Boxed Set

As newsletter readers already know, I put together a boxed set of my first two series, the City Complications and City Entanglements, so five novellas and two novels in one convenient package for ereading. If you not yet read these, it’s a great deal and for this first week I’m pricing it at 9.99 and making it available at most etailers. After that, I’m going to bump the price up a bit to 12.99, still cheaper than buying individually. It’s available in several e-bookstores, links available here. Content notes for all my stories are available here.

7 Things - Presented With Love

1. So, first thing to note is this book takes place almost entirely not in DC.  I know!  But it involves a Hawaiian Expo held in Las Vegas, Nevada, so most of the action takes place there.  The Expo is loosely inspired by an actual much more serious Hwaiian gathering that probably does not involve, well, we'll get to that. 

2. Helena appeared previously in Troubled by Love and Tricked by Love.  You do not need to read either of these to read Presented with Love, though,  In fact, Helena does not have time in the story to talk to any of her friends from DC. 

3. Makoa is a hockey player, although it's July so there is no hockey played in this story. 

4. Helena and Makoa hookup after meeting in an airport hotel bar near the Denver airport. I don't know about you, but the Denver airport always tries to keep me.  I've decided it enjoys my presence.  So, I am basically never surprised when people have tales about trying to get out of Denver.  

5. I am somewhat ambivalent about Christmas but I love Christmas music. And the Hawaiian versions of the Christmas songs are of course faves.  It's odd because it basically never snowed growing up in DC on Christmas (once, maybe) but it seemed just as dreamy to me - much as I love snow - to listen to people singing about sandy beaches or eating coconuts for Christmas.

6. Yes, they are doing a Christmas song themed reality show, but it is July.  I mean they are also doing this inside a fictitious hotel ballroom in Vegas, so why not? 

7. Presented with Love - a novella

When a flight snafu puts Helena in the airport hotel bar next to a hot guy, she takes full advantage. The hookup is hot, but the guy disappears on her. And when finally she gets to Las Vegas it turns out her tutu has signed her up for a televised competition based on a Hawaiian Christmas song, and one of the other contestants is that guy who ghosted her? Helena's competitive spirit kicks into gear.

Makoa is good at hockey, it's off-ice where he seems to fumble. So when he finds his mom has signed him up for a TV show, well, he's hoping for a Christmas miracle. Because Helena is rightfully annoyed at him, and he needs to stay in the competition long enough to prove he's worth another chance. Otherwise this will be his last day of Christmas. 

Amazon: https://bit.ly/3YtYSt6

Apple: https://apple.co/3A5kxOM

Kobo: https://bit.ly/4dPeawN

Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/3YtrlPx

Universal Link: https://bit.ly/3YtYSt6

7 Things about Tricked by Love

1. Side characters in books are always fun because they can be like cue balls, bouncing off the other balls, and resetting the table.

2. Making them main characters is always a little tougher, because now they need internal thoughts and feelings. 

3. When I wrote Hot Bartender, and created Lillian (Zane's sister) and Xavier (Zane's friend and eventual co-worker), I had no additional plans for them.

4. But well, Lillian apparently had plans. So when in Troubled by Love, Lillian mentioned a secret relationship, I realized I had to write that.

5. As with my other books, this book stands on it's own. The only thing you will learn from reading Tricked by Love that is that the couples in Hot Bartender and Troubled by Love are still together. Also, timewise, Tricked starts before Troubled but ends after it. 

6. Is there a museum date in here? Yup. And food? Yup. And a reference to DC's dinosaur, aka dinosaur butt?  Also, yep.

7. Lillian doesn't date bartenders. Xavier doesn't do secret relationships. They are both about to break their rules.

Lillian's brother is a bartender, and the bartender circle in DC is too small for her to date within that pool. She meets a hot guy on the customer side of a bar and goes home with him. When she discovers he is a bartender too, she decides they never need to meet again. And that works, until he shows up to Thanksgiving dinner.

Xavier's family drama means he likes things clear and upfront. But he never forgot Lillian, and when they end up seated at the same dinner table, he decides he'll agree to just about anything for another chance with her.

Except secret relationships never stay secret for too long. When Lillian's brother and Xavier start looking into working together, Lillian and Xavier are either going to need to go public or end things.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3VrcBza

Apple: https://apple.co/454n0nP

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3RdOgdQ

Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/3X0PInw

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/u/mdwRYw

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/4aKZiy2

New Release - Dream Catchers Anthology

Newsletter subscribers got the heads up first, but surprise! 

Something a little different from me. I had the chance to participate in an anthology. We all wrote flash stories around the theme of dreams. I have two stories  in this, one straight contemporary with a smooch (flash, so not much time) and the other is a little more folklore based, though there are relationship shenanigans.

Balloon Dreams is about a woman who, after a weird dream, hops into a hot air balloon to see if a change in perspective helps, and discovers that there's a cute balloon pilot.

Dream God's Assignment is about dream god Pahulu, who is asked to send a dream message to a friend's granddaughter.

The anthology is being made available on Amazon in e and paperback. 

It was such a fun prompt and I enjoyed the chance to go in two very different (and yet still very me) directions with the theme.

If Amazon is not your book purveyor of choice, I do have plans to make the stories, including an extended cut of one, available later this year, so stay tuned for that. 

Sale - Aloha to You

Newsletters subscribers already got this news, but my novella Aloha to You is on sale. It's part of Kobo's Leap Year Sale in Canada and the US today. For non-Kobo readers, it will be on sale next week March 3rd - 8th in honor of Read an Ebook week.

Aloha to You is the start of the City Complications series, so a great place to jump in. It features Seth and Adriana who meet when he interviews her for a lifestyle magazine about her lei business. He is a museum admin who secretly yearns to be a journalist. There are nosy parents, opinionated friends, and brownies.

Content notes listed here.

Available at multiple etailers:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2KJ1DR7

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2KM3RiR

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/u/4XZnd6

Note, print is not on sale, but if print is your jam, print link: https://bookshop.org/books/aloha-to-you/9781393545323

New Story in CommuterLit

Hey Hungry Readers, 

I've got a story appearing in CommuterLit this week. It's an ezine that focuses on fiction or poetry that is commute sized. (Your commute may vary.) My story is about a mermaid with a little grudge. So not so much a romance this time, but there is some emotional closure to be found: https://commuterlit.com/2023/10/monday-called-to-the-water/

On the Newsletter: Available Again

Hey folks, 

Repeat news for newsletter and Ream folks, but I made Cocker on the Porch available in e, free, across retailers. ('Zon readers, it may take a smidge to update.) 

It's single POV, closed door romance, two neighbors who are brought together by a dog. It now includes a bonus epilogue where Wendy and Tuan meet my other dog owning couple, aka Rafe and Felicia from Undercover Bridesmaid. (The only spoilers for Undercover Bridesmaid would be that Rafe and Felicia get together and get a dog, and honestly, only Felicia should be surprised about that.) 

Universal link: https://books2read.com/u/meqDOl

Over on the Newsletter

Hey folks, it turned out I had a few more topics to discuss for Let's Talk About Fictional Sex. The posts are linkied in the newsletter or if you purchased the ebook, uploads of the adddtional contet have been pushed out to retailers.

7 Things: New Release - Troubled by Love

1. I mention this in the acknowledgements, but the original idea for this story came along from an idea that Jackie Barbosa had for a series of stories, so of course thanks go to her for this. 

2. I wrote the original version of this before Roe v. Wade was struck down. DC remains a place with somewhat easy access to abortion, so a lot of changes on that front were not needed to the story. But of course having to ponder access to medical procedures, and the funds and associated time off work are not easy in our world, even when funds, and access are available. 

3. Did I get another museum date in here? Yes, yes, I did. 

4. Does someone (it's Dan) in this story work in food and show up with food a lot? Yes. 

5. This story stands entirely on its own, but does a character appear from another story? Yes. I apparently can't help myself. Lillian, who is Zane's sister in Undercover Bridesmaid shows up, as does Xavier. Do I have additional plans for them? Stay tuned. 

6. Will there be texting and maybe flirty texting? You know it. 

7. And here's the official blurb and order links. 

Amy's now ex sent Dan to her instead of himself. Living in a new city and having to go get an abortion and dump her ex was not how Amy imagined this new chapter of her life going. 
Dan has been working hard to get his food truck going. Picking up ride shares, bartending, and barely sleeping, has all been to support that goal. Amy is the first person to make him wonder if he should be finding time for things that aren't work. 
After a few months of texting they decide to make a go of it. But when her ex shows up, Amy will have to figure out have things really changed? 

Zon: bit.ly/45kiFvW
Apple: bit.ly/3E4Bnvx
Kobo: bit.ly/3OIgVpg
Google Play: bit.ly/3YYJROF
Scribd: bit.ly/3qE6TNW
Universal link: https://books2read.com/u/4DDXLd
Bookshop: bit.ly/3shWg3U

Auctions and Things

This is a repeat for my newsletter buddies, but a couple of things are happening now and/or soon. There is an auction to raise money for folks affected by the fires in Hawai'i. I have donated a custom short story to it - info here. There are also other cool things from books to crafty things to chats with cool writers and so on.
Also, a reminder for folks that if you Kobo Plus, and are looking for some fun reads, there's a list here of authors (including me) with books in Kobo Plus.
And, Troubled by Love is complete and ready for it's debut to the rest of the world next week.

Bonus Short

Hey, Hungry Readers,

I posted a bonus Short story featuring Jia and Ken from Of Kings and Queens on both Ream and the newsletter. It's subscriber only, and maybe shows a sneak peak of a character or two from the upcoming Troubled by Love. 

Both books can be read on their own without the short story, so if you want to save it for later, it's going to stay up in both places. 

Happy reading!

New Story: Troubled By Love

Newsletter subscribers already got the heads up, but I've got a new story for you. I'm going to be releasing it as a serial over on Ream, and then releasing it as a full ebook in August. (Preorders are still going up to all the sites for that.)

But I wanted to share the first scene with you here.

This story is a standalone romance novella. Still set in DC. Their might be a cameo from someone in one of my other series. There might be a museum. There will be food.

Content notes - This story contains on page abortion, and references to parental cancer and death that occur prior to the book.  

And the blurb:

Amy's now ex sent Dan to her, instead of himself. Living in a new city and having to go get an abortion and dump her ex was not how Amy imagined this new chapter of her life going. 

Dan has been working hard to get his food truck going. Picking up ride shares, bartending, and barely sleeping, has all been to support that goal. Amy is the first person to make him wonder if he should be finding time for things that aren't work. 

After a few months of texting they decide to make a go of it. But when her ex shows up, Amy will have to figure out have things really changed?

Troubled By Love

Chapter 1

Amy He Metcalfe didn't believe in New Year's resolutions. January was no better month than any other to start changing your life. But four months ago, she had decided to focus a little more on her own goals, and when she was offered a job DC, she had said yes.

DC wasn't far from Philadelphia, where she had gone to college. It was a great opportunity, and her boyfriend Ryder traveled so much she'd see him about the same amount anyway.

She had not counted on finding herself pregnant of course.

Ryder: What time is the appointment?

Amy: 10 am

Amy held onto the phone for another second, but there were no more bubbles indicating he was texting back.

Ryder's job as emergency communications strategist kept him on the move. About six weeks ago, a sudden storm had him in town for an extra day, and they had run out of condoms. Their plans to just use hands and mouths had disappeared.

Amy purchased Plan B at the pharmacy the next day. But she had read all the fine print, and knew Plan B didn't work if you were already pregnant by the time you took it.

Amy knew a lot of stats about both contraception and abortion. She was the eldest of seven kids. Amy had bought her first pack of condoms at ten, placing them prominently at her mother's bedside.

Lots of siblings, especially female siblings knew a lot about middle of the night feedings, diaper changes, making lunches, or back to school shopping on an extreme budget. Amy had gotten any desire to raise kids out of her system well before the school sex ed program came to scare her about teen parenthood.

The sex ed program in Nevada suggested abstinence. Teen Amy had known she couldn't convince her mom of abstinence. Her mom never opened the condoms Amy bought her. The pill, in addition to being expensive, had turned out to have a terrible effect on her mom's depression.

Amy had discovered while she herself as an adult had not previously shown signs of depression, she inherited the same reaction to the pill. She and her ob/gyn had gone through a few of them, before her ob/gyn suggested that condoms had no such side effects. Plan B as a backup was probably better for her mental health.

All of this added up to Amy making a dreaded call to Ryder. She explained she was pregnant, she had an appointment to get the medication necessary to end the pregnancy. She didn't like ultimatums, but he could either get his butt back here or they were officially over. He had agreed to everything.

Then a hurricane hit the Caribbean. Amy had learned to hate hurricanes for many reasons - evidence of climate change, destruction wrought, but also because those bastards sent Ryder places without warning. Ryder should be off the schedule, of course, for the next few days.

Her phone rang and there was a knock on the door. Figuring Ryder had made it from the airport early, she threw open the door without looking, only to find an unfamiliar dark-haired, brown-eyed man standing there. "Next door," Amy said. Her neighbor had a lot of friends and often they knocked on her door by accident.

"Amy?" he said.

Amy stopped swinging the door closed. She knew better than to confirm her name to a stranger, but the folks looking for her neighbor Helena never knew her name.

Her phone chirped one more time and then went silent.

"I'm Dan," stranger dude said, "and I think that was Ryder calling to warn you. I made good time."

Amy wanted to slam the door now. It wasn't stranger dude's fault. Dan. Stranger dude's name was Dan. If Ryder had sent a stranger to her door, he wasn't on a plane. Not to here at least.

"Is it the hurricane?" Amy asked. It wasn't a question that would make sense to anyone who didn't know Ryder.

Dan shook his head. "Mudslide in Japan."

"So, Ryder sent you to what - spend the night?" Amy asked. Part of her, a stupid hopeful part, was still crushed that just this freaking once, Ryder hadn't taken himself off the schedule. He could. His other coworkers did. Amy was nothing if not an expert at looking strong when she was crushed inside.

"I think the idea was for us to chat a bit before tomorrow. To make it less awkward." Dan grimaced a bit, as if he realized the awkward train had long ago left the station.

"Darling," Helena said, leaning out of her door, long strawberry blonde hair loose. "As fascinating as this has all been, could you either let him in or kick him out. Any minute now, Mrs. Overgaard is going to email the whole building."

"Thanks, Helena," Amy said flatly.

Helena smiled and shut her door.

Helena was right though. The building was old enough that the soundproofing between apartments was good, but hallway conversations carried. Mrs. Overgaard often sent emails to everyone in the building reminding them of courtesy and decorum. "Come on in, I guess," Amy said.

Probably, Ryder's friend Dan wasn't a serial killer. And if he was, well, Amy didn't have a plan for that. Her plan for Ryder not showing up had been to go to the clinic herself. She'd been assured the pills were fairly painless, and had stocked up on super-strength pads, a bunch of microwave meals, and sports drinks. She had a streaming list of silly, lighthearted comedies, and dark revenge dramas, for her every mood.

She sat dead center on the couch, in her partially unpacked living room. Having to find the Planned Parenthood clinic her first week in DC had not been on her to do list. Nor had asking for a planned sick day before she'd had a chance to accrue any leave. Her boss had been great about it, made sure Amy had enough funds. But Amy had hoped that was it. That was enough awkward and uncomfortable at least for the month, but she should have known. The universe had endless wells of awkward and uncomfortable, and when it decided it was your turn, it was like a mudslide.

If you want to read more - the first two chapters are available to subscribers on Ream.                 

New Release: 7 Things About Of Kings and Queens

1. I started thinking about Hawaiian holidays in DC, and while King Kamehameha Day is a holiday I have complex feelings about (monarchies bad, flowers good), it is a chance in the DC area for local Hawaiians and people who enjoy Hawaiian culture to gather up with flowers, music, and dance. 

2. I do like putting folks in food and hospitality, which has made the pandemic a tough thing to incorporate. There are brief references to past pandemic cancellations included in this. 

3. Another thing I seem to enjoy doing is picking two overworked, never have time to date folks, and giving them a sudden attraction and a bit of free time to explore. 

4. And, yes, they do find time to go to a museum too. 

5. I have been intentionally focusing on characters that were not lawyers and not politicians, and well, the streak ends here. There is a politician who appears, and Ken is a lawyer. 

6. Also Diana, Adriana's florist colleague from Aloha to You is Ken's aunt, and she shows up and there is mention of Adriana. Aloha to You is not required reading to understand anything that happens in Of Kings and Queens.

7. And here's the blurb and buy links.

Jia has been focusing on work.  Working somewhere that is not either of the rival restaurants that helped her parent's divorce make the news.  
But the DC celebration for King Kamehameha Day brings her Ken, someone who seems unconnected to the family drama.  
Ken's been making some life changes, so his mom volunteers him to help his aunt at her flower shop.  He finds himself with a box of lei at a new to him celebration trying to impress a woman he just met.  
Fate seems to have brought Ken and Jia a little fun.  But maybe, they aren't as unconnected to each other's drama as they thought.   

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3Wj3NdD

Apple: https://bit.ly/3OvWpcS

Amazon: https://amzn.to/41UWIRx

Scribd: https://bit.ly/3omQNa8

Universal link: https://books2read.com/u/bQAPVv

Print: https://bit.ly/3MoW0pT

New Short Story: Tattoos and Amnesia

Hey folks, 

I've got a new short story published over on Ream. It's an author subscription service, and while this one is available for free this month, after that, additional content is going to be subscriber only. 

The story is called Tattoos and Amnesia and is very short, like eating one cookie short. 

Check it out: https://reamstories.com/page/lfwnhjgly6

7 Things About Aloha to You

Hey, so, in case you haven't heard, my novella Aloha to You is now available at an etailer near you:  https://books2read.com/u/4XZnd6

1. Seth is an aspiring journalist stuck in a job he doesn't like.  So he accepts the chance to do a fluffy interview with a woman who had a decent social media following.  Adriana is a DC-based lei maker who has crafted a life both on and off social media.  They have very different appoarches to life.  And they can't stop thinking about each other.  

2. The novella kicks off my City Complications series, but each story will feature it's own couple, so while their may be easter eggs that are more amusing to those who have read everything, feel free to start anywhere.  (Once the others are out.  Right now there's just one, so easy peasy.)

3. Content note:  This story contains a character dealing on page with anxiety and somewhat controlled panic attacks.  As always, it will not be the best story for everyone to read right now.  Also this one does contain on page sex.  

4. I have been accused of being contrary, which seems unfair and incorrect.  But the germ of an idea for this story did come to me as I was thinking how I would probably never write a royalty story because I'm not that interested in contemporary monarchies and then I realized I could write about someone who was self-declared princess on social media.  

5.  Another thing that will not surprise long time readers is that I really thing the world needs more stories about the people who live in DC who are not politicians.  So here you are, two folks, living in DC, making plans based on metro, and neither one of them is a politician.  

6.  I have a love/hate relationship with instagram myself.  But in thinking about what kind of people would really love Instagram or similar sites, and why they would find it a great and useful tool, I won't tell you I learned to love Instagram, but I appreciated why it's so popular with so many. 

7.  Also, if your brain is subject to hearing titles in song, and you hear Aloha to You to the tune of Michelle Branch's "Goodbye to You", well you are not alone.  If you don't, well, that's fine too.

Also, some of the folks I followed on Instagram for flower inspiration include @hakumaui, @helemelehi, @hawaiianleicompany, and @floraforager

1.    

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Bait Girl - Or How I Ended Up with a Short Story That Reflected the News Cycle

I wrote this story a few years ago with a different plan for how it was going to go out into the world. As a writer my job is often to write what I know, and to imagine variations of that. I attended a fancy prep school in Bethesda. I was not much of a party person but I went to school Monday (and the other weekdays) with folks in the days before social media. I've been saving up stories, particularly shorts that I had written, with a plan to do something with them, eventually. 

Well, the news cycle caught up to this one when a woman, who turned out to have attended the same high school I did, became the center of a media storm. 

I have made a donation to RAINN, and if this story makes additional monies, I will donate those as well.  This was the story I needed to tell. 

Bait Girl - By day Lucy is just a normal student trying to get through her final year of high school and figure out what's next. 

By night, Lucy dons her party girl persona Zoe, gathering info and intervening to help other girls who might be in trouble. She's the bait girl. It's amazing how some eyeliner and some giggles make you blend in. 

Well, to everyone except this one boy. Will Lucy let him distract her from her mission?

Content warning: This story contains descriptions of drunken partying, and references to off page assault. It also contains a reference to an off page death due to depression. 

Please take care of yourself. I hope this story leaves you feeling empowered but if it triggers you please stop. I can recommend stories with puppies for you instead. 

If you need help, RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network), is available in the US by phone - 800.656.HOPE (4673) and online at online.rainn.org.

The suicide prevention lifeline is available in the US by phone:  1-800-273-TALK (8255) and they have chat available at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

Buy links: 

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2P1cLsi

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2OjHO5N

Nook: https://bit.ly/2OhPXHZ

Smashwords: https://bit.ly/2QjgZMg

Universal link:  books2read.com/u/mlez1P