Guest Post: Author Alyssa Turner

I’d like to welcome author Alyssa Turner.  She is one of 5 authors featured in the new book Halloween Heat V.  I will be reviewing this book this month.  So without further adieu here is Alyssa Turner.

Thank you Book Maven for giving me the chance to share a bit of my ramblings on your blog.

It’s October and I’m Falling in love …

Autumn is beautiful in the Northeastern US and being the outdoorsy type, I get out and about to enjoy all its splendor as much as I can.  Crisp air in my lungs and a cornucopia of colors to put an awe inspired smile on my face; no wonder my writing tends to slow down during this time of year.  I’m always outside!

I wrote my first MMF set in the early days of Fall when Indian Summer is a special treat for those mourning the end of their playful days in the sun.  By Surprise follows an unlikely trio in Paxton, Nicholas and Jodi as they find a kind of completion none of them knew was possible.  Like the joy an unseasonably warm day tends to bring, the desires Jodi has for her best friend and his loving husband seem impossible to ever become a lasting reality.

But what if the leaves fall and the air turns cold and there is still warmth to be found?  It’s the courage to fight for what seems impossible that Jodi has to find.

By Surprise was released earlier this year from Etopia Press, excerpt below.   You can find another friends to lovers ménage in my story Thrills and Chills, Halloween Heat V anthology.   Celebrate the release of this smoking hot collection with our $25 Amazon gift card giveaway!

Excerpt: By Surprise

He’d caught her staring out at him again from her perch high above in the turret. Maybe she couldn’t tell that he could see her, clear as day, at the window. Maybe she didn’t care. Finally he waved and she waved back. One mystery solved, she knew he could see her now. And then she was gone. Nicholas wondered if he’d scared her off.

“Finally got some good weather on my day off. Thought I’d join you for some fresh air,” Jodi called out as the screen door slapped closed behind her on the back porch. Her face was smudged with clay where she’d brushed her hair from her face. She’d been up in her studio all morning. It was hard to tell which splatters on her overalls were fresh and which resulted from another masterpiece all together.

What Nicholas couldn’t mistake was the bright smile splashed across her face as she walked over to him. He spiked his shovel into the soil and leaned on it as she approached. Perspiration soaked his shirt and he pulled at the cotton fabric as it clung to his chest. A swipe of his wrist over his brow and he laughed. “You might not want to get that close.”

“I’m not afraid of a little man sweat.”

“Warm day for October,” he said, noticing her long neck. Even in dirty old overalls she managed to look elegant, with her upswept hair falling from a high ponytail in wavy tendrils.

She pushed an errant lock behind her ear. “Nicholas, I’m really not the kind of girl to talk about the weather.” With a smile she sat down in the grass and stretched out, patting the ground next to her. “Pop a squat for a second. Take a break.”

She stared at him, badass through the glaring sun, propped up on her elbows, one of her straps falling off her shoulder. Nicholas thought the invitation sounded too good to refuse, and she looked like she wasn’t taking no for an answer. He took a seat. “What’s up?”

“Tell me how you and Paxton met.”

Nicholas grinned. He loved telling that story. “You know when you have one of those days when nothing goes right?”

Jodi laughed. “Yeah, had more than my share.”

“Well, I’d just gotten my first case assignment, a teenager who’d been giving his stepmother a hard time about getting his ass to school. I go to see them, and the kid was a real piece of work, throwing things and cursing me out like I was his worst enemy or something. I’m telling him if he doesn’t calm down, I’ll have to call the police—you know, following procedure. That just makes him angrier, and now he’s standing on a chair, telling me he’s going to kick the shit out of me if I don’t leave.”

Jodi nodded for him to continue, following his every word.

“You’re wondering if he did, kick the shit out of me that is.”

“Well?”

Nicholas lay down next to her and stared at the blue sky above, seeing the scene play out in front of him like it was yesterday. “So this is my first case and I want to play it by the book, you follow? I try to reassure him, let him know that I’m here to help him get a handle on his problems. He tells me to eat shit and jumps me, fists swinging.”

Jodi leaned over him. “Not that pretty face of yours.”

Nicholas raised his eyebrows with a smile. “That’s what I’m thinking. Hell no, I have a date tonight. This fucker is not going to give me a fat lip. He swings and I grab his shirt, yank him off balance. When he’s on the ground, I tell him to apologize to his stepmother or I’m going to kick the shit out of him.”

“Not exactly procedure.”

He laughed. “No, not exactly. To make it worse, the neighbor had already called the police and guess who comes walking in right at that moment.”

“Paxton.”

“All rookie tough, throwing me against the wall.” Nicholas sprung a sideways grin and cocked his head. “At the time, I was scared shitless of what was going to happen. But somehow I still registered how hot he looked in his uniform.”

“This is a great story,” Jodi mused.

“There’s more. I tell him my name and that I’m a social worker. He asks for ID. That day I’d decided a lanyard around my neck did nothing for the mist gray cashmere sweater I was wearing, and I had my ID in my pocket. I told him where to find it and he had a hell of a time fishing it out.” Nicholas chuckled. “Let’s just say the rest is history. When he ran out of reasons to follow up with me, he asked me to dinner.”

“The date you had set up that night, did you go?”

“I canceled. Couldn’t decide if the day had been a bad omen or a good one.”

“Turned out pretty good, I guess.”

He grinned. “Yeah, it did.”

“Thanks for sharing that with me.”

Nicholas sat up, pausing a moment before leaning toward her. “How about you? Feel like sharing?” Since she’d been there, he’d only heard through Paxton about her rough time in Germany. Jodi looked mortified, casting her eyes past him to the squirrel scurrying up the side of the shed. He’d suspected she wasn’t the type to spill her feelings easily, though it looked like she needed to. The fear in her eyes told him now was not the time.

“How about sharing what you’ve been working on up in your studio for the past two weeks?”

She relaxed and tossed her head back, batting her lashes with exaggeration. “Ah, wouldn’t you like to know.”

Nicholas had the sudden urge to tickle that long, slender neck, stretching out before him. Impulsively, his fingers found their way to it for a swift, playful pass against her skin while he mocked her with a frown. “You are a tease.”

And there was smoke in her eyes when she responded, “How did you guess?”

She was flirting; a harmless habit Nicholas supposed. “I’m an excellent judge of character,” he replied as the last finger swept from her chin. He’d touched her because it had seemed natural in the moment. But the sensation focused in his pants brought on by the way she looked at him was completely unexpected.

Then he was fidgety all of a sudden, shoving his hand into his hair and swiping at the dust on his pants as he stood up. “Would you like something to drink? Some water?”

“If it’s tonic water and there’s some gin in it,” she answered, standing as well. “I brought a bottle home last night. Join me?”

A fog was already forming in his head. Adding alcohol would only make it worse. He needed to get back to work and try to forget the invitation in her eyes. “I don’t think so; I want to get this place ready for winter.”

“Winter? It’s almost seventy-five degrees out here. I think you can spare time for one drink.” She shoved her hands into her pockets and looked up at him, swaying with the breeze that wafted over the yard. “I’ll give you a peek at what I’ve been working on. It’s a surprise for Paxton’s birthday.”

“You remembered it’s next week.”

“Yes, which means I don’t have a hell of a lot of time to finish it.”

Nicholas thought about the birthday present he’d promised. They hadn’t said so exactly, but with all the commotion over the last couple of weeks, the subject of a threesome had dropped way low on the priority list. Still, Nicholas wanted Paxton’s thirtieth birthday to be special, and with Jodi suddenly back in his life, Paxton would definitely want her to be a part of it.

It’s not just Paxton that wants her to take part. Nicholas shook his head and fought the notions tiptoeing in the dark, whispering forbidden words from an unfamiliar place. When he’d suggested a threesome, he’d banked on not feeling a thing. Paxton was the switch hitter, not him. Inviting a woman to their bed was his gift for Paxton to satisfy his cravings. And it was supposed to be meaningless. One look at Jodi and it was clear she’d turn everything upside-down.

He sought refuge in a new idea. “I’ll throw a dinner party. A surprise. Invite the neighbors and some friends. You’ll like them. Three-layer birthday cake, the whole nine yards.” That seemed like a much safer idea than an intimate dinner with just the three of them. “You can give him the big reveal then.”

“The big reveal. You make it sound so theatrical.”

“Getting to know you better, I’m sure it will be.” The edge eased off and he waved her to the house. “Come on, I want to see it.”

“And the drink?”

“You fix the drinks. I’ll start planning the menu.”

Blurb:

Erotic Contemporary Ménage

Five scorching contemporary erotic tales of ménage love to heat even the coldest Halloween night.

“Thrills and Chills” by Alyssa Turner
“Deployment Gifts” by Jennifer James
“Phantom Pleasure” by Eden Summers
“Taking Candy” by Vristen Pierce
“Trick or Treat” by Ana Maria Pasión

Enter the giveaway here!