Coupon code!

Happy Sunday, Slashers. Just letting you know about a coupon code available for 25% off from Torquere Press! You can use it to buy the final installment of the Never Too Early series, which is getting rave reviews all over the place. Chris and I are so grateful!

Michelle at Joyfully Jay's review

This review from Susan65 at The Blogger Girls is incredibly honest, which Chris and I really appreciate. We knew that pairing up two already established couples would be a difficult thing for some people to read, but we took a chance anyway. (Ha, Chance.) Susan did a great job of articulating her concerns and her feelings, while still remaining as objective as possible.

Susan65 at The Blogger Girls' review


And finally, the coupon code you've been waiting for.... VAMP2015. Use and enjoy!

Oh PS -- if you're on Goodreads and you've read Never Too Early: Full Circle, would you mind leaving us a review? Good, bad, or indifferent, doesn't matter. We appreciate them all.

Goodreads -- Never Too Early: Full Circle

3 more days...

... until release day! That's right, November 25 is just around the corner. The day before American Thanksgiving, in fact, so believe me when I say that Chris and I are EXTRA thankful this year!

(Ignore the fact that she's actually Canadian and doesn't celebrate American Thanksgiving. She will celebrate it through me.)

We have three gorgeous new covers for all the Never Too Early books, and you can now get them IN PRINT! Links here:

And the cover for Never Too Early: Full Circle (currently available for preorder) is just as beautiful as the other two. Huge props to Kris Norris for her hard work!

Be sure and tune in to the Romance for the Rest of Us blog on Wednesday. Chris and I will be hosting, sharing some stories about writing this series together, divulging tidbits about Jake and Tor and Chance and Tucker, and answering questions. Looking forward to seeing all of you there!

It's almost release time!

Another beautiful autumn Sunday here in southern California! At least the nights have finally turned cool, if not the days. All those meteorologists keep warning us that El Nino's on the way, but we're stil waiting.

It's finally release month for Chris Owen and me and we couldn't be more excited! The final installment of the Never Too Early series will be out on November 25. All three books will be released in print with all new covers! Our cover artist is super talented and did an amazing job and we can't wait to show them off. Stay tuned here or to our Facebook pages over the next few days for the reveals.

I'll leave you with the last little tease you'll get before Never Too Early: Full Circle comes out on November 25.

Chance was quiet for several minutes. A woodpecker in the front yard tree gave its high-pitched tweeting call before busily getting back to work.

"I definitely was not prepared," he finally said. "And I know Tuck wasn't. I'll have to really sit and talk with him to see what he thinks. I can't decide if us leaving today is a good idea or a shitty one."

"I'll miss you either way," Jake said. "I don't know Tucker well enough to know how long it takes him to think things through, and he might be uncomfortable being here. Which would suck. But you guys leaving and not being here to sort it all out sucks, too."

"There isn't much of a choice," Chance sighed. "Our flight is at two. If I didn't have to attend a meeting at headquarters tomorrow, I'd try and change it. But we -- well, at least I -- need to get home."

"I know." The distance sucked, and the fact that everyone had responsibilities they couldn't shake off was both a good thing and a bad thing. It made for good people, but it made it difficult to handle issues as they came up. "Maybe the four of us can make this morning a good one, and everyone will feel better by the time you leave. Even if things aren't completely settled, maybe they'll be better."

"It'll be better right now if you kiss me like you mean it."

Jake smiled and set his coffee mug aside. "Like I mean it?" He touched Chance's cheek and kissed his mouth softly. "More?"

"More." Chance smiled against Jake's lips and kept his eyes closed.

Jake gave him more, the smiles fading as the kisses deepened and Chance's mug was put down as well. They turned to each other, and Jake would have happily let his coffee go cold if he could stay right where he was for an hour or so.

Chance didn't seem inclined to go anywhere, either. He put both hands on Jake's face and held him gently as he pressed light kisses to Jake's forehead, cheeks, and bridge of his nose before returning to Jake's mouth with a sweep of his tongue and a slight nip. "I'll miss you," he murmured into Jake's ear, then sucked Jake's earlobe into his mouth for a split second.

"One of these days I'll ask you not to go," Jake whispered back. "Someday we'll stay together." Jake had no idea how that would work, but he knew that he wanted it.

Chance pulled back and looked at him, eyes soft. "Maybe someday we'll work it out."

Jake nodded and kissed him again. He was about to say something even more honest and probably embarrassing when the door opened and Tor said, "So, you two don't need more coffee, then?"

We have a release date...

We finally got a confirmed release date from our publisher for the final book in the Never Too Early series! Mark your calendars for....

NOVEMBER 25.

It's the day before American Thanksgiving, so don't tell me you have nothing to be thankful for. ;) Although it seems far off, it's only 45 days out. Chris and I are really, really pumped for this last book and we truly hope that readers enjoy the direction we took the story. I'll leave you with a small snippet, and if you haven't picked up the first two books yet, you can get a 25% rebate on them later this week from All Romance eBooks! They're having a great sale on Torquere books from October 15-31.

 I'll leave you with this little tidbit. Happy Sunday, slashers!

 

The playful joking continued all the way back to Tucker's truck, much to his delight. It was more challenging to spar with three others instead of one, and not for the first time, Tucker wished wistfully that Jake and Tor didn't live thousands of miles away. It was clear that Chance needed the quiet grounding Jake gave him, and although it pinged a tiny bit of concern, Tucker would much rather know that Chance was getting something he might have been missing.

They finished lunch and sat on the blanket for a while, just chatting. Tor and Chance had a mutual love for music and baseball, it turned out, so Tucker and Jake had a serious conversation about horses and the raising of them.

The sun was low over the ocean and the air had chilled by the time the four of them gathered up their belongings and piled back into Tucker's truck. He slid behind the wheel and smiled as Tor sprawled in the front seat next to him, looking as natural as if he'd been doing it for years. A glance in the rearview mirror showed Jake and Chance leaning against each other, fingers tangled.

Tucker felt warm and contented as he drove. The little niggling feelings of jealousy were normal, he thought. He'd get used to seeing Chance so cozy with someone else, right? Besides, he and Tor were pretty cozy themselves, and it couldn't be easy for Chance to watch that. On the other hand, Jake and Tor seemed pretty comfortable with it.

Yup, Tucker thought as they headed for home, it was definitely time to figure out what was going on.

 

September? Wow.

I really hate letting so much time pass between posts, but the day job is exceptionally time-consuming right now. I do like trying to get in at least one post a month, so let's see if I can keep that up. (Spoiler: maybe.)

The release month for the third book in the Never Too Early series is November! No exact date yet, but I'll be sure and let you know as soon as I get the word. In the meantime, have a little excerpt. See you next month!

***

Tucker shut the water off just as it was starting to cool and tossed Tor a fluffy blue towel. "Can fix you guys omelettes for breakfast. Or if that's too fancy for your cowboy asses, I'll let you have some of my Corn Pops."

"Hell, toast is about all we really need, but I'm not going to turn down eggs." Tor couldn't remember the last time he'd had a breakfast cereal that was coated in sugar; Jake had forbidden it from the house shortly after Jacob had moved in. Now that the kid was off to college and not even coming home for summers, maybe Tor could sneak some back in.

Probably not.

"Good. Wasn't really gonna give you my Pops. If you want Chance's healthy stuff, be my guest." Tucker laughed and gave Tor one more kiss. "Mushroom and avocado omelettes, comin' up."

They toweled off and parted in the hall, Tucker going to his own room for clothes, and Tor back to the guest room. Jake hadn't even moved, as far as Tor could tell. He was still buried in a blanket, his eyes closed.

"Time to get your ass up," Tor told him, rummaging around for his clothes. "The day is getting old."

"Coffee?" Jake sounded only slightly more awake than he looked.

Tor snorted and grinned. "It'll happen. C'mon, up you get."

Jake rolled over and stretched, long and hard, then melted back onto the bed. "You've been up long enough to mess around in the shower and make coffee."

Jeans found, Tor pulled them on and nodded at Jake. "Yep. But only one got done." He could almost feel the endorphins in his bloodstream like little glittery bits of happy. "Come on, don't let Chance come home and find out how lazy you are."

It was both adorable and amusing how quickly Jake scowled at him, growled that he wasn't lazy, and got up. "You are mean and rude, and I'm going to clean up," he mumbled, heading out and toward the guest bathroom. He was wearing pale blue boxers and his hair was all stuck up on one side. It was almost enough to entice Tor back into the bathroom. "Coffee. You go make."

Tor's urge to go maul Jake dissolved in a fit of laughing. "Yes, yes. Coffee. Chance will be home soon."

Jake waved a hand in the general direction of the hallway wall and left.

Shaking his head, Tor sat on the bed to pull on his socks. So far this surprise visit was going along great -- he'd had time with Tucker, he'd woken up around Jake, and aside from the overly thoughtful look on Tucker's face, things were smooth and wonderful.

That look, though. That was something to find out about. Tor had a feeling that this thing they were building was too important to let things slide for long. Maybe Chance being home would help conversations happen.

Aaaaand another one for you...

I got two of the nicest comments recently, both asking for another excerpt of Never Too Early: Full Circle. Since Chris and I reached 50k on it yesterday and still have at least another 10k to go, there is no shortage of good snippets to choose from. Here's a little piece for you, and happy Sunday.

***

"Where's the paper targets?" Tucker crouched down to the blanket and searched around. "These can go on the trees." Three or four tall oaks were a good bit of distance away.

Chance jogged to the trees and fastened the targets, then returned and squinted at them. "Good enough?"

"Yep. Tucker, go for it. Make Kentucky proud."  Tor leaned against the truck to watch, liking the sun on his shoulders. "Chance, are you good with handguns?"

He nodded. "Better than with a shotgun, actually. I never shot a rifle until a few years ago. The ones you have are nicer than anything I've used."

Tor stage whispered, "Jake can be a little tight, but he invests in good guns."  He ignored the dirty look he got for that. "You're doing fine. Shoulder it again for me, let me see your stance. Just don't try Jake's. It won't work for anyone but him."

Chance did as requested. He brought the gun to his shoulder, and Tor was amused to note that Chance had a stance that, if not identical to Jake's, was strangely similar. Then he realized why.

"Okay, surfer boy. I'm going to get up close and personal." He smiled and slotted himself behind Chance, hands on Chance's hips. "No wonder Jake didn't suck on a surfboard. Okay, move your hips back, like this, and let your lead foot come on back." He used his hands to square Chance's hips a bit and pulled him back tight to his own body. "Oh, hello there. Jake's right -- you smell good."

Chance turned his head to the right and looked over his shoulder at Tor. Their eyes were just about level, although Chance may have been slightly taller. Jake had also been right about Chance's eyes changing color, Tor noted. They'd been a soft hazel this morning, but now they matched the bright green of the patchy grass around them. "Jake put some stuff in our shower. It says it smells like ocean, but I don't think whoever made the soap has actually been to the beach."

"Well, whatever it is, it smells good on you." Tor winked at him and went on. "Now, hips back here, feet firm on the ground. Rifle to shoulder. How does that feel?"  He didn't step back. The sun was warm on his back, and Chance was warm on his front.

Chance cleared his throat. "Good. It feels… good." He didn't move either. "But I feel like I could step off balance as soon as the gun kicks. Should I try a shot?"

"Go for it, I've got you." Tor was braced, mirrored like Chance, hands still on Chance's hips. "Just aim and squeeze."

Tor felt Chance tense a moment before pulling the trigger. The blast was loud in his ears. The back kick of the barrel rocked both of them, and Chance nearly took a step to the side. He managed to keep his balance at the last second, but in doing so, pressed himself even more firmly against Tor's chest. He lowered the rifle and stared straight ahead at the target. "Like that?" he asked, his voice low.

"Mmhmm. More or less.  Want to try again? Find your balance?" Tor was feeling more than a little off balance himself. He took a breath and tightened his grip on Chance's hips. "Careful now." He might have been talking to himself.

Excerpt: Never Too Early: Full Circle

Wow, June. How is it halfway over? Every time I blink, another month has passed. The curse of getting older, I suppose.

Chris Owen and I have been hard at work for the past few weeks on the third novel in the Never Too Early series. We have a deadline, so we're hoping to have it finished by the end of June. This novel is different from the others for various reasons; not the least of which is that Tor and Tucker get their turn to speak. The other differences will just have to be a surprise, ha.

Here's an excerpt for those who have been waiting so patiently.... happy Sunday!

***

It hadn't occurred to Tucker that Tor thought he and Jake were alike at all. "Different, sure. And we both like horses." He shrugged. "Other than that, me and Jake don't really match up the same."

Tor laughed. "You're both thoughtful, can cook, listen really well, pay attention to what people feel as well as what they say, wake up happy, don't whine unless it's actually worth it, and are tough as nails. Trust me, you're alike in a bunch of ways. But you laugh easier, play easier, and see the point of games. You don't stress, and you don't take on everyone's problems as your own to worry about."

"Jake carries other people's weight, huh? A guy can break his back that way." Tucker smiled and tried another taste of his hot chocolate. There, perfect. "Well, him and Chance sure get each other." It still made Tucker wonder a little. Did it mean Chance and Jake were better suited?

"Same thing there," Tor said after a mouthful of hot chocolate. "There's, like, some kind of balance of needs. You and Chance are necessary for each other in really great ways, and Jake kind of... fills in some gaps, is all."

"I didn't know there were gaps," Tucker mumbled. Until now.

"They're not really gaps. You know the difference between an accidental baby and a surprise baby?"

The analogy made Tucker laugh. "Sure, I guess. But the surprise baby is still a surprise."

"But you wouldn't give it up. You just didn't know you were missing it." Tor kissed him again. "He's not looking for anything you haven't got. He just found something that's extra. That's all. He wasn't missing anything, he just got chocolate sauce on his sundae."

"Oh yeah?" Tucker looked up at him with a smile. "And what about you and me? Chocolate sauce, or something different?"

Contest!

Sunday again... time is flying. Which, in this instance, is a great thing because it means release day is almost here!

This Wednesday, April 15, the second book in the Never Too Early series will be released! Chris Owen and I are super excited about this, and we've already received some amazing reviews from sites that received ARCs. This book can't really be read as a stand-alone, so we encourage everyone to read Never Too Early: The Beginning before trying Never Too Early: Finding Their Way.

The second book is available for preorder at the link above! And, as a little bonus, if you've already preordered, just drop me a comment on THIS POST at my site and leave your confirmation number. You'll be automatically entered for a $10.00 gift certificate to Torquere Press. All posts will stay hidden to protect private info!

Can't wait for release day. See you Wednesday!

Available for pre-order!

Happy Sunday, slashers! I have things to tell you about!

1. First thing! The release date of the next book in the Never Too Early series had to be pushed back a little due to editing conflicts. The new release date is now April 15. Mark those calendars!

2. Second thing! Not only do we have a cover for the next book, but it's currently available for pre-order! Reserve your copy now and you'll get it mailed to you first thing on release day. Just look at this lovely cover. Clicking on the pic will take you to the pre-order page.

3. And finally, third thing! I have a very lovely and talented friend that offered to redo my website, and I took her up on that in a hot minute. Please go and take a look around. I hope to have blog content there soon.

Stems and Petals - M/M Fiction by Tory Temple

Chris and I are open to your opinions regarding this next chapter in Jake, Tor, Chance, and Tucker's lives. Feel free to email or comment!

New excerpt....

Happy weekend, all! I have a Sunday with not much planned, which is the perfect kind of Sunday, if you ask me. Two orders of business on the blog docket for you today!

1. Heat and Flashover are being made into audiobooks! Super excited about this. If you know any males who do voiceover work, they can go to Audiobook Creation Exchange and search for either title and submit an audition. The ones that have been submitted so far are all fantastic, so I'm not really sure how my publisher is going to choose.

2. The release of the second book in Chris Owen's and my series is two months away! Never Too Early: Finding Their Way is due out on March 25. Pre-orders will definitely be available as we get closer, but for now, I'll leave you with an excerpt. Chris and I have loved hearing all the feedback, so thank you!

A dark head appeared in the doorway between the living room and kitchen. "Jake! Can I drive your truck?" Tucker appeared to be holding Tor off with one hand.

Jake nodded.  "Sure. Wait. Why? Sure?"

Tor was trying to get a hold of Tucker, but failing miserably. Jake figured he wasn't really trying.

"Tor says you guys got mud out in your back forty! I'd drive the rental, but we didn't get no insurance on it, and it's a piece of shit anyhow. Wouldn't do no good out there. Tor, for chrissakes, you're gonna rip my shirt."

Chance raised his eyebrows but otherwise said nothing.

"Oh." Jake looked at Chance and then back at Tucker. "Take Tor's truck."

"I won't give him my keys."  Tor didn't let go of Tucker's shirt but he did laugh.

"My truck doesn't go mudding for fun," Jake told Chance. "It's too much of a pain to clean."

"Aw, man." Tucker made a noise of disgust. "Thought y'all were cowboys." He looked at Tor and scowled. "You ain't never gone in the mud before?"

"Of course I have." Tor sounded indignant. "Just not in his truck.  And it depends where the cows are. We can go tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah, okay," Tucker said grudgingly. "Come on, show me where you keep your food and I'll rustle up some chow."

"I think it's in the bathroom this week. Oh, wait! Nope, the kitchen."

Jake shook his head. "Wake me up later," he told Chance. "When they're calmer."

"So, about four days," Chance replied. "Got it." He reached out his left hand and rested it on Jake's leg. It was warm through the blanket.

"Maybe five." Jake hoped Chance would leave his hand right where it was. It was heavy and comforting, and Jake was going to suck up all the comfort he could, for as long as he could. 

Contest coming soon...

Hello, slashers. The weeks are moving by pretty quickly, aren't they? Halloween next week already. What? No, don't be ridiculous. Of course I haven't bought my candy yet and started eating it. Who does that? (Okay, me.)

I just wanted to give y'all a heads up about a contest coming this week from Chris Owen and me! On Wednesday, October 29, you'll want to head over to the Torquere Press Livejournal page. We'll be hosting that day. That will be your chance to read some more about Jake and Tor and Chance and Tucker, as well as answer a few easy trivia questions to win a gift certificate for their book!

We were going to wait until Wednesday to drop a couple of snippets from the book, but I can be persuaded to leave some here. *grin* Leave a comment or email me at ragingpixie@gmail.com and I'll see what I can do.

Happy Football Da-- wait, that's just in the U.S. Happy Sunday!

It's autumn, right?

California does not know what season it is. Well, that's pretty much true all the time, but right now my state REALLY does not have itself together. We're in the middle of a serious drought and there is no rain in sight. Rain is the only way we know it's fall or winter. Here's hoping the end of the month brings cooler temps and wet weather. I have a lot of hoodies I didn't get to wear last year.

Now that that bit of scintillating information is out of the way, let me tell you what you probably came here for.... no new snippets today from Never Too Early. I know, I'm sorry. But the good news is that release day is only 24 days from now! And if you're really hankering for some more good stuff about Jake and Tor and Chance and Tucker, my good friend Keira Andrews was nice enough to host a character interview.

Go HERE for that, and while you're there, take a look around her site. She's an excellent author and one of my favorites.

As always, you can click the covers below to buy Bareback and Heat so you're all caught up on the boys' backstories before November 5. See you in a week or two with more goodies and a contest!!

Getting closer...

November 5 is fast approaching! If you don't know why that matters, let me tell you. (I know I've told you before, but I personally need ten reminders about things before I can vaguely recall them.)

Chris Owen and I decided a while back that it would be an interesting experiment to see what happened if two of our most popular couples happened to meet each other. Jake and Tor from Bareback and Chance and Tucker from Heat might be able to make friends, despite their obvious differences and the fact that they don't live even remotely near each other, ha.

So we experimented. And our experiment grew into something neither of us expected. Namely, a really good book. A really good book that was too long to fit into just one novel, so we wrote three. And when we finished, we realized that this was a story that people needed to read.

Unexpected love stories are the best kind.

So that's why November 5 is a date you should remember. Don't worry, Chris and I will be reminding you. If you aren't familiar with Bareback or Heat, this is your chance to pick up those stories before November 5!

Leaving you on this gorgeous Sunday with a little excerpt. Have a great one, Slashers!

***

Tucker piped up again. "So then how come y’all wouldn’t hang with us last night? I mean, I know I said I’d buy you a drink, but dang. The bar serves Coke, you know." He smiled at Jake, flashing a hint of dimple.

Jake looked at Tor and then at Tucker. "Well, honestly, we had to have a talk to make sure we were on the same page about a couple of things. It's something we've learned to do, no matter what, even if we have to give up a pleasant evening with people."

"He means we had to be all responsible and shit, to keep from making a mess of our holiday."

Tucker’s eyebrows drew together. "Same page. About what?"

Since Chance also wanted to know the answer, he let Tucker do the asking, even though it was bordering on none of their business.

This time it was Tor with the shrug. "About spending time with attractive men, of course. What else?"

Chance could feel his own jaw drop. That was not the answer he’d expected. He blinked at Jake, looking for confirmation.

Jake, damn him, just gave him a slow grin. "They don't have mirrors in California?"

Chance could feel Tucker’s smirk without even looking in his direction. "I, well. We, you know. That’s cool. You know. Okay, whatever." Chance groaned inwardly. Tongue-tied wasn’t a good look on him. He cleared his throat and tried again. "It was only a drink. That’s all. Not a proposition."

"Good." Both Jake and Tor suddenly seemed serious. "We'd have to say no and excuse ourselves if it was," Jake said. "We're not looking for that at all. A nice conversation, though, is always welcome."

"We were not looking for that either," Chance said. It came out a little forcefully.

"Simmer down, Cap." Tucker slid closer to him and smiled at Jake and Tor. "What Chancellor is tryin’ to say is that he noticed you, he thought you looked pretty, and that’s as far as it’s gonna go. We don’t play that game. But we do make friends. Well, I do. Chance just yells at people." Tucker squeezed Chance’s hand to soften his teasing. "All good, right?"

"All's good here," Tor said with a nod. "Our talk had very little to do with y'all, honestly, and everything to do with us."

"That's true." Jake nudged his empty plate. "You'll have to take our word for it, I guess. But seems like all four of us are on the same page, now, so how about dessert?"

"Not for me," Chance said quietly. He was still mulling over the idea that someone might have thought he and Tucker were looking for another couple to play with. The thought hadn’t even crossed Chance’s mind.

Sunday already?

All right, SO. I know my last few posts here have mainly centered on the novel I have coming out in November, but honestly, my co-author Chris Owen and I are so excited about it. I can't tell you how many times I wished some of my favorite books/movies/comics/TV shows would cross over with each other! Well, Chris felt the same way, so we finally decided to do something about it.

Never Too Early: The Beginning is the first book in a series starring her cowboys, Jake and Tor from Bareback, and my firemen, Chance and Tucker from Heat. If you haven't read either of these, that's a good place to start. Necessary backstory! Then you'll be ready on November 5 when this book is set to be released.

I've given you some little snips before, but here's another scene just to give you an idea of the chemistry cowboys and firemen can have when they meet each other. Feel free to let us know what you think.

***

He was about to make a joke of his own about the bourbon from Knob Creek when Tucker nudged him. "Well, I’ll be damned," Tucker murmured in a low voice. "Lookit who’s here."

Chance glanced up in time to see two familiar men standing at the hostess stand. Their hats were in their hands and the one named Jake was running fingers through his hair while Tor spoke to the young girl.

"Huh," he said out loud, then purposefully turned his attention back to the drink menu. It was a weird coincidence, that was all. And judging from the reception that Tucker’s invite had gotten last night, Chance was pretty sure Jake and Tor didn’t want to be bothered.

Within two minutes, however, a gray hat entered the edges of his field of vision. "Evening."

Before Chance could look up, let alone collect himself, Tor was joining in. "Enjoy your winnings last night?" he asked happily.

Chance cleared his throat. "Tucker enjoyed my winnings."

"Pfft." Tucker rolled his eyes and looked at Tor. "Listen to this one. Like he didn’t drink just as much as me. Like he didn’t practically go down on me in the restr--"

"Tuck!" Chance interrupted sharply, giving Tucker an elbow in the side. It didn’t deter him much, however. Tucker grinned at Tor and raised his eyebrows.

Jake stood quietly, Chance noticed, although he had definitely shuffled his feet when Tucker started running his mouth.

"A healthy relationship, then," Tor said, laughing out loud. "Good enough." He narrowed his eyes a little at Tucker. "You've got the accent. Have you eaten here before?"

"Shit. I don’t got no accent. Y’alls the ones with the accent. And you bet I been here before. Anyone who likes bourbon’s been here." Tucker waved the drink menu at him. "I can recommend some."

"How about the food?" Jake put in, one eyebrow up.

For once, Chance was grateful that Tucker was carrying most of the conversation. He studied Jake and noted how close he was standing to his partner. Possessiveness again? Chance didn’t know. Tor didn’t seem to mind.

"You like steak?" Tucker asked Jake.

"Of course." Jake nodded once and then added, "And all the stuff that goes with it. But we raise our own cattle so I'm a bit fussy about my beef."

"That's the polite way to put it." Tor sounded like he'd been around Jake when he was unhappy with dinner once or twice. "Completely a bitch is the other way I'd say it."

Chance surprised himself by laughing. "That’s not very nice," he admonished. "If a guy doesn’t like the way his meat is cooked, then send it back until it’s right."

"Yeah," Tucker added, with a smile that only Chance knew was sarcastic instead of agreeable. "Send it back. Again. And again. And maybe once more, because there prolly ain’t enough of the waiter’s spit in it yet."

Chance looked over to find Jake giving him a small smile. "Well?" Chance asked him. "Am I right?"

"You're right. Of course you're right. Who wants to eat a meal that isn't just the way it should be, especially if it has a price tag on it?"

Tor rolled his eyes so hard that Chance thought it must have hurt. "People who can relax and enjoy a meal someone else cooked, that's who."

"You eat your way, I'll eat mine. So, anything on the menu that stood out the last time you were here?" Jake looked at Tucker expectantly. 

***

Check back here in a couple of weeks and there might be more... happy Sunday, slashers!

My favorite time of year...

Summer! I love it. I'm in a fantastic mood from now through the end of August. Long days, hot sun, visits to the beach. It's all good.

Also good is the fact that I have a lot more free time to collaborate with my bestie and co-author, Chris Owen. We're waiting on edits to come back for Never Too Early: The Beginning. That's a novel I first talked about in this post. It's set to come out in November, and we're hoping that the wait for the second novel is much shorter. Good thing we have writing days set aside for it. I offered up a little sample of it here.

Check back here in the coming weeks for more snips from the series. We promise you that you don't want to miss these books!

Little teaser...

Last time I was here, I let you guys know about the awesome project that Chris Owen and I have been working on. Since then, we got the news that our release date is going to be in November. Both of us were kind of bummed that it's so far away, but we'll be around here and there on social media to promote it way before then. In fact, here's a sneak peek of what you can expect in Never Too Early: The Beginning.

Chance slouched down in his seat and stretched out his legs. At least they were on the aisle. And the people watching was pretty good from his vantage point.

In fact, it was really good. The two men Chance had seen a little while earlier were now on their way back, and this time he could see the front view. One with dark hair and one with hair the color of wet sand, they were tall and lean with tanned faces. Chance somehow knew instinctively that it was from many hours on horseback, outside in the hot summer sun, where even the protection of their cowboy hats wasn’t enough.

He watched from the safety of his seat as they approached the steps leading to his row. Expecting them to pass directly in front, Chance was startled when they checked their tickets and began climbing the stairs. He pulled his feet in from blocking the aisle and pretended to be interested in the racing form in his hand.

A surreptitious glance told him that the cowboys had stopped at the row before his. Chance observed them as they checked their tickets and then, to his pleasure or dismay, Chance didn’t know which, they edged their way into the seats directly in front of Chance and Tucker’s.

Tucker was going to laugh hysterically.

"How long until they start?" the one with dark hair asked his partner. "Do I have time to go make a bet?"

"Sure, if you want. Throwing good money away, though." The tone was warmer than the words. "Get yourself a drink, too."

"Water for you, Jake? I'll see if they have juice."

The one named Jake shook his head. "Water's fine." He looked around, craning his head and finally tipping his hat back on his forehead. "Yeah, same direction. Don't get lost, Tor."

That earned him a flick on the brim of his hat and a snort. Then dark eyes met Chance's as Tor stood and turned. "Keep an eye on this one; he'll change seats just to make me think I got lost." His grin was broad and open, friendly.

"Uh," Chance replied. Yes, very suave, he told himself with a mental eyeroll. "Um, yeah, okay." He managed a smile and forced himself to meet the twinkling brown eyes again. "I’ll pin him down." What? Chance had no idea where the idiotic words had come from.

Jake's head whipped around and Tor threw back his head with a laugh. "Good luck with that. Holler if you need help." He clapped Jake's shoulder with one big hand and then left, still chuckling, leaving Chance with a startled cowboy looking at him.