Page 42 #WingWritingChallenge Day 14

I released the first book of a new series last May. The book was called Dead Beat Dates & Deities, and the series is called Goddess of Tornado Alley. 

This book was a departure for me. This was a silly, light-hearted romantic comedy, which is not a genre I'd written before. It was so much fun, and I've gotten a lot of really great feedback from readers. I'm so glad I wrote it, and now I'm working on the second book in the series called Brides, Beasts & Baklava.

I think the best way to set up the upcoming excerpt from the second book is to give the synopsis of the first one:

Frances Reed has kissed a lot of toads, but has yet to find her prince. Recovering from another disappointing date that not even three margaritas could improve, she consoles herself by shopping at her favorite lingerie shop, Cupid’s Closet. Before she can get to the Aphrodite Ultra Sleek push up bras, she trips headfirst into the decorative Aphrodite fountain.

Lying in the fountain bleeding, Frances watches the stone deity come to life. Angry, Aphrodite berates her for damaging her shell and for being an unworthy descendant.

Wait. What? A descendant of Aphrodite?

Later, after her hunky paramedic falls for her best friend, and a spark is ignited between her mom and her doctor, it becomes apparent that people fall in love when in Frances’ presence. She’s just got two questions—what in the world is a goddess born of the sea doing in Tornado Alley? And why can Frances make love connections for everyone in town but herself?

Aphrodite may have given her the gift of matchmaking, but it will take Cupid to teach her how to use it.

Now, this following excerpt might not wind up being page 42. My manuscript is in a very disorganized state at this time - which is normal for me at this stage of the game - but it's page 42 for right now. I'd show you the cover, but it hasn't been completed yet. (I'm working on that, too.) Here you are, the first sneak peak of Brides, Beasts & Baklava. It's not edited, but I hope you enjoy.

Frank watched as the dotted white line in the center of the road zipped past them. “Wait a minute. The goddess and I are good. She even told me to come back and visit her.” She noticed how strong Archer’s hands looked on the steering wheel of his ’69 Camaro, then blinked and shifted in her seat. His profile hitched her heartrate up a few beats but she tried to push past that. “You heard her say it, didn’t you? You were right there.”

           

“I heard her,” he confirmed. “But that was then, this is now. You’ve managed to catch the attention of a lot of gods over the last several months, and Aphrodite is famous for changing her mind about things.”

           

“Me?” Frank asked incredulously. “How have I caught anyone’s attention?” She shook her head. “Specifically that of the gods? That’s preposterous.” Frank thought for a moment. Had she ever actually used that word before? She was fairly certain she hadn’t, but was convinced that it fit the current circumstances perfectly.

           

“It’s your ability,” Archer explained. “It’s one thing for gods to do what you do. Mother’s been doing it for ages, and I’ve been alive,” he paused, “well, a long, long time. We’re the gods of love. Matchmaking is expected of us. You, however.” He shook his head. “It’s quite unusual to see a mortal with your capabilities, and you’ve gotten much more adept, kanéla. It’s obvious you’re taking your gift seriously, and everyone has taken notice.”

           

“That sounds like a good thing,” she said, squinting at him. “But you probably wouldn’t be here if it was, right?”

           

“It is a good thing,” he told her. “And then it isn’t.”

           

“Ah. I’m so glad we got that cleared up.” She pulled out her phone. “Wait,” she said, looking at him again. “How did you know I didn’t drive to the fair?”

           

He glanced over at Frank and gave her a closed mouth smile. “I know lots of things.”

His eyelashes were impossibly dark around the blue of his eyes. She looked down at his mouth again before realizing she was doing it, then she blinked and turned in her seat, flustered at having so openly admired him. “Right.” “Get a grip, Frankie,” she scolded herself. The corners of Archer’s lips rose a fraction of an inch, disconcerting her even more.

Frank began typing out a text message to Ella. Her thumbs were clumsy as she informed Ella that she’d left the fair early. She did not, however, let Ella in on how she was getting home. She told her only that a friend had come to pick her up, but didn’t tell her it had been Archer. Archer and Ella shared a unique kind of relationship; one that closely resembled siblings who weren’t all that fond of each other. Frank stilled her hands and watched the deity. She decided that perhaps she wasn’t being fair. Archer actually seemed to like Ella quite a bit. Ella’s feelings for the god of love, however, were not mutual.

“Ella’s going to need to hear what I have to say, too,” Archer told Frank. It seemed that he’d been listening to every single thing that had occupied her brain since she’d spotted him behind the scarves. If she wanted any privacy, she knew she’d have to get back in the habit of guarding her thoughts.

“I don’t get it,” she said, her voice laced with irritation. “Why is Aphrodite mad at Ella? She has nothing to do with my ability. Hell, she’s never even met Ella. Can’t we just leave Ella out of this?”

“Slow down, kanéla. Take a deep breath.” 

Frank swallowed her next words. She did as he instructed, but she wasn’t happy about it. It seemed as though the deity was always telling her to breathe. “You know, she and Adam are about to be married,” she continued at a slower speed. “She’s really busy these days. I don’t think she’s really in the mood to hear about all of this god stuff.”

At the best of times Frank suspected that Archer’s arrival back into their lives would be received with less than enthusiasm on Ella’s part. Now that Ella had been transformed from her normally playful, sweet self into the over bearing, short fused bride-to-be she had become, Frank was sure the news would only make her less enjoyable to be around.

“I wish we could leave Ella out of it,” Archer said, his eyes on the road. “I’d love nothing more than to have this be all about you and me, but I’m afraid Ella’s wrapped up in it, too. She has to know, and the sooner the better.”

Frank dropped her phone into her lap and sat back against the newly reupholstered seat in the sporty, black car. She wasn’t sure what she was most upset about; the fact that Archer had reappeared, or that she was going to be the one to let Ella know he was back.

She was surprised by the heat of Archer’s touch and looked down to see his hand on her bare thigh. He gave her leg a squeeze. She guessed that he meant for the gesture to be a reassuring one, but his next words sparked a flame of trepidation behind her breast bone. “I’m afraid it’s worse than me being back in your world again, kanéla. It’s a whole hell of a lot worse.”