The Mystery Men of Ignite...Gabriel Revealed!

Sigh.

Yeah, that’s what I do when I think about the men of Ignite, Entangled’s suspense line. Hot. Explosive. Dangerous but, whew boy, do they keep you warm…burning up…like feverish…

Yeah...

Riiight. Focus.

Gabriel Devlin, the hero of my Entangled Ignite book Secrets and Sins: Gabriel, embodies those qualities…and then some! When the book opens, Gabriel is volatile, combustible. He’s teeters on the edge because of the tragic loss of his wife and son two years earlier. He vacillates between grief, anger, and reluctant acceptance. And then throw in the growing, resented desire he’s feeling for his best friend, Leah Bannon…yeah, it’s a situation firmly set on 10…9…8…7…6…

While plotting Gabriel and visualizing who my hero reminded me of, one man immediately came to mind. You know that guy on—okay, you knew it wasn't going to be that easy!

Here is my inspiration for Gabriel:

 I can hear you now: His back. Then a whispered aside to the person next to you: This chick is loose! Is she serious?

Yes! Look at his back. Now get past the total hotness of the cut muscles. Notice the scars and the tattoo. The mystery man who inspired Gabriel wears his scars on his skin, and my hero wears his on his soul and heart. Both men have faced torture and survived to tell the tale. And also, the tattoo? Aside from its total hotness, the tattoo states he’s not afraid of commitment.

Do you know who he is yet?

Shh! Don't tell but one last cheating pic:

Okay, no more! You’ll drag no more info out of me! Not even if you threatened to pry my fingernails off. Or bust my knee caps…or make me sit through a 24 hour marathon of Mariah Carey’s Glitter.

Now all week from August 5^th to the 8^th Ignite authors Maya Blake, Kay David, Eve Devon, Stephanie Feagan, Joya Fields, Elle James, and Cathy Perkins will also be posting body part pics  and dropping clues to the mystery men who inspired their heroes. More man flesh and dangerous, sexy heroes!!

Here’s the line-up:

Monday: Kay David and Stephanie Feagan

Tuesday: Joya Fields and Maya Blake

Wednesday: Cathy Perkins and Me!

Thursday: Elle James and Eve Devon

Come give us your answers or best guesses at The Mystery Men of Ignite…Revealed! Facebook event on Thursday, August 8^th from 7 to 9 pm! We're dropping more hints, having tons of laughs and giving away prizes, including a special journal to record your own secrets and sins in from moi and a $100 Amazon Gift Card!

Make sure you visit these awesome authors all four days to pick up clues to their mystery heroes to win more prizes! Don't forget to join us on Thursday! See you there!!

The Grave - Part 4

Desperate, he escaped the room. He bolted through the back door and the cold, fresh air slapped him in the face. He sucked in a deep breath, thankful for air free of tears and pain, and dropped to the top step of the back porch.

Tears burned his eyes. Fear surged up in his chest and he blinked furiously. If he started crying he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to stop. With a sigh, he scrubbed his palms over his face, pressing them to his gritty, burning eyes. It had been forty-eight hours since he’d last slept. But it had also been forty-eight hours since the nightmares had plagued him. Forty-eight hours since he’d jerked awake, a hoarse cry razing his throat.

If only he hadn’t suggested they drive separate cars to the Christmas party. If only he’d driven in front of Maura instead of following her and Ian. If only, if only…so many damn “if only”s. Even now he could hear the squeal of rubber tires. The screech of metal colliding with metal. Maura’s whispered pleas to save Ian first…Ian’s terrible silence. The acrid scent of burning gasoline invaded the cold, crisp breeze, and Gabriel sucked in several breaths, his heart working double time to keep up. Gold dots appeared in his suddenly dim vision and black streaks encroached on his vision, threatening to drag him under …

The gentle touch on his back was a length of rope he grasped and clung to with frantic hands. The length of thigh pressed to his drew him back over the ledge. The delicate, familiar vanilla and peppermint shoved back the dark.

Leah rested her head against his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his back and waist. She didn’t speak; she didn’t ask him how he was doing or offer condolences for his loss. She just held him. Unlike Ana, Gabriel didn’t have the urge to shove her away. As always, the woman with the bewitching green eyes, quiet strength and gentleness slipped under his guard. Since she’d been a child Leah had commandeered a piece of his heart, and where his best friends couldn’t offer him the comfort of holding him, touching him, she could. The warmth of her arms and body melted the chill encasing him.

How long they sat there, he didn’t know. When the tears came, he had no idea. He wasn’t aware of dragging Leah into his lap, clutching her to him, and sobbing out his grief into her neck.

Through it all Leah bore him up so he didn’t plummet into the abyss of insanity that clawed at him.

She was his…sanctuary.

***

To read Part 3, click here.

To read Part 2, click here.

To read Part 1, click here.

 

Twenty years ago, Leah Bannon’s beloved Uncle Richard vanished without a trace. Leah, now a private investigator, begins to suspect it was murder. When she reopens the cold case, Gabriel Devlin—-the man she loves but can never have—-inexplicably stands in her way.
          Only four people know the truth about Richard’s mysterious disappearance—-Gabriel and three childhood friends...who have all sworn to take that secret to the grave. But a hidden enemy wants those shocking secrets brought to light...even if he has to kill to make it happen.
          After experiencing an unimaginable loss two years ago, Gabriel refuses to put himself through the pain of loving someone who could be gone in an instant. But as he thwarts Leah’s investigation at every turn—-both to keep his friends’ pact, and to keep her safe from danger—-the sexy PI makes it impossible for him to protect his secrets. Or his heart...

Purchase here!

 

 

The Grave - Part 3

Hours later Gabriel threaded through his in-laws’ living room packed with mourners and well-wishers. He moved like a wraith, insubstantial, barely grounded to the floor. He dimly heard the murmured condolences, hardly felt the consoling touches. A dense, invisible wall had erected around him five days ago. A wall that didn’t permit compassion or kindness. If he allowed even the tiniest bit of emotion to filter through, than the grief—the horrible, clawing grief—would rip pass his defenses and splinter his mind into so many shards he wouldn’t be able to assemble them together again.

“Would that be so bad?” a dark, seductive voice whispered.

How many times in the past week had he pleaded with God to take him too? Let him go into a sweet sleep and never wake from it? Then he would join Maura and Ian in eternity; they would be a family once more.

But each morning he woke, alone and hurting so much he couldn’t comprehend how he continued to function. How a heart that didn’t exist could still pump blood to his organs, forcing him to live. And each morning, he hated God a little more. His very Catholic mother would gasp at that admission and perform the sign of the cross for her son’s blasphemy.

But it was true.

 “Gabe.” The hoarse cry echoed the depths of pain buried beneath the layers and layers of ice in his chest. “She’s really gone. My baby is gone.” Janie O’Keefe, Maura’s mother, lumbered forward, her gait unsteady and reeling. Before he could guess her intention, she threw herself against his chest. She enfolded him in her arms and wept, her body shaking with jagged sobs.

On reflex, Gabriel clutched her arms, prepared to wrench away. The shock of her touch and overwhelming display of emotion threatened the protective barrier around his own feelings. And perversely, a small part of him envied Janie her freedom to surrender to the pain.

“Come on, Mrs. O’Keefe.” Chay appeared out of nowhere, his quiet murmur both gentle and firm. His friend wrapped an arm around her shuddering shoulders and loosened her desperate hold. With low, soothing words, Chay guided the sobbing woman toward the brightly lit kitchen. Gabriel remained frozen, aware of the pitying glances cast between him and Janie.

It proved too damn much.

***

To read Part 2 click here.

To read Part 1 click here.

Part 4 of The Grave concluded on June 10th...

The Grave - Part 2

Leah.

His best friend. His mother had worked as housekeeper in her family’s home for years, and her father had been a father figure to him since his own had disappeared long before Gabe was born. Leah and James Bannon were as much family as the three men standing next to him.

“Gabe.”

He started, tore his gaze away from Leah and met blue eyes as familiar to him as his face. Ana Devlin, his mother, squeezed his hand, grief heavy on her face.

“It’s over, Gabe,” she whispered. “Are you ready to go?”

Panicked, he jerked his head back to the casket. Already employees of the funeral home were removing the flowers, and people headed across the cemetery to their waiting cars. No, his mind screamed. Terror and agony shredded him, and he wondered why his blood didn’t seep into the withered grass at his feet. Nothing should hurt this bad and not bleed.

He must have released a bit of that animal-like howl because Chay shifted closer and grasped his shoulder in a hard grip, as if bracing him. Or prevent him from leaping in the earth with Maura and Ian.

“You go ahead, Aunt Ana,” Malachim murmured. “We’ll stay with Gabe and bring him with us.”

“If you’re sure,” his mother stammered. “I can wait, too.”

“No,” Rafe assured her, his voice low, soothing. “We have him.”

Gabriel couldn’t rip his eyes from the white, large box that a crane slowly lowered into the ground with an eerie creak reminiscent of a raven’s caw.

He couldn’t leave, couldn’t force his feet to move from this place where his wife and son would find eternal rest. God help him, he couldn’t leave them behind.

***

To read Part 1 of The Grave, click here.

Part 3 of The Grave continued on July 8th...

The Grave - Part 1

When Gabriel Devlin's story begins in Secrets and Sins: Gabriel, two years have passed since the deaths of his wife and son. Below is the prequel to his story...where it really begins...

***

The grave gaped wide like a dark maw in the earth, eager to swallow up the casket that perched above it. Bouquets of colorful flowers draped the closed lid, seeming incongruous with the priest’s solemn prayer and the overcast, grey sky, heavy with the promise of snow.

Gabriel Devlin stared at the white casket, large enough for the wife and son that rested within its depths. Grief squeezed his heart in its icy grip. He shivered and wondered if he would ever be warm again. His gaze returned to the scarred earth and received his answer.

No, he would never know the warmth of love again.

His breath hitched and his throat burned with the tears he refused to shed. Though his mother flanked one side of him and his best friends, Malachim Jerrod, Raphael Marcel, and Chayot Grey positioned themselves on the other like tall, silent sentinels, he was alone, separated from everyone and everything else but his grief.

The priest’s monotone offered up a prayer, commending Maura and Ian’s spirits into God’s keeping. Rage clawed at his chest. God had entrusted them into Gabriel’s hands, why had He chosen to take them from him? Had he done such a horrible job?

He squeezed his eyes shut, guilt flaying the skin from his soul. When he reopened them, he stared off into the distance, needing to look at anything but the casket that contained his family’s remains.

As his gaze skimmed the crowds, only a few met his eyes, most skittering away as if unable to stare into the face of sorrow. Hell, he knew what he looked like. A gaunt, empty-eyed caricature of the man he’d been.

His gaze settled on a tall, slim figure. As he stared the woman lifted her dark head and eyes as green as the leaves on top of the casket met his. Unlike the others, she didn’t avoid his stare, but held it. Sympathy, sorrow, and love glistened, along with her tears.

Leah.

***

Part 2 of The Grave continues on Wednesday, July 3rd...

 

Twenty years ago, Leah Bannon’s beloved Uncle Richard vanished without a trace. Leah, now a private investigator, begins to suspect it was murder. When she reopens the cold case, Gabriel Devlin—-the man she loves but can never have—-inexplicably stands in her way.
          Only four people know the truth about Richard’s mysterious disappearance—-Gabriel and three childhood friends...who have all sworn to take that secret to the grave. But a hidden enemy wants those shocking secrets brought to light...even if he has to kill to make it happen.
          After experiencing an unimaginable loss two years ago, Gabriel refuses to put himself through the pain of loving someone who could be gone in an instant. But as he thwarts Leah’s investigation at every turn—-both to keep his friends’ pact, and to keep her safe from danger—-the sexy PI makes it impossible for him to protect his secrets. Or his heart...

 

 

Secrets and Sins: Gabriel Blog Tour and "Boston Strong" Swag Pack Giveaway!

The Secrets and Sins: Gabriel Blog Tour has officially started! The tour runs from June 24th through July 24th with various stops and blogs about secrets...sins...songs about stalkers... Hee-hee!

Up for grabs at the end of the tour is an Amazon Gift Card and Gabriel's "Boston Strong" swag pack, which includes a Boston Strong tee and matching tote bag! Just enter through the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here are the dates and places of where I'll be for the next month! Come visit me at these sites through the tour. I'd love to see you there!
Naima

Flowers, George Washington and My Trusty Kindle!

Stop #3 on my When-I-Go-To-Boston-I-Must-See-This Tour!

The Boston Public Garden. While my husband abandons me to go and visit Fenway Park after I've dragged him to Sondra Celli's dress shop, The Freedom Trail and Charles Street for shopping, I would stop by one of Boston's famous parks, located right in the heart of downtown Boston. It's like an oasis of vibrant, colorful flowers and trees with a lake, beautiful bridge and swan boats.

And the statues. Sigh. Did I mention the statues? The towering bronze figure of George Washington on his horse, the stately image of Massachusetts congressman, Charles Sumner, and the adorable bronze figures of a mother duck and her ducklings all in a row from the children's story, Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey. Just to name a few.

 

Oh yes. While the hubby basked in baseball heaven, I'd pick a bench, pull out a book--or a Kindle--then sit and enjoy one of Boston's beautiful landmarks--it's own slice of heaven.

So there's Stop #3! Remember, the GIVEAWAY for the Amazon Gift Card and Advanced Readers Copy of Secrets and Sins: Gabriel is still going strong until Sunday, the 23rd! You can enter through the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Wonderful Birthday Gift!

I can FINALLY reveal the cover for my upcoming romantic suspence release from Entangled Publishing's Entangled Suspense line! You have no idea how I've been dy-ing to show it!

Secrets and Sins: Gabriel is the first book in a four-book series from Entangled Suspense, and I have to admit...I am in love with this book. It's a "first" for me in a couple of ways. It's my first book that isn't erotic. It's sensual, definitely, but less, uh, explicit than my previous books.
But the emotion, the tragic hero and strong, independent heroine and secondary characters I fell in love with maek up for the naughty words I had to dial back on. :D


Also, it's my first true, bona-fide romantic suspense. I've had books with suspense elements, but Gabriel has a strong suspense plot running alongside the beautiful, romance. I'm so excited about its release! And did I mention the release date is on my birthday? Yes! June 24th! What an awesome birthday gift! *hint! hint! nudge! nudge!*

Blurb
Twenty years ago, Leah Bannon’s beloved Uncle Richard vanished without a trace. Leah, now a private investigator, begins to suspect it was murder. When she reopens the cold case, Gabriel Devlin—-the man she loves but can never have—-inexplicably stands in her way.

Only four people know the truth about Richard’s mysterious disappearance—-Gabriel and three childhood friends...who have all sworn to take that secret to the grave. But a hidden enemy wants those shocking secrets brought to light...even if he has to kill to make it happen.

After experiencing an unimaginable loss two years ago, Gabriel refuses to put himself through the pain of loving someone who could be gone in an instant. But as he thwarts Leah’s investigation at every turn—-both to keep his friends’ pact, and to keep her safe from danger—-the sexy PI makes it impossible for him to protect his secrets. Or his heart...
 
Secrets and Sins: Gabriel is available for pre-order at Amazon and Barnes and Noble!

Undying Destiny Cover Reveal!!

 

 

Kenric St. James is out for revenge. Over 300 years ago, an ancient female vampire turned him against his will and killed the woman he loved. He’s spent more than a century building an Enclave of warrior vampires who have sworn to defend humanity against his evil sire and her minions. But when Kenric finds a woman he finally burns to claim as his own again, Kenric knows loving her means giving his sire another target.

Emily Ross just wanted a fresh start. She’s a survivor, coming off the tail end of an abusive relationship, and craves time alone to learn who she is and to save the home that holds her heart. The last thing she needed was a controlling, alpha male calling all the shots.

Meeting Kenric might just have changed her mind, though. He is wrong for her in all the right ways. But in order to keep her heart from breaking, he first has to keep the hoards of evil vamps from stealing her very breath.

Title:  Undying Destiny

Author: Jessica Lee

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Release Date: June 2013

Imprint: Edge

Purchase from Amazon
Purchase from Barnes & Noble  

Author Information

 

Almost every author's bio states they've been writing since they learned how to read. It's what they've always wanted to do. Well, my journey wasn't so straight and narrow. I was a nurse for over twenty years and hold a bachelor's degree in science with a major in biology. So as you can see, my career path had originally gone in the opposite direction. I didn't discover my passion for the craft until after I'd had my son and decided to work part-time.

I've always loved to read but had never read a paranormal romance. Then one night at work on break, I began reading Karen Marie Moning's Spell of the Highlander. I couldn't believe what I'd been missing, and I immediately fell in love with the genre.

I wanted to write like that. I wanted to create worlds where others could find the same escape and fascination I did when I read my first sensual paranormal romance.

And I hope that's what I've accomplished in my work. Please dive in, hold on tight, and enjoy the adventure. Just be careful in the dark—you might find more than you expected waiting for you there. *wink*

Jessica Lee lives in the southeastern United States with her husband and son. She loves writing and can't wait for that quiet time each day when her son is in school, and she can get lost in another place and world with the fantastical, sexy creatures in her head.

She's a member of Romance Writers of America, Carolina Romance Writers.

Author Website

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My Next Big Thing!

Okay, see, what had happened was... Hee-hee! Anything that starts off like that is guar-oon-teed to be an excuse about sumthin'!! I was tagged by the hysterical Jennifer Echols in this Blog Hop thing where writers answer questions about themselves and then tag others to reveal all...hopefully something really embarrassing and blackmail worthy, but really who gets that lucky these days? Sigh. Well, here's the dirt on my next book, the first in a romantic suspense series with Entangled Publishing...expected to be released in June of this year... *Cough! Buy it! Cough!* That was subliminal in case you didn't catch it...

By the way, I don't have a cover so here's a menage--I mean, collage, COLLAGE!--of my recent covers! Hee-hee! My bad...



1). What is the working title of your next book?

 Secrets and Sins: Gabriel. The next one in the series? That's Malachim. Why the angel names, you ask? Well, June's a-coming! Why, yes, yes. I am a promo whore...

2). Where did the idea come from for the book?
From some serious brainstorming sessions with my critique partners, Jessica Lee and Debra Glass.

3). What genre does your book fall under?
It is romantic suspense. A deviation from the erotic genre my books usually fall under. And lemme tell you, it was a huuuge change!

4). What actors would you choose to play the parts of your characters in a movie rendition?
Oooh. I Paul Walker as Gabriel. And for Leah? Aishwarya Rai!

5). What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?
A private detective's investigation into a twenty-year old disappearance threatens her relationship with the man she's been in love with since childhood and ensnares her in the diabolical game of a madman bent on revenge. Dang! That was a super long sentence!

6). Who is publishing your book?
Entangled Publishing, more specifically the Entangled Suspense line.

7). How long did it take you to write the first draft of the synopsis?
Which first draft? I originally wrote this book during NaNoWriMo. But then did two complete overhauls. Soooo MONTHS!

8). What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
I don't know! Uum... If a reader likes Cynthia Eden and Katie Reus' romantic suspense books, I think they'd give mine a whirl.

9). Who or what inspired you to write this book?
The alarmingly dwindling deadline. Hee-hee! Okay, seriously. Stand By Me and my favorite friends-to-lovers trope. I just can't get enough of that!!

10). What else about the book might pique the readers' interest?
The book has secrets galore, a tortured hero and a bromance between four friends....so does that make it a menage a quatre bromance? Hmm...

So here're my author peeps I'm tagging:

The brilliant Debra Glass, author of erotic historical romances!

The wonderfully talented Kerry Freeman, author of sexy m/m erotic romances!

The fantabulous Jessica Lee, author of beautiful paranormal romances!

The marvelous Paisley Smith, author of hot girl-on-girl erotic romances!

Check back with them to find out what they have going on!