Remembering Romance and Starting Over’s Second Anniversary

Starting Over available HERE

By Starla Kaye

When I was first married (what seems like a gazillion years ago), I loved creating special romantic nights for my husband and I. He is an accountant now and was studying to become one back then. Accountant type should immediately give you a certain expectation: on the boring side at times.

Actually it was, and still is, more that he has no imagination outside of the accounting world. That doesn’t mean I don’t love him dearly. But the “fun” stuff and special nights have always been basically up to me. Of course, he has always been more than pleased to join in. From my experience, men are really not all that complicated when it comes to romance/sex. You even hint at offering and they are all over it.

I can’t believe that it has already been two years since Starting Over was published as part of the 1 Night Stand Series. In celebration of this special event, I want to share with you a look into Corbin and Matt’s life as it is now. It’s something just for fun because I love looking back at my characters.

At this time Corbin and Matt are settled into their relationship. Life is good for them, their businesses more successful than ever.

Matt’s love for the man who has trusted him to guide him into the world of male loving is so strong that he worries about something happening to ruin everything. This is their second anniversary of finding one another. Neither he nor Corbin are particularly sentimental, but he wants to do something extra special in honor of this moment in time that changed their lives. Corbin has been exceptionally busy these last few months. He drags home after long days at the office. He isn’t eating right. Tossing and turning at night as he struggles with work-related details is far too common, leaving them both tired the next morning. And all they seem to have time for lately is a quick brush of the lips before Corbin races out of the house. Sex has become little more than a fading memory.

Today that all changes.

***

Corbin sank into his desk chair with a heavy sigh. Yet another lunch meeting done with. Thank God. He was so damn tired. If he kept up this crazy schedule, he didn’t think he’d survive. Matt. The man was a saint, putting up with all of it, putting up with him. Corbin couldn’t remember the last time they’d…

Best to not go there. He sure didn’t have time for thinking about sex. Certainly not for enduring the hard-on he got whenever he even thought about Matt in that way.

He forced his mind back to business. He hadn’t had a day free in over two months. It felt like there hadn’t been an hour free of client meetings, staff meetings, or meetings in connection with the complicated merger his firm was involved in. Some days he thought he even needed to schedule time to go home and drop exhausted into bed. And wasn’t that just pitiful!

Resigned to spending the rest of this Friday afternoon and night in August in some kind of meeting, he flicked on his monitor and pulled up his calendar. There had to be a mistake. Every hour for the remainder of today clear up to midnight was filled in with GYSAH. What the hell?

He looked down at the midnight spot and leaned forward to see the words more clearly. GYSAH: Get Your Sweet Ass Home.

He smiled, feeling immediate pleasure and relief. His work day was finished. Matt had seen to that. Matt had found a way to get them time to be together. Corbin should have marked time off for his lover himself. But he wasn’t going to waste any more precious time worrying about feeling guilty. He was out of here!

I had originally planned to go into more of their romantic night together, but now I’ve decided to just leave to your own imagination.

CONTEST: To celebrate this happy anniversary for Corbin and Matt, I am giving away a KamaSutra Weekender Kit for spontaneous romance to one lucky commenter. The contest ends September 1. Please leave your email address.

(Cowboy Dreamin’) – Back to cowboys

by Starla Kaye

I am thrilled to announce that I have a new contract with 1Night Stand for Cowboy Dreamin’. My first two books with 1NS didn’t have cowboys, nor did my Edge book, but my gay romance that wasn’t part of a series, The CEO and the Cowboy, got me back to writing about some of my favorite men: cowboys.

Cowboy Dreamin’ not only has one cowboy hero but two, plus a spunky heroine.

Kendra Barlow has a lousy good track record with love and romance, and she doesn’t have time in her life to try again. That doesn’t mean she can’t fantasize about it. Her dreams always include a hunky cowboy showing her a real good time in bed or out of it. And she envisions him eventually coming to her wearing a white hat, riding a white stallion, and carrying her off to a Happily Ever After.

But those are all dreams. It won’t ever happen to her, especially if she never even dates a cowboy.

Then her best friend convinces her to at least try Madame Evangeline’s matchmaking services for one special night with a cowboy. Kendra is resistant, unsure if she wants to have reality ruin her fantasies. What if he’s a jerk? What if he’s a real disappointment? What if….

But Madame Evangeline goes that extra step for Kendra. She makes an arrangement with two cowboys! They’re ranching partners with emotional baggage of their own. The Kansas cowboys are totally out of place when they come see her in Kauai. They are denim-wearing, six-packed, absolute stud muffins in low-tipped Stetsons. And they are hers! For one night only, God help her.

I had such fun writing about my purple-haired heroine who shakes up Shane’s and Carson’s lives from the moment Kendra comes hip shimming in a pink grass skirt into their world. Nobody gets what they expected. And nobody cares. 

Love and Romance is Everywhere

Buy Starting Over HERE

by Starla Kaye

I was trying to figure out what to write this time and then decided to go with my favorite topic: Love and Romance. Duh, it’s what I read, write, and enjoy observing in the world around me. And I’m pretty sure I have that in common with the readers and Decadent authors, who handle the subject so well.

As a long-time observer of people, I have witnessed so many beautiful romantic moments. Those “ahhhh” moments that stick with you. Yes, there are a lot of sad moments in life, too, but I prefer not to dwell on them. I’m all about that HEA (Happily Ever After) or even the HFN (Happy For Now). My two stories with 1 Night Stand, Maggie’s Secret Wish and Starting Over, are examples of special people finding their HEA. Starting Over could possibly be a HFN story, but I prefer to see my guys as living happily together the rest of their lives.

Sometimes I let my mind wander and think about how my characters could continue on with their lives together, go through the ups and downs of life, but stick together on into their older years. Or sometimes I write short stories strictly abut older relationships and that special love few younger people take the time to consider. It is easy to think romance and romantic relationships only revolve around people in their 20s and 30s, because most romance books focus on that. So not true. There are some amazingly beautiful older romances.

As an example of this, I want to share part of one of my older romance stories, “A Special Night.” I hope you enjoy it and I hope it reminds you to look a little deeper at the relationships around you.

Ted glanced with frustration out the picture window in the living room. Dark clouds tumbled across the sky as they had done for most of the day. They had spit snow off and on as well. If any night was made for staying in where it was warm and toasty, it was this one. His seventy-five-year-old body wasn’t really up to getting out in this mess.

He shoved the thought aside and yelled, “Are you coming, Marie? It’s almost five o’clock.” Not that it was such a late hour, unless you were used to settling in for the night about now.

“What’s your hurry, old man?” his beloved wife called back, using the “endearment” she used when he tested her patience. He smiled fondly at the notion. They’d tested each other’s patience for a whole lot of years and he hoped to be doing that for a whole lot more.

“Just dab on your lipstick and let’s go.” He knew she’d be rolling her eyes at him for that.

Any other night Ted would just as soon have stayed home, tucked into his well-worn recliner, TV tuned to whatever ballgame was on that day. But tonight was different. When Marie had gone next door to visit their neighbor earlier, he’d set the DVR and called Trombolli’s Restaurant, the best Italian food in town. He’d even arranged for one of their special corner tables. He was darn proud of himself for all of it, too. Mr. Romantic, he was not. Today was different, though.

She stepped into the living room doorway. “Usually I have to practically drag you kicking and screaming out any time after three in the afternoon.” Her expression mirrored confusion. “What’s up with you? Not that I’m opposed to going out.”

Patience. A man had to have patience with a woman, and didn’t he know that well after all these years. “What’s to understand? I said we’re going out tonight and we are. Now, get your coat and hat. It’s cold outside.”

The urge to question him more flashed across her time-wrinkled face. A face he loved to look at any time of any day. He didn’t even really notice the wrinkles she complained about. All he saw was the woman he’d married fifty years ago, the one who still took his breath away.

She shook her head, smiled in resignation, and moved to where he had her black leather coat with the big fur collar that she loved so much draped on the arm of the sofa. For a second, he missed the woman who had once seemed to challenge him over every little thing. Her spirited Italian temper had mellowed over the years, especially this last year. She’d started forgetting things more, too. Her health had gone downhill as well. His heart ached with the knowledge that they might not have a lot of time left together.

I like my men “hot” and vulnerable

by Starla Kaye

I admit that there are plenty of everyday men who make great everyday heroes. I’m even married to one of them, what he refers to as “just another boring accountant.” But he is so much more than that. Still, even though he likes to tell everyone that he is the model for the heroes I write about, he really isn’t. I write fiction, stories in which my readers and I escape from reality. Stories where I create men that can excite and stimulate and …well, you understand.

Ian, my Scottish hunk of a hero, was going through that typical “I just turned forty, Oh My God!” moment in Maggie’sSecret Wish. He was floundering, questioning what he was doing with his life and what he really wanted to do. (Something many of us, myself included, have faced in our lives.) His life wasn’t awful as an erotica writer and as a professional Dom. But he wanted more. There had been a time when he’d hoped to one day settle down with a woman and have a family. After his years of living with his quirks, he didn’t think he was suitable husband material. He is depressed about his future and certain the one-night-stand arrangement he’d reluctantly agreed to couldn’t work out well. Yes, he could satisfy Maggie’s secret wish, but other than that… She deserved a better man than he.

In Starting Over, I had two strong, yet vulnerable heroes. Corbin is now divorced after many years of trying to make a marriage work, one that really never had a chance. Now he is struggling to begin a new chapter in his life, get back into the dating game…as a gay man this time. He is scared to death; especially about going through with a one-night-stand arrangement his ex-wife had more or less pushed him into. Matt is dealing with the pain of losing the man he’d been certain was his mate for life. His family had written him off years ago when he’d admitted to being gay. He’d searched for someone who love him and whom he could trust with his love, finding it with Henri. Now he goes home alone, has no one to share things with. Loneliness clawing at him, he decides to take a chance at finding a man much like himself…even if only for one night.

The CEO AndThe Cowboy also involves two very special, “hot,” and vulnerable heroes. Calhoun has just witnessed the wedding of the woman he’d been engaged to for five years and never could walk down the aisle with. He has had a secret longing that he has never acknowledged and is still afraid to embrace. He meets a friend of his ex’s husband at the wedding, a striking man with a sexually enticing scrutiny. The man unnerves him even as he arouses him. Daniel is immediately drawn to the ruggedly handsome cowboy, his “hot guy” inner warning system going crazy. But he’s not really on the hunt for a new man in his life. He’s still dealing with the hurt and betrayal of his last lover.

Do you have a favorite “hot” hero that haunts you with moments of “if only”? Share at least his name in a comment and take a chance at being the one lucky commenter to win a Surprise gift. The winner will be chosen September 12, but the gift won’t be sent until after September 27 (when I get back from vacationing in France).

Happy Anniversary to Corbin and Matt!

by Starla Kaye

I can’t believe it has already been a year since my second story with 1 Night Stand, Starting Over, was published. Time goes so quickly. I’m always turning around and saying “Wasn’t it just Christmas yesterday?” as I begin easing into the pre-gift-buying panic time. Anyone else ever feel that way?

My heroes, Corbin Bradley and Matthieu DuCharme, feel like I do, amazed at the passage of time. Corbin mentioned to me the other day that he still feels like it was just yesterday that his wife of ten years divorced him. Without her gentle understanding and love for him, he probably would have continued trying to save a marriage that had never been right for either of them. Fortunately she had been strong enough to let him go, to encourage him to seek the kind of relationship truly meant for him. Otherwise he might have kept burying his desires and needs. But Pamela wouldn’t allow it. She guided him into contacting Madame Eve and gave him the chance to meet Matt.

Matt, too, had been struggling with his life when Madame Evangeline’s services became known to him. He’d been deeply in love with Henri and certain his life would continue happily on until the day he died. Except an accident took his lover from him and left him devastated, uncertain he would ever emotionally heal. Although he’d been uncertain about taking a chance with the matchmaker’s one night stand services, he feels forever indebted to her. He was given a second chance to have a warm and loving relationship.

When asked how this last year has been for them, both are quick to admit that they’ve had ups and downs…good moments and bad moments. Like any other relationship. But no matter what, neither of them can imagine life without the other one with them.

“Arguing about this or that isn’t really important,” Corbin states. He grins crookedly at Matt, who flashes back a look hot enough to make him shift in his chair. “Because there is always the making up to seriously heat things up and make it all better.” He winks. “If you know what I mean.”

Giveaway

For your chance to win a $15 Amazon.com gift card, go to Starla Kaye’s list of books at Decadent Publishing. Leave a comment telling me the names of the heroes in The CEO And The Cowboy and whether you are more drawn to the CEO or the cowboy hero. The contest is international and the winner will be drawn August 17, 2012.

Addicted to Men with Wounded Hearts

by Starla Kaye 

What can I say? I love writing romance and I love writing about men with wounded hearts. Big, tough men who have been brought to their knees by a woman (or a man) who broke their heart and tromped on their pride and then try to show the world that nothing affects them (but really does) are my weakness. I have to find them someone capable of shattering the defenses they’ve tried to build up to protect themselves. I have to give them someone that they can’t resist loving.

My first book with 1Night Stand, Maggie’s Secret Wish, wasn’t exactly that kind of story. But Maggie had been emotionally hurt in the past and had avoided getting into another relationship. Between her friend who encouraged her to contact Madame Evangeline and Madame Eve’s uncanny wisdom for making matches, she comes out of her blue funk and … Well, you’ll just have to read the story to see how her life takes an exciting turn.

Starting Over, my second book with 1Night Stand, does involve the “wounded heart” hero, actually two of them. In this story, Corbin is just coming out as a gay man, at the encouragement of his ex-wife. He is unsure of all the changes and what is expected of him, and sad about leaving a comfortable but not right for him marriage. His wife loves him enough to encourage him to finally begin the life style he has secretly wanted. The man he is matched with, Matt, is an experienced gay man who has lost the male lover he had envisioned living the rest of his life with. He is trying to move on, but it is hard. Again, you will have to read the story to see how everything works out for them.

That was my first completely GLBT story published and I really enjoyed writing it. I love to be challenged as a writer and stepping into unfamiliar writing territory was exciting. In fact since I wrote that book I have toyed with wanting to try my hand at another one. I do have a new book, The CEO and The Cowboy, another GLBT story coming out from Decadent Publishing later this year (date unknown at this time, but I do have my cover!). Unfortunately I couldn’t figure out how to make it a 1 Night Stand story.

As a special giveaway, one lucky winner can pick their choice of an ebook copy of either Maggie’s Secret Wish or Starting Over. 

Please go to the Decadent Publishing website and read the blurb for Maggie’s Secret Wish and include in your comment what was Ian’s part time job. Be sure to leave your email address in your comment.

It’s All About Adapting...

by Starla Kaye

I’m a dreamer, a lover, and a romance writer. No, that isn’t part of some kind of admission in a 12-step program, just a statement of who I am. Being a writer isn’t a job for the faint hearted. This is serious sit-your-butt-down and write something stuff. This is coming up with characters, who become real people to you as you tell their story.

Should I mention that these “real” characters want to tell their story their way. Oh, I’ve done the serious outline thing where I knew each step through the plot line, knew each wall that would block their path, knew exactly how the characters would scale the wall or go around it, and how they would reach the pot of gold at the end of the road (reach their goal). Not pleasant experiences for me.

Like real people, characters take on a life of their own. My characters fought me every step of the way and I fought back. I’ve learned over the years to go with the flow, to not make them follow my plan for the plot to the letter. I’ve learned to try and guide them along the way. I’m often surprised by what they do or say. I’m enjoying story writing so much more now. I’m also taking a stab at writing in new romance sub-genres.

I have been writing and publishing romance and erotic romance in a number of sub-genres for twelve years. Most of my stories have been m/f, but I’m adapting, trying new things. I like challenges, couldn’t be a writer if I didn’t. My newest writing challenges have been dabbling with ménage a trois and now with my first published GLBT story.

In Starting Over I wanted to try my hand at writing a love story involving a man loving another man. As always, I wanted characters that have faced ups and downs in their lives, who have found happiness and lost it, only to be lucky enough to find it again. I enjoyed writing Maggie’s Secret Wish as part of the 1 Night Stand series and was interested in doing another book with Decadent Publishing and this series. Fortunately, I got another chance and here is Starting Over.

For this story I envisioned a man (Corbin) who has tried to fit into normal society all his life, battling back his interest in men, keeping them in his fantasies. He finally “comes out” and finds unconditional support in his ex-wife, parents, and siblings. He has come to terms with the true man inside him but is uncertain how to take the next step of actually dating another gay man.

In contrast, I wanted an experienced gay man (Matthieu) who has faced the challenges with leading that kind of life. I wanted a man who has loved and lost, and struggled with stepping back into the dating world to maybe someday find another lover.

Madame Evangeline worked her particular kind of matchmaking magic and brought these two heart-bruised men together.

My characters learned to adapt to the changes in their lives and lead me, the writer, along the path of their story. We only had an occasional moment of “I want you to do this” and “No, I don’t think so.”

Starting Over blurb:

A virgin gay man, Corbin is ready to ease into his new lifestyle, still, making the move scares him shitless. He’s spent years fantasizing about embracing his true self, but what possessed him to agree to a 1 NightStand? As he nears the long, lean man with shaggy, graying hair, a hard on pushing at the front of his swim trunks, and a sexy-as-hell grin, the dreams pale in comparison, and easing in takes on a whole new meaning.

Though tired of being lonely, Matt considers changing his mind about the one-night arrangement until a tall, well-built man strolls across the pool area toward him, then all thoughts of leaving flee. Those broad shoulders, the amazing pecs, the spattering of dark hair on his chest…all of it calls to Matt. He wants to touch it, play with it. He forces himself to calm down. Matt will be his date’s first male lover, and he intends to find the inner strength to take his time.

Intense physical attraction and Madame Eve’s magic ignite a sexual fire, but will it be enough for two men starting over?

**WIN A COPY OF STARTING OVER ~ leave a comment for Starla Kaye**