Sunday Smooch with Jennifer St George

Welcome to another LoveCats DownUnder Sunday Smooch!

Today we have a smooch from Jennifer St George but first 

... the winner of last week's Sunday Smooch Giveaway is jjhicks.

Can you please contact Kate at kate (at) katehardy (dot) com to receive your copy of Holiday with the Best Man

And now for today's Sunday Smooch from Jennifer St George's Wild For You. 

When her celebrity boyfriend breaks up with her on camera to boost the ratings of his TV show, fashion designer Madison Mills instructs her assistant to organise a vacation that’s a long way from New York, where there’s no paparazzi and where there are definitely no hot men.



Madison soon finds herself on a walking tour in the wilds of remote Tasmania. There’s no chance she’ll be recognised but on the ‘no hot men’ criteria, her assistant has spectacularly failed. The lead guide, Daniel Black, could be the face and body of any fashion campaign. But, Daniel’s quick judgement that’s she an urban princess has her bristling with every step.



Ex-military man Daniel has found peace in the wilderness. Hosting walking tours ensures lots of solitude and no long-term commitments. So when circumstances lead to him guiding Madison alone, he’s not sure he can survive for nearly a week with a woman whose life revolves around hemlines and fashion shows.



The rugged landscape challenges them both and Daniel soon learns there is more to Madison than meets the eye. But when Madison’s location is leaked to the press, can he convince her that a wilderness guide and a fashion designer from opposite side of the world can find a way to make it work?

Scene set-up
Madison has lost her creative mojo. She's hoping this walk through the Tasmanian wilderness will help spark the idea for her new collection. Her hot, gorgeous walking guide Daniel just might have all the answers....

‘I have to admit, your office is nicer than mine,’ she said, pulling her lunch from her pack.

He surveyed the area. ‘Yes, I have natural wilderness and you work in a dense urban jungle.’ She closed her eyes and focused. Something was swirling through her brain, but she couldn’t quite condense it into something solid. She opened her eyes and allowed the beauty of her surroundings to wash over her.

Daniel lit the portable stove. Soon, she was sitting on a moss-covered log and sipping hot peppermint tea. If she couldn’t find inspiration here, she suspected she couldn’t find it anywhere.

‘So, how’s that theme coming along?’ Daniel asked, sitting on a stump in front of her.

‘What, you can read minds now?’

‘No. It’s just you usually talk non-stop and today you’ve been unusually quiet. I figured you were working on your theme.’

She flicked up her eyebrows. ‘How very insightful of you.’

‘Ah, you have to know your men.’

She cocked her head. ‘Excuse me?’

He laughed. ‘Sorry. The military terminology. It’s hard to shake. I meant, it’s important to try to understand what my clients are looking for when they come on holiday here. Some want to talk all about themselves – I usually ensure the other guides look after them – while some want to know all about the park and its the fauna and flora, and some are looking for peace and quiet.’

‘And they’re your favourite type of client, right? The quiet ones.’

He smiled his assent.

‘So how have you classified me?’

‘You? You’re an enigma.’

She crossed her hands across her chest. ‘How so?’

‘I thought you were a helpless New York princess who would hate every minute of the trip. Who’d never be ready on time and couldn’t stand the natural environment,’ he said, removing a leech from the back of his hand. ‘But you’ve turned out to be highly practical and you seem to enjoy and appreciate the wilderness.’

‘So now I’m a wilderness-appreciating princess?’

He shook his head. ‘More an urban wilderness princess.’

Her skin tingled and her eyes widened. ‘Say that again. Over and over. Don’t let it get away.’

His brow crinkled. ‘What?’

‘Urban wilderness,’ she demanded. ‘Say those words.’

He shrugged, clearly having no idea of the genius he’d just brought forth. ‘Urban wilderness. Urban wilderness,’ he said in a confused but intrigued tone.

Racing to her pack, she pulled out her notebook. She scribbled the precious words before they disappeared on the breeze. That was it! She wrote the words over and over. Urban wilderness. Urban wilderness. Her whole body hummed. That was the theme. The perfect, brilliant collection theme.

Throwing back her arms, she stared up at the sky and cried out. Energy, wildness, power: her mojo, flooding back into her body. She felt so light, she could have floated up into the canopy. She had it. This collection would be her best.

‘Everything okay over there, crazy lady?’

Daniel. She turned and stared at the man who’d given her back her passion and creativity – and her inspiration.

‘Are you all right?’ he asked, clearly bewildered by her behaviour.

She dropped her notebook on her pack, walked over to him, threw her arms about his neck, stood on tippy toes and kissed him hard on the lips.

 ‘You have no idea what you’ve done,’ she said. Her gaze locked with his. She fell still, caught in the storm that raged in his eyes. Her heart tumbled over a few beats when she saw the naked vulnerability shining in his eyes. He blinked and the storm was gone, but his arms slid around her waist.

‘If this is the result, I’d really like to know what I’ve done so I can do it again and again and again.’

She touched his cheek and kissed him again. ‘You’ve freed me.’

The forest quietened around them. He held her a little closer. She suddenly realised where she was and what she was doing. Kissing Daniel. Being held by Daniel’s strong arms. In the arms of the man who’d freed her from the grip of fear, of grief . . . all the negativity that had engulfed her world and that had held her captive for the past two years. This man from the wilderness had done more for her in three days than years of therapy and grief counselling.

‘And how have I done that?’ He ran a rough finger lightly down her cheek.

She didn’t want to analyse it. She simply wanted to feel. Feel more of lightness, the freedom and joy of coming back to the world. Having grief finally lose its fight to dominate her soul. She drew his head down to hers and touched her lips to his. ‘By simply being you,’ she breathed.

His hands moved lower down her back, drawing her flush against his body. A flare of awareness settled low in her belly. She reached up and put her hands on both his cheeks and kissed him full and deep. Closing her eyes, she fell headlong into the glorious touch and taste of Daniel.

* * *

In our busy, busy world, it's hard to get away from it all like Daniel and Madison have done in the Tasmanian wilderness.  If you wanted to get some solitude, where would you go? Leave a comment to go into the draw to win an e-copy of Wild For You.

Wild for You is on pre-order now and will be available for download tomorrow. I'm just a little excited!

Come back next Sunday, when the winner of today's giveaway will be announced and a smooch from Barb DeLeo's The Wedding Wager will be posted!

Smooch Graphic by WebWeaver

Wild For You

I'm getting pretty excited. My new release - Wild For You -  is up for pre-order and is released just one week from today.

In every book, there are always a couple of scenes that are really, really fun to write. Today I thought I'd share a couple of snippets that make me smile. In the following scene, my hero Daniel Black (an ex-military man who runs a walking company) doesn’t think there is any way that Madison (an American fashion designer) could have packed properly for a walk through the Tasmanian wilderness, so he's checking her backpack. He comes across something unexpected. I like this scene as it is a bit cheeky…

‘Hi.’ He extended his hand. ‘I’m Daniel Black.’

She took his hand and shook it with surprising firmness.

‘Madison Mills. Pleased to meet you. I—’

‘Sorry Maddie, but you aren’t appropriately dressed for this trip.’ He employed his best commander voice. The one he’d always used with new recruits to make sure the question of who was in charge never needed to be asked.

‘As you can appreciate, we have strict stipulations about the appropriate gear and this . . .’ He indicated to her outfit. ‘It is . . . well . . .’ He wanted to say ‘ridiculous’. ‘It’s not suitable for this rugged terrain.’

That should do it. Bye bye Ms Millionaire.

But she didn’t flinch. She didn’t move. Instead she gave him a sweet, sweet smile that made his guts flip.

‘First.’ She held up her index finger. ‘It’s Madison, not Maddie. Second.’ Another delicate finger. ‘My assistant booked this trip and, knowing her as I do, I’m sure that backpack over there has everything I need.' 

Her American accent possessed a New York edge with a touch of Southern belle. It enveloped him like the light, refreshing spray from a waterfall. He took a step away from her intoxicating mist.

‘And third, if you could outline exactly what I need to do to meet your criteria, I’ll be ready in five minutes.’

He narrowed his eyes. Okay, that was unexpected. He had been sure she’d capitulate. She didn’t belong here. And ready in five minutes? Yeah right. They’d be halfway to the plateau before she’d be ready to leave.

‘Well, let’s start with your gear check. Your pack should weigh no more than seven kilos. You’ll have to be changed in five minutes; that’s when we’re leaving. Unfortunately, Madison, if you’re not ready, I’ll have to arrange transport to take you back to Launceston. I’m sure you understand we can’t delay the trip for one person.’

‘Oh, don’t worry,’ she said, flipping her lush blonde hair over her shoulder. A hint of spicy perfume teased his nostrils. ‘I’ll be ready.’

He took up her pack. Yup, definitely about four kilos over. ‘Do you mind?’

‘Be my guest,’ she said, with a flourish of her hand.

He walked over to a picnic table, unzipped the pack and slid the contents on to the table. This shouldn’t take long. Assistant packed!

‘At a minimum, you need leather or Gore-Tex boots, two sets of easily washable walking clothes and something comfortable for the evening and to wear to bed.’ He grabbed the item on top of the pile of clothes and held it aloft.

‘Let’s start with . . .’ His fingers were tangled in a pair of black lace knickers. His skin prickled with absolute horror.

‘They’re from my 2015 summer intimates line.’ Madison sounded close behind him. Too close.

He dropped the offending garment as though it had caught ablaze.

‘Are they regulation enough?’ she asked, her tone coated with sugary mockery. ‘Or should I have brought high-waisted granny pants?’ She picked up the strip of lace and casually fanned it in front of his face. ‘Is the style of underwear outlined in your strict stipulations?’

Damn. No other gear check had begun so horrendously.

But a few minutes later in the story, Daniels gets his own back:

      ‘So, what will you be changing into?’ he asked inserting a false brightness into his voice.

She quickly selected some clothes. He handed her the boots, re-stowed her belongings in the way that would be most comfortable to carry and handed her the pack.

‘See you in five,’ he said.

She looked about. ‘Ah, where can I change?’

‘This is the great outdoors, Maddie. Lots of lovely trees to hide behind.’

‘It’s Madison,’ she said and marched off towards the lush undergrowth.

‘Watch out for snakes,’ he called.

She stopped as though she’d slammed into a glass wall.

‘Snakes?’ she asked, not moving, looking wildly about.

‘Tiger, Lowland Copperhead and White-lipped snake’ he said. ‘But don’t worry.’

Madison relaxed and kept walking.

‘Only the Tiger and Copperhead are deadly.’ He strode away, unable to contain a smile. She was perfectly safe. At this time of year, the snakes were hibernating. But he wanted to knock off a little of that sass before he took her into the beautiful natural domain. The remote Australian rainforest was no place for the likes of Madison Mills.

He snatched a stick from the path and threw it into the bush. In a lifetime of long days, the next six days could be the longest of his life.

* * * 

Wild for You is available for pre-order now from Amazon, iTunes, Kobo and other retailers and will be released on 16 May. I so hope you pick up a copy and enjoy my latest story.

New York to Tasmania

I’m very excited!  My new book – Wild For You – is now up for pre-order. The cover really captures the essence of my hero, Daniel.

Wild For You brings together Daniel, the owner of a Tasmanian wilderness walking company and Madison, a New York fashion designer. Madison has left behind her glamourous life for one week to rediscover her mojo. Little does she know that she’ll end up walking the stunning Cradle Mountain trail alone with hot hiking guide, Daniel. But what could possibly happen in those cute log cabins in the woods?

I walked the Cradle Mountain Lake St Claire wilderness trail a few years ago and it is the inspiration for this story. I walked with Cradle Mountain Huts Walks. The company has been running guided walks for over twenty-years and of course, they have huts.  Huts mean hot meals, hot showers, warm cabins and chilled wine. All this delivered by young, fit guides who take care of everything. Food tastes oh, so much better when you’ve trekked at least twelve kilometers and someone else has cooked.

Madison had to do all the things I had to including carrying her own pack. If she wanted clean clothes she had to wash them in the shower each night for which you pumped your own water.

There were so many highlights on the walk, but for me the greatest experience was climbing Tasmania’s highest peek, Mt Ossa. It stands at 1,617 metres in the middle of the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park. Making it to the top does involve a lot of scrambling over huge boulders. The view is worth it even if you are a little intimidated by the climb (will all those boulders slide further down the mountain as I climb up?!?). From the top, a quarter of Tasmania is visible and not one man-made thing (well there’s an old disused mining road to the east, but we ignored that). When Daniel and Madison climb the mountain, they are in for the unexpected.

The guides on our walk were lovely, knowledgeable and fit.  They were passionate about conservation and taught us lots of interesting ecological facts. We visited a myriad of beautiful waterfalls; explored a disused mine shaft featuring one lonely spider and lots of cave crickets (ugly little critters); held Fairy’s Aprons, sweet little purple flowers; splashed in freezing rivers and lakes; ambled through ancient rainforests and learned about the wonderful array of native fauna and flora. A number of these sites feature in the book.

Pre-order Wild for You now at Amazon, iTunes, Kobo and other e-tailers. I hope you enjoy it as I loved writing this story.

If you wanted to recharge your mojo, where would you go?