Excerpt:
She knew Justin wasn’t anything like Max. He didn’t seem at all fazed by his discovery.
If anything, he’d been amused. She hadn’t seen that at first. To her, the situation had been anything but amusing. It wasn’t until he’d threatened to leave that she’d realized she was overreacting.
At least we got the arguing out of the way on the first date. Maybe that means our relationship will be smooth sailing from now on.
That wasn’t exactly a logical thought either, but it made her feel better.
She rummaged through the pile of menus and mail on her kitchen table until she found menus for the three nearest Chinese restaurants. Justin could decide which one he wanted to order from, since he was insisting on paying. For once, she was grateful for the clutter. Having to search for the menus gave her a little more time to calm down and think rationally.
When she returned to the living room, Justin was at the window looking out at the street.
“You have a great neighborhood here,” he said without turning around.
“It is pretty nice.” She’d entered the room quietly, or so she thought. How had he known she was back?
He turned and smiled at her. “I just wanted to tell you how great today has been so far.
I’m glad we’re continuing the date. To be honest, I didn’t want to leave yet.”
“To be honest, I don’t know if I’m going to want you to leave at all. At least not until morning.”
The words seemed to drop out of her mouth without consulting with her brain. Of course she’d considered spending the night with him. She would have had to have been dead not to be attracted to him. And despite the way she’d reacted to his finding her toy, a tiny part of her found it arousing that he knew she’d used it on herself. Maybe he even knew that she’d been fantasizing about him.
No matter what her libido and body wanted, she hadn’t intended to let him know that she might let him stay. They’d agreed to come back to her place and kiss. Maybe more. She’d laid down her ground rules at the beginning. First date, no sex.
Neither of them had said anything about his staying the night, but that was exactly what she’d just suggested.
She bit her lip and managed to look him in the eye. He smiled, and something in his eyes let her know that she could say anything she wanted to him and he would be fine with it.
“I don’t want to leave either,” he said softly. “I’ve already told you I want you. It doesn’t have to happen tonight. If it does, I’m not going to complain about it, and I’m not going to think any less of you.”
It was an odd thing to say. Not something Tareth had ever heard from a guy. And it was exactly what she needed to hear.
“I won’t think less of you either,” she said, trying to make a joke of it.
“Good.” He held out his hand. “Let’s take a look at those menus. Lunch was way too long ago.”
They chose a restaurant and placed their order, then sat on the couch again to wait. Justin held her hand, and for several minutes they sat there together in silence, as they had on the boat. The silence now was just as comfortable as it had been then.
Justin’s touch was just as much a fuel for desire as it had been earlier.
The Book Junkie Reads . . .Reckless Dreams Interview with . . . Karenna Colcroft . . .
How would you describe your style of writing to someone that has never read your work?
That’s a tough question. My writing is very character-driven. There’s plot, of course, but the characters drive the plot rather than the other way around. There are some turns of phrase I use frequently in my books; one of them, I started using intentionally when I realized just how often it showed up. In every Karenna Colcroft book, there’s a reference to “sappy” romance. Not because I think romance is sappy necessarily, but just because it’s fun to throw that in there.
Do you feel that writing is an ingrained process or just something that flows naturally for you?
Writing is something I’ve done for as long as I’ve known how to hold a pencil or pen and make the funny little squiggles on paper. Even before that, I was a storyteller; I remember lining up my stuffed animals and telling them stories when I couldn’t get any humans to listen. So I would say it’s something that flows naturally for me.
What mindset or routine do you feel the need to set when preparing to write (in general whether you are working on a project or just free writing)?
I don’t have a routine. I do need to be in the right mindset to write, but that mindset is hard to define. I live with abuse-related PTSD along with anxiety disorder and depression, so if any of those are kicking up on a given day, writing is probably not going to happen. I also have some physical health issues that sometimes interfere with my ability to write (it’s hard to focus on werewolves when you’re at a 6 on the pain scale…) So I don’t set my mindset; I see how I feel when I get up in the morning and go from there. If it's a day I can write, I write; if not, I give myself compassion and take the day off.
Have you found yourself bonding with any particular character(s)? If so, which one(s)?
Tobias Rogan is one of the lead characters in my male/male series Real Werewolves Don’t Eat Meat, and he’s a secondary character in Beta Test and the rest of the Real Werewolves True Mates series. Tobias is a very compassionate, gentle person—er, werewolf—but if someone he cares about is threatened, watch out! I call Tobias my “emotional support werewolf.”
Can you share your next creative project(s)? If yes, can you give a few details?
I’m currently working on a brand-new book 6 of the Real Werewolves Don’t Eat Meat series; previously, only five books were published, but the main characters have informed me that there’s more to their story. I’m also preparing book 3 of Real Werewolves True Mates (the series that Beta Test is part of) for a release in March of next year.
What are some of your writing/publishing goals for this year?
Basically to decide what I want to write and publish over the next 12-15 months. I am rereleasing a number of the Karenna Colcroft books that were published between 2011 and 2016, and I have decisions to make about which books to rerelease and in which order. I’ll also be writing and releasing some new Karenna books; the first new one was Alpha Receptor, book 1 of Real Werewolves True Mates, which came out in July. And I’m considering rereleasing some of my previously-published young adult fiction, which was under my Jo Ramsey pen name, along with some new books in that category. So currently my goals are to make some decisions and to keep reminding myself that my main reason for self-publishing and rereleasing these books is to have fun with it.
Where would you spend one full year, if you could go ANYWhere, money is not a concern? What would you do with this time?
Right now, I would say Prince Edward Island, Canada. I’ve been there a few times to visit a family member who’s currently there. I love the blend of peaceful, rural spaces and small city life, and the fact that it’s surrounded by ocean (I LOVE the ocean!) makes it one of my favorite places. During this hypothetical year, I would probably spend far too much time exploring the island and visiting Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables was one of my favorite books as a child, and I wanted to BE Anne), but I would also do a ton of writing. Excuse me, a tonne…have to use the Canadian spelling if I’m talking about Canada!
Nice excerpt, thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading the interview and getting to a bit about you Karenna, I also enjoyed the excerpt and I can't wait to read Beta Test, which sounds like a must read for me!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing it with me and have a splendid day!