Sunday Snippet: All Day Sucker

December 3, 2017

Happy December! The most wonderful, crazy time of the year is in full swing. I'm excited for holiday and really need to get my house cleaned up so we can actually celebrate. LOL

The mega crossover of DC shows occurred this week and it did not disappoint. So many things happened with interesting pairings and twisty turns. Supergirl and Arrow kicked off the fun and the crazy times spilled over into The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow. Great to see some familiar and new faces. I won't get into much more, but the double wedding ended up being a surprise for me. YAY!

Riverdale continues to go places I don't expect. I have such a love / hate relationship with this show. I'm actually so happy we didn't have any Lodge parent appearances. I loved Hermione last season but this season I'm very "meh" about her. I also loved getting some insight into Sheriff Keller's personal life. I'm not necessarily a big Mayor McCoy fan, but I like the interesting twist with them. I also, somewhat shockingly, liked the beginning of Chuck's redemption. I'll stay tuned to see if that comes to anything.

I need to catch up with Gotham. I had way too much work to get through and took a full break from television on Thursday.

I did manage to catch up with Murdoch Mysteries yesterday and enjoyed both episodes I needed to see.

I'm still watching holiday movies on the Hallmark channels and should get started on television episodes this week. I'll probably begin with the Doctor Who specials. That's kind of my thing; I always begin with those.

That's it for this week's television wrap-up. Tonight's post is from All Day Sucker, a sexy short free read that shares a title name with my alter egos, ML Skye and Skylin O'Thomas.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Archer and Bree, Cupids of the First Order, have an eternity together, which means they like to keep things interesting. Archer plans a dinner party as a surprise for Bree but she ends up blowing his mind instead.

And a preview snippet…

Archer Stewart greeted the assembled guests. "Thank you, everyone, for coming tonight." He glanced at the clock on the wall. "I'm sure Bree will be here momentarily." Hopefully with clothes on.

His lips curved. With Bree, he never knew. One of the most memorable moments he had happened when she'd dropped into the grotto without a stitch on.

They'd had many ups and downs since then—a brief but intense affair followed by a stint apart then a reconciliation where Bree put her immortality on the line to break the curse Ares put on Arch.

Not in his wildest dreams did he think she'd be willing to give up being a Cupid of the First Order.

Thankfully, she didn't have to. After fulfilling Aphrodite's required servitude to her temples, Bree once again had free reign of the realm.

Which meant the last decade counted as a solid check in the win column.

Merry quirked an eyebrow. "Are you sure Bree doesn't have other plans?" Her lips twisted into a half-smile.

Arch shrugged. "None that she told me about." Bree liked to fly by the seat of her miniskirt but she usually let him know if she had something going on.

Bartholomew wrapped his arms around Merry from behind. "Ignore her. She likes stirring the pot when Bree's not around to do it."

Merry flashed a wide grin. "It's the only time I get any practice."

Arch chuckled. "Bree's definitely got a lock on kicking up a ruckus." And she made it look easy.

Flora joined in. "And her snark is always spot on. The barbs she slings aren't always tipped arrows." She nodded toward Xander and Lucia. "Just last week she had the dynamic duo howling with laughter when she described her crazy match-up of the guy with three dogs to the woman who does cat rescues. They'll need a bigger place if they hope to have room for all those animals."

Arch opened his mouth to reply but a whoosh-pop-blip sound came from the front room of Bree's bungalow. Clicking heels on the slate tile drew closer.

Bree's voice entered before she did. "Arch, you'll never guess—" She stopped short. "What's going on?" Her eyes went wide then narrowed a little but her lips spread in a wide smile.

Arch breathed a small sigh of relief. A slinky red dress hugged Bree's curves and her hair tumbled over one shoulder. Her standard cherry-colored toenails peeked out from glittery ruby pumps. Apollo's teeth, he loved it when she wore his favorite shade.

He beckoned her into the room and wrapped an arm around her. "I planned a surprise dinner party for our anniversary." Pressing a kiss to her temple, he tilted her chin to plant another on her mouth.

Bree hugged him and nodded to their guests. "I'm definitely surprised and very happy to have you all here." She eased away from Arch, snagging his hand in hers. "And I can't wait to dive into all this yummy food, but… I need to borrow Arch for like five minutes." Tugging him toward the kitchen, she motioned for the guests to start digging into the food.

Dammit. Arch hoped he didn't fuck up the entire evening.

When they entered the small kitchen, he grasped her shoulders and turned her to face him. "I'm sorry, Bree. Should've run this by you before inviting everyone over—" He stopped talking when her fingers worked the fastening of his pants loose.

His dick sprang to life and filled her palm.

She gave him saucy smirk. "Arch, my love, I'm not mad about your little surprise." Pushing the trousers past his hips, she let gravity take care of the rest. "In fact, it's sweet and charming and perfectly wonderful…" She glanced up, her gaze hidden partially by her eyelashes.

Arch had a feeling he'd like wherever she decided to take him on this foray. "But…" His cock swelled further when Bree licked her lips.

She lowered down, getting up close and personal with his groin. "I've been thinking about you all day and I have to have at least a taste or I'm going to go mad…" Her mouth enveloped the tip of his shaft, her tongue doing a wicked dance around the head.

Arch resisted the urge to go deep. He braced his arms on the counter behind him and arched forward. Bree pulled away and swirled her tongue around the head again.

She gave him a sultry smile. "I really want to spend the time to treat this like an all-day sucker, but, alas, we have guests." Sucking him deep, she swallowed around his girth.

Arch groaned, cursing his stupidly bright idea.

Bree eased away, circling his dick with her fist. "I promise to make this up to you later." She let go and helped him get his pants back up.

When she started toward the dining area, he caught her arm and slid his palm over the curve of her ass. "You know I love how naughty you are, right?" His fingers inched up the fabric of her dress and met nothing but skin. "Oh, sweet Bree. Turnabout is fair play." Easing his hand between her legs, he found her warm and wet. "Mmm. Expect a long and strenuous evening." He swatted her bare behind then tugged the skirt down.

Bree angled her head around. "Looking forward to a very lengthy romp." She wiggled her ass and strolled out into the dining area.

Arch grabbed a bottle of sparkling wine and quickly followed.

I loved revisiting Archer and Bree. This will probably be the only preview since this is a super-short flash fiction for a free read. Hope you enjoyed the brief look.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: Fan the Flames

September 27, 2015

*sigh*

Sit back and get a little comfy. I'm going to blather on about my disappointment in the new season of Doctor Who, which feels almost sacrilegious, but necessary. Maybe if I purge myself, I'll enjoy the show more.

So… as mentioned before, I'm not a huge fan of Capaldi as the Doctor. This has nothing to do with his acting. I enjoy his work. But… here's the thing… I just can't get past the fact he's been two other characters besides the Doctor in the Whoverse—Caecilius in The Fires of Pompeii and John Frobisher in Torchwood: Children of Earth. But wait! What about Eve Myles? She played a character in Doctor Who before being in Torchwood. Why doesn't that bother me?

One simple reason. The character she played in The Unquiet Dead, Gwyneth, by rights, could have been an ancestor of Torchwood's Gwen, so… my brain has no problem wrapping around the idea. But Capaldi's characters? Not so much. Wanna know why?

Because THE DOCTOR doesn't have ancestors on earth. Even if I bought the idea Caecilius could be John Frobisher's ancestor, I can't buy the idea they're somehow related to the Doctor. EVER. It's just a big, fat NOPE.

Do I take this Whoverse stuff way too seriously? Oh, hell yes, I do. LOL But… I miss the continuity of the earlier Davies seasons. The sweeping emotional arcs we got in even a single episode. And Moffat is more than capable of writing that way. I mean Blink is one of the most emotional roller coaster episodes I've EVER watched on TV, so he's got the chops to connect with me on that emotional level… when he's not trying to be too quirky or clever or whatever the hell he's trying to be with the gimmicky shtick he's been throwing out lately, especially with the two opening episodes of this season. They were disjointed and messy and I'm honestly not sure what I was watching, but it's not the Doctor Who I love.

And no worries if anyone vehemently disagrees with me. I'm totally okay with the rest of the planet loving the Doctor as much as they always have. I'm just not quite there yet—maybe I never will be—but I'm hoping Moffat rises to the challenge of keeping me as a viewer.

Whew. I feel WAY better now. Thanks for letting me vent. LOL I think I'll rant a little more on my sister blog, or you know, copy this and post it there, too. :D

I could go on about having new episodes of Lost Girl to watch, but I'll save it for a later post.

Moving on… Tonight's post is from Fan the Flames, a novella with a very dapper cupid who has his work cut out getting the hero and heroine together.

Here's the mini-blurb:

A modern day cupid discovers a couple with matching auras and thinks he'll have an easy time matching them up. Right... not so much. While Jamie and Alix definitely have the hots for each other, one big obstacle stands in their way—Jamie's job.

And a preview snippet…

Alixandra Golden pulled into the parking lot of Station Ninety-Five and cut the engine of her brand new, previously-owned vehicle. Only three years old, it still had warranty left on it, but a price tag she could afford.

Especially if she left the design firm she'd taken a vacation from.

She exhaled slowly. "Here goes nothing and everything."

Popping the trunk, she slid out of the car and walked around to retrieve the portfolio that held her storyboards. She shouldn't be as nervous as she was. She'd worked on this project in her free time for several months and knew the design inside and out. The exterior of the new station house, situated behind the current one, only had to pass inspection before the work could begin on the interior living and working space.

The presentation didn't worry her. The outcome did. If she landed this, she'd be able to work for herself—one of her life goals—almost two full years sooner than she'd planned. 

Her dad, a battalion chief—though not with this station—could've probably paved the way for the job with a simple recommendation. The regular bidding process through the city didn't come into play for the project. The funds had been earmarked with an endowment from a very grateful citizen whose house had been saved by the department.

It didn't hurt he happened to be the fourth wealthiest person in the entire state.

Alix specifically asked her father to take a giant step back and keep his yap shut. Two of her four brothers, three of her dozen plus cousins, an uncle, a godfather and one of her best friends had all been sworn to secrecy as well. Thankfully not all of them worked for the city, but all were employed by the service.

Alix already had an inside track, growing up in and around the fire service. She spent her childhood crawling through and hanging out at station houses. The firsthand experience would be reflected in her design for the residential rooms.

Grabbing her oversized case and the wooden folding easel, she propped both against the bumper of the car and pulled out a small mirror from her handbag. She checked her makeup, smoothed on a bit of lip gloss, and made sure her mascara hadn't smeared. Then she slid her feet into a pair of mid-heel pumps, tossed her beloved flip-flops in the trunk and closed it.

One of the reasons she wanted to start her own design business? To shed the need to wear professional garments all the time. Of course she'd dress appropriately when dealing with clients, but while doing the actual design work, she favored casual, comfortable clothing.

She checked her linen skirt for wrinkles, took a deep breath, grabbed her stuff, and entered the building, a full thirty minutes early for the meeting. Her best friend, Joe, one of ninety-five's firefighters, met her at the door.

Alix gave him a quick smile. "Did you get it?" She hoped he remembered.

Joe nodded. "Of course I did. Five gallons of rocky road, stashed in the freezer, waiting for your grand gesture." He grabbed her easel and carried it into the conference room.

Alix hugged him with her free arm. "Thank you. You're the best." She wanted to follow custom and since she had the first spot for the presentation, she knew the drill… ice cream all around.

She might be cheating just a little, but showing the committee she had a strong grasp of how the firefighters and paramedics lived while on shift, should give her a leg up. Breaking the ice by using one of many traditions also boosted her confidence, which she'd take.

Joe flashed his lopsided grin. "You'll blow them all away, Alix." He gave her a smacking kiss on the cheek. "I'm gonna go guard the freezer until after you're done."

Alix chuckled and waved him off, looking forward to some quiet time to run through her plans one last time.

I've had so much fun writing this one. It's almost ready for beta readers!

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: A Valentine Caper

So… some good TV this week. Strike Back continues to be excellent viewing. Awesome to see Martinez and Richmond kick ass as they're trained to do. I did call the wife, which is all I'll say for now. Can't wait for the next installment!

Orphan Black, once again, totally blew everything out of the water. Seriously, every time I think I'm cool to settle back and watch, another twist has me sitting on the edge of my seat with my mouth hanging open. I love it!

Defiance returned and, geez, cleaned freaking house. Not only is the E-rep gone, with the exception of Berlin—thankfully—but three regular characters are no more. I love having Nolan and Amanda working in tandem. We'll see how long that lasts.

The premiere of Dark Matter has me intrigued enough to keep watching. I like the blend of characters so far. Hopefully, as the show unfolds, that'll stay the case. Who knows? Killjoys opens next week and I'm very much looking forward to adding it to my Friday night viewing.

More on new shows next week…

Tonight's post is from A Valentine Caper, a novella set around Valentine's Day, featuring a workaholic cupid who needs some downtime.

Here's the tagline:

A cupid, Lorna Heartshorn, is a workaholic who wants to spend Valentine's Day—the one day her magic doesn't work—with a mortal man who needs a hot woman. When Gus Shepler pops up on her radar, she thinks she's found the perfect guy and sets out to seduce him. No easy feat, since he's sworn off women after a string of bad luck and nasty break-ups.

And a preview snippet…

Lorna Heartshorn dropped down beside her fellow cupids, Marie and Katie. "I'm finally taking some time off. What should I do?" She waved to the waiter and signaled for her usual, a slinging arrow—cranberry juice, green apple schnapps, and vodka.

Marie snorted. "Since when do you ever take time off?" She idly toyed with her stir stick, spearing a cherry from her love struck martini.

Katie chimed in. "Wait a minute. Valentine's Day doesn't count, Lorna. We all get that day off." She rolled her eyes. "The one day our magic doesn't work shouldn't count." She brought her cupid's bow, a frothy pink concoction, up to her lips.

Lorna shrugged. "Yeah, yeah. But I'm thinking about taking an extra day or two. I need to have a fling and I want a mortal man." Her drink arrived and Lorna fought the urge to down the entire glass.

Marie blinked. "Did you say mortal? Since when do you traipse around with birthday set?" She took a sip of her martini. "I've known you seventy years and you've never had a burning desire to go off the celestial plane."

Marie spoke the truth. Lorna used to visit the mortal coil at least twice a year when she'd first become a cupid almost a century ago. But she'd had decades of staying in the ether, the mists separating the celestial from the humans inhabiting the earth.

Katie tilted her head to one side. "What's going on with you? You're not like having a midlife crisis or anything, are you?" She leaned closer, peering over the top of her tall tumbler.

Lorna laughed. "No. I'm not having a meltdown or anything crazy." She swirled the liquid in her glass. "I'm just… I don't know… out of touch." She didn't have a clue how to explain the weird disconnect she'd had with everyone lately.

Marie smirked. "You're suffering burn out, Lorna." She slid her gaze toward Katie. "Told you."

Katie nodded. "Yep. You did." She settled back in her seat. "Marie has a theory, Lorna."

Lorna rolled her eyes. "Well, do share. I know you can't wait." She took another sip of her cocktail.

Marie squared her shoulders, getting into mother hen mode. "How much vacation time do you have saved up?" She quirked an eyebrow.

Lorna smirked. "I don't know. Seven years?" She sobered. "Maybe more." What would she do with time off?

Hike through a mountain range. Relax on a beach. Sail around the world. Bah! She'd be bored within forty-eight hours. She loved her work.

Marie threw up her hands. "Seriously? Come on, Lorna, how can you not realize you're completely tapped out?" She calmed down and schooled her features. "Sweetie, you're so good at matching and extremely dedicated, but yes, you're also out of touch. Very."

When Marie dragged out the adverbs, it meant shit just got very real.

Marie and Katie are a hoot and they're going to give Lorna what she wants along with what she needs in the form of Gus Shepler. Let the matching begin…

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye 

Embrace the Magic—Cupid's Curse

Welcome to the weekly blog hop hosted by the Paranormal LoveWednesdays blog.

Readers: Embrace the magic, the mystical, the totally out there. Witches, werewolves, shapeshifters, magicians, wizards—the dearly twisted begins we all know and love. Authors are sharing short excerpts or blurbs from their books or works in progress.

Please enjoy and consider picking up the full book by clicking on the buy link.

Today I'm featuring a brief look at Arch's dilemma and how Bree is (or is not) handling making a quick match.

"You know what happens to me when I go too long without making a match. You don't have time for taking breaks."

She shrugged. "There's no one out there that appeals to me."

Arch made a garbled, choking sound. "They're not supposed to appeal to you, Bree. You just have to find someone who needs a mate." He took two steps forward, ready to strangle her.

Bree held up a finger, knowing his intent. "I wouldn't. You'd just have to wait for someone to be called in to take my place." She went back to smoothing off non-existent hangnails.

Series Tagline: When gods and mortals play together… the result is often unexpected.

Book Tagline: Cursed by the god of love, Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, knows exactly who to blame—his fellow cupid, Bree Daniels.

~*~

Available on Amazon

~*~

Series Blurb: Welcome to a world where gods and goddesses of various pantheons mix and mingle with mere earthly mortals—often with unexpected results. Deities can't seem to help themselves and have to meddle with their human counterparts. Sometimes the godly being offers much needed assistance, but occasionally they lash out and cause harm.

But mostly, the amalgamation of deified power and human nature combines to be highly entertaining.

Book Blurb: Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, suffers the wrath of Eros when he nips the wrong woman with an arrow. Cursed by the god of love, Arch spends his days making perfect matches or he had to deal with some unpleasant consequences.

Bree Daniels is indirectly responsible for Arch's predicament and seeks advice from Aphrodite, hoping to find a way to make amends. After almost two years apart, Bree finally realizes Arch is the man she wants and she's willing to risk her immortality to set him free.

~*~

Insert Series Banner

~*~

Please stop by my website

Embrace more great reads! Visit the other participating authors.

Get Hooked: Reel in a Great Book—Cupid's Curse #MFRWAuthors #MFRWHooks

Welcome to Book Hooks, the weekly smorgasbord sampler hosted by the MFRW Authors Blog.

Readers: get hooked and reel in some great books. Authors are sharing short excerpts from their work. Please enjoy and consider picking up the full book by clicking on the buy link.

While Cupid's Curse isn't set around Valentine's Day, it is about cupids and making perfect matches.

This week, we see a little of how the curse affects Arch.

Series Tagline: When gods and mortals play together… the result is often unexpected.

Book Tagline: Cursed by the god of love, Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, knows exactly who to blame—his fellow cupid, Bree Daniels.

~*~

Arch laid on the bed in agony. He'd passed the skull-splitting migraine stage and had entered into the hellish zone of the next phase—a non-stop hard-on. The headache receded into a continuous dull throb, but remained constant reminder of his curse.

How could it possibly be a week since Bree had arrived? What in Aphrodite's name was taking the woman so long? Arch's cock felt like it would break in two at any moment.

He sat up slowly, willing the stiffness between his legs to subside long enough so he could stand. The pound of the headache settled in with a thrum along his hairline and at the base of his neck. He had to find out what the hell Bree planned to do about finding a match.

Slowly, trying not to stimulate his hard length too much, he made his way to the grotto. Bree sat on the chaise, filing her nails, looking rather fetching in a red micro mini and form fitting, white T-shirt. Her feet were bare and the racy candy apple-colored polish on her toes drew attention to her well defined legs.

Arch had a thing for those legs. Especially when she wrapped them around him, urging him to pound her harder.

Not a good place for his thoughts to go right now. He'd rather live with the pulsating, radiating throb of his dick than get tangled up with Bree again.

Clearing his throat, he got her attention. "Filing your nails? I thought you were working hard to find someone."

Bree continued scraping the edge of the emery board across the blunt tips. "Oh, I haven't found anyone yet. Just taking a break."

Arch saw more red—the bold hue of his anger. "You're what?"

Bree narrowed her eyes. "You heard me. I know you're not deaf." She switched hands, her right foot tapping up and down in rhythm with the file.

"You know what happens to me when I go too long without making a match. You don't have time for taking breaks."

She shrugged. "There's no one out there that appeals to me."

Arch made a garbled, choking sound. "They're not supposed to appeal to you, Bree. You just have to find someone who needs a mate." He took two steps forward, ready to strangle her.

Bree held up a finger, knowing his intent. "I wouldn't. You'd just have to wait for someone to be called in to take my place." She went back to smoothing off non-existent hangnails.

Available on Amazon

~*~

Series Blurb: Welcome to a world where gods and goddesses of various pantheons mix and mingle with mere earthly mortals—often with unexpected results. Deities can't seem to help themselves and have to meddle with their human counterparts. Sometimes the godly being offers much needed assistance, but occasionally they lash out and cause harm.

But mostly, the amalgamation of deified power and human nature combines to be highly entertaining.

Book Blurb: Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, suffers the wrath of Eros when he nips the wrong woman with an arrow. Cursed by the god of love, Arch spends his days making perfect matches or he had to deal with some unpleasant consequences.

Bree Daniels is indirectly responsible for Arch's predicament and seeks advice from Aphrodite, hoping to find a way to make amends. After almost two years apart, Bree finally realizes Arch is the man she wants and she's willing to risk her immortality to set him free.

~*~

~*~

Please stop by my website

Reel in more great books! Visit the other participating authors.

Smokin' Hot—Hot and Swoon-Worthy: Cupid's Curse (A Meddlesome Gods novella)

Welcome to the Hot for Friday blog hop!

Readers: Enjoy posts from authors with fun weekly tasks or a cool question.

Authors: Get in on the fun and join here.

After a forced hiatus where I descended into deadline hell, I finally get to rejoin my fellow authors with a new Hot for Friday blog post. YAY!

This week we're tasked with posting a piece of dialog where our hero gets to take center stage and deliver a swoon-worthy line to the heroine. I can't wait to read some smooth moves from our heroes.

For my feature, I'm posting one of my favorite exchanges from my current Ellipses Press release, Cupid's Curse, a Meddlesome Gods novella.

For a little background, here are the series and book taglines:

When gods and mortals play together… the result is often unexpected.

Cursed by the god of love, Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, knows exactly who to blame—his fellow cupid, Bree Daniels.

And the swoon-worthy dialog…(from Arch's point of view)

Bree rolled her eyes. "I don't flit." She backed away from the console. "I make an entrance." He snorted rudely, but she ignored it. "Look, I'm not chained to this location the way you are." She glanced back at the pool. "I get bored and need to go explore." She shot him a wry look. "You should try it sometime. Oh… wait. That's what landed you here on a permanent basis." Her bubbly giggles made his head throb harder. "Can I help it if I enjoy having fun?"

Arch steamed. "Apparently not." He almost shook with the pain. "Are you going to help me out here or not, Bree?" His glance dropped down, the rigid hardness unmistakable.

~*~

Trust me when I say these are words Bree has been waiting to hear. :D

Available on Amazon

Ellipses Press, Ltd.

~*~

Series Blurb: Welcome to a world where gods and goddesses of various pantheons mix and mingle with mere earthly mortals—often with unexpected results. Deities can't seem to help themselves and have to meddle with their human counterparts. Sometimes the godly being offers much needed assistance, but occasionally they lash out and cause harm.

But mostly, the amalgamation of deified power and human nature combines to be highly entertaining.

Book Blurb: Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, suffers the wrath of Eros when he nips the wrong woman with an arrow. Cursed by the god of love, Arch spends his days making perfect matches or he had to deal with some unpleasant consequences.

Bree Daniels is indirectly responsible for Arch's predicament and seeks advice from Aphrodite, hoping to find a way to make amends. After almost two years apart, Bree finally realizes Arch is the man she wants and she's willing to risk her immortality to set him free.

~*~

Thank you for stopping by.

Please feel free to drop by my website

And don't forget to enjoy the other Hot for Friday posts!

Get Hooked: Reel in a Great Book—Cupid's Curse #MFRWAuthors #MFRWHooks

Welcome to Book Hooks, the weekly smorgasbord sampler hosted by the MFRW Authors Blog.

Readers: get hooked and reel in some great books. Authors are sharing short excerpts from their work. Please enjoy and consider picking up the full book by clicking on the buy link.

While Cupid's Curse isn't set around Valentine's Day, it is about cupids and making perfect matches.

This week, we meet Bree Daniels.

Series Tagline: When gods and mortals play together… the result is often unexpected.

Book Tagline: Cursed by the god of love, Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, knows exactly who to blame—his fellow cupid, Bree Daniels.

~*~

Bree Daniels had a dilemma. Up next for a turn at the matching chapel—she'd put it off as long as she could—she'd end up face-to-face with Archer Stewart. And he would not be happy to see her.

And didn't that just figure? Because she couldn't wait to lay eyes on him—and maybe her hands and other body parts, too. If he didn't try to strangle her before she had the chance.

She didn't really blame him. Her track record with him sucked so far. First, there were the less than stellar circumstances they'd met under. She'd arrived naked from a beach in Belize. The hook-up she'd had took a weird turn and the guy hid her clothes. Already late, she decided not to waste time and popped into the grotto sans anything but skin… which completely made a bad impression with Arch.

But they'd muddled through that debacle and found some common ground. Enough that they spent some time together. Got to know each other. Spent a glorious week at the Four Corners.

The sex had been incredible.

But Arch wanted more… and Bree didn't feel ready to be tied down.

Her reluctance didn't go over well.

And then came the curse. Poor Arch couldn't leave the grotto until Eros removed it. And she'd been the indirect cause.

Gads… when I screw up, I really do it up right.

She needed some deified intervention and found herself standing outside Aphrodite's private chambers.

If anyone could help Bree fix the mess she'd made, it would be the goddess of love.

Raising a hand, she rang the chimes and waited to be summoned inside. 

The tinkling trill drew Aphrodite's attention away from choosing an appropriate piece of clothing. "I'm not decent, but come in anyway." Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, had no shame when it came to immodesty.

Bree entered Aphrodite's lovely suite and watched as she stepped into a gorgeous frothy robe.

"Bree. How lovely to see you today." The goddess sat down at her vanity and admired the view.

Bree stepped further inside the sanctuary and opted for formal politeness. "Mistress, I seek advice." A safe opening when one didn't know the mood of the goddess. 

Aphrodite raised a brow. "Oh, come on, Bree. You know I don't stand on ceremony." She picked up a make-up brush, waited a beat then laughed. "Okay, I do. But not with you." She waved Bree to a nearby slipper chair.

Bree relaxed and sat down. "Thanks." She started feeling good about coming to see Aphrodite.

The other woman swept a lovely pink color on her cheeks, but watched Bree carefully. "You look pensive, my dear. What worries you?"

Bree blew out a breath and decided to just lay it out. "I'm due for my turn at the matching chapel…" When Aphrodite gave her a knowing look, she hastily added on the truth. "Okay, overdue for my turn, and I've sort of got a problem."

Aphrodite smiled. "Hence the advice seeking part." She laid the make-up brush aside and turned to face Bree. "Okay. Spill."

Bree suddenly didn't know where to start. "Uh, you know the guy who's cursed? Archer Stewart?" When the goddess nodded, she continued. "I haven't had a matchmaking session since he's been stuck there. Purposefully."

Aphrodite's patience wore thin. "And?"

Bree opted to spit it out in one go. "And we had a thing and it sort of went kinda south… and well, now I have to face that smokin' hot guy or lose my privilege as cupid."

Aphrodite mused. "Hmm. You've done it to yourself this time, haven't you?"

Available on Amazon

~*~

Series Blurb: Welcome to a world where gods and goddesses of various pantheons mix and mingle with mere earthly mortals—often with unexpected results. Deities can't seem to help themselves and have to meddle with their human counterparts. Sometimes the godly being offers much needed assistance, but occasionally they lash out and cause harm.

But mostly, the amalgamation of deified power and human nature combines to be highly entertaining.

Book Blurb: Sygin and Boyd, adept mages, are looking forward to their winter break, being alone in the big manor for Yule is their most cherished tradition. But a series of mishaps may keep them from their celebratory festivities.

~*~

~*~

Please stop by my website

Reel in more great books! Visit the other participating authors.

Smokin' Hot—Book Girlfriend Celebrity Lookalike: Cupid's Curse

Welcome to the Hot for Friday blog hop!

Readers: Enjoy posts from authors with fun weekly tasks or a cool question.

Authors: Get in on the fun and join here.

We already got to know our book boyfriend celebrity lookalike. For this week's entry, we get to cast our book girlfriend celebrity lookalike.

FUN!!!

As mentioned in my boyfriend casting post, I almost always have an actor or actress serve as inspiration when I'm writing. It's great to have visual imagery as a point of reference when creating characters.

I'd love to share my vision of hotness for Cupid's Curse, coming soon from Ellipses Press, Ltd.

So… without further ado…

Please meet the truly gorgeous inspiration for Bree Daniels.

Anna Silk

Anna stars as Bo, a succubus, in Lost Girl. Bree is a very sexual being, but she's also got a few vulnerabilities, even if she tries damned hard not to show them. Anna's character—hello, Succubus!—really gave me a needed boost to get inside Bree's head. And Anna's look is what I wanted, too. No hardship to cast Anna as Bree.

Book Tagline: Cursed by the god of love, Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, knows exactly who to blame—his fellow cupid, Bree Daniels.

Series Tagline: When gods and mortals play together… the result is often unexpected.

Bree Daniels had a dilemma. Up next for a turn at the matching chapel—she'd put it off as long as she could—she'd end up face-to-face with Archer Stewart. And he would not be happy to see her.

And didn't that just figure? Because she couldn't wait to lay eyes on him—and maybe her hands and other body parts, too. If he didn't try to strangle her before she had the chance.

She didn't really blame him. Her track record with him sucked so far. First, there were the less than stellar circumstances they'd met under. She'd arrived naked from a beach in Belize. The hook-up she'd had took a weird turn and the guy hid her clothes. Already late, she decided not to waste time and popped into the grotto sans anything but skin… which completely made a bad impression with Arch.

But they'd muddled through that debacle and found some common ground. Enough that they spent some time together. Got to know each other. Spent a glorious week at the Four Corners.

The sex had been incredible.

But Arch wanted more… and Bree didn't feel ready to be tied down.

Her reluctance didn't go over well.

And then came the curse. Poor Arch couldn't leave the grotto until Eros removed it. And she'd been the indirect cause.

Gads… when I screw up, I really do it up right.

She needed some deified intervention and found herself standing outside Aphrodite's private chambers.

If anyone could help Bree fix the mess she'd made, it would be the goddess of love.

Raising a hand, she rang the chimes and waited to be summoned inside.  

The tinkling trill drew Aphrodite's attention away from choosing an appropriate piece of clothing. "I'm not decent, but come in anyway." Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, had no shame when it came to immodesty.

Bree entered Aphrodite's lovely suite and watched as she stepped into a gorgeous frothy robe.

"Bree. How lovely to see you today." The goddess sat down at her vanity and admired the view.

Bree stepped further inside the sanctuary and opted for formal politeness. "Mistress, I seek advice." A safe opening when one didn't know the mood of the goddess.  

Aphrodite raised a brow. "Oh, come on, Bree. You know I don't stand on ceremony." She picked up a make-up brush, waited a beat then laughed. "Okay, I do. But not with you." She waved Bree to a nearby slipper chair.

Bree relaxed and sat down. "Thanks." She started feeling good about coming to see Aphrodite.

The other woman swept a lovely pink color on her cheeks, but watched Bree carefully. "You look pensive, my dear. What worries you?"

Bree blew out a breath and decided to just lay it out. "I'm due for my turn at the matching chapel…" When Aphrodite gave her a knowing look, she hastily added on the truth. "Okay, overdue for my turn, and I've sort of got a problem."

Aphrodite smiled. "Hence the advice seeking part." She laid the make-up brush aside and turned to face Bree. "Okay. Spill."

Bree suddenly didn't know where to start. "Uh, you know the guy who's cursed? Archer Stewart?" When the goddess nodded, she continued. "I haven't had a matchmaking session since he's been stuck there. Purposefully."

Aphrodite's patience wore thin. "And?"

Bree opted to spit it out in one go. "And we had a thing and it sort of went kinda south… and well, now I have to face that smokin' hot guy or lose my privilege as cupid."

Aphrodite mused. "Hmm. You've done it to yourself this time, haven't you?"

~*~

Coming Next Week!

~*~

Series Blurb: Welcome to a world where gods and goddesses of various pantheons mix and mingle with mere earthly mortals—often with unexpected results. Deities can't seem to help themselves and have to meddle with their human counterparts. Sometimes the godly being offers much needed assistance, but occasionally they lash out and cause harm.

But mostly, the amalgamation of deified power and human nature combines to be highly entertaining.

Book Blurb: Archer Stewart, a Cupid of the First Order, suffers the wrath of Eros when he nips the wrong woman with an arrow. Cursed by the god of love, Arch spends his days making perfect matches or he had to deal with some unpleasant consequences.

Bree Daniels is indirectly responsible for Arch's predicament and seeks advice from Aphrodite, hoping to find a way to make amends. After almost two years apart, Bree finally realizes Arch is the man she wants and she's willing to risk her immortality to set him free.

~*~

Thank you for stopping by.

Please feel free to stop by my website

And don't forget to enjoy the other Hot for Friday posts!

Sunday Snippet: Meddlesome Gods

Watching Skyfall while I write my post and trying to decide if I want to dive into The Walking Dead tonight before bed or wait until it's daylight out to view the zombiefest.

Probably wait for daylight. LOL

Tonight's post is from a short story written for the Pantheon anthology with Ellipses Press. Meddlesome Gods has Cupids of the First Order and interaction with Aphrodite and Ares. Fun times!!

Here's the tagline:

Bree Daniels, a Cupid of the First Order, loves to have a good time and stays foot loose and fancy free. But when she has to face Archer Stewart, the one she pushed away, her feelings get all tangled up. Being immortal has lots of perks, but loneliness isn't one of them.

And now for a preview snippet…

Bree Daniels had a dilemma. Up next for a turn at the matching pool—she'd put it off as long as she could—she'd end up face to face with Archer Stewart. And he would not be happy to see her.

And didn't that just figure? Because she couldn't wait to lay eyes on him. And maybe her hands and other body parts, too. If he didn't try to strangle her before she had the chance.

She didn't really blame him. Her track record with him sucked so far. First, there were the less than stellar circumstances they'd met under. She'd arrived naked from a beach in Belize. The hook-up she'd had took a weird turn and the guy hid her clothes. Already late, she decided not to waste time and popped into the Grotto sans anything but skin…which completely made a bad impression with Arch.

But they'd muddled through that debacle and found some common ground. Enough that they spent some time together. Got to know each other. Spent a glorious week at the Four Corners.

The sex had been incredible.

But Arch wanted more…and Bree didn't feel ready to be tied down.

That didn't go over well.

And then came the curse. Poor Arch couldn't leave the Grotto until Ares removed it. And she'd been the indirect cause.

Gads…when she screwed up, she really did it up right.

She needed some deified intervention. And found herself standing outside Aphrodite's private chambers.

If anyone could help Bree fix the mess she'd made, it would be the goddess of love.

Raising a hand, she rang the chimes and waited to be summoned inside.

Gotta say, getting Bree out of the mess she's made of everything has been wicked fun writing. She's caught up in a trap of her own making and I love writing characters like her.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: Fan the Flames

Week four…I think it's safe to say I'm getting in the habit now. :D

Seriously, I've read and seen that posting fresh content really helps when readers want to interact and/or check out an author they've discovered or grown to like. Thankfully, once I get into a groove, I tend to stay there.

Okay, for this week's Sunday Snippet, I'm featuring a preview from Fan the Flames. This story got a start almost twenty years ago. I know! What the hell, right? What can I say? Except I'm really glad I NEVER throw out anything I've started. LOL

In all honesty, this book needed the hook and that didn't come to me until recently. What's the hook? Lovejoy the Cupid, of course. :D He's what the story needed to mesh and gel…and get Alix and Jamie together.

Let's start with a tag line:

A modern day cupid discovers a couple with matching auras and thinks he'll have an easy time matching them up. Right...not so much. While Jamie and Alix definitely have the hots for each other, one big obstacle stands in their way: Jamie's job.

And now for the preview snippet (featuring Lovejoy)…

Lovejoy felt the zing. The one indicating two potential matches were in the same vicinity. He closed his eyes and let his instinct guide him.

Up and over the high rise office buildings of the city, through the factory district, onward, across the river and down into the charmingly quaint suburb of Reese Woods.

It had been a long while since he'd found his quarry on the outskirts of the city. This must be a special case.

Lovejoy picked a wrought iron park bench and settled down to wait. He watched the humans go about their everyday lives and wondered which two unsuspecting people he'd be zapping with his arrow.

Time would tell. He'd see the auras of the couple and know.

Pulling a bag from his coat pocket, he figured he might as well feed the birds while he passed the time.

Does anyone remember The Avengers? Not the Marvel Comics heroes, but the BBC television show? Patrick Macnee and Diana Riggs? My inspiration for Lovejoy is Steed. Not in the super spy way, but more in the uber cultured man kind of way. :D

That's it for this week. Stay tuned for more.

Cheers!

Skye