The Friday 56 and Book Beginnings on Friday - IF I LOVED YOU

The Friday 56 and Book Beginnings on Friday             

Anyone can participate in Book Beginnings on Friday and The Friday 56.

Click HERE to connect to other Book Beginnings posts (sponsored by Rose City Reader)

Click HERE to join other Friday 56 bloggers (sponsored by Freda's Voice)

 

 

 

 

 

 

My choice this week is from prolific writer Jean Joachim and her book IF I LOVED YOU

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Beginnings

Megan could hardly breathe. Her mouth, suddenly dry as desert sand, managed a smile as her eyes connected with his. Instantly, she understood Chaz Duncan’s enormous film success. His presence filled the room the second he entered it.

Chaz stood about five foot eleven, with a slender build and shoulders that stretched from New York to California. His expertly trimmed, rakishly long, dark brown hair threatened to fall into his eyes at any moment. His eyes were the darkest brown, fringed by long black lashes. His nose was straight and just long enough. His lips were perfect, with a slightly fuller lower lip that looked completely kissable.

   

Page 56

“Not this one. Honestly. Meg has no idea how hot she is. She wears these low cut sweaters to work and then bends over the desk in front of me—and not on purpose, like she forgot what she’s wearing. Great rack. She doesn’t even know she’s flashing me.”

“A hot babe who doesn’t know it? How do you find these women, Chaz?”

“Dumb luck.”

“Does she have a friend?”

“What happened to Selena?”

“Didn’t work out.”

“Sorry. She was hot…a stick of fire.”

“Stick of dynamite is more like it. What a pain in the ass. She was demanding and always needing attention…constantly. Geez.” He shook his head.

“Meg’s independent. Maybe too independent.”

 

Blurb

Does love always mean total truth? Successfully shunning the limelight was one way for Megan Davis to keep her family secret. A successful financial advisor, Meg was shocked when she was selected to launch a celebrity division for her investment firm.

Gorgeous, magnetic movie star, Chaz Duncan, wary of women who wanted to bask in his fame or sell his secrets to the media, valued privacy above all else. Would he continue his high profile but lonely existence to keep his secret safe? Jealousy, deceit and scandal threaten two careers and the quest for true love and trust in this roller-coaster-ride contemporary romance.

Jean's Books

Amazon

 

Adora returns ~ Character Interview series

Character interviews: Today Adora has another revealing character interview with Mac Caldwell, hero of Now and Forever 1, a Love Story:

Adora: So, Mac, hunky guy, how are you today?
Mac: A little annoyed, Adora. Danny Maine said he got his name in the title of his book by sleeping with Jean. Well I’ve been sleeping with Jean for a much longer time and I don’t have my name on a book though she said she would!
Adora: Really, Mac. Grow up. Jean is telling you what you want to hear, just to get at your hot body. And it is hot, I’ll admit that!
Mac: *blushes* Thanks, Adora. She has actually said I’m her favorite hero. Oh, don’t tell Callie about Jean and me. I haven’t slept with Jean since I started sleeping with Callie. Don’t want to get them confused, Jean might write Callie out of the next book and I’d be a horny and frustrated guy. Not to say I don’t love Callie…
Adora: Yeah, yeah Mac. We get it. You love Callie’s body, be honest here.
Mac: Callie is more than a body to me, Adora, you know that. Why are you trying to cause trouble between us?
Adora: Okay, okay, Mac. No harm meant *Adora holds up her hands*. Geez. Sensitive aren’t we? So tell me, what is your favorite position with Callie?
Mac: Any position. I love making love to her anyway I can. And you can print that…wait…is Jean going to read this? *Mac starts to sweat.*
Adora: She better read this or I’m quitting!
Mac: Then maybe you should take back what I just said.
Adora: *wearing an evil grin*, Too late, Mac. It’s already in print.
Mac: Oh, crap!
Adora: So how many times a week do you and Callie make love *Adora picks up pen, poised over paper*
Mac: What? I’m not going to answer that. Jean said you’d try something like this. She said to stick to the plot of the book. Ask me about the drug gang…or how I felt about Callie doing things without telling me…
Adora: Doing what things? Is Callie sleeping with someone else?
Mac: She is? Where is he? No, no, that’s ridiculous. Callie would never…
Adora: Is she sleeping with Danny, the hero of Now and Forever 2?
Mac: She’d never do that! Eliza would kill her. I would kill her, then we’d both kill Danny. *Mac comes halfway out of his chair*
Adora: Had you going there, didn’t I?
Mac: Danny said you were a real ball buster and I didn’t believe him. Maybe I should ask you who you’re sleeping with…there’s a rumor you made a play for Danny but he turned you down.
Adora: *blushes* That’s all we have time for today *gestures neck cutting with her hand to cameraman.*
Mac: You don’t get off that easy. I want to talk about the book.
Adora: Come back again soon, Mac. For “Love Talk”, this is Adora Smutz, signing off!

Check out the book on my www:jeanjoachimbooks.com

Welcome to - The premiere of "Love Talk" with Adora Smutz!

“Love Talk” with Adora Smutz, Interviewer Extraordinaire

Adora: Today I’d like to welcome, Captain Danny Maine, hero of Now and Forever 2, the Book of Danny. Hey, guy, you even got your name in the title. How’d you do that?

Danny: It’s easy Adora when you’re sleeping with the author. Shhhh. Don’t tell anyone, okay? I’ve got a girlfriend now and…I haven’t slept with Jean since Eliza and I got together.

Adora: Right, Danny *winks*, you’re secret is safe with me. Hummm, now where were we. Oh, yes, your new book. Tell me about Eliza. Is she good in bed?

Danny: What?

Adora: You heard me. Is she hot? She looks hot

Danny: Hey, that’s over the line. I’m not going to tell you about Eliza in bed. Geez. I thought we were supposed to talk about the book?

Adora: You sex life is well detailed in the book. I understand you even raised the number of flames over the first Now and Forever book. How does Mac feel about that?

Danny: *Grinning*, when you’re hot, you’re hot, Adora. What can I say? Don’t quote me to Mac on that, but hey…

Adora: You certainly are hot, Danny. *fans herself*, could someone open a window in here?

Danny: I’m taken, Adora, remember that. Now do you want to talk about how it felt to go from the battlefield to the classroom or what?

Adora: People don’t want to hear that crap. They want to know what your favorite position for sex is.

Danny: Both battlefield and classroom inspire fear…in different ways.

Adora: You’re not answering the question, Danny. Jean assured me you’d answer the questions. It’s not too late to take your name off the book title you know, *trains a frosty stare at him*.

Danny: What! Take my name off? No way. Okay, what do you want to know.

Adora: About Jenny…

Danny: Can’t talk about her.

Adora: Why not?

Danny: Jean said that would give away too much of the plot.

Adora: Oh, right. So getting back to your favorite position…

Danny: I like them all, Adora.

Adora: (chokes on her saliva) All!

Danny: Yeah, put that in your pipe and smoke it. Let’s just say I never met the position I didn’t like.

Adora: Oh *face turns red* well. Uh. I guess that’s all for today.

Danny: Hey, aren’t you supposed to tell people where they can get the book?

Adora: Oh, heck, I forgot. You can find, Now and Forever 2, the Book of Danny on Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble and the Secret Cravings Publishing website. (Links below)

Danny: Thanks, Adora. Always a pleasure talking to you.

Adora: Me, too, Danny. If you ever break up with Eliza…give me a call.

Danny: You won’t be lonely. I posted your phone number on my squad’s Fb page. You should be getting a few…

(Phone rings)

Adora: Excuse me, Danny. Hello? Yes, this is Adora Smutz. You want to what? Say who are you? How tall are you? Blond? *she smiles and sits back in her seat*, tell me more, Corporal.

Danny: I think she’s going to be tied up for a while. Thank you for coming and listening to my interview. Jean…I’ll get you for this. Goodnight.

Blurb:
Barely surviving the Iraq War and his tragic childhood, sexy sharpshooter, Captain Danny Maine becomes a professor at Kensington State University.
Haunted by nightmares of the deaths of members of his squad and his brother, Danny is desperate to create a normal life in the sleepy town of Willow Falls. He doesn’t expect to find love behind the first door he knocks on until he meets lovely Eliza Baines, a dean at the university. Is true love with one woman possible for the damaged man Danny has become or is it just out of reach, only an illusion created by his passion and desire? Driven to find love, stability and recovery, Danny faces down demons from his past to save those he loves on his journey to a new life. Is violence still his only protection or can he rise above his deadly past?

Excerpt: (PG Rated)
When he got to Willow Falls, Danny checked into the only motel in town. The next
afternoon, he left the motel and hiked the three miles to the reception for new professors. The walk couldn’t compare to the long, hot, dry treks with a seventy-pound-pack on his back he endured in the desert.
While he walked, Danny wondered what kind of women he would find here. Danny dated and bedded lots of co-eds in college and graduate school. He achieved an enviable sex life by reciting love poetry by heart and discussing books with young women. Unfortunately, when his lovely bed partners discovered he planned to fight in the Middle East, they dropped him.
Overseas, he got to know only prostitutes, a group of desperate women doing whatever they needed to for survival. He turned to alcohol and women to deal with the pressure, to dull his senses and escape the horror of reality.
He arrived at the dean’s house twenty minutes late for the party. The colonial house loomed larger than some in the neighborhood, painted beige with white trim and black shutters. When he rang the bell, an angel answered the door–Dean Eliza Baines, dressed in a chiffon print dress of aqua and soft green, matching her eyes. Her short blonde hair glistened in the afternoon sun,framing a delicate face, a small nose and sensuous lips. The gentle fragrance of gardenia flowed from her slender neck down to the tips of her pink fingernails. Danny couldn’t find his voice. He never expected such beauty to be standing right in front of him in the middle of nowhere.
“You must be Dan Maine, I’m Eliza Baines.”
He shook the hand she offered, unable to stop himself from staring. “How did you know?”
“You’re the last one,” she said, her eyes looking him up and down quickly.
“I didn’t realize your house was such a long walk from my motel,” he said, embarrassed.
“Why didn’t you call me? I would have picked you up.” Please come in. You must be
thirsty.”
Eliza took his arm and eased him through her living room to the patio in the back. About a dozen new professors stood around with cocktails, eating hors d’oeuvres and chatting. Looking for a woman rated as a top priority in Danny’s life, but in this group, no one came close to the beauty the dean possessed. The other professors were sunk deep in conversations, so Eliza turned to him.
“What are you teaching?” she asked.
“Freshman English,” he said. “You’re the dean?”
“I split the undergraduate students with Mac Caldwell. My field is biology,” she said,
stealing an admiring glance at his chest and shoulders.
Danny thought he would like to study a little biology with her as his gaze traveled over the length of her...again.
“You’re spear-heading our new literary magazine, aren’t you?”
“A challenge I’m looking forward to. Do you miss teaching?” he asked, turning his attention back to her face.
“Sometimes I do. You have a more interesting life, let’s talk about you. I hear you just got out of the military?” she said, turning the conversation toward him again.
“Released three days ago.”
“Released? Not discharged?” she started, her brows knitted.
“I meant released from the hospital,” he corrected.
“The hospital? What happened?” Eliza asked, putting her hand on his arm.
“Just some shrapnel and a concussion. I couldn’t hear for a week, but I’m okay now,” he explained, shrugging.
“What about your family?”
“I’m on my own. I don’t have anyone,” he said, focusing on the beer he held to cover his discomfort.
“I guess Kensington State will become your family,” she said, squeezing his arm and
looking into his eyes.
He put his hand over hers.
Danny’s plight touched Eliza, wounded in the war and all alone. He seemed to be a self- sufficient man, strong, energetic and good looking, too. Eliza noticed how the green flecks in his hazel eyes danced when he smiled. She guessed his age to be around thirty, much too young for her, though she felt strongly attracted to him. Something vital and alive about this new professor crackled in the air, he exuded a power, electricity, a sensuality that grabbed her. She found herself staring at his lips and wondering what pressing hers against them would feel like.
“Can I help you clean up?’ Danny asked.
“Not necessary,” she said, gathering up dirty dishes.
“I want to,” he said, picking up more dishes and bringing them into the kitchen. They spent an hour washing dishes, cleaning and straightening up.
“Are you hungry? I’m making a salad for dinner.” Her warm smile and shining eyes invited him to stay.
“Great, thanks,” he replied, returning her smile before glancing again at her chest.
Together they chopped, sliced and tore up ingredients creating a tempting salad, then sat down to eat.
“I’m sort of an idiot about computers. Does the school have a special system?” he asked, passing bread to Eliza.
“We have an easy one. A professor from the computer department put together a manual, but you have to be a geek to understand it. I’d be happy to give you lessons,” she offered, her gaze straying to his lips, again.
“That’s great. You may have to give me several lessons. On some things, I’m a slow
learner,” he said, grinning.
“That could be arranged,” she said, lowering her eyes. “When would you like to start?” She passed the bread back to him.
“How about right after I take you out to dinner, tomorrow night?”
“You don’t have to—” Eliza said, a little color suffusing her cheeks.
“But I’d like to.”
“I’d like that,” she said. “Six thirty?”
“Fine,” he agreed his heart beating a little faster after their hands touched passing the butter.

To Buy:
http://store.secretcravingspublishing.com/index.php?main_page=book_info&cPath=13&products_id=170&zenid=d0b1c4698380f5765159dfc8da69466b
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Now-Forever-Love-Story-ebook/dp/B005FGATE6/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1312369854&sr=1-1
Barnes&Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/aprils-kiss-in-the-moonlight-jean-joachim/1034987873?ean=2940013279179&itm=1&usri=april27s%2bkiss%2bin%2bthe%2bmoonlight

Jean's website: Website: http://www.nowandforeverbooks.com
Jean's Blog: http://jeanjoachim.blogspot.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jean-Joachim-Author/221092234568929
Publisher: www.secretcravingspublishing.com

Author Bio:
Jean Joachim is an author, married, a mother of two boys and owner of a rescued pug named Homer. She lives in New York City. Her latest contemporary romance, Now and Forever 2, the Book of Danny (sequel to Now and Forever 1, a Love Story) has just been released by Secret Cravings Publishing.

Her other works include, Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights, a sweet contemporary romance and its sequel April’s Kiss in the Moonlight, both are available as ebooks, in paperback soon. The first in the New York Nights novels series, “The Marriage List” is on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com for only $.99.

She also has seven non-fiction books published.

Jean has been writing non-fiction for over fifteen years and fiction for two. Her review column, "Movie Choices for Kids" has been syndicated in weekly and parenting newspapers and on websites for the past eleven years.