Thank you so much for having me today, Delilah! I often have other authors send their characters to my couch for interviews, so I decided to do one today for Edward Bailey, the hero of Eros Element, the novel that I’m re-releasing today. It was originally published by Samhain Publishing in 2015. I’ve often wanted to sit and talk to Edward, or try to, so I decided to write a vignette rather than doing an interview.

Let’s pretend it’s 1870 in the alternate Aether Psychics universe, and I’m in a little university town in England. Across the pond the Civil War has raged on for almost ten years, and coal supplies are running short. Several scientists have unsuccessfully attempted to harness the power of the mysterious substance aether.

I’ve just made tea and am about to sit down with the latest journal to see what those crazy neuroticists – doctors who study and treat those with disorders of the mind – in Vienna have been up to when I hear a commotion in the waiting room.

“But he doesn’t have an appointment,” my office manager says, “and the doctor is busy.”

“It doesn’t matter, this is an emergency,” says a male voice. A deep, resonant male voice I recognize as belonging to Johann Bledsoe, the concertmaster for our town’s orchestra. His confidence – and the escapades it leads him into – are legendary, so I wonder what he could want with a neuroticist.

I hear another male voice, this one more of a tenor, “That’s all right, Johann. There’s nothing wrong with me.”

Bledsoe argues, “You’re about to head on an expedition to god knows where, and you still time your water closet trips to the minute – I apologize, Miss. You know that’s not going to work.”

Intrigued, I emerge. “I’ll see the young man.” They both turn to me. The one in question matches Bledsoe in height, although his build is more slender, and he has the beginnings of the shoulder slump seen in academics. His dark hair contrasts with Bledsoe’s blond locks, and his face is more narrow, although his eyes look familiar. Ah, the cornflower blue eyes the Bailey family is known for. This must be Edward, the brilliant younger brother of the Duke.

“Hello,” I say. “I’m Doctor Dominic. What can I do for you?”

“Oh,” Bledsoe says. “I’d heard Doctor Dominic was a man.” I can see the hesitation at my appearance warring with the concern for his friend in his eyes.

“You may be thinking of my father.” And then I try a gamble to see if I can engage Professor Bailey. “He is a scientist of some renown. People often assume it’s he when they hear the professional title.”

“Right,” Bledsoe says. He’s gripping Professor Bailey’s arm. “Come, Edward, let’s go talk to the nice doctor.”

They follow me to my office and both sit on the couch once I settle in my chair. Bledsoe leans back, one ankle across the other knee, and the professor sits rigidly.

I fold my hands in my lap. “Tell me what brings you here today.”

“I don’t know why I’m here,” Professor Bailey says. “I haven’t had any problems since seven years ago, when I decided to order my life according to scientific principles.”

“Can you give me an example?” I ask, hoping he won’t tell me about bathroom habits.

“Yes, I can.” He jerks his head at his friend as if to say, so there. “I keep a strict schedule. I eat the same things at the same time every day, and, well, it works.”

“I see. And your routine is about to be disrupted.”

“Yes,” Bledsoe says, leaning out of his relaxed posture. “We’re going on an expedition. I can’t tell you any more details, but Professor Bailey’s preferences will not be accommodated.”

“What prompted you to adopt these principles to your life?” I ask the professor.

He turns to his friend with a sigh. “Do I really have to go through this?”

“Yes, if you want to prove to her you’re as sane as you claim.”

“Fine,” the professor huffs. “A woman mistook me for my brother, and when she found out I’m the spare, not the heir, she dumped me.”

“Do you still have feelings for this woman?”

“No. But the incident demonstrated how people are messy and unpredictable, so I make the rest of my life neat and orderly.”

Obviously this is the only time I’ll see him, so I dispense some advice, although I typically prefer to wait until later sessions to do so.

“But as you’ve seen, life isn’t always going to cooperate with your efforts to make it orderly. I would recommend you face what you fear the most. And if that’s having your heart broken, then you may want to start with talking to women.”

I suspect he won’t have much of a chance to do so on an expedition, but his friend claps him on the back.

“Oh, this will be perfect, Edward. You can chat up that nice archaeologist Iris McTavish.”

I raise my eyebrows at the notion of a female archaeologist and mentally applaud her accomplishment at breaking through the male barriers of academia.

The professor stands. “You’re both being ridiculous. She’s so…”

“Pretty?” Bledsoe asks and rises, as do I.

“You leave her alone,” the professor says. “She’s not one of your actresses.”

I turn my head to hide my amusement. The professor may already be further on his way to attraction to this Iris McTavish than he realizes.

We say our goodbyes, and I assure Maestro Bledsoe that it will all work out. But as they leave, I have a little chill down my spine, like that of foreboding, and I suspect their adventure will not be as safe and orderly as the professor would like.

About Eros Element

The scientific method:  Love doesn’t obey it. Secrets skew the results.

After a dishonest woman broke his heart, renowned aetherist Edward Bailey buried the pieces under a strict routine built on solid, scientific predictability. Any deviation doesn’t just bother him—it short circuits his carefully cultivated balance.

A routine faculty meeting unexpectedly presents a twin challenge to his comfort zone. Not only does the beautiful Iris McTavish appear in her famous archeologist father’s place, Edward is forced to accompany her on an undercover expedition to find an element that will harness the power of aether.

Iris is determined to prove her worth as a scholar and scientist, and save the financially ruined house of McTavish without accepting an unwanted marriage proposal. But keeping her secret is difficult when she’s faced with Edward’s compelling gaze and unrelenting logic.

Amid clockwork spy devices, threats from a mysterious society who’ll stop at nothing to conceal their secrets, and plots from a guild bent on stealing them, Edward and Iris’s attraction sparks and gains momentum. But betrayal awaits them on the road from Paris to Rome—and the revolutionary discovery they seek could grind their hearts to pieces.

Warning: Contains a brilliant professor with a white-knuckle case of anxiety, a woman with an ahead-of-her-time spirit of adventure, real and made-up history, and a Grand Tour that serves up murder plots and secret temples along with wine, tea, and cream puffs. You may wish to pack your shovel along with your silks.

Grab your copy for 99 cents – this re-release sale is only for a limited time.

Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Eros-Element-Aether-Psychics-Book-ebook/dp/B06Y541YKZ/
iBooks:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/eros-element/id1227033062?mt=11&uo=4
B&N:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/eros-element-cecilia-dominic/1121969555?ean=2940157191306
Kobo:
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/eros-element-1
Google Play:
https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Cecilia_Dominic_Eros_Element?id=7SKrDgAAQBAJ

About Cecilia

Author Cecilia Dominic, became a clinical psychologist because she’s fascinated by people and their stories, but she couldn’t stop making stuff up. By day, she helps people cure their insomnia in her private practice. By night, she writes fiction that keeps her readers turning pages past bedtime. Yes, she recognizes the conflict of interest between her two careers, but she prefers to be called versatile, not conflicted. Cecilia has been published in short and novel-length fiction as well as full-length nonfiction, and currently writes steampunk, urban fantasy, and chick lit. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with one husband and two cats, which, she’s been told, is a good number of each.

You can find her at:
Web page:  www.ceciliadominic.com
Wine blog:  www.randomoenophile.com
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/CeciliaDominicAuthor
Twitter: @CeciliaDominic
Newsletter list (sign up for a free short story): http://eepurl.com/bjz2yf

Nothing can make us as crazy as family can. I’m not talking about your spouse or significant other, but the people you grew up surrounded by—parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. They know us so well. They know all the buttons to push to make us laugh or to make us scream. Sometimes they make us cry and other times they’re there to console us when we cry. They’re the people we share holidays and accomplishments with, that help create the fabric of our life.

I think that no family relation is as potentially volatile as the bond of siblings. Love them or hate them, they make us who we are. I have a sister who is less than two years older than me. Surprisingly, we were close growing up, maybe because we were such total opposites. We never borrowed each other’s clothes. If she loved something, there is a  99% chance I hated it. She was a night owl and I’m a morning person. Still, in spite of our differences, or maybe because of them, we grew up spending a lot of our time together as sisters and friends. I also have a much younger brother. Our relationship has evolved over the years. When he was younger, I had more of a parental role in his life. Now that we’re both older, we’ve become great friends and enjoy spending time together.

Family relationships play a big role in my Blood of the Drakon series. There are four brothers, each different in their own way, but alike in others. But the fact that remains is there isn’t anything they won’t do to protect the other. Their enemies are about to find that out in Drakon’s Prey.

Drakon’s Prey
Blood of the Drakon, Book 2

Valeriya Azarov turned her back on the family business to write and illustrate children’s books. But with a sister who leads the Knights of the Dragon, it’s impossible to get away from the secret society whose mission is to destroy and enslave dragons. When information falls into her hands along with the opportunity to save at least one of the ancient creatures, she can’t turn away any longer.

When a woman moves into the cabin above Tarrant Cooper’s secret underground lair, he’s both suspicious and intrigued. He hasn’t lasted four thousand years being careless, so when he suspects her of being a part of the Knights, the plan is to kidnap her and find out how much the organization knows about him and his brothers.

He’s drawn to Valeriya, but trusting her could get him killed. Even if she’s a pawn in the war between drakons and Knights, giving her his heart would mean forever.

Buy Links:
Entangled Publishing: https://entangledpublishing.com/drakon-s-prey.html
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Drakons-Prey-Blood-Drakon-Walters-ebook/dp/B06Y13T99M
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/drakons-prey-nj-walters/1126093512;jsessionid=D585F1F184B630316A6D61EF1964024D.prodny_store02-atgap09?ean=9781633759336iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/drakons-prey/id1222683091
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/drakon-s-prey

About the Author

N.J. Walters is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has always been a voracious reader, and now she spends her days writing novels of her own. Vampires, werewolves, dragons, time-travelers, seductive handymen, and next-door neighbors with smoldering good looks—all vie for her attention. It’s a tough life, but someone’s got to live it.

Visit me at:
Website: http://www.njwalters.com
Blog: http://www.njwalters.blogspot.com
Newsletter Group: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/awakeningdesires/info
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/N.J.WaltersAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/njwaltersauthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/NJWalters
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/njwalters

Short fiction is fun to write and a good way for authors to experiment with romance subgenres. Though my published stories are typically contemporary romances, I like to write the occasional paranormal, also set in the contemporary world. In Her Immortal Viking, a warrior cast into eternal servitude by an angry god returns to earth in the modern world to help a woman in need. Lip Service features an overprotective ghostly aunt who stands in the way of true love. My new release, Kisses From Lillith, is a steamy vampire short story and my third paranormal romance.

Though much of the action in Kisses From Lillith takes place inside a cave as old as the earth, what happens there is…well, you’ll have to read the story to find out. And I hope you will! For only 99 cents and an hour of your time, you can immerse yourself in paranormal entertainment with a twist.

KISSES FROM LILLITH

A sizzling short story with bite…

When Hunter receives an invitation for a group tour of an ancient cave to celebrate his cousin’s birthday, he and his girlfriend Rosa unwittingly attend a party…with unusual refreshments.

“Wow! For a short story, this was a long, thrilling ride.” 5 Stars! ~Will Work For Books

“Kisses From Lillith…has everything you want in a paranormal romance. I found myself on the edge of my seat. Adele Downs…has a way of bringing a story to life…she always leaves you wanting more.” 5 Stars! ~Girl With Pen

Buy The Book for .99!
Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Kisses-Lillith-Adele-Downs-ebook/dp/B06XWZV69D/
Kobo https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/kisses-from-lillith
Apple https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1222150135
Nook, Tolino, Page Foundary, Scribd, 24 Symbols https://www.books2read.com/u/b5OEak

About the Author

Adele Downs is the best-selling, award-winning author of more than 20 romance titles, including those written under another pen name, and a former journalist with hundreds of articles to her credit. When not writing in her home office in rural Pennsylvania, she can be found reading a book on the nearest beach, taking photographs, or riding in her convertible.

Find books by Adele Downs on Amazon!
http://www.amazon.com/Adele-Downs/e/B00G1RRS60
Visit Adele Downs on her website http://adeledowns.com
Subscribe to Adele’s blog https://adeledowns.wordpress.com
Like Adele Downs on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/authoradeledowns
Follow @Adele_Downs on Twitter!  https://twitter.com/Adele_Downs
Find Adele Downs on Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/httpwwwgoodreadscomAdeleDowns
Sign up for Adele Downs’ Newsletter http://www.adeledowns.com/newsletter.html

Good morning everyone! It’s a beautiful Sunday morning. To those who observe it, Happy Easter! To those who don’t, Happy Beautiful Sunday! Okay, now, on to a topic a little less…. Eastery!

My husband and I live in southern Louisiana, and I do mean southern. As in, Cajun Country. For those who don’t know, Cajun Country is anywhere south of Interstate 10 in southwest Louisiana and while it’s not all moss-covered-tree swamps, the majority of it is water-based. People down here move to their own beat, it’s called Zydeco – which is a blend of blues, R&B and the music indigenous to the Louisiana Creole and Native peoples of Louisiana. Zydeco blends guitar, accordion and washboard (yes, old-fashioned laundry scrub boards) and for those not used to the sound, may be an acquired taste. I love it!

There are always fun things to do around here, when the evil-day-job allows for such things. Our favorite thing has to be going to the Cameron Parish National Wildlife Refuge and driving their Pintail Wildlife Drive. Pintail is a 3 mile gravel drive though a wet-plains type of environment. They have a boardwalk you can enjoy. In the winter months, the area becomes host to millions (literally!) of birds. I now know to where all the birds fly south! It seemed that way this winter at least, because you saw more birds than water! We see all types of wildlife, from the birds, hatchlings, nutria rat, to the big ones – alligators! We think we even saw a bald eagle one day, but couldn’t get a close enough photo to decide either way.

We count gators as we do a slow cruise, and the highest we’ve counted is 105 in just that 3 mile loop. And no, we don’t get out of the vehicle! First, because it’s posted that you can only exit your vehicle at the boardwalk. Two, we aren’t idiots! Gators can move fast when they want to, and I’ve seen videos where they can rip the bumper off a truck, I’m not tempting them with my freakin’ legs! While I admire that gators are basically living dinosaurs, I give them much respect and a wide berth! (That photo? That’s taken from our truck which is about 20 feet or so away from them. Yeah, big boys!)

I have to state, here and now, a few facts about me… I was born and raised in the mid-west so I’m not a Cajun, not anywhere near a native, and my husband was raised in northern Louisiana so he can’t claim to be Cajun either. And I’m no expert on the subject, so come on down sometime and explore for yourselves! We’d love for you to visit!

http://www.bookstrand.com/book/the-dragons-soul-xan

So, have you read any of my Night Fall series? The 11th story in the series is set to release on April 25th! Woot! I promise if you start with that story, you won’t be lost, but wouldn’t you rather immerse yourself in the darkness? All the stories, except for Silent Knight and My Sweet Succubus are novellas. Those two are novelettes—slightly longer than short stories. So, you really do have time to blow through the books before Bad to the Bone arrives…

And it should go without my saying that ALL the stories are sexy as hell. Because I’m a tease, I’m letting you look inside the beginning of Bad to the Bone. Read all of chapter one below. See if you can resist ordering so you can have the rest of the story…  😉

For a chance to win your choice of one of my previously released
Night Fall series stories, answer me this!

Do you love paranormal romance? If so, what flavor of heroes
do you prefer—vampires, werewolves, other shifters, witches, fairies?

(Click on a cover if you’d like to learn more!)

Bad to the Bone

One night of pleasure…

His name is Viper–a dark mysterious enigma who rules the seedy, dangerous vampiric underworld. For one night, he will escape his murky prison and tempt an innocent.

…can last a lifetime…

Beautiful Mariah haunts him. Lures him from his den with a glimpse of his past. One she doesn’t remember. This night, he’ll be her dream lover. He’ll seduce her, make her fall in love with him–then leave her. Again.

One night of pleasure is all they must know.

But Viper leaves her a clue. One he hopes deep down will lead her back to him although he dreads the consequences, because he’s not the same man he was. He’s not a man at all…

Pre-order your copy here!

Excerpt from Bad to the Bone…

One week ago…

Slim hips swished beneath a short, flirty skirt, drawing his gaze like iron filings to a magnet. The splash of large pink flowers on white stood out like a beacon in the darkness. Beneath the hem stretched a pair of nude legs, toned, and nicely curved at the ankles. Perfectly made to lightly clasp a man’s waist as he slid into moist heat…

He suppressed a low, rumbling growl from the beast rising inside. Something he rarely bothered to do in the squalid dens he roamed most nights. The creature lurking deep within was a sexual animal, a lustful, ravenous host who found partners only too willing to let him feast. But this woman was different. Her soul was pure. Her mind unawakened to the darkness.

He followed her as she left her apartment, sticking to the shadows, ducking into stairwells when she looked behind her as though checking whether someone followed. A frown marred her smooth brow, and her lips tightened. The clip of her heels on the pavement quickened.

Shoulder-length, flyaway brown hair bobbed across the tops of slender shoulders. The creamy skin of her exposed arms and legs swung in a rhythm that his heart picked up and matched, beat for stride.

Feeling more than ever like the true predator he was, he tamped down the shame that burned like battery acid in his stomach and continued stalking the woman who walked more briskly now along the darkened sidewalk.

When she turned onto a crowded walkway, her shoulders sank and her footsteps slowed as she relaxed.

Now, as she mingled with others strolling along the promenade, she believed herself safe. Little did she know, but her “spontaneous” decision to leave her apartment had been at his suggestion—a message telegraphed with tantalizing snippets of the smell of fresh salt air, the caress of a soft breeze, and a glimpse of sensual pleasure.

She hadn’t heeded her own natural inhibition. Hadn’t paused to check the clock and note the waning evening hours. Instead, she’d made her decision, wriggled into a sexy little skirt and snug pink tee, slid her feet into strapless sandals and bounded down the stairs, ready to kick off winter’s gloom in an unseasonably warm spring night.

He’d made sure she didn’t glance even once at the calendar resting on the bureau in her foyer. Nothing would trigger a fleeting memory. And while he’d provided himself the opportunity to see her, he’d decided days ago he wouldn’t use his persuasive gifts to bring her straight into his arms.

Tonight, he wanted to savor a natural seduction. Read the rest of this entry »

My daughter is in Italy attending a real estate seminar. She is also a coach, just like I was for several years. She works for the same mentor I loved, and who trained me to be a great saleswoman. Without his backing, I knew I was going to be trampled to death with the highly competitive field of knife-throwers-in-the-back. I felt I was too nice to sell.

I learned so much, and laughed so much, hearing all the mistakes people make in that business. I laugh about all the mistakes I’ve also made in writing. Some of the naïve views I had about writers and the writing process.

So Christen dropped the bomb that my mentor told a story about me in the seminar today. I’m just a bit obsessive about these sorts of things. I’m dying to know what the story is. Was it the bathing suit story? Or the time I sold a condo to a couple who looked like they were both women, and the title company informed them California (at that time) didn’t allow them to take title as husband and wife. And when one of them stood up, grabbed the back of her pants and said, “But I am a man,” we thought we were going to see the full Monty, but she got out her driver’s license, proving she was in fact, a man.

One of my old pals reminded me that I used to sleep under the stage at these big events, before I was one of the ones on stage. That way, I got a front row seat! Or the fact that I taught a whole bunch of agents I was training how to ride the service elevators so we didn’t have to wait to be part of the crowd waiting for one and running out of time to pee.

I also remember my son, who became a Navy SEAL, was 5 and spoke to my mentor at that time. “You know my mom, Sharon Hamilton?” And of course he did. “I think she’s a great Realtor,” Mike answered. My son replied, “Yes she is. She’s the best Realtor in the whole world. Did you know that?” He walked out of the ice cream store without looking back, satisfied he’d laid the proper facts on him.

Our past makes up so much of our stories. All the people we met, the families we raised, the seminars we went to, and churches we attended. Strange family gatherings. It’s all soup and it goes into the writer’s toolkit, right?

Have you bought your copy of Jake yet?

How about my first paranormal SEAL: The Trident Legacy?

See you next time. I’ll bet you have some fun stories as well.

Sharon Hamilton