In the Author Spotlight & Contest

Erin Nicholas

CONTEST: Keep reading to find out....

AL: Hi Erin Thanks for being in the “Author Spotlight” this week.

Erin: Thanks for having me! It’s always fun to talk books and reading with book lovers!

AL: So, tell us what’s happening with you.

Erin: Lately we’ve been attending school and church Christmas programs! I love these—of course seeing my own kids, but even seeing the other little ones all dressed up, excited and nervous on stage, singing all those songs I remember as a kid. It’s just such a part of the season for me! We stay busy with our kids, for sure! Plus I have this chronic condition where I can’t say no to anyone who asks for my help so I end up on lots of committees! But if you ever need someone to collect canned food, socks, stuffed animals—well, anything really—I’m your girl! Oh, and I am a champion phone tree chair, always have ingredients for an emergency pan of brownies on hand and make the most colorful flyers in town!

AL: Tell us, what’s on your author bookshelf for us to read?

Erin: My first book just came out with Samhain Publishing in November! No Matter What is a sexy contemporary about a sassy, strong physical therapist hired to privately rehabilitate a sexy, determined millionaire’s daughter.

AL: Now, you are currently published in contemporaries, but I see growing up you also read a lot of fantasy and paranormal. Do you have any plans to get your feet wet in these genres?

Erin: Definitely, maybe. I truly love writing the contemporaries and have several of them finished or in the works! But there are story ideas that keep coming to me that have fantasy and paranormal elements so, I’ll probably eventually give in! I do think that would be fun! There’s something very appealing about having some magic or mind-reading or time travel on your side!

AL: What is the strangest source of writing inspiration you’ve ever had?

Erin: LOL. I had to take a three hour car trip with this woman who I didn’t like very much (in fact, she still drives me crazy!) and she told me all about her ex-husband, how they met, their courtship, marriage and divorce. I ended up thinking he sounded like a great guy and—with a few twists, of course—there were some great story elements there!

AL: What do you hope for your writing career in the next few years? Any goals that you have yet to obtain that you have set for yourself?

Erin: Nothing too grandiose! I mean I wouldn’t want anything like a six figure deal, or a TV movie made from one of my books, or to hit number one on the NY Times Bestseller list. Seriously though, I’m focusing on having releases coming out regularly and, of course, getting my finished manuscripts on the shelves!

AL: What were you like as a kid?

Erin: Outgoing, bossy, stubborn, chatty, bossy, creative, sentimental, bossy … much as I am now!

AL: What decadent delight must you have no matter what?

Erin: Starbucks frappucinos! Every day! I don’t know what they put in that stuff but they should sell it on the street!

AL: If we were to look on your nightstand, what books would we find?

Erin: Well, it changes often, actually! Besides the scented candles and scented body lotions (my two weaknesses) you’d find a book about customer service called “Willy’s Way”, a copy of the Romance Writer’s Report (the August issue I think… I’m a bit behind), a non-fiction book my sister is insisting I should read but I don’t want to (sounds really sad! I like romances because they make me feel good!) and then a stack of romances including Lori Foster, Julia Quinn, Lucy Monroe and Erin McCarthy’s Hard and Fast on top (hard and fast on top sounds appropriate doesn’t it? Sorry, couldn’t resist).

AL: With the holidays around the corner what's your favorite tradition?

Erin: We have a few! To me, tradition is what it’s all about! Traveling to see family, of course. Another that comes to mind is what we put on top of the tree. We have a star and an angel and we rotate each year. We also rotate which of the kids gets to put the star or angel up. We can only keep track by writing a note and putting it in with the star and angel saying whose turn is next and what goes up each year. 

AL: Please share a favorite quote(s) with us.

Erin: “Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.” (anonymous)

AL: Thanks so much for sharing with joining us this week, Erin.

Erin: My pleasure! Thanks for letting me stop by!

AL: If you’d like to find out more about Erin please visit:

www.ErinNicholas.com

FEATURED TITLE: NO MATTER WHAT

Blurb:

Adam Steele is good. Good at using his money to get his way. Money always works—until he realizes he can’t buy his daughter’s way out of her new wheelchair. Three private physical therapists later, he’s almost given up on Emily walking again. Then he meets Dr. Jaden Monroe. And his match.

Jaden doesn’t know the meaning of the word “quit”. But she knows a lot about “fired” after a public blowout with her ex jeopardizes the donation her hospital was counting on. Now the most tempting man she’s ever met has made her just the offer she needs to save the new children’s rehab wing—one million dollars to rehabilitate his daughter. In return she finds herself making Adam rash promises: that his daughter will walk in time to take the lead in the school play. And that he won’t entice her into his bed. No matter what.

But Jaden didn’t anticipate a teen whose injuries are more than physical. Or a man so passionate and devoted—and as tenacious as she is. As Adam wears down her defenses with kiss after kiss, the only thing harder than keeping her promise will be keeping a hold on her heart.

Excerpt:

He leaned closer and she was acutely aware of his lips and the hunger in his eyes. Her instincts kicked in far ahead of any rational thought and she jerked back, ducking slightly and twisting away. Having his target move so abruptly threw his balance off and Adam pitched forward. He grabbed for the nearest thing…her arm.

Together they fell into the pool with a large splash.

They came up spluttering a moment later.

“I can’t believe you threw me in!”

Adam started laughing in spite of his soaking wet clothes.

She glared at him. “What?”

“I did not throw you in.” He wiped his hair back from his forehead.

“Well, you pushed me but…”

“If I intended to push you or throw you in, why am I soaking wet? I liked this suit.”

He was grinning as he spoke and that infuriated her. The first time she had heard him laugh and seen him actually grin, and it was at her expense.

“Then what was that all about? I disagree with you, do something a little deviant by coming to the pool instead of insisting Emily do a bunch of things she doesn’t believe in yet and you jump in, pulling me with you?”

“That’s not what happened and you know it.” He swam to where she was grasping the side.

“Oh? Then what happened?”

“I scared you.” He said it matter-of-factly.

“Scared me? What are you talking about?”

“I almost kissed you, you panicked and ducked, I lost my balance and we fell in.”

She opened her mouth to reply, then quickly snapped it shut again. Was she more shocked that he thought he made her nervous…or that he was right? She began shaking her head.

He nodded his head in response. “Yes. You panicked when you realized I was going to kiss you. You’re scared of me.”

“I knew that you were pretty full of yourself the first time we met, but this is way over the top,” she declared, but her voice lacked conviction.

She moved to pull herself out of the water and he quickly grasped her upper arm. “I don’t think so.”

She sucked in a quick breath, but she held still, even as she realized that was probably a bad idea.

“Look me in the eye and tell me that you didn’t know I was going to kiss you.”

She struggled to swallow as she looked into his eyes. But no words came out. Her gaze dropped to his collarbone and she said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He smiled and moved an inch closer. She stiffened but didn’t move away. “Jaden, just so you know, I had every intention of kissing you a few minutes ago. I don’t want there to be any confusion about that.”

Hot and cold, numb and tingling all at once. She was amazed what a few simple words could do. Though she also realized that it was the tone of voice, not the actual words, that affected her so profoundly. Several seconds passed before she found her voice and said quietly,

“I’m not scared of you.”

One corner of his mouth tipped up. “No?”

She shook her head and pressed her lips firmly together, telling herself she did not want to know what kissing him would be like.

“You’re not nervous at all about my attraction to you and your equal attraction to me? You’re not even a little anxious about me kissing you and where that might lead?”

She shook her head again and managed to pry her lips apart. “Even if you did kiss me—and I’m not saying that I think that’s a good idea—it wouldn’t lead anywhere. I think you should know that up front.”

“You’re certainly entitled to your opinion, Jaden,” he said soothingly, rubbing his palm up and down her arm where he still held her. “But I think that you should know up front that I’m very certain, eventually, I will kiss you and it will lead to something.”

He moved in a little closer, making her press her back against the rough side of the pool. “But because you’re skittish about this, today I’ll settle for this.”

He slid his hand down her arm slowly, creating goosebumps in the wake of his touch.

Then he took her hand and lifted it to his lips, pressing a firm but gentle kiss to the center

of her palm. A shiver went through her and she knew that it did not escape his attention.

He pulled himself out of the pool and shook water from his hair. He stood on the side and shrugged out of his jacket, tossed it onto the chair, pulled his shirt from the waist of his pants and began unbuttoning it. He peeled it off, wadded it into a ball and squeezed water from it. Jaden watched every move, unable to tear her eyes away even when he turned and saw her studying him. He kicked his shoes off, watching her the whole time. She didn’t move. But when his hands went to his belt, she shook herself from her daze.

“You’re not undressing right here!”

He looked around. “I can’t go dripping water through the whole house.”

She pulled herself from the pool and stomped to the chair where there was another dry towel. She tossed it toward him. “And I’m not skittish.”

He began toweling off. “That will make seducing you much easier.”

She spun toward him in the midst of pulling on a long T-shirt, only one arm poking through the sleeve. “Seducing me?” Her voice was almost a shriek.

Shrugging, he asked, “What did you think all the kissing would lead to?”

“We’re not kissing.”

“Not right now,” he agreed. “But that will change soon.”

“This is nuts. Is this the real reason Kathy and Cindy quit?” she asked, naming two of the three therapists who had come and gone from the Steele estate. “Because you were trying to get them into bed?”

Adam frowned at that. “The thought of taking either of them to bed didn’t even occur to me.” The resoluteness in his statement left no room for doubt.

Jaden stuck her left arm forcibly through the T-shirt and finally pulled it over her head and down to cover her body. She crossed her arms and regarded him with narrowed eyes. “But it’s occurred to you with me, after only one day?”

Adam stopped drying off and walked toward her, stopping only when he was close enough that she could see the gold flecks in his eyes. He put one finger under her chin and tipped her head up to look into her eyes.

“Taking you to bed occurred to me the first moment I saw you.”

He had to stop doing that. If she lost her ability to breathe and think every time he said something like that, she was afraid she would quickly lose her professional credibility with him. If she hadn’t already. Finally, she spoke. “Maybe that should have come up when we were discussing the job with Emily.”

He dropped his gaze to her lips. “I have every confidence that you can do both very, very well, but if you’re concerned, maybe you would be more comfortable not being Emily’s therapist.”

Anger welled up in her so quickly she wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. “You want me to concentrate on you rather than Emily?” Then she took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. She shrugged. “Sure, that’s a great idea. You can bring in another therapist to work on her rehab while I have sex with you all day long. In fact, thank you for thinking of it. I was just wondering how I was going to accomplish all of that by myself.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “You would have an affair with me and let another therapist work with Emily?”

She took a step forward, her eyes narrowed, pink staining her cheeks. “You are unbelievable!”

Suddenly both of her hands were on his chest and before he could react, she shoved him as hard as she could.

Jaden stood at the edge of the pool, hands on her hips, glaring down at him when he came up for air. “Of course I will not have an affair with you and turn Emily’s therapy over to someone else! My first and only priority is Emily. You’re just going to have to find another…outlet…for your sexual energy.”

“So you’re staying?”

“That’s what I said.”

“No matter what?”

“No matter what.” Then she marched to the heavy glass door and jerked it open, turning for only a moment to tell him, “And, just for the record, I’m also not kissing you…no matter what.”

CONTEST: An added bonus for BLOG BITES readers:

• Read the excerpt posted here: http://www.erinnicholas.com/nomatterwhat.html and answer the question: What is Jaden wearing in the scene?

• Email the answers to Erin@ErinNicholas.com with “Ann’s Contest” in the subject line.


• All correct answers will be entered at Random.org and the winner will be #7 on that list.


• Prize is a free download of No Matter What!