Tuesday Teaser – That First Christmas – Contemporary Holiday Romance book

This week’s Tuesday teaser is another of my Holiday stories. I have an excerpt from THAT FIRST CHRISTMAS to share today so grab a warm cuppa and a cozy chair!

Meredith Gunter has always been Daddy’s little girl. Spoiled all her life, she’s never had to ask for anything and expects to get exactly what she wants. When she wrecks her car on the way home from college for Christmas break, she finds herself stranded on the mountain in the middle of a snowstorm, in a one-room cabin with a man she can’t help but want.

Travis Gregory has lived alone on the mountain for the last four years. He has little contact with the outside world and prefers it that way. When he spots a girl on the side of the road, his conscience won’t let him abandon her. The redhead captivates him instantly.

Worlds collide when Travis and Meredith try to co-exist in his one room cabin. Can they fight their growing attraction when the nights get longer and the storm isolates them from the rest of the world? Can two people, from such different worlds, ever truly be happy together?

BUY THE EBOOK FROM:

» Buy at Alinar Publishing
» Buy at Amazon Kindle
» Buy at Amazon Kindle UK
» Buy at Amazon Kindle DE
» Buy at Barnes and Noble
» Buy at Sony Reader Store
» Buy at Diesel eBook Store
» Buy at Smashwords
» Buy at Kobo
Also Available at the Apple iBook Store

Excerpt

It was almost dark when Travis stopped in front of the cabin door. He’d been avoiding it, and Meredith, all evening but knew he couldn’t hide out in his workshop all night. He needed to eat for one thing and Meredith would freeze to death if he didn’t get a decent fire going.

He sighed, laying his forehead against the cold wood of the door, and closed his eyes. No matter how long he’d been away or what he’d done, he could still see her, naked as the day she was born, and his body ached with the need to touch her. He didn’t know how many times he’d walked out of the workshop with full intentions of walking into the cabin, grabbing, and kissing her completely stupid. He’d made it as far as the front door only once, though.

His body had hummed with barely contained lust. The urge to cover her body with his and thrust into that soft flesh made his bones ache. It had been too long. He knew that now. He’d never wanted anyone the way he wanted Meredith but he wasn’t at all sure it was just his abstinence that was causing it. She’d gotten under his skin in less than a day. Her carefree attitude and quirky ways were endearing. She was like a breath of fresh air that he’d been denied. She made him feel…alive. Something he hadn’t felt in some time.

But she’s so young, he thought. And her father is Willis Gunter. He grimaced at the thought. Of all the girls to stumble onto his mountain. What were the odds? It had to be a cruel twist of fate. Or a complete set up. Had the old man found a way to repay him at last? Did he send his beautiful daughter up to tempt him, to dangle her sweet ass in front of him, and then snatch her away?

“That’s ridiculous,” he said to himself. “You’re thinking too much.”

Shaking away the thoughts and not being able to put off the enviable any longer, he opened the door and went inside. He was stunned at what he saw.

“It’s not too much, is it?”

He looked around the room, at the tree, and then, at her. She was standing by the fireplace, nibbling on her bottom lip with an uncertain look on her face.

He glanced back at the tree and smiled. “It looks perfect,” he said, said. And it was. She smiled at him then and it nearly staggered him.

She clapped her hands excitedly and immediately walked to the tree. “I only used your oldest magazines for the ornaments so don’t get your boxers in a twist,” she said. “Do we need more?”

He shook his head, amazed. “No,” he said, crossing the room and looking at the ornaments she’d made. Origami angels, birds and flowers graced the branches; the pages from the magazines she’d used were bright and colorful. She’d made dozens of them, scattering them around the room and over the fireplace mantel. He picked one from the tree, looking at the intricate flower, and smiled.

“Where did you learn to make these?”

“One of my nannies taught me how,” she said. “After my mother died, daddy needed someone to look after me. We went through several nannies before we found Margaret. She was the only nanny who didn’t just tell me to go to my room and entertain myself. I think she actually liked me.”

“Your other nannies didn’t?”

She shrugged. “They seemed to…at first. I think they just liked my father’s money, though. My nannies were paid well.”

He made a sound deep in his throat, acknowledging her, and placed the paper flower back on the tree.

She turned then, walking to the sofa and picked up a larger paper ornament. It was a star. “I can’t reach the top,” she said. “Will you put it up?”

He nodded his head, watching her walk back across the room toward him. The look on her face made his pulse quicken and he swallowed heavily when she stopped in front of him. Only a breath separated them. She was so close he could smell the shampoo she’d washed her hair with. The scent of him on her skin from his clothes. He looked down at her, noticing for the first time what she was wearing. A pair of his boxers and a t-shit pulled tight against her body, molding around her curves. It was obvious she was sans bra. Her nipples were button tight and poking into the fabric.

The sight of her in his clothes draped so snug against her soft flesh made his cock twitch.

Her chest rose with every breath she took and his gaze traveled the length of her before settling on her face. Her lips glistened, the firelight casting a flicker of shimmers across them. He wanted nothing more than to taste them. To see if they felt as lush as they looked. When her tongue darted out, licking the full bottom lip, he closed his eyes.

She was killing him.

BUY THE EBOOK FROM:

» Buy at Alinar Publishing
» Buy at Amazon Kindle
» Buy at Amazon Kindle UK
» Buy at Amazon Kindle DE
» Buy at Barnes and Noble
» Buy at Sony Reader Store
» Buy at Diesel eBook Store
» Buy at Smashwords
» Buy at Kobo
Also Available at the Apple iBook Store

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

I’m Guest Blogging

Alinar Publishing’s 12 Days of Christmas event is still underway! It’s Day 8 and I’m featured today in an author interview. I’m talking about my new series … and crotchless pantaletes! As always, there’s a contest so go have a read and enter to win today’s FREE eBooks!

http://alinarpublishing.blogspot.com/2011/12/on-eight-day-of-christmasalinar-brings.html

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Tuesday Teaser – Blame It On the Mistletoe – Contemporary Holiday Romance book

Since we’re only a few weeks from Christmas, how about a teaser from one of my Holiday Romance’s? This is from Blame It On the Mistletoe, a contemporary romance set in snowy mountains of Ashville NC.

When Macy Carter’s parents order her to bring her live-in boyfriend Sean home with her for Christmas she has no idea that her little white lie is just about to snowball into a fabrication of monstrous proportions. Sean isn’t her boyfriend, he’s her boss. Now she has to reveal the lie she’s been telling her family for the past two years or hastily concoct an elaborate ruse to fool them instead.

When Macy tells Sean Mathis of her predicament he does what any gentleman would – he laughs and then agrees to help her out. Little does he know that one misplaced word in their little scheme will backfire and land them both in the hot-seat.

Secluded in the mountains, surrounded by snow and good will, Sean and Macy can’t help looking like the perfect couple. So perfect that the family decides a Christmas wedding will make it a holiday none of them would ever forget!

genre: contemporary romance
length: 23,000 words
Released: Dec. 2009
Rating: Sensual
Price: $2.99

BUY THE EBOOK FROM:

» Buy at Alinar Publishing
» Buy at Amazon Kindle
» Buy at Amazon Kindle UK
» Buy at Amazon Kindle DE
» Buy at Barnes and Noble
» Buy at Diesel Ebooks
» Buy at Smashwords
» Buy at Sony Reader Store
» Buy at Kobo
Also available at the Apple iBook Store

Excerpt

He was watching her while her brothers talked his ear off. The look on his face caused a shiver to race up her spine. His gaze roamed the length of her body and heated her skin from across the room. He took a drink of his wine, his eyes locking with hers over the rim of the glass. A tiny smile lifted of corner of his mouth when he lowered the goblet and if she didn’t know any better she would swear he was thinking naughty things about her.

Macy took a gulp of her own wine, trying to get her overactive imagination to take a backseat. She’d wanted Sean for longer than she could remember and having him look at her like he wanted her in return was too much. It caused things low in her belly to clench. Her breasts tingled, aching for his touch, and heat ran laps over her limbs.

Her pulse was racing all of a sudden and she found it hard to breathe. She emptied her glass and turned, walking to the kitchen to refill it, emptying it at once before refilling it again. Her head was swimming by the time she made her way back to the living room. Her gaze immediately sought out Sean. He wasn’t there.

A slight noise behind her caused her to turn her head. Sean was walking down the hall toward her. She saw him glance up above her head and she followed his line of sight. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the mistletoe directly overhead. Lowering her gaze, she watched him stalk the hall. By the time he reached her, her body was humming with anticipation.

He never said a word, just lowered his head and took her lips in a hard, demanding kiss. His tongue slipped into her mouth and she wasn’t sure who moaned the loudest, her or him. Long minutes with the taste of him overpowering her senses and she knew the wine was a bad idea. She just wished she could care. At the moment the only thing that mattered was Sean and his urgent kisses. The way his fingers tangled in her hair and held her to him. The noise in the room vanished, the only sound she heard was her heart beating out a frantic tattoo against her ribs.

When Sean pulled away, his hot breath teasing her lips with the promise of more, she opened her eyes to look at him. “I’ve had too much to drink,” he said. His gaze skimmed her face, stopping once he reached her lips. “My thoughts keep running away with me.”

“What are you thinking?” Macy held her breath and waited for his answer.

“I’m thinking I’m tired of pretending we’re a happy couple.” Macy couldn’t have been more hurt if he’d slapped her. She tensed, waiting for the next blow, and steeled her heart for the pain to follow. “I want you,” he said.

Macy blinked. He wanted her?

“I’m tired of pretending,” he said again. “They all think we’ve been living together for two years. That we’ve shared a bed for two years.” He nodded, staring at her lips. “I’m tired of pretending.”

She opened her mouth to say something—what, she had no clue—but she couldn’t utter a word. She stared at him, feeling the heat of his body pressed against her own and took a steadying breath and forced the words to come. “What are you trying to say, Sean?”

“I’m trying to say that I want you. Now.” His fingers skimmed her jaw, his lips sliding softly across her own. “Come to bed with me.”

Macy had to force herself to breathe. The wine she’d consumed had already fogged her mind enough to make standing without teetering to one side harder than it should be. Sean’s sensual kisses hadn’t helped her feelings of vertigo and now, his little confession left her weak kneed and feeling flushed.

The rational side of her brain told her this was a bad idea, that they were drunk, but the other side, the side that had secretly wanted this man for longer than she cared to remember, was jumping with joy. He wanted her, just as she’d wanted him. But what happened in the morning? Next week when they were back at work and their little lie was no longer an issue? Would he regret it? Would she?

She would worry about that later. Blame it on the mistletoe, or maybe the wine, but whatever the reason, Sean wanted her. And she wanted him.

The what-ifs lasted as long as it took her to climb the stairs, Sean’s hand firmly in hers. Once behind her closed bedroom door, nothing else seemed to matter.

BUY THE EBOOK FROM:

» Buy at Alinar Publishing
» Buy at Amazon Kindle
» Buy at Amazon Kindle UK
» Buy at Amazon Kindle DE
» Buy at Barnes and Noble
» Buy at Diesel Ebooks
» Buy at Smashwords
» Buy at Sony Reader Store
» Buy at Kobo
Also available at the Apple iBook Store

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Once Upon A Time

I’m sure I’m not alone when I say most young girls dreamed of Prince Charming. Most fairy tales had some version of him and what girl didn’t want some gallant prince coming to rescue them? I think this may be where my overzealous love for Once Upon A Time is coming from.

I’ve been watching this new show since episode 1 and I’ve been on the edge of my seat, waiting…wishing and hoping Charming and Snow find each other again. Their characters were larger than life and even in Storybrooke…as David and Mary-Margaret, there’s just something about them that draws you in. It’s the subtle looks, the longing you see in their eyes…sigh. They’re so perfect for each other its hard not to want them to find their happily ever after.

I’m a hopeless romantic at heart. Always have been. I love nothing more than a good love story and this is it. The evil queen has made it forbidden in Storybrooke which only sweetens those stolen moments Charming and Snow seem to have.

I like the other fairy tale characters as well. Who wouldn’t enjoy seeing Cinderella and Rumpelstiltskin as ‘real’ people and how they react to everyday things. It’s quite fascinating, really. Especially when you see that their story book characters mirror their ‘real’ life.

I’m a bit nervous anytime I start watching a brand new show. Getting invested in them, and the characters, only to have the show cancelled is such a heartbreak. I had two such things happen last year, one of those shows ending on a cliffhanger I’ll never see revolved now.

There’s characters in this show that I haven’t figured out yet. Like, the sheriff. Is he the huntsman or someone else? How many characters have we not seen yet? And how many more will show up later on?

So, tell me, are you watching this show? Do you love it as much as I do? Who are your favorite characters and what do you want to see happen?

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Contest – Win a Print copy of The Calling!

I promised I would have print copies of my Paranormal Romance, The Calling to give away by Christmas and here they are! I have 2 shiny copies to hand out. All you have to do to enter is follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter form below!

The contest will run until December 31st. I’ll announce the winners on Jan. 1st 2012!

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All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison