Jul 28, 2013

Sunday Smooch with Annie West

Welcome to another LoveCats DownUnder Sunday Smooch!


Today we have a smooch from  Imprisoned by a Vow,by Annie West, but first ...

the winner of last week's Sunday Smooch Giveaway is Annwitch!


Can you please contact amy(at)amyandrews(dot)com(dot)au to receive your copy of Girl Least Likely to Marry.

And now for today's Sunday Smooch from Annie West.




Signed, Sealed...Forever!
Being sold into marriage by her stepfather is Leila's one chance to escape. But instead of freedom, Leila finds herself bound by deep passions ignited by her inscrutable new husband.

Australian billionaire Joss Carmody knows the rules of this game-he'll shower his new wife with diamonds and in return he'll use her land to expand his business. That's all he ever wanted from this exchange, but he hadn't banked on the attraction Leila awakens.

Then the one night that was supposed to slake their desire binds them beyond the signatures on their marriage contract.…

Joss and Leila have recently entered into a marriage of convenience.  They are in the private lift from Joss's London penthouse on their way out to a formal dinner. Leila's sudden change in behaviour on entering the lift, coupled with her reaction the last time they were there together, makes Joss suspect she's frozen with fear. He's determined to coax her out of her shocked stasis.

‘Kiss me, Leila.’ His voice was husky as he bent to meet her lips.
She jerked back, swaying till he caught her in a gentle grip. This was for her own good, he assured himself.
‘No.’ But her voice had lost its strength. Where were her sassy come backs? That, more than anything, convinced him this was real, not a product of his imagination.
Joss threaded his fingers through her perfectly coiffed hair, tugging it loose. The fact she didn’t stop him added to his alarm. He massaged her scalp and brushed his lips across hers as she stood perfectly still. Back again, feeling the soft swell of her bottom lip, the infinitesimal caress of warm air in his mouth as a sigh escaped her parted lips.
A thread of sensation unravelled in his belly as if in response to the most erotic lover’s touch. The power of it took him by surprise.
And still she didn’t move.
His lips firmed, slanting to cover hers as his tongue slid along those sultry lips. He reminded himself this wasn’t about sex. It was about…what? Saving her from fear? That wasn’t the whole truth.
His interest was personal.
Her mouth moved against his and a jolt of sensation speared him. Relief or pleasure?
Joss didn’t analyse. He drew her closer, one arm wrapped around her, his palm pressed to her bare spine, capturing the pearl that had swayed so tantalisingly against her flawless skin as she sashayed in front of him to the lift.
Her skin was cool but it warmed to his touch, as her mouth moved carefully under his, mirroring each gentle caress.
The sensation of her lips accommodating his, opening with a sigh at the lunge of his exploring tongue, was deliciously provocative. She tasted like desire and honeyed promise. Like the most luscious exotic fruit.
Dimly he heard the lift ping and the slide of the doors. Instead of moving, Joss gathered her in, wanting to prolong the almost innocent pleasure of her tentative response.
There was nothing innocent about the surge of possessive hunger that urged him to haul her back to the penthouse and into bed. Fire shot to Joss’s groin and his embrace hardened. Her bare back was silken beneath his palm. Her mouth sweet distraction.
Even the touch of her palms, pressed flat to his jacket, heightened his carnal senses. He wanted those gentle fingers on his bare body, all over him.
Would she mark him with her nails in the throes of ecstasy? He’d wager she was as passionate in bed as she was when she fought him. Joss’s skin tightened in a shiver of pure lust as he imagined Leila naked beneath him.
Joss’s hold tightened convulsively and suddenly Leila wasn’t kissing him back.
With a wrench she broke free.
Disbelieving, Joss watched the rapid rise and fall of her breasts with dazed fascination.
‘Don’t look at me like that!’
He jerked his head up.
Huge eyes of cloudy emerald held his beneath heavy lids, as if she too had difficulty shaking off the erotic force of that kiss. Her hair was a mass of rich, dark waves around her shoulders, framing a face now flushed instead of pale. Her mouth was bare of lipstick and her lips looked plump and poutingly kissable.
Joss shoved his hands in his pockets before he could reach for her again.
‘I’m not on tap for your pleasure.’ Her eyes narrowed to slits of sizzling fire. Challenge vibrated in every taut line of her body.
Someone should warn her that he thrived on challenge. He had only one way of dealing with it: facing it head on and winning. Every time.




For a chance to win a copy of IMPRISONED BY A VOW, just share something you're scared of. Or if you're fearless (!) maybe something you used to fear and managed to overcome.

Come back next Sunday, when the winner of today's giveaway will be announced -- and a smooch from 'Dishing Up Desire' by Barbara DeLeo will be posted! 

22 comments:

  1. Hi BN, I wonder if fear of snakes or spiders is more common?

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  2. Love the storyline, Annie, and that kiss is a real tease.
    Afraid of? Earthquakes.

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  3. Morning Annie! Morning Love Cats! Hope you're a bit warmer where you are than I am on the Sunshine (?) Coast! Annie, what a fabulous kiss. I love this story and I know your legions of fans will too. Something I'm scared of? Too many things to mention. One of the upsides of that is that it gives me plenty to draw on when I'm writing my characters. Making them face their deepest fears in order to get what they want makes for high stakes storytelling which is something I try and aim for!

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  4. Ooh, Sue, I'm not surprised about being scared of earthquakes. I was in a big one once and for ages after I'd get nervous.

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  5. Anna, isn't it great, being able to write characters who are stronger than we are? I love making my hero and heroine face their fears and triumph!

    Thanks for the kind words about IMPRISONED BY A VOW. Feedback so far has been great. Here's hoping it continues! Thanks for popping by.

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  6. Snakes, some other reptiles and big spiders are what scare because I don't like the look of them. I have gotten somewhat scared of roller coaster rides because of their speed, turns and height.

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  7. Hi Amanda. Your comment made me remember turning the pages on a book when I was young. There were close ups of spiders that looked quite gruesome and I didn't want to touch to pictures as I turned the page! As for roller coasters, I'm a bit of a wuss. I've been on fairly sedate ones but never tackled loop the loop ones!

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  8. Sharks. I had a face to face with one when I was younger and body surfing. Turning and seeing it coming at me was one of the most terrifying moments of my life, not to mention the absolute shock because I just hadn't known it was there. Obviously, I made it out, and then my brother (who I was body surfing with) realised the shark was in trouble and hadn't been coming after us at all - it had just been caught in the wave. I'm not sure what madness overtook us, but both of us are softies with hurt creatures, and so we got back in the water, one on either side of it and swam it back out past the breakers. It was kind of weak and didn't struggle, so it wasn't a danger to us (apart from the fact we thought it was a grey nurse, which aren't known to take bites out of people!) After that, we felt all good about ourselves, but then, as the years went by, when I was in the water, I started worrying about what could be behind me or below me that I just didn't know was there - especially sharks. All those sharp teeth - ugh! In the end, it became competely unpleasant being in the water - so I don't go in the ocean anymore.

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  9. Hi Leisl,
    What an amazing story! You must have been very brave to head back out into the water and help it away. I can imagine such a close encounter gave you a different perspective on swimming in the ocean! Brr. I'm not sure I'd venture back in the water. Thanks for sharing this.

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  10. Sensational smooch, Annie! Love the heat between Joss and Leila. :-)

    Hmm, like Anna there are lots of things I'm afraid of -- big, hairy spiders, brown snakes, dare devil rides at the show, trips to dentists...hmm, am starting to sound like a big scaredy cat!

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  11. Michelle, I'm so glad you like this smooch. I had fun writing it!

    Sounds to me like you're scared of quite sensible things!

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  12. Hi Annie

    I so loved this book I fell for Joss right from the start and Leila deserved her happiness this one was sensual and emotional for me :) so good.

    I get a bit scared around gas BBQ's I know sounds silly but I think it has something to do with the flames jumping up LOL

    Have Fun
    Helen

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  13. Such a fabulous smooch thank you.

    I'm not overly keen on unexplained noises in the night. It's not ghostly apparitions I'm afraid of, more the drunken yob who's lost his way, in every sense.

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  14. Whoa - great smooch Annie. What am I scared of. It might be a shorter list to write what I'm not scared of!!!

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  15. Hi Helen,

    I'm so happy you loved this book! 'Sensual and emotional' sounds terrific.

    Ah, gas BBQs. I'm a little like you - wary!

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  16. Hi Mary,

    I'm glad you enjoyed it.

    As for noises in the night - not nice are they? I remember staying in central Sydney one night and being woken at 2 by a drunken group singing as they swayed down the street.

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  17. Hi Jennifer,

    Thanks for dropping by. That sounds like some list!

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  18. What a scorcher!

    Way back when I was too young I rode a roller coaster. I did not ride any rides other than the merry go round for a really long time after. It took a dare from a great nephew to get onto a boat swing. I have since rode on a few different rides but not a roller coaster again. I try to talk myself into it but it just doesn't work. I am not afraid of heights but I don't want to jump off of anything so no bungee jumping, parachuting or the like in my future.

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  19. Hi Kaelee,

    I'm so glad you enjoyed the kiss excerpt. Yes, that scene is rather intense.

    Ah, I wonder if that's why I'm not keen on roller coasters - that sense of plunging off a precipice? Love the idea of your grand nephew daring you into the boat swing.

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  20. Oooo, Sensational Smooch, Annie! I think Joss and Leila are going to have a stormy trip to their happily-ever-after!

    As for my secretest deepest darkest fear... public speaking! Yup, that'd be it! Not so secretest now, is it! LOL

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  21. Annie, I'm loving this book already! Fabulous smooch.

    Afraid of? Heights - especially if it's a really high bridge. Bridges are so much worse for me - they seem somehow more temporary.

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