Today's Special - - Tawny Weber

Today, we welcome Tawny Weber back to the Romance Dish!  Do you like contemporary romances with smart, independent heroines, sexy, alpha heroes and plenty of emotion and sizzle?  If you do, you'll want to check out Tawny's new series for Harlequin Blaze featuring rough and rugged Navy SEALS and the women who tame them. Tawny joins us today to talk about guilty pleasures.  I have to say, her books sure make my  list!  

Please give Tawny a warm welcome!

Guilty Pleasures

What is it about those things we know are bad for us, but we still can’t resist them?  Let’s see, my list looks something like;

See's Chocolates

·         Chocolate

·         Super high-heeled boots

·         Chocolate

·         Starting a book at midnight

·         iPad games

·         Potato chips

·         and Chocolate

There are plenty of other things I can’t resist that I have no trouble justifying, like chocolate (it’s got healthy things in it –I can’t remember what they are, but I read it somewhere),  boots with heels I can walk in, nail polish with glitter, scrapbook and office supplies, checking my email and Facebook page one more time, and chocolate.  And yes, I realize chocolate is on both lists (more than once) but it’s so special, it qualifies for both! 

But those bad but irresistible things are my guilty pleasures. 

You notice that the only book related guilt I have is starting one so late that I’ll be up all night *g *  I can’t think of any other guilt that can ever tie to books, can you? 

The heroine in my newest Blaze, A SEAL’s Seduction, is a big fan of not worrying about guilt.  She has just a couple of rules that she lives by, and as long as she doesn’t break those, she feels free to indulge in as much other pleasure as she finds.  Like chocolate ice cream, killer shoes and ogling hotties on the beach. 

But the few  rules she does follow are absolute. She’s determined to live life on her own terms.  To control her wilder impulses.  And to make sure whatever she does, she’s able to face herself in the mirror the next day.  But her most important one is No Military Guys.  None, never, no way, no how.   But when she sees the sexy hottie she met on the beach again, she’s hesitant, but since she’s pretty sure he’s not military, she figures it’s safe to give her wild attraction toward him a chance.  

Here’s a little excerpt from A SEAL’s Seduction:

“As soon as this is over, I’m outta here,” Alexia muttered. 

            “Not so fast.  Remember, we’re a part of the reception line.  You have to stand and smile until everyone’s done worshipping—I mean, congratulating Dad.  Besides, you should stick around,” Michael murmured, his smile pure delight.  “I’ll bet your night improves.”

            “I’m sure it will.”

            Just as soon as she got out of here and called Blake.  She surreptitiously glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner, noting it was already eleven-thirty. 

            Why couldn’t her father have toasted goodbye to all his glory at a reasonable hour, instead of pushing it to the limits and forcing everyone to stay so late?  She glanced around.  Most of the guests were pretty darned old.  They probably wanted warm milk and their beds instead of a boring speech and champagne. 

            Skimming the crowd, her gaze flew right past one particular face.  Then, her brain screaming a warning, her eyes flew back so fast she probably lost a few lashes. 

            Blake?

            Brow furrowed, she shook her head in denial. 

            What was he doing here? 

            Then her focus widened.  Horror filled her with a cold, icy sort of misery.

            No! 

            Her eyes bounced from his uniform to the medals glinting off his chest, back to his face and then to the crowd of men he was standing in.  SEALS.

            Navy SEALS.

            The man who’d driven her crazy, who had her thinking forever thoughts and craving a relationship, the one who made her want to play house—naked—was also the one thing, the only thing, on her forbidden relationship list.  Military.  Elite military, and up until one speech ago, under her father’s command. 

            How had she missed the signs? 

Why hadn’t he told her?

            And when the hell would these speeches be over so she could run away?    

             

            Blake watched the expressions chase across Alexia’s face.  Shock, then disbelief, quickly followed by fury.  Then she shifted.  Her body weight, the tilt of her head, and her expression.  It was like she’d slammed the door shut.

            Shit. 

            As much as he wanted to avoid any matchmaking from the Admiral, he was equally determined to hold onto the sweet, pleasurable oblivion Alexia’s body provided. 

            Hurry, hurry, hurry, he silently urged his commanding officer, knowing the longer Alexia had to stew, the harder it would be to charm her out of her snit. 

            Thankfully, the older man chose that moment to raise his glass in thanks.  Blake absently followed along with the rest of the room, raising his as well.  But his eyes didn’t leave Alexia. 

            A good thing, because as soon as the crowd shifted, she lost herself in it.  Clearly growing up with military influence had taught her a thing or two. 

            Of course, Blake had some pretty solid training on his side.  He noted the direction she was going, then skirted the outside of the crowd, cutting her off just before she reached the door. 

            He placed his hand on her shoulder with just enough pressure to stop her escape.  She hissed, like cold water being thrown on a sizzling fire. 

            Blake dropped his hand. 

            “Surprise,” he said quietly, suddenly very aware that they were surrounded by her family and his superiors.  None of which needed any details as to his and Alexia’s relationship.  “I didn’t realize you were Admiral Pierce’s daughter.”

            “And I didn’t realize it mattered who my father was.”  Her tone was as cold as her eyes.  A temperature he’d have sworn was impossible to drop to for a woman as hot as she. 

            “It doesn’t,” he said, dancing out of that trap.  Alert, knowing there were more to come, he weighed his words carefully.  “I hadn’t realized we had mutual interests.”

            She gave him a long, considering look that made him wish he was in combat gear. 

“I hadn’t either.  That’s one of those things that usually comes up in conversation.  Which is another thing we never had.

            Blake shifted to block her exit again.

            “Where are you going?” he asked.

            “Away.”

            Blake had swum through the Arctic Ocean once and swore, it’d been warmer than her tone.  Brows arched, he gestured to the open French Doors. 

“Why not go this way, then,” he suggested.  “We can talk.”

“No.”  Lips pressed so tight together they were white at the edges, she took a long, deep breath through her nose, then exhaled slowly.  “No, thank you.  I’d rather not go out on the patio.  I’d rather not talk.  I prefer to go home.”

            “I’ll go with you.”

            “I prefer to go alone.”

    

Uh oh.  I think Blake’s in trouble.  And I think Alexia’s pretty upset. 

Now, most of my personal rules are a lot easier to follow than Alexia’s:

·         - Everything looks better with cute shoes. 

·         - If you’re going to do it, enjoy it.

·       -   Empowering others is good.  Disempowering yourself is bad. 

How about you?  Do you have any special guilty pleasures?  And how about rules for indulging in those guilty pleasures?  

Tawny Weber has been writing sassy, sexy romances since her first Harlequin Blaze hit the shelves in 2007.  A fan of Johnny Depp, cupcakes and color coordination, she spends a lot of her time shopping for cute shoes, scrapbooking and hanging out on Facebook. 

Readers can check out Tawny’s books at her website or join her Red Hot Readers Club for goodies like free reads, complete first chapter excerpts, recipes, insider story info and much more.  And for a limited time, she has a few open spots on her Street Team! 

Today's Special - - Jessica Scott

It's my pleasure to welcome Jessica Scott to the Romance Dish today.  I was first introduced to Jessica a few years back at various romance internet sites where we both posted - at the time, she was on active duty in Iraq - and I've followed her writing, and military, journey since then.  She's a career army officer, mother of two daughters, three cats, three dogs and two escape artist hamsters, wife to a career NCO and wrangler of all things stuffed and fluffy.  She has commanded two companies, served in Germany, Korea, Fort Hood and Iraq.  She says she's a terrible cook and an even worse housekeeper but she's a pretty good shot with her assigned weapon.  Her children are pretty well adjusted and her husband still loves her, despite burned water and a messy house.  Her debut novel, Because of You was released last November and October brings another new book, Until There Was You.  You can find Jessica on the internet at her website, blog, Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.  Sign up for her newsletter here.   

Welcome, Jessica!  Congratulations on the upcoming release of UNTIL THERE WAS YOU.  Please tell our readers what they can expect from this book. 

Evan & Claire are an opposites attract storyline. They battle so often and so much when they actually start getting along, neither of them can believe it. Here’s the official blurb:

From the back cover:

He plays by the rules, she’s not afraid to break them. Now these two strong-willed army captains will prove that opposites attract . . .

A by-the-book captain with a West Point background, Captain Evan Loehr refuses to mix business with pleasure—except for an unguarded instance years ago when he succumbed to the deep sensuality of redheaded beauty Claire Montoya. From that moment on, though, Evan has been at odds with her, through two deployments to Iraq and back again. But when he is asked to train a team prepping for combat alongside Claire, battle-worn Evan is in for the fight of his life.

Strong, gutsy, and loyal, Captain Claire Montoya has worked hard to earn the rank on her chest. In Evan, Claire sees a rigid officer who puts the rules before everything else—including his people. When the mission forces them together, Claire soon discovers that there is more to Evan than meets the eye.

He’s more than the rank on his chest; he’s a man with dark secrets and deep longings. For all their differences, Evan and Claire share two crucial passions: their country and each other.

Sounds like a story I'm going to enjoy!  Jessica, as an Army officer, you’re already intimately acquainted with military life.  How does this knowledge help – or hinder – your writing process when creating stories set within the military?

Thanks so much for having me here today! I’d say the military experience makes it harder b/c I speak the lingo and understand so much more intuitively than non military readers. I don’t say or think improvised explosive device, I say/think IED. I don’t say physical training uniform, I say PTs and everyone around me gets that. So forcing myself to translate makes things a lot tougher, you know? That’s usually something I save for the round of revisions.

That has to be difficult when using acronyms is the norm.  My late husband was career military (though we didn't meet until after his retirement)  and I was forever asking him to translate the lingo.   

Many scenes from books and movies end up on the “cutting room” floor.  What’s the one scene you would never cut from UNTIL THERE WAS YOU?

Oh wow. In my last book there were a couple of scenes that made it through every single draft. On this one, I can’t think of a single scene that survived since the first draft. I think the one scene that could not change, though, would be the one where Claire first learns Evan’s secret. It’s probably my most favorite scene.

Most military-set romances are romantic suspense yet your books are straight romance.  Was this a conscious decision you made before you started writing or did the characters dictate their story to you?

Well, first off, I suck at writing suspense. Love reading, can’t write it worth a damn. But that not withstanding, I did make a conscious choice to write these books as contemporary romances. I wanted to showcase real things soldiers were facing and have more emotional connection to them, if that makes sense.

That makes perfect sense!  I know a lot of readers who enjoy romances in a military setting but don't want the suspense.  

UNTIL THERE WAS YOU is your second novel.  Is it a stand-alone or will readers enjoy it more if they read BECAUSE OF YOU first?

It’s a stand alone novel. Originally, it was connected and the last book of the trilogy but my editors worked with me to change things up to make the storyline more powerful. There’s actually no overlap between UNTIL THERE WAS YOU and BECAUSE OF YOU.

You’re a wife, mom, active duty Army officer and author.  That’s a lot of balls to keep in the air!  How do you balance all of your roles? 

I don’t. Some days, being a mom wins. Some days, being a soldier wins. Other days, being a writer takes precedence. Anyone who tells you they’ve got everything covered, well, that person isn’t me. I drop things all the time. My housework for instance. There is a mountain of laundry in my hallway that I should be deeply ashamed of. Instead, I’m writingJ and happier for it, I should add.

I imagine the above-mentioned roles also bring a great deal of stress into your life.  What’s your favorite way to relax and “get away from it all?”

Every so often, when things get really out of control, I go get a massage. It’s therapeutic in a lot of ways.

I'm a firm believer in the therapeutic benefits of massage.

We never tire of hearing how a new author receives “the call.”  The story of your first sale is unusual and fascinating.  Will you share it with us?

Last year, right after the Navy SEALS got Bin Laden, the romance world went nuts for military romance. Sue Grimshaw had just been hired on at Ballatine Bantam Dell and I saw a blog where she said she was looking for a military romance that was not romantic suspense. I sent her a note on twitter because her old email address had bounced and well, the rest as they say is history. Seriously, DO NOT do this unless editors/agents say they’ll accept pitches that way.

What’s next?

Next up is finishing up BACK TO YOU which will tie into BECAUSE OF YOU. That will be the last book in this leg of the Coming Home series. After that, we shall see where the muse takes me!

Thank you for visiting with us today, Jessica.  It's been a pleasure!  Do you have a question for our readers?   

Tell me how you decide to try a new author?  


I’m giving away a digital eARC of UNTIL THERE WAS YOU to someone today!   


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jessica is having a preorder giveaway - the UNTIL THERE WAS YOU PREORDER SWEEPSTAKES -  all throughout September until Oct 7th! If you preorder UNTIL THERE WAS YOU, you get entered into a chance to win a Kindle Fire HD or a Nook Color. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here’s the official excerpt! UNTIL THERE WAS YOU by Jessica Scott, Excerpt You can preorder UNTIL THERE WAS YOU at these ebookstores or wherever ebooks are sold! B & N | Amazon | Powell's| iBookstore

Today's Special - - J.L. Saint

We're happy to welcome J.L. Saint back to The Romance Dish!  J.L, who also writes under the names of Jennifer St. Giles and Jennifer Saints (and is known to the Dishes as Jenni), is currently working on a terrific military romantic suspense series.  The second book in the series, Tactical Deception was released in March.


Jenni is one busy lady.  In addition to her writing, she's also a surgical nurse, mom, vice-president of a charitable organization that helps women's and children's causes and, if that isn't enough, she also writes screenplays!  To find out more about Jenni and her books, visit her website and catch up with her at Facebook and Twitter.

Welcome, Jenni!

What drives your day?

Through many of the difficulties that I have recently navigated, there are certain truths which stand out in my mind.  One of them is that every person, no matter how young or old, needs to have, a motto.  A few simple words they put into their mind at the start of the day that fuels and directs them through the challenges they face.  Mine center around what I’ve come to understand as the true measure of success.  It is not financial gain, though for a writer to be able to prosper greatly from their work is a beautiful thing that I hope to one day enjoy.  To me the true measure of success is touching the lives and hearts of others.  So my motto that drives me every day, my motto that drives every story I write, my motto that defines the direction of my future can be found in these six words.  Dream, Believe, Create, Inspire, Love, Heal.  Dream:  In dreaming of all of things possible a person fills their heart with hope. Believe:  In believing all things are possible a person becomes a dynamic force of forward moving energy. Create:  In creating a person taps into the wellspring of one’s heart and shares something that no one else on this earth can share because each person is an individual. Inspire:  When you dream, believe and create, you inspire others around you. Love: Inspiring others is the best way to love another person. Heal.  Love is the great healer in life.

I write romance because to me romance is dreaming, believing, creating, inspiring, loving, and healing.

What drives your day and your life?  Please share so that someone else might be inspired, feel loved, and healed. 

Now that I have been all serious, I am going to go crazy on you.  I’ve often said that writers don’t develop split personalities, they acquire pseudonyms.  I have three.  Jennifer St. Giles, JL Saint, and Jennifer Saints.  They all sort of came into existence in order to fit the genre I wrote from historical gothic to military thriller to sexy contemporary romance.

Today, I hope I don’t make your head spin, but I am going to be all three of my personalities because I have something great happening in each of the genres I am currently writing in.  (We won’t mention the fact that I have several stories on my computer just waiting to be finished that don’t fit in the three categories above.  When I get them done I will have to close my eyes and play eeny-miney-moe to pick which one I will publish the book under because I promised I would not take on another name.

As Jennifer St. Giles, the re-released trade paperback of Darkest Dreams (sequel to Midnight Secrets) will hit the shelves on July 3.  The third book in the Killdaren trilogy, Silken Shadows, will be re-released in e-book form on July 10^th.  The covers are amazing!

As Jennifer Saints, I will be releasing the third book in the Weldon Brothers Series, Hard Irish around the first or second week in July. 

Hard hat in hand, Jared Weldon goes undercover.  But the answers he finds at McKenna Construction.  Leaves him drowning in passion and hard up against a killer.

( Ahem, I had promised myself and my readers that I would have it done by June 30^th, but alas I must not be as young as I once was.  Life has intruded, and my ability to write all night and work all day is gone.  But I want the story right so, please be patient as I get Jared Weldon and Rocky McKenna hot and steamy on the page).

Lastly, as JL Saint, I hope it is okay to share some exciting news. Romantic suspense author, Cindy Gerard and thriller author, Andrew Peterson gave me quotes for the cover of Tactical Deception, the second book of my Silent Warrior Series.

"TACTICAL DECEPTION is razor sharp, smart, and smokin' hot!  I loved it!" -- Cindy Gerard, New York Times Best-selling author

"J.L. Saint's Silent Warrior series is teeming with breathtaking emotion and explosive action. Thoroughly entertaining!" -- Andrew Peterson, author of Forced to Kill

A shout out to both of these great and gracious authors. 

So all of you out there reading this blog today, find the motto of your heart, but until then, remember to dream, believe, create, inspire, love, and heal.  Then you will have truly succeeded in life.

Love
Jennifer St. Giles aka JL Saint aka Jennifer Saints.

LOL.

Thanks, Jenni! So, dear readers, what drives your day and your life? Please share!

Today's Special - - J.L. Saint

It's our pleasure to welcome J.L. Saint (who also writes as Jennifer St. Giles and Jennifer Saints) back to The Romance Dish.  Jennifer's next book, Tactical Deception, an ebook that will be released March 13th by Samhain Publishing,  is the second book in her terrific Silent Warrior military romantic suspense series. (Read PJ's review of the first book in the series, Collateral Damage here.)  When not busy writing new books, Jennifer's days - and nights - are filled with her responsibilities as a mother, nurse, event planner and vice-president of a charitable foundation that helps women's and children's causes.  One wonders when she sleeps!  

First let me thank the gracious ladies of the Romance Dish for inviting me back to share my upcoming book, Tactical Deception.  It is the second book in my Silent Warrior Series, and takes up just shortly after Collateral Damage left off.  The world is still reeling from recent events and the men from Delta are all fighting to pull their lives together after tragedy.  They are flawed and vulnerable and make mistakes, but my Silent Warriors have the courage to walk through fire when it comes to protecting their country and loved ones.   My inspiration for writing these books is the many men and women who have put their lives on the line for our country.  There aren’t enough thanks that can cover the debt, but I can share stories about heroes and heroines like them, so others may be inspired to express their thanks.

I also write romance because I believe that love is the greatest thing.  Love is the the greatest gift we can give to another and the greatest need every heart has.  So I invite you to read my stories about love and heroes and heroines who discover love as they put their life and hearts on the line.  From gothic historical to paranormal to contemporary romance to thrillers, you can catch excerpts of them all at Jenniferstgiles.com.

I'd love for you to share your story with me.  Who is the silent hero or heroine in your life?  I’d love to hear about them.

I will be giving away one ebook copy of Collateral Damage and one ebook copy of Tactical Deception to two lucky winners.

 

Tactical Deception, Silent Warrior Series, Book 2

One tormented soldier. One woman. Eight snipers. Someone’s going down…

The fallout from the team’s failed mission to Lebanon is still tearing Lt. Col. Roger Weston apart. God help them all if the media gets wind of the real story. Worse, guilt is eating him alive over a decision that left a fallen warrior’s wife without a husband…and exposed to danger from her radical family.

No matter what, Mari Dalton’s safety and wellbeing—and that of her unborn child—come first.

Mari is certain God is punishing her. She loved the man who rescued her from a windowless cell in Afghanistan, and never betrayed their marriage. But she has never been able to forget her body’s reaction to Roger. Now she is the target of terrorists bent on destroying the heart of America. As Roger lays his life on the line to protect her, they uncover a plot already in motion to assassinate the President. As the world teeters on the edge of chaos, any hope for a future rests in Roger’s already blood-stained hands…and the quietly faithful woman who holds his heart.

Excerpt from Tactical Deception.

Before the guilt of Neil’s death could get another strangling hold on him, Roger marched to his bedroom door. He couldn’t effectively take care of Mari if she hid herself from him. Something had to change. He knocked on the door.

No answer.

He knocked harder.

Still no answer. Worried now, he opened the door. “Mari?”

Light from the bathroom highlighted her figure at the window. She stood minus her

abaya and hijab—her black gown and head scarf. She wore a long tunic over slim pants, a vision of cream-colored silk and ebony hair that fell well below her waist. Gold leaves embroidered the collar, sleeves and hems of her outfit. The effect was delicate, exotic, almost ethereal.

Tears streamed down her cheeks and she had her hands pressed to her abdomen, to the child growing within her.

“Are you hurting? Is it the baby? Do you need to go to the hospital?”

“No. The baby is fine. No pain.”

Relief had his blood rushing with dizzying force, leaving him almost light-headed and his chest tightened into a knot. Emotion, pain, and desire sucker punched him in the gut and below. What kind of low-bellied dick was he?

The lowest he decided. He couldn’t stop his heated arousal in response to her beauty, but he damn well could ignore it and remember with every shred of decency he had in him that if it wasn’t for him, Neil would be with Mari right now and none of the shit that had happened to her lately would have occurred.

She stood frozen a moment then turned, reaching for her black gown.

“Don’t. Please don’t hide from me.” His voice escaped in a harsh rasp.

She paused, looking at him, her hand resting on her heavy gown. Her golden eyes were wide with…fear?

He covered the distance between them.

“Are you afraid of me?” Their gazes met and she lowered hers.

He knew before he slid his thumb under her chin how soft her skin was. Just weeks ago, he’d lost his restraint and kissed her tear-dampened cheeks after Dugar had taken a shot at her outside the hospital. That night he’d held her bandaged hand as she’d restlessly slept between nightmares. And until helping her up from the street today, it was the last time he’d touched her.

He clasped her hand resting on her gown and brought it to his chest, placing her palm firmly over his racing heart. Her gaze reconnected with his and he asked her again. “Are you afraid of me?”

“No,” she whispered before shutting her eyes and pulling her hand away.

She said no, but he swore he saw fear swirling in her conflicted expression.

“Why then? Why didn’t you tell me how bad things were for you? I could have helped or gotten you help. And why didn’t you tell me about the shooting lessons? I would have arranged for them. Made sure you were safe.”

“You would have?” She blinked at him with surprise. “But you were adamant about me not leaving the post for any reason. Not even to go with Holly to the store in Fayetteville.”

“Going to a shoe sale in a crowded mall is different than going to a gun range. Besides, learning to protect yourself is more important than buying shoes.” Roger raked his fingers through his hair. He remembered the conversation they’d had a few weeks back. And yeah, he’d been pretty strong in his objections about them going to the mall. But then, someone had been calling in bomb threats at that time too. It had been three weeks after Dugar’s attempts to kill her and Roger would have bet money Dugar was behind the threats. He hadn’t told Mari about any of it though. He hadn’t wanted her to worry. Only to heal.

She frowned at him as if he’d grown horns. “What?” he asked. Had he said something wrong?

“So what does that mean? I am not supposed to do something, but if it’s something you approve of then it is all right to do it?”

Hell. She made him sound as if he were a bipolar prison guard. He counted to ten, hoping to ease his frustration, but it didn’t work. “No. Well, sometimes, maybe, yes. I mean—” Tension knotted his brow. What did he mean? Couldn’t she see the difference between the two outings? “We can discuss the details later. I just need to know why you couldn’t tell me about the anxiety you’re having and that you wanted to learn self-defense.”

“I didn’t want you to worry.”

Roger opened his mouth then shut it. He’d kept things from her for the same reason, but this was different. She’d put herself in both physical and mental jeopardy. Then again, hadn’t he set himself as her prison guard as opposed to a bodyguard? Had he done anything personal to put her at ease enough to be able to share her anxiety with him? No, he’d let his guilt and his need to avoid his attraction to her keep her at a cold, formal distance. He had to change. “You can’t do that anymore. From now on, no matter what you want to do, just tell me and whether I like it or not, I will help you do it, okay? It is the only way I can assure your safety.”

“That’s it? If I want to go buy shoes then you’ll take me?”

He exhaled. “Yes. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to voice my opinion on whether it’s a smart thing to do or not. And if I really think something is too dangerous then I expect you to respect my serious concerns. This isn’t a forever state of affairs. It’s just until Dugar is caught, then you’ll be your own woman, okay?”

Her own woman? Did she even know who she was? Mari looked up at Roger, her heart racing so fast she could barely think.  A few moments ago, she’d been staring out at the purple-red sunset, wondering how she could face Roger.  She’d done exactly what he’d told her not to do and it had turned out so badly.  She’d been sickened over how miserably she’d failed in establishing any shred of independence.  Her worst fears about herself had come true. She’d had a total panicked meltdown. She’d been thrust back into the darkness of what had happened in Afghanistan. She’d hit the bottom and was surprised that she’d survived it all. Her pride was bruised, but she was okay.

Now she was not only facing Roger but… she stood alone with him, in his bedroom, wearing only her tunic and pants and she wasn’t embarrassed or shamed.  She wanted this familiarity between them.

He wasn’t as mad as she thought he would be either.

It wasn’t as if her choosing to leave the post didn’t matter. She could see that he was clearly upset and worried about her. But it wasn’t how she’d thought it would be. Her father would have—

Roger wasn’t her father. Never would be. But he wasn’t the easygoing teddy bear Neil had been either. In some ways Roger was like a fierce warrior. Dangerous and remote. She’d seen the deadly anger in his eyes when it came to Dugar. She had no doubt that Roger would kill Dugar with his bare hands if he had to. She’d also seen a haunted darkness in him too. Roger had deep secrets that she instinctively knew he’d never let another person near.

Neil had been different. There wasn’t a part of him he didn’t openly share with her. It wasn’t that he didn’t keep information from her. There were things about his job he couldn’t tell her and things she would never ask him. But his soul and heart had wrapped warmly around her as accepting and loving as a puppy. He’d never said anything to curtail what she did, but then, she’d never ventured beyond the strictures of her upbringing. It was two years before he could talk her into going to the store alone.

It wasn’t until she met Holly that Mari started thinking about doing things outside of the rules, about getting an education, a job, learning to shoot a gun, and yes, one of those things was standing without her abaya before a man who wasn’t her husband, her brother or her father. A man who said she could be her own woman? What did that mean?

“Okay?” Roger angled his head to look into her eyes as he set his hands on her shoulders.

She nodded. Her tongue was tied in the gratefulness clogging her throat and in the fire burning through her senses at his heated touch. He’d made this whole big problem and the fiasco of the day all so simple. So easy to let go of and move forward. At least she thought he had. Currently her mind reeled, making coherent thought debatable. His nearness and intensity had her blood racing places her mind couldn’t go yet.

He released her and stepped back. “Hungry?”

“Yes.” She drew in a much-needed breath of air. She thought about grabbing her abaya and putting it on now. Considering the way he made her feel, it would be safer.

“What do you want to eat for dinner?” He started walking out of the bedroom, but his gaze fell on the rumpled bed and she cringed. It looked as if a tornado had struck it; she’d tossed and turned so much.

She rushed over to straighten the bedcovers. “Whatever you want will be fine.”

She didn’t dare look at him. What he must think. He’d loaned her his bed and she couldn’t even leave it neat. Leaning forward with her knees against the mattress, she fixed the blanket and threw the pillows back up to the headboard. She stood back quickly and hit a hard, hot body—an unmistakably aroused, hard, hot, male body. His arm wrapped around her when she teetered with surprise and a visceral shock wave of want hit her hard.

---