The Ultimate is Sweeter with Naima Simone at the Helm

Today I have guest Ellora’s Cave author Naima Simone, who is marking the launch of her romantic suspense book, Sweet Ultimatum. She has also been kind enough to offer a copy of her book as a prize.

I’m going to change the rules a little bit.  Instead of shutting the contest down at midnight tonight MST as I’ve always done, I’m going to make it midnight tomorrow night, as my statistics show that a lot of people are swinging by the day after because they’re getting this post indirectly via feeds that go out through Amazon, Twitter, Facebook, Digg, Feedburner and all the other places I’ve set up, including directly into your email, and it can take several hours for the post to show up in those places.  So as I like the posts spreading far and wide and don’t want to penalize those readers, I’ll extended the deadline on the contest.  But for the long distance readers to enter, you will still have to make your way back to home base here at the blog site to leave a comment.  Yeah, you’ll have to move your mouse a bit.  Sorry, honey.

So let’s get to know Naima.

___________

Who are your favorite authors at Ellora’s Cave?

Man! Ask me to chose my favorite food, why don’t you? LOL! I really like Debra Glass, Adele Dubois and Lena Matthews.

What is your favorite novel cover (can be from anywhere)?

The one that comes to mind immediately is Gena Showalter’s The Darkest Kiss. Oooh, it’s so sexy to me. The way the man just stares out of the cover makes me feel like he’s gazing directly at me–and loving what he sees! With the wavy black hair and butterfly tattoo on his shoulder…*sigh* I luvs him…

What’s the best Hero Moment you’ve ever seen in film?

I have two. The first is in Dirty Dancing when Johnny Castle shows back up at the end of the summer show to dance with Baby. I know that whole dance routine by heart!! Of course when I do it the effect is not quite the same…And the second is in Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers when the sun rises on the morning of the third day and Gandalf, Eomir and the Rohirim warriors showed up to save Aragorn, King Theoden, Legolas and Gimli. As they charged down that hill and clashed with the Orcs. Whoo-hoo! I think I’ll go watch it…

(I love her already!  She likes Lord of the Rings!)

What’s the best Hero Moment you’ve ever read in a book?

There are so many, but the one I absolutely love is in Linda Howard’s Son of the Morning when Niall shows up in Grace’s time to take on Parrish. He’s leaning on his claymore all casual, and then he takes a look at Grace’s bleeding mouth, and the retribution that hardens his gaze while still maintaining his calm composure is one of the best hero moments written. Every person who has ever read that moment knew there would be a reckoning because Parrish had dared to hurt her. I luvs him, too…

What reading device do you use for reading ebooks on?

Right now, my trusty desktop. But, as my husband who loves me dearly, reads this I would love to have a Sony Digital Reader Touch. For more details he can find the battery life, memory, storage capacity and a plethora of other details in his Inbox conveniently titled, Naima’s Christmas Wishlist…

(Damn, I just laughed up coffee on my cat…it would have been the desk, but the cat was there instead!)

Your favorite romantic suspense author?

Beverly Barton. She’s an awesome writer and the twist is never a disappointment.

Your favorite historical romance author?

I grew up on Johanna Lindsey and Julie Garwood! I still reread both of their books to this day. Classic love stories with wonderful characters that make me sigh. *sigh* See??

Your favorite historical era? (extra credit for telling us why)

And this is probably not at all historically correct, but I like to think of the era as the Arthurian era. For me, it’s a time of heroes, chivalry, mysticism, and romance. It’s where magic, politics and love mix.

(Okay…I luvs you too. ~sigh~  This is my favourite!)

Your favorite contemporary romance author(s)?

Nora Roberts, even though she’s written every genre there is! I’ll have to say Lena Matthews again. I love her characters and dialogue! She’s great! Makes me say, wish I’d wrote it! LOL!

What are you currently reading?

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle.  The animated movie has been a favorite of mine since I was child, but I’ve never read the book. For our anniversary, my husband gave it to me and I’m enjoying it so much. I’ll forgo saying I have the soundtrack too for the sake of my pride…

What will you be reading next?

Totally flipping the script! Guardian by Angela Knight. From unicorns to cyborgs!!

The Desiree Staccato

Favourite colour?  Black–it’s slimming….
Favourite drink? Cherry Coke
Favourite writing oufit? Blue hospital scrub bottoms and t-shirt
Favourite food(s)? Umm…the kind you eat! Okay, narrowing it down. Shrimp Egg Foo Yung with pork fried rice
Favourite music? 80’s music!! They just don’t make music like that anymore!
Favourite sport? Next…
Favourite body part? Mine or on a male? On me, my fingers. On a man, his legs. Loves me some muscular thighs!
Favourite spot in the world? Cliffs of Mohr, County Clare, Ireland
Favourite movie? Dirty Dancing
Favourite TV show? Toss up between Criminal Minds and Snapped
Favourite flower? Lily of the Valley
Favourite thing to do at knock-off time? Kick back on the bed with a pile of covers, a cup of McDonald’s coffee, Sour Cream ‘n Onion chips with a good book and Snapped!

Tell us about your book.

Sweet Ultimatum is about Caitlin Madison, who returns home to come face-to-face with Selig Richardson, the man she loved and betrayed six years ago. Selig, who has suffered personal and professional disillusionment, demands she exorcises her ghost from his life. And the payment he demands is her body.

Unknown to Selig, Caitlin has harbored a deadly secret and that threat has now reemerged with their reunion. Once again, Caitlin is confronted with the choice of a life with the man she loves or reject him and save his life.

Excerpt

“Hello, Caitlin.”

Caitlin Madison’s eyes drifted close as if she could shut out the sound of that familiar voice. She shivered. How could she have forgotten the erotic power it wielded? The dark timbre wrapped her in its sensual embrace and whispered wicked promises she knew he was more than capable of delivering on. Who was she kidding? She choked back a bitter laugh. She’d never forgotten.

“Come now, sweetheart,” Selig Richardson chided behind her, the soft chuckle and heavy sarcasm making a mockery of the endearment “you can’t even turn around and give me a proper hello? I’m disappointed.”

Yeah, right. Steeling herself, she opened her eyes and inhaled a deep breath, allowing the mask she’d adopted over the last six years to drop into place.

“Selig,” Caitlin turned to him, the black satin of her skirt swishing around her calves, “it’s good to see you again.” See-lic. She savored the unique flavor of his name and rolled it silently on her tongue.

Around her the low and steady drone of the wedding guests blurred together with the soft, muted notes of Kenny G until even they faded into nothingness and only the frantic beating of her heart remained. She struggled to keep the unaffected charade intact while her dry mouth, damp palms and thundering pulse mocked her efforts.

God, he was beautiful.

Her body quickened to painful life, awakening from its long slumber. Molten heat snaked a devastating trail from breasts gone heavy with arousal to pool between her thighs. Evidence of her excitement gathered on the swollen folds of her sex. The blood rushed through her veins and in that moment she felt more alive than she had in years. Six years to be exact. Unfair. Her fingers curled into fists at her side.. So damn unfair that her body responded like Pavlov’s dogs at just the sight of him.

He still had the face of an angel. The gleaming chocolate brown wings of hair framing his face were new. The short curly locks from all those years ago were gone, instead falling in heavy waves to his chin. Still, the dark slash of eyebrows, the exotic golden gaze, sharply hewn cheekbones and carnal mouth were the same. Damn, that mouth. She remembered well the havoc those full, wicked lips wielded with sinful skill. Angelic, his countenance may be, but he exuded the intense sexuality of Lucifer himself.

“Really,” he drawled. With a sudden shift of his body, Selig leaned closer, his lips hovering over her ear as if to impart a secret. “How pretty you lie, Caitlin,” he whispered, the dark strands of his hair brushing her cheek, the firm fullness of his lips caressing the shell of her ear. “Then you always could do pretty things with those lips.”

A hot fist of lust punched the breath from her lungs. Her dream slammed into her. Her lips stretched around his erection, sucking it deep. Her tongue stroking the sensitive skin beneath the throbbing hood. Her thighs clenched.

Her fingers curled into tight fists at her side, the fingernails biting into the tender flesh of her palm. The sharp bite of pain gifted her with enough clarity and focus to maintain the façade of aloof calm she schooled her features into.

“No reply?” Selig stepped back, amusement quirking a corner of his mouth. The humor did not reach the piercing, hawklike stare burning into her. Not only did Selig share the same eye color as the bird of prey, but like the predator, his sharp gaze missed nothing. It never had. And he would surely glimpse the hunger clawing at her with a ferocity only he had been able to bring to life.

Caitlin wrenched her eyes away from his, afraid of what they would reveal.

“I’m not going to bother giving an insult like that a response.” Her voice didn’t tremor, concealing the turbulence of lust and fear whirling inside her like a devastating tornado. She would’ve sent a thankful prayer up to God, but they had been on the outs for a while now.

“Not an insult, sweetheart. A compliment.” Arousal brightened his gaze. His lashes lowered, taking on a slumberous, sexy expression that set her heart to pounding. The furious pulse vibrated in her clit, the small, sensitive button of flesh swelling against the lace of her thong. Even the slightest movement of her thigh would probably detonate a mini-orgasm and have her on fire for more. Damn. He could almost make her come from a look. One. Look.

Oh she wanted it. She wanted it bad. The empty releases from her own fingers and sexual toys in the deepest darkness of night couldn’t compare to the almost-orgasm Selig gave her with his eyes alone.

“Selig!” The rumbling tone of McKenzie “Mac” Dunn’s voice snatched Caitlin from her traitorous thoughts. She could have thrown her arms around her best friend’s new husband and wept with gratitude. Before his interruption, she’d come so close to begging Selig to…to what? Make her come? Touch her and push the loneliness back for one night? Pretend he still loved her? Ignorant to his status of lifesaver, Mac pulled Selig into a backslapping hug, a wide grin splitting his handsome face. “Selig, I can’t believe you’re finally here! I was beginning to give up hope you would make it.”

Selig’s knowing stare lingered on her one final moment before shifting his attention to his best friend. A sigh of relief eased past her lips. Relief and maybe a taste of disappointment. Damn, she needed therapy. It was as if two people inhabited her body from the moment he’d approached her. And the sex addict that would do anything for a hit of him vied for prominence with the cautious, cool-headed woman who remembered why she broke up with him in the first place—and why that reason remained as valid now as it did that Friday evening six years ago.

Unlike when Selig looked at her, with Mac his eyes reflected the affectionate smile curving his lips. They weren’t brittle chips of yellow diamonds, but warm sunshine. Selig clapped Mac on the shoulder as he arched an eyebrow high. “And miss the death of your bachelorhood and sanity? Not a chance.” His smile widened, lighting his face as he bent over Alise, Mac’s bride and her best friend. He pressed his lips to Alise’s smooth cheek and a ridiculous spear of jealousy pierced her chest. She felt the sharp loss of his smile and casual affection—both which used to belong to her.

“Please,” Alise scoffed, the playful light in her dark brown gaze belying the disdain coating her voice. “I hate to break it to you, but that pretty smile won’t work after that comment.”

“What if I tell you that you are the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen and Mac is beyond lucky to have found you.”

Alise tapped her pursed lips with a French-manicured fingernail. After a moment of narrow-eyed concentration, her expression cleared, a beatific smile brightening her lovely face. “Flattery will get you nothing except forgiveness..”

Selig chuckled and brushed another kiss to her cheek. “Fortunately it’s true.”

“Watch it now, Selig,” Mac grumbled. “I wouldn’t want to bench press you after not seeing you in a while, but hit on my wife one more time and there’s going to be consequences and repercussions.”

Selig laughed, the dark curtain of his hair falling back to reveal high cheekbones and a strong jaw. A bruising fist gripped her heart at the sight, squeezing a painful breath from her lungs. A tiny hiss of pain escaped her. He used to laugh for her. Long past the time when the heat of sex had cooled, they would talk and tease one another late into the night. She’d never experienced that intimacy with anyone else. And Selig, the person who’d shown her that affection and sharing existed alongside desire, hated her. Oh he’d drawled those sexual innuendoes, yet even now as his glance slid to her over Alise’s shoulder, she could easily read the resentment, anger and bitterness.

She was well acquainted with those emotions since she saw them every day when she met her own dark brown gaze in the mirror.

“Consider me duly warned.” Selig held up his hands, palms forward, laughing in surrender. “When are you two leaving on your honeymoon?”

“Monday morning. How long do you plan to be in town?”

“Depends.”

Her heart stuttered at the smooth reply to Mac’s question as well as the heated glance he leveled on her. The whimper she thought she’d trapped in her throat must have escaped. For Alise shifted the tiniest bit closer and behind the fullness of her skirt, reached out and grasped Caitlin’s hand. The voluminous folds of the wedding dress hid the bracing grip she had on her fingers.

No! She cried out and the echo of the silent scream bounced against the walls of her mind. She’d convinced herself she could make it through this night with him in the same room, in the same town because he would be gone in a day, possibly two. What the hell did “depends” mean? What could possibly keep him here when he hadn’t stepped one foot in the town limits in six years?

As if privy to the cry in her head, Selig’s head tilted to the side and he began a slow perusal down her body, taking in the black halter style dress that clung to the curve of breasts she’d always considered too generous and skimmed over her hips. When Alise had selected the figure-hugging dress for her maid of honor, Caitlin had harbored misgivings. Now, with Selig’s golden stare touching every curve revealed by the soft fabric and sexy cut, she secretly delighted in the heat he didn’t bother to hide.

She inhaled a shaky breath, her breasts lifting with the slight movement. Her nipples beaded under the fabric, his gaze a featherlight stroke over the pebbled tips.

Selig’s jaw tightened..

“Mac. Alise. We didn’t have the opportunity to offer our congratulations earlier.” A hard palm pressed against the small of her back. She stiffened under Nicholas Gordon’s hand, recognizing the possessive touch as the familiar, overbearing scent of his cologne enveloped her. Hard fingers curled around her waist and gave a domineering squeeze before releasing her to offer Mac his hand.

Revulsion crawled over her skin at the slight contact. Worse than the disgust, though, was the fear that spread its icy fingers through her veins, freezing her from the inside out. With herculean effort, Caitlin tapped down the panic that threatened to send her running. Somehow, she maintained her aloof composure, but it didn’t banish her heart from her throat or the nauseating film of fear coating her tongue.

“Nicholas. Rachel.” Mac greeted the law firm associate and his wife, accepting Nicholas’ outstretched hand. He clasped it briefly and let it go. “Thank you for coming.”

“We wouldn’t have missed it.” As Nicholas’ black gaze swung to Selig, the pounding in Caitlin’s throat increased until she couldn’t breathe. She squelched the impulse to throw herself between the two men, protecting Selig from the malice so clear in Nicholas’ eyes. “Selig Richardson. It’s been a long time. How are you?”

“Fine.”

“I’d like you to meet my wife, Rachel,” Nicholas continued, not put off by Selig’s abrupt reply. “She arrived in town not long after you…left.”

A heavy, tension-filled silence descended over the small group. With the exception of Rachel, each one knew the circumstances of Selig leaving town—or at least they thought they did. Only Caitlin and Nicholas were privy to the truth behind his departure.

“It’s nice to meet you, Rachel,” Selig greeted, nodding at the quiet woman.

“Thank you. Selig, is it? That’s an unusual name.”

Gracing her with one of his charming smiles that warmed the gold of his eyes, Selig shrugged one broad shoulder. “My mother was a lover of romance novels. The hero in one of her favorites was named Selig. Of course, he was a Viking and I’m—not.” He glanced down his tall body, his hands spread out, inviting Rachel in on the joke with a teasing grin.

Caitlin could sympathize with Rachel’s dazed expression. Selig was a beautiful man. The honey eyes, sensual mouth and dark wings of hair framing his features incited wicked thoughts and even more wicked desires. Coupled with his magnetism, any woman would be blindsided.

“Oh I don’t know about that, Selig,” Nicholas drawled, his eyes flickering down at Caitlin. “Vikings had the reputation of taking what wasn’t theirs.”

The blood drained from Caitlin’s face and she swore the life-giving fluid flowed south, leaving her frigid and shaking. As if from a great distance Alise’s grip tightened on her fingers. She heard Mac’s low curse rumble across the expanse of space that seemed to yawn between her and the others. Twisting her wrist, she freed herself from her best friend’s hold and stumbled back a step.

Never show weakness. Never…

Righting herself, she faced all of them—and none of them. The cool, emotionless façade that had served her well over the years dropped into place. Her eyes focused on a distant point between Selig and Mac’s shoulders as she clasped her trembling fingers in front of her. “If you’ll excuse me, please.”

Not waiting for a reply, she whirled around and wound her way through the throng of guests, not stopping until she reached the dimly lit hallway and the relative safety of the shadows.

Barely noticing which door she pushed through, Caitlin rushed into the empty quiet of Mac and Alise’s library. The silence wrapped around her, offering blessed comfort and solace.

In slow, measured beats of her heart, the panic ebbed. But the old companions of bitterness and resentment lingered. Six years ago, she’d been forced to give up the man she loved. She’d stared him straight in the eye and lied, pushing him out of her life forever. Caitlin had sentenced herself to a life of loneliness and a gaping emptiness that seemed to grow with each passing year. Or so she’d thought until moments ago. Now, by some cruel twist of fate, Selig had reappeared and it could be the death of them. Literally.

__________

To buy Sweet Ultimatum, click here.

To visit Naima’s website, click here, and to jump to her blog, click here.  Naima is also a member of the Romance Magicians blog.

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