Friday Foible

It’s Friday.  I’ve survived another week. 

Sometimes this sentiment blares all too brightly.  This week was especially daunting since my mother was coming home from the convalescent home.  Now it becomes blatantly clear why we have kids…so they can do our grocery shopping and wash clothes for us when we’re invalids.

Anyway, I’ve decided on this Friday bitch session, I needed to air some things that are really REALLY annoying, things that have happened to me this week.  Perhaps some of you can sympathize, or I’m very sorry to say, relate. 

1)      Stepping into an elevator and realizing that the previous rider had deposited a rather odious cloud of gas, thus letting you breathe in a whiff of it before hiding your nose in your shirt.  Is a shirt a good enough blocker of poisonous gas?  O.M.G!  Seriously, fart before you get into a confined space!!!

2)      Having that annoying person honking behind you to go, no caring in the least if you get creamed by oncoming traffic simply because they have no patience to wait a few minutes!  Come on, it’s LA traffic.  As soon as you pull into it you’re gonna be going at a snails pace anyway!  Its times like that I wish I had a big neon sign on my bumper that I could program with different messages like: Chill out, A**hole!

3)       People who volunteer their services for either a donation or their time to a particular project and then just vamooshing, leaving the ball hanging.  Its rude, its disrespectful and its…its rude!!! 

4)      Having no money.  Well, I think that’s pretty self-explanatory.

But it’s Friday and I have a Mojito in my hand.  I may have started my exercise program back up but I prefer to drink my calories in any case.  Here’s to a fabulous weekend!

Helluva Day!

Let me give you a mental picture of how my son’s school is laid out.  It’s a small community elementary school nestled amid a nice development of older single homes.  Several streets are one way and so narrow that if a car is parked the least bit sideways then it makes it extremely difficult to drive down it.  So this morning, I turn down the street and get to this large delivery truck parked as far to the side as it can get and another car parked smack-dab in the center of the road, effectively blocking it.  And the car is turned off.  So I honk my horn.  Nothing.  I honk my horn again and this man saunters from in front of the delivery truck yelling “Stop honking lady.  It’s not gonna make me move my car any faster”.  And he proceeds to take his own sweet time to start and go. 

About five minutes later I think about what I should have said: “Well, since you’re so near a school why don’t I call the officer that’s on patrol over and tell him what a disturbance you’re creating?”

Why do I always think of what to say minutes too late?

Afterwards I went to visit my mom in the convalescent home.  As I was coming home, I hit something large and heavy on the ramp driving onto the 405.  Immediately, my low tire pressure light came on.  CRAP!!  If there hadn’t been a major accident on the 405, I might have made it back before my tire totally deflated…unfortunately, I only made it to a little past LAX.  Now, for those of you who don’t know or can’t visualize the 405, think about having a sprained ankle and having to run across the Indy 500….with all cars racing.  Not fun!!!

Called Brian and he raced over, helped me put on the spare.  My tire was FLAT.  Flatter than Keira Knightly’s chest. (See below)  Hurried to pick up Hadrian.  Then raced to the tire place only to be told they don’t have my tire in, they have to order it.  They put on a temporary tire so I don’t have to drive around on a spare and I go back tomorrow AM to get my tire.

Then I have to go to Ralph’s and pick up groceries and some prescriptions.  In the check out line, this old white-haired woman behind me (who crowds me) says snidely “That’s a lot of soda”.  Bitch, what???  I bought two 8 pk of the small size Pepsi bottles, you the ones you drink in two gulps?  Why the fuck do you care how much soda I buy???  Yes, I give my kid soda and candy. And sometimes I throw in a cookie or two.  Deal with it.

Exactly seven minutes after that woman is when I thought of a good response.  “Well, seeing that you’re older than dirt, it’s probably too late to learn the concepts of personal space and none of your fucking business.”

I am home and I’m not going anywhere for the rest of the evening!  I’ve stocked up on steaks and mojitos…now I’m set.

Hump Day Hook – 13 February 2013

First of all, I want to say thanks to everyone who visited with me for my Heartbreaker Blog Hop!  I really appreciated it!  The winner of my contest was StrawberryRose!  She’s been emailed with the news.

Second, please join me next month for the St. Patrick’s Day blog hop! 

Last week, I posted an excerpt form the first book in my McKnight, Perth & Daire series, titled Otherworldly, in which a romantic dinner with Detective Daire doesn’t go quite as planned.  But what about the other man in this story, the one who gets his share in book 2, titled Hereafter?  Well, all I can say is that it’s no bed of roses for Agent Nash McKnight when he goes after the woman who got away…

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“Charlotte,” Nash warned and ran a hand through his carefully coiffed hair.

            “By the way, you are looking very dapper,” Charlotte told him, trying to change the subject.  “Did you lose weight?  No?  Add another mountain of muscle to those arms?  How do you run and chase the bad guys looking all Terminator-on-steroids?”

            Instead of answering he tossed the towel onto the table and pulled out his phone. 

            “Wait,” she said.  “Who are you calling?”

            He ignored her, pushed a button, and put his phone to his ear.  “I found her.  She’s alive for now unless I kill her.  All right.”

            Nash held out the phone for her. 

            “I hate you,” Charlotte said to him calmly and took the phone.  “Hello?”

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All I’ll say is Nash was delicious to write!  A real…Heartbreaker? 

Make sure to check out the others in this weeks Hump Day Hook at: http://kerriannecoombes.wordpress.com/

The Heartbreaker...Blog Hop!

Last month I sat in my orthodontics office and read People’s Sexiest Man Alive.  I love me some Channing Tatum.  I think he’s a smart man who can play a dumb man with muscles very convincingly and I’m very happy for him and his wife.  There was a section where they broke down age groups of celebrities and listed men in their 20s, 30s, 40s, & 50s.  I kept looking at the 20-somethings thinking they were babies!  It really hit home with me that I’ve just turned forty when all the men I thought were sexy were aged from late thirties to mid-fifties.

Although Heartbreakers can be male or female, for me, they are men with tremendous hearts, larger-than-life presence, a sense of ruthlessness, and enough love to fill heaven.  They are rough, tough, and yet tender and compassionate.  Whether they are self-made men or born to wealth, Heartbreakers have a core of strength that is unshakable. 

I grew up reading Harlequin Presents, where the story was written from the POV of the heroine.  I was constantly on the edge of my seat, trying to figure out the stoic hero, knowing he was in love with the girl but unable, for one reason or another, to tell her until the end of the book.  Carole Mortimer was a master at writing stories like this.  The first book I wrote, Black Leather Pants, had this POV because of my love of second-guessing the hero.

Whether the heartbreaker is a bad-ass, a nerd, a romantic or something supernatural, the one fact is that they can enrapture the reader.  They linger with us long after the words THE END.  It is every author’s dream to create such a hero or heroine. 

When writing for ménage, many authors pick an Alpha and Beta Heartbreaker.  In my stories, I like to write two Alphas who complete something the other lacks.  (The main exception is my story The Song Bird)  For my upcoming trilogy (McKnight, Perth & Daire), I used the first book to establish the first Heartbreaker, Jonas Daire.  The second book highlights Nash McKnight.  And the third book tries to find a common ground between these two hardheaded men.

Have a Happy Valentine’s Day and make sure you hug that Heartbreaker in you life! 

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To win a free PDF ebook of any of my titles, just leave a comment!  You’ll not only be entered for my contest but you’ll be entered in the Heartbreaker Blog Hop contest with some fabulous prizes...just follow the links below!  Just make sure to leave a way to contact you!  Thanks…and good luck!

Hump Day Hook – 6th February

Coming up soon is Valentine’s Day, a romance writers magical holiday.  I’m taking my mother tomorrow to see the movie “Warm Bodies”, a zombie romance, before she goes into the hospital Friday to have a hip replacement. 

Also starting Friday I’ll be participating in the Heartbreaker Hop, with a free ebook give-away, winner’s choice!  So please stop by this weekend and leave a comment to be entered to win.  You’ll also be entered into the grand prize give-away… What are the grand prizes?

The prizes are:

1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet

2nd Grand Prize: A $100 Amazon or B&N Gift Card

3rd Grand Prize: A Swag Pack that contains paperbacks, ebooks, 50+ bookmarks, cover flats, magnets, pens, coffee cozies, and more!

As for my Hump Day Hook paragraph, I’ve decided to go with another paragraph from my newest story, Otherworldly.  So, the set up is my heroine, Charlotte, wants to prepare a romantic dinner for Jonas but it doesn’t go as planned.
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Perplexed, she pulled on a tank top before opening the bathroom door and heard a loud voice saying “FIRE” over and over.  Eyes widening, she rushed downstairs to see the kitchen filled with smoke. 

            “Holy hell!” she cried and rushed to the back door, throwing it open to allow some fresh air in.

            “FIRE!  FIRE!  FIRE!” the alarm kept saying in a very loud, very annoying tone.

            “Shut up!” she cried and grabbed a dishtowel to start fanning the smoke away from the detector.  She spotted a reset button and hurried to find a broom.  Thankfully, the smoke was starting to dissipate.  She found an ordinary broom in the pantry and grabbed it, trying to line up the reset button with the handle, but the handle was too wide and couldn’t fit in the small button slot.

            In the meantime, the detector kept yelling “FIRE” at her and Charlotte was contemplating smashing the damn thing with the broom when the front door opened.

            “What the hell is going on?” Jonas yelled over the alarm.
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Ok, so it’s a little more than a paragraph…hope you liked it!  Be sure to check out the other paragraphs at: http://kerriannecoombes.wordpress.com/