A
Contemporary Suspense Erotic Romance
Now available at
Ellora's Cave
Wealthy real estate investor Gunnar Hawkens has never bid on a person before—until he discovers his ex-wife has offered herself for sale in a trial engagement on BidWars.com. Placing the highest offer under an assumed name, he wins her back, along with their Wyoming ranch. Now to inform the stubborn beauty he's her anonymous online bidder, to convince her that their love will never die—and to make her his wife once more.
Daphne Saunders is stunned to find her ruggedly handsome ex-husband on her doorstep, and even more shocked to find herself in bed with him in sixty seconds flat. Refusing to take no for an answer, Gunnar sets out to convince Daphne he'll never stop loving her, and that the many shades of their passion can never died.
But that's just the problem. If Gunnar discovers the real reasons for the divorce,
someone will die...
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Excerpt:
Setup: Sometimes, absence truly does make the heart
grow fonder…not to mention it definitely makes the loins hotter. In this scene,
Gunnar and Daphne find out firsthand just how scorching things can get seeing
each for the first time after months apart following a bitter divorce…
Baffled, she followed on his heels. “Gunnar…” Daphne
gripped his solid biceps and tugged but he gently pulled his arm away and just
continued right on into the vaulted kitchen. Shaking her hand where the heat
from his arm singed her flesh, she demanded, “What’s going on here? Why have you
come back? You shouldn’t be here, you shouldn’t…”
Gunnar jerked open the refrigerator and bent, peering
in. The large bag dangled in front of him as he reached inside, and light washed
over his chiseled face lending a twinkle to his eyes. Something about seeing him
here again in what had been their kitchen and making himself very at home did
odd things to her womb.
He drew out a beer, twisted off the top and tossed it
into the trashcan with a clank. “Just taking advantage of an after-hours brew.”
To demonstrate, he tipped his head back and took a long swallow. “Ah, nice and
cold,” he sighed, scrutinizing her from head to toe with a hot gaze. His tongue
came out and took an exaggerated lick of his upper lip and she imagined the tip
of it swirling around her hard clit while those long fingers…
Enough, Daphne.
She folded her arms over her bare midriff. Cold, he’d
said? No, she was far from it. His predator’s stare caused a surge of liquid
fire to shoot through her bloodstream. Her nipples perked up in response and
poked against the thin bra top of her swimsuit. Not moments before he’d arrived,
she---and the pistol she’d grown attached to---had just come in off the trail.
Refusing to be terrorized any longer in her own home, she’d re-strapped that
particular loaded gun to her hip and slipped into her bikini top and shorts. She
wanted a life for once. She simply wanted to catch what was left of the
afternoon rays while watering her flowerbeds, for God’s sake.
Never in a billion years would she have expected to be
watering her crotch instead.
“Look, your little macho barging-in act isn’t amusing.”
Daphne began to back away when he took one step toward her, a gleam of arrogance
in his eyes. “I-If you don’t start explaining yourself---or better yet, getting
the hell out of here---I’m going to call the sheriff.”
Gunnar’s glazed expression faded. He plunked the beer
onto the tiled island and moved closer with that trademark swagger of his.
Daphne knew that look too, the one of rage edged by aroused prowess---or was it
arousal edged with rage? It didn’t matter one way or the other. They were one
and the same where Gunnar Hawkens was concerned and both extremely perilous to
her libido.
Jesus Christ, was she dreaming? Here she’d gone months
without one sight or sound from him, and now with one firm rap on the
door---bam!---he had her senses on overload. Every gesture, every look and faint
aroma made her feel as if she’d just been injected with a forbidden, euphoric
drug.
Her heart did a little skitter when he swept off the hat
and winged it, skimming it across the wooden floor. No matter how much she
ordered herself to do so, she couldn’t take her eyes off his every move. And she
really should have because the make-or-break-her, irresistible event occurred
just as she expected it would. It was the one thing he knew always got to her,
when a lock of his ink-black hair tumbled boyishly across his brow.
Oh God, to feel that soft thickness threaded through
my fingers again…
As if her gawking weren’t enough humiliation, she was
acutely aware if she creamed any more, it would be dribbling down the insides of
her thighs embarrassing her beyond recovery.
“I’ve missed you, Daphne,” he murmured, following her
around the island and backing her into its hard surface. He leaned down and
planted his hands on either side of her, caging her in. His eyes were twin orbs
of black-as-sin heaven as he held her captive. The heat of his body surrounded
her and the charged aroma of him nearly suffocated her. She felt as if her lungs
had ceased breathing. Damn it but the flesh-and-blood nearness of him was too
much to bear, too tempting.
Too dangerous for them both.
“Gunnar, I don’t---”
“I’ve missed you like mad. Your soft, naked skin beneath
mine,” he rasped, lifting a hot hand to cup her cheek. He followed that by
sensuously combing his fingers through her hair. Goose flesh prickled along her
arms and torso making her areolas ache. “Your wild green eyes first widening
when I sink my cock into your wetness, then…”
Daphne swallowed the dry lump her gasp inflicted. His
bold words were having just as potent an effect on her as his searching touch
was. He reached around to knead her ass with his other hand, and when he drew
her hips toward him, slamming her pussy into his half-hard erection, her frail
sanity nearly snapped in two.
“What is this---”
“The way they flutter shut and roll back in your head
when you’re about to come.” He pressed his mouth to hers, just a skim of the
lips, whisper-soft and warm, and she thought she’d die with want. “The way your
cunt floods my shaft and soaks my balls when you’re burning with arousal.”
He flicked his tongue out and she tasted the sharp
flavor of beer. “Mmm and your nice big breasts,” he moaned, drawing one side of
her bikini over so that her left mound popped out. The blast of cool air
conditioning engulfed her flesh. Oh no you don’t, nipple. Don’t you do it.
But the pink bud tightened painfully against her silent order, puckering and
causing her face to flame with mortification.
His perusal scanned her from eyes to chest, quickly
heating every cell wherever his gaze skimmed. The bold inspection caressed her
flesh like the touch of a strong, loving hand.
“God, I’ve missed those luscious things.”
Stifling a groan, she set her tight grip on the pistol,
leaving it holstered. “That’s enough, Gunnar.”
With her free hand, she pushed against his chest but she
may as well have been shoving a concrete wall. His pectorals were solid and warm
against her palm, so masculine and enticing. She’d meant to remove her hand when
his body remained inert but she just couldn’t help herself. Nearly half a year
without a man---without Gunnar---had been like an eternity in celibacy hell.
“Enough? No, there’s never enough with you. So
beautiful, so sexy.” He licked his lips and shook his head, continuing to study
her exposed skin. “Son of a bitch, I’ve been lost without you. I’ve forgotten
just how stunning you really are.”
SHADES OF PASSION now available
at Ellora’s Cave!
Purchase the eBook
Reviews:
5
Angels! “I have to admit this is
one of the most romantic stories I’ve read in a few months... There is one scene
that I’m sure women across America
would appreciate, as well as hope that the person in their life will do at least
once... The story isn’t just erotic, it’s laced with a bit of suspense and an
ending that you don’t see coming until it is upon you. Ms. Blaze
demonstrates she knows how to bring a book to the table that will leave you
wanting for more.” ~ NeNe for
Fallen
Angel Reviews
4/5 Stars!
"A decadently sinful story...a
passionate tale...Gunnar and Daphne are two people who needed to communicate
more, to share their fears and hopes, and the reason for their divorce. I
enjoyed also the sensual exploits of them both, especially when they both
discover that what they lost hasn’t gone, only that it’s been put into
hibernation for a while...I loved this book, the sexiness of the characters and
also the outcome for them both." ~Sheryl from
eCataRomance.com
“…intensely
in love, and their need for each other is captivating…a nice short story.”
~ Aris for TJ Book-list Blog
“Roxana Blaze also known as
Titania Ladley
is an author who knows exactly how to satisfy her readers. I never get enough of
her writing! Her characters always turn up the heat and her storylines are
simply to die for. I hope you'll give her newest, SHADES OF PASSION, a try.” ~
Kerensa for Crave More Romance Blog
"SHADES OF PASSION truly lives up to its name. All
the colors of love and emotion fill the pages as Gunnar and Daphne re-discover
each other and determine to find out who hates them so much... Roxana Blaze
does not stint on the steam or soul-stirring lovemaking. The heat from Gunnar
and Daphne could start grassfires. This one is a keeper. I recommend SHADES OF
PASSION." ~ Maggie
Anderson for RRTErotic.com
