UPDATE: The winner is…Sheila Bonuso!
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Hey Everyone!

Thanks to Delilah for featuring me on her blog today! I’m so excited about the upcoming release of First Response: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology. My husband and I both work in healthcare, and especially in these last few months, I’m so appreciative of all the first responders out there and the hard work they do.

“Blackout” was originally a story I thought up for Delilah’s Stranded anthology, but I didn’t get a chance to write it. I had a loose idea of two people stranded in an elevator, but with a short story there’s not a lot of runway, and I kept getting stuck. I was pregnant and juggling a couple of other projects, and I didn’t have time to sort it all out.

Then Delilah put out a call for the first responders anthology. I was in a weird place with writing. I’d just had my second child and was struggling to find the time and energy. The day I’d gone into labor, I’d gotten a rejection on a book I’d been working on for two years. The publisher had it forever, and I’d been so optimistic. In hindsight, I likely wouldn’t have been able to get a book through the publishing process with a newborn and four-year-old, but it still knocked me off balance. Ready for a change, I thought it would be fun to get out of my rut and away from the characters who had consumed me for so long. Writing short stories can be a challenge, but I love the way every word counts. And suddenly, my stranded story had a second chance.

Both of these characters came together quickly. Liam, a handsome firefighter with the FDNY, has a crush on Ruby, who ghosted him after their first date. When a summer blackout leaves them stranded in the elevator together, will he finally figure out what when wrong?

To find out, check out “Blackout” in the First Response: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology out June 30th!

Excerpt from “Blackout”

When a summer heatwave blackout strands a fireman in an elevator with the girl who got away, the temperature isn’t the only thing rising…

“Hold it, please!” Ruby Ramirez yelled across the dim foyer toward the closing elevator door. Her arms ached from the heavy canvas bags, and the loop of an umbrella strap cut into her wrist. She usually wasn’t so winded by the three-block walk to Trader Joe’s, but the oppressive August humidity was like a smothering electric blanket. Couple that with the fact she’d broken into a jog when it had started raining, and she was left panting.

“Thanks,” Ruby gasped as she slipped into the elevator, glancing up to see her savior.

Of course, it was him.

All six-feet-three inches of him. Six-feet-three inches of drool-worthy muscles and chiseled features, blond hair and eyes the color of the North Sea. Six-feet-three inches of grade A asshole.

She’d managed to avoid Liam Rygaard for three weeks. She’d dove into doorways at the sound of his voice, peeked into the hallway before leaving her apartment; she’d even kept track of his schedule to prevent the most minuscule chance of running into him.

And yet she’d sprinted, soaking wet and in a white tank top, right into a tiny enclosed space with him.

 Contest

Comment on January’s post for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

Don’t forget! These contests are still open!

1. Michal Scott: The $5.00 Kiss of Life (Excerpt & Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Ava Cuvay: The Tentacle Dilemma (Contest — 4 Winners!) — Win an anthology or a cool T-shirt!