Posted by: Author | May 7, 2014
Wordless Wednesday
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Wordless Wednesday
Posted by: Author | May 5, 2014
Tuesday Tales- May 6, 2014- Free
Today’s word is Free. I’m still working on the story called Til Murder Do Us Part. This week, the heroine finds herself in the clutches of her former brother-in-law. Check out the other tales of the week here.
“I have friends who set me up with a campground pass and I brought her out here at three am. After that fiasco in the cemetery and my failure to grab you at the Grand, I went back to the house and forced her to tell me what was going on.”
“What did she tell you?”
“About some conversation in the ladies room at the bar. I’m pretty bright myself and figured out it could only be the arrogant doctor sister-in-law behind any investigation of me and my tragic widowhood. I called a friend in Reno today and learned some other interesting facts so it was then only a matter of finding out your hotel and coming to get you. Patricia was kind enough to let me know you were staying at the beach.”
“How did you find my room number? I know the desk didn’t give it to you.” They continued deeper into the darkness. Margot wasn’t sure she could find her way out if she did get free and if she wasn’t a little dizzy from blood loss.
“I watched you on the beach and in the water. I do have to say, Margot dear, that even though your sister was the champion swimmer that you fill out your own suit quite nicely. It makes me wonder which sister is better in the sack.”
“You’re disgusting.” Margot spat on the ground. “Don’t you dare speak of my sister.”
“I’ll do and say what I want. I’m in charge here.” He turned the corner. “Look—if your eyes have adjusted to the dark that is—here’s your friend Patricia now.”
Margot, following too close on his heels, slammed into Paul’s back. He stumbled a little but regained his balance before she could shove him to the ground. She peered around him to see Patricia seated on the dirty ground. Her feet and hands were tied and she had a rag in her mouth. Her eyes were round and terrified. They almost glowed in the dark they were so white and wide.
Posted in Tuesday's Tales | Tags: Free, Tuesday tales, Tuesday's Tales, word prompt
Posted by: Author | May 2, 2014
Friday Facts- May 2, 2014- Strawberry Letter 23
There is a record called Strawberry Letter 23. It was a 45 rpm by The Brothers Johnson that came out in 1977. It was unusual in that the label was pink and the vinyl was red and it had strawberry scent embedded in it to make the record smell like strawberries. How much fun was that? Do you remember this record? I do. 
Posted in Friday Facts | Tags: 45 rpm, records, red. Friday Facts, scent, strawberry, Strawberry Letter 23, The Brothers Johnson
Posted by: Author | April 30, 2014
Wordless Wednesday
Posted in Wordless Wednesday | Tags: Wordless Wednesday
Posted by: Author | April 28, 2014
Tuesday Tales- April 29, 2014- Flying
This week, the prompt is Flying. I’m still working on the Pensacola based story called Til Murder do us Part. Check out the other entries here. Since some folks are confused by the gaps I’m leaving in the story, Mitch is the private investigator helping Margot in her quest to bring her former brother-in-law, Paul Murdock to justice. Patricia is Murdock’s current wife. This is part of a scene after last week’s snippet re: the danger Margot faced.
The phone rang. She picked up. “Hello.”
“Checking to see if you got sucked down the drain. You’ve been gone a long time. Are you sure you don’t want to take some time and rest? I can go deliver the flowers while you take a nap.”
“I’ll be down in a few minutes, Mitch. I had a hard time getting my shoes on and tied. It hurts to bend as far as I need to for that task.”
“I could’ve helped you. You could’ve called me to come up.”
“I got it. I’m on my way now.”
Downstairs, Mitch sat on the couch waiting for Margot. When she saw him, she walked over and said, “What took so long?”
“Isn’t that supposed to be my question?” He stood and picking his fedora off the seat beside him, shoved it on his head. “Is there a solid plan or are we flying loose and free?”
“I think we take me to my car and then I drive on to the park. You take the flowers we’re going to buy at the grocery store we have to go past to get to the Murdock house. Once I leave the neighborhood, you ring the doorbell and hope Patricia opens the door.”
They moved out of the hotel through the automatic double doors and to the parking lot. “Saddle up, then. Let’s go.” Mitch led her to his car and unlocked the passenger door.
“First you ask if we’re flying then you tell me to saddle up. I don’t know if I’m in the old west or at an airport.”
“Check it out, Margot. You’re at the beach.” Mitch waved his arm in the air as he ambled to his side of the car.
As he slid inside, he laughed. “You know, you really should’ve been a lawyer or something as much as you like to come back with a sassy remark.”
“Look who’s talking.”
“Off to the grocery store for the flowers.” Mitch backed out of his parking spot and they headed toward town.
Posted in Tuesday's Tales | Tags: flying, Pensacola, prompt, Tuesday tales, Tuesday's Tales, word, word prompt
Posted by: Author | April 28, 2014
Special Guest- V. L. Locey
Jillian: Today, I have V.L. Locey here as my guest. She and I share a publisher (even though her work is much hotter than mine) and we are also buddies on Tuesday Tales. She’s an awesome writer and a great friend. I hope you like her excerpt and blurb.
V.L.: Before we get to chatting, I`d like to thank Jillian for having me here. I love dropping by and spending time visiting with my online friends! My name is V.L. Locey and I`m a mulitgenre erotic romance author.
Do you use pet names, or endearments for loved ones? How about funny foo-foo names for your dog or cat? I`ll admit it. I do. I always call my husband ‘Wilbur’ although his name is William. I don`t even recall why I began calling him that, but somewhere in our almost twenty-three years of marriage I thought it sounded cute. My dog`s name is Tinker, yet we call him ‘Bobo Baggins’. And then there are my cats. I`m not sure we really need to hear this, but since I started it I might as well come clean. I call my female cat, Lu-Lu, ‘Pretty NuNu’ and my male cat, Lucius, is known as ‘Handsome Yellow Boy’. And those cat names must be spoken as if you`re talking to a three month old infant. How embarrassing.
Ah, those endearments. They really aren`t too bad if you take them in stride. Tender nicknames are a way of expressing emotion without having to be too shamefaced. In A Most Unlikely Countess, Veikko Aho, my leading man and starting goalie for the Philadelphia Wildcats, comes up with an adorable pet name for Liz Argon, our lovely yet shy storyteller. At first, Liz isn`t too keen on the playful endearment the famous athlete gives her, but over the course of the story it seems to grow on her. Sometimes we can`t shake those pet names no matter how hard we try. And sometimes we grow to adore the nickname nearly as much as we do the loved one using it. Do you have a nickname? I`d love to hear what it is, if you`re willing to share!
How about we have a short blurb? Then we`ll have an excerpt that deals with Veikko`s nickname for our Liz.
Blurb
Painfully shy Liz Argon probably shouldn`t be dreaming of Veikko Aho, star goalie for the Philadelphia Wildcats. As she works side by side with ‘The Count of the Crease’ on his memoirs, she finds herself falling for the handsome goaltender. His tender ways with her and her mentally fragile mother are slowly claiming her heart. If only Veikko wasn`t already engaged to a woman far better suited to move in to ‘The Count`s’ world. In book two of the To Love a Wildcat series, we`ll see if a glass slipper can survive in the rough and tumble world of professional ice hockey.
~*~
Excerpt
He was at the baby grand, his head bowed as he played each note with perfection. Lord Elton John would be proud of how well Veikko was playing Someone Saved My Life Tonight. The keys were hit with passion and agony. I lingered in the doorway of the living room as he lost himself in the song, or so I thought.
“Come sit beside me, Piglet,” he said, jarring me from my appraisal of him, the piano, the muted light in the corner, and the tumbler of liquid sitting within easy reach. Whiskey, if the smell was any indication. Not sure if I liked his nickname for me or not, I nonetheless moved closer to him. He glanced up, his long fingers never missing one key, then he jerked his head to indicate the bench. I moved behind him to sit primly at his side. Yes, it was whiskey in the tumbler. The smell was a thick fog around the man. So he had drunk his dinner tonight. That boded well.
“Tell me, Piglet, have you ever had a man break your heart?” he asked his accent slightly thicker from the ingestion of who knew how much Jack Daniels.
“Sure.”
“I get no other details than that?” His hands moved across the keyboard smoothly, leaving me in yet a deeper hole of disbelief. I had come into this job with a massive number of misconceptions about athletic types. Veikko was shattering all my stereotypes. Not only was the man not dumb, he possessed all his teeth, he was a lover of fine art, a philanthropist, a highly skilled pianist, and a deeply emotional human being who was now begging, in his own masculine way, for me to commiserate with him. Maybe it was the booze that had him beseeching in as manly a way possible for heartache tales.
“He was a college guy.” I sighed, hearing the lyrics written by Bernie Taupin clearly in my mind. “I was sixteen, he was twenty-one. He got what he wanted and I never saw him again. Typical, right?”
He said something unpleasant in one of his two native tongues that if translated might have made a sailor gasp. It sounded really vile.
“Hey, it was years ago, but thanks for getting all big brother about it, Pooh.”
His snort surprised me. As did the gentle elbow he pushed into my side. “Shy little Piglet needs a burly Pooh to defend her honor from time to time.” He chuckled, obviously a bit drunker than he should be given he had to play tomorrow night. “I am sorry he hurt you. You have such a good soul, kind and caring, not filled with conceit and self-absorption.”
Well, what did a person say to that? Going with the usual response I have ready for random acts of kindness, I muttered thanks while wishing I had let my hair down.
The music stopped. I found myself being drawn to look at him, even though it would make me flushed and unable to speak properly. He was too close. His eyes far too hooded.
“Sing for me,” he whispered. “I wish to hear the words. They are good words for tonight, don`t you think?”
Wetting my lips my eyes roamed from his face to the whiskey. Maybe I needed a few fifths as well.
“I`m really sorry about things, how they happened, I mean. You and she seemed…looked so good together, well, I think if you want me to sing you need to play.”
“Thank you, Piglet.” He exhaled, pressed his lips to my cheek then started at the beginning of the song once again. My lips were rather disappointed that I didn`t turn to catch his mouth with mine. I could have. I should have. It would have been so simple: just a turn of the head at the wrong, or right depending on your POV, moment. His lips on mine, just for a minute in a startling kiss that would lead to something hot, carnal, and as everlasting as the peaks of Mardavia.
Those kinds of moments don`t happen for skinny, shy chicks though. Closing my eyes, I began singing about east end nights, slip nooses, and thanking God for music that pulls us through.
~*~
You can find Liz and Veikko`s book, A Most Unlikely Countess, here: (It is recommended that you read the series in order)
You can find Pink Pucks & Power Plays, the first book of the To Love a Wildcat series, here:
V.L. Locey loves worn jeans, belly laughs, anything romantic, Greek mythology, New York Rangers hockey, comic books and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.) She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a steer named after a famous N.H.L. goalie, a pig with the same moniker as a famous President, and a flock of assorted domestic fowl.
V.L. is a self-published and conventionally published author. She is a proud Torquere Press and Secret Cravings Publishing author. When not writing romantic tales, she can be found enjoying her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in hand, writing, or cheering on her beloved New York Rangers. She can also be found online on Facebook, Twitter, and GoodReads.
I love to meet new friends and fans! You can find me at-
Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/pages/VL-Locey/124405447678452
Twitter- https://twitter.com/vllocey
Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5807700.V_L_Locey
My blog- http://thoughtsfromayodelinggoatherder.blogspot.com/
Posted in guests | Tags: A Most Unlikely Countess, book, Erotic, erotic romance, guests, romance, SCP, Secret Cravings Publishing, Tuesday tales, V.L. Locey
Posted by: Author | April 25, 2014
Friday Facts- April 25, 2014-Happy Anniversary to Wrigley Field
This week saw a 100th anniversary! On April 23, 1914, the field was officially opened and was the called Weeghman Park. It was part of the Federal League. The team at the time it opened was the Chicago Whales. The Federal League shut down in 1915.
in 1916,the field became the home of the Chicago Cubs. They played their first game against the Kansas City Packers. The field was called Cubs Park until the William Wrigley of the chewing gum company became the owner of club. He changed the name to Wrigley Field in 1926.
This week, they had a big party and played the Arizona Diamondbacks. Both teams wore retro 1914 jerseys (fun!). I also heard that the dude from Cake Boss made a replica of the field cake for the celebration. I read somewhere that the prices at the concession stand were also retro but I’m not sure that’s true so we won’t call that a fact.
EDITED TO ADD: Check out this story about the cake. What a shame.
Posted in Friday Facts | Tags: 100 anniversary, Arizona Diamondbacks, baseball, chicago, Cubs, Friday Facts, happy anniversary, Wrigley Field
Posted by: Author | April 23, 2014
Wordless Wednesday
Posted in Wordless Wednesday | Tags: Wordless Wednesday
Posted by: Author | April 21, 2014
Tuesday Tales- April 22, 2014- Picture Prompt
Today’s Tale is based on a picture prompt. The one I chose is an old train station. I’m still working on the Pensacola based story. Interestingly, one of the hotels in downtown is built attached to the restored downtown train station. This station has been around a long time and when the hotel was built, the builder made the station the lobby entrance. It’s a beautiful place and I’m happy to have worked it into my story both with this photo and with the plot I already had in my head when the picture was posted. Read the other posts here. We are limited to 300 words for the picture prompts so I had to cut out a lot of the action of the scene to get that short.
She ran on, her feet thudding across the sidewalk near the civic center and across the street to the hotel that was constructed from an old train station. One foot hurt and she limped a little in a funky loping run. She would’ve laughed if she wasn’t in so much danger and if she didn’t hurt so bad.
As she moved toward the train station, Margot didn’t hear anyone pursuing her but didn’t take the chance to look over her shoulder as she pumped her legs to get herself to safety. No reason to waste those precious seconds.
Arriving at the door to the hotel lobby, Margot flung it open and stepping inside the lobby, almost fell due to the slickness of the tile floor and her ruined shoes. She chanced a look at what she could see of herself and was appalled to find sticks caught in the hem of her dress and clinging to her little cover-up sweater. Dirt streaked down her legs and one shoe was missing a heel. She couldn’t begin to imagine what her hair and face showed of her ordeal in the cemetery but she was positive that she would frighten small children and maybe even grown men.
Margot walked through the lobby that was lined in deep mahogany wood and furniture that evoked the years the train station was operational. The front desk had to be through this foyer, she was sure it had to be close. She hobbled on.
Posted in Tuesday's Tales | Tags: novel, Pensacola, Picture, picture prompt, story, train station, Tuesday tales, Tuesday's Tales
Posted by: Author | April 18, 2014
Pre-empted Friday Facts- Release Day- Tequila Mockingbird
Today is release day for Tequila Mockingbird so I apologize to the folks who would rather see a Friday Fact. We will return to your regularly scheduled program next week. BUY LINK
Blurb:
Two years ago, Kestral Falco was an up and coming prosecuting attorney in Los Angeles. His life was set until he found out his fiancée cheated on him. In a misguided attempt to be chivalrous, he let her put the blame on him, never imagining the repercussions. Treated as an outcast, he leaves the practice of law and moves to Mexico where he’s recruited to join the Drug Enforcement Agency and go undercover to fight the war on drugs. His code name is Mockingbird.
Rachel Newsome, a defense lawyer who blames Kes for breaking her friend’s heart, has a client who desperately wants to find out Mockingbird’s true identity. When Rachel’s sister is kidnapped and taken to Mexico, Rachel becomes desperate to find her. She’s more than a little upset when she’s forced to team up with Kes as he has the knowledge Rachel needs to help save her sibling.
Excerpt
A week after the fiasco at the bar, Rachel strolled down the corridor at the courthouse after her motion hearing concluded. Her briefcase bulged with the file from hell. This case would be the death of her. Both of her opposing counsels were named Michael but one went by Mike. They were also like little boys in a playground. She thought of them as two kids playing tug-of-war while she sat back on the swing set and watched the action. She was convinced that eventually she would win the case and it was just a matter of how bloody it would get between them before the final bell rang. Good thing she liked her client.
As she strolled alone she waved to several colleagues who passed by. She turned the corner. Up ahead she recognized several male lawyers congregated around the area near the stairwell. They were laughing and making a lot of noise. Her stomach clenched when she recognized one of them.
Orry Falco leaned against the wall with one hand in the pocket of his dress slacks. She’d seen him off and on in the courthouse in the two years since his brother Kes had jilted her friend at the altar and left town but the easy friendship of the past was gone. Kes had left a swath of bitter feelings in his wake and a lot of relationships changed due to his selfish actions.
Rachel hoped Orry wouldn’t notice her but no such luck. Almost as soon as she arrived at the stairs with the intention to sneak past the rowdy group, he turned. His eyes widened and he jerked his head back around.
Now a little peeved, Rachel wondered what the heck that was all about. Really? They couldn’t even be cordially distant now? He was going to flat-out snub her?
She stopped in her tracks and peered around his back to see who else was in the crowd. She sucked in a breath when she saw the profile of a buff man with a ponytail and a scruffy beard. Could it be the same man from the bar? The one she’d thought was so sexy getting into the cab?
The crowd parted and the man with the ponytail turned around. Rachel did gasp then. Loudly. She dropped her briefcase. It landed with an echoing thud at her feet.
“Rachel Newsome. What a pleasant surprise.” The tone of Kestrel Falco’s voice told her that he was anything but pleased. He bent down and picked up her briefcase. “Yours, I presume?”
She snatched it from his hand. “Yes.” God, he’d changed physically. He’d always been handsome but gone was the staid lawyer in the three-piece suit with the short haircut. In his place was a man in a pair of jeans and a white shirt who could be a god from Mount Olympus. He’d bulked up, his long hair in the ponytail was dead sexy and she didn’t even want to think about what the scruff on his face would feel like if she touched it.
“Most people would respond with a thank you.”
“Thank you.” She came back to herself and snapped the answer more harshly than she’d intended.
“Oh, dear. She didn’t sound very grateful, did she fellows?” one of the men in the crowd asked.
The rest of them all guffawed their agreement.
Rachel tucked the briefcase under her arm. “You all do know this is a courthouse, right? You’re all making way too much noise. This isn’t a bar or a men’s club.”
“Well, not to be mean, Rachel, but it really is a men’s club. Or at least it was until you walked up,” one of the men she didn’t know said.
“How do you know who I am?” she asked the rude jerk.
“Everyone knows the ice princess.” He sneered.
“Ice princess? What does that mean?”
“It’s the reputation you have around here, Rach,” Orry said.
“And you know, princess, if it was truly a men’s club, we’d have some hot chick here half-naked, not a prissy stuck-up female lawyer who probably hasn’t been laid in five years.” The jerk lawyer stepped forward and into Rachel’s personal space.
Before she could react, Kes moved closer. “Cut it out, Jack. That was uncalled for and rude. Apologize to the lady.”
“Why should I? Why should you defend her honor anyway? Isn’t she Deidre’s pal?”
“She is but that’s no reason to be rude.” Kes’s voice lowered an octave, which actually scared Rachel. She’d never seen him so tense and wired. He acted as if he was going to lunge at the man.
Jack raised his hands in front of his face in a defensive posture. “Sorry, Kes. I didn’t mean anything by it.”
“Don’t apologize to me. Apologize to her.” Kes, fists clenched, tilted his head toward her. “And you better be sincere about it.”
“I’m sorry I called you an ice princess, Rachel.”
Kes literally growled. He sprang forward. His brother grabbed him. “Let it go, bro. He’s not worth it.”
“I’m going to head to my hearing now.” Jack sneered again and walked away.
Rachel looked up at Kes. She didn’t remember him being that tall before. Maybe it was all the new muscle definition. “Thanks for trying to make him apologize. Some people are cruel and there’s no dealing with them, but I appreciate your effort.”
“You’re welcome.” Kes bowed. “I better go now. I have a meeting with one of the prosecutors to discuss my testimony tomorrow.”
“So you’re here for a case?”
“Yeah, I am. As a witness though, not a lawyer.”
“Interesting change of position there, isn’t it?”
“Sort of but not really. It’s not like I’m on trial.”
“Good luck then.” Rachel moved down the stairs.
Before she got more than three down, Kes called after her. “You can’t even say it was nice to see me?”
Posted in Books, Friday Facts | Tags: book, Friday Facts, release day, sweet cravings Publishing, Tequila Mockingbird
Jillian Chantal 