Saturday, May 31, 2008

Last day of Contest



Last day for the contest to celebrate the end of the school year and the beginning of my usual writing spurt. Summer is when I get most of my writing done. So, I will put the names of everyone who responds to my blog this week into a hat and draw. I’ll give the winner a copy of Seeing Me and a deck of the Ellora’s Cave Silver Screen playing cards.

We went shopping at the local Goodwill today. For those not familiar with Goodwill, it’s provider of education, training, and career services for people with disadvantages, such as welfare dependency, homelessness, and lack of education or work experience, as well as those with physical, mental and emotional disabilities. People donate clothing and household goods that are then cleaned up by the workers and then sold in a second hand store. I have absolutely no qualms about second hand, be it a yard sale, consignment or second hand. Besides, after spending my first ten years after college working with adults with developmental disabilities, I know how important the community employment programs are.

We picked up a dresser for the baby’s room. We’re finally allowed to buy stuff. My SO is incredibly superstitious and had put a first trimester moratorium on all purchases. Having a friend whose little girl is about a year older than ours will be has come in handy as we’ve bought a good deal of her infant stuff —car seat, stroller etc. We have an ultrasound on Monday, but it’s too soon to tell the sex. At least I think it is. I’m planning on painting book characters on the walls of the room and the top of the dresser will be perfect to use as a changing table with the addition of a nice plastic pad and a bumper guard. Those can be easily removed when the child grows up.

While out dropping my Cavalier to be groomed today I saw one of the most gorgeous men I’ve ever seen. We’re talking looks like he stepped off the cover of a romance novel gorgeous. Dark hair, chiseled face, light gray eyes and a rather fine backside as well. My greatest disappointment was that he wasn’t OUR server at the restaurant. My point? I saw a gorgeous guy, do I really need a point? Oh, and when I say our, my SO was with me. My “Mother of all that’s holy!” got me an eye roll and a shake of the head. Of course I explained it was purely a professional response. Such a guy would make great cover model and if I can capture his features with my words he might make a great hero in a story someday. It was pointed out to me that “Mother of all that’s holy” might fall a bit short on the descriptive front. I explained that I’m certain that you would all get it.

Tonight’s excerpt comes from Mating Stone and introduces a man so beautiful that he is sex personified.

EXCERPT:

Her eyes widened as a man stood up and looked at them. Holy hell! Mark was gorgeous. She adored Mark. Mark made her toes curl and her insides melt. But this man was beyond anything she’d ever seen before. He was desire, he was sex.

His long blond hair hung almost to his waist, flowing loosely around his shoulders. It wasn’t a brash platinum blond but shone like polished gold in the reflected firelight. His eyes were the most blue she’d ever seen, they almost glowed. No one had eyes like that unless they were retouched by special effects experts. It must be a trick of the light, she decided.

He was inches taller than Mark and wore only a neat pair of black slacks. His feet and chest were bare. Sarah felt something very warm begin deep inside her as she looked at that chest. It was tanned and smooth. The way the flicker firelight cast shadows highlighted the definition of the abs and tempted Sarah. The sharply etched muscles seemed to demand she trace them. With hands, lips, tongue, whatever was handy. He didn’t speak but watched her for a minute before smiling. Her body reacted to that smile shamelessly. He broke eye contact and shifted his gaze to Mark.

Sara drew in a sharp breath. What is wrong with you? Mark is standing right behind you and you’re ogling some strange guy. She groaned inwardly. You’re ogling his friend, a guy he called more than a brother.

Mark’s hands came up to rest on her shoulders. She turned to steal a glance at him and saw him smiling down at her. “It’s okay Sarah. Tarris often has that effect on people, men and women. He’s one of the most beautiful beings you’ll ever see.”
She flushed bright red and covered her face with her hands. Mark’s voice came from close to her ear. “He says you are beautiful too.”

Looking up she saw the smile had widened on Tarris’ face. He nodded his agreement with Mark’s words. “But you didn’t speak.” Sarah frowned.

Tarris shook his head, his lips parting to show her straight white teeth. A shiver ran through her and sank deep into the pit of her stomach.

Mark stepped around her. He grabbed his friend in a firm embrace and the two exchanged the manliest hug Sarah had ever seen. Arm still draped around Tarris, Mark turned to her. “Tarris doesn’t speak like you or I.”

“You’re mute?” she asked and he nodded in reply. “But you can hear?”
Tarris nodded again.

“Do you use sign language?” Sarah had learned a bit of finger spelling at summer camp.
The long hair caught the firelight and shimmered as the handsome head shook, the blue eyes crinkling with amusement.

“Don’t worry, he gets his point across,” Mark said wryly, tightening his arm around his friend’s shoulders. A silent laugh shook the blond man’s shoulders. Mark turned to him. “Sarah’s head is feeling funny.” The tone of his voice was as odd as the look he gave his friend. The blue eyes opened wide as if in innocent surprise but his grin twisted up his face revealing a single dimpled cheek. “Right,” Mark said. “Sarah, why don’t you lie down. Tarris and I will have a little talk while you rest.”

“Mark it’s okay, My head will be fine.”

Tarris looked at her intently and gestured toward the bed. She didn’t need Mark to interpret. He too thought she should lie down.

“I can’t just take a nap,” she reasoned with them. “In the middle of your family’s party.”

“Sarah this “party” will go on for hours. No one will notice. Lie down, my love and rest.”
I don’t…” She was halted by Tarris coming toward her quickly. He reached out and touched her hand. The world swayed and she found herself being swept up into two strong arms. The scent of his skin swirled in her head. He smelt overwhelmingly masculine. An indistinct combination of sandalwood, odd spices, a burning fire and the musky smell of a man’s neck as a woman curled her face into it in the afterglow of hot, passionate sex.

“Show off,” Mark snorted from where he’d already taken a seat in one of the chairs. “It’s probably the heat of the room, Sarah. Tarzan here thinks it should feel like Miami in August. Thankfully it’s winter or he’d be wearing even less.” Tarris smiled down at her gently and shook his head. His expression was playful and said clearly that Mark was positively silly and was not to be believed. He laid her carefully on the bed and slipped off her shoes before pulling a soft blanket from the foot of the bed over her. A charming curve to his lips, he reached out to brush a strand of hair from her forehead. His touch corresponded inexplicably with the thickening of the fogginess in her brain and her eyes felt heavy.

“Sweet dreams, Sarah-mine,” Mark’s voice sounded far away as she drifted off to sleep
.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I completely understand that you would have been only looking at the hot guy for 'professional' reasons only.

I have a lot of second hand stuff.I like it - most of it's very retro and useless but that's it's charm

So any personal inkling about it being a boy or a girl? My mother always said she knew.