Erzabet's Enchantments: Love at First Sigh

Thank you for inviting me to your blog with my new Hot Ink Press release,

Love at First Sigh

The first thing people ask me concerning this release is about the title. They say ‘is that a typo, shouldn’t it be Love at First Sight?’ No, it’s not a typo (smiles). This book is a duo of red-hot contemporary romance stories, Pina Colada and Handy Hubby Hire. The stories feature a love at first sight thread, but initially it’s huge physical attraction to each other when the couples meet. They sigh with lust and then the romance develops.

Here’s the blurb for Handy Hubby Hire

Tired of the maintenance jobs mounting up in her house, Sara hires a handyman. She never dreams someone like Griffen Fox will show up to fix the faucets and back yard gate. Sparks fly, but will they lose their heart to each other?

And for Pina Colada

When Emma takes a long weekend vacation in a warm beach resort, she meets the very handsome Matt Tyler. They spend an idyllic few days together. Will this only be a holiday romance?

I wanted my male characters in the two stories to be very different personalities and yet still similarly alpha enough to go for the girl they wanted sexually right away.

Matt Tyler in Pina Colada is fun and almost dares the heroine, Emma, to engage in lust driven sex. He also gives her romantically exactly what she needs on her holiday break in the sun. Picture the white sandy beaches, the pale green almost transparent ocean, frangipani perfumed, warm night air and a drop-dead gorgeous man, who wants you…bad.

Griffen Fox in Handy Hubby Hire is visually a bad boy, muscled with a swirling black tattoo and an old truck. He’s capable and calm, but underneath the professional exterior simmers…sex…lust…red-hot desire for the heroine, Sara, as soon as he sees her.

He tells her what he’s going to do. He gives her what she’s longing for and then…something happens to him…something unexpected.

As the writer I like Matt very much, but Griffen, well, he’s an absolute darling.

I designed and produced the book cover using Handy Hubby Hire as the inspiration. It took some time tracing the stock photography of the truck and had other people in it, which I edited out and then I found my couple. I love this premise, with the sexy guy holding his lover up against him and nuzzling her neck. I hope it gives a feel for the originality of the stories, their heroes and heroines that could be you and the sexually charged atmosphere of hot summer encounters.

Read an excerpt of each story

Pina Colada: General rating

Her third floor room provided a balcony that overlooked the glittering pool below, and the warm, azure ocean beyond. Emma opened the sliding glass door, and walked onto the balcony. It contained a tiny white metal table, two folding chairs, placed close to the rail, and a lush, broad-leaved plant growing in a massive terracotta pot next to the door.

She hung over the rail and took in the scene below. Bronzed people lay stretched out on the gaudy loungers that the hotel arranged around the pool. A few striped sun umbrellas flapped in the soft breeze. Even from her vantage point on the third floor, the distinctive smell of coconut oil, and other exotic suntan lotions wafted by. The atmosphere was sun-drenched, exciting, and pungent with promise.

Emma turned to go back into her room and saw him. About a meter away on the balcony of the adjacent room, a man stood silently staring down at the pool. Emma took in his gorgeous profile, his dark hair falling attractively over his forehead, his perfect nose, and his jaw with just the right amount of stubble. She sighed over his muscular body shown off perfectly in his low riding shorts. A Celtic design tattoo snaked on the top of his arm. It looked incredibly sexy, a short sleeve of swirling ink on his muscle. She paused to stare at him.

He looked her way. His dark blue eyes met hers. He held her gaze and something passed between them, a silent appraisal of each other. They both liked what they saw.

She knew she’d sparked his interest from the expression on his face, but Emma, suddenly shy around such a sexy man, stepped into her room.

Handy Hubby Hire 18+

Griffen Fox drew a deep breath as he watched Sara walk down the hall to her office. He grinned as he took in the sight of her soft ass in her cutoff jeans. Made for grabbing…she’s made for fucking. Pretty, beautiful eyes, lips that make you want to bite them hard as you ram her onto your cock. Damn, Griff, that’s a little over the top, get a grip, and start work. He opened the front door, clicked up the catch so that it wouldn’t lock him out, and went to his truck. An old F500, he’d covered the tray top and made space there for tools and supplies. It proved a good workhorse. Griffen calculated the time it would take to do the jobs in the house — not long really, pesky jobs, but not hard or time consuming, as in a week, unless he strung them out. He’d be there most of the day and one more morning. He looked back at the house from his vantage point on the gravel drive. It’s a nice place. She seems to live there alone. What’s a lovely woman like that doing with no man in her life? Maybe there is one. Maybe I’ll ask her.

Griffen took his tools and supplies in the house and started work. He hummed as he worked. He thought about Sara too, as he rehung the backyard gate. He liked the way her nipples peaked in that tight, white T-shirt, before she covered them up. She’d gazed hungrily at him too. There was something needy about her that made him want to pick her up, crush her to his body, kiss her tenderly and then fuck her hard. Fuck away that fleeting sadness in her eyes. Fuck a smile onto that pretty face. Have those fingers of hers curl around my cock… have those full lips suck it. Hell, I’m getting an erection. I’d like to kiss her. I like her. I do. I bet she tastes sweet.

He jumped when her voice interrupted his thoughts.

“I’m making coffee. Would you like a cup?”

She stood behind him and he turned. The sunlight caught her hair and lit it up with golden streaks. Her T-shirt skimmed the top of her low riding, cutoff jeans. Griffen stared at the flat expanse of stomach on display as she reached up and plucked a few dead twigs off the young tree nearby. He ran his tongue along his top lip as he saw the muscles in her thighs tighten when she stood on tiptoe. She’s lovely… Her nearness made him shake a little.

“I’d love a cup of coffee, thank you.” He steadied his voice, and followed her to the kitchen.

About Elodie:

Elodie Parkes is a British author writing romance, erotic, contemporary, and often with a twist of mystery, paranormal or suspense. Her books are always steamy — cool stories and hot love scenes.

Elodie lives in Canterbury with her two dogs. She works in an antique emporium by day and writes at night, loving the cloak of silent darkness that descends on the rural countryside around her home.