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Thursday 24 January 2013

Wendi's Smut In The City!


I'm delighted to have Wendi Zwaduk with me today to tell us all about the city that inspired her tale for Smut In The City... take it away Wendi!


I want to thank Tabitha for having me on the blog. I love hanging out with friends and talking about my stories. Thanks!!
My story in the Smut in the City Anthology is titled, Love of My Life, and is set in Cleveland, Ohio. I don’t live too far from Cleveland and if I want to go see a major concert or sporting event, Cleveland is where I go.
So why write about Cleveland? I’ve heard all kinds of things about Cleveland from those who haven’t been there long or have had rotten experiences there. Yes, there are potholes in the road. Yes, the traffic can be a bear. It’s rough around the edges and has places that aren’t the greatest to hang out. Don’t all cities have those areas?
For me, Cleveland is so much more than the little things that might drag it down. We’ve got a thriving theatre district. We get many of the productions after they go to Broadway. We’re not talking some ninth rate garbage show. Phantom played in Cleveland. We’ve also got some great little restaurants that take a bit to find, but are worth the adventure. Oh! And there’s the lake. Yep, we have Lake Erie right to the north. Want to boat? Water ski? Jet ski? You can do that here.
Then there’s my favorite part of Cleveland. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I’m a sucker for rock music. I could spend hours listening to it and wandering the exhibits in the museum. Rock music is where I got my title. Queen’s song, Love of My Life is one of my favorites and just fit the story. The main characters have had a relationship, things fell apart and a chance in the city is what they need to decide if they can have a second chance.
Here, let me give you a taste of Love of My Life:
“Isn’t that a shit? Damn thing got stuck.” Torin pressed the buttons on the pad. “The phone button doesn’t work, either. Jesus.” He leant against the wall of the car and faced her. “So.”
“So.” Part of her wanted to slink away from him. Another part of her wanted to run into his arms—except his arms weren’t open to her. The rest of her chose to stand firm. “What brings you to Cleveland? The hot weather or the constant road construction? They’re tearing up I-90 again. The Inner Belt Bridge project has been put on hold so they can implode a parking garage on Carnegie. The detour has traffic really goofed up. I hear we’re getting another Casino. Like we need another place to gamble.”
“People like to try their luck near water.”
“You said you hated the water and the congestion. So why are you here?”
“You.”
Zoe froze. He hadn’t just said...no, her mind played tricks on her. “The Pier renovated the docks, making it really nice down there. The Galleria has a bunch of new store fronts, so we now have access to an organic food store. It’s nice. I can run by the lake in the morning then walk over to the mall in the afternoon and get my groceries and have a nice dinner. No need for a car.”
Torin rose to his full height and crossed the expanse to where she stood. He didn’t just walk to her, he moved like a cat. All swagger and slink and those muscles. “Did you hear me, Zoe?”
The possession in his eyes radiated to her core. He held all the power. One gravely word from him and she used to come in his hand. No more. No matter how hot he was. Her nipples pebbled and the heat in her chest slipped southward.
“You like to push buttons.” Try as she might, she couldn’t look away from his eyes. In the dim light, she noticed the deep brown flecks nestled among the green.
“You’ve become jaded.” He stepped closer to her, enough she felt his breath on her skin. The scent of mint and musk curled around her. He grasped a lock of her hair and ran the strands through his fingers. “Who did I come back for?”
“You, so you say.” She notched her chin in the air. “You came back to this city and all the things you said hemmed you in for me. You don’t like traffic, hate seeing all the buildings cluttering the skyline and yet you’re back in town.”
“You don’t believe me?” His voice rumbled down her spine. “Come here.”
“No.” She sidestepped him and allowed herself to breathe. She kept her back to him. If she didn’t see him, she couldn’t fall for him. “I can’t.”
“Claustrophobia?”
“Yes.” He’d remembered. She studied her reflection in the polished metal. “Gets me every time.”
“Let me take your mind off your problem.” He turned her around and held her in his arms, albeit loosely. Torin began to sway and sing. “I’ve never found a woman like the love of my life.”
She sagged against him and clutched his shirt. She figured he’d try to get into her pants. Zoe rubbed her cheek on his shoulder. She settled into the rhythm of his movements, transfixed by him.
“You broke my heart, so I gave you your freedom,” he sang. “My mistake to live with for so long. How can I say I was wrong?”
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Where to purchase Smut in the City?
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Like spicy romance? So do I! Come along on this journey with me.
I’ve always dreamt of writing the stories in my head. Tall, dark, and handsome heroes are my favorites, as long as he has an independent woman keeping him in line.  I love playing with words and letting the characters run wild.
NASCAR, Ohio farmland, dirt racing, animals and second chance romance  all feature prominently in my books.  I also write under the pen name of Megan Slayer. I’m published with Total-E-Bound, Changeling Press, Liquid Silver Books, Turquoise Morning Press, Decadent Publishing and The Wild Rose Press. Come join me for this fantastic journey!  
If you like my work, tell your friends and email me. I love hearing from readers!

Thursday 17 January 2013

I'm back with the 777!

Well, good grief - it's taken me a couple of weeks to get the hang of 2013, but with the help of being tagged for the 777 game by Justine Elyot, Kd Grace and Tamsin Flowers - I'm back - thanks ladies! So here it is - 7 lines (or so...) from page 77 of my work in progress, The Meeting Point...

Deborah woke early having hardly slept at all. She watched Marcus’ eyes flutter under their lids and left the tent, careful not to disturb him. Sun was already streaming through the trees as she made her way down to the river to freshen up. Since her double sexual mind trip yesterday, Deborah had felt strangely calm and peaceful. Thoughts had whirled around her mind all night long as she’d tried to analyse what had happened to her from a scientific point of view, but it was with a lazy curiosity not her usual frantic need to know. It was as if there had been a cellular or molecular breakdown of the physical and mental parts of the body and they’d simply seeped into each other. The more she remembered the sensations, the more amazing they became to her. 

So there you have it - now I tag some more authors to take part - I nominate Aimée Duffy, Ella Jade, Nikki Magennis, Lacey Wolfe, Scarlett Hart, Kaylie Newell and Patricia Bates