Running in the Dark

“If you let someone in, you give them power. If you love someone, you give them the ability to break you beyond repair. I carry pieces of my heart with me as a reminder of how lies can maim, impair and break my soul. ”

— Bessina Darrow

“I know now that I was raped,” he loved that her voice hadn’t waivered, “and killing him won’t change the past, Trace. I want to move on, and I want to heal, and I want that healing to happen with you. Are you interested?”

He nodded in agreement. He couldn’t believe how lucky he was. She was his, for life.

Bessina smiled and slid across the car to straddle his lap. And just like that, his body tuned into her lush, warm body, and gone were thoughts of murder. He groaned and gripped either side of her hips when Bessina’s hands moved to the hem of her shirt. Slowly, she lifted the thin cotton tank until it was up and over her head.

Trace nearly choked on his words. “Damn.” Her pale blue bra and his shirt were gone next. Her warm hands caressed the muscles in his stomach and on his chest. He couldn’t believe she was doing this. She was not shy and demure as she’d first come across, but respectful and strong. And in this moment, she knew what she wanted.

He watched as she got rid of those little shorts and then started on her panties. Trace stayed her hand. “Those little white panties look so fucking hot on you.” He leaned in and took her budded nipple between his lips, drawing a small bead of blood. He lapped at it, losing himself in her rich taste.

Bessina scored her nails through his hair, ripping a growl deep from within his belly. She sat over his hard bulge undulating, warm and wet with need.

Trace lifted his hips to reach for his wallet and grinned devilishly when her head flew back as their cores met. He yanked the wallet from his pocket only to feel Bessina’s finger unbuttoning his jeans. Her warm hand wrapped around his length and he moaned long and loud.

His hands fell to either side of him and he looked down, watching as she pleasured him. His loud growls sounded in the car, drowning out all other noises. With each upward stroke, Trace lifted his hips chasing the carnal pleasure her hands wrought. He was so close he could feel it, and his body tightened and coiled. But when she twisted her hand over the head of his manhood, Trace nearly came in her palm. He wrenched away and grabbed her hand.

Her intense glare had him immobile as she spoke. “I want more,” Her voice was so ragged.

Trace pulled the condom out of his wallet and dropped it in the passenger seat. “You can have it all.” Her glossy lips turned into a sexy smile as his hand made its way between her legs. Pushing the soft fabric of her panties aside, he brushed his fingers along her damp folds.

Her head fell back as a sigh left her lips. “More.” She whimpered as she pushed her center down onto his fingers. “Please.”

Pulling his hand back, he worked on the foil wrapper. Why did he ever think this girl fragile or shy? Why did he believe that after her attack she would be ruined?

She watched him as he fitted the protection over himself then rose up over him. It was his turn to watch and she slowly slid down, taking all he had to give. Trace’s breath left him in a harsh breath as Bessina moved over him. Fire sparked in his blood as he met each of her slow, deliberate thrusts.

He moaned and begged as she moved faster and harder. Trace felt the first stirrings of his orgasm when Bessina leaned in and nipped his neck hard enough to sting. Wrapping his arms around her, he forced her to slow down, then guided her hips over him in long strokes. With one hand, he controlled the pace; with the other, he reached between them and tweaked her slickened bud.

Bessina came to pieces over him, her gasps muffled by his neck, her blunt little teeth nipped and bit at him. He pulled her back to face him. Her glazed eyes took him in. “Bite me again.” Without hesitation, she leaned in and bit his shoulder. Trace moved beneath her, his thrusts becoming sloppy, his words incoherent. The release blindsided him with force.

Trace reached for his coat and wrapped it around them, once again sending up a prayer. But this time, it had nothing to do with being a good man, and everything to do with having many repeats of what just happened.

Inevitable: Love & War Cover Reveal

Inevitable

A Love and War 

I crashed and opened my eyes . . . there you were, fierce and protective, and I knew . . . I just knew it was you all along.

Ex-Marine Trent Reed has been shot at, in a coma, and placed in war zones, but when his best friend calls in a favor, he is faced with the most dangerous situation yet—to be the best man. Trent’s turbulent past with races other than his own taints his view on the interracial marriage, and he’s none too happy to deal with the ill-tempered maid of honor. To accept the position means understanding that his friend is soon to be out of his life—for good.

Tough-girl Teal Lofton has struggled all of her adult life, from her weight to the color of her skin holding her back in work and love. When she agrees to be the maid of honor in her friend’s wedding, a hormonal bride and a jerk of a best man who she is strangely, yet wildly, attracted to, amplify those struggles. As tensions and tempers rise, Trent disappears with the wedding rings and Teal braves a snowstorm to bring them back, determined to fix yet another problem. But a tragic accident brings together the unlikely pair, forcing them to face the prejudices of their pasts. In doing so, Trent and Teal embark on an inevitable course of self-discovery and passion like they’ve never experienced before—until a secret from Trent’s past threatens to destroy it all.

Snickers...Naughty Bits!

We all love a steamy scene in a romance novel, right? I know I do, but have you ever wondered how an author creates that scene? Well, I do… I did until I wrote one for Running in the Dark! After writing a love scene for Immortal Heart last year, I wondered if it was steamy enough, but I didn’t have the guts to ask anyone. After reading a couple reviews, I learned that even though it wasn’t a super steamy scene, I had captured the beauty of the scene. Another reviewer said that I needed to have a career as a Romance Author because I had a way with romance. To that I say, “Thank you!”

Honestly, I think my real question is, “Am I the only author who giggles like a school girl when writing a love scene?” I mean really. I couldn't stop freaking giggling. At first, it was funny, but then it was just annoying. I mean, I am a thirty-one-year-old woman, so why do I blush like Catholic school girl at the mention of a man’s private parts. Yeah, I know, I should be able to type it out! If you were here with me as I type this you’d hear the giggling!

So how did I write my scene? Well, I got a glass of wine, sat down and opened my laptop. I stared at the screen for about an hour. I was so lost! I wasn’t sure where to start. I knew what I wanted my characters to do, but how did I want them to feel as well? If there was to be fallout, how would they deal with it? Then I realized that I was making these two scenes much more complicated than I needed them to be. So, I sat down with my glass of wine and created.