Happy birthday! My first novel, DIVA IN THE DUGOUT, debuted a year ago today.
To celebrate, this week’s My Sexy Saturday snippet is from DIVA, the first book in my All Is Fair in Love & Baseball series. Arizona Condors shortstop Dave Reynolds is one of baseball’s bad boys, but the death of his mother has left him wondering if it’s time to change. An ultimatum from his boss to clean up his act or lose his job at season’s end further fuels his desire for something different. In this scene, Dave has discovered that a one night stand five years ago with a woman who wouldn’t tell him her name resulted in a child he had no clue existed—until now. The girl’s mother was the only woman to sneak out on him in the middle of the night.
Melinda Cline had her reasons for not exchanging names with the sexy ballplayer she picked up in the bar she sneaked into with a fake ID. And she’d lived with the consequences of her rash decisions ever since. She loved her daughter, but she hated being the subject of town gossip. And now the man she’d never planned to see again insisted on being a part of their daughter’s life. Even worse? She wanted him in her life, too.
Let the games begin!
****
Melinda glanced down at the big hand engulfing hers. That same hand had once helped her forget the humiliation of being dumped for a woman twice her age. She coughed and raised her eyes back to the face she’d never forgotten. Muscles—Dave—hadn’t changed a bit. He still had the same chestnut hair and eyes that looked straight into her soul. She suspected he also had the same easy smile, even if he wasn’t laughing now. She saw it in the crinkles at the corners of his piercing hazel eyes.
She swallowed hard against memories best left forgotten. “I’d like to say I’m pleased to meet you.”
“Why don’t you?”
Because I’m not. Mel was polite enough not to speak the words aloud. “Excuse me for having mixed feelings.”
Dave’s answering bark of laughter didn’t reach his eyes. “You have mixed feelings?”
“I never planned on seeing you again.”
“Obviously. Please tell me you didn’t get yourself pregnant on purpose.”
DIVA IN THE DUGOUT is available at Turquoise Morning Press, Smashwords, All Romance Ebooks, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo and iTunes.
My debut novel, DIVA IN THE DUGOUT, will be one year old Saturday.
How can I mark this momentous occasion? Well, I have a few blog posts scheduled. I also got the okay to release the rarely seen deleted first chapter—in full.
You can find a My Sexy Saturday snippet here, but the whole story will be available only to folks who subscribe to my newsletter.
Sign up now. I’ll send out a newsletter with a link to the password-protected page on my website a week from Friday.
Still (f)unemployed and writing up a storm. I’m finally nearing the end of my novella—the same ending that’s eluded me all week. It’s about to be mine, I tell you.
In an attempt to avoid settling for a full-time day job that I hate every minute of, I’m hanging out my freelance copy editing shingle. With 20-plus years of experience in journalism, 15 of them as a copy editor/page designer, I’m certainly qualified.
I’ve even lined up my first editing gig, set for later this month.
However, my schedule is still open. Please email me at arlene.hittle.author (at) gmail (dot) com for more info or to reserve your spot.
That’s the face of an editor you can trust!
Hi, friends. How was your week?
My week—my second full week of being (f)unemployed—was spent waiting for my severance check and writing feverishly. I’ve been drafting a novella. On Friday, I crossed the 20K mark, giving me about 10K to wrap up the story. I hope to be able to divulge all the details soon.
Until then, let’s get to this week’s My Sexy Saturday fun.
Fall is officially here. With the change in seasons comes a new emphasis on holiday romance. Seems every time I check my tweet stream or Facebook feed, someone’s talking about their new holiday release.
Not to be outdone, my sexy 7 this week comes from my holiday novella, HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS. In this story, rockstar Cher Stanton reluctantly returns to small-town Indiana for some much-needed R&R. Things get much less relaxing when she bumps into high school crush Derrick Mullins, the one guy who never paid her any attention—or so she thought.
Here, Cher and Derrick are on their way to dinner. They stop to clear the air and she ends up kissing him.
****
Chalk up another one to missed opportunities.
Story of his life. One missed opportunity after another, starting with Cher. Med school— nope. Not going there. Being a paramedic was as close as he’d ever get, and it was plenty. Doctors dealt with way too much stress.
Seemed he wouldn’t get any answers from Cher unless he demanded them. He cleared his throat. “What was that?”
“What was what?”
His gaze locked on her mouth. “That.” He waved his hand between them.
“That kiss?” Her tongue darted over her plump bottom lip, leaving shine in its wake.
Shifting in the Porsche’s bucket seat, he nodded. “Yeah. That kiss.”
Like what you’ve read? Home for the Holidays is on sale for 99 cents at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kobo. If you prefer to read books on paper, grab the print version from CreateSpace.
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