And readers, make sure you enter to win!!!!
Hi, I’m Mia Downing and I want to thank Rhonda Lee
for having me today. I’m celebrating the release of Just Ask to print! I actually just got the email that I can
purchase them, so going to give away a digital copy unless someone is willing
to wait a few weeks for them to come in. If you’re not into m/m have no fear,
I’ll set you up with a different book.
One of the things I loved most about Just Ask was
the setting of a fictitious island in Fiji. I’ve never been to a tropical
location and probably never will since I have Lupus and am very sun-sensitive.
So it was really fun to live vicariously through my two hunky characters.
Jordan Hill is from New York City and has probably never been to a jungle. I
researched a lot of different aspects— the islands, ocean reefs, the culture,
the food, the people.
There are two features on the island that play an
important part in the story—the waterfall, and the extinct volcano. The
waterfall is something out of my dreams. I think they’re sexy and romantic, and
I’ve always wanted to be able to frolic under one. A few important scenes take
place there—Jordan and Ryan’s first meeting, the release of Blake’s ashes, and
later a very special sex scene.
The volcano is just plain fun. Besides being a lush,
green entity that gives birth to the waterfall, it also offers a moment of
comic relief in a time when both men are distraught. Jordan, being from the
city, is pretty sure the volcano will erupt despite all odds. And Ryan realizes
his joking fear is actually stemming from the recent loss of a shared
friend/relative.
Below is the blurb so you can get an idea of the
characters, and a short excerpt.
Blurb
for Just Ask
When business mogul Jordan Hill inherits half of
Bendura Island Resort, a posh vacation destination in the Fiji Islands, the
will demands he release his half uncle's ashes somewhere on the island and that
he indulge in a real vacation before he sells. As Jordan is reeling with grief
and under good circumstances doesn't do vacations, especially if they include
horses and looming volcanoes, he finds himself on uneven footing. The footing
turns treacherous as Jordan realizes, for the first time in his life, he's
attracted to a man--his new business partner.
For resort entrepreneur Ryan McCale, Bendura Island
is a dream come true as well as his livelihood. He was warned Jordan would try
to sell sight unseen, and after meeting him, there's no doubt the business
shark has dollar signs in his eyes. But there's also vulnerability and desire
in that chocolate gaze. Suddenly, Ryan's looking forward to showing Jordan the
delights of the island and hoping to convince his new partner Bendura could be
his dream, too.
This book is an erotic romance. It contains explicit
language, hot m/m lovin', light kink, two gorgeous guys, horses, and an
impending insurance nightmare of a volcano. Enjoy!
An
excerpt from Just Ask, featuring the
waterfall!
Out of the lush jungle, off the side of the imposing
volcano, flowed a waterfall. Not the kind you could go over in a barrel,
either. This one streamed down like some entity had turned on a huge hose and
aimed it over the rocks above, down to this crystal pool at the bottom. The
kind of waterfall you wanted to sprint around naked under, like a shower, then
dive off the rocks into the pool below. Then climb out and have wild sex like
crazed teens on the rocks.
Jordan took a deep breath of the imposing oxygen and
wondered if one, he owned said waterfall he wanted to have sex under. Two, how
much would said waterfall net him in the sale.
Three, how much would it cost him to get Ryan to
bring him back here. Alone. To lay Blake to rest, sure, but if that weren’t on
the agenda, he’d still make that trip. No, that wasn’t right. He should want to
have lunch with Ryan, get to know him like a true business partner, not
celebrate hedonism like Blake would.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Ryan murmured.
“You think Trigger’s seen a waterfall before?”
“No waterfalls like this in Texas.” Ryan smiled
serenely at Jordan. “I left a whole world behind for this waterfall. Crazy, I
know. But every time I see it, especially at this time of the day… kind of
drives home why I did this.”
“The rides don’t usually come here?”
“No. This is a special trip. Usually we take clients
down the beach to play in the waves. There’s a trip Saturday night that goes
out to a location where we have a feast, complete with roast pig, fresh fish
and seafood, and traditional island entertainment— called a meke. The riders
stay the night in beach bungalows and we return the next morning at sunrise. We
have five different trips, so clients can go out every day and see a different
aspect of the island. But we only do this ride under certain circumstances, and
we only take a small group.”
How had his PA known this was the trip Jordan had to
take? Suddenly, he didn’t feel quite so anxious about not having a cell phone.
If Brownie tumbled down the hill, he was already one step closer to heaven.
But Brownie was as sure-footed as a garden gnome,
meandering along in that plod of his between the dark volcanic rocks. The
plants here were softer, and a few had flowers of some sort. Pretty. Not tasty,
because Brownie let them be. Finally, the group came to rest at the bottom,
halting next to the crystal clear pool of water.
The waterfall was actually farther away than he
realized, because Ryan only had to shout a little to be heard. “The story told
by the islanders is that a brave warrior of sorts sat on those rocks up there,”
he pointed to an outcrop near the origin of the waterfall, “and watched the
ocean for his love to come back from a wedding trip on another island. There
was no waterfall or pool at the time.
“But a cyclone blew in and he was sure his
sweetheart had perished. So he dove off those rocks to his death, only to be
found later in the day by his soul mate who had survived the storm. The
waterfall appeared, representing the tears of the couple, the pool a tribute to
their undying love.”
The other clients oohed and ahhed at Ryan’s
crock-of-shit story, probably the traditional, cliché crap every tourist
expected to hear about a waterfall. Jordan snorted and shook his head.
“What,” Ryan asked, laughter sparking in his blue
eyes as he dismounted from the quiet Trigger. “Don’t believe in the power of
love?”
“No woman is worth diving off a cliff for.” At least
none he had met thus far. He knew a lot of women, and for some reason, not a
one did it for him. It wasn’t like he had a shitty past, either. His parents
were happily married, as were his grandparents. There was absolutely no reason
for him to think that way, except for the fact that he hadn’t met the right
one, he guessed.
“Who said he dove off for a woman?” Ryan’s smile
turned knowing, as if he held all the secrets and Jordan had none.
Jordan’s heart picked up the pace a little, his
palms sweaty on the reins, unsure if Ryan was proclaiming his sexuality or
challenging Jordan’s.
Buy
Links for Just Ask
Don’t
forget to leave a comment to win a book! What’s your idea of the perfect, sexy
vacation? Don’t forget your email! Thanks again to Rhonda Lee for hosting me.
My sexy vacation would be on one of the small Greek islands. Renting a small house on a hill overlooking the beautiful sea. Spending hours enjoying the beach with my lover. Enjoying the fabulous food of the island with my lover. And, enjoying nights with my lover in bed at the house or where ever. Yes, that would be my perfect, sexy vacation.
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