Book Blast & Giveaway ~ Protecting Cheyenne (Seal of Protection #5) by Susan Stoker

Protecting Cheyenne

SEAL of Protection #5 (Stand-alone)

by Susan Stoker

Published:  May 5th, 2015

Genre:  Romantic Suspense

Content Warning:  Mild adult sexual content

Synopsis:

Living in Southern California, Cheyenne was used to seeing hot military men as she went about her daily business. An anonymous encounter at the grocery store cemented her crush on one such man. He was big, built, and incredibly easy on the eyes, but it wasn’t as if he would ever really notice her.

Always in control of any situation, Faulkner “Dude” Cooper knows explosives. As a bomb expert, he’s lived through many high pressure situations. Disfigured by a bomb while on a mission, he’s used to being looked at with pity. When he’s called to a local supermarket to assist the local PD, the last thing he expects to find is a generous act of kindness performed by a beautiful, amazing woman. Enchanted by her selflessness in the face of danger and intrigued by her actions to save civilians she didn’t know, Dude’s hooked.

Dude was able to save Cheyenne from the group of thugs trying to take her life, but when the past comes back to haunt them both, sometimes having the knowledge and the desire isn’t enough to beat the countdown of the clock.

**Protecting Cheyenne is the 5th book in the SEAL of Protection Series. It can be read as a stand-alone, but it’s recommended you read the books in order to get maximum enjoyment out of the series.

~~Excerpt~~

Cheyenne felt cocooned in Faulkner’s arms. He sat still and quiet behind her as he took her into his arms. She felt warm for the first time since she’d left the coffee shop that afternoon. She sighed. She needed this, she needed Faulkner.

“Hey,” she said softly.

“Hey.”

“I should’ve called. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, Shy.”

“No, it’s really not. I’m sorry if I worried you. I just…I thought you’d be mad. You told me to call you and I didn’t. Then it all just snowballed in my head. The longer I went without calling you, the more mad I thought you’d get.”

Her voice fell enough that Dude had to lean forward and turn his head to hear her.

“I don’t like it when you’re mad at me. Even though you haven’t really even been mad at me yet, I can’t stand the thought of you being mad at me. I think that’s what it was. I want to make you happy.”

“Shy…”

Cheyenne interrupted him. “And now, I’ve disappointed you. I don’t know which is worse really. Fuck, I’m not like this. I’m not a wuss. The only thing I can say in my defense is that I had a bad day.”

Dude had enough of this. He scooted himself around until he was sitting at Cheyenne’s side. “Stop, Shy. I’m not mad and you didn’t disappoint me. You worried me. There’s a huge difference.”

“I didn’t mean to.”

“I know. But we need to talk about this. We should’ve talked before now and that’s on me. You aren’t used to this. I love how we are. I love how you do what I tell you in our bed. I can’t tell you what it means to me. I crave that. I need that. But outside the bedroom? No. I love the contradiction that is you. You’re not afraid to call out my friends when they say dumb shit.”

He kissed the top of her head and continued. “I’m going to get mad, Shy. I’m probably going to yell at some point. It doesn’t mean I don’t love you. Don’t be afraid of me. Don’t be scared to tell me to fuck off. If I overwhelm you, tell me. Remember when I told you we don’t need safe words? It still holds, Shy. If you need me to back off, just say the word and I will.”

“You love me?”

“Yes. I’ve waited for you my whole life. Not someone like you, but you. I know you don’t have the experience to realize this, but what we have in the bedroom is unique. Unique and special. It’s something I’ve never had with anyone else, ever. And it’s not just about the sex. It’s about who you are as a person. We’ve gotten to know each other over the last couple of months and I like you Cheyenne.”

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Protecting Jessyka

SEAL of Protection #6 (Stand-alone)

by Susan Stoker

To be published:  July 7th, 2015

Genre:  Romantic Suspense

Synopsis:

Kason “Benny” Sawyer was the last single man on his Navy SEAL team. He loved his teammates like brothers and respected each and every one of their women. They’d all been through hell and they deserved their current happiness. But seeing the love between his friends and their women made it tough to be the odd man out all the time. 

Jessyka Allen had a good life, until it wasn’t anymore. Finding herself in an impossible situation, with no noticeable way out, her job was an escape. Working at the small Bar and Grill put her in contact with some wonderful people, who Jess figured couldn’t ever understand what she was going through.

Being a SEAL, Benny thought he knew the true meaning of teamwork and friendship. But Jess would show him that everything he thought he knew about sacrifice, trust, and love, paled in comparison to what she brought into his world.

**Protecting Jessyka is the 6th book in the SEAL of Protection Series. It can be read as a stand-alone, but it’s recommended you read the books in order to get maximum enjoyment out of the series.

Pre-Order Links:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo

About the Author:

Susan Stoker has a heart as big as the state of Texas where she lives, but this all American girl has also spent the last fourteen years living in Missouri, California, Colorado, and Indiana. She’s married to a retired Army man who now gets to follow her around the country.

As Mr. Stoker says, Susan has been training to become a romance author her entire life. She’s been reading romances since middle school and writes what she loves.

She debuted her first series in 2014 and quickly followed that up with the SEAL of Protection Series, which solidified her love of writing and creating stories readers can get lost in.

Amazon Author Page | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads | Website

Giveaway Details:

There is a tour wide giveaway. Prizes include the following:

A $10 Amazon gift card

Giveaway is International

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Swoon Romance YA Wednesdays: Snark and Circumstance Series by Stephanie Wardrop Book Blitz with Giveaway #ReadSwoonRepeat

Welcome to this week’s

Swoon Romance YA Wednesdays!

This week features the

Snark and Circumstance series by Stephanie Wardrop!

Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!

One superior smirk from Michael Endicott convinces sixteen-year-old Georgia Barrett that the Devil wears Polo. His family may have founded the postcard-perfect New England town they live in, but Georgia’s not impressed. Even if he is smart, good looking, and can return Georgia’s barbs as deftly as he returns serves on his family’s tennis courts. After all, if Michael actually thinks she refuses to participate in lab dissections just to mess with his grade, he’s a little too sure that he’s the center of the universe. Could there be more to Michael Endicott than smirks and sarcasm? If Georgia can cut the snark long enough, she just might find out.

Snark and Circumstance is the first title in the Snark and Circumstance series of young adult romance novellas from Stephanie Wardrop.

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Sixteen-year-old Georgia Barrett is no expert on guys, but her bio-class partner is harder to dissect than anything in their lab tray. He’s smart, almost as sarcastic as she is, and cute in that preppie way. Things are great . . . until he decides her vegan activism is ridiculous and suddenly can’t refuse a date with her fast enough. So why does he show up at her door, interested in learning how to make tofu ricotta? And why does he seem so upset that a senior hottie has taken an interest in her? Could he be interested in Georgia after all?

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Georgia can’t figure out why the burden of a Y chromosome seems to make guys so hard to understand. First, there’s the handsome but slippery Jeremy Wrentham. After Georgia shared some pretty devastating kisses with him, she found her way home and he found her sister!

And then there’s Michael Endicott, who never fails to let her know that her family’s quirkiness lies too far outside the pale for this preppie townie. But if he really feels that way, why is he in Georgia’s kitchen, asking her out? And why don’t boys come with instruction manuals?

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Georgia Barrett is beginning to realize that her arch-preppie lab partner, Michael Endicott, is not at all the snob-hole she once thought. Too bad Georgia doesn’t see him for who he really is until he starts dating a poised and polished senior. 

Georgia knows she should settle for his friendship, especially since telling him how she really feels would mean risking losing him altogether. But her heart tells her a chance at love might just be worth dropping her trusty shield of snark. And Georgia’s determined to find out.

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Happily-ever-after isn’t as happy or forever as Jane Austen makes it look. Just something Georgia Barrett learns when her sharp tongue costs her the only guy she’s ever really cared about: Michael Endicott.

Determined to move on, Georgia lands the lead role in the school’s fall musical. But to survive on stage, she’ll need to learn to express herself without her protective shield of snark. She soon discovers being honest with others means being honest with herself, and the truth is she’s still in love with Michael.

But from the looks of Michael’s new girlfriend, Georgia isn’t the only one who tried to move on. Apparently, some people are just better at it than others. And when Michael and his girlfriend join the cast of the fall musical, Georgia finds out that snark and stage fright are the least of her worries…

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Stephanie Wardrop grew up in Reading, Pennsylvania where she started writing stories when she ran out of books to read. She’s always wanted to be a writer, except during the brief period of her childhood in which piracy seemed like the most enticing career option—and if she had known then that there actually were “girl” pirates way back when, things might have turned out very differently. She currently teaches writing and literature at Western New England University and lives in a town not unlike the setting of Snark and Circumstance with her husband, two kids, and five cats. With a book out—finally—she might be hitting the high seas any day now.

Connect with the Author:  

Website | Twitter| Goodreads

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Release Day Tasty Book Blast & Giveaway ~ THE BEST I NEVER HAD by Loni Flowers

Enter to Win Gift Pack Including:

a wooden bookmark with a quote,  a silver bracelet with a "read more books" charm, a sticky note gift set, and a signed copy of THE BEST I NEVER HAD

The Best I Never Had
DeVine Winery # 1

By: Loni Flowers

Releasing May 5, 2015

Self-Published

New job, new town, new people— new life.

That’s what Olivia Langston needed. At twenty eight, she was given a rare opportunity at an internship in the rolling valleys of Crystal Falls in California wine country, far away from her small town roots in North Carolina. It was an unexpected journey she desperately needed after her ex-husband crushed her.

At DeVine Winery, she expected a fresh start in a new environment to help let go of her past. Instead, she found Daniel Black and a hell of a lot of sexual tension she wasn’t prepared for. He was gorgeous, modestly wealthy, irresistible, and just happened to be part owner of DeVine, one of the largest vineyards in the country.

If only she knew that before she kissed him her first night in town.

We stood at the base of a Ferris wheel, third in line as we waited for our turn. I was about to have heart attack. At least I’ll look good when I die. A couple got off the wheel as another got on, putting us second in line. My heart raced remembering the last time I rode one while in college. I had a panic attack once the wheel had finally made it to the top.

“Why did we get all dressed up to come to a carnival? Are you sure we have to do this?” I questioned in panic.

“This is just a pit stop. I want you to see the view from the top.” He kissed the skin at the bend in my neck, sending the two teenage girls behind us in to a swooning fit.

“I can see the view from here just fine.” I huffed.

He chuckled as the couple in front of us boarded the next bucket on the wheel. “Trust me, Olivia. You’ll be fine,” he assured me.

I did trust him, but it didn’t stop my hands from shaking. And I felt dumb getting so worked up over a children’s ride. The next bucket came down, the ride operator lifted the metal bar across the riders’ laps, and they hopped out, exiting to the left. The operator motioned us forward, but I could hardly move. Daniel put his arm around my back, encouraging me forward. Once I was seated, he slipped my shoes from my feet and placed them next to me on the seat before whispering something to the ride operator. After he took his seat, the operator lowered the lap bar and walked towards the control panel. My anxiety kicked into gear. The bucket jolted forward and I gripped the bar, squeezing it as if my life depended on it. I gasped and squeezed my eyes shut.

“I don’t even know why there’s a bar here. Anyone could slip out underneath it. This can’t be safe at all.”

“Olivia, open your eyes.”

I shook my head lightly, scared that any movement would make us fall out and drop to our death. “Just tell me when it’s over,” I whispered.

His palm brushed over my bare shoulders in an attempt to soothe me when the bottom of our bucket shifted forward, causing the back to tip backwards. “Oh my God, stop moving. We’re going to fall. Please don’t move anymore.” I was on the verge of tears and frozen like stone. His palm pressed against my cheek and pulled my face in his direction.

“Open your eyes, baby. Just focus on me.”

I did as he asked, cracking my lids open and searching for the blue of his eyes. “I’m sorry. I want to enjoy this, I really do. But…”

“Have you always been afraid of heights?”

“Yes. It’s one of the reasons I drove to California.”

“I see.” He gazed out at our surroundings. “We are about to go around again until the operators get everyone off except us. He’s going to let us stay at the top for a while unless you want to get off now.”

“He’s going to let you do that?”

“Money talks just about anywhere. Can you handle thirty more minutes with me up there?”

“I’ll do my best. Talk to me. Keep me occupied. Just don’t move too much. Please.” I squeezed my eyes tight and leaned into his shoulder as we made another full rotation. It wasn’t so bad if we were steadily moving, but the stopping and starting and the swaying of the bucket was ripping my nerves apart. Despite the romantic situation Daniel had created, I was too scared to accept the moment for what it was.

“We’ve stopped, and we’ll be here for a while. Can you open your eyes now?”

I cracked them open, lifting my head slightly to peek out in front of me. There was nothing except the ocean and the great open sky coated in an array of bright oranges and pinks as the sun prepared to slip into the ocean for the night. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves and relax my tense body. 

“It really is beautiful up here.” I marveled at the scenery. I peered in the opposite direction and could see the entire amusement park and the wooden boardwalk that stretched along the beach.

“Normally, I would agree.” Daniel slipped his fingers up the side of my neck, encouraging me to face him. “But I swear, nothing is more beautiful than you.”

“You’ll have to forgive me if I disagree.”

“You can disagree all you like; it won’t sway my opinion.”

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Residing in Eastern North Carolina with her husband, 2 girls, and couch-potato dogs, Loni works a full-time professional job during the day and writes in her free time. She never thought it was possible to have a satisfying writing career, but with the love and support of her family, she's made it part of her life.

Loni searches for the tiniest speck of romance in any story and is a firm believer in the happily-ever-after’s. She thrives off the sexual tension, and gets a kick out of taking her characters on a roller-coaster ride of drama-filled emotions. A romance that can soothe the soul is her number one priority.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Virtual Book Tour & Giveaway ~ Exposed: Ethan Frost # 3 by Tracy Wolff

Exposed
Ethan Frost # 3

By: Tracy Wolff

Releasing May 5^th, 2015

Loveswept

Ethan Frost, the irresistible leading man from the New York Times bestsellers Ruined and Addicted, returns once again in Exposed—a novel that’s perfect for fans of J. Kenner and Sylvia Day.

Will Ethan Frost go too far for the woman he loves?

The moment Chloe Girard walked into my life, she exposed secrets and emotions I always thought were best kept buried.

She wants to move on, to ignore the past. But I can’t do that. Not when she still suffers. And not when the man who hurt her remains unscathed. So when I discover the perfect opportunity to make him pay for what he did to Chloe, I can’t walk away, no matter the consequences.

But there’s a fine line between justice and obsession. As I turn up old crimes and new lies, I know that I’m playing with fire—and risking the very foundations of our relationship.

My love for Chloe is absolute. I just hope it’s enough to save us both.

Click HERE to read my Review of Exposed

“Is it safe?” Tori asks an hour later, stumbling into the kitchen where I’m sitting at the table, sipping coffee and daydreaming of Ethan. “Does everybody have clothes on?”

“I’m the only one here,” I tell her. “And yes, I am wearing pajama pants and a sweatshirt.”

“Thank Christ.” She makes a beeline for the coffeepot and pours herself a large mug. I watch in amusement as she adds enough sugar to bankrupt a candy factory, then follows it with a quarter cup of cream before lifting the mug to her lips and downing half its contents in one gulp.

“How are you not three hundred pounds?” I ask in disbelief.

“Good genes and clean living.”

“Well, I won’t argue the good genes part, anyway.” The wineglass on the counter still holds the dregs of the two bottles of wine she drank last night.

“You should,” she replies with a snort.

I want to ask her what she means—it’s not the first time she’s made a derogatory comment about her family—but she’s got off-limits signs posted all over her when it comes to them. So I settle for bumping shoulders with her as I refill my own coffee cup.

She returns the bump, then smiles sweetly at me. With that smile, her short green hair sticking up in every direction and the remnants of last night’s mascara pooled under her eyes, she looks like a little kid playing dress-up. Dress-up in a punk rocker’s closet, mind you, but still dress up.

At least until the smile fades and she pins me with a look meant to bring better women than me to their knees. “Details. Now.”

“Ethan and I made up.”

“Believe me, I know. My room’s next to yours and the walls aren’t nearly as thick as you think they are.”

“Oh, God.” Embarrassed heat rushes to my cheeks. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” She waves airily. “Since I wasn’t getting any action last night, it’s good that someone was.”

I laugh despite myself. “Nice, Tori.”

“Hey, if you wanted nice, you probably should have picked someone else as your best friend.” She grabs a box of donuts off the counter and plops them in the middle of the kitchen table before settling into the chair opposite mine. “Just saying.”

“Yeah, well, it’s too late to worry about that now.”

“Damn straight.” She grabs a donut, then shoves the box toward me. “So what happened after I left yesterday? You need to give me the scoop before loverboy gets back.”

“We made up.”

“Obviously, you made up. Didn’t we just talk about all the reasons I couldn’t sleep last night?”

“Well then, what do you want me to say?”

“I want details. Did he grovel—I mean, with something besides that bracelet you’re wearing. Because even I have to admit that is some serious groveling in and of itself.”

I glance down at the heavy bracelet Ethan had delivered to me yesterday. The one he fastened around my wrist when I told him that I loved him. That I’d marry him. It’s as much a sign of his possession as the belly chain I wear around my waist—another gift from him.

“Don’t tell me how much it costs. I don’t want to know.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it, darling,” she drawls in her best Sophia Loren voice. “I still remember your freak-out over the belly chain.”

When I don’t say anything else, she finishes off her donut in silence, all the while watching me with dark eyes.

“You look happy,” she finally says.

“I am happy.”

“That’s all that matters, then.” She drains her coffee, then pushes back from the table. “I’m going to take a shower, then head to the beach. Want to join me?”

“I can’t.”

She rolls her eyes. “Let me guess. Loverboy talked you into going back to work at Frost Industries?”

“I haven’t decided on that yet.”

“Then what’s going on? Is he coming back to sweep you off to some romantic getaway?”

“We’re going to Vegas.”

“Vegas? Really? I had him pegged for a private-island-off-the-coast-of-Greece kind of guy. I have to admit, I’m a little—”

“We’re getting married.” I say it fast, hoping it will have less of an impact that way.

No such luck. Tori stops in her tracks, eyes wide and mouth gaping like a fish as she tries to wrap her brain around what I just said.

“What?” she finally squeals before launching herself at me. “He asked you to marry him? When? Where?”

“Today. And I already told you. Las Vegas.”

She’s back to staring at me like I have three heads. “I meant when did he ask you. But what you’re telling me is that you’re flying to Las Vegas today? To get married today?”

“That is what I’m telling you.” I start gingerly trying to untangle myself from her embrace. It isn’t as easy as it sounds, especially when she’s hanging on for dear life and doing her best impression of an octopus with its prey.

“Oh my God. Oh. My. God. Ohmygod! You’re getting married. Today! To Ethan fucking Frost!”

Link to Follow Tour:   http://www.tastybooktours.com/2014/12/exposed-ethan-frost-3-by-tracy-wolff.html

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23308203-exposed

Goodreads series link: 
https://www.goodreads.com/series/117437-ethan-frost

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Tracy Wolff collects books, English degrees and lipsticks and has been known to forget where—and sometimes who—she is when immersed in a great novel. At six she wrote her first short story—something with a rainbow and a prince—and at seven she forayed into the wonderful world of girls lit with her first Judy Blume novel. By ten she’d read everything in the young adult and classics sections of her local bookstore, so in desperation her mom started her on romance novels. And from the first page of the first book, Tracy knew she’d found her life-long love. Now an English professor at her local community college, she writes romances that run the gamut from contemporary to paranormal to erotic suspense.

Website |Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Loveswept will be hosting a Month Long Giveaway Including: 

(1) Loveswept Mug
(1) Flirt Mug 
Ebook of RUINED by Tracy Wolff
Ebook of CLAIMED by Stacey Kennedy
Ebook of ONCE PERFECT by Cecy Robson
Ebook of SURRENDER by Violetta Rand
Ebook of LAST OF THE RED-HOT COWBOYS by Tina Leonard
Ebook of RAVEN by Ashley Suzanne
Ebook of UNTIL YOU FIND ME by Amber Hart
Ebook of RUSH by Gina Gordon

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