Showing posts with label Faith Talbot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Faith Talbot. Show all posts

Monday, April 08, 2013

DRB1stChp Changeling Press Sundays (07 April)

DRB1stChp Changeling Press Sundays (07 April):
(full first chapters online)

** Coriolis 2: Kill Fee by Mychael Black
(Erotic SciFi Futuristic Romance, MM)
http://drb1stchp.com/2013/04/kill-fee-by-mychael-black/

** Beautiful Music 4: Colour Haze by Faith Talbot
(Erotic Paranormal Romance, MMF)
http://drb1stchp.com/2013/04/colour-haze-by-faith-talbot/

** Protect & Serve: Dire's Strait by Mikala Ash
(Erotic Paranormal Romance, MMF)
http://drb1stchp.com/2013/04/dires-strait-by-mikala-ash/

** Executive Decision (Collection) by Marteeka Karland
(Erotic Vampire Shifter Romance, MFM)
http://drb1stchp.com/2013/04/executive-decisions-collection-by-marteeka-karland/


And revisit the new releases of 07 February on the Book's Blurb Blog:

** Mixed Breeds 2: Bear Facts by Julia Talbot
** Memphis Heat 2: Streetwise by Shelby Morgen & Marteeka Karland
** Bull and China by Rayven Renshaw
http://thebooksblurb.blogspot.com/2013/04/bull-and-china.html

--
Zenobia Renquist
Discover Different and Unique Romance
http://about.me/zenobiarenquist
Caveat Emptor Series :: Three couples caught in a war have only one solution -- peace. Si vis pacem, para bellum. :: http://zenobiarenquist.com/bookshelf/caveat-emptor-series

Thursday, April 04, 2013

New Releases 04 April 2013

New Releases: 
Kill Fee (Coriolis 2) by Mychael Black $3.99
Sixteen years apart and a kill-contract mean nothing for two Marine snipers…

Dire's Strait (Protect and Serve) by Mikala Ash $4.49
Love can be life's tastiest treat, in more ways than one.
 
Colour Haze (Beautiful Music) by Faith Talbot $3.99
Randy loves Liz. Liz loves Randy. Liz loves Tom. Can they work it out before it destroys the band?
 
Executive Decisions (Collection) by Marteeka Karland $8.99
Executive Decisions. Discreet escorts for the professional woman. Too good to be true? Maybe...
 
Now Available at http://ChangelingPress.com

 
This Month's Discount Code: TaxRelief2013 -- 10% off any order at Changeling
 
 

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Mara's Men by Faith Talbot



Mara's Men

by Faith Talbot
Cover art: Marteeka Karland
ISBN: 978-1-60521-694-2
Genre(s): Paranormal
Theme(s): Ménage, Bisexual and More
Series: Mara's Men
Length: Novella
Page Count: 49

http://changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1698

Blurb:
In Cancun, Mara met Chris and Aaron, two mysterious men who spend most of their time under the ocean. They showed her a world she never could have imagined -- and she chose to return to her normal life.
Now, months later, Mara returns to the Mexican beaches hoping to find what she left behind. But even if she does reunite with the two men who changed her world, how can she stay with them in their mysterious world under the sea?
Excerpt:
Mara's Men
Faith Talbot
All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2011 Faith Talbot

This e-book file contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language which some may find offensive and which is not appropriate for a young audience. Changeling Press E-Books are for sale to adults, only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.



The glare from the blue-blue water of the ocean nearly blinded Mara as she looked out the window of the airplane. She blinked, trying to let her eyes adjust. Spots rose in her vision, echoes of the brilliant shards of sunlight. She didn't want to look away, but finally had to. It felt like a failure, or a betrayal.
She looked at her watch. The plane would land soon. Her stomach shook with the uncertainty of what would happen next.
Would they come to her?
* * *
"Something happened to you," Cor had said to her two weeks before.
Mara jumped a little, startled. She was sitting in her favorite coffee shop with her best friend, and they had been enjoying a companionable silence for the last few minutes. The sudden sound of Cor's voice had caught her off guard. "What? When? Nothing happened to me."
Cor gave her a knowing look. "In Cancun. Something happened. You never really talked about it."
"I told you about it."
"Not in detail." At Mara's exasperated look, Cor clarified.
"Not that kind of detail. I mean about them. Whether you really liked them or not."
"I liked them."
"How much?"
Mara shrugged. She'd asked herself the same question several times since that vacation getaway to Cancun. "I didn't have much chance to get to know them." Only in the carnal sense.
"You know" -- Cor leaned forward and laid a hand on Mara's -- "sometimes it doesn't matter."
"Yeah." Mara said nothing else. There wasn't anything else to say. Aaron and Chris had been the strangest, most wonderful men she'd ever met, and she'd let them go.
* * *
In the dark depths of the Caribbean, even in the tropical waters that surrounded Cancun, it was cold. The dark, chilled water pressed down on Chris and Aaron where they lay curled together in sand under a ledge that thrust out from the seawall, offering them some camouflage from sharks and other sea creatures. They were on good terms with most of the fish and ocean mammals that frequented this area, but occasionally someone got cranky.
Aaron shifted a bit, not quite waking from the sleep that held him. Chris lay with his face in the sand, the water fingering through his hair, making it wave and sway like seaweed.
Something changed.
Aaron opened his eyes, unsure what just happened, what had awakened him. All around him, the water was dark and quiet. Then Chris awakened, as well, and looked at him.
"You felt it?" Chris asked. The means of communication they used when they were under the water wasn't really speech, but it wasn't telepathy either. Neither of them could have explained it. It just was.
"I did," Aaron answered.
"Is it...?" Chris ventured.
"It is," said Aaron, and then he smiled. "She's coming."
* * *
Mara stepped out of the shower, scrubbing her skin dry with the hotel towel, advertised as Egyptian cotton. It felt rough at first, then seemed to soften as it grew damp. She closed her eyes, letting herself sink into the sensations. She was in Cancun, after all. She could at least do her best to enjoy herself, even if things weren't going quite the way she'd hoped.
When she was finished, she slid into a lightweight cotton nightgown. It was brief, but not overly revealing. As it settled over her curves, she realized she'd even packed for the possibility that things might not go well. That they might not come.
She tried not to think about it, smoothing the cotton over her breasts and belly. The memories remained; she'd never lose those. She could enjoy her vacation, then go home and start again, this time without the haunting question hanging over her of whether she'd abandoned the one thing that could make her life complete when she'd turned away from Chris and Aaron.
Maybe she'd even find someone else who gave her that same sense of wholeness.
A nagging voice in the back of her mind told her it would never happen. She pushed her hands through her hair as if to shove the thought back. She didn't want it. Her life could be good again. She'd find it somehow.
Fighting the sense of melancholy, she stepped out onto the hotel room's balcony. It gave a wide, lovely view of the beach, and the portion of the hotel grounds that sat adjacent. A huge, silver moon, nearly full, had risen in the east, casting silvery light across the tips of the waves. It was bright enough to cast shadows, even where the light from the hotel facilities didn't reach. It was beautiful. How could she hold on to her melancholy, looking out over beauty like this? It seemed sacrilegious, or at best ungrateful. Leaning against the balcony rail, she let a soft breeze play with her hair, caress her face.
Mara.
She froze. She thought she had heard the word, the whisper against the sound of the waves, but it had been so soft she couldn't have truly heard it. Where had it come from, then?
She peered through the moonshadows, trying to pick out details in the silvery dark. There were still a few people on the beach, enjoying the sound of the waves and the slightly cooler temperatures that had settled in with the sunset. One couple in particular seemed to be making their way up the beach to the hotel. They were a bit unsteady on their feet, as if they'd had a few too many mai tais.
Two men, she realized as they made their way a bit closer. One taller than the other, both broad-shouldered, their bodies lean but wide through the shoulders, like swimmers...
Oh, my God.
She ran back into the hotel room, ran out into the hallway and, heedless of her state of relative undress, ran in barefoot abandon out onto the moonlit beach.
http://changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1698

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Beautiful Music: Finding the Chords by Faith Talbot


Beautiful Music: Finding the Chords

by Faith Talbot
Cover art: Marteeka Karland
ISBN: 978-1-60521-635-5
Genre(s): Paranormal
Theme(s): Ménage, Bisexual and More, Cougar
Series: Beautiful Music
Length: Novella
Page Count: 81

http://changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1620

Blurb:
Finding the right balance is as important in life as it is in music. Kayla, Jason, and Erik have settled into Kayla's suburban Chicago home. But just moving in together hasn't solved all the problems of their complex threesome. While they work to iron out the wrinkles in their new status quo, Jason faces health issues that could sideline his career as a singer, while Kayla struggles to balance herself emotionally between her two very different lovers.
Excerpt:
Beautiful Music: Finding the Chords
Faith Talbot
All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2011 Faith Talbot

This e-book file contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language which some may find offensive and which is not appropriate for a young audience. Changeling Press E-Books are for sale to adults, only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.



Jason had never stayed in a hotel in Indianapolis. Having lived there most of his life, he'd never had the need. Now it felt strange, lying stretched out on crisp hotel sheets only a few blocks from what had once been his and Erik's apartment.
But they didn't live there anymore. He and Erik had made the move a few weeks ago to Chicago, leaving their ratty apartment to move in with Kayla Thorn. It wasn't Chicago proper -- she lived in a semi-suburban area considerably different from the downtown Indy area they'd previously called home. It would take some getting used to, Jason knew, but then again everything about Kayla's role in his and Erik's life took getting used to. And it was worth it.
There were two queen-sized beds in the hotel room, but Jason, Erik, and Kayla were on the bed closest to the window, luggage and a couple of guitar cases piled on the other. At the moment Kayla and Erik lay spooned together, Kayla's body curved into Erik's. They were both sound asleep still, while Jason lay staring out the window behind them, where morning had just started to turn the sky pinkish gray.
He didn't know what time it was. The hotel room clock had been blinking twelve o'clock since they'd checked in, and none of them had bothered to reset it. His phone was just far enough out of reach that he would have to roll over to lay hands on it, and he didn't feel like moving at the moment. He just wanted to lie there listening to Kayla and Erik breathe, feeling their shared warmth as it seeped through the blankets to him. He could smell Erik's musky morning smell, the softer scent of Kayla's skin. He wanted to touch them both, but he held back, unwilling to disturb them.
He and Erik had been together nearly as far back as he could remember, starting as children sharing the vagaries of the foster care system. From an early age, it had been apparent that they simply couldn't be separated -- when they were sent to separate placements, they'd both become sick, weak, surly, unmanageable or any combination of the above. Eventually, the strange, seemingly symbiotic relationship they shared had led to their becoming lovers.
For Erik, the relationship had been exclusive by necessity. He couldn't have sex with anyone but Jason. He'd tried, and the attempt had nearly killed him. And without the intimate connection to Jason, he faded. Jason was almost certain Erik would die without him, but they hadn't tested that theory. Just thinking about it made his heart race and his hands go clammy.
On the other hand, Jason could have sex with anyone he chose -- and had done so with impressive thoroughness even for a good-looking, healthy twenty-something man who fronted a moderately successful rock band. His sexual exploits created an energy of some kind -- mystical, metaphysical, electromagnetic, who the fuck knew -- which he then shared with Erik by fucking him silly. It was strange and weirdly perverted in its way, but it was necessary. They'd discovered the hard way that trying to function like normal people led to serious, potentially deadly consequences.
All that had changed when they met Kayla. Somehow, she completed a circuit they hadn't known existed. With Jason, with Erik, with both of them, she made them a single unit. Made them whole.
He let his gaze fall from the window to look at her, there where she lay in Erik's loose embrace. Her blonde hair was tousled, and he could see the red edge of a love bite peeking out past the neckline of her nightgown. He couldn't remember if his teeth or Erik's had made it. He assumed his own -- Erik wasn't nearly as fond of biting as Jason was.
She was older than either of them. By how much, he didn't know, and he didn't care. He'd find out eventually, he was sure, but all that really mattered was what she meant to him, and what her presence in their lives meant to Erik. He glanced out the window again, and when he looked back, Kayla was watching him. She smiled softly as his gaze met hers, and he smiled back and scooted a little closer.
"Hi," he said quietly.
"Hi."
"Sleep well?"
She nodded. Her hand moved to cover Erik's where it lay loosely against the curve of her belly. The movement seemed automatic, as if she simply sought his touch without thought.
Jason moved closer to her, careful not to jostle the bed too much. He didn't want to disturb Erik, but he wanted very much to kiss Kayla.
So he did, leaning forward until their lips just brushed, then leaning in a little more. Her mouth opened softly under his, her body shifting slightly toward him without disturbing Erik's arm across her stomach.
"You taste good," he murmured against her mouth.
"No, I don't." She laughed a little, the sound of it self-conscious.
"You taste like morning."
"Not really a good thing."
He made a noncommittal hum in response and shifted his weight to one elbow so he could cup her breast with his free hand. The soft, warm weight of it fit his fingers perfectly. She made a soft sound in the back of her throat as her nipple grew erect, pressing against the middle of his palm. Her eyes had gone dark, eyelids lowering in obvious desire. The look on her face, that open, uninhibited lust, made him want her more than anything he'd ever wanted in his life. Except maybe Erik. Which was as it should be. He would never get tired of this. Never. He bent closer to kiss her again.
Nothing about this, Kayla thought, would ever get old. She couldn't imagine ever looking into Jason's blue eyes and not wanting him. His mouth moved over her body, taking in every inch of her skin as if he were trying to memorize her. The soft flow of heat had already begun, bringing with it that inexplicable flow of power that was more than lust, more than need, that poured over her skin and through it, that made her stronger and fuller and so filled with life that she shook with it.
He felt it too, she knew, but it wasn't as new to him. He'd lived with this all his life, with the way sex filled him up and made him alive. With the way he shared that with Erik. She'd only been involved with them for a few months, and it all took some getting used to.
This didn't, though. Jason's tongue traced over the curve of her lower belly, dipped into her navel. His mouth was hot on her skin, and she let out an involuntary mewling sound, forgetting that Erik lay sleeping behind her. He stirred slightly, but didn't awaken. That wouldn't last long, she was certain, not the way Jason was working her over. Especially if his mouth kept moving down...
http://changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1620

Monday, October 11, 2010

Hot Flash: Beautiful Music-- Interlude in C by Faith Talbot

 

Beautiful Music: Interlude in C

by Faith Talbot
Cover art: Bryan Keller
ISBN: 978-1-60521-480-1
Genre(s): Paranormal, Hot Flashes
Theme(s): Ménage, Bisexual and More, Cougar
Series: Beautiful Music
Length: Hot Flash
http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1465

Blurb:
Kayla, Jason, and Erik know they're meant for each other, but staying together means making some serious changes.
Excerpt:
Beautiful Music: Interlude in C


Faith Talbot

All rights reserved.

Copyright ©2010 Faith Talbot



This e-book file contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language which some may find offensive and which is not appropriate for a young audience. Changeling Press E-Books are for sale to adults, only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.



The tiny apartment smelled like pot, partially washed male, and a little like something that had been left in the back of the refrigerator too long. Kayla tried not to wrinkle her nose; she could already see the poorly hidden trepidation on Jason's face as he led her into the living room. The coffee table had a pizza box and two empty takeout containers on it. Kayla idly wondered how long they'd been there. Daze on End had been on tour until last week, and Jason and Erik hadn't been home for any substantial amount of time for at least three months, as far as she knew.

"Well," said Jason, not quite meeting Kayla's eyes, "here it is."



Erik, not showing much in the way of trepidation at all, flopped onto the couch and dropped his feet on the coffee table. One of the takeout containers fell onto the floor.



"Home sweet home," he said, and tipped his head back and closed his eyes.



"Sorry it's a mess," Jason offered.



Kayla followed Jason into the bedroom, carrying her overnight bag. The smell here was rawer, muskier, and Kayla waited, unsure what to say as Jason hastily put down his own burden of luggage and pushed open a window.



"Really, God, I'm sorry. This place is a fucking mess."



Kayla set her bags gently on the floor. "It's okay, Jason. You haven't been home in ages. You're guys. It could be a lot worse."



She smiled, and was relieved when he gave her a sheepish smile back. "Yeah. Well. It's kind of always like this."



"I was giving you an out, honey. Take it."



Jason laughed, still sounding a little nervous, but better. Kayla stepped up to him and kissed him soundly on the mouth.



"One thing, though," she said, feeling him relax under her touch. "You are not fucking me on those sheets until they've been washed."

http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1465

Friday, May 21, 2010

Beautiful Music-- Daze on End by Faith Talbot


Beautiful Music: Daze on End by Faith  Talbot
Read an excerpt
 
 

Beautiful Music: Daze on End

by Faith Talbot
cover art by Marteeka Karland
ISBN: 978-1-60521-420-7
Genre(s): Paranormal
Theme(s): Ménage, Bisexual and More
Series: Beautiful Music
Length: Novella

http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1383
Blurb:

When Kayla gets an extra ticket to a rock concert from her assistant, she never dreams she'll be hooking up with the far younger lead singer before the show. It's a great one-night stand -- until the bass player, Erik, calls her a few nights later. Jason is sick, and only Kayla can help him.
Jason and Erik of Daze on End have navigated a strange, energy-based sexual puzzle their whole lives. When Kayla enters their lives, some of the answers begin to fall into place as the three of them find themselves beginning an erotic journey that will change all their lives.
Excerpt:
Beautiful Music: Daze on End
Faith Talbot
All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2010 Faith Talbot
This e-book file contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language which some may find offensive and which is not appropriate for a young audience. Changeling Press E-Books are for sale to adults, only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.

He was rangy and lean, with shaggy dark blond hair, and shoulders a little too wide for the rest of him. It was the kind of body so many men don't grow into until their mid-thirties, Kayla thought. A good body. He had a few more years of muscle-building to go.
His cock tasted like salt and iron.
He had his back up against the wall, his mouth slack, gray eyes glazed as his orgasm trembled its way into his hips. She curled her fingers around the base of his dick to hold him off, and he moaned a protest. She grinned, mouth stretching around his shaft.
It wasn't the best place for a blowjob. She wasn't even sure where they were -- she'd just followed him when he led the way. It wasn't the bathrooms and it wasn't backstage, but it was somewhere between the bar and the place where the band would be preparing for their performance in a few minutes. She didn't really care. She had a mouth full of cock, the smell of his musk tickling her nose, the taut skin of his belly trembling under her fingers. It's all good.
She hadn't really meant to pick him up. In fact, she still wasn't sure if she'd picked him up or he'd picked her up. It was hard to tell sometimes, when you met each other's eyes across a bar and that lightning-fast "fuck me" shot across the room between you. She bought him a drink, he came to her table; the courtship lasted perhaps fifteen minutes and ended with her on her knees.
She curled her fingers around his scrotum, feeling his balls draw up. A careful squeeze stopped him, and his sharp sound of protest sounded almost like pain. She couldn't help laughing at him. She knew how to do these things. She had the experience he was too young to have accumulated. Far too young.
Her chuckle made his hand tighten in her hair. "Don't hold me off, baby. I have to go on in fifteen minutes." His tone was easy and amused. No anger in it at all. She had to give him credit there, since she'd strangled his orgasm twice now.
Go on. She wondered at the statement, but not for long. He pushed his cock into her mouth, pressing against the back of her throat. Not hard, just a little demanding. She decided she liked him. She swallowed with the head of his cock pressed against the very back of her mouth, and he gave an appreciative hum. His hips tilted back a little and his fingers tightened in her hair. She knew this was his signal that she should pull back or swallow a good mouthful of jizz. Kayla opted to swallow.
Above her, she heard his gasp, ecstasy threaded with surprise, maybe a little gratitude. I do like him. I really do.
His hips bucked, his back arching against the wall behind him. His fingers clenched in Kayla's hair, then relaxed until he was combing through it instead of holding on.
She drew back, licked the full length of his shaft, the sleek, trembling head. He flinched back, wincing and laughing at the same time. Kayla tucked him neatly back in and refastened his fly, then kissed the layer of denim on top of the zipper. His hand came down to her shoulder, and his gentle touch drew her to her feet.
He was at least six inches taller than she was. He didn't just dip his head to kiss her -- he lowered his whole body, bent knees, bowed spine, like he was surrendering all of himself into her space.
His mouth was generously shaped, and he knew what to do with it. She craved it suddenly, wanted it between her thighs. Not here, though. If this was a bad place for fellatio, it was an even worse place for cunnilingus.
He was probably about to leave, anyway, if he had to "go on." It sounded like he must be with the opening band. Kayla had had no idea.
He took his time kissing her, though, behaving not at all like someone who needed to be somewhere else in ten minutes. His hand lifted to cup the back of her head and he angled her a little, giving himself better access to her mouth. She opened beneath him. She only knew she was about to moan when she felt the vibration in the back of her throat. He chuckled at the sound and stroked her tongue with his. He tasted... like beer and like man, maybe vaguely of weed. It wasn't the most appetizing combination, but it was arousing. Ridiculously so.
Kayla knew he was going to leave any minute -- this was probably the good-bye smooch. The kiss-off, as it were, but oh, it was a good one. She knew this, but she still wanted... more than he had time to give her.
It was the want, the need, that made her hand press down between her own legs, where her cunt felt too big for the space allotted for it there. And wet. Slick. So wet it felt like her body could slide in half, like he could press fingers, hand, his entire arm inside her and meet no resistance.
The heel of her hand pressed between her legs, into that heat burning through her jeans, and brushed against another hand on its way to the same place. Surprised, she opened her eyes and drew her head back. He was looking at her with mischief in his gray eyes. A thick shock of messy blond hair nearly obscured them. She had a sudden urge to brush it back.
"You have to go on," she said, barely hearing herself. Her ears were buzzing, her whole body an aching throb longing for release.
He grinned. His fingers -- long, slim, a musician's fingers, and how could she have missed that? -- brushed hers aside and he slid his hand down the front of her jeans. No unbuttoning, no unzipping -- just his hand down past the fly and inside her panties. It was a bit tight in there for him to maneuver, but he managed it, and his fingertips slid unerringly onto her clit. She flinched, and he chuckled.
"So wet," he muttered. "So fucking wet."
She grabbed his head and dragged his mouth back down to hers. Suddenly she didn't want him looking at her. It was one thing when she had his dick in her mouth, and he was too blinded by lust to see through the shadows. To figure out she was a long way away from having been in his graduating class.
He devoured her mouth while his thumb rolled against her clit and long, clever fingers slid down and inside her. He pressed hard, pressed in, and she couldn't help it. She fell apart as a shower of sparks broke behind her eyelids. The sounds she made were ridiculous, but he swallowed them down, sucking her tongue into his mouth.
When he drew back, he was laughing. "See?" The smugness in his voice was almost enough to make her want to smack him. Almost. "That didn't take long at all."

http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1383

Sunday, December 06, 2009

Mara by the Sea by Faith Talbot


Mara by the Sea by Faith Talbot
Cover by Marteeka Karland
Length: Novella

http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1277

Blurb:

Since her divorce, Mara has been moldering. Or at least that's what her best friend tells her when she drags Mara to Cancun for a pick-me-up.



Mara finds more than a pick-me-up. On the beach, she meets two beautiful men who, though they're obviously into each other, are very much into Mara, too. And when they invite her into their unique world, it's an experience unlike anything she could ever imagine.



Excerpt:



This e-book file contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language which some may find offensive and which is not appropriate for a young audience. Changeling Press E-Books are for sale to adults, only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.

“Do you know what your problem is? You don’t know how to have fun. Plain and simple. You are funless.”

Mara gaped at her friend Cor, offended. “I am not funless. I’m… funful. I have lots of fun.”

“No, you don’t.” With a slight flip of her shoulder length chestnut hair, Cor looked pointedly at Mara’s Diet Coke. Cor herself was drinking a margarita. “Seriously, when was the last time you had fun?”

“I went to the movies last weekend,” Mara shot back, defensive.

“Wow.” Cor’s voice was deadpan. “Really daring.”

Mara sank back in the booth, annoyed and chagrined at the same time. “Well, what would you suggest, Miss Ultimate Fun?”

Cor looked smug. “That actually is my name, you know.” She drew something out of her purse, holding it hidden under the edge of the table. “So of course I have ideas.”

“Of course you do.” Mara stared at the edge of the table as if she might suddenly develop X-ray vision and be able to see what her friend was hiding. “So what are these ideas? Should I be scared?”

“Of course you should be scared. I’m going to push you right out of your comfort zone.”

“I like my comfort zone. It’s comfortable. That’s why it’s called a comfort zone.”

Cor leaned over the table, a conspiratorial gleam in her eyes. “You know what else is comfortable? Hot guys fucking you senseless” -- she revealed the envelope she held -- “on the beach at Cancun.”

Mara stared, then reached out to take the envelope. “You didn’t.” She opened it hesitantly, as if a poisonous snake might leap out and bite her. Inside the envelope were two tickets to Cancun, one for her and one for Cor. Mara sighed. “I hope my passport’s up to date.”

“It is. I checked.” She grinned brightly and snatched the tickets back. “You’ve been moping around for eight months, ever since the divorce was finalized. This will do you some good. Trust me.”

Mara looked mournfully at her Diet Coke, then Cor’s margarita. “I guess I’ll have to.”

Cor’s grin turned to a smirk. “Damn straight.”

* * *

The sand between her toes and the mojito in her hand helped a bit, but Mara still felt out of sorts. This just wasn’t the kind of thing she did. It wasn’t a Mara thing.

That’s the point, her little voice said. Doing Mara things isn’t going to get you anywhere. Mara things are boring.

She took another sip of the mojito, enjoying the tang of mint and citrus. Maybe that little voice was just the rum talking. Maybe she should quit worrying so damn much about it and just enjoy herself. She might not break down and have a crazy sexual fling, as Cor insisted she should, but at the very least she could relax for the weekend. God knew she could use some relaxation.

She took another sip of her mojito, then leaned back in the beach chair and closed her eyes. The sun was warm, the breeze off the ocean vaguely cool, and the rum was working its way into her system, leaving her nicely limp and relaxed.

Somebody giggled.

Mara wasn’t sure why that particular sound, out of all the sounds around her, caught her attention. She wasn’t alone on the beach, after all. There were couples all around, lotioning each other, running up and down the beach, smooching, doing God only knew what under beach blankets, kids tossing beach balls and squeaking like kids do -- but that giggle rose above everything else and set something off in her brain. Maybe because of the incongruity. It wasn’t a woman giggling, or a kid. It was a man, the sound of the giggle strange when paired with the deepness of his voice.

The sound came again, this time a bit more toward the laugh end of the spectrum than the giggle end. Mara turned her head and zeroed in on the source.

Two young men were sprawled over a blanket not far away. The giggling seemed even more incongruous now; the giggler was a big, lanky man, easily six feet three. And young. He’d be lucky, Mara thought, if he’d seen his twenty-fifth birthday yet. The other man looked to be a few years older and a few inches shorter. He sat bent forward a bit, a wry smile on his face, while the younger man slathered suntan lotion over his wide, muscular back. The younger man’s hands were huge, engulfing the older man’s broad shoulders. As Mara watched, he leaned forward to kiss the hollow of his friend’s shoulder, then laughed again. The sound was deep and melodious, and made Mara strangely warm. Friend, hell. Lover, more like. The older man reached up to cup his friend’s face, smiling, and Mara gulped down more mojito.

They were just so… pretty. Unselfconscious, relaxed, obviously enjoying each other’s company. She remembered feeling that way once on a beach with David, curled up into his wide body on a beach blanket while he combed his fingers through her wet hair --

She pushed that thought back. No sense thinking about that right now. She was here to have fun, to forget about the divorce and everything having to do with David.

The men moved closer together, the taller one draping his arms over his friend’s chest. They looked happy to her.

And hot. She sipped at her drink again, but at this point she was pretty sure the heat building in her body had nothing to do with the rum. It had much more to do with the way the young men touched each other, fingers tangled in front of the smaller man’s chest, the larger man’s arm draped over his shoulder. Cozy. Intimate. Not quite sexual, but so tacitly indicative of a sexual relationship. A picture flared in Mara’s mind of the smaller man bent in half under the larger, back arched as his lover fucked into him in deep, slow strokes, kissing his face, one hand tracing the curve of his cheekbone…

The younger man looked at her. Straight at her, as if he’d known she was watching him. Dark brown eyes framed by overgrown, sun-bleached bangs took her in. Mara felt her face go hot, but for a moment that seemed like an eternity she couldn’t look away. And as his eyes held hers, he smiled. His mouth curled up at the corners, a warmth rising in his eyes. Had he not been idly playing with his lover’s chest hair, Mara would have taken the look as a come-on.

She jerked her gaze away, stuffing the straw from her drink back into her mouth and sucking frantically. Just a friendly smile. Nothing else. And when she carefully looked back up, he was bent back into the other man’s body, lipping the back of his ear.

God. This was insane. She felt like she was going to fly into a zillion pieces right there. They were just so beautiful together, and the pictures racing through her mind didn’t help…



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Majesty Mysteries: Silver Spider-- Coming in December



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