Excerpt: A Sexy Date Between Friends
Hey guys! I’m so excited to announce that for the first time ever, Swallow Me Whole is coming to all major retailers! The book is launching on September 22nd, but you can pre-order in the meantime on Apple Books, Nook, and Kobo at a sale price of $2.99 (normally $5.99). It’ll also go live on Google Play around this time, and of course, it’s still available on Amazon.
In the meantime, I’ve got an excerpt to share, but a little backstory first: Swallow Me Whole is my favorite of the books I’ve written, and this scene is probably my favorite in the whole book. It came to me unexpectedly, pouring out one night after I was stargazing and looking at Jupiter (for those of you that don’t know, Jupiter appears after sunset in the Northern hemisphere during the summer). So even though the scene is set in the winter, the Geminid meteor shower was at the forefront of my mind, since I saw it the previous December before I finished Swallow Me Whole.
In my opinion, Ashton is one of my most swoon-worthy alpha males, and he’s definitely at the top of my list of book boyfriends. I hope you enjoy this glimpse into his romance with his lifelong friend, Sadie Sawyer.
Excerpt
“When’s this meteor shower supposed to start?” I ask.
Ashton reaches to the side and grabs the thermos he unpacked. “Any time now.” He takes a long swig then passes it to me. “Drink some coffee. It’ll warm you up.”
“Jeez, you’re bossy.”
“You should be used to it by now.”
We pass the coffee back and forth for a while, and instead of settling into a comfortable silence with a friend, I’m painfully aware of his nearness.
The rise and fall of his chest.
The sound of his breathing.
Every subtle move he makes.
The expanse of glittering stars overhead, cast bright from the dawn of midnight, appears to envelope us. Utter quiet amplifies our seclusion, and I feel as if we’ve been transplanted on another world.
The setting is too…intimate.
I clear my throat. “Where are we supposed to be looking?”
He grabs my wrist. “Point your finger.”
I do as told, and he lines up the point of my finger with the three horizontal stars that make up the belt of the hunter.
“See Orion’s Belt?”
“Yeah.”
Slowly moving my hand upward, he draws a line from the left star in the belt to the bright reddish one at the top of the constellation. “Keep going and you’ll find Gemini up there.” Just as my finger reaches Ashton’s destination in the universe, a star shoots out from where I’m pointing.
“Wow! That was a bright one.”
Lulled into a calm quiet, we watch the sky, counting shooting stars, and the whole time, Ashton’s got my hand clasped in his. The gentle sweep of his thumb against the back of my hand is burrowing underneath my resolve.
I want to turn into him, snuggle against his side, feel his arms tight around me. But if we do that, we’ll start kissing, and then hands will wander. Fingers will work at buttons and zippers. Tongues will trail across skin. Teeth will nip. We’ll set this sleeping bag on fire.
I untangle my fingers from his. “For these friend dates to work, we have to follow the rules.”
“Friend dates, huh? Did Mandy come up with that?”
“No, I did. And don’t mock me, Ash. We were friends long before we fucked it up with too much…” I trail off, unable to find the right words.
Because there are no right words—none without sexual connotation.
“I’m listening,” Ashton says, breaking into my mental tangent. “We fucked it up with too much of what?”
“With wanting more.”
He shifts onto his side, and his chest comes into contact with my arm. “Is that such a bad thing?”
“No,” I whisper, going breathless because his hot breath is at my ear. “But I need to know that our friendship is still solid.”
“It’s solid. If you need me to keep my lips and hands off of you to prove it, then I’ll do it.”
I draw in a shaky breath then let it out. “I don’t want to keep you at arms-length, but…”
“You need to,” he murmurs. “I get it. Our chemistry is explosive.” His voice drops to a raspy timber. “It simmers the blood, rushes heat to the groin. Makes the heart pound, the brain delirious.” He traces the edge of my ear with his nose.
“Ashton,” I warn, though my voice is barely there, stolen by his sensual stanza.
“I’m smelling you. That’s not against the rules.”
“You have a way of breaking rules.”
“Guilty as charged. But I keep my promises. Your virtue’s safe with me.”
“My virtue?” I can’t help it—a giggle escapes me. “I might be a virgin, but thanks to you, I’m far from virtuous.”
“Thank God for small favors.”
His breath is still a blast of heat to my ear, and I shiver from the chill of night trying to seep in through the sleeping bag.
“Are you warm enough?” he asks.
“Yes,” I lie.
“You’re shivering.”
“I’m okay.” Another star streaks across the sky. “Can we just watch the meteor shower?”
“This is bullshit, Sadie. Let me hold you.” He doesn’t give me a choice. Winding an arm under the back of my shoulders, he pulls me into him, my ass to his groin, and rests his hand on my belly. We settle into a partial spooning position that allows a good angle for skywatching.
“Better?” he asks, nuzzling my jawline.
“Mmm-hmm.” This feels too good, and I know he’s experiencing it too. His burgeoning erection is evidence enough.
“Have you made any wishes yet, Sawyer?”
“No.”
“Well get on it. This show only comes around once a year.”
I glance up in time to witness the brightest meteor yet, its tail spanning the sky in a brushstroke of cosmic artistry.
“Make a wish,” he whispers into my ear.
I wish for the strength to resist him, to give us a foundation that’s built on more than the physical. When it comes to Ashton, I want it all with him.
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