her eyes. “Pussy. I didn’t hurt you. But I could have if I wanted to.”

“I believe you. When did you become a tough girl?”

“When I bought the bar. I was dating one of the local cops who taught me some self-defense maneuvers. They come in handy.”

“So do their handcuffs, when used in the right situation.” Pax waggled his brows and Teresa laughed.

“Yeah, those can be handy, too.”

AJ did not want to hear about Teresa dating one of the local cops, or what they did with handcuffs. This whole thing was surreal. She had definitely changed. Grown up. Become a woman. With some other guy, who’d had what he could have had.

Fuck.

“Son of a bitch, AJ Dunn. I thought you were dead or in prison.”

AJ flipped around on the bar stool, then slid off and enveloped Teresa’s brother Joey in a bear hug. “You asshole. I thought the same about you. I even brought flowers for your grave.”

Joey Oliveri took a step back and smirked. “Prick. What the hell are you doing here?”

“Riding through. Teresa’s been filling me in on what’s been going on around here since I’ve been gone. I hear you’ve done well.”

“Yeah. Pretty good.”

“This is my friend Pax. Pax, this is my former best friend Joey.”

Joey snorted and shook Pax’s hand. “Any friend of AJ’s should have his head examined.”

Pax laughed. “I hear you. But somebody has to look after him. Nice to meet you.”

“You’ve gained weight,” AJ said, looking over Joey’s stomach. “Too much pasta?”

“You know how Italians are. We can’t resist spaghetti.”

“Doesn’t seem to have affected Teresa any.”

“She burns off calories working this bar. Me, I just sit on my ass and drink beer and ride.” Joey patted his protruding belly.

Joey and Teresa were twins, though you couldn’t tell it by looking at them. Same hair and eye color, and that’s where the similarities ended. Where Teresa was slender, Joey was filled out all over, and not all of it was muscle.

But then again he’d always been a little on the heavy side, and the guy liked his beer.

“So what is this I hear about you leading a club?”

Joey grinned. “Yeah. Imagine that, me at the head of the Thorns. Pretty cool, huh?”

“It is. Teresa told me you have some trouble with a rival gang.”

Joey narrowed his gaze. “Yeah. The Fists are in our business, trying to take over our territory.”
“Why?”
“Because they’re dirty motherfucking drug runners and they want some of the action here.”

AJ stilled. “You aren’t . . .”

“Nah. No illegal stuff here. We keep it clean and have a good relationship with the law. But our presence keeps the Fists from gaining control in this part of the county, and they see it as a prime opportunity to expand their drug distribution operation. Plus we’re situated near the river, which is good for shipping. We have the best territory and the Fists know it. They’ve wanted it for a while now, but they’re not going to get it as long as the Thorns are here.”

AJ didn’t like the way that sounded. “You need to be careful. Some of these gangs will stop at nothing to get what they want.”

Joey nudged AJ on the arm. “I’m not a moron. I’ve got it covered.”

“You and your guys armed?”

Joey nodded. “We’ll use ’em if we have to. We protect what’s ours.”

Pax slanted his gaze at AJ, a look of concern of his face.

Yeah, AJ knew. In their line of work with the Wild Riders they’d infiltrated plenty of gangs looking to distribute anything from drugs to guns. And once these gangs wanted something, they’d let nothing stop them, including people.

“So what are you up to these days, AJ?”

AJ slid his gaze to Pax, then back to Joey and shrugged. “Nothing much. Odd jobs here and there. Pax and I just ride.”

“Yeah? Thinking about settling back here in town again?”

AJ noticed Teresa watching him intently. “No. Just passing through.”

Teresa averted her gaze and moved down the bar. AJ wondered what her life was like now. Was she married? Did she have kids?

“Teresa’s done well. I can’t believe she bought this place.”

Joey grinned. “Yeah. She’s always been damn smart. Smarter than me, that’s for sure. When Todd got out, she stepped in and scooped this place up, cleaned it up, hired the sexy bartenders, and bikers started coming in here by the hundreds. She made enough money to expand and it’s still going strong.”

“Yeah, I can see that.” He hesitated, but something drove him to know. “She ever settle down and get married, have any rug rats?”

“You want to know about my personal life, AJ, why don’t you ask me directly?”

AJ did a half turn on the bar stool to face Teresa, hadn’t realized she’d moved back into earshot again. Shit. “Just wanted to make sure you were doing okay.”

“I’ve always been okay. Since the day you left ten years ago, I’ve been just fine. I didn’t need you then and I don’t need you now, so you can quit worrying about me.”

I used random.org to select a winner.

Congratulations to Savonna (Comment #26). I’ll be contacting you shortly.

For those who didn’t win, my awesome pal Lea over at Closetreader is holding a giveaway at her blog for a chance to win RIDING THE NIGHT. Head on over to her blog and enter. Thank you Lea!

If my littlest dog escapes from the backyard, but runs around the front and sits at my feet, can we really call it escaping?

Why is my house dirty within an hour of having it cleaned? (See dogs and husband for answer to this question)

Did anyone watch Project Runway last night? Oh Tim Gunn, I love you.

Does anyone really care whether Mariah Carey is pregnant or not?

Does anyone really care whether or not Bristol Palin will be on Dancing With The Stars?

Does anyone want to win an advance copy of RIDING THE NIGHT? If so, either answer any of my burning questions or put your own burning question of the day in the comments. I’ll post a winner on Monday.

And yes, I was checking to see if y’all are paying attention. Are you?

I thought I’d give you the entire first chapter over the next couple weeks to tempt you before release day. Here’s the second part of Chapter One (See blog post here for Part One of the Chapter One Excerpt)

AJ and Pax work together as undercover operatives for a government agency of bad-boy bikers known as the Wild Riders. And though they play as hard as they work, both men are looking for the one woman who can tame them…

On vacation, AJ and Pax run into AJ’s high school sweetheart, Teresa. While they’re catching up at Teresa’s bar, a fight erupts between two biker gangs, leaving one man dead and Teresa’s brother wrongly accused of murder. With no proof and Teresa as the only eye witness, the trio points their Harleys toward the annual bike rally in South Dakota in hot pursuit of the real killer…

Her life in jeopardy, AJ and Pax become Teresa’s fierce protectors. But a past trauma keeps Teresa guarded, unable to trust them–until AJ and Pax uncover her secret and vow to do anything to help her heal. And in their arms she discovers a sensual desire that knows no boundaries, a passion strong enough to overcome her tragic past and awaken a force that brings both men to their knees.

Danger may temporarily bind the three together, but it’s their shared passion that will lead them to the ride of their lives: love.

Excerpt after the jump:

Excerpt:

Ten years had changed her, and all for the better. Raven hair fell long and straight over her shoulders and settled over her generous breasts. Her eyes, still as green as emeralds, widened with the same shock and recognition.

They locked gazes, and time stood still. It was ten years ago, and everything they’d ever been together, what they’d done together, came rushing back in a blast of heated memories.

“AJ?” she asked, her voice unsure and tentative, as if she couldn’t really believe it was him.

He nodded, realizing now what an epically fucked up idea it had been to come back home. “Teresa.”

He couldn’t take his eyes off her. She had been a beautiful girl at eighteen. Ten years later, she was a stunning woman, the kind of woman men follow with their eyes. Tan, tall, in blue jeans and a midriff-baring top that hugged her breasts, bared a flat belly and narrow waist and showed off slim hips and long legs. Three silver earrings dotted each ear, and a piercing sparkled in her belly button.

That was all he had time to see, because she backed away.

“I have customers, guys. I’ll be right back.” Her gaze lingered on his for a second, then she turned to grab some beers out of the ice, bending over to show a tattoo—a tramp stamp on her lower back—a heart, with a dagger through it and blood dripping off the end. And holy shit she still had one fine ass, one that had aged well over the past ten years.

She moved down the bar with beers in hand, and AJ finally blinked.

“Teresa? The Teresa? That’s your Teresa, the one you told me about?” Pax asked, leaning over the bar to follow her with his gaze.

“Yeah.”

“Dude. You’re fucking insane for ever leaving that woman. She’s the hottest thing this side of the Red River. Or the Mississippi River. Or any river.”

AJ slumped onto the bar stool and took a long swallow of beer to coat his now parched throat. “It seemed like a good idea at the time.” He’d had a lot of reasons for leaving her, the least of which was his stepfather. He’d had enough and had to get away from the life he’d been leading. Leaving Teresa had been part of it.

So why the hell had he come back? To kick himself in the gut again and remind himself of all the things he could never have?

“What brings you back to town, AJ?”

Pax kicked him, and AJ lifted his head. Teresa cast inquisitive eyes at him, seemingly friendly and open, but the spark that used to lift him up was gone.

He’d wanted her like he’d never wanted a woman since. But he’d never had her. He’d been proud of himself for turning down the one thing he wanted more than anything else. Why taint her with everything that was bad about him?

God, he’d hurt her. Even now he wanted to fold her in his arms and tell her how sorry he was for walking away from her, from what they could have had together.

But what could they have had?

Nothing. Not then.

And not now.

He shrugged. “Pax and I are doing some riding. We happened to be coming this way so thought I’d ride through and see if anything had changed. I see Greasy’s has.”

She grinned and put her hands on her hips. “You like it?”

He saw the pride in her eyes. “You own this place?”

“Sure do. Todd got sick about five years ago. I was working for him then, and he said he was going to have to close up. We’d grown so much by then, bikers were crowded in here like sardines. No way was I going to let someone else take all that business, so I got a loan and bought the bar. Made a few changes, things kept going well, so we ended up remodeling last year.”

“You’ve done a great job with it, Teresa. It looks great.”

“Thanks.” She popped open two more beers and slid them to the guy who’d moved in next to Pax, took the guy’s money and made change, smiling at her customer as if he was the only man in the room. No wonder bikers piled in here. Who wouldn’t to spend time with Teresa?

But as she moved on to help another customer, AJ finally opened his eyes to see a couple more bartenders step in. Both women, young and beautiful, wearing tight jeans, cowboy boots and midriff-baring tops. And with great bodies, just like Teresa.

Teresa had always been smart. She had a good thing going here. Bikers with their girlfriends or by themselves having a good time on a Friday night. Music blaring, pool playing, sports on the various TVs set up in the corners, and plenty of drinks flowing. He took a pull of his beer and watched the women work the bar. They smiled at the guys, took no shit from them, in fact threw it right back at them, shoving them and hurling insults at them when they got too close. The men loved it.

Of course they did. Men loved a strong, take-no-shit kind of woman, the kind who could hold her own. She was the best type of biker babe, and those were the types of women men like these guys fantasized about.
Come to think of it, who the hell were all these guys?

“Seems like a pretty small town for all these bikers,” Pax said as he leaned against the bar and surveyed everything around him.

“I was just thinking the same thing. Greasy’s used to get maybe a half dozen, dozen at most on the weekends.”

There had to be thirty or forty bikers in the bar right now, and it was still early for a Friday. “I have no idea where they come from.”

“We’ve grown,” Teresa offered, obviously overhearing them talk. She kept her voice low and leaned toward them, which made Pax and AJ move in to hear her. “Joey is managing a club on the south side here.”

AJ’s brows lifted. “Joey leads a club now?”

“Yeah,” she said, laughing. “Hard to believe, but he started riding with the Thorns not too long after you . . . left.”

She let the word trail off. “Anyway, he’s been with them ever since, moving his way up as the group expanded. Now he leads the south side.”

“And what about the north side?”

She wrinkled her nose. “The Fists. Tough gang. Into some bad shit.”

“Like?” AJ asked.

“They’re running drugs on the north side. I don’t like serving them when they slide into the territory here, but not much I can do about it since their money is as good as anyone else’s. They’re looking to take over the Thorns.”

“Why?” Pax asked.

“They want territory expansion and they don’t make any secret of it. It’s gotten ugly a few times, but the Thorns try to keep things clean, so the cops have stepped in to keep it cool between the clubs.”

“Here?” AJ didn’t like the sound of this, or that Teresa was in the middle of it.

“Yeah.”

“Not a good position for you.”

She grabbed a cloth and wiped up the bar, her green eyes intense as they met his. “I can take care of myself. Been doing it for a long time, AJ.”

“I’m sure you can. But what happens when a Fist pulls a knife on you?”

She grabbed his wrist and pulled up on his thumb. AJ winced as she lifted just to the point of pain, just to get his attention. Her hold was firm and strong as she hit all the right pressure points, like someone who’d been well trained. AJ knew a countermove that would lay her flat, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to use it on her. She’d made her point. What she knew would take down someone who wasn’t trained.