Guest Blogger - Tristram La Roche

Happy Hump Day!  Welcome Author Tristram La Roche to Oh Alex! (Due to power/internet issues due to Hurricane Irene, the intended interview was delayed.  Look for Tristam to visit again soon!)

Tristram La Roche was born in London and spent much of his childhood in Europe. His career has included tourism and yacht charter, as well as a brief period working as a freelance journalist. His interests include travel, art, theatre, cinema, books and current affairs, and he is passionate about the rights of the GLBT community. On My Knees, his debut romance, went straight into the Kindle bestseller rankings in the UK. His second gay novella, Lorenzo il Magnifico, was released in August 2011 by Evernight Publishing. Tristram lives in London with his husband.

Buy Lorenzo il Magnifico from Evernight Publishing: http://www.evernightpublishing.com/products/Lorenzo-il-Magnifico-by-Tristram-La-Roche.html

Buy On My Knees from Etopia Press: http://etopia-press.net/shopping/pgm-more_information.php?id=39

All buy links for all Tristram's books on his website: http://tristramlaroche.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100002276172449

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/tristramlaroche

Blurb for Lorenzo il Magnifico:
When Luke visits Florence he hopes it will be the start of a new chapter in his life. A chance meeting with a tall, handsome waiter and that chapter starts far sooner than he could ever have imagined.

Lorenzo is everything Luke has been looking for. Hot, sexy and uninhibited, he pushes buttons Luke never knew existed. But Luke lives in England, Lorenzo in Florence, and the time soon comes for them to part... Can this holiday fling become more than just sex? Can it, in fact, turn into a magnificent romance?

Be Warned: m/m sex, multiple partners, public exhibition.

Here's an excerpt from Lorenzo il Magnifico:
Luke ended the customer’s call and glanced at the time in the bottom corner of his monitor. Two minutes before six. He took a deep breath, looked around the call center and logged off. His supervisor, Lina, the bitch, would pull him up for it, but there was no way he intended being caught on another call just two minutes before clocking off time. He knew that the last call was always trouble, some customer with a backlog of unresolved problems that would keep him until twenty minutes past at the very best. It was not going to happen tonight. Lina could go fuck herself. Well, he couldn’t imagine anyone would do it for her.


He unplugged his headset, switched off the computer and sidled off to the bank of lockers. So far, so good. He grabbed his jacket and rucksack, broke into a trot—another disciplinary matter—and headed to the elevator. He jabbed at the call button and glanced back down the corridor.


This place fucked with his head. The job promised him at the interview was nothing remotely like the actual job. People here were treated like mindless cattle, and what made it worse was the fact that the managers just toed the company line without an original thought. Outside of work, all they seemed to care about was soccer and getting drunk. Luke had nothing in common with any of them. As far as he was concerned, his vacation had started. Tonight he would have an extra good workout at the gym, make sure his six pack was as tight as a virgin’s ass, and tomorrow he’d be on his way to Florence.


“Hey, Luke.” Gary grinned stupidly at him from the back of the elevator, crumbs stuck to his yellow teeth.


“Hi, Gary,” he said, stepping in and turning his back on the company moron. The air stank of sweat, baked beans and cheese. As usual.


“You off on vacation tomorrow?”


“Yep.” Luke really didn’t want a conversation. He just wanted to get out of that God-awful place as fast as he could. The job paid the bills, but how he hated it.


“Sue says you’re going to Italy. Why’re you going there?”


“Erm... because it’s a nice place?”


“I went to Spain. Benidorm. It’s good there. English breakfast served all day. English beer. Lots of English girls... oh, yeah... sorry. Well, there are lots of English boys, too.”


“I’m sure.” Boys like you, he thought, I can do without.


Luke squeezed through the elevator doors as soon as the gap was wide enough and swiped his card in the turnstile. Gene Kelly couldn’t have twirled through the revolving door with more style.


The early summer evening greeted him like an old friend. The leaves on the trees shone like phosphorescent limes in the weak sunlight, a strange contrast to the hum of traffic on the main road and the pungent exhaust fumes. He didn’t even look back at the steel and glass building to see if he was being watched by the fit security guard. All being well, this time tomorrow, he’d be getting a good pounding from some dark-haired Fiorentino.


It was shameful that the only job he could get was in the call center. He had a good a degree in art history and spoke three languages, yet his aversion to the world of finance and accountancy erected a wall between him and the career to which he was suited. Right now, it was the call center or live on the bread line.


His apartment in Leeds city center, in a fashionable development overlooking the canal, drained his income despite being so small that he couldn’t sneeze with the windows closed for fear of breaking them. But it was stylish. The white walls, polished wood floors and steel kitchen made up the perfect environment for a twenty-five year old, single gay man. He’d populated it with the finest minimalist furnishings he could afford. It kind of made Lina’s constant nagging bearable.


After stuffing his damp gym kit in the washing machine Luke ate a light supper and finished his packing. He included several pairs of Speedos as he planned on spending more than one day at the Versilian coast. Gay Versilia, as it was known, had become a Mecca for international gay tourists. It would therefore have more than its fair share of local boys looking for a taste of the stranieri.


His flight left Leeds Bradford airport at one in the afternoon, so his taxi was booked for half-past ten. An early night beckoned, nevertheless. No Friday night clubbing for him. He wanted to look and feel his best when that plane hit the tarmac at Pisa airport.

Sexy Man Monday - Irene Edition Yeah she got me. No internet. So I promise to post as soon as possible. Be safe guys.

Six Sentence Sunday - Ten

This week's SSS is from All's Fair in Love and Lust, out next month from Siren Publishing.  The book is comprised of four "mini-stories" and you have already met the first couple a few weeks ago.  Today, I introduce you to the second couple, Wynne and Kendall.

Even though they just met and want to take it slow, Eros's arrow has pushed them past the point of need.

"His words made her smile, but her heart leapt when she heard the catch in his voice and the truth she thought she heard in his tone. Wynne continued to gaze at her, touching her gently, making her want him that much more. The simple touch he provided only fanned the flames inside her and made her yearn.

Holding back, allowing herself to revel in the light strokes against her heated skin, she closed her eyes, focusing on where his skin met her own. Her hands itched to touch him, to press against him and force him to kiss her again, but she knew she would not rush this, no matter how much her body demanded he satisfy her. Now."

Happy Sunday All!  
~Alex

Wanna Read More Sixes?

Night of the Dragon

 

IT'S FINALLY HERE!!

Night of the Dragon is now available on the Evernight Publishing Site.  WOOT!

BUY HERE

A Berserker Mate's Story, 1

Ryden and Rayne are Berserkers, immortal warriors wrought of Odin’s lightning. They are cursed to walk the Earth for one thousand years without finding love. And then they smell her...
Karli is a manager for an amusement park, and during her daily tour, she runs across the most incredible men she has ever laid eyes on. The erotic visions swirling in her head push her to the edge, and she cannot ignore the two virile men.
But can anything develop between the Berserkers and their mate with a hunter sworn to keep them apart on their trail?

Excerpt:

If Karli gave in to their kind of play, she was afraid she would walk away broken.

But no matter what she told her head, her body could not reject the heated combination of the two. Both virile, desirable men who seemed to stalk her equally, and innately she knew if she succumbed to one, she would also the other. What was crazier than the fact she knew it, was the fact her oversexed mind was running images of being sandwiched between both of their naked bodies. Of having them both possess her at once.

Karli was an independent, driven woman, who worked so much she rarely had time to date, let alone swoon over some random men she crossed in the park. She hadn’t had a date in, well, forever. Her career was her main concern. Once she got that in place, everything else could happen for her, marriage, babies, the little white house, with its matching little white picket fence. She was as boring and white bread as they came. And she wasn’t the type to go around fantasizing about screwing two men at the same time.

Hell, this was past fantasizing. It seemed it could become her reality if she wanted it and was willing to succumb to them and the images running through her head.

Regardless, the two fired something inside her, something she had never felt before. Her heart beat a staccato within her body, and she felt pulsing in places she wished she didn’t. Especially when she needed to focus on work and the safety of those inside the park. All around her the sounds of Scream Town began filtering back into her ears and she slowed her breathing down. She needed to get a hold of herself.

Straightening and taking one last long deep breath, she exited the dark passageway, and stood on the fringes of the sea of bodies milling around. This week was always the busiest, as Halloween was a few days away. Karli scanned the crowd, trying to ensure the men were not there. Relieved that she could again focus on her job, she walked the area, but kept looking over her shoulder.

Entering the Zoo compound, Karli passed the wolf enclosure and a glow of silver. Not able to ignore it, she moved towards the fence and realized the glow came from Giza, the female gray wolf that was one of their most popular animal attractions. Moving up to the fence, Karli watched the beautiful animal working with her trainers on the last animal show of the day.

A course of heat ran through her again. I need to see a doctor; I am much too young for hot flashes. Perhaps a psychiatrist too, to figure out my compulsion to fuck random strangers.

“Shame those beautiful beasts are caged here. They should roam free.”

Looking to her left, all she saw was an enormous bicep. Her eyes drifted up, and her gaze was met with a silver one. A shiver of yearning ran down her spine.

Karli moved her mouth a second or two before her voice caught up with her. “All…all of the animals here…are rescues. They were either hurt, or taken from people keeping them as pets. We give them…all the care…they need to heal...and then a safe home….if returning them to the wild…is impossible.”

Nice job, Stuttering Sue. I’m sure he thinks you are a moron now.

“Where they are put on parade throughout the day for stupid, fat humans to ogle instead of roaming the forests hunting like their natures demand.”

Stupid, fat…humans? “If we had not intervened, they would have…died.”

“And living in a cage is better than death? I wouldn’t want to live that way, would you? Just look at her eyes.”

Karli didn’t want to admit that she had often stopped here through her park tours and thought that the animals reflected sadness in their eyes. “We give them…the best care we can.”

“The best care would have been releasing them to the wild.”

“Giza was too badly hurt to go back. Plus, it’s too late for that now, regardless.” Unable to stop the words, the ones no one in the park was supposed to utter aloud. “They have been here so long that they would die if we released them.”

“You know this, yet you keep them anyway.”

“I’m not the one in charge of the animals.” Karli backed up a step as he drew nearer. A large hand moved to her face, one finger extended. His touch was feather light, as he stroked it along her cheek.

“No. No, you just work here. Another one of their caged beasts. Perhaps I need to set you free?”

“And how do you suppose you can do that?” A wave of desire spread through her, starting at the barely there touch upon her cheek. The finger moved under her chin, lifting her face to his.

“Like this.” Dropping down, he pressed soft lips to hers in a kiss that was a whisper of what it could be. A name whispered through her mind as his kiss ended…Ryden.

“Ryden?”

His brows furrowed as he stood back to his full height. “How do you know my name?”

”I…don’t…know.”

The corner of his lips hinted at a smile as his eyes bored a hole deep within her. The man inhaled, deeply, lowering his head until it was level with her own. She felt his hot breath on her neck, and she arched her back slightly, her traitorous body demanding more of his touch.

Which never came.

Opening the eyes she hadn’t even realized she had closed, she looked up into his hooded gaze, the one that screamed an arousal that equaled her own. Tapping his finger on her nametag, the tugging blossomed into a full smile. “Well, Karli of Scream Town, I will be seeing you soon. Very soon.”

Guest Blogger - Becky Moore

Welcome guest blogger Becky Moore who's here to gab and share a peek at her new release, Icing on the Cake, from XOXO Publishing. 

Becky has also generously offered one e-copy of Icing on the Cake as a giveaway to a reader.  Comment below to be randomly picked!

AOH:  I will admit, I trolled around your website like the stalker that I am.  It seems you have worn just about every hat (photographer, graphic artist, marketing/pr, grant writer) available before getting published.  What brought you to the romance world?

Becky:  I’ve always been a voracious reader, though as an English major in college I had so much required reading that I had years where I focused on philosophy, political, structure, classics, and topical texts, and sort of lost my focus on reading for leisure and pleasure. Then, right out of college I began working and didn’t have much time to read more than a book or two a month. But in the winter of 2000, my son was almost two and in North Carolina we had a blizzard that laid nearly two feet of snow on the ground. We were home-bound for over a week, and in that time I’d read all of my library books and a couple of titles from my own bookshelves. But I had a handful of books wrapped for my mother’s birthday … she’s always been a big fan of romance, and at the time I was desperate. So I unwrapped her books and read all four of them. In three days. I couldn’t believe I’d made it to 26 without ever reading my mom’s—or anyone else’s, for that matter—romance books. On day ten of our weather imprisonment, the road was clear enough to make it to the grocery store and the library, so I hit up the romance section and brought home about 20 books. Hey, who knew how much longer we’d be holed up, you know?

One of the titles was a sexy historical by Kinley MacGregor. In the back of the book, the publisher had a half-page ad with the question: so you think you can write a romance? And I thought, well … yeah, I think I can write a romance. But it would be ten more years before I got around to finishing, submitting and actually publishing anything in romance.

From a professional perspective, I’d always worked as a writer or graphic artist, or in some creative manner, and my voice was very flexible depending on the industry or gig. About five years ago, I started to really pay attention to the romance stories floating around in my head. But I was working as the Marketing Director for North Carolina’s largest non-profit performing arts theatre. My hours were crazy; during the regular work week I put in over 50 hours, but when we had productions I worked nearly around the clock. At night my husband and I would have dinner with our son and then get him to bed, and by the time I could sit down and write it would be ten o’clock or later. If I got in two or three hours of writing it was super late, and then I’d have to be up early the next day to start all over again. It’s no surprise I had a dozen different novels going … seriously, as a trained marketing project manager I always worked on dozens of projects at a time. But by the fall of 2009, I decided I wasn’t getting any younger, and it was time to shit or get off the pot, as the saying goes. So I rolled the dice of fate and landed on The Right Words as the first manuscript to finish, polish and submit. And it was a success. A small Canadian e-publisher, XOXO Publishing, contracted it in December 2009 and it published May 1, 2010.

AOH:  I loved the couple of blog posts I read -- a lot of information from your experience in marketing and pr focused on the writing world.  Do you think your background there will give you a leg up in this industry?

Becky:  That’s a tough question. I had a very successful career in marketing, but I find that marketing and publicity is always easier when done on behalf of other people—perhaps because there’s less at stake. My own books are mine and mine alone. For thirteen years I wrote tons of magazine and newspaper articles, news stories, grants, playbills; photographed everything under the sun; designed hundreds of ads, textbooks, playbills, and the like … but it was for someone else. Plus, digital books are new to me, and the marketing possibilities seem so exotic. I can think of a thousand ways for you to sell your books, but I sometimes draw a blank when I focus on myself.  

The flipside is that with each book I publish, I get a little wiser and stretch my wings a little further. My ultimate goal is to follow a more traditional publishing path, by finding an agent and having success with print titles. But I’m a big believer in Fate, and know that I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be right now. When my first two titles published, I was still working crazy long hours and had exactly the amount of time to put into my budding romance career that I was putting into it. I have more flexible time now, so I’m putting my energy into producing wonderful stories and finding an agent. The marketing will come into play when it’s time.

AOH:  Your newest release, Icing on the Cake, and The Penalty Box are both sports themed.  Huge hockey/sports nut, or just using the backdrop due to the fact that athletes have yummy bodies? :)

Becky:  I’m a huge soccer and baseball fan, and never paid any attention to hockey until the Carolina Hurricanes made their home in North Carolina a couple years ago. I’m not a fan of hockey on TV, but because the Hurricanes’ arena is less than half an hour from our house, we try to catch a couple games each season. My husband and son love it, and while I do enjoy the fast paced and aggressive play on the rink, I tend to lose interest after an hour or so … and that’s when the daydreaming kicks in. The idea for The Penalty Box started to form during a game one night. Sigh. Hockey players are really sexy, with their big, brutish physiques and muscular hips and thighs. I like a man’s man, you know, not a pretty boy; and hockey players are surely not pretty boys.

In 2007 I was working for our local ABC affiliate as a Web producer, writer and photographer, and was assigned a fun story covering the New Year’s plans for local notable personalities. I talked with people like Miss North Carolina, Governor Mike Easley, Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker, Tift Merritt (who, at the time, was dating a guy my husband grew up with), and Carolina Hurricanes defenseman, Mike Commodore. I thought I would surely pass out while I was talking to Commodore. He’s huge; in my heels and his Crocs (yes, he changed out of skates to Crocs), my nose came to the notch in his collar bone.

But the interview sparked the scene in Icing on the Cake, where Hellon is in the arena for an interview and had to wait unexpectedly. In the real world, I was scheduled to interview Carolina Hurricanes Captain, Rod Brind’Amour, at the end of practice at the stadium. But the team had been on a bad losing streak and Brind’Amour was in a foul mood, so the PR guy offered up fan favorite Mike Commodore. I was happy to have any interview, so I went with the flow. Like Hellon, my interview was supposed to be in an office when practice was over, and like Hellon I was poorly dressed to sit and wait in the cold stadium. By the time the team was finished with practice, I was freezing and Mike was super nice to suggest that I wait in the locker room while he got changed.

Now, at the time I’d been married for 13 years, but being no dummy I jumped at the chance. Remember: married, not stupid. I nearly swallowed my tongue; while waiting for Mike, several of the players streaked by in towels … their muscles are covered in muscles. When Mike was quickly showered and relatively presentable, he came back and was just a cutie pie to talk to. Mostly pretty, not a great thinker, but a nice guy all the same.

AOH:  You were just contracted with Evernight Publishing for Guardian Angel.  Wanna give us some deets?

Becky:  Sure! I’m really excited to have an upcoming book with Evernight Publishers. They seem like a great place to be. Here’s the blurb for Guardian Angel:

Hot shot graphic novelist Sasha Mitchell is learning how to adjust to life as an underground hero with one of the hottest video games on the market. Her newfound wealth is no replacement for her brother’s recent passing, though, and certainly no balm to Doctor David Ellington, who’s adjusting to life without the dominating wealth of his powerful father. And even though this senator’s son is far more interested in making his mark in the community through the clinic where he volunteers, he still has to overcome decades of enforced emotional barrenness to let Sasha’s powerful character reignite his passion.

AOH:  What's on tap next?  

Becky:  Lots of great, fun stuff. I’m working on finishing up a full-length manuscript that I’ll focus on submitting to literary agents, and I’m plotting out a new adventure series (so I can’t wait to finish the aforementioned manuscript). My first blogpost with MacMillan’s Heroes & Heartbreakers blog published last week, and in the spring my first children’s book under the pseudonym, Dolly Dozier, will publish in paperback. Plus, my first Evernight Publishing book, Guardian Angel, will publish in November. I’m really excited!

~ ~ ~

BLURB | ICING ON THE CAKE

Sometimes, being the charismatic ‘Mister Popular’ of hockey just isn’t enough. For Quinn Dawson, star right winger for the Carolina Oak Leaves national hockey team, there was no truer statement. Caught in the middle of a sex scandal involving the owner of his team’s wife, Quinn soon finds himself public enemy number one. Guilty of being in the wrong place at the wrong time more than actually being a bad guy, he bears the brunt of public humiliation.

Journalist Hellon Masters is also a fan favorite, both in the medium market that broadcasts her weekly magazine program, and in the national market that broadcasts her monthly road trip series on CBS Sunday Morning. When she fills in for her station’s sports reporter one morning on her way to the Governor’s Mansion, where she’s set to cover the State’s annual financial summit meeting, Hellon discovers that the Mighty Quinn is harmless when he’s out of his pads. He’s dreamy, and sweet and gentle.

But in the face of adversity, it seems the budding romance between Quinn and Hellon is doomed before it can ever take root. She’s got a choice to make, and it’s now compounded by the fact that Quinn is reaching out to her, soul to soul, heart to heart. Their introduction may have provided an instant connection, burning hot enough to melt the ice on any surface, but their geographical distance is hell on a sketchy relationship.

Quinn’s exile is not only making Hellon cranky and unbearable, but it’s wreaking havoc on his psyche, affecting his time on the ice, and killing his charismatic openness that legions of fans found so compelling. Taking a leap of faith, Hellon accepts Quinn’s challenge to close the continental divide and finds her efforts to be the icing on the cake.

·         Buy Icing on the Cake

·         Click here for an excerpt of Icing on the Cake

·         Buy my other titles

Catch up with me online:

·         www.BeckyMoore.net

·         Twitter: @beckym_romance

·         Facebook: BeckyMooreRomance

·         Amazon.com: Becky Moore

Six Sentence Sunday - Nine

Last SSS post from Night of the Dragon.  It will be released this upcoming Friday (yay!).  The six I share today is a snippet near the end, allowing the readers to get to know the other twins that will be featured in upcoming novellas.

     "Pain struck Eryck at that moment, the vision slamming into him with so much force that it knocked him to his knees.  Bringing a hand to his head, he fought to stay conscious, swaying in the utter non-reality of the swirling space of his own mind.  He watched the snippets of the movie playing behind his closed eyelids, trying to remember all the sights as they whirled around in flashing lights so fast he couldn’t tell one apart from the other.

     As the pictures faded, and the pain subsided, he fell over onto his side and rolled to his back, looking up at the bright white of the ceiling above, trying to find his equilibrium.  He saw Joran huddled over him, as well as Erulf running into the room and standing above him as well, though he heard no sounds at all.

     Sitting up, the world spun one final time and everything sped back up to normal." 

Wanna Read More Sixes?

Dating, Relationships, & Urban Legends - The First Date Fart

The first time I ever saw this commercial a couple of years ago, I nearly peed myself laughing.  I could absolutely see myself or someone I know doing something this incredibly stupid.  It is the kind of luck I have with men!

Anywho, as I was tracking down a story I had heard on snopes, I was interested to find out that the commercial I had laughed myself blue over is actually an urban legend.

According to snopes.com, the first print copy of this story dates back to 1976, with people claiming to have heard the story as far back as 1963.  Sometimes the "embarrassment" has changed in the retelling, but it has always been a young woman on a first date doing something stupid in front of a couple she unknowingly is on a double date with as she waits for her date to get into the car.

Back to the incident itself.  How in the world would you recover from that?  Believe me, those friends in the backseat are SOO going to tell your date the first moment they have him alone.  Can you live something like that down?  Do you want to try?  First impressions are so important, so do you walk away, even if he seems like Mr. Perfect?

Doing some more research on the interwebs, I found a guy asking the following question on yahoo answers: 

Guys, would you continue seeing a girl that farted on a date?

This guy was ready to call it quits with a girl he had been dating for several months because while they were laughing over something at dinner, she (OMG!) farted.  Seriously dude?  Are you that shallow?  Yeah, first date I can kind of see.  But if the guy I had been dating for several months was willing to walk away after an accidental fart, then he can get to stepping and keep going.

But from seeing the wide variety of answers, people really do differ on their opinions of this bodily function.

Soooo....funnily, on an author's chat loop the topic of farting was brought up on a post right after I had decided to post about this urban legend.  Not sure how we got there, but we did.  And then the farting fetish was brought up.  Yes, folks, there is a fetish out there where men (and I suppose women, too) get a sexual thrill out of having their partner fart in to their face.

Don't believe me?  Google fart fetish and see what you get.

Interesting though to see such a spectrum.  Girl farts - one guy is ready to walk away, and the other would ask for her number.

Bottom line (hehe...bottom) is that everyone farts, it is natural, and no, that does not give you license to go around farting like a maniac in public, especially if they smell bad.  BUT, we are human, and accidents are going to happen.  Except you, nasty guy in the souvenir shop in the Outer Banks.  You are a mother f*&%ing arsehole.  You needed to step the hell OUTSIDE before you polluted that whole damned store.  My nose is still recovering weeks later.  Jerk.

Anyway...I digress.

I even have a couple of embarrassing tales of my own.  We all do, I am sure.  The first date.  The first night you sleep over with a new guy.  The first time you live with someone.  The lean over your desk to pick up your pencil with the cute guy sitting behind you while everyone is taking a test.  Yeah, that last one is my own personal hell.  Sigh.  I told my best friend who was sitting beside me that I ripped my pants, loudly enough for him to hear, as if my lie was even believable.  No way was I owning up to the fart heard round the room!

So, what are your thoughts?  Any funny aka humiliating stories you wanna share? :)

~Alex

Guest Blogger - London Saint James

Welcome London Saint James as she visits today to share her new release, Enchanted:  The Heart of Winter.  It is the first book from a planned series from London.


Can love withstand the test of time?

Winter never truly understood love, nor did she have time for men until she met Austin Wells Carlyle. He was the man who would rock her world to its foundations. He would test her notions, give her something to believe in, and change her misguided thoughts regarding happily ever after. Strangely, she was going to allow him be the one thing she never believed in—her soul mate.

BUY HERE

EXCERPT:

 

     I stood on my tiptoes in order to press my lips to the hollow beneath his ear.  I closed my eyes, took a breath, and wanted to dissolve. 

     He smells so good.

     “Winter,” he whispered softly.

     “Shh.” I opened my eyes to see him. “You told me once you would not look until I wanted you to, do you remember that?”

     “Yes.”

     “Well….” I dropped my hands from his neck. “I want you to look.”

     His returning smile took my breath.  I had to look away from his eyes, which was almost impossible.  I glanced at my hands.  They should have been shaking, but they were not.  My hands found Austin’s shirt.  I unbuttoned each button slowly foregoing the urge to hurry.  With a tremulous breath, I ran my hand down his skin, exposing the perfect alabaster of his muscular chest.  His shirt was off and on the floor.  He’s so beautiful, I thought.

     My lips found his chest and liked the feeling of his flesh beneath them.  My fingers outlined the angles and planes of his strong rippled stomach, moving slowly around his tight waist.  I watched his skin, his reaction to my touch.  The muscles beneath my touch seemed to jump, flex, relax.  I could not believe this beautiful man was here with me.  If I could, I would look at him; worship Austin’s perfection for the rest of my life.  My eyes were filled with more beauty in this moment than ever before.

     I allowed my hands to find and trace the outline of his wide shoulders, follow the contour of his muscular back.  My body moved around him while my eyes, hungry, followed my fingers which were lost to the canvas of his flawless skin.  Touching him was like finding a secret.  I pressed my lips to his shoulder blade.  He groaned.  I burned.  My teeth grazed the surface of his skin.  My tongue followed the line of him while my hands ran freely over the surface of his biceps, his forearms. 

     I had to wonder in awe.  A part of my mind told me such beauty should be a dream, because no one could be this fabulous.  But touching him grounded me in reality.  I had never seen anything so magnificent, so beautiful.  It was in this moment I knew.  I knew in the whole of my life I would never want anyone but Austin Carlyle.  I would indeed love him, forever. 

You can find more about London here:

http://www.londonsaintjames.com

 

London@londonsaintjames.com

 

Six Sentence Sunday - Eight

Once again drawing from Night of the Dragon (which should be out anydaynow!) and sharing a scene from near the end of the book, once our heroine as accepted her new life.  And yes, it is seven sentences, but since the last two are just one word each, I figured you would forgive me this transgression.

Smiling at her reflection, she once again saw the marks the two left on her body during their lovemaking.  The swollen buds of her breasts, dark pink from their mouths and fingers.  The scratch of their beard growth along her jaw.  Her lips crimson and flushed from their kisses.  She loved how she looked.  Sated.  Cherished.

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A Girl's Guide to Sex Toys - Part Ten aka THE END

Yes, Ladies (and gentlemen who are nosy) this is the final week of the Girl's Guide to Sex Toys.  We have covered most of everything that I am aware exists (and I even found new items I did not know existed!)  And since it is the last, we are going out with a BANG!

An overview of fetish gear.

**NOTICE - Because fetish gear is such a wide arena, I have used links to allow an interested soul to see what the devices look like instead of adding hundreds of pictures to this week's blog.  Adding a links is for illustration purposes ONLY, as I do not promote any of these sites, or suggest you should purchase anything from them.  I do not know of the validity of their products or customer service.**

Blah, blah, blah.  Pretty bad when I have to add a blurb like that to a blog.  Geeeze.  So where was I?

There are so many fetishes out there, that it would take weeks to go in depth into all the items that are available (and to be honest some of them are too far out there to fit into "sex toy" guidelines in my book).  So I am just going to touch base on a couple of the better known fetishes and their accoutrements.

No one truly knows how long fetishes have been around, as they tend to be hidden away.  Considering how far outside the norm they are, that is understandable.  Sex is already a very vulnerable act, and to open oneself up to even more scrutiny is not an easy thing to do.  Of course, some BDSM fetish items do go as far back as the Marquis de Sade, the majority of other items are more twenty-century creations.

We have already touched on BDSM in a couple of posts - from the erotic sex furniture/swings, to some of the painful practices of penis plugs and chastity wear to nipple clamps and some basic bondage gear.  Missed those posts?  Well you can catch up on all the past Girl's Guides HERE.

Now, of course there is the whole whips, chains, and pains, oh my!   From a little taste of pain, to OHMYGODTHATHURTSOGOOD! kinda pain, it is all subjective to the person it is being inflicted upon of course.  Some (but positively not all!) of the items used in BDSM play:  Whips/Crops/Paddles (also called "Impact Devices"), Restraints, Bondage Bars, Chastity Items, Hoods/Blindfolds, and Gags.  There are also some hardcore pieces of BDSM furniture that I really did not cover in the furniture segment as well - from simple sawhorse style pieces to crosses to hang from and special leather beds made for restraining someone.

Another segment of BDSM is Leather/Latex/Rubber Clothing Fetish.  Wikipedia defines a person with a sexual clothing fetish as thus:  One who exhibits a clothing fetish may be aroused by the sight of a person wearing a particular garment, or by wearing the garment oneself.

The central thread that seems to be restraint....the clothing is often super tight, like a second skin, and causes the person wearing it some form of heightened reality.  There are specific clothing that make it difficult to sit, stand, walk, etc.  It can also increase stimulation in the partner/dom/domme - as it gives them control over the person restrained.

Now technically, corsets/lingerie/stockings and wearing fur can also be considered a Clothing Fetish per that description, but that is pretty much run of the mill in my mind, unless we are talking about those who take it one step further....like the Dita Von Teese's of the world who have a waist line as big as my wrist.

Also, costuming could fall under this heading as well:  the sexy French maids, nurses/doctors, superheros, and the like are all a form of fetishism.

Of course, the wearing of the garments is usually coupled with other sexual acts or more fetish sex.  But there are those who get off on the wearing of the clothing by themselves or others.

Taking the latex/leather fetish to the next level is Pony Play.  Pony Play has a submissive acting like a pony, wearing bits in their mouths, harnesses, saddles, and anal plugs with tails attached to simulate a horse.  Some have gone so far as to have special shoes that look like the wearer is wearing horseshoes.  Not all "ponies" will carry their masters, but some do - either in carts or on the backs/shoulders.  

Pony play took a very central position in Anne Rice's Sleeping Beauty trilogy when she wrote as A. N. Roquelaure.

There are other animals that are also used in "play", such as cats, dogs, and well, pretty much any animal imaginable, but horses seem to have the most "toys" available to further the fetish.

Don't even get me started on the "Furries".  At my last employer I had the joy of handling a group of them who claimed we were discriminating against them when we asked them to remove their tails/ears/masks/collars when inside our establishment.  And no, that is no slam of those who call themselves Furry.  You do whatever makes you happy.  But there is a depth to that arena that I do not have the time nor blog space to use.

Some argue that animal roleplay is putting a human face on beastiality, allowing a person with particular preferences from taking it to the next level (or preparing for the next level potentailly).  Others claim it is the humilliation/submission that a subservient has to show that he/she has truly been mastered.  Either way, it is pushing the fetish envelope.

Another fetish I have talked about before is the foot fetish -- but that is not something that has much "toy" involved in it, as most foot fiends love bare, clean feet, perhaps some sexy high heeled shoes, and potentially a toe ring or two.  But the makers of sexy toys will ALWAYS find a way to exploit a fetish.  As discussed a couple of weeks ago, the makers of the Real Doll sex doll, also sell just the feet.  And men can also find feet "strokers" and masturbators shaped like feet.

Yep, he can screw through the heel, there ladies!

Now a new fetish I was not exactly aware of is Feminization or Packing -- or the art of becoming the opposite sex.  Now of course we are aware of those who are transgendered or just enjoy dressing in another gender, but there are those who take it a step further.  There are specific toys that have been created to allow both sexes to seem "more" than they are.


Feminization, in the sex toy arena, is the use of an item called a "V-String" a man can have a vagina.  Touted as the male equivalent of the strap-on, a man wears the panty-like V-String which is tied at the sides.  There is an area where another man or dildo can be inserted, and there are even "virgin" V-Strings (that come with additional "Hymen Latex" so you can recreate the virginity over and over and over again.).


The one pictured is called The Masturbator, the male can put his penis through a hole where the clit would normally be and - well masturbate like a woman would.  It also aids in holding the thing in place during sex. 


Now for packing, this is less on the sex toy side, but as it is lumped together with Feminization, this would be considered Malinization I suppose.  A softer, smaller latex "flaccid cock" is used by women, worn for lengths, to help them "pass" as a man.  Supposedly, it can assist a woman who gets "checked" for a dick.  Which opens some crazy doors in my head - as this would appear to me as a way for women to lure potential sex partners into a falsehood.  So this item is more a cautionary tale than a sex toy.  BEWARE - that package you just grabbed when you were making out with the stranger in the bar MIGHT NOT BE REAL!!

While not everyone's cuppa, it is interesting to take a look at what is out there and available -- and at how many ways their are to get off!

I hope you all have enjoyed the edutainment of A Girl's Guide to Sex Toys!  it sure has been an enlightening experience for me, and hopefully you as well.

And in the process, it even inspired a novella I recently wrote and had contracted with Evernight -- Being Improper -- a tale of 1897 Philadelphia that includes Female Hysteria and the use of a medicinal "pelvic massage".

 THE END...for now ;)

Guest Blogger - Kelly Yeakle

Join me in welcoming Kelly Yeakle.  She is here today to share a little about her new release, Forbidden Desires - a f/f erotic romance with Evernight Publishing.

And as an added bonus, she is offering up a free PDF of Forbidden Desires to the person who has had sex in the strangest place!  Comment your sexy spot below!  Kelly will pick a winner next Wednesday.

When Dani meets the delicate beauty that is Carmen she knows instantly that she wants her—in her life and in her bed. But can Miss. Commitment-phobic look beyond the sex to see the woman beneath?

To Carmen, the wildly beautiful Dani is a new and exciting friend. What she hadn't counted on is the simmering desire she feels when in Dani's presence. As her relationship with her boyfriend sours, Carmen begins to wonder if there is more to Dani than she realizes.Should she give in to this, the most forbidden of desires?

BUY HERE

Excerpt:

She gave him a few minutes before she approached with the envelope. As she walked the short distance from the living room to the kitchen, she pulled the dinner certificate from the envelope and laid it on the table beside him.

“What’s this?” he asked, barely looking up from the paper.

“I won the raffle at work yesterday, and thought we could have date night tonight.” Carmen smiled as she waited for him to pay her some real attention. “Dinner at Carlito’s, followed by a movie at the Cineplex.”

“I can’t.” David folded the paper, laid it on the table, and then focused his attention to her. “I’m covering for another guy at work tonight.”

Carmen frowned. “David you work all the time. When do we get to have a night together?”

“We have every night together.” He patted her hand as she reached to pick up the gift certificate from the table.

Carmen let a frustrated sigh escape her lips. “Yeah, we get to sleep in the same bed, but I mean when do we actually get to spend some time together like a real couple?” 

“Carmen, we’ve been over this.” David ran a hand through his hair. “A few more months and things will get back to normal.” He took her hand in his. “If you can just be a little less selfish right now, the end result will be something worth waiting for.”

“I’m being selfish.” Carmen laughed with sarcasm in her voice. “Wow, you are such an ass.” She pulled her hand from his grasp and walk to the coat rack where she grabbed her jacket. She needed time away from the apartment, and away from David and his ego, before she said something she might regret.

Later in the evening, Carmen sat alone in her kitchen frowning into a bowl of chicken noodle soup. It was a far cry from the full buffet at Carlito’s, but David’s job and his attitude had prevented them once again from sharing a night out together, and there was no way she was going to dinner alone. She tossed her spoon hard into the bowl out of frustration and groaned as liquid splashed onto the table. She shoved her chair back away from the table and got up to pace by the window.

She was restless, and in dire need of a night out with real food that didn’t come from a box or can and some adult conversation. She looked down at her watch and frowned. It was almost seven on a Saturday night and most of her friends waited tables or tended bar until much later in the evening. David had left hours before and with nothing better to do, Carmen pulled her school bag from the closet and sat on the sofa to leaf through her notes from the first week of classes. If she couldn’t have fun, at least she could get ahead in her assignments. Though she was failing in her relationship with David, school was one area she excelled in.

A piece of paper fell into her lap when she opened her math book, and Carmen remembered the friendly girl who sat in front of her. She picked up the small square and ran it between her fingers, toying with the idea of calling her. Although she’d spent most of her life on the shy side, Carmen thought Dani seemed like a generally friendly woman and it was never too late to break a trend. With David’s ambivalent attitude about putting her first in his life anymore, it was time she found other ways to spend her free time.

She picked up the phone and dialed the number quickly, not giving herself the chance to lose the nerve. “Here goes nothing,” she said aloud to herself as she hit the green talk button. The shrill sound of ringing came through the earpiece and she’d almost given up on getting an answer when a perky voice answered.

“Hello.”

Carmen took a deep breath. “Dani?”

You can also find Kelly here:  

My website: www.kyeakle27.webs.com

My blog: www.kellyyeakle.wordpress.com

Six Sentence Sunday - Seven

Back to Night of the Dragon this week, as I just completed edits and the novella's release is around the corner! Yay!  Hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday morning and BRING ON THE COFFEE BIOTCHES!!!

     "Karli turned her head, capturing his mouth with her own before looking into his eyes.  They stared at each other as he pumped within her, her hand rising to rub against his jaw.  The tenderness broke him, a creature of war, the years of fighting, hardening him to not expect comfort.  Her tender touch did him in.

     Crying out his satisfaction, he pumped wildly into her, clamping his arms tight around her body to prevent her from being thrown from him.

      Rolling onto his side, still within the confines of her body, he pulled Karli close. " 

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A Girl's Guide to Sex Toys - Part Nine

Coming down to the last couple of weeks on the Girl's Guide, it sure has been fun!

Now this is a topic we touched on a little in previous weeks, but I think it is enough of it's own monster to merit a blog of it's own -- the sex machine.  A sex machine is defined as any mechanical device used for the purpose of sexual pleasure.   In doing research, I realized it was a much larger and broader topic than I had originally considered.  Not only is there the physical, but also virtual machines that fit the description as well, which opens a whole new door into sexual possibilities.

For the physical, of course, we have already discussed the history of the vibrator, and considering that is basically where the beginnings of the sex machine started, I won't go into too much detail besides to say that the first gas powered sex machine was created in 1869 by a doctor to help sufferers of "Female Hysteria", which required a pelvic massage.  Even then men were too lazy to do the work, so they had to create a machine to do it for them!  Interested in more info?  You can check out the vibrator blog.

Now, of course, we as humans are always on the lookout for making things bigger and better, and of course add in the general laziness factor, and there is a recipe for success!!  I can't tell you how many times my hand has cramped up when trying to find the perfect O...so now all I have to do is lie there?  Woo-hoo!  Sign me up.

Anyhow, many people are familiar with two of the most popular sex machines - the Symbian (for females) and the Venus 2000 (for males). 

The Symbian was created in the 1980's and is a saddle shaped seat that has an added extra bonus.  An electric motor is attached to a rod placed into the center of the seat, which pulses and rotates, and additional attachments can be interchanged.  Plug this baby in, and you get the thrill ride of your life!  Can you stay on for the full eight seconds??

The Venus 2000 (also called the Venus II) is made by the same manufacturer of the Symbian and is basically a pump and sleeve that will self masturbate a male.  Stroke and speed can be altered.  Honestly, it looks a little like one of those cow milking machines...but then how fitting would that be?

There are many other types of sex machines, from the basic to the bizarre.  None of them are cheap, the lowest starting at several hundred dollars upwards to several thousands of dollars.  But get you and your four closest friends to pitch in and you can buy the "Gang Bang Machine" that can have sex simultaneously with five people. Multi-tasking at it's greatest.

Sex machines have even gone Hollywood.  Who could forget the dildo chair created by George Clooney's character in Burn After Reading? Funniest part of that stupid movie!

Now virtual sex machines are still in their infancy, and seem to be aimed more at men than at women, which makes sense.  Following the trends of online porn addiction - which is mostly male driven - new ways to stimulate those who seek the highs of online lovin' eventually have found a way to make a person feel as though the women (or man) on the screen is right there with them instead of thousands of miles away.  The Real Touch machine is a fully integrated sexual device that is timed with particular online pornography to make a man feel that he is experience the sex he is witnessing on the screen.  Made similar to the Fleshlight as far as size and shape, the system goes further in that it is completely computerized, to simulating motion, to releasing lubrication to feel like a real person.

It will probably only be a matter of time before a female option for this technology arrives.  Isn't that always the case?  We women are second class citizens!

Industry insiders speculate that the next step in virtual machines will actually be computer chip inserts in the brain that either stimulate sexual desire/release, or implant scenarios (as in dream like visions) placing a person in a stimulating situation and then trigger responses directly from the brain.  Sounds like that scene between Sandra Bullock/Sly Stallone  wasn't so far off, now was it?

I will have to say that many of the toys I checked out online were interesting, but I will have to say I pass on these puppies.  Main reason?  If I bought one I doubt I would ever leave the house again!

Closing up, here are some of the sex machines I found online - or at least the ones that were not pornography and included a naked woman.  Happy Thursday!