Start the Week with ALICIA DEAN

Heath’s eyes found hers in the gloom, and he placed a kiss on the back of her hand.

“Truth is, you know another reason it bothers me? Another reason I don’t want to meet my sister?”

“Why’s that?” Nicolette asked, trying to ignore the warm spot where his lips had touched her skin.

“Because, it makes me wonder...makes me realize that I could be just like him.”

“Like your father?”

She barely saw the nod.

“Disloyal. To Rudy.”

“In what way?” she asked, but she thought she knew, and her heart seemed to beat loud enough for him to hear in the silence of the elevator. She waited breathlessly for his answer.

He sighed heavily. “In the way I want you. In the way I wanted you even while you were married to my best friend.”

In spite of the guilt she heard in his voice, there was also longing. She turned her head just slightly. She wasn’t sure exactly how it happened, but in the next moment, his lips found hers. He tangled his hand in her hair and pressed her more closely to him as his mouth moved urgently over hers. She moaned in the back of her throat, and he answered it with a growl.

Dear God. She was kissing Heath King. Those were his lips on hers. They felt as good as she’d always dreamed they would. Firm and skilled, his tongue warm and seeking. Her heart lurched, and for a moment, all the angst of the past year flew away. This was it. This was what it felt like to be kissed by Heath King.

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You just read an excerpt from:
A Knight Before Christmas
by
Alicia Dean
The Wild Rose Pressk
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Today, we’re here with published author, Alicia Dean.


Linda Kage: Hi, Alicia! Tell us a little about you and what you write please.

Alicia: I live in Oklahoma City, although I lived in Kansas City for three years, until I moved back home a year ago. I absolutely loved Kansas City and will always consider it my second home. I love baseball and Elvis Presley and I usually incorporate one or both into my stories. I have a superb group of writer friends and a wonderful, supportive family. I write romantic suspense and paranormal. I don't write under any other pen names.

Kage: What happened to the first book you ever wrote?

Alicia: Nothing. :-) Actually, I won a contest or two with it, but then learned a little more about writing and put it away. It's not literally under the bed but it's buried somewhere in my computer files.

Kage:What’s your backlist and coming soon bookshelf look like?

Alicia: Poetic Injustice (Novella) - The Wild Rose Press
Tears of the Wounded (Novella)- The Wild Rose Press
Novels:
Nothing to Fear - The Wild Rose Press
A Knight Before Christmas- The Wild Rose Press
Heart of the Witch - Dorchester

Nothing new coming out, but I'm hoping to sell my latest novel soon.

Kage: So, what story are we going to talk about today?

Alicia: A Knight Before Christmas from the Wild Rose Press. It came out in mid November. It's about a man who has to go home for Christmas because of a family issue and he's not looking forward to it. There are too many sad memories there. He also doesn't want to run into the woman he's loved since he laid eyes on her fifteen years ago. Back then, she married his lifelong friend, who has since died. Although she's now free, he can't see himself moving in on his best friend's widow. Not long after he arrives, he learns she's in trouble, and he has no choice but to help her out. It doesn't take him long to realize he's never stopped loving her.

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A KNIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS
The Three Kings, Book 2
by
Alicia Dean
The last thing Heath King wants is to return to Kansas City for the holidays. Being in his home town holds too many bad memories, and now there are new bad memories in the making, among them a sister he never knew about--proof that his father was unfaithful. But the most difficult thing he’ll face is running into Nicolette, his best friend’s widow—the woman he’s loved since the day he met her.

Before Nicolette Morgan has time to fully grieve over her husband’s death, a blackmailer enters the picture, demanding she pay him or he’ll ruin the lives of everyone she loves. Nicolette sees no way out until she unexpectedly encounters Heath King. When she turns to him for help, old feelings are rekindled and she realizes she never stopped wanting him.

As Christmas approaches, Heath must find a way to stop the blackmailer...but can he also rescue the love he lost fifteen years ago?
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Kage: What would the story be rated if it were a movie?

Alicia: Probably R, although the sex scenes could be tamed down a little for the screen. I don't write erotica, but there are a few fairly detailed love scenes in the book.

Kage: If you HAD to fit this story into a cliché, which one would it be?

Alicia: Forbidden love.

Kage:Okay, now that we have a general idea which class to fit A KNIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS under, what makes this book so unique from every other book out there?

Alicia: It's unique because it's about the bond of family, the loyalty and strength of undying love, and it brings danger and intrigue to a time of year that's supposed to be about comfort and joy. :-) Also, it's unique because it's part of a trilogy I wrote with two other writers (and friends), Dyann Barr and Claire Ashgrove. The three novels are each about a brother who has different reasons for dreading the holidays. They're all three set in Kansas City and take place simultaneously. It was the quickest book I've ever written. I finished it in two months, which is a record for me. It was a blast to write and I'm very proud of the project (which was Claire's brilliant idea).

Kage:What was the easiest part to write?

Alicia: I would say the plot because I'm a plot-driven writer and once the story of the hero riding to the rescue of a lost love who's being blackmailed occurred to me, the story flowed.

Kage:What do you like most about the main character(s) and what do you like least? Did you learn anything from them?

Alicia: I love Heath's (my hero's) strength and loyalty. I don't like that he's so stubborn. I love Nicolette's (My heroine's) independence and the fact that she's just a little naughty because she's secretly always been attracted to her husband's best friend. I don't like that she's somewhat of a martyr. I learned that it's never too late to atone for mistakes, or to change your course in life.

Kage:Alicia, Thank you so much for stopping by today and gracing us with your presence. Before we go, is there anything else you’d like to say to wrap things up?

Alicia: Just that I hope readers like reading my books half as much as I loved writing them. If you want to write, do whatever it takes to carve our writing time and keep at it. Don't let the setbacks stop you. They may slow you down, but a true writer will learn from them and grow.

Now that Alicia has totally made us want to buy A Knight Before Christmas, here's a buy link : Paperback, eBook

If you're still curious about Alicia, here is other place to find her on the web: Website: http://aliciadean.com/