Guest Blogger Tina Donahue - Be Thankful for Ménages…

And every other kind of racy, steamy, oh-so-luscious scenarios romance writers think of.

Isn’t it wonderful to be living in a country where we’re allowed to express ourselves? Sure, there will always be those who claim erotic romances are horrible, nothing but the lowest form of filth.

What they really reflect is part of the human experience.

We’re not perfect. We’re not always nice, well-groomed, or even sane. But we are vibrantly alive (well, some of us are).

Imagine what our world would be like if we had one rigid template to follow when we write a story. Gotta be sweet. Gotta be pure. No sex. No touching. No kissing. No females and males looking at each other too long (God forbid, we should even consider two males doing that). Gotta have them fully dressed at all time, both feet on the floor and preferably several rooms away from each other. Yep, that’s romance the way it was supposed to be.

Give me a break.

I’ve read sweet romances that I thought were wonderful and those that made me want to gag. I’ve read erotic romances that sent my temperature up several degrees and those that had me nodding off.

The most important thing of all is that I was able to read what I wanted and made my own decision.

Let’s be thankful about that this holiday season. That we still have a right to let our imaginations go wild, and if someone out there likes what we’ve written, they have a right to buy it.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Here’s the blurb and a brief excerpt from my latest ménage Illicit Intent. Book Three, Appointment with Pleasure series.

Blurb:

What’s your wildest erotic wish?

For Piper, that’s easy. Two Alpha males who ravish her like marauding pirates and find her curves beyond luscious. She knows her type isn’t for every man…certainly not Guy and Joel, right? Guy’s tall, dark and sinfully virile. Joel’s blond and bronzed. They’re freaking gods, escorts her friend hired so Piper’s thirtieth birthday is unforgettable with the bondage and submission she’s fantasized about. Carnal games that awaken Piper’s sensuality, while her voluptuous figure and sweet vulnerability fuels both men’s animal hunger.

One evening of decadent pleasure isn’t enough. Piper aches to perform ménage acts with them for agency clients who like curvy women. A wicked idea, except for her family’s ties with law enforcement, the threat of exposure. Is it worth the risk?

Hell yeah. By day, she’ll be good. During their wanton acts, the three of them will explore their growing bond as they’re very, very bad…

Excerpt:

As the elevator approached the top floor, Piper ogled the breathtaking view of the Capitol building and Washington Monument, both bathed in the bright radiance of spotlights. “What’s the name of the place where we’re going?”

Elaine snickered. “It doesn’t have a name.”

“It’s a private club?” Would that be any better than a singles bar?

“It’s my penthouse.”

“You have a penthouse in addition to your other places?” A pricey mansion in Georgetown and one in Maryland willed to Elaine by her paternal grandfather.

“I haven’t actually moved in permanently as yet. I recently got this place…as an investment.” She shrugged. “Who am I to argue with my financial advisors?”

The elevator came to a delicate halt—barely a bump—and the doors whooshed open. Not onto a hall, but a foyer.

The flooring was the same butter-colored stone as that in the building’s entrance. The walls appeared to be made of copper and had sheets of water rolling down them, which made faint gurgling sounds. A massive vase of black granite stood to the right boasting a wild arrangement of tropical plants in varying tints of crimson and orange with dark green leaves.

A series of overhead lights lit the way, each a perfect oval, their illumination so subdued, it bathed Piper and Elaine in its gentle glow.

“Down here,” Elaine said, leading Piper. Or trying to do so.

Piper held back, gaping at the opulence. “Why are we here?” For a tour? Now? Unless… “Did you forget something?”

Elaine had her purse with her, a little silver bag that matched her glittery sheath and spike heels. Maybe she’d forgotten her lipstick or condoms, stuff she would have probably stocked here even if she hadn’t moved in permanently as yet.

“It’s your birthday.” Elaine bumped Piper’s arm with her own and murmured, “I want you to have a good time.”

That didn’t get Piper to budge. “You’ve thrown me a surprise party?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“What’s that mean—wait.”

Elaine didn’t. For a small woman she had a lot of strength, tugging on Piper’s hand, forcing her through the foyer that was easily the length of a football field. At its end, there was an intersection.

To the right was what appeared to be a living room with several dark-gold leather sofas and chairs that faced a massive fireplace of polished marble in mottled cream and brown. The penthouse walls were actually windows angled inward at the top, which offered a sweeping view of the District. Countless lights blazed in the surrounding dark.

Elaine went to the left. Unable to help herself, Piper stopped again.

Ahead was a glassed-off terrace stuffed with vegetation…feathery ferns, huge banana plants, small shrubs, endless flowers, petals of all sizes bobbing in the slight breeze from the ceiling fans. Music pumped from inside. Kelly Clarkson’s Miss Independent, the beat subdued by the glass partition, the atmosphere within the area downright romantic. Candlelight offered the only interior illumination. The terrace’s outside walls, also made of glass, reflected the candle’s gentle glow with those bobbing flames softening the shadows and revealing what else lay ahead.

To one side was a serving table with silver warming trays and bottles of what seemed to be wine and hard liquor. A few steps from it was a pale green circular sofa with several long-stemmed roses laid across the cushions, those petals as red as the countless candles.

Two men stood on either side of the sofa, both of them deliciously tall and broad-shouldered. Each dressed in black shirts and slacks, tailored to fit their bodies perfectly. One had longish dark hair. One was blond.

Piper forgot to breathe. She blinked as the center section of the glass wall facing them turned on its own, allowing entrance into the terrace. To the two men. The feast. That freaking sofa.

The music was louder now, pouring out as Kelly reached the melodic chorus where she said goodbye to her old self.

Elaine pushed to her toes and whispered in Piper’s ear, “Happy birthday, sweetie. Tonight, those hunks you’ve dreamed about are no longer a fantasy or a wish. They’re yours.”

Bio:

Tina Donahue is an award-winning, bestselling novelist in erotic, paranormal, contemporary and historical romance for Samhain Publishing, Ellora’s Cave, and Kensington. Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, Romantic Times and numerous online sites have praised her work. Three of her erotic romances (Adored, Lush Velvet Nights, and Deep, Dark, Delicious) were named finalists in the 2011 EPIC competition. The French review site, Blue Moon reviews, chose her erotic romance Sensual Stranger as their Book of the Year 2010 (erotic category). The Golden Nib Award at Miz Love Loves Books was created specifically for Lush Velvet Nights, and two of her titles (The Yearning and Deep, Dark, Delicious) received an Award of Merit in the RWA Holt Medallion competition (2011 and 2012). Take Me Away and Adored both won second place in the NEC RWA contest (different years). Tina is featured in the 2012 Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market. She was the editor of an award–winning Midwestern newspaper and worked in Story Direction for a Hollywood production company.



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