TJ Michaels

At holiday time we get in the kitchen and my family cooks together. My son makes a mean fresh cranberry sauce from fresh berries. My daughter makes breakfast wonderful with her homemade cinnamon rolls, and we do all the meal prep together for whatever nom-nom’s we’re going to have that year. We typically choose something different each year. Last time we have gumbo – genuine seafood gumbo made by these hands, compliments of my Louisiana grandma *wheee!!*. This year we’re down to the wire and still deciding what we’re cooking. But whatever it is, we’ll do it together.

Releasing this week is Forever December – the story of a hunky vampire out to secure a second chance at love. In this snippet, our heroine has just rolled into her vacation home to discover her children, home for a visit from college, have prepared her some goodies. And she’s all ready to dive in!

And don’t forget to check out the fabulous Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the end of the post!

The sun had just dipped below the mountain peaks when Melaniece pulled into the garage. Snow had begun falling in fat, wet flakes and she was relieved to see a big, black SUV covered with a fresh dusting of the white stuff parked on the other side of the wide garage. She slammed her car into park thinking now was a good time to do a funky little happy dance—her children, Denise and Melvin, were already here.

The second she shut off the engine and popped the trunk, an excited and very loud female came hurtling out the door. A blur of what looked like a white sweatshirt covered with red Japanese hiragana symbols and a pair of black pants practically tackled her before she’d cleared the car door.

“Hi, Mom,” Denise squealed with happiness.

Melaniece’s heart melted and a big grin tipped up the sides of her mouth. Awww, it was so nice to be loved by one’s children.

“Hi, sweet pea, it’s so good to see you. Where’s your brother?” Melaniece asked, trying to peek over her daughter’s shoulder toward the open door leading into the house.

“I’m right here, Mom. How are you?” Melvin asked cheerfully. Long jean-clad legs carried him out to the garage and to Melaniece’s side. Six-feet-two inches of slender muscular male wrapped his arms around both sister and mom, engulfing them in a warm group hug.

Melaniece stepped back and grinned widely at her “babies”. At eighteen and twenty years old, they were mirror images of herself, with the exception of their dwarfing her modest five-feet-four inches. Long, dark locs covered their heads, apple pie cheeks sported dimples and they both flashed perfect, bright smiles. Their cocoa-n-cream skin and strong physiques were rounded out by stellar personalities. Beautiful and handsome described them to a tee.

Melaniece stepped back and shook her head in disbelief at Melvin. “Boy, are you ever gonna stop growing? I know you’ve grown at least a few good inches since I last saw you. And so good-looking, too? You know you get that from your mama, right?” she quipped. And there it was—the blush only a teasing mom could bring about in a grown son. It bloomed in his cheeks until they looked like little caramel-covered apples.

“And you should see all the girls that chase after him. And once I caught him and the neighbor…” Denise chimed in, ever the older sister.

“Mom!” Melvin implored.

“Okay, enough teasing your brother,” Melaniece chuckled, feeling happier than she had in…well, since her trip home to Michael, er, California. But she wouldn’t dwell on that. Or her goofy dream.

“Help me with my stuff?” Moving toward the already open trunk of her car, she turned to grab whatever was closest at hand and began to fill the arms of both Denise and Melvin with their Christmas gifts.

“Good lord, woman, what is all this?” Melvin asked, feigning a gasp under the weight of a particularly hefty box.

Melaniece didn’t answer, just smiled and handed over package after package until both their arms were loaded. Before she could reach for another one, Melvin said, “Go on in and relax. We’ll bring this stuff in. Dinner is already prepared.”

Melaniece felt her stomach tighten and rumble. Gosh, with all the packing, the long drive up, and preoccupation with her dreams—not to mention the constant low-grade arousal because of those dumb nocturnal thoughts—she’d completely forgotten about breakfast and lunch. Well, her stomach made it clear it was feeling neglected and the loud rumble was heard by all.

An aroma hit her nose the second she stepped over the threshold into the house. Shrimp, tomatoes, garlic…Old Bay Seasoning?

“Wooo, I smell it,” she cried happily. “Cajun food! Oh yeah! Uh-huh!” An awful rendition of the Electric Slide dance carried her on inside. She headed directly to the kitchen, not the least bit offended when her kids’ chuckles followed her. Yep, this was going to be one heck of a Christmas.

EIGHTEEN Snippet Saturday authors to enjoy!
Lauren Dane
Rhian Cahill
Eliza Gayle
Selena Blake
Anne Rainey
Jody Wallace
Lissa Matthews
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Myla Jackson
Taige Crenshaw
Vivian Arend
Alison Kent
Delilah Devlin
HelenKay Dimon
Shelli Stevens
Shiloh Walker
Leah Braemel

In honor of my new Christmas release, Forever December, on December 14th I’ll be hanging out with the Smutketeers for their 12 days of Xmas extravaganza. I’m so totally excited because I’ll be sharing the day with the marvelous Michelle Pillow and Mandy Roth! Woooo!

Be sure to catch my post that day because in addition to hot hunky winter vampires, I’m going to tell you how to make Shrimp Creole. It’s a dish I grew up loving thanks to my Louisiana grandmother. If you make this particular nom-nom, be sure to tell me how it turned out. AND, if you’re going to the Authors After Dark convention in New Orleans, let’s hook up there for sure!

Can you handle…a Forever December?
Coming December 14th

TJ

Carinian’s Seeker, Vampire Council of Ethics Book 1, is FREE for Nook and Kindle for the next two weeks! Get it from BN.com or Amazon.com from November 1 through November 14.

Also, Egyptian Voyage is on sale! Get it at BN.com or Amazon.com… but you can get it for 35% off at Smashwords with this code –> AQ73D

Ooooh, things are getting a bit strange in our world of spirit guides and their charges. Mad men and kidnappers are running amok from Italy to Egypt, all in search of our heroine. Enjoy this snippet from Egyptian Voyage (available on Amazon.com, BN.com and on sale at 35% off at Smashwords with this code –>AQ73D), then visit the fabulous Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of this post. Mwahahahaaa!

~~~~~~~~~~~

A single finger trailed over her shoulders and across the back of her neck as he moved around and around her still body.

“We are in Qarafa.” At her blank stare, he continued. “What Westerners would call The City of the Dead.”

“The who?”

“The City of the Dead,” he repeated in a disconcerting flat-sounding timbre. “This place was an important burial ground hundreds of years ago, now the poor gather here. Thousands of them. Just think, among soaring minarets, mosques, elaborate tombs of sultans and their families, live ordinary men and women. In fact, a lovely widow lives in a tomb room just a few doors down with her children.”

“But, but how?” Chrys stammered. Not from nervousness—she was too angry for that—but from the simple inability to fathom anyone living in a place like this.

“We have not so much thought of cemeteries as a place of the dead, but rather a place where life begins,” Eden replied. “The new tenants have adapted where the families of the dead used to come to spend time with their departed loved ones. Now the grave markers serve as desks and shelves, while strings hung between gravestones are used to dry laundry. As for the light, they’ve brought in the electricity by wires over the roofs coming from the nearby mosque. Pity, really.”

Well, the name certainly fit the place. The City of the Dead—northern Cairo’s four-mile-long walled necropolis that now housed thousands of families and countless small businesses. In this day and age? Amazing.

But it didn’t explain why the hell he’d brought her here. Not to mention he seemed too refined to have a “room” in this place for any virtuous purpose.

“But why…?”

“She thought I was wrong, you know. But I wasn’t, it was her. She’d made the mistake, stupid bitch.”

Okay, the words insane and crackpot came to mind. Chrys bit her tongue and let the man rant.

“Even pharaohs make mistakes. Sometimes deadly ones. But it really doesn’t matter. With you at my side, I have no need of another pharaoh or harem mistress. The tarot was connected to the Rahn asshole after all.”

Then Eden threw back his head and laughed as if the funniest joke in all of creation had just been told. Oookay? When the cackling ceased, Chrys took a slow breath, forced her words to emerge meek and humble.

“What tarot, Eden? I’d really like to understand.”

Hmm. That seemed to please the walking nut job.

With a smile, he stopped circling and stopped in front of her. From his left breast pocket, he removed a beautiful card covered with gold, black and lapis blue Egyptian symbols and hieroglyphs.

“It was the Empress. This card represents the Empress, see? I always selected different, and sometimes unusual, suits of cards, but she always explained them to me. But after I saw you for the first time aboard ship, I kept selecting this same card over and over. And always upside down. Stupid pharaoh had me believing it was because you were losing interest in the Rahn asshole.”

The bottom of Chrys’ stomach danced with unease. Now this was getting freaky. Right, as if Edenweren’t already in that category. She held her thoughts to herself, demanded her fists to remain still. Giving away the fact that her hands were no longer tied would probably make the man stop talking.

And that simply wouldn’t do. Her mate wanted a confession and, damn it, she was going to get him one.

“But you weren’t losing interest in him,”Eden rounded on her with a snarl. “You had no interest in me. But that will change, I promise you. I still don’t understand why he didn’t die.” Eden’s head tilted just a hair to the right, his expression one of genuine bewilderment.

“Die?” Chrys uttered in shock, and this time was no act.

“Yes, die, damn it all. He was supposed to die. I know I cut him in the right spot. But you came and did something to him. What did you do to him? All I wanted to do was stomp his brains out when I came into your apartment and saw you covered with his blood. You were moving toward the phone to call for help while that damned Rahn moaned like a foaling cow on the bathroom floor.”

Chrys fought for calm, begging her spirit guides to send her a large dose and fast. Adonei’s power still pulsed through her body and she fought to keep her temper under control, fought to keep the fierce force of the lion leashed.

~~~~~~~~~~~
Snippet Saturday Authors
Anne Rainey
Eliza Gayle
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Mandy M Roth
Myla Jackson
Taige Crenshaw
Selena Blake
Vivian Arend
Alison Kent
Beth-Ann Mason
HelenKay Dimon
Shelli Stevens
Lauren Dane
Lacey Savage
Shiloh Walker

Enjoy a quick peek into the mind of our villain from Jaguar’s Rule, then visit the fabulous Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of this post.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Tonight he watched her in her pelt and wondered if she was aware he knew who she was. All this time he’d thought she was just another jag female, but an accidental glimpse of her showering on her screened veranda several nights back had revealed more than he’d ever expected.

He’d stayed perfectly still, perched in a tree, and watched the back of the building he’d tracked her to. After awhile, his patience had paid off. She’d stalked from the cover of the jungle and stopped to look around. He hadn’t been seen perched up on the thick branches and was glad for the broad leaves surrounding him. The female melanistic jaguar with her black, smooth coat glistening in the darkness walked up the back stairs of the building. A few seconds later, a beautiful woman with perfect milk chocolate skin and the body of a goddess stood up just outside the door leading into the covered shelter then ducked inside. The warm spray of water left a million sparkling droplets that shined like little diamonds all over her ebon skin.

The spicy rich scent of the soap she slathered on her body floated out and away from her little haven. But the soap couldn’t conceal the sweet nectar gathering between her silken thighs, nor could it hide the unusually spicy scent of her womanly dew. He could smell it from here—she was in heat.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Snippet Saturday authors
Anne Rainey
Jody Wallace
Selena Robins
Eliza Gayle
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Mandy M Roth
Myla Jackson
Taige Crenshaw
Selena Blake
Vivian Arend
Beth-Ann Mason
HelenKay Dimon
Shelli Stevens
Lauren Dane
Shiloh Walker

Today’s Snippet Saturday theme is author’s choice. Honestly I actually like having a specific theme because I love so many books it’s tough to pick a scene that I want to post. And I obviously can’t post the whole book, right *bleh* ;D

So I think I’ll choose something a bit sassy from a book where all the characters have a bit of pizzazz in one way or another. After the excerpt be sure to visit all the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of the page.

Egyptian Voyage
Copyright 2006 by TJ Michaels

One more step and his erection thudded against her stomach, just underneath her breasts and partially hidden by the frothing water. Her heart rate kicked up into overdrive and breathing was a whole lot higher on the scale of important things to do. Okay, time to go. So, why weren’t her legs carrying her the hell out of the damned hot tub?

“Chrysalyn?” he asked, seeking her permission to touch with a whisper-soft plea against the side of her face. With her butt rooted to the spot, she watched one of his large, strong hands move toward her face to remove her sunglasses as the other tipped her chin up just before his lips brushed sensuously against hers.

“Chrys, baby, I’ve missed you so much.” His breath was a barrage of peppermint flowing over her cheek, followed by Eskimo kisses. When was the last time she’d rubbed noses with a man, or anyone for that matter?

His perfectly chiseled body scant inches from hers sent the blood dancing in her veins as the heat in her own skin threatened to out heat the bubbling tub. God, why had he always been able to get to her like this? Especially when she should totally hate the bastard—the dark-haired, tawny-eyed, gorgeous and seemingly sincere bastard. The knowledge that he could move her like no one else pissed her off.

*Or perhaps you are more angry with yourself?* Adonei queried as he faded to a little corner of her mind.

Nope! She was not angry with herself. Even if she had made every dumb decision possible during that rocky period while on the rebound from Rahn. Even if he would have crawled back, she’d simply been too proud to forgive him, determined to stay with the fiancé from hell just to prove a point.

Oooh, but now he nibbled that little spot he knew she liked while whispering her name between little bites.

“God, Chrysalyn, you taste so good,” he murmured against her slightly parted lips before covering her mouth with his. Any gentle intent dissolved into pure lust as he entangled his tongue with hers. She felt herself slip under his spell, felt the petals of her sex tingle and burn, and it had nothing to do with the heat of the hot tub.

Then she was suddenly empty. Rahn was there, but in her mind, she was utterly, totally alone.

Usually an expert at schooling her features, her emotions slipped out of her grasp and ran away from her. The panic that reared up to press against the middle of her chest was etched clearly across her face. Adonei! He was gone. They’d never been apart since the day she’d met him as a child. Why? Why now?

*I am here, Chrysalyn, but I would not disrespect you or your mate by intruding upon your mating.*

‘What? Adonei, don’t you dare leave me!’ she wailed in her head.

*Your mate will take good care of you. Do not worry. I will be near.*

‘My mate? What’s with this mate stuff? Adonei? Come back!’

“Hey, sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Rahn asked, letting her push away just a bit. The concern in his voice, accompanied by a little shake, broke through the wall of fear quickly erecting itself around her heart and snatched her back to the present.

“Are you all right?”

Her gut clenched painfully. All right? Hell no, she wasn’t all right, but it would be a seven-below-zero day in hell before she admitted it. He couldn’t possibly understand the emptiness in her head, the little void in her heart that was always filled with Adonei’s presence. Just the thought of being alone inside her own mind was downright terrifying.

Rahn crooned into her ear, holding her tenderly, gently massaging the muscles of her back. “You look afraid. You know I won’t hurt you, love.”

Still shaken from Adonei’s absence, she snapped, “I’m not afraid of you, Rahn.” And moved to jump out of the tub.

Rahn’s hand wrapped firmly around her biceps just as her toe hit the edge of the Jacuzzi. She froze.

“I’m sorry, Chrys. I didn’t mean to upset you,” he said quickly, his smooth voice full of concern. The pained expression in his deep amber eyes moved something buried inside her she’d thought long dead—the ability to receive comfort from a man. That comfort eased through her heart, mind and body, worked its way to her head and calmed her fears.

SNIPPET SATURDAY AUTHORS – ENJOY!
Anne Rainey
Jody Wallace
Selena Robins
Eliza Gayle
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Mandy M Roth
Myla Jackson
Taige Crenshaw
Selena Blake
Vivian Arend
Alison Kent
Beth-Ann Mason
HelenKay Dimon
Shelli Stevens
Lauren Dane
Lacey Savage
Shiloh Walker

You know, when I first started thinking on this theme I was thinking it referred to important calendar dates. You know, like an anniversary or birthday or date of a memorable event, whether good or not so good. Then it dawned on me that an important date could be that first date, or the dinner date that your beau asked you to marry him or whatever.

And for the first few days I couldn’t think at all of a single excerpt from any of my books! At the time Iwas traveling for work, looking for a new house while away from home, dealing with any other myriad of things and my poor brain was just tired. In the end, I picked an excerpt where the heroine was so wrapped up in what was going on in her head that she wasn’t seeing what was really in front of her. She was missing the forest for the trees…kind of like me right now.

So enjoy this excerpt from Primed to Pounce where Delaine Jeris, our heroine, is so caught up in what she thought was a wrong done against her, that she almost misses out on her dude.

Enjoy, then visit the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of this post ;D

TJ

Excerpt from Primed to Pounce
by TJ Michaels
Copyright @ 2006, All Rights Reserved

*Stop running, Suta. Embrace our mate. He comes.*

‘Yeah, whatever,’ Delaine words were flat and uncaring, and in truth, she hadn’t really been listening to what Sapa was saying to her along the bond.

The sleek mountain cat rolled her eyes and stalked away to a quiet corner of Delaine’s mind. Before she retreated, Delaine felt her frustration. Well, she could forget about meditating. All she could think about was Justin. Justin’s lips. Justin’s hands on her body. Justin treating her like the queen he proclaimed her to be. Cooking for her. Taking her on road trips.

Justin sleeping with her best friend. Rather, a chick that was supposed to be her friend.

She wanted to knock herself in the head. What had she been thinking to get involved with him anyway? He was too nice, too perfect. And you know what they say—if it looks too good to be true, it probably is. So here she was again, in a relationship with a man who couldn’t keep his dick out of another woman’s pants. Her boss might think he was a good guy, but Delaine saw him as nothing but Gary-Number-Two.

Grumbling under her breath, she rose from the back porch and stomped into the cabin. She hit the sheets early, determined not to lose any more sleep over Justin, Pam or her job.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

What the hell was that? On silent feet, Delaine jumped out of bed with her gun in hand. She checked the lock on the window in her bedroom then edged her way to the small living room.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

Someone was banging on the door like they were the police. That was fine, because if it wasn’t the police, whoever it was would limp away with a bullet in the ass.

“Delaine! Open the door!”

She lowered her weapon and clicked on the safety. Justin? Oh my god. How the hell had he found her? Okay, now that was a stupid question, she thought, shaking her head. The man worked for one of the most sophisticated covert organizations in the country. Of course he could find her.

Geesh, Delaine, get it together, girl, she grumbled at herself. ‘And Sapa, stop all that pacing. It’s making me dizzy.’ An irritated growl resonated along the bond.

Sapa had told her Justin would come for her. She hadn’t believed it one whit, not while he had someone else’s warm body to bury his cock in. But Sapa had been wrong, in a manner of speaking. He hadn’t come for her. The bastard had come for Pam. And when she was finished with him, he’d wish he’d kept his distance

With her gun fisted on her hip, she yanked the door open and glared up at him under the light of the single bulb illuminating the small front porch.

“What the hell are you doing here? Why aren’t you with Pam?”

Justin drew his neck back, arched a brow and looked down at her like she was crazy.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Delaine ignored his innocent, confused expression and ground her words into his face. “You. Slept. With. Pam! You bastard!”

“I slept with Pam? You’ve got to be kidding me!” he laughed.

Delaine quirked a brow, not seeing any humor in the situation. His laugh seemed genuine enough, but this was a man whose job was to be an expert at hiding who he really was. As are you. She ignored that little voice and, seeing no humor in the situation, scowled at him and his stupid laughter.

SNIPPET SATURDAY AUTHORS!
Anne Rainey
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Myla Jackson
Taige Crenshaw
Lauren Dane
Helen Kay Dimon
Vivian Arend
Shelli Stevens
Shiloh Walker

Just got in from a business trip to the East coast where Hurricane Irene had done a number the day before I flew in. Happy to say that nothing exciting (read: dangerous) was going on by the time I got there. But the weather can be a funny thing. Temperamental. Or for certain lucky females, the weather can be  a conspirator. Enjoy this snippet from Gift Wrap Optional where our heroine, Melaniece, has just been drop kicked by the weather. Her beau, however, isn’t complaining at all ;D

Remember to visit all the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of the post! Enjoy your weekend ;D

Melaniece couldn’t believe it. Maybe if she closed her eyes and clicked her bare heels three times this nightmare would be over. What the hell was Santa trying to do to her anyway? A loving that would have bordered on cataclysmic was interrupted by the telephone. Thinking the kids might be stuck in a ditch somewhere, she rushed to answer it. It was them on the phone and they’d ditched her all right, left her up here in the mountains to be bushwhacked by Michael. And now Mother Nature decided to keep her stuck here with the man.

“This is just not happening,” she fumed as she strode uncaringly naked to the laundry room. Yanking open the door she stared out into the garage. No joke. The kids’ SUV was gone, replaced by Michael’s monster machine—a jet-black Hummer took up more than its fair share of the three car garage.

Michael’s hands lovingly caressed her shoulders accompanied by the hot, hard length of his cock brushing up against her bare ass, a reminder of what they’d been up to when the phone rang. Bastard.

“Mel, it’s not as bad as it looks, I promise.”

“How can you say such a jacked up thing to me, Michael? I’ve never spent the Christmas holidays without my children. Ever!” Every spot on her now tense shoulders and neck grew warm. Such talented fingers. Oooh, the easy massage was working. Come on girl, get it together. You’re supposed to be mad, remember?

“I’m going home toDenverto join them. You can stay here if you like until the roads are clear enough for you to drive home.” Damn it was cold. The backs of her legs were nicely warmed by an obviously heat efficient Michael along with the warmth streaming from the laundry room, but the front of her body was so chilled her poor nipples felt like little fudgesicles. Tempted to step back and lean against the spinning clothes dryer, she yanked away from Michael’s gentle touch instead.

Mad? Absolutely. Stupid? Hell no, and there was no way she was going to chill her toes by stepping into the garage. Holding onto the doorjamb she leaned out and stretched for the door opener mounted on the wall.

“Mel, don’t you dare open that garage door while you’re standing here naked,” Michael warned. Oh, so now he was going to tell her what to do? Not bloody likely. He had some nerve and how dare he growl at her like that. She would have told him so if her eyes hadn’t been pasted to the sight revealed by the open garage door.

“I repeat, this is just not happening,” she whispered. “Oh come on, Santa, work with me here.”

“What was that, Mel?”

“N-Nothing. Never mind.” All she could do was stare at the six-foot wall of snow standing between her car and the driveway outside.

At least the kids left last night, otherwise they might not have made it toDenverat all in this mess. And it was still coming down in big, wet flakes. Instinctively she turned to the huge vehicle parked next to hers, but could only shake her head. Even Michael’s Hummer wasn’t big or bad enough to get out of the garage. They were well and truly snowed in. And before she could make it out of the laundry room, the dryer began to spin slower and slower until it stopped altogether…just before the lights flickered off. Along with everything else in the house. Damn, damn, DAMN!

With some growling of her own, Melaniece turned on her heel, elbowed past Michael and stomped straight to her room. Now where had she put the battery-powered weather radio Melvin gave her a couple of years ago? Yanking an oversized T-shirt off the shelf, she pulled it on quickly and bent to the task of digging through the plastic storage boxes. Blast it all, she could barely see in the dim light filtering into the closet from the window across the room. Relieved when her hand closed around the small square metal and plastic box she snatched it out and turned it on.

Sitting on the edge of her bed, she turned the tuning knob until she found a clear channel. She didn’t need to look up to know a concerned Michael Bannon’s eyes were plastered to her face. She felt him, knew he was worried about her. The knowledge made her want to reach out to him, stroke the soft waves on his head with one hand while easing eager fingers over the planes and ridges of his beautifully defined chest and stomach. A still very naked chest and stomach.

“The National Weather Service predicts this blizzard will blow out in the next forty-eight hours. The worst of the snow started falling early this morning around three a.m. If you had somewhere to go, we hope you got there last night.”

Her hopes plummeted.

“Smart-assed weather man,” she grumbled quietly to herself, massaging her temples. Just great, now her head hurt.

Snippet Saturday awesomeness from:
Anne Rainey
Jody Wallace
Eliza Gayle
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Myla Jackson
Taige Crenshaw
Alison Kent
Denise A. Agnew
Helen Kay Dimon
Lacey Savage
Shelli Stevens
Shiloh Walker

Two of my books are on sale!

My debut novel, Primed to Pounce, is on serious sale at Amazon! Click HERE to preview it and then pick it up for only $1.49. Note, this is NOT a quickie or short story, but a full-length novel. This book also received 4 stars from Romantic Times Book Reviews.

Jaguar’s Rule is on sale at Amazon, too! Click HERE to preview it, then pick it up at a huge discount. This is also a full length novel and was nominated for a CAPA award by The Romance Studio.

Neither of these books have been on sale before so grab ‘em while you can!

As for the “behind” part: I’m so behind on anything writer related. I do have a bunch of Goodreads posts to make so expect to see those pop up here soon. I’ll also put ‘em out there on Facebook. I’m also working on edits to my current WIP. I love this book, by the way. I’ll tell you more after it’s been contracted somewhere ;D

If you haven’t friended me on Facebook yet, I’m here –> TJ on Facebook

Talk soon!

TJ

There’s nothing quite like family to make or break your day. Enjoy a bit of humor between Max and Sasuke as they discuss the female members of their family – all of which happen to be a handful and a half! After the post enjoy the rest of our fabulous Snippet Saturday authors!

Max would have laughed harder if he had the energy. He and Sasuke made one hell of a pair. Max’s name was known not only on the northern island of Japan but also by their affiliates in the States and Australia, while Sasuke was his underboss responsible for one of the most powerful and feared organized crime clans.

And they were both laid up like old women.

With painful effort, Max turned his head toward his best friend and Second sitting—or rather lying—on the couch on the other side of the coffee table in the living room. A gurgle rumbled up from Max’s diaphragm and ended in a laugh so consuming, he was bent over double in near exhaustion when he was through.

“What?” Sasuke hissed with a scowl.

“Look at us. Me, Max Maruyama, leader of Clan Ooeto, practically in need of a nurse. And you, my Second, covered with bruises like you’ve taken the beating of your life.”

“I did take the beating of my life, damn it. Then your sister made it worse by practically removing my ability to ever bear children. And stop laughing, you fucking sadist.”

Max laughed harder until his chuckles became struggling wheezes. After several long minutes of just trying to breathe, he turned back to Sasuke and spoke.

“So, tell me about the man who managed to turn you such interesting shades of purple and blue. And, uh, yellow? Is that yellow, or green?”

“Oh shut it, already. Kikiyo!” Sasuke called as loud as he was able. A stocky man in a stylish gray suit eased the door open. “Bring me some more ice packs, man. And some tea for Max.”

With a simple “Hai” and a slight bow, the man disappeared and returned shortly with several ice packs to replace the ones Sasuke had already used.

All the while, Sasuke’s grumbles turned the air blue. “Fucking pasty-faced, white-haired vampire. Damned pretty boy Seeker. Muscle bound clod of a …”

“All right, already,” Max wheezed. “Stop whining and tell me what happened.”

“You’d think…ah, God that hurts. You’d think it was obvious, Max. I got a call from one of our men who spotted your sister on the dance floor at Valdarre. I went to her house and waited for her, scoping it out, keeping an eye on her. Or so I thought.”

“Valdarre? Shinju went to Valdarre?”

“Yeah, Shinju and that damned long-haired fellow I told you I’d seen before. By the way, I contacted your friend in Clan Li and described the man. He confirmed our suspicions. The guy with Shinju is indeed a Seeker. And not just any Seeker, but what they call an elite. I’m not up on all their hierarchy, but the Clan Li vamp certainly seemed concerned for me while at the same time saying the guy was vamp law enforcement. A good guy. Anyway, they showed up at her house. I wanted to shoot the idiot.”

“Since when do you refer to Shinju as an idiot?”

“Not Shinju, damn it, Kenoe.”

“Who…?”

“Am I telling the story or not?”

“I think getting your ass kicked has made you cranky.”

“Fuck you.” Sasuke made to scoot up a bit higher on the pillows piled behind his head. A deep frown and annoyed-sounding grunt said his efforts were rewarded with some obvious aches and pains. Max watched until Sasuke’s head settled back on the arm of the couch.

“Great,” Sasuke grumbled. “Now my temples are throbbing in time with everything else on my body.”

At Sasuke’s grimaces and hisses of pain, Max bit the inside of his cheek to keep from cracking up again.

“So anyway,” Sasuke continued, “Kenoe, it turns out, is the name of the Seeker on Shinju’s ass. Literally.”

“What the hell do you mean?” Max thundered. Well, it actually felt more like a dull poof than a thundering bellow given how tight his lungs felt these days.

“He kissed her like they were old lovers right there outside her door before they went inside. After about twenty minutes I started to kick her door in, then Kimora showed up.”

“Kimora? What the hell is she doing in Tokyo? She’s supposed to be in London. And isn’t Shinju supposed to visit her family in Atlanta next month?”

“That’s what I thought. In fact the last time I spoke with your mother, she said Shinju was to come visit her and your aunt right at the beginning of summer vacation, as soon as school was out. She was trying to get me to talk you into joining them.”

“Well, she’s been working on me slowly but surely ever since she moved to America. But at least she’s got Kimora’s mother to keep her company and out of trouble.”

Sasuke replaced the ice pack on his thigh, another on his lower stomach, secured one to his shoulder and yet another over his left eye. “Your mother? Stay out of trouble? The woman is a man-magnet, even at her age, and speaks her mind no matter what. Of course she’ll always be in the middle of one thing or another.”

Sasuke was so right. But it was typical for the women in his family. Ever since Max’s grandfather showed up in Tokyo with his grandma so many years ago, it seemed to be a family tradition for the Maruyama men to go abroad to study or work, and bring home a dark-skinned, saucy, beautifully smart female as a wife. Kimora’s father, and his own, had been no different. Kimmie’s parents lived in Atlanta and welcomed his own mother into their home after Max’s father died. Max didn’t have the darker skin tones of his mother, but he had her fire and attitude—the two main reasons he’d risen up through the ranks of the Ooeto clan, taken it over, and expanded their territories—all without bloodshed.

“That Kenoe bastard beat me up one side and down the other. My enhanced speed and strength made no difference. Even after I pulled a blade on him, it didn’t matter. The man just dodged each strike while landing every punch he threw at me. And the asshole grinned the whole time. Fucking fangs gave me the creeps.”

“And then?”

“And then Shinju came outside and broke it up. After kicking us both in the nuts, she told me to tell you that she didn’t need, and I quote, ‘a fucking babysitter’. I was lucky she didn’t have a katana on her or she’d have shaved my balls. Then she bit the loc-wearing vampire’s head off and told him that she didn’t date thugs who were intimate with her cousin. What she meant by that I have no idea. But then she turned around and left us on our knees. And that damned cousin of yours stood in the doorway laughing. Bitch.”

Snippet Saturday authors:
Jody Wallace
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
Delilah Devlin
Sasha White
Shelli Stevens