Friday 25 November 2016

Color of Love Blog Hop #interacial #romance #ebook #hop


Welcome to the COLOR OF LOVE BLOG HOP, I adore this event and try and get involved every year.



While some passions live on the surface, others—wilder, darker passions—have to be kept buried deep.

Dr. Leo Rotherham is following his calling by working in rural Kenya for the charity Medics On Hand. While he expected a primitive way of life and limited medical supplies, what he doesn’t bargain on is falling for handsome village warrior, Malik.

Malik is well respected, knowledgeable and loyal to his tribe. He’s also beautiful, brave, modern and, much to Leo’s dismay, married—isn’t he?

No, it turns out Malik is as free as the animals that roam the African plains at night.

Soon the tension is building between the two men and Leo isn’t sure if he’s coming or going. Whenever he’s around Malik he can’t help but notice the reflected look of lust in his eyes and feel the longing sizzling between them.

Malik stands too close, not close enough. Forbidden attraction simmers between them and the need grows to dizzying heights. But dare they admit to each other what it is they want? And are they brave enough to act on their desires and be honest about their lust? One thing is for sure, a passion this big, this powerful, can’t be contained and it’s all going to explode in the most spectacular of ways.


Chapter One of Dark Warrior

Leo Rotherham gripped the lap belt securing him to the creaky plastic seat. He’d known that the trip from Nairobi to the furthest corner of Moshi was going to be tiresome but he was so exhausted it was an effort to even sit upright.
The pothole-laden, two-tire track they’d been winding along for the last few hours really didn’t help matters either, nor did the fact that he’d finished his water and the driver sitting next to him had such awful body odor he feared his olfactory nerves had been permanently damaged.
He glanced out of the window, which, despite the intense heat, was wound up. The dust, he’d soon found out, was intolerable and swept in sharp gusts through the smallest crack.
“We nearly there, Doctor Leo,” the driver said.
“Great,” Leo replied.
He was treated to a gappy grin. Why the driver, Salim, had so few teeth, Leo didn’t know. He was only a young man, perhaps early twenties, yet he had hardly any enamel. He also had bright pink gums and plump lips that were thick and dark.
Leo licked his own dry lips and held on as the Jeep jolted through a particularly nasty hole. It was so deep it made the vehicle squeak and creak in complaint and his behind left the seat for a moment before crashing back down.
“The mountain is there,” Salim said, pointing at Kilimanjaro looming in the distance. He didn’t seem to notice the rough ride.
“Mmm, yes, it’s beautiful.”
And it was, but Salim wafting his arm around had increased the pungent smell in the enclosed space.
Leo shut his eyes and held in a cough. He’d admire the stunning mountain later, when he was in the open air and not peering at it through a windscreen splattered with mud and bugs.
He’d never thought voluntary work for the charity Medics On Hand would be an easy task—never once convinced himself it would be glamorous or sophisticated—but he’d hoped he’d be able to breathe. Surely that was a basic right.
“The hospital is very excited that I bring you today.” Salim steered around a deep pit in the track that would have taken out the suspension.
“Good, I’m glad. Are we nearly there?” Leo narrowly missed whacking his head on the window as the vehicle lurched.
“Yes. We nearly there, very nearly there.”
Leo heaved a sigh of relief. Nearly two hundred miles in a twenty-year-old Jeep through scrubland and along dirt roads lined with prickly trees—hiding goodness only knew what creatures—was about all he could take, especially after a twelve-hour flight from London.
London. Boy, that felt like a long time ago. His mock Tudor semi in Brixton already seemed a thing of the past. The rooms still held all of his furniture but the kitchen cupboards were empty and a gardener had been paid to keep a check on the lawn and shrubs. Seeing it again in a month’s time felt like a long way off.
“Your room is ready for you at the hospital,” Salim said. “I, myself, painted the walls last week.”
“That was very kind of you,” Leo said.
“Not kind, necessary.” Salim studied Leo and pulled a face. “They were covered in mess. We didn’t want our new doctor to have to sleep in such a place. Now it is bright and shiny and waiting for you. Clean covers on the bed too. Sister Afua organized that.” Salim sighed. “She is so good. So good to everyone and beautiful too.”
Leo smiled, sensing the youngster’s love for the head nurse who he’d heard great things about from the guys at the charity.
“You will like her, a lot.” Salim nodded enthusiastically. “You have a wife, yes?”
“Er, no. I don’t.” Leo held up his left hand, showing his empty ring finger. “No wife.”
“Oh.” Salim frowned. “Girlfriend then?”
“Nope, no girlfriend.”
Salim continued to sport a worried expression. “Sister Afua is someone I love very much. She is very special to me.”
“It sounds as if she does wonderful work with the local people,” Leo replied.
“She does, yes. And I love her for that and...” Salim patted his chest. “I love her in here, in my heart, in my soul.”
“Well, I’m pleased for you. Love is very precious and when you find it, you should hold on to it tight and not let go.”
Apparently satisfied that the new doctor wasn’t about to steal Sister Afua from him, at least not straight away, Salim smiled once again and continued on the dusty journey.
Leo stared straight ahead. There’d never been a woman in his life. He just wasn’t wired that way. He’d flirted, sure, and certainly he’d been flirted with—nurses, patients and other doctors. But he’d never fallen for a girl, never even got further than a quick kiss and a grope at a teen disco years ago. He’d finally admitted to himself and his parents in the second year of medical school that he was gay and the relief had been enormous, especially when he’d sparked a relationship with another doctor, Hans, and they’d moved in together.
Five blissful years of companionship, love and understanding had all come crashing down eighteen months ago. Hans had felt the tug of home, Germany, and the tug of another lover. The split had been full of tension. There had been finances to sort out after such a long time living together and also the painful matter of dividing friends.
Leo had done pretty well on the whole—buying Hans out of his portion of their home—the mock Tudor—and keeping the local friends for himself.
But still... Eighteen months later he needed more, which was why he was trundling along a track in one of the most dangerous regions of Kenya with his medical license hanging around his neck and a gut full of nerves.
“Ah, it is here. Look, the village.” Salim pointed ahead, catching his hand on a strange raggy doll hanging from his rear-view mirror.
Leo peered forward. Out of the heat haze and the swirls of dust clouds he could see a settlement—huts with dark straw roofs, makeshift pens for animals and rows of crops that appeared thirsty and wilting.
“Cagaha Buurta,” Salim said. “It means ‘mountain feet’. You see, we are at the feet of the great mountain, an honorable place to live.”
“Yes,” Leo said. “It is indeed.”
As they drew closer, he couldn’t help but be shocked by just how primitive Cagaha Buurta was. He’d known it would be basic but had been promised running water and intermittent electricity in the hospital at least.
“We are very proud of our land,” Salim said. “It is part of who we are.”
“It is...beautiful,” Leo managed.
A group of children burst forward, barefoot and wearing shabby clothes that looked as though they’d been handed down a dozen times. But their faces were bright and happy and they laughed, waved and ran toward the Jeep as it approached.
Salim laughed. “You can tell. They are pleased to see you.”
“Well, that’s very nice.”
Salim slowed to a snail’s pace as they reached the gathering of children.
“Is the hospital far?” Leo asked, glancing around at the huts. He’d seen a picture of the hospital and knew it to be a one-story building, long and low with a corrugated iron roof. “No, no it is just there.” Salim pointed to the right.
Sure enough, Leo spotted the building he’d traveled thousands of kilometers to work in. When he’d seen the picture, he thought it must have been taken on a bad day. The paint was cracked and one of the windows hung from its frame. But now he saw that the photograph had, in fact, been taken on a good day.
The window was still hanging off its frame but was also smashed. The paint was peeling even worse and weeds grew from wonky guttering. There didn’t appear to be any door to speak of and a pile of rubbish sat on the baked earth by the step.
“You will live there.” Salim gestured forward. “In the room behind the back. You will be very happy and help my people, yes?”
“Er, yes, I hope so.” Leo opened the door and stepped out.
Instantly he was surrounded by children, all touching him and chattering in their native tongue with the occasional, “Please, Doctor, sweets, Doctor,” thrown in.
“Yes, yes okay.” Leo laughed. He’d been warned about this and quickly rooted around in one of his many bags on the back seat of the Jeep. He produced a bumper pack of hard- boiled sweets and dished them out.
The kids yelped and squealed. Some shoved them straight into their mouths, others stashed them away in pockets or clutched them in their fists.
“You make friends quick, Doctor Leo.”
Leo looked up to see who had spoken. An elegant woman with skin the color of the night sky was smiling at him. She wore a floral dress, mainly orange and green, and her hair was tucked beneath a tight, orange turban.
“Sister Afua?” Leo said, hoping he’d guessed correctly.
She smiled. “Yes. Please, come in when you are ready and I will show you around.”
Leo stepped forward. A gaggle of his welcoming committee moved with him. He handed out the sweets quicker. The sun was beating down on him and he was getting more and more desperate for a drink.
“Here you go. That’s them all.” He tipped the last few sweets into the hands of a small boy with masses of black curly hair and a silvery scar on his cheek. “Don’t eat them all at once.”
“Thanks, Mister Doctor.” The boy gripped the sweets, turned and ran, the soles of his feet kicking up dust and grit.
“There will be more another time.” Leo smiled.
“More now,” a little girl said.
“Another time. I have to go and say hello to Sister Afua.” He managed to disentangle himself from the kids and walked toward his new colleague. A mother goat scooted in front of him bleating, her youngster close behind.
Leo paused until they’d gone on their way then walked several paces. “Hello.” He held out his hand. “Pleased to meet you.”
She smiled warmly and shook. “And you. We have been in desperate need of a doctor for some time. My staff and I do our best but it is hard when there is much sickness and few supplies.”
“I have brought a good stock of medication,” Leo said, following her through the entrance of the hospital. “And I can order more, though it may take some time to be delivered.”
“That is good to hear.” She turned into what seemed to be a small office-type room then reached for a kettle. “This boiled some time ago and now the electricity is off, but would you like some tea, though it won’t be hot?”
“As long as it’s wet, that would be great.”
She nodded and set to adding leaves to a strainer. “Please, sit. I’m sure you are weary after your long drive from Nairobi.”
“Yes, it’s a fair distance and with the roads as they are—” Leo stopped himself. He’d thought about adding that they weren’t really roads, not for the last hour or so anyway, just tracks that appeared seldom used.
“Spending money on roads is the last thing my country can afford.” She passed him a chipped mug that held pale brown liquid.
“I agree.”
“We must invest in health, in contraception, in vaccinations and then we can have the luxury of smooth rides from one place to another.”
Leo took a sip of the slightly aniseed flavored tea. It wasn’t completely unpleasant and it did make his throat feel better. “Hopefully I can play a positive role in making that happen here, at least for the next month.”
He’d clearly said the right thing because Sister Afua sat, crossed her legs and nodded. “I hope you are right. I also hope we don’t scare you away before your time. We are very...primitive in our facilities and, I’m afraid, how we live. It is not by choice but out of necessity, though I hope you’ll find we make up for it in hospitality.”
Leo smiled, trying to reassure her. “I know what to expect.”
“No supermarket, no coffee shop to read the papers on a Sunday morning.”
Leo raised his eyebrows. It sounded to him like Sister Afua had experienced those things.
She must have guessed what he was thinking because she grinned and her chocolate-brown eyes sparkled. “I trained in the capital. For six years I worked there and then I wanted to come home. Help my people.” She touched her chest. “It is where my heart belongs.”
“You grew up here?”
“Yes. We were lucky back then. We had a full-time teacher. A Scottish woman who came at the right time to help me and my friends learn to read. Reading was a gift and meant that nursing college was a possibility.”
“Wow, that’s great. And is there anyone teaching the village children at the moment?” “We have Malik.” Her expression softened.
Leo could tell that Malik was someone she was fond of.
“He too went to the city. He learned to be a nurse and he helps me here. He also works in the small school, teaching in the evening or when he finds a quiet moment. But he prioritizes the hospital. It is the way it is—life and death must come first over learning the alphabet and numbers.”
“It sounds like he is a very busy man.”
“He is. You will meet him soon.”
“Sister Afua. Sister Afua.” A loud, panicked voice rang toward the small room.
Sister Afua leaped to her feet. Her smile dropped and she rushed to the door.
“Quickly, come quickly,” the person called.
Sister Afua turned with her hand on the doorframe. “Please, Doctor, follow me.”
Leo set his tea aside and raced after the head nurse. They banged down a corridor and into a small ward with slim metal beds pressed against the sides.
“It is Gyasi. He cannot breathe.”
Leo saw that the voice came from another nurse. She had a long dark plait hanging down her back and wore a navy dress. She gestured to a small child who was sitting up on a bed, skinny ribs heaving with the effort of drawing in oxygen, and his eyes wide and frightened. Next to him sat a woman—his mother, Leo guessed. She was crying, large tears sliding down her silky cheeks and her ratty hair stuck up every which way.
“Do we have any of his medication left?” Sister Afua asked the other nurse, reaching into her pocket for keys.
“No, I don’t think so. We used the last when he came in before.”
“Can I borrow your stethoscope?” Leo asked. He’d bet his last pound the child was having an asthma attack but he needed to listen to his chest.
“Yes, of course, here.” The nurse with the long plait unwound one from her neck then passed it to Leo.
Quickly, Leo breathed on the end to warm it, out of habit, then sat on the edge of the small bed. He smiled at the mother and at the child. He could hear the wheeze already. Listening to the child’s chest would just let him know how severe the bronchospasm was.
“I’m just going to press this on you,” he said.
The child didn’t answer. Didn’t even acknowledge Leo. His concentration was entirely on breathing.
The familiar hiss and squeak of asthma told Leo what he needed to know. “He needs Ventolin, Sister Afua. Do you have any?”
“No, we have run out.” She pressed her hand to her temple. “I knew this would happen.”
“It is not something we need much of,” the other nurse added. “Only Gyasi gets like this. No one else sings with their lungs.”
“It’s okay,” Leo said. “I brought some asthma medication. It’s in the Jeep. Has Salim unpacked the supplies yet?”
“I’ll go and check.” Sister Afua raced off.
“It’s in one of the smaller boxes,” Leo called after her. He then rested his hand over the mother’s arm. “It will be okay. I can treat him.”
She nodded, though tears still streamed down her face.
“Is this the box you need?”
Leo turned at the sound of a new deep voice.
Standing before him was the most beautiful man he’d ever seen. He was tall with clipped black hair and a wide, strong face. His glossy skin was the color of black coffee and his lips, fat and thick, appeared perfect for kissing. But it was his eyes that mesmerized Leo. They were large, the whites a startling contrast to the conker shade of his irises, and framed with long lashes as black as his hair.
“Er, yes,” Leo managed. “That’s the one.”





I was lucky enough to go on safari in Africa last year with Mr H. Here are a few photographs that I took and will adore forever! This continent stole my heart...







DARK WARRIOR is a full length MM novel inspired by beautiful Africa and has many 5* reviews. For buy links click below, available in print and ebook.









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Wednesday 23 November 2016

Skate into Passion with Lily Harlem's HOT ICE series #erotic #romance #hockey #NHL #ebook


I'm so excited that my HOT ICE series has hit the shelves again and with a brand new novel RUSSIAN HEAT (contains bonus short story ROOKIE RULES).

Click on the covers to find out more about my bad boys of the ice and the women who tame them.



#1 HIRED (FREE at many retailers)


#2 Cross-Checked


#Slap Shot


#4 Teamwork (MFM)


#5 High-Sticked (MM)


#6 Misconduct


#7 Russian Heat (contains bonus short story Rookie Rules)




Please note books 1-6 were previously published with different cover art, the content remains the same. 

Tuesday 22 November 2016

Skewed By Marissa Farrar #erotic #mobster #romance #suspense #newrelease



The most powerful mobster in New York wants me dead—trouble is, he’s also my father.

I'm a woman on the run from the most feared mobster in the country. Worse, he's my own father. I have my sister to keep safe, and a hot, deadly hit man on my trail. Only one thing to do … see who gets the first shot. But don't worry about me, I'm no sweet young thing. In fact, I may just be as deadly as the guy who's out to end me.

My name is Verity Guerra. I'm on the run from the most ruthless mafia Don in New York—my father. For the past few months, my sister and I have been in Witness Protection, and I’m determined to live long enough to testify against him. I knew he'd send someone after me. But I didn't bank on a hit man known only as X, with cheekbones sharp enough to grate Italian cheese, and muscles that won't quit. But what he doesn't know just may kill him. Behind my pretty façade, I’m a cold-blooded killer. Too bad X is determined to end me, or I might just fall for those piercing blue eyes.

Call me X. I’m a contract killer, hired to make sure Verity Guerra turns up dead. A beautiful face won’t stop me from doing my job. Killing isn’t just my work—it’s in my blood. But her dark eyes, silky hair, and tattoos mask a lethal killer. Finally, someone worthy to be called my mark. When her little sister goes missing, we have only one question—do we stop trying to kill each other long enough to get her back?

Turns out love and hate aren't so far apart. Can we fight our desire for each other … or will we both end up dead?



Don't miss this sexy thrill-ride through the Mafia underworld—get your copy of Skewed today!








About Marissa Farrar 

Marissa Farrar has always been in love with being in love. But since she's been married for numerous years and has three young daughters, she's conducted her love affairs with multiple gorgeous men of the fictional persuasion.
The author of more than twenty novels, she has been a full time author for the last six years. She predominantly writes paranormal romance and urban fantasy, but has branched into contemporary fiction as well.
If you want to know more about Marissa, then please visit her website at www.marissa-farrar.blogspot.com. You can also find her at her facebook page, www.facebook.com/marissa.farrar.author or follow her on twitter @marissafarrar.
She loves to hear from readers and can be emailed at marissafarrar@hotmail.co.uk and to stay updated on all new releases and sales, just sign up to her newsletter! http://forms.aweber.com/form/61/19822861.htm






Monday 21 November 2016

Rock Starz! #rockstar #bookboyfriend #romance #sexy by Lily Harlem


OUT NOW, my ROCK STARZ trilogy. Three short stories that will heat your ereader and get your heart beating to a super-sexy tune.

Rock band Manic Machines have taken over the globe with their funky, sassy tunes, yet these rock stars are all missing one thing in their lives - love. But you don't get to be as successful as they are without steely determination and off-the-scale passion, so when these musicians decide which girl they want, there's no escape and they'll go to any length to reach that high.

Each book is fine as a standalone read, but in order you'll get to enjoy each band member's journey to happily ever after. Please note, previously published with different cover art, the content remains the same.


​Is it possible to lose one’s ability to orgasm? Nina has. Lately, her fun weekend hook-ups have been more ho-hum than hot damn! It doesn’t help that she has three flatmates and is forced to play loud music to mask the sounds of her lovemaking. Talk about distracting! Of course, there’s another reason Nina’s less than satisfied these days...she’s just having a hard time admitting it. 

It’s a good thing she’s met Ian, then. Not content to be a weekend hook-up, Ian is set on giving Nina what she’s been missing while making her admit what she needs. His talented fingers—and other body parts—are up to the task. But Ian’s not admitting a few things himself. Turns out his fingers can do more than make Nina’s body sing. 

When she discovers his secret, it’s time for both of them to face the music. 







As Robbie Harding belts out hit song ‘Jenny’ to a packed Wembley Stadium, my heart tears, my mind spins and my insides heat to a lusty, pulsing boiling point.

Why me more than the other 90,000 screaming fans?

Because I’m Jenny—he’s singing about me.

The guy is sex on legs with a voice to match and has starred in all my hot dreams since the day boys became interesting and for three precious years, it was more than hot dreams. Turns out he wants me back in his life and his bed. How can I resist?

So with lots of naked, sweaty and downright dirty time to make up for, I wield my backstage pass, hunt him down and refuse to be starstruck by the boy next door. Seems Robbie agrees, as he insists on tuning in to my needs and rediscovering our rhythm in a very unusual bedroom.




Most women would think themselves eternally lucky to have a hot, sinfully sexy rock star giving them the serious come-on—so imagine how I felt to find not one but two giving me the eye! Phew! I was turning somersaults.

But of course this led to a massive and, quite honestly, unenviable dilemma. How the heck do you choose between two rock gods who want nothing more than to give you pleasure of the extremely intense variety?

Lucky for me these global superstars were brothers who knew just how to share the same toy—sorry, I mean woman. That left me free to take a break from managing the band and let their experienced, talented hands manage me.







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Sunday 20 November 2016

A stalker has his sights set on Harper... Exclusive excerpt from Explosive Desire by @neilarocks #suspense #romance #MF @evernightpub

Explosive Desire (Love With a Price, #4)



                                                                            
Thank you so much for having me on your blog, Lily. I’m very excited to share Explosive Desire with your readers. Although it is book four in my Love With a Price series, all of my books are written so they can be enjoyed as stand-alone novels, so even if you haven’t read the previous books, don’t let that deter you. Luke Price is my hottest hero yet, and this is the first book in my Love With a Price series that is a suspense!

Blurb

A stalker has set his sights on Harper and will stop at nothing to make her his…

Finding love is the last thing on Luke Price’s mind as he leads his construction crew to complete the new wing of Oakville Hospital. But he can’t deny his feelings when Dr. Harper Love walks into his life. Lacking the sociability of his younger siblings, Luke doesn’t think a woman like Harper would ever want an introvert like him. But he puts his skepticism on hold when he discovers that Harper has become the victim of a stalker. Above all else, Luke vows to protect the woman he cares about.

When Dr. Harper Love moves to Oakville, she doesn’t expect to find a network of new friends, a man who captures her heart, and certainly not a stalker who watches her every move. When she begins receiving menacing notes at the hospital where she works, it soon becomes clear that the threats are no prank. Harper finds herself turning to Luke Price, and his protective instincts go on high alert. Will his heart be able to stand losing Harper? Or can he figure out who the stalker is and keep the woman he loves safe?



Purchase Links





About N.J. Young

I'm a Midwestern girl and a lover of coffee, live music, and horror movies, not necessarily in that order.
I've been writing all my life, and I honestly can't remember a time when I wanted to do anything but write. After many years spent suffering the trials of corporate America and writing about everything from financial risk management to software user manuals to website copy about radiators (sadly, I'm not kidding), I decided take the plunge and start writing books.
I love a good love story with super hot alpha males, strong heroines, a little humor, and a lot of suspense. Sprinkle in some sexual fantasies and a few BDSM aspects, and Boom! These are only a few of the themes you'll find in my books.

When I'm not writing, I'm probably at Starbucks, or fighting evil with the help of my husband, two children, and our houseful of animals. 


Stalk N.J. Young on the Web





Explosive Desire (Love With a Price, #4) Excerpt

 “Look at me.” When she didn’t respond, he deepened his voice. “Harper, look at me. Now.”

She turned her head to look at him with weary blue eyes. Fuck, he hated that she looked so broken. He wanted to fix her. Or at least make her forget all the pain and potential danger right outside the door.

He opened his mouth to speak, but she stopped him with a shake of her head. “Please don’t. Don’t say it’s going to be okay. Don’t tell me there’s nothing to worry about, and they’re going to catch this guy.” She took a shaky breath. “I know everyone at your mom’s was just trying to help, trying to make me feel better.” Her fingers absently played along his. “I just don’t want you to lie to me.” She looked down at their hands.

Her words nearly broke him. He raised a hand to her cheek and brushed aside her blonde curls to cup her face and tilt it up to him. “I’ll never lie to you, Harper. Not ever. I can’t even imagine how violated you must be feeling right now. What this psycho is doing to you makes me sick to my stomach. But I can make you one promise. I will not let anything happen to you, do you understand me? I’ll die before I ever let anyone hurt you.”

Her eyes filled, and she tried to look away, but he held her face steady. “No. Look at me.” She raised her eyes again, and a tear spilled over. Luke gently wiped it away with his thumb then leaned in to press his lips against her forehead. He pulled back to look into her face. “You don’t have to be afraid, Pretty, not of me.” He brushed away another tear and stroked the back of his knuckles along her jaw. “I’m the man you can trust. I’m the man you can depend on. And I’m not going anywhere.”

Luke…” She said his name on a whisper as the pad of his thumb stroked gently over her bottom lip. Tentatively, her tongue snaked out to lick his thumb. He stilled as her soft wetness played over the tip of his thumb. Harper searched his face as if she were waiting to see if he would pull away. When he didn’t, she sucked his thumb into her mouth.

Heat flared through Luke, and his arousal ratcheted up to eleven.

Get it together, Price. She’s vulnerable. You can’t take advantage of her.

Harper…” He should tell her this wasn’t a good idea. When he made love to her, he wanted it to be because she needed him as much as he needed her, not because she was using him as a distraction. But when she raised her face to his and leaned in, he couldn’t deny her, couldn’t deny himself.

The second their lips met, all semblance of reasoning slipped away. The only thing in his head was her.