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Showing posts with label Promo. Show all posts

Spark: an erotic novella by Bambi Bellamy | Blog only giveaway + another author giveaway


Spark by Bambi Bellamy 
Publication date: April 15th 2014
Genres: Adult, Erotica, Romance

Synopsis:
WARNING: Spark contains sexy neighbors who love getting it on… with each other. Graphic language and sex scenes abound. Be advised, this is no sweet romance. Contains hard pumping and ridiculous sexual situations and scenes to make your toes curl. If you can finish Spark without getting hot and bothered, I would check for a pulse. 18+ only!

Newlyweds Violet and Hunter are new in PussyWillow Falls, and they’re loving it.

Everything is beautiful, including the people.

Things heat up FAST when Violet satisfies her husband while they both watch a menage a trois over the fence going on in their neighbors backyard.

But, when the mailman, the paper boy and all the neighbors come calling for a piece of the Violet and Hunter action, was PussyWillow Falls a swinging paradise, or a swinging hell?

Blog only Giveaway !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Comment below with the name of the book you are currently reading and you will be entered to win (1) ebook copy of Spark: an erotic novella by Bambi Bellamy. The winner will be chosen May 24th, 2014 at midnight CT. 

Excerpt:
 Hunter’s fingers worked like an expert, slowly pulling off the wedding dress to reveal a very big surprise just for his eyes.
You would've thought I had given him the best Christmas present in the world, as he looked me over from head to toe, admiring the new lingerie that I had gotten for my wedding night. My bra came off with a flourish, and then he leaned down onto his hands and knees, before driving his teeth into the material of my panties.
Growling, he ripped my panties down my legs, until I was standing in front of him in nothing but my birthday suit. His manly hands moved up my legs, slowly making his way to my most treasured of areas. His hot breath blew across my pussy, causing my clit to wake up from its slumber and come out to see what was going on.
“Oh god, Hunter, I have been anticipating this for as long as we have known each other… mmm.” His tongue made contact with my nether lips, slowly moving back and forth from the bottom to the top, until he was peeling those folds open. “Ohhh.”
I didn't want to miss a single moment of this, so I endeavored to keep my eyes open through the entire thing. Looking up at me, he smiled, as he performed an oral delight on my body that took my breath away. I loved watching him work his tongue into my body.
I reached for his head and guided him between my legs.
Hunter was ravenous for my body and had stirred up a wonderful sensation that was coursing through me within minutes “Ahhh.” Being a conservative type, I thought for sure that I was going to be meek and mild in the bedroom, but it was turning out that he was able to turn me into an animal.
Forcing my hand on top of his short light-brown hair, I pushed his face into my pussy, holding him there as I rammed into his mouth and all over his face. Bucking several times, I finally let go of his head, falling back on the bed with a satisfied expression etched on my face.
“If you think that was something, wait till you see what I have for you for a wedding gift.” Was talking about the profound bulge in his pants?
No, not Hunter. I didn’t think that’s what he was getting at. I really didn't have time to contemplate anything more. I watched him with rapt attention as he dropped his pants and underwear to my gaze.
I gasped, and then reached out with both hands to curl my fingers around his length. Hunter made a sigh of contentment. “I have been waiting forever, Violet, and I don't think I can wait any longer.”
Sticking out my tongue, I lathed the shaft, letting every single inch slide in and out of my mouth effortlessly. Hunter was everything that I wanted, and I wanted to give him something special just for him.
I could feel his wedding night excitement was pushing him over the edge. He was ready to explode in my mouth. He pushed me away before he went over the edge.
“Not yet, my love, I don’t want to end this too soon.”
The look on his face told me exactly what he was going to do next, and I giggled like a schoolgirl as he joined me on the bed. Taking my legs in his hands, he licked and sucked on each of my toes, causing my pussy to moisten even more.
His cock was so near my pussy that I was sure he could feel the heat emanating from inside me.
I wanted him. My insides throbbed, wanting to be filled and taken.
I laid flat on my back and stared up at Hunter. His placed his big muscular arms on either side of my head. His hard body glistened in the soft lighting of the room. His face loomed above me, looking masculine and gorgeous, like it was carved as the perfect male specimen out of limestone.
He rocked his hips forward just a little and teased my opening with the head of his cock. He stretched me little by little, invading me little by little.
Pressing forward, I felt his elongated member force through my lips, and he continued to move against me until he was balls deep. We were joined as one, and we began to give that mattress a very hard and deep workout, making the bed crash against the wall over and over again.
“My god, Violet, had I known what a wild one you were, we would've been doing this long before now.”
I felt the same way, as I wrapped my legs around his waist to get him in as deep as possible. “Fuck me, Hunter, show you how you feel about me.”
Using his legs for leverage, he was really getting into my body, and our skin was covered in a fine sheen of sex sweat. “I love how your body fits like a glove with mine.”
We were looking at each other, as if our souls were joined for all time, and I began to move my body against him, matching each stroke that came my way. The shaft of his cock was rubbing up against my clit, and before long I was lost in the throes of passion, throwing my hair back and forth across the pillows during my orgasm.
The surprising thing for me was that he didn't join me and continued to hammer his cock deep within my depths. When he pulled out, I could see a combination of his sauce and my juices coating his shaft, before he flipped me over onto my hands and knees and came after me from behind. He put his hands on my shoulders for support, our bodies lost in the moment, and I could feel his release on the horizon.
“Almost there…. almost there.”
At the exact same time, my body went out of control, and I began to strangle and milk him of everything that he had. “Ahhh.” Our screams of ecstasy echoed off the walls, and then he slumped forward over my back, licking the back of my neck, and whispering sweet nothings into my ear.
We both collapsed on the bed and stared at the ceiling fan swirling above us. The breeze from the fan made my nipples perk up.
“I bought a house,” he said randomly.

Ten amazing facts about sex


Salt-N-Pepa - Let's Talk About Sex


Let’s talk about sex.
Sex, taboo, exciting, intimate reproductive, amazing, boring, are some of the words that come up when people hear mention sex.

Here are some fascinating facts about sex.

10. Sex acts lead to weight loss

The average human loses 26 calories when kissing for a minute. Furthermore, vigorous sex for half an hour burns 150 calories (you can lose three pounds in a year – if you have sex 7 to 8 times a month). Kissing is also very good for your teeth: the extra saliva released during the act helps to keep the mouth clean – reducing the risk of decay.


9. Sex cures headaches
Next time your significant other refuses your advances by claiming to have a headache, remember this fact: the sex act can help to cure a headache. Sex causes the body to release endorphins which naturally reduce the pain of a headache.


8. Sperm is good for the skin
The proteins in sperm have a tightening effect on the skin. When sperm is left to dry, the evaporation of the water in it leaves behind protein which can help to reduce wrinkles. While this may be an excellent anti-aging treatment, the obvious downside is that you have to walk around with sperm on your face.

7. The term “blow job” comes from the Victorian times
In Victorian times, a slang term for a prostitute was “blowsy”. At the same time, “blow” was slang for ejaculation. Consequently, by the 1930s, the act of fellatio came to be known as a blow job. It was also used to describe jet planes in World War Two. In Ancient Greece, the common slang for a blow job was “playing the flute”.


6. Humans aren’t the only creatures to have sex for fun.
Humans aren’t the only members of the animal kingdom that have sex just for fun. Dolphins and Bonobo chimps have also been observed engaging in sexual activity, when they are not in their natural reproductive cycles. With the exception of a pair of Cohan gorillas observed doing so, bonobos are the only non-human animal to have been observed engaging in all of the following sexual activities: face-to-face genital sex, tongue kissing, and oral sex. When Bonobos come upon a new food source or feeding ground, the increased excitement will usually lead to communal sexual activity, presumably decreasing tension and allowing for peaceful feeding. Interestingly, Bonobo chimps also play and experience joy like humans.


5. Orgasms can make women more creative

Studies have shown that orgasms can make women more confident, productive and creative. And it’s a feedback loop—women achieve fuller orgasms when they are being creative.


4. Being well hydrated leads to better orgasms

Because the body is mostly fluid, being hydrated enhances people’s ability to achieve orgasm.

3. The Vibrator

According to the Museum of Sex, the vibrator was originally used as a medicinal treatment for female "hysteria" during the 19th century. The vibrator-induced orgasms helped doctors dissipate hysteria's anxiety-related symptoms.

2. Sex and Social Media

Forget post-coital cuddling! According to a poll by consumer electronics site Retrevo.com, 36 percent of people under the age of 35 check their Facebook and Twitter accounts after a roll in the hay. Hopefully, they are not posting any pictures!

1. Who has more sex, men or women?
Think men get laid more than women? Wrong! According to Men’s Fitness, women have sex 17 percent more often than the average guy. Go girls!

Extra:

Think food is sexy? Some people admit to feeling a similar sense of arousal when thinking about food as they do when thinking about sex.

Purchase:

Out Of Mindy by Jen McLaughlin Excerpt & Giveaway


Out of Mind by Jen McLaughlin
April 29th

BOOK SUMMARY:

Reaching for sunlight...

Finn survived the ambush and came home to me, but in his head, the battle is still raging. He’s falling apart and I’m trying my best to pick up the pieces of him, to find the us we used to be. I love him as much as I ever did, but love isn’t enough to fix this. I thought telling my father about our relationship would be the hardest thing we’d ever have to face. I was wrong.

Lost in shadows...

All I wanted was to be worthy of Carrie. One mission, just one, and I’d be able to give her the future she deserved. Then everything went wrong, leaving me tainted and broken. Carrie wants me to be who I was, but all that’s left is what they made of me. I’m no good for her. No good for anyone like this. I have to figure out how to move forward. Alone.

Sometimes love isn’t enough…
Excerpt:

Don’t let me die...Please don’t let me die...
Explosions boomed in my ears, shooting me upright into a sitting position in bed, gasping for air and crying out into the empty bedroom. Gunshots still echoed in my head, along with the gurgling of Dotter’s blood as it poured out of his body until there was nothing left. I looked down at my hands, half expecting to find them bloody. They weren’t.
But metaphorically? That was a whole other fucking story.
Trembling, I rose to my feet, my broken arm casted and hanging uselessly in a sling. My body was coated in a light sheen of sweat, and even my sheets were dampened and dark. Blinking at the sunlight that crept through the closed curtains, I tried to remind myself where I was. I wasn’t fighting for my life. Wasn’t watching people die. I was safe.
As safe as I was going to be, anyway.
Pushing the curtains back, I squinted outside. After spending a couple of weeks in a hospital in Germany, followed by another couple of weeks in a hospital in D.C., it was nice to be in a home. But instead of the sandy beaches and hot weather of California, I saw a foot of snow reflecting the sun, blinding me. And we were supposed to get even more tomorrow night. Fucking ridiculous. I studied the position of the sun in the winter sky. Damn, what time was it now? Last thing I remembered, I took a few pills and zonked out. It had been...morning? Maybe? Now, judging from the sunlight streaming through clouds, it was mid-afternoon.
I’d missed a whole day.
Sure. I could act shocked about this, but that happened more often than not lately. I slept away the day, high on painkillers and drunk from whiskey. When I woke up, I swore I wouldn’t touch another drink. I’d last an hour or two.
Then I’d do it all over again.
I ran my hand over my shaved head, wincing at how rough it felt. I’d been back in the good old USA for a couple of days now. I still felt like I was trapped in the fucking desert. Instead, I was in the winter wonderland from hell. Carrie’s parents’ house.
A knock sounded on the door, and I dropped the curtain. I glanced down at myself. I had on a muscle tank and a pair of black basketball shorts. Decent enough, I supposed. “Come in.”
The door cracked, and the red hair I’d recognize anywhere appeared before the face I needed so damn much did. “You’re up?”
Yeah.” I tugged on my tank and crossed the room. “You can come in.”
Carrie entered, shutting the door behind her. She hesitated, looking torn. Her blue eyes were sober and crystal clear, while I was a fucking drunken wreck. I’d been snapping at her lately. Pushing her away. I hated myself for it, yet I couldn’t seem to fucking stop.
Did you sleep good? I thought I heard you cry out.”
I fingered the puckered wound on my head. It was still sensitive to the touch and ugly as fuck. Not as ugly as the rest of my scars. Inside and out. “I had another nightmare. Same old thing.”
She approached me slowly. “Anything I can do to help?”
Yeah.” I met her eyes. “You can come hug me.”
She gave me a smile. “Anytime.”
Within seconds, she was in my arms. Well, my arm. I glowered down at my broken arm, knowing it was as marked up as my head. You just couldn’t see it right now. I closed my arm around her, burying my face in her neck. “Fuck. I missed you.”
She tilted her face up to mine. “I missed you, too.”
Buy Links: Only $2.99

OUT OF LINE (Book #1)

Amazon - http://amzn.to/17HLrFu

B&N - http://bit.ly/17hfkvi

OUT OF TIME (Book #2)
Amazon - http://amzn.to/1daxXYL

B&N - http://bit.ly/1g7hPas

OUT OF MIND (Book #3)

Amazon - http://amzn.to/1lqa3cw

B&N - http://bit.ly/1mSkmpP

Author Information

Jen McLaughlin is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. She writes steamy New Adult books for the young and young at heart. Her first release, Out of Line, came out September 2013. She also writes bestselling Contemporary Romance under the pen name Diane Alberts.Since receiving her first contract offer under the pen name Diane Alberts, she has yet to stop writing. She is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.

Though she lives in the mountains, she really wishes she was surrounded by a hot, sunny beach with crystal clear water. She lives in Northeast Pennsylvania with her four kids, a husband, a schnauzer mutt, a cat, and a Senegal parrot. In the rare moments when she’s not writing, she can usually be found hunched over one knitting project or another. Her goal is to write so many well-crafted romance books that even a non-romance reader will know her name.

Website: http://dianealberts.com/

Facebook Fan Page: https://www.facebook.com/DianeAlberts6

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DianeAlberts

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6921962.Jen_McLaughlin

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Finding My Way Excerpt with Pre-Order link


  FINDINGMYWAY_Excerpt

Today is the excerpt blitz for the upcoming book FINDING MY WAY by Heidi McLaughlin. The book will be released April 14th and is currently up for pre-order.

Amazon http://amzn.to/1jS4keT

FINDING MY WAY Excerpt Blitz

“Liam?” I turn at the sound of my grandmother calling my name. She beams at me when I step toward her with an out stretched hand. “I want to you meet a friend of mine,” she says. “Liam this is Tess and her son Harrison James. Tess is the personal assistant to my casting agent.” We spent a day going over all the jobs in the industry. There are so many that I got lost and like a true grandma, she made a list for me so I wouldn’t forget. “Harrison plays the drums at a club called Metro. They have open mic nights if you’re interested in talking to him about it,” she whispers. I nod, acknowledging what she’s telling me. I step forward and shake both their hands. “It’s nice to meet you both,” I say. “You too, Liam, your grandmother has told me so much about you. She’s very happy you’ve decided to stay with her.” I look at my grandma who is smiling from ear to ear. She pats my arm. “Why don’t you take Harrison out back and show him around?” “Okay, grandma.” I kiss her on the cheek and signal toward the patio door. Harrison follows, stepping out into the early evening sun. I walk until I’m at the back, where there is a table set up. “Sorry about my grandmother in there. I think she’s trying to make up for all the years we’ve missed.” I sit down and lean my chair up against the tree. “It’s okay. I was pretty much forced to come here tonight.” I inspect Harrison. He’s a bit taller than I am and far skinnier. He has a few tattoos on his arms, making wonder if they’re a necessity in the music industry. I quickly look down at my arms, curious as to what they’d look like with inked etched on them. One thing is for certain, my parents would flip and that thought alone makes me want one. “Because of me?” I ask already knowing the answer but needing the confirmation. He nods. “Yeah,” he says without making eye contact. “My mom is close to your grandmother so they plotted and here I am.” “I’m sorry. If you want to leave, I can make up some excuse.” I know what it feels like to be put in awkward situations. My dad has done it to me many times, which only spurred me to withdraw from him more and more. Harrison shakes his head slightly. “I’m cool.” He looks down at the ground or his feet. It’s not like I want to stare, but I’m trying to figure him out. He runs his hand over his beanie, moving it back and forth before leaving it where it originally was.
  FmW Amazon GR SW 
  FINDING MY WAY by McLaughlin 
April 14th, 2014 
The Beaumont Series 
#4 New Adult Contemporary Romance 

BOOK SUMMARY: 
Liam Westbury has the world at his feet. He’s the quintessential golden boy. He’s the superstar quarterback for Beaumont High. His girl, Josie, is head cheerleader. He has his choice of colleges just waiting for him. Except he’s suffocating from all the pressure he’s under and no one understands. Liam Page is the heartthrob he never wanted to be. He’s successful, smart and in demand by record companies and his adoring fans. Music is his passion, his love, but something’s missing. His nights are lonely and he longs for the girl he left behind. Seeing her in every face in the crowd haunts him with the knowledge that she hates him. Going home has never been an option until now. Be there when Liam Westbury becomes Liam Page and follow the highs and lows of the Quarterback turned Rockstar as he finds a way back to Beaumont in this prequel to Forever My Girl. 

PRE-ORDER LINK 

FINDING MY WAY (Beaumont Series #4) 

PREVIOUS BOOKS IN THE SERIES 

FOREVER MY GIRL (The Beaumont Series #1) 

MY EVERYTHING (The Beaumont Series, #1.5) 

MY UNEXPECTED FOREVER (The Beaumont Series, #2) 

FINDING MY FOREVER (The Beaumont Series, #3) 
iBooks: http://bit.ly/1lIRdPM   


AUTHOR BIO: 
HeidiMcLaughlin
Heidi is the author of USA Today, Digital Book World, Amazon and Barnes & Noble Bestselling novel, Forever My Girl. Originally from the Pacific Northwest, she now lives in picturesque Vermont, with her husband and two daughters. Also renting space in their home is an over-hyper Beagle/Jack Russell and two Parakeets. During the day Heidi is behind a desk talking about Land Use. At night, she's writing one of the many stories planned for release or sitting court-side during either daughter's basketball games. 

AUTHOR LINKS: 

Make It A Double Sneak Peek by Sawyer Bennett


SNEAK PEEK into

MAKE IT A DOUBLE

BY USA Today Best-selling Author Sawyer Bennett


Last Call, #2
Adult Contemporary Romance

Releasing April 21, 2014


Brody Markham has endured a nightmare, spending the last five years in prison and losing everything that was dear to him. Now he’s back home, trying to survive in a world he doesn’t recognize anymore. While his family and friends desperately try to reach through to him, he shelters himself further and further away from their love.

Alyssa Myers has worked her entire life to distance herself from the luxurious and privileged lifestyle in which she was raised. Running her non-profit agency, The Haven, she is content to spend her days helping abused animals find sanctuary, which fulfills her in a way that money just can’t buy.

Maybe it’s that she recognizes in Brody some of the same characteristics she sees in her homeless wards, but Alyssa is powerless to stop her personal quest to make Brody whole again.

While Brody struggles to surface from the darkness, Alyssa tries to protect her heart in case he’s not willing to accept the light that she offers him.

*MAKE IT A DOUBLE can be read as a stand-alone*



SNEAK PEEK EXCERPT

I put the last of my groceries away, fold up the brown paper bags, and tuck them in the space between my refrigerator and the kitchen wall. Turning around, I observe my little studio apartment. I see it all in just a quick glance, because it’s about the size of a postage stamp.

While I just helped Gabby move into Hunter’s house, I certainly didn’t need to ask them to reciprocate the favor. The only things I own are my clothes, and those were gifts to me from my mom. She had taken me out shopping the day after I got home from prison, outfitting me with an entirely new wardrobe. I mean… new as opposed to wearing prison garb for five years. I felt ashamed that my mom had to buy her twenty-eight-year-old son clothes because he didn’t have a dime to his name.

Past my clothes and some basic toiletries, I have no other possessions. The car I’m driving is courtesy of my parents… on loan, of course. It’s an old Chevy Malibu that had been sitting under a tarp, which Dad used to drive. They don’t use it, but it runs fine. Mom and Dad tried to give it to me, but I wouldn’t accept it. Instead, I capitulated only by agreeing that I was borrowing it until I could save up enough money to buy it from them.

Luckily, this studio apartment came completely furnished, and the kitchen was stocked with dishes, pots, pans, and utensils. I had all the basics that I needed to survive, because let’s face it… it wasn’t too fucking hard to boil some Ramen noodles for dinner, and that was a huge step up from the prison food I’d been eating.

So with my duffel bag filled with clothes purchased by my mom, I drove my old Chevy borrowed from my parents to the grocery store and stocked up on some basic provisions. Then it took me all of five minutes to move into my new home.

A knock on my door has me glancing down at my watch.

Right on time.

In three regular strides, I’m from one side of the apartment to the other and opening the door. There stands my parole officer, Jimbo Peaks. He is six-foot-six of solid muscle, his neck as thick as a tree truck, and his biceps the size of smoked hams. With skin darker than midnight, his light hazel eyes are spooky as shit when he looks directly at you, in that contemplative sort of way I’ve come to know over the last two months since I’ve been home.

“What’s up, Brody?” he says with a huge grin on his face, sticking his hand out for me to shake.

I take his hand, and it freaks me out how mine is dwarfed by his. I mean… I’m not a small man myself, almost as tall as Jimbo, in fact. But when comparing my muscle mass to his, I feel downright puny and I kept myself in pretty decent shape while in prison. Other than reading, working out was about the only thing that was a resourceful use of my time.

“Come on in,” I tell him as I step back so he can enter.

Jimbo walks into my humble abode and turns around once. Yup… he’s seen everything. A small kitchen on one side that merges right into my living room that abuts one wall. A double bed takes up the other wall, and the bathroom takes up another. It’s four hundred and fifty feet of cozy living, situated right above Mabel Fisher’s three-car garage.

Miss Mabel is older than Methuselah but has been a friend of our family’s since I was a baby. She’s eccentric, rich as hell, and loves to thumb her nose at polite society.
And by polite society, I mean those people here on the islands that look at me in disdain because I killed someone.

Not Mabel though. She was at my parents’ house within forty-eight hours of my return home, giving me a hug and a papery kiss, then making me sit down while she drank tea and filled me in on all the Outer Banks’ gossip for the past five years. She’s a trip… a breath of fresh air, and one of the few around here willing to give me a chance. When she offered to rent this apartment to me for a ridiculously small amount, I couldn’t say no.

“Nice digs man,” Jimbo’s deep voice rumbles. “All moved in?”

“Yup. Bag of clothes and some groceries. I’m settled.”

Jimbo chuckles and moves to my small kitchen table that seats only two people. Sitting down, he motions to the other chair so I do the same. “How does it feel to be out of your parents’ house?”

I crack a small smile and tap my fingers on the kitchen table. “It’s good. I mean… I love my parents, but it was time for me to get my own place.”

“Heard that,” Jimbo agrees, and then transitions into his next question. “How’s work going?”

“Going great,” I tell him, because it is. I enjoy working at Last Call, and I’m thankful as fuck I have a job. Most parolees struggle to find work, or get shit jobs that scrape the bottom of the barrel. When they can’t find work because no one will take a chance on them, they go back to a life of crime. If I had a nickel for every repeat offender I met in prison, who was there just because they couldn’t make an honest living, well… I’d be buying Mabel’s house from her rather than renting this apartment.

Jimbo doesn’t seem satisfied with my short answer, so he delves a bit more. It’s his job to make sure I can acclimate to life on the outside, so I’m not bothered when he asks, “Any problem being around the alcohol?”

“Nah,” I tell him genuinely. “No desire to drink at all.”

“That’s good,” he says with a smile. “Seeing as how that’s a condition of your parole.”

“Look, man… doesn’t matter if it’s a condition or not, there is nothing on this earth that could get me to drink a drop of alcohol.”

“And why is that?” he asks, but he knows the answer.

I tell him anyway.

“Because it shattered my life. Because it killed a man. It left a mother without a husband and a little boy without a father. Need any other reason?”

“No,” Jimbo says quietly, staring at me with those light eyes. “That’s a good enough reason.”

I hold his gaze, waiting for the next question. We’ve had this same meeting on five other occasions since I came home, but today it’s being done at my new home so he can check it out. As a parole officer, his role is part jail keeper, part counselor. It’s his responsibility to keep me on the straight and narrow, but to also do what he can to make sure my head is clear when I’m making my choices. So that involves talking… a lot. Just to make sure that the emotional and psychological toll of reentering the real world doesn’t cast me in a downward spiral.

Yeah, I talk a lot to Jimbo. He knows more of my internal struggles dealing with life on the outside than my family does. For whatever reason, I’ve been able to open up to him—somewhat—in a way that I just haven’t with my family. I suppose that boils down to the simple fact that Jimbo asks me questions… asks me how I’m feeling and how I’m coping. My parents, my identical twin Hunter, my baby sister, Casey… while they love me more than the air they breathe, well… they’re just not sure what is open to talk about and what may be taboo. So they walk on eggshells.

“Tell me some of the problems you’ve had adjusting?” Jimbo leads in.

Heard this question before too, and my answer the last time was, Not anything to tell.
I start to tell him the same thing, but the look on his face stops me. It says, And don’t hand me any bullshit, either.

I suppose I can skirt the real issues only so long before Jimbo is apt to put me in a headlock and beat the information out of me. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, I decide to go ahead and lay it out. “I wake up at five AM every day, no matter what time I get to sleep the night before. It’s because I’ve been getting up at the same time every morning for the last five years… because I had no choice but to get up every morning at five AM. I don’t even know how to have a leisurely morning where I sleep in. When I go to sleep at night, I can hear metal cots squeaking and my cell mate rubbing one off while he tries to stifle his groans into the two-inch piece of flimsy foam that’s called a pillow. I hear the newbies crying, and I hear the lifers telling them to shut the fuck up. When I’m awake… out in the real world, I can’t walk around a blind corner without my palms sweating, because I’m expecting someone will be there waiting to jump me. I was always on alert… I’m still always on alert. The air smells too fresh, the food tastes too good, people talk too loud, and I’m having a hard time letting people touch me. It’s overwhelming and that’s just for starters, Jimbo. So yeah,” I say with some sarcasm as my eyes drop to the table. “I’m having a bit of an adjustment problem.”

“How does all of that make you feel?”

My eyes slowly rise to meet his. “I’m pissed off. All the time. I’m withdrawn, moody, and restless. I have all this wide-open space available to me, yet I’m having a hard time straying too far from the things that are safe to me. So I go to work, and I go home. 
That’s it.”

Jimbo gives me that contemplative look, and I can see the wheels turning inside his head. I’m prepared for him to launch into a pep talk, about how I have a chance to make something with my life… to atone for my mistakes and put the past behind me. Instead, he says, “You know… there’s something odd about you.”

My eyebrows shoot up and, for a moment, I consider being affronted by that statement, but then I just mentally shrug my shoulders. Odd is one of many things that I am.

“How’s that?” I ask.

“I’ve been doing this work close to twelve years now… and I can count on one hand the amount of parolees I’ve had that don’t try to convince me that they didn’t do it… or they were framed… or hell, even if they did do it, they blame a corrupt system for sending them away.” He pauses, his green-gold eyes flickering back and forth between mine. “But not you. You accepted responsibility and never once tried to blame someone or something else for your lot in life. It just makes you… odd.”

Shrugging my shoulders, I lean back in my chair. “No one to blame but myself.”

“That’s right,” Jimbo says with a nod. “No one to blame but yourself, and you’ve done a remarkable job accepting responsibility. In fact, you’ve done such a good job at it… some might say that it would help you have a clear conscience.”

“What’s your point?” I ask, genuinely curious as to where he’s going with this.

“My point is that if you truly took responsibility and had a clear conscience, then you should have some measure of peace.”

I scratch my chin absently, pondering his words. I did the time. I took my lumps and accepted my punishment. Should that give me peace?

Jimbo’s probably right. In those circumstances, maybe my soul should feel a little lighter… more free. If I truly was remorseful for what happened, and I truly had done my penance, I shouldn’t be struggling the way I am.

Except… my circumstances aren’t exactly the way Jimbo describes it. He sees my sorrow and guilt, but he doesn’t see past that. Because there’s a whole lot more that makes up Brody Markham’s fucked-up world than just the after effects of a few years in prison. My issues started before I even got sent away.



About the Author

USA Today Best-Selling author, Sawyer Bennett, is a snarky southern woman and reformed trial lawyer who decided to finally start putting on paper all of the stories that were floating in her head. She is married to a mobster (well, a market researcher) and they have two big, furry dogs who hog the bed. Sawyer would like to report she doesn’t have many weaknesses but can be bribed with a nominal amount of milk chocolate.

Website | Facebook | Twitter


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Out of Mind by Jen McLaughlin | Mega Bonus Scene

This is the FINAL book in the OUT OF LINE series! 
OUT OF MIND by Jen McLaughlin
April 29th, 2014
New Adult Contemporary Romance 

BOOK SUMMARY: 

Reaching for sunlight...

Finn survived the ambush and came home to me, but in his head, the battle is still raging. He’s falling apart and I’m trying my best to pick up the pieces of him, to find the us we used to be. I love him as much as I ever did, but love isn’t enough to fix this. I thought telling my father about our relationship would be the hardest thing we’d ever have to face. I was wrong.

Lost in shadows...

All I wanted was to be worthy of Carrie. One mission, just one, and I’d be able to give her the future she deserved. Then everything went wrong, leaving me tainted and broken. Carrie wants me to be who I was, but all that’s left is what they made of me. I’m no good for her. No good for anyone like this. I have to figure out how to move forward. Alone.

Sometimes love isn’t enough…   

Out Of Mind Bonus Scene

Finn

This scene takes place a few weeks after the end of OUT OF TIME, but a couple of weeks before the beginning of OUT OF MIND.

I woke up slowly, blinking away the sunlight streaming through the hospital windows. I must have dozed off for a little while. By some miracle of miracles, I hadn’t had a nightmare. I usually did. Sighing, I reached out and pushed the morphine button on the machine next to me. My head and arm hurt like a fucking bitch.
The door opened, and I tensed. My last visitor had been Senator Wallington. He’d reminded me exactly how beneath his daughter I was, then left. Ya know, the usual. But this time? It was a most welcome visitor. Carrie’s red head peeked inside the hospital room.
“I’m awake,” I said, smiling and adjusting myself against the pillows. “Come in.”
She grinned at me and slipped through the crack of the door. “I came by earlier, but you were sleeping, so I went to the gift shop. Here. It’s for you.”
“Thank you.” I took the yellow rose she held out for me, not quite sure what I was supposed to do with a flower. I was a dude. We were supposed to be the one’s giving out the flowers—not the other way around. “I didn’t realize they made yellow roses.”
“They make them in every color imaginable,” she said, sitting down on the side of the bed gently. “You’re probably wondering why I got you a flower, right?”
I chuckled and stared down at the gentle bud. “Uh, yeah, kind of.”
“From what I’ve seen, roses are the toughest flowers out there. One year, my mother’s gardener planted the garden way too early. A frost came through, and it killed all the flowers outside.” She leaned in and touched the soft petal. “All of them except the roses. They were the only flowers that thrived, despite the cold and the frost. They had the biggest batch ever that year. And they were gorgeous.”
I swallowed hard. “Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.” She cupped my cheek. Her soft touch was so soothing and perfect that I closed my eyes and savored it. “And those roses remind me of you—of us. You are so strong, and I know it’ll be tough, but you’ll get through this, and you’ll be stronger because of it. I know it.”
My heart clenched. “We’ll get through this.” I squeezed her hand with my one good one. “Together, we can do anything.”
“Together,” she echoed, her eyes filled with tears that didn’t spill out. “I love you.”
“I love you, too, Ginger.”
I kissed her, my lips fleeting over hers. My grip tightened on her hand, and she strained to get closer. I drew in a ragged breath, my body responding to her closeness. Her tongue flicked over mine, making my stomach get tight and other things go hard. What I wouldn’t give to be out of this hospital room, and back in California with her in my apartment so I could take care of this need for her that was trying to kill me.
But we wouldn’t have privacy until I got out of this one in D.C., though, so we had a while to go. With that knowledge ringing in my head, I pulled away. “I can’t wait to go home.”
She sighed. “Me too. It’ll be here soon. We just have to get back to my parents house, then get through Christmas. Then things will go back to normal.”
Normal? Nothing about me was normal anymore. I was a fucking mess. But I smiled for her even though I knew it was a crock of shit. “Yeah. Normal.”
Her smile faltered, as if she saw through my façade, but she didn’t say anything. Her phone dinged. She didn’t pick it up. “We’re going to be okay,” she said again.
“Yeah, we will.” I hoped to hell we would, anyway. “Are you going to see who messaged you?”
“It’s just my daily inspirational message of the day.” She lifted a shoulder. “You know how I love those little messages.”
I ran my thumb over her lip. “I love that you love those little messages. It’s a-dork-able.”
She flushed. “Shut up.”
“Gladly.” I leaned in, the morphine making me feel high and kinda out of it. “Or you could shut me up.”
“Gladly,” she echoed, completely oblivious to the fact that I was a fucking wreck.
She kissed me, and I tried to stop thinking. Stop feeling.
To just stop it all.


SERIES Buy Links 

OUT OF LINE (Book #1)
Amazon - http://amzn.to/1pJRD5z
B&N - http://bit.ly/17hfkvi 

OUT OF TIME (Book #2) 
Amazon - http://amzn.to/1my0qrk 
B&N -   http://bit.ly/1g7hPas 


AUTHOR BIO: 
Jen McLaughlin is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. She writes steamy New Adult books for the young and young at heart. Her first release, Out of Line, came out September 2013. She also writes bestselling Contemporary Romance under the pen name Diane Alberts. Since receiving her first contract offer under the pen name Diane Alberts, she has yet to stop writing. She is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.

Though she lives in the mountains, she really wishes she was surrounded by a hot, sunny beach with crystal clear water. She lives in Northeast Pennsylvania with her four kids, a husband, a schnauzer mutt, a cat, and a Senegal parrot. In the rare moments when she’s not writing, she can usually be found hunched over one knitting project or another. Her goal is to write so many well-crafted romance books that even a non-romance reader will know her name.
AUTHOR LINKS: 
Website: http://dianealberts.com/
Facebook Fan Page: https://www.facebook.com/DianeAlberts6
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DianeAlberts 
Goodreads:  http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6921962.Jen_McLaughlin