Cover Reveal - Author Kay Phoenix

Today, I want to share the cover reveal of my book that will be coming out on December 5th. It's available for PRE-SALE by clicking below:

Time for Christmas

Sparks flew when Andrew and Regina met the first time, but the discovery that he was her new boss snuffed out their budding romance.

Now, a job transfer makes their remaining time together much too short.

Can a hefty sprinkle of Christmas magic finally set them both on the right path? Will they realize that time, like love is a gift not to be wasted?

***

Recently, someone asked me "when did you know you wanted to be a romance writer?"

Here is my answer:

I started writing poems and rhymes when I was little. In junior high, my friends and I would trade a notebook between classes and add a few paragraphs or pages to a continuing story (we were such perverts... nothing has changed). In high school I was on the newspaper staff all 4 years and creative writing. My creative writing class published a book each year. I wrote horror stories and depressing, angsty poems about boys. I was sure I wanted to be a reporter but life happened and I didn't get to go to college like I'd wanted. I had to get a job and go to community college and think of something practical I could learn there. 

I became a graphic artist and had a very satisfying, good paying career for 16 years with people I enjoyed working with... until the company closed. But, I was able to stay at home with my son when he was born and soon found online writing classes from Gotham Writers Workshop out of New York. I did not take romance, I took horror and everything else. My instructors told me I should try the romance class since it seemed to be a common theme. I'd never thought of it before. So, I listened to them and took a romance writing class in 2009, and here I am 10 years later.

- Kay

NEW in AUDIO

I'd like to announce that "Steele and Stone" is now available in Audio.  It was narrated by Dawson McBride. 

Steele and Stone

by Kay Phoenix

Elle Thompson was raised in Denver. She paints. She hikes. She knows how to avoid cougar attacks.

The only cougars Michael Williams usually worries about are the ones that wear leopard print leggings on 5th Avenue. But, when his acquisition firm sets its sights on Elle's family business, his tidy life goes awry.

As things unravel, so do all his preconceived notions of love and what makes a perfect partner.

***

“I loved Michael and Elle’s emotional journey of learning to let go in order to love again.” 

– Beverly Preston, USA Today best-selling author of The Mathews Family series.

“Kay’s stories will make you laugh in glee and sigh with happiness.”

 – Michelle C. Reilly, author of The Anathergians Series.

My Sexy Saturday #MSS174

This week's "My Sexy Saturday" theme is "Rainy Afternoon".  Though it isn't raining, it's their first date and they spent a lazy afternoon in the Denver Art Museum, then took a rest on a bench out front. In this snippet from my newly released book, "Steele and Stone", Elle reads Michael's palm... 

“Let me see something.” She turned his palm up and began tracing her index finger up and down the lines in the middle of it.

“You’re a palm reader, too?”

“Not really, but I do know a little about it. See this line here? That’s your lifeline. No, it doesn’t mean how long you will live. It means your life’s purpose. Basically, whether or not you are focused or scattered. You are focused, but you already knew that. See how solid it is? And this one, this is your money line. I think we both know what that one says.”

“What does it say?”

“It says you’re dirt poor and miserable, you always will be, and there isn’t a charitable, kind bone in your body. You’re an insufferable jerk, for sure." She met his eyes and grinned. “Only kidding.”

Elle Thompson was raised in Denver. She paints. She hikes. She knows how to avoid cougar attacks.

The only cougars Michael Williams usually worries about are the ones that wear leopard print leggings on 5th Avenue.

But, when his acquisition firm sets its sights on Elle's family business, his tidy life goes awry. As things unravel, so do all his preconceived notions of love and what makes a perfect partner.

***Available NOW!***

My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) has provided a great place for authors to showcase snippets of their works. 7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.

My Sexy Saturday #MSS173

This week's "My Sexy Saturday" theme is "Sexy Becomes Her".  Confidence and intelligence can make a woman sexy! Well, in this snippet from my newly released book, "Steele and Stone", Elle asks Michael a question that ultimately causes him to re-evaluate everything he's been doing.  

“Yes, here you are, rubbing my calves and telling me all about the muscles and ligaments in my legs. Are you happy at your job?”

“Happy? I suppose I am. It pays well, and I have a pretty good life in New York, all things considered.”

“But…”

“But well…like you said, here I am telling you I wanted to be a chiropractor.”

She sat up. “I think it’s time I go to bed.”

He stood up with her.

“Do you want to go to lunch tomorrow?” he asked abruptly.

Elle Thompson was raised in Denver. She paints. She hikes. She knows how to avoid cougar attacks.

The only cougars Michael Williams usually worries about are the ones that wear leopard print leggings on 5th Avenue.

But, when his acquisition firm sets its sights on Elle's family business, his tidy life goes awry. As things unravel, so do all his preconceived notions of love and what makes a perfect partner.

***Available NOW!***

***ALSO A GIVEAWAY!!!***

My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) has provided a great place for authors to showcase snippets of their works. 7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.

My Sexy Saturday #MSS166

This week's "My Sexy Saturday" theme is "My sexy EX".  Huh?  What's sexy about an ex?  Well, in this snippet from my newly released book, "Steele and Stone", Michael has an encounter with his ex. What makes it sexy to me, is that he isn't a jerk to her, regardless of what she did to him in the past.  I think the way a man treats his ex says a lot about his character. 

He parked the Volt in his own driveway then walked the couple blocks to the diner. As he rounded the corner he was surprised to see that Sandra was already there. She sat at an outside table, her back to him, the sun glinting off her shiny, shoulder-length brown hair. Her hands were folded in front of her and her head was lowered, he presumed she was checking her cell phone.

He was somewhat alarmed to not feel the urge to turn around and leave at the sight of her. Instead, he walked to her and she turned. Her face was shrouded with a worry he’d never seen, and she forced a smile.

“Hello Sandra,” he said, taking the chair across from her. He scooted it in and nodded.

***Available NOW!***

      My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) has provided a great place for authors to showcase snippets of their works.  7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.

My Sexy Saturday #65 Halloween!

This week, it's my favorite holiday...HALLOWEEN!  I love it!  Here is a selection of 7 sentences from my work-in-progress "Mountains and Skyscrapers".  And, they're at a Halloween party!

Elle turned to face him.  He was dressed as a Doctor with a white lab coat, crazy wild-haired wig and a stethoscope around his neck. 

He bit his lip and looked at her neck with mock concern.  “That’s a terrible looking wound.  You might need stitches.  I should examine it closer in some better light.”  He ran his finger down the side of her neck.  “Yes, I think you’ll need a thorough examination.”

“I don’t think my date would appreciate that,” Elle answered, suddenly feeling warm despite the chill outside.  She focused on the embroidered name across the breast pocket of the lab coat.  “Dr. Phil Good?”  She couldn’t help but snicker when she read it out loud. 

“I know, goofy huh.  But it’s all I could find,” he shrugged.  “And what’s this about a date?”

My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) is a place for authors to showcase snippets of their sexy works with 7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.

My Sexy Saturday #64

  My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) is a place for authors to showcase snippets of their sexy works with 7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.

The theme this week is “Thrillers”.  My selection is 7 sentences from my work-in-progress called “The Zookeeper”:

“I don’t think so,” Alec said as he snatched her cell phone from her hand and cancelled the call.  He put it in his left jacket pocket as they drove down the dark Phoenix street.

“What the hell did you do that for?"

“They saw your car.  I have to figure out what to do with you now.”

“And, of course that includes stealing my phone and basically kidnapping me.  Makes perfect sense. Some detective you are. Where are we going?”  

My Sexy Saturday

Small gestures are sometimes as sexy as big ones, and just as meaningful.  In this snippet from a work in progress, a little hand holding causes some major fireworks...especially since they're breaking all the "rules". 

     I felt his hand next to mine again. The skin of our hands touching again, I couldn’t breathe, and this time I knew that it wasn’t an accident.  I could still hear the music, barely.  The skin on the side of my hand was so painfully aware of his that everyone in the entire theatre had to know, I was sure of it.  I felt like a police helicopter spotlight was right on us. 

     His fingers lifted. 

     It’s over.

     But no, his fingers lifted, and his hand turned towards mine.  Ever so softly his fingers slid down the side of my hand.  Once, then again.  I was motionless, my eyes closed.  If someone had seen me they would have thought it was the music that enraptured me. 

     His fingers lightly stroked the back of my hand, and then closed over it.  It was excruciating.  I felt silly as a school girl for being so swept up in something as simple as a touch!

     I breathed in and out, purposefully, and looked around.  Everyone still seemed blissfully unaware of our secret.  I slowly turned my hand palm up, as best as I could at that angle, feeling his skin move along mine as I did.  His fingers laced within mine, and as the soprano reached the crescendo, he gripped my hand a little firmer that I had expected, but I wasn’t complaining.  The song ended, and the standing ovation had already begun by the time we finally released ourselves back to the present. 

http://www.minack.com/

     My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) is a place for authors to showcase snippets of their sexy works with 7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.
 

My Sexy Saturday

My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) provides a great place for authors to showcase snippets of their work in 7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.  Discover some new authors to follow!

This week's snippet is from my WIP "Under the Granite Lies".  The set up is that J (who is a  werewolf), has just killed his father (who was also a werewolf, and a very evil one at that).  In the aftermath, J has taken Lauren, whom is in his protective care, to the African savannah to hide out with him for a few months while the dust settles.

     He leaned close to me, and pointed to it from my line of sight. 
 
     “The great hunter, Orion, and his dog next to him,” he said then relaxed back in his camp chair, reaching his hand down to scratch Charlie’s enormous feline head as the lion snoozed at his feet. 

     “Where did you learn about the stars?” I asked. 

     “My father.  Orion was his middle name.  Claus Orion Hildegard.  When I was a boy, he would show Orion to me, with his dog, Sirius, next to him and tell me I was his dog.  He said that I would always be in his shadow, that I would never be as good as him.”  He unscrewed his flask and took another long sip.  A log in the campfire popped, and Charlie's  left front paw twitched.

     I said nothing.  I felt sympathy wash over me as I remembered that J had killed his father only a few short days before.  Claus was an awful, evil man, but he was also his father.  He was his only blood family.

     J continued for some time, regaling me with stories of his upbringing, and purging bad memories of abuse and neglect.  As the evening wore on, each layer away peeled like an onion until he finally lowered his head, entirely spent.  A log split in two, sending embers racing skywards to Orion like small phoenixes.

     I thought it best to let him have some peace, so I stood to leave and caressed his shoulder as I passed.  His head still lowered, he reached for my hand and held it tightly.  I paused, then turned and bent down, wrapping my arms around his broad shoulders and pressing a kiss into his hair.  I laid my head on his shoulder and breathed in the scent from his neck. He smelled of a combination of musk and campfire.

     “Lauren,” he said, moving his hand to my head and braiding his fingers through my hair.

 

My Sexy Saturday

My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) has provided a great place for authors to showcase snippets of their works.  7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs.

      This week I'm sharing 7 paragraphs from my WIP "The Zookeeper".  Elizabeth Tanner has just found out that her ex husband, Juan, has decided to name his new baby after a recently deceased zoo animal that she was particularly close with.  Her nerves are near shot as it is, and when the detective asks her what's wrong, she just might lose it.

“Nothing that concerns you!  I don’t want to talk about it.”  She made no movement, and neither did he.  Just tell him the truth.  He’s just a friend anyways, and he’ll be gone as soon as the investigation is over.  After a few long, silent moments, she blurted, “Look, Alec, I can’t have kids.  I’m broken. There, now you know.  And, Juan and Molly are having a baby girl tonight.  They are naming her Renee Sheba.”  Her voice cracked. “Sheba was my lion, not his!  It’s not fair.” 

Alec sat with his mouth slightly agape, as if he had just witnessed a terrible accident and was trying to decide what to do next. 

He stood very quickly, raised her from her chair and wrapped his arms around her hugging her.  Hard.  Suffocatingly hard, in short bursts. 

Then he kissed her.  Just as hard.

She leaned back in surprise and he released the embrace.  She raised her fingers up to her lips, which tingled from the intensity of his kiss.

 “I’m sorry, that was very forward of me.  Do you want me to go?” He asked, his voice low and husky.

“No, I don’t want you to go.  In fact, please stay.”  I want you to read my mind and tell me everything that I need to hear right now.  “You’re not broken.  You’re beautiful.  Juan is an idiot.”  Any combination of those three would be great.

 

 

Here is the blurb for this story...

 

The Zookeeper

 

Elizabeth Tanner was raised in a Zoo.  Literally.  But now that Zoo is in danger, not only from falling ticket sales, but also from a mysterious illness afflicting the animals.

 

 Frank Adams, the newest Animal Care attendant, spent time behind bars himself.

 

 But, in this Zoo, even the strongest bars can’t hold back the truth.

 

 And the truth will be set free.

 

My Sexy Saturday

     This week’s sexy snippet (http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/) comes from my WIP “Mountains and Skyscrapers.”  Elle has gotten stuck somewhat babysitting Michael, the sharp suited businessman from New York, as he has opted to join his future employees on a hike in the beautiful Rocky mountains near Denver.  Elle is not a future employee, she is the sister of the man he is buying the company from (and the silent partner - unbeknownst to him). 


     Michael quickly glanced over at the rest of the group.  Three men, his future employees, lounged on a big flat rock engaged in their own animated discussions.  He followed her through the trees and after about thirty feet, they emerged on another smooth rock face that did, in fact, have a sweeping view of the mountain. 

     “Wow,” he said.

     “Yeah, it’s beautiful.  I come up here a lot.”  She turned, offering him the straw from her hydration pack. “Drink this.”

     The straw rested near her face so he hesitated, feeling a sudden wave of irritating pre-pubescent shyness surge through his body. She rolled her eyes and removed the clip, which stretched it an extra few inches in his direction. “Do you want me to take off the whole pack so you can wear it, since it appears we’re going to be sharing it today?”
    
     Michael was embarrassed about neglecting to bring his own water, but he was thirsty and glad that she hadn’t called attention to his lack of preparation in front of his future employees. He leaned in to drink, and a passing breeze wafted across her skin toward him. Her neck was only a few inches away and she smelled faintly of cinnamon as he suckled the straw from her pack, feeling the cool water wash over his tongue and slide down his parched throat. 

     “Well don’t drink it all. What were you thinking anyway, coming up here with no water?” She asked suddenly, causing him to lean back in surprise

     Michael wasn’t sure how to respond but before he could form any words, she had already disappeared through the trees to rejoin the group, and left him standing alone and still thirsty.  He rushed to keep up, glad to have the view of her figure a few feet in front of him to keep his eyes steady.

Here is the blurb for the story: 

Elle Thompson was raised in Denver.  She gardens.  She paints.  She knows how to avoid cougar attacks. Real ones.

The only cougars that Michael Williams usually worries about are the ones that wear leopard print leggings on 5^th Avenue.

But, when Michael’s acquisition firm sets its sights on her family’s business, his tidy life goes awry.  As his life unravels, so do all of his pre-conceived notions of love, and what a perfect partner should be.

 

 

My Sexy Saturday

      My Sexy Saturday ( http://www.mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ ) has provided a great place for authors to showcase snippets of their works.  7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs. 

      This week I'm sharing 7 paragraphs from my WIP "Mountains and Skyscrapers" ...

 

     At her door she turned to him, her face square with his chest and before she knew it he had pulled her to him, his chin resting on top of her head.  She wrapped her arms around his waist.  He smelled like Ron and it was familiar and comforting, yet she was acutely aware that he wasn’t Ron, her deceased husband, even if he wore the same cologne.  No, the man holding her was Michael, someone she had only personally known for a week, yet felt like she had always known him, somehow.  His hands moved to cradle the back of her head as he kissed her hair, then her forehead.  She tilted her face up to his and their lips met in an unsteady, awkward kiss.

 

     Elle’s heart banged against her ribcage as relentlessly as a high school marching band in a competition. And then, it happened!  She couldn’t help it.  It rose up from her stomach, carried by the butterflies and before she knew it, it had escaped her mouth. 

 

     A giggle! 

 

     “I’m sorry.”  She cleared her throat and bit her lip. 

 

     “Well, that hasn't happened since my third grade recess wedding.  Let’s try this again," He leaned in, and then just before their lips touched he leaned back again.  "No laughing this time, this is very serious business.”

 

     Even though she felt the beginnings of a nervous giggle, there was no way it could have come out.  His lips were locked on hers and somehow he had lifted her up slightly and backed her up against the closed door.  She was completely dazed by the time his mouth left hers, kissing a trail toward her left ear.  She braided her hands through his hair and tried to catch her breath. The bright afternoon sun shined in her eyes.

 

     “Cancel your plans tonight,” he whispered in her ear, and then kissed her below it.  She felt his intention press hard against her thigh, and it was thoroughly tempting.  She hadn’t had sex for two years, at least, and God, it sounded like a great idea! But…  

 

 

 

My First Bra

     I’m not talking about my first “training bra” (who came up with that stupid term anyway?).   I’m talking about the first real bra that I bought with my own money. 

     I was maybe 11 or so, and I carried a purple purse with a unicorn on it that enclosed a purple wallet which held some red hot birthday cash.  So, it was off to the mall! My mom brought me and let me go into Dillard’s by myself (which may have been Diamonds at the time). 

     My birthday money was burning a hole in my wallet! 

     I wandered into the lingerie section of the store.  I hadn’t really been in that part of the store before and had always glanced at it whenever we had walked by in the past.  The pretty, lacey things with soft, shimmery fabric that looked as fragile as flower petals seemed so much more interesting than the kid’s clothes section we usually spent time in.  I felt excited and somewhat out of place browsing through the racks of pretty undergarments.  My underwear to date had been nothing but sturdy, practical cotton underwear that came in multi-packs from Kmart.  And, as far as I knew, that’s what my mom wore as well. 

     But, this underwear was so different.  Who would wear something so pretty, and why?  The notion that a woman would wear pretty undergarments to impress a man was far from my adolescent mind at that time.

     It was then that an older woman approached me.  She was a shopper, like me.  And, I’m going to paraphrase the conversation here…

     “Such pretty things, aren’t they?” She asked while lovingly admiring something from the rack.

     “Um, yeah."

     “You like them, don’t you?” 

     I nodded shyly.

     “I always find that I feel extra confident if I’m wearing something pretty underneath.  It’s like it’s my little secret,” she said, and smiled at me. 

     I nodded again and turned my attention to a Christian Dior bra in my size. 

     “Oh, that’s a very pretty one,” she said.  “Well, I’m going to go try these on.”  She left with a small pile of lace draped over one arm.

     I turned my attention back to the bra, and checked the price tag.  It was on sale!  It was going to take all of my birthday money to buy it (meaning I wouldn’t have enough left over to get the new Duran Duran album), but I couldn’t resist.  Confidence, she had said.  The bra was so pretty.  It was all off-white lace with light blue satin cups. 

     And…it became my first real bra.  I wore it to school under my silly purple unicorn shirts, and it gave me confidence.  It really did!  I had a pretty secret below my awkward surface. 

     My mom thought I was silly to spend all my money on a bra.  But, I didn’t care! 

     I still think about the woman who told me of her secret to confidence, especially on the days that I need a little extra…if you know what I mean. 

     Wink!

My Sexy Saturday

     Are you enjoying “My Sexy Saturday”? ( http://mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ )  It's been fun picking out excerpts from my works to showcase, and I have a bunch more all lined up.

     In this week's snippet from my WIP “Mountains and Skyscrapers”, businessman Michael grasps the situation in his own way.  Enjoy!


     Michael was making love to Elle.  No, scratch that, he was fucking her.  Her warm bare skin smelled of cinnamon and pine and her breath came in raspy gasps near his ear.  They turned over, and she sat up, straddling him as she grinded her hips roughly against him. Her hair was wild in the glow of the light shining through the slit in the motel room’s curtains, and he cupped her bare breasts in his palms.  This was raw, pure sex. 
    
     “Holy hell, baby!” He growled, suddenly pulling her down forcefully to kiss her.  

     Her hand accidently hit the clock radio on the hotel nightstand, turning it on.  He groped in the darkness to turn it off but hit the light switch instead. 

     The bed was empty, it had been a dream!  The hotel phone was ringing.  He shook his head and reached for it. 

     “Hello?”  He questioned raspily

     “Good morning, this is your 6am wake up call,” a male voice said cheerfully on the other end of the line before it went dead.

     “Thanks,” he grumbled, then hung up the phone and lay back straight on the bed, his erection throbbing tightly against the sheet. Randall was going to be picking him up in a half hour so they could meet the rest of the guys for breakfast before the hike.  He rubbed his hands through his hair and over his face then glanced at the clock.  He wished he had time to go back to sleep and finish his dream, but settled for a quick self-pleasuring session instead, something he hadn’t felt like doing in a very long time.

 

My Sexy Saturday

     Don’t you just love the name “My Sexy Saturday ( http://mysexysaturday.blogspot.com/ )?  Yes, that’s right!  “My Sexy Saturday” is a blog hop designed for authors to showcase sexy bits of their stories for your enjoyment (7 words, 7 sentences, or 7 paragraphs).   So, indulge in a bit of sexiness today! 

     In this excerpt from “The Plane Truth”, Emily meets Aiden for the first time… and is rendered speechless. 

     He turned.  It wasn’t Peter.

     Her gaze traveled quickly down the stranger’s body and back up as he walked the few steps toward her.  Wearing jeans, a leather jacket and carrying a red motorcycle helmet, he looked like he just stepped off a movie set and belonged at … “Ace Models is three doors to the left,” she offered.

     He smiled and stretched out his hand.  “Emily, I presume?”

     She cocked her head to the side and nodded, her mouth slightly agape.

     “I’m Aiden Masterson.”

     Their handshake lasted a bit longer than it should have as the information registered.   He wasn’t quite the character she had been expecting to show up when Richard informed her the CEO of an investment firm was coming in to discuss the design of a new office building.

     Their meeting wasn’t scheduled for another hour and Richard was out on a sales call.  She glanced at the clock on the wall and tried to compose herself before meeting his hazel eyes again.

Available for free from http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/214003  with the code QA52X.  (This code expires August 1, 2013)