TJ Michaels

Just received these in the mail and I can’t wait to give them away at the Romantic Times Book Lover Convention in L.A. next week! I just learned that there was a trading card craze going on and jumped right into the fray. Luckily, Robin from Robin Ludwig Design Inc. was there to catch me.

Look at the beauties she made for me! If you’re a fan of the Vampire Council of Ethics series, especially if you’ll be at RT, be sure and hunt me down. I’ll also try and get them posted on the Romance Trading Card site for you.

Wheee!

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With the recent terrible events in Japan, I want to dedicate today’s Snippet Saturday excerpt to the fabulous people of that country.

This book is set in Japan. In fact, the hero and heroine meet, have their first serious fight, and makeup all during the springtime. Enjoy this Snippet from Hatsept Heat! Afterward, visit the other awesome Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of this post.

HATSEPT HEAT
Vampire Council of Ethics, Book Three
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God, please, please let a bad guy cross my path right now. The need to hit something, anything, was so strong Kenoe clenched his teeth and shoved his hands into his pockets as far as they would go. He’d already had his love play interrupted. The last thing he needed was for someone to see him knock a hole into a wall and call the police to take him to the crazy house.

The moist, cool evening air sank through his jacket and into his skin, adding a chill to his already morbid mood. A soft breeze brought the scent of cherry, birch and Japanese pear, all so prolific in this country at this time of year. In the distance, the low-hanging clouds were lit up by the profusion of lights and signs typical of the city’s nightlife.

Kenoe’s keen hearing picked up the sounds of one of Shibuya’s main drags a few streets over. Auto and foot traffic, crowds congregating, discos, bars, coffee houses. Young and old, it was all about fun at night in this district. Surely everyone was enjoying what was left of the evening…everyone except him. And it was all that damned Kimora’s fault.

Kenoe had made it six steps from Shinju’s front door when his body slammed to a screeching halt. Instincts on full tilt, he picked up a slight, almost silent rustle off to his left. Aha. Just what he needed. Right there in front of him crouched behind a bush was the man he’d seen tailing Shinju before. The same one he’d sent a digital photo of to Bix this afternoon. And Kenoe was in the perfect mood to do a little interrogation. Too bad he didn’t have his tainted blade on him. Kenoe liked to call the film on his katana the Dr. Carin Vampire Puke Serum. One cut with the stuff and a full-blooded vamp would fall to his knees in seconds, hurling up his guts. Took the fight right out of ’em and made the scum that Seekers spent their time
chasing a whole lot more cooperative.

Then again, this man moved like a vampire but didn’t smell like one. Would the serum smeared on Kenoe’s blade even affect him?

Well, since Kenoe wasn’t on duty and had left his gear behind in his apartment, his fists would just have to do. He eased up on the man without a sound, extended one hand and lifted him right up off the ground by the back of his collar.

The man responded by kicking backward with his heel to land a blow to Kenoe’s solar plexus. Even a vampire had to flinch at that one. Might even have a bruise in the morning, and the pain was just enough to piss Kenoe off some more. Dropping the guy to the ground, he moved in swiftly. Granted, the man got in a few good punches, but even with vamp speed he was no match for a full-blooded male Seeker in his prime. So Kenoe proceeded to kick his vampire-moving-but-no-smelling ass all over the front of Shinju’s porch. Finished playing with his prey, he’d just cocked his fist back to deliver a knockout blow when the door opened and a blur that looked like an enraged woman flew at him. Followed by a knee to the balls.

A glimpse at the male protagonist from the sci-fi romance, Death and Roses. Be sure to enjoy the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the end of this post.

Note for Readers: You must be over eighteen to read this excerpt.

DEATH and ROSES
a Hunter for Hire novel
Ellora’s Cave | Amazon (Kindle) | Barnes and Noble

He’d teased her mercilessly during dinner. Having surprised her with the knowledge that he could actually cook more than dehydrated military rations, Tanil was pretty proud of the fresh foods he’d prepared as a result of raiding her cold storage. He’d ended the meal with a shot of fruity Tropicure for the both of them.

And Scharsi was as potent as the liquor he’d served up. And he couldn’t wait to taste her, to see if she was as sweet, whether she would coat his tongue, then burn him on the way down.

Thoughts tumbled around in his head but he kept his mouth closed. After all, he could sense her uncertainty, and the last thing he wanted was to say something stupid and chase her away.

Instead he held her hand in a gentle grip and led her to her quarters in silence. The door slid open with a quiet hiss. She froze at the threshold. Raising his hands slowly so as not to startle her, Tanil let his fingers dip into the tense muscles of her neck and shoulders. A few seconds passed, then he stepped closer.

“Invite me in?”

A slight turn and her gaze locked with his.

For a moment, Tanil was struck by the sheer, raw beauty of the woman. Words stuck in his throat as he moved around her body to stand before her.

“I have to touch you, Shar.” Gently he placed his hands on either side of her head and guided her into his kiss. Just before their lips touched he stilled, looking deeper into the light brown of her muted honey-colored eyes.

And there it was—fear. Stark, barely leashed. Something he doubted she had much experience with. Her facial features gave away nothing. Every muscle in her body appeared relaxed and uncommonly still. Yet her eyes told it all. She was terrified. The question—what was she afraid of? Certainly not him in a physical sense. Scharsi was built like a damn prison hulk—strong enough to contain the meanest, baddest criminal in the ‘verse. If she wanted out, there was nothing he could do to stop her. They both knew that.

Sex? Sure, she could handle that. He was, after all, former Interplanetary Military. He knew all about the SS program. Scharsi would have been trained to be good at it like she was groomed to be good at everything else. But attraction? Now that was another matter altogether. And from what he knew of the rigorous and brutal training that all SS went through, attraction was not something that was allowed. Ever. She would be woefully unprepared to deal with it.

Unable to resist, Tanil drew his thumb over a plump bottom lip, teasing the flesh until she gently bit down. He shook his head and smiled. Not a plastic, perfectly practiced spreading of his lips, but a genuine smile that he felt clear down to the depths of his soul.

He knew exactly what she would do next—attempt to regain control.

“Not happening, Shar.”

“What?” she asked. Her tongue now followed his thumb back and forth across her mouth.

“You don’t get to be in charge. Not tonight.” Or any other night. “But I promise I won’t fuck you without your full consent and cooperation. Ever.”

She started to protest, he could feel it in the tightening muscles in the center of her back as he moved a hand to gently stroke up and down her spine.

“You get to be a woman right now. No need to be a soldier. Let me take care of you, even just for a little while. Give me complete control of your release. Promise me.”

Snippet Saturday authors
Emma Petersen
Jody Wallace
Leah Braemel
Lissa Matthews
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Selena Blake
Taige Crenshaw
Delilah Devlin
Lauren Dane

Yay for Snippet Saturday! The theme of the week is ‘Openers’. I love books with good strong openings. In my own writing I like to introduce the good guys and the bad guys in the first chapter if at all possible because I like to show you what I’m working with, so to speak. This week I picked the opening book to Primed to Pounce.

It’s a story about a human undercover agent, Delaine Jeris, with a bit of a paranormal twist. It was my very first published work and received a fabulous 4 stars from Romantic Times. Enjoy this introduction to our very very bad guy, a brilliant scientist (yes, I have a thing for scientists ;D) who thinks our girl could use a little bit of reigning in.

Enjoy the snippet then visit the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links to their excerpts at the bottom of the post.

Blurb: Astin Pharmaceutical and Biotech has its share of mad scientists. Delaine must get the goods on the crackpot who is using his scientific genius to create his own personal harem. During her investigation, she meets a man who would give Adonis a run for his money. After a messy divorce, Delaine is in no hurry to love anytime soon, but her spirit guide, a sleek, black mountain lion, is convinced he’s their mate.

When Justin lays eyes on Delaine, he’s dying to get next to her. There’s one problem—he’s seen her walking around a secret part of the Astin facility that she had no clearance to enter. Is she in league with the corrupt scientist he’s tailing? Or is she a mole who could blow his case, or worse, his cover?

When Delaine discovers the man she’s taken a chance on is undercover, a decision must be made. Should she kick his butt for not being honest about his undercover status while working her case? Or should she simply shoot him for sleeping with her best friend?

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Baker walked into his office, closed the door firmly and turned the deadbolt. It was six-thirty in the morning and no one was around yet, but if nothing else, he was cautiously meticulous. He sat down, opened his briefcase and pulled out the file he’d been looking over during breakfast. He laid the manila folder on his desk, flipped it open and pulled out a picture of the new production process specialist being brought in.

Her name was Delaine Jeris, a technical expert newly assigned to his business unit to develop the new neuromuscular drug Zalactin. He would have to remember to reward the woman in Research & Development for getting him this information. Since the Jeris woman was coming on as a consultant and not an employee, neither Human Resources nor he had been involved. If not for his little bitch in R&D, who’d nicked the info from the dupe she was sleeping with in Purchasing, Baker would never have known someone outside of his “special circle of friends” was joining his team. Yes, he would have to thank…what was her name? Sarah Ann, yes that was it. He’d have to thank Sarah Ann for alerting him. A quick screw up against a wall should do it. He didn’t have the time or patience for a slow one.

He picked up the picture in one hand and studied it closely. This Delaine was a fine-looking woman. Her résumé said she was an expert in systems, database and process analysis. Very impressive. Very beautiful.

A hand found its way down to his crotch and stroked his burgeoning erection through his trousers as he eyes moved over her photo. He noted the intelligence in her dark brown almond-shaped eyes and her flawless cinnamon skin. Imagining his fists knotting in the long natural curls of her hair, he leaned his head back in his chair, her photo in one hand, and unzipped his pants and freed his rock-hard cock.

Baker closed his brilliant green eyes, the image of Delaine Jeris etched firmly in his mind. He spilled his seed into one of the handkerchiefs he kept in a drawer for these occasions and wondered if the woman could be bought or, depending on who she worked for, sold.

Snippet Saturday authors:
Jody Wallace
Emma Petersen
Leah Braemel
Lissa Matthews
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Selena Blake
Taige Crenshaw
Delilah Devlin
Lauren Dane
Shelli Stevens