Tag: sea kiss

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#ThrowbackThursday – A Jersey Shore Summer and Special Pricing on ONE SUMMER NIGHT

I so love the Jersey Shore! I love the pace of life there and being surrounded by nature. Yes, there is nature there. It’s not all like what you see on that show that shall not be named. This year we’re being treated to the return of some endangered bird and plant species: the plover, black skimmer, and beach amaranth. It’s exciting to see them coming back.

I love going on my little balcony to write and then taking a long stroll along the boardwalk. Oftentimes I’ll go to Ocean Grove, one of the towns that is the basis for Sea Kiss, the fictional town in my At the Shore series. I love the quaint Victorian homes and Main Avenue with all its shops. My daughter used to have a shop there and you’ll see cameos with her in the first two books in the series!

Speaking of the series, the first book, ONE SUMMER NIGHT, is now specially priced for 99 cents. If you’re in the mood for a good beach read, please check it out at https://books2read.com/onesummernight. ONE SUMMER NIGHT was a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Fall Romance and was also featured in the NY Times. That doesn’t happen very often to us romance writers. LOL!

This photo is of the beach at Ocean Grove. It was a slightly overcast day and the yellow flags were out, something we don’t like to see, but any day you can be at the beach is a good day.

Ocean Grove Beaches

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#TeaserTuesday – ONE SUMMER NIGHT Free Read!

This morning I’ve got a teaser for you from ONE SUMMER NIGHT, #1 in my At the Shore Contemporary Romance series set on the Jersey Shore. The e-book for ONE SUMMER NIGHT is currently free at the following retailers:

Order

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2krMwfE
Amazon Paperback: http://amzn.to/2kYLWZV
B&N: http://bit.ly/2kNuo0p
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iBooks: http://apple.co/2qsqdwx
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2fuEphL
Audible: https://amzn.to/2l2D0S2
Radish: Read three chapters for free – http://bit.ly/2AERQFk

And here’s your teaser and free read!

Teaser

An offer that’s impossible to accept . . .

Maggie Sinclair has tried everything to save her family’s business, including mortgaging their beloved beach house on the Jersey Shore. But now, she’s out of options.

The Sinclair and Pierce families have been neighbors and enemies for almost thirty years. That hasn’t stopped Owen Pierce from crushing on Maggie, and he’s determined to invest in her success. Now he has to convince her that he’s more than just trouble with a capital T…


Excerpt

With keen interest, Owen Pierce took note of the three women as they hurried away from the dais and into the Sinclair mansion.

“Put your eyes back in your head, Bro. She’s nothing but trouble,” Jon warned in low tones.

Owen bit back the retort that if anyone knew about trouble, it was his brother. Jonathan had always marched to a different drummer and had set out on his own as a teenager to explore what he wanted out of life. Now a successful entrepreneur, he had captured the media’s attention with his innovative designs and daring adventures. That left Owen to shoulder most of the burden of the family’s real estate business, as well as deal with his father’s anger over Jonathan’s latest newsworthy escapade.

He envied his brother’s carefree spirit and determination, especially as Maggie Sinclair marched back onto the patio with her friends, an angry bride, and an obviously inebriated groom. Both the bride and groom looked far from happy as they approached the elaborate multi-tiered wedding cake that had been wheeled out to the middle of the makeshift dance floor.

He worried the bride might plunge the long knife she held into her new husband, but luckily for the newlyweds, Maggie directed the blade toward the cake.

Jon playfully elbowed him. “Seriously, Owen. She’s not for you. Father declared the Sinclairs off-limits ages ago. He would have a stroke if he thought the two of you were involved.”

Involved with Maggie Sinclair, Owen thought and sighed with regret.

In a way, he’d been involved with her forever. He’d like to chalk it all up to a sloppy, hurried, and stolen kiss at eighteen and the allure of forbidden fruit. But since that kiss, he’d watched her mature into a smart, beautiful woman. One who was willing to work hard for the town and business she cared about as well as friends and family. With every encounter, he’d grown more intrigued with the person Maggie had become.

But his father had come down hard on them about mingling with the Sinclairs right after Maggie’s mother’s death. For years, they’d been unable to come to their Sea Kiss home, and even when they’d returned, they’d done so without their father, who refused to be so close to the family he thought had wronged him.

Not that Owen expected that Jon would kowtow to such rules, since his brother was the kind of man who didn’t hesitate to take what he wanted.

He arched a brow and met his brother’s blue-eyed gaze, which glittered with a mix of undisguised challenge and amusement. “Do you think you’re the only one entitled to a little adventure in your life?” he said.

Jon chuckled. “My kind of adventure is way safer than what you may be considering.”

“Why’s that, Li’l Bro?” he asked, appreciating the sight of Maggie in a dusty-rose gown that hugged dangerous curves. Her chestnut-brown hair fell to her shoulders in soft waves and framed ice-blue eyes and a sassy, sexy face that snared his attention every time he saw her.

Jonathan took a last sip of his champagne and barely stifled another laugh. With a shake of his head, he replied, “Because all I risk is an occasional broken bone, but that…” He jerked his head in Maggie’s direction as she stepped back beside Connie and Emma. “That will break your heart.”

Free beach read ONE SUMMER NIGHT contemporary romance

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#ManCandyMonday – Do Blondes Really Have More Fun?

Don’t tell Fabio, but I read somewhere that women don’t like blonde cover models. Of course, I couldn’t find the article with that info! I didn’t pay any mind to that when I made Jonathan, the hero in WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER, a blonde. What do you think? Do you like blonde surfer dude kinds of heroes or are you drawn to the dark and dangerous type?
Jonathan Pierce WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER

You can purchase WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER at the following retailers:

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2y6hi4h
Amazon Paperback: http://amzn.to/2y92UIQ
B&N: http://bit.ly/2BJNcov
B&N Paperback: http://bit.ly/2sHmY3l
Google: http://bit.ly/2hKg3BW
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/2HlVlly
iBooks: http://apple.co/2hKgP1J
Kobo: bit.ly/koboWHS
Audible: https://amzn.to/2M2ZWfY

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#TeaserTuesday Connie Sees Jonathan After Years Apart

Good morning! Thank you all for your support of the At the Shore series! You have really made it special for me! Today’s teaser is from Chapter 1 in WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER In this scene Connie and Jonatha are about to see Jonathan for the first time in many years. They are both still the same in some ways and very different in others. They are both still wondering about the “What if?” I hope you enjoy this teaser!

Excerpt

Chapter 1

Jonathan Pierce stared hard at the mirror, wondering what Connie Reyes might see tonight when she and her friends came over for the dinner his brother Owen had arranged. What Connie might think after so much time had passed.

The teen she had known seven years earlier was gone as was the man she’d run into shortly after Hurricane Sandy. That man had been replaced by one who had known his share of hardship and success. Barely perceptible laugh lines that hadn’t been there that last summer bracketed his mouth and eyes. There was a thin scar above one brow thanks to a crash while testing a new vehicle prototype on the Bonneville Salt Flats. Another jagged white line on his jaw was courtesy of shrapnel when a hydrogen fuel cell had unexpectedly exploded in their lab.

He looked away and leaned heavily on the edge of the vanity, noting the other assorted nicks and scars on his hands. They were the hands of a man who had lived life to the fullest and made himself what he wanted to be and not what others expected. He knew he’d sometimes hurt people with his choices, especially his older brother Owen, who’d had to shoulder the burden of the family business as well as their father’s ire whenever one of Jonathan’s escapades caught the attention of the media.

He’d gotten used to the interest the press had in him. After all, he was the renegade son of a wealthy family. A self-taught inventor who had sold his first small invention for millions. He was now revolutionizing the motor vehicle and battery industries with his innovative designs, unconventional methods, and fearless experiments.

He had brought idea after idea to life with detailed research and hard work. There had been failures along the way, but that had only made the successes that much more enjoyable. He had celebrated those successes with his team, his brother, and a bevy of actresses and models who were only too keen to be seen on the arm of a rebellious multi-millionaire who might soon be a billionaire if his company’s stock prices continued to climb.

Only… none of those women could hold a candle to Connie.

Connie, who he would see in just a few hours thanks to his brother. Owen had finally decided to fight for Maggie Sinclair, and he was happy that his brother was following his heart. But while Jonathan would do almost anything for Owen, he wasn’t happy about having to spend time with Connie.

Smart and beautiful Connie, he thought with a sigh and a shake of his head.

He’d managed to avoid her for the last several years. Sure, he’d seen her after Sandy and occasionally from afar when Maggie and her friends had come down to Sea Kiss. Or every now and then when he’d gone to some business event in the city.

He’d tried to tell himself he didn’t like the sleek professional woman she’d become. That she wasn’t prettier than ever. He tried not to imagine peeling off those elegant business suits to reveal the real woman beneath. But he was lying to himself.

He had never really gotten over the Connie Reyes that had emerged that summer they had shared. The woman who had learned to live for the moment and have fun. Who had been carefree and willing to explore their love. He doubted he would ever forget that women and wondered if she was still there, trapped inside her very prim and proper suits.

Maybe he’d find out tonight, he thought, and prepared himself for what might be a very difficult dinner.

***
Connie Reyes splayed her hand across the nervous butterflies in her stomach that were beating their wings so violently, she felt like throwing up. She was tempted to beg off from dinner with the Pierce boys, only Maggie needed her moral support and Connie never disappointed a friend. Especially Maggie, who was like a sister. She’d do anything for Maggie, even suffering through a meal with Jonathan Pierce.

“You feeling okay? You’re looking a little . . .” said Emma Grant, her other BFF. Emma eyed her intently, her green-eyed gaze inquisitive.

“I’m just fine,” she lied, but it was clear from Emma’s meaningful stare that her friend suspected something was up as they followed

Maggie onto the patio and to the long row of tall privet hedges that separated the two Jersey Shore mansions.

She tamed the flutters much as she did when arguing a case before a judge and trudged along behind Maggie as they eased through the hedges and approached the entrance to the Pierce mansion. They had barely reached the front porch when Owen threw open the door, a big friendly smile on his handsome face.

He welcomed them warmly, but Connie couldn’t resist mumbling to Emma, “Said the spider to the fly.” As much as she wanted things to work out with Owen, she still worried about how Maggie would be hurt if they didn’t.

Emma jabbed her in the ribs and luckily, it seemed as if Owen either hadn’t heard her comment or if he had, was choosing to ignore it. She gave him props if it was the latter, since it indicated he was truly trying to be nice for Maggie’s sake.

They quickly walked through the foyer and living room and back to the dining area. Jonathan was in the kitchen, an apron over his jeans and T-shirt. The T-shirt hugged his broad, muscled chest and laid bare the powerful muscles of his arms. His light brown hair still had the kiss of the summer sun and was tied back from his face, revealing the sharp lines of his features.

He looked older, but still so handsome.

She had thought she could handle this dinner for her friend’s sake. That she could face Jonathan and not get caught up in the emotions from years past. But it was impossible to forget the way he’d held her in his arms, a dimpled smile on his lips, his sea-blue eyes bright with humor and love. With that memory, the flutters in her stomach were replaced by an ache in the region of her heart.

Please also take a moment to explore WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER at these retailers:

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2y6hi4h
Amazon Paperback: http://amzn.to/2y92UIQ
B&N: http://bit.ly/2BJNcov
B&N Paperback: http://bit.ly/2sHmY3l
Google: http://bit.ly/2hKg3BW
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/2HlVlly
iBooks: http://apple.co/2hKgP1J
Kobo: http://bit.ly/koboWHS
Audible: https://amzn.to/2M2ZWfY

Don’t forget you can download ONE SUMMER NIGHT for #free at these retailers:

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2krMwfE
B&N: http://bit.ly/2kNuo0p
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/2ik8EfG
iBooks: http://apple.co/2qsqdwx
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2fuEphL

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#ThrowbackThursday – Day in the Life of ONE SUMMER NIGHT

Today’s toss is back to October 2017 and a video of my typical life and the release of ONE SUMMER NIGHT! Don’t forget that the ONE SUMMER NIGHT ebook is now free for download at the following retailers:

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2krMwfE
B&N: http://bit.ly/2kNuo0p
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/2ik8EfG
iBooks: http://apple.co/2qsqdwx
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2fuEphL

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#TeaserTuesday – A kiss is still a kiss . . . or is it?

Counting down to the June 5 release of WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER and today I’m sharing with you one of my favorite scenes in the book. I loved this scene because it was packed with emotion on various levels, but also had humor and hopefulness. I hope you’ll agree!

In this scene, Connie has just been helping her best friend Maggie with wedding plans. Maggie is marrying Owen Pierce, Jonathan’s older brother, and because of that, Connie and Jon are being constantly thrown together. Like any best friend, Connie is happy for Maggie, but also worried about how their friendship will change with Maggie getting married. She’s also feeling a little sorry for herself because she let love go during her summer fling with Jonathan.

Teaser

“Were you crying?” he asked and kneeled close to her. He could handle her stubbornness and the temper that she luckily kept leashed for the most part. He could even handle the iciness that warned him to stay away. But the thought of her crying just shredded his heart.

“No,” she answered way too quickly and rubbed Dudley’s head as he kept up his enthusiastic loving.

“What’s that on your cheeks then?” he pushed, needing her to admit it, not so that he could rejoice, but because he wanted to help.

“Dog spit. Your dog’s spit because I’m assuming this little guy belongs to you,” she said and urged the terrier down into her lap again.

The dog squirmed and presented her with his belly, jonesing for a rub.

As she obliged, Jonathan’s gut tightened. He hated that he was suddenly wishing he could get that kind of attention as well. But wishes like that were best kept secret because Connie had made it clear she wanted no part of him. And yet, something inside made him try to change things between them.

“He’s mine. When I saw him at the shelter a few weeks ago, I couldn’t walk away. Now that I plan on moving to Sea Kiss – ”

“You’re moving to Sea Kiss? To the mansion?” she asked with surprise.

He shook his head. “I only stay here because I know my father never comes down. As much as I love the family home, I need to find my own place. I’ve started searching for a house nearby.”

There was no doubting the look on her face and her obvious worry. With Maggie and Owen getting married and him right in the neighborhood, they’d be constantly thrown together. “Don’t worry, Connie. I won’t make it hard for you to see Maggie. I know how close the two of you are.”

A guilty splotch of color erupted on cheeks already ruddy from her tears. “It’s not like that. We’re two mature adults. We can handle being around each other.”

“Yes, we can. Like now. We’re talking. No anger. No worries.”

She huffed out a breath and looked away. “Right, no worries,” she said, but despite her words, something major was going on with her.

“If you want to talk about it – ”

“I don’t.”

He didn’t give up. With a smile, he said, “Or if you just need a shoulder to cry on . . . .”

She tilted her chin up in a defiant gesture that was achingly familiar. “I wasn’t crying. Like I said before, it was just Dudley’s puppy kisses.”

“Really?” He couldn’t resist the challenge. He leaned forward and cradled her chin with his hand.

Her gold-green eyes widened in surprise as he came ever closer. When he kissed the corner of her right eye, her eyelashes fluttered against his lips as she closed her eyes.

“Sweetest,” he began and shifted to her other eye. “Dog spit,” he said and didn’t wait for her protest. “Ever.” He kissed her lips, a gentle coaxing kiss that had her tilting into him and grasping his shoulders for support. As they moved closer, Dudley, who had been sitting in her lap, squirmed and barked a complaint as he got sandwiched between their bodies.

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ONE SUMMER NIGHT is now free until June 11

To celebrate the release of WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER, ONE SUMMER NIGHT is free until June 11. Take advantage of this special offer to get a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Romance and jump start your beach reads!

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2krMwfE
B&N: http://bit.ly/2kNuo0p
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Free Read WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER

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#TeaserTuesday – WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER

WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER is available for pre-order and will release on June 5. If you’d like an ARC to review, please click here to visit Netgalley and download your copy!

I love Connie and Jonathan’s story and so did Kirkus who said ““Pineiro’s follow-up to One Summer Night (2017) covers the same time frame from the alternate couple’s viewpoint, to sexy, satisfying effect. Connie and Jonathan’s trials, tribulations, and second chance at love are engaging and at times thought-provoking, touching on the power of love, loyalty, and friendship. . . Another visit to Sea Kiss will charm romance fans.” RT Book Reviews added their praise and raved that WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER “…a story about a love between two individuals that will not fade…readers will enjoy this summer-themed romance.”

Teaser

Connie had vowed never to make the same mistakes as her mother . . .

As the only daughter of a single mom, Connie Reyes knows how hard it is to raise a child alone and without prospects. At an early age Connie vowed she would never put herself or her child in a similar position. But Jonathan Pierce is oh so tempting and a night of passion leads to unexpected consequences with a man she has been unable to forget. But loving Jonathan may upend Connie’s law career and all that she’s worked so hard to achieve.

Jonathan Pierce has always marched to the beat of a different drummer. . .

Jonathan Pierce left home at nineteen, determined to explore his dreams and leave his unhappy childhood behind. A father who was always absent at work and a mother who left them her boys without even a goodbye. His only redeeming family connection is his big brother Owen. In the weeks leading up to the Owen’s wedding, sexual tension sizzles between him and the bride’s best friend Connie. Jonathan would love to show the uber responsible and work-a-holic lawyer that he’s a changed man.

When opportunity presents itself the night of the wedding, mutual desire will bring a lifetime of possibilities. Can Connie and Jonathan find a way to balance their very different personalities and build a loving family together?

Excerpt

Prologue
Sea Kiss, New Jersey

Playing it safe was far worse than taking a risk on what you wanted.
Jonathan Pierce knew just what he wanted.

He grabbed hold of the gnarly branch of the decades-old wisteria vine that climbed the side of the Sinclair mansion and boosted himself up.
He’d made the journey so many times this past summer, he could do it blindfolded.

He scrambled up the vine, finding the familiar foot and handholds until he vaulted up and over the second floor railing, and landed silently as a cat burglar on the balcony. It ran the length of the immense oceanfront mansion, with elegant French doors offering views of the sea.

The first darkened doorway was Maggie Sinclair’s room. He rushed past it quietly; Maggie belonged to his older brother, Owen. Not that Owen had acted on it yet, but Jonathan had known for years that the two were meant to be together, family feud be damned.

The next doorway was usually Maggie’s dad’s, but the old man had stopped coming down to the Shore as often as he once had, so it was a good bet that room was unoccupied.

Reaching the third room, he saw the curtains wafting in the summer breeze and the dim light from behind the partially closed French doors.

He smiled and his heart raced with pleasure.

Connie was waiting for him. Ever-responsible, ever-loyal Connie had broken her own rules to fall in love with him. Or at least he thought it was love. It definitely was on his part. With barely a week left before the girls all went back to school, he intended to let her know just how he felt.

He slipped carefully through the open doors and shut them behind him. He’d gone no more than a step when she launched herself at him, laughing and kissing him as she said, “What took you so long?”

“I missed you, too,” he said, knowing it was more about the separation to come in a week and not about the long hours since last night.

He bent his head and kissed her, his touch tender and caring, and she answered in kind, her lips soft and coaxing.

Although Maggie had been bringing her friends to the Jersey Shore every summer since they’d met freshman year in college, he’d never really paid much attention at first. He’d had his share of girls from his high school class fawning over him.

But when Maggie and her friends had come back the next year, he had finally, gratefully, noticed what a real woman should be. Like Connie: all luscious curves; also proud, smart, and independent,

As impatient as he might be to make love to her tonight, he wanted her to know how much this meant to him. How this wasn’t only a summer romance for him.

He leaned over her, his gaze locked on her face. He wanted to say the words—Lord, how he wanted to—but they stuck in his throat and so he let every kiss and touch tell her what he couldn’t voice.

You Can Order Here:

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2y6hi4h
Amazon Paperback: http://amzn.to/2y92UIQ
B&N: http://bit.ly/2BJNcov
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/2hKg3BW
iBooks: http://apple.co/2hKgP1J
Kobo: bit.ly/koboWHS

WHAT HAPPENS IN SUMMER Contemporary Romances set on the Jersey Shore

Special Pricing on #1 – One Summer Night

Don’t forget that we’ve got special pricing going on for #1 in the series, One Summer Night which was a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Fall Romance and featured in the NY Times. You can pick up #1 here and also read the first three chapters for free at Radish!

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2krMwfE
Amazon Paperback: http://amzn.to/2kYLWZV
B&N: http://bit.ly/2kNuo0p
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/2ik8EfG
iBooks: http://apple.co/2qsqdwx
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2fuEphL
Radish: Read three chapters for free – http://bit.ly/2AERQFk

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