APRIL update

SKIN DEEP is has done amazingly well its first month and I'm so thankful for the new readers and friends I've made because of that book. 
On the horizon I have an adult romance scheduled to come out this summer and I'm hitting the keys hard trying to get Wanderer book 3 out by fall.

Another Skin Deep Teaser

 Taking a much needed swig of my beer I look away and pretend to watch the fireworks. I’ve worked long hours in the pit the last couple of weeks so I’m happy to say I know Chad a little bit better, professionally speaking, than I did when I accepted the Fourth of July invite. He’s a meticulous and capable physician,  also one of those guys born with an abundance of quiet self-confidence, the type that just know they are awesome in their bones and don’t have to try. Couple that with his tall, not overly muscular body and pretty boy face and you’ve got most women’s version of heaven. Me, I consider him a recipe for disaster. His type makes me exceedingly uncomfortable because I never know what they are thinking unless they come right out and say it, and let’s face it, most guys are not that forward. Being unable to read the looks he sometimes casts my direction has given me butterflies and sweaty armpits on more than one occasion.

 “Do I make you nervous Veronica?”

Holy shit! Yes you make me nervous, very, very nervous. You’re probably the only person on this entire boat who isn’t busy worrying about themselves and what everyone else thinks about them. You’re dangerous… you seem to see past the bologna and straight to the heart of people.   

            “No. I mean, we don’t really know each other, but no.” I lie and tear my gaze away from the fireworks to look at him. Someone once told me eye contact makes any lie more convincing.

Smirking, Chad takes another sip of beer, seemingly unconvinced. “You’re very pretty.”

            “Thanks,” I toss back, unimpressed.

I know I’m pretty - my parents’ superficial friends had nothing better to say about me so they reiterated over and over for my mother’s benefit that at least I was pretty, and pretty girls always make it in this world.

             “Ouch, would you have preferred I say you were ugly?” He laughs. Apparently my reply had contained more frost than intended. Thank God for the blanket that’s preventing him from seeing the rings of sweat developing on my shirt.

            “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude,” I mumble sheepishly.

            “I’m hurt but I think we can fix that.” Sultry brown eyes scrutinize me, sending the butterflies in my stomach into a flurry, but the humorous twist of his mouth makes me think he’s just teasing me for my offensive retort.

Could he be flirting with me?

            “I think you should take me to dinner,” he says matter of fact without a hint of arrogance.

            “You do,” I merely state in response.  Yup definitely flirting… where is that good for nothing scoundrel Archie when you need him? 

Sucked into my own head again, it takes a minute to realize Chad is waiting, brows raised, for me to respond.

            “Oh, I’m sorry, I don’t date co-workers,” I reply at last.

A slight frown before he downs the last of his beer is the only indication he gives that I’ve confounded him by coming up with a loophole he can’t ignore.

            “You’re new to Portland, right?”

            “Right.” I answer the rhetorical question well aware he knows I’m not from around here.

            “There’s this novelty bakery with the best donuts on the planet. Let me be the first to introduce you to it.”

Donuts huh? That’s not a date, that’s a quick stop off before work. Twenty minute tops - I can do that.

            “You can’t live in Portland without experiencing Voodoo Donuts at least once.”

            “Voodoo Donuts,” I repeat, sure that I hadn’t heard him right but the humorous quirk to his mouth and his guileless expression let me know I got it right the first time.

What the hell kind of bakery has a name like that? 

            “Okay so what morning do you want to do this?” I ask.

He stands and reaches for the empty drink I wasn’t aware I had finished then ambles toward the ladder. Set to descend he flashes me a victorious playboy smile.

“Oh no one goes to Voodoo donuts for breakfast. It’s more of a late night venture.” Stunned, I miss my opportunity to back out as Chad quickly drops out of sight. I’d been had.

Warning, warning! Donuts in the middle of the night…that’s so a date!

Is it on your Goodreads Shelf ?

Skin Deep Release Right Around the Corner

As the release date for Skin Deep (March 4th 2014) quickly approaches it's past time for me to post the synopsis and Goodreads link so you can get it on you to be read list:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20655105-skin-deep

Cuts heal…
Veronica has never felt comfortable in her own skin and spent a lifetime shying away from the spotlight until she found medicine. Now at the top of her game and poised to begin her residency, she is chosen for one of a handful of coveted positions at the facility of her idol, the surgical genius Dr. Bates.

Bruises fade…
Arriving at OHSU Veronica isn’t expecting anyone, least of all her idol, to notice her. So when she catches the eye of a cute attending in the Emergency Room she’s taken by surprise. His cool reserved manner unsettles her and she’d trade his interest in a heartbeat for an ounce of acknowledgement from the mouth watering Dr. Bates. Intimidated in the presence of her idol she innocently stalks him day after day in the cafeteria, nurturing fantasies about when their paths will intersect and she’ll have the opportunity to work beside him. When a hospital fundraiser finally puts her on Dr. Bates' radar vying for his instruction quickly turns into vying for his affection.

But scars linger…
The line of professionalism blurs as Veronica falls hard for the good doctor but a series of poor decisions threaten to destroy it all. As she struggles with damage control her rose colored glasses are shattered. The men in her life are not as she imagined and she finds herself desperately trying to unravel their convoluted history. Can Veronica discover the truth and find away to salvage her career and her heart?

Saturday Teaser

Skin Deep - coming in March

Release Announcement

Skin Deep my new contemporary romance will be available March 4th. 

Add it to your Goodreads shelf

 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20655105-skin-deep

Closing out 2013

This last year has been a whirlwind. It's hard to believe that last December I had just published my first manuscript. I've met so many wonder people in Indie business since then, I feel truly blessed. As this year closes out The first two books of the Wanderer Series (Out of Reach and A Step Away) have been published and I'm getting started on book 3. The contemporary romance I've been working on entitled Skin Deep is finished and should be available early 2014. I've also got a 100 pages or so scribbled out of another romance. I can't wait to see what else 2014 has in store! Happy reading everyone.

Zafir and I don't see eye to eye regarding the series

“I’ve got a fucking bone to pick with you,” Zafir yells as he storms into my office. Agitated, he stomps about on his tree trunk legs, crushing the life out of my springy shag rug. Normally my characters don’t bother me before 9 a.m. They know my brain just can’t process anything before then and that likely whatever they do say will go in one ear and out the other. I decide to make an exception: I know that with Z in his current state of uproar he isn’t likely to remain quiet till then.

            “I’m listening,” I reply when all I really want to say is “can’t this wait?” I smile, proud of myself for suppressing the usual venom that flavors my early morning conversations. A snarky attitude is definitely not going to win me any points with the mountain of muscle standing before me. I mean, Z could literally steam roll me without even breaking a sweat.

            “I want a rewrite.”

            “Oh,” I say, perking up while my mind tries to flush out the mistake he’s obviously come across. “Well okay. We’ve got some time. A Step Away isn’t scheduled for publication until fall…” I pause, speechless, as he slowly shakes his head from side to side.

            “This shit I’m talking about goes all the way back to the beginning.”

            “Out of Reach?” I glare incredulously into his flashing grey eyes. “What’s wrong with it?”

            “I’m being misrepresented,” he answers smugly.

            “You most certainly are not!” I fight back, insulted by his proclamation.

            He scowls as he thinks for a second. “What’s the word that means the opposite of plagiarism?”

            “Huh?” The inelegant reply slips out as I sit there dumbfounded, unable to comprehend where he’s going with this.

            “Fine,” he moves on, seeing how I’m unable or unwilling to help him. “I’m being incorrectly plagiarized,” he explains. “People aren’t getting the real me.”

Not getting the real you? I almost laugh out loud. I think I’ve done a rather good job portraying the real Zafir, and believe me it wasn’t always easy. He snatches the first hardbound copy ever produced of Out of Reach off of my shelf then begins rifling through pages.

            “Hey, careful with that!” I yell.

            “See right here!” he announces triumphantly, turning the book around and sticking it under my nose.

            “See what?” I ask as I lean back so that the small print isn’t blurry. Rolling his eyes, he flips the book around and reads, “Just give me the short version.”

            “Yeah, you said that, so what?” I ask him while still struggling to see his point.

            “I did not fucking say that. Does that even sound like me?”

            “It’s basically what you said,” I answer, hoping to placate him.

            “You see, that is what I’m talking about. It’s misrepresentation. I remember very clearly that I told Kade to cut to the fucking chase.”

            “Really, you’re mad because I took out an F-bomb?”

            “It wasn’t just one,” he grumbles, folding his arms across his chest.

            “Flip the page,” I instruct. “As you’ll see, you use the F-word at least three times in the next passage.”

            “What?” he blurts out as he quickly scans through the next scene.

            “You’ve messed things up there as well. I won’t stand for this kind of censorship. It violates my freedom of speech.” Dropping my head on the desk I keep my groan of disbelief to myself: is this for real?

“Readers deserve the real me,” he rambles on.
            “Look,” I tell him, sitting up and taking charge of the conversation. “I’m sorry but you rely too heavily on the one word. It’s redundant and that kind of repetition wears on readers. Try throwing in a more descriptive adjective now and again.”

 “What? Clearly you don’t understand the power of a good fuck.”

“Clearly,” I repeat, rubbing my temples in exasperation. Burning grey eyes rimmed with electricity spark as he rests his hands on my desk and leans in close. Too close. Gulping, I press myself back as far as I can against my chair, nervous I’ve pushed him too far.

“F***, ****, ****, ****,****,” he chants, the inflection of his gravelly voice changing with each expletive.      

            “You’ve made your point,” I say and giggle, unable to keep a straight face. “You’ve clearly demonstrated the versatility of the word.” 

Leaning back smugly he crosses his arms over his chest. “And…,” he presses.

            “Fine, you can curse more in the next book,” I capitulate, tossing my arms in the air. Satisfied, he turns to go.

            “Oh, one more thing.”

            “Yes,” I grind out, more than ready to be left alone.

            “Kade and Ben get a lot of play so maybe you could get a little more of this in the next one,” he winks as he strikes the classic Adonis pose.

            “Get out of here and let me finish my morning Coke!” I yell then toss a pen at him.

            “Just a thought,” he teases, finally exiting my office with all the humility of a prowling lion.