Guest: Tawny Weber

Welcome Tawny Weber back to the convertible today!  Tawny has a copy of SEX, LIES AND MISTLETOE for one lucky commenter, so show her some love and holiday cheer!  [Contest US only, please.]

A Holiday This or That

with Tawny Weber

I love the holidays, which meant the release of my latest Harlequin Blaze, SEX, LIES AND MISTLETOE as a holiday release was an extra-special treat this year.  Not only does the story take place at Christmas, it kicks off my Undercover Operatives series with the next story, SEX, LIES AND MIDNIGHT out in January and SEX, LIES AND VALENTINES hitting the shelves in February.

Here’s a little peek at SEX, LIES AND MISTLETOE:

“I heard people saying you serve up something besides food back here.”

                  This time the color wasn’t subtle.  Nope, she blushed a hot, brilliant red.  Her eyes flew to the store, then to the cake before meeting his gaze.  A stubborn line furrowed between her brows. 

                  “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she dismissed.

                  “You’re a horrible liar.”

                  “A gentleman would take the hint and change the subject.”

                  “Sweetie, I’ve never worried about being a gentleman.”

                  “Obviously.”

                  Grinning, Caleb decided it was time to change gears.  He stood, and with a glance at the still milling crowd in the store, decided to take his cue from his father and head out the back way. 

                  “Walk me out?” he said, making the demand sound like a request. 

                  “The back?  The door’s right there,” she pointed out.  But she got to her feet anyway. 

                  Caleb didn’t know why he was pushing it.  He’d already declared her off limits, and while he was a guy who was all about pushing boundaries and ignoring rules, he never crossed lines he, himself, drew.

                  But right now, he didn’t care.

                  “So is it true?” he asked, heading toward the door and counting on her being trapped by good manners and following.

                  “Is what true?”

                  “Do you really serve aphrodisiacs?”

                  She ground to a halt so fast, she teetered in her flat-heeled boots.  “Don’t believe everything you hear,” she dismissed.

                  “So it’s a lie?”

                  “It’s more of an…  Exaggeration,” she decided.  “After all, who’s to say whether aphrodisiacs are real or whether they’re a figment of the imagination?”

                  “I have a really good imagination.”  He reached out and took her hand, lifting it to his mouth.

                  “What are you doing?” she asked with a gasp, tugging.  But he didn’t let go. 

                  “You have chocolate,” he told her.  “Just…  Here.”

                  He swiped his tongue over her knuckle.  Her eyes went heated, her breath shuddered and she leaned against the glass wall with the cutest little mewling noise.

                  In an instant, Caleb went from amused to rock hard.  An intense, overwhelming urge to touch her, to taste her, washed over him.

                  Never a man to ignore his gut, he went with the feeling.  Stepping forward, the rich taste of chocolate still on his lips, Caleb pressed her body between his and the chilly glass.  One hand on either side of her head, he leaned closer.

                  “This is crazy,” she breathed, twisting her hands together at her waist.  But she didn’t pull away.  Instead, she lifted her chin. 

                  That’s all the encouragement he needed.

                  Holding her gaze captive, he brushed his lips over her soft, sweetly moist mouth.  He slid his tongue along her lower lip, then gently nibbled at the cushioned flesh.

                  Passion throbbed, urging him to take it deeper, to go faster.  But he resisted.

                  For the first time in forever, Caleb felt like he’d come home.  Even as the sexual heat zinged through his body like lightening, he relaxed.  Need pounded through him, making him achingly hard.  But he was at peace.

                  It was that confusion more than any desire to stop that had him pulling back.  He stared, waiting for Pandora to open her eyes.  In them he saw confusion, desire and a hint of fear. 

                  The same as he was feeling.

                  “You might want to go easy on that cake,” he suggested, brushing his knuckles over her cheek before forcing himself away.  Stepping back from the warm, soft curves of her body was harder than it should have been.  Way too freaking hard.  Caleb frowned, not sure what the hell was going on here.

Hand on the doorknob, he looked back.  She was still leaning against the glass, her breath ragged and her eyes huge. 

                  “Like I said, I’m in room seventeen.  Come on by if you want to do something about that interest.  Or serve up something a little hotter than cake.”

I’d love to give away an autographed copy of SEX, LIES AND MISTLETOE as a holiday treat.  To be entered in the drawing, share your choices to the following This or That…

• Real treat or fake?
• Cookies or candy?
• Traditional carols or modern?
• Frosty or Rudolph?
• Open pressies on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
• Prefer store bought or handmade pressies?
• Shopping done early, or hit the mall on Christmas Eve?
• Hot cocoa or eggnog?
• A color-coordinated tree with a theme or random, heartfelt decorations?
• Inflatable Santa in the yard or Christmas lights on the eaves?
• Gift wrap or gift bags?
• And last but not least…  Have you been Naughty this year?  Or Nice?

Tawny Weber has been writing sassy, sexy stories for Harlequin Blaze since her first book hit the shelves in 2007.  When not obsessing over deadlines, she’s shopping for cute shoes, scrapbooking or hanging out on Facebook and Twitter.  Come by and visit her on the web at www.tawnyweber.com

In December of 2011 Tawny launched her Undercover Ops series with SEX, LIES AND MISTLETOE.  The second book in the series, SEX, LIES & MIDNIGHT is on shelves in January 2012, quickly followed in February by SEX, LIES & VALENTINES.  You can read the first chapter of SEX, LIES & MISTLETOE on her website, all you have to do is join the Reader LoveFest! Be sure to follow Tawny on her Holiday Survival Tour as she celebrates these three books with tons of fun and a chance for readers to win a $100 giftcard!