Football, or ‘soccer’ as one nation calls it, is a sport that I
love, it grips the UK like no other and pretty much everyone I know has a team
they support and follow. The fab thing is this team you support doesn’t have to be where
you live or were born, you can just pick the best one and go with them. Though
there does seem to be an unspoken rule that once you have a team you don’t
switch. So be careful, you might go for Manchester City and be top dog for a
while but things change -managers come and go, players leave or are injured and
fortunes change.
I once dumped a boyfriend because his football obsession was just
too much and I couldn’t understand it. We used to have to plan dates around
matches he was playing at or wanted to watch. His mood was dependent on the
outcome of a ball hitting or not hitting the back of a net and I just zoned out
when Match of the Day came on in the evening. But now, older and wiser, I’ve
come to the conclusion of if you can’t beat `em, join `em!
Which is what I’ve done, big time!
With five brothers and brothers-in-law, a host of nephews not to
mention Mr H and his mates, football is a serious topic of conversation in our
household. Not only that it takes up a considerable amount of time, whether it’s
playing for fun, competitively (I have a few nephews who are showing some
serious talent) or watching it on TV or going to matches. Football takes over
Saturday afternoons, though I quite enjoy going to one of the big pubs in town
and having a pint and shouting on my team with the boys. Not that I’m the only
female in the crowd, plenty of girls enjoy a good football match, they can appreciate
excellent ball handling skills and love to celebrate when their team wins.
Which is why I was drawn to write an erotic romance about football.
I wrote it back in 2012 when the European Cup was being held in Ukraine, in
fact it’s set in Donetsk which has been on the news a lot this year with the
troubles there. I hope that settles peacefully.
I played with the idea that more and more women are becoming
involved in the football industry. Indeed the British female football teams are
some of the best in the world, but also in other roles girls are joining in.
Some of the leading TV presenters for football are female in the UK the same goes for some of the reporters. This gave me the idea for Nicky’s character, a
female sports journalist covering the Cup games in Donetsk. I wanted her to be
football focused and obsessed and not in the industry for gossip about the hot
players but for the love of the beautiful game.
Which brings us to the subject of hot players – swoon – because seriously,
have you seen these guys? Some of them are just heart-stoppingly gorgeous and
so damn fit too. They have to have dedication, stamina and skill to be where
they are and as they run around the pitch during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil,
I just know I’ll be inspired to write another footballing story.
Lewis Tate was inspired by a certain English footballer – you’ll
have to read the book and see if you can guess who – and I loved his
down-to-earth approach to life on and off the pitch and his commitment to being
a team-player. Throw him together with Nicky, my sport reporter and things soon
get down and dirty steamy, though there are a few embarrassing moments along
the way involving a white see-through bikini and a Rampant Rabbit that has a
life of it’s own!
I hope you’ll check out Scored it was a blast to write and I
especially liked composing the football scenes, they were a fun contrast to the
getting naked and going for it scenes. Oh, and if you think I made the rule
about the players having no sex while the cup was on, I didn’t. One England
manager actually imposed that ban (though it’s impossible to know if he was
successful or not!) on the England team several years ago! Seriously?
Here’s the info on Scored and I hope your team does you proud in the 2014 World Cup.
Lily Harlem x
Scored
Okay, so I eat, sleep and
breathe football and reporting the beautiful game is my dream career. But that
doesn’t mean I don’t have time for a major crush on the England captain, Lewis
Tate. The bloke is sex on legs, hot with a capital H. Add in his awe-inspiring
talent, his brooding good looks and what’s not to lust after?
So my excitement is
sky-high as I set off with the official press team to cover England’s battle
for the European Cup. But when a series of unfortunate, or as it turns out
fortunate events, attracts Tate’s attention my way, who am I to say no?
Add in a misogynistic
manager, an over-zealous colleague, two blue silk ties and some incredible
ball-handling skills and it becomes clear the road to victory, for me, will be
an intensely erotic journey. Determined to savor every moment, I hang onto my
sanity as best I can while living the fantasy and wondering if it can ever
become reality. Because once Lewis Tate has taken me to heaven and back, its
clear no one else will ever compare.
Reader Reviews
“Lily Harlem's story of a famous footballer and a hardcore sports
writer is one of the best happily ever after erotica novels I've read.”
“Their love affair is dangerous and delicious. The smexytimes?
Scorching. No doubt having a pro soccer player adds to the endurance and
flexibility factor. Being a Yank, I loved the British slang and speech. It was
super fun.”
“From strangers to friendship to lovers, Nicky and Lewis were
amazing. It felt like real life and I could picture all the events taking
place. This is a must read!”
“A great love story wrapped around football (yes, people, this is
real football) as in a player, a
reporter and a tournament.”
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