Wicked Flower
A Sin Pointe Novel
Book 5
Carlene Love Flores
Genre: Erotic Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Evernight Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-77130-987-5
ASIN: B00N44IJEI
Number of pages: 228
Word Count: 80,160
Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs
Book Description:
Sin Pointe front man Stefan Calderon is playing a very dangerous game and his mom’s live-in caretaker, Dani Foster, just landed right smack in the middle of it.
Practically strangers when Stefan rolls into his small hometown looking to patch things up with Mom, his and Dani’s worlds collide with a hot and intense hook up. He knows right away this woman will make the perfect partner for his two weeks in town. But when she realizes whose son he is, and what he’s there to do, sexy times come to an abrupt halt.
That is until they come up with a solution. Rules. Every game needs them. The question isn’t if they’ll break them, but when and how hard.
It’s a wickedly delicious game, one neither of them intends to lose.
Excerpt:
Wow. Had Will pegged this perfectly or what? Stefan was determined not to hear her. What hurt Dani most was how his confidence had been shattered by a ten minute conversation in a silly rose garden.
She didn’t even remember that she’d just been crying and the wetness on her cheeks surprised her when she wiped a piece of hair from her face. “But you come back. And when you do, you bring the best laughs and joy with you. You bring yourself.”
“No, don’t do that. Don’t make me out to be some good guy, Dani. It’ll only hurt you in the end.” He paused and then stabbed her with a look sharper than steel. “You sucked my cock good last night, but that doesn’t mean you own me. I don’t owe you anything.”
Her face flamed with sheer anger. She nearly spit the word asshole right back in his face but remembered Will’s warning. She could be just as stubborn. “Try again. I did suck your cock good and no, you don’t owe me anything. But you will hear me out. You know who else leaves their loved ones behind? How about soldiers?”
“That’s different and you know it.”
“How so? They stay gone for months. Thom gets one two-week break half-way through his year-long tour. He comes home one time, Stefan. In an entire year. How is that different than what you do?”
Stefan looked like she’d shot him. He held his hands over his midsection and hunched over before he righted himself again.
“I don’t know. It just is. I’m not laying my life on the line for anyone.”
“But you’re putting it on hold so you can make all those people who love your music happy.” She wouldn’t stop now. “I bet if you were with someone, you’d find a way to see that person, no matter how far away you were. And I bet that person would be thankful, and…” Her eyes welled up with tears again. “So very happy for each moment, no matter how short or how much time passed between visits. Or how big of a mean jerk you could be sometimes.”
The amount of time he stayed with his head bowed down killed Dani. Losing him in a couple days hadn’t hurt before because she realized she’d held out hope that things would work out between them. That her Superman would figure it out and fix it all. He’d invite his mom to Nashville and Dani too. All she needed was an invitation and his ability to wait two measly months for her to arrive.
“Stefan, look at me.”
She waited patiently.
“I’ll just hurt you, Dani. Don’t you get it? I fucking love you and I’d hurt you.”
Her breath tunneled around her lungs and her knees threatened to give out but she wouldn’t stop until she’d convinced him he would not do that. Not if he … not if he loved her. The way she loved him back.
“Why do you keep saying that? Leaving, when it’s your job, doesn’t hurt the one you love.”
Her mind was nearly useless after his use of the L word. Maybe he was trying to tell her he wouldn’t be faithful.
“You don’t understand me, Dani.”
“Then help me out here. Are you saying you’d sleep around on the road? Is that some inevitable part of you being Stefan Calderon, bass player?”
Crap. He wasn’t answering her.
“Fuck, I don’t know. Maybe. I’ve never been tested like that.”
“What the hell do you mean?”
Again he went silent. And this time he got up out of his stool and walked to the sink. As if they hadn’t just been in an industrial sized conversation, he reached up and pulled a glass from a cupboard and filled it with water. He guzzled the entire thing down then filled it up and walked back over to her. He set the glass down in front of her, nudging her hand which she realized was in a tight fist.
“Fighting can’t be good for the baby. Dinner’s getting cold. Let’s eat. Then maybe we’ll talk more.”
Maybe we’ll talk more? Who did he think he was? Ending their discussion like that. But her chest had tightened and she knew he was right when she took in a deep breath and felt the built up tension leave and her body relax back to normal.
She hated that he was right. But if he thought she wouldn’t fight for him, he was dead wrong. She took the glass of water, emptying it then handed it back to him.
“What did you get?”
She could play nice while they ate. He loved her.
Stefan brought their plates over. He sat down across from her and stabbed a peapod and a chunk of pink salmon, shaking his head as he bit the food from the fork and chewed. He stabbed another and another bite.
Whoever had made this man, had gotten so many things so very right. No matter that all those things combined made her absolutely crazy.
He loved her. He’d said so.
She chewed, and tried not to cry smile.
Wicked Flower Deleted Scene: “Toothbrush”
Hello SB and thank you for hosting our tour stop today. The Sin Pointe men and I love a good obsession, especially Stefan, and so we feel right at home! Speaking of things we crave but perhaps should not have, I thought I’d share this deleted scene from Stefan’s book, Wicked Flower. I guess when you get right down to it, Stefan and Dani are obsessed with each other. Which is why it was so hard watching them have to stay away. While this scene ultimately did not make it into the book due to timing issues, the sentiment of “forbidden love” remains. Stefan has just answered the phone, thinking it’s his band mate, Will…
“Hey man.”
“Um, it’s me Stefan. Will said you needed to speak to me.”
He was quiet for a few seconds which set off more alarms. “Dani, I was thinking it’s a good idea for you to stay over there at your sister’s. Until I leave.”
Funny how this was exactly her plan the night of their first class debacle. But then it had been her idea. Now that it was his, it hurt, for reasons she couldn’t explain. She gritted her teeth, not wanting him to know the truth.
They wished each other good morning at meal times and barely bumped shoulders in passing up and down the narrow hallway. But he was there and for some reason, it had been enough the past few days, even though it drove her crazy not being able to steal a hug or ask him how he was doing and get a real answer out of him.
“I’m not gonna lie and pretend it’s what I really want. But I can’t have you and that pisses me off. So yeah, I’m pulling the dick move and suggesting you stay with your sister.”
“Yeah, that makes sense,” she said, sounding ridiculous, she knew because even Dani could feel her chin jutting out and hear her voice cracking. Stefan couldn’t be around her. She guessed it was a compliment. It just hurt so bad that things had to be this way.
“I’m gonna swing by there with some of your stuff. Enough to last you a couple days. Is there anything special you need? I’ll throw it in your bag.”
Choppy breaths piled up in her chest and lungs, just waiting to come out loud enough for him to hear. Her eyes watered. She turned her head away from the phone to breathe and cry. What could she ask for that would matter? “Um, I don’t know. My toothbrush.”
“All right.” He paused and she waited for the sweetheart but it didn’t come. “I’ll call when I’m there so Will can come down.”
She couldn’t talk so she just ended the call. What did she expect? On planet earth, what did she really think was going to come of this? He was Stefan Calderon. Rock star. Big city not little town. She’d held the sound of her cry in for too long and one high pitched sob broke through her hands that covered her mouth.
“This wasn’t how it was supposed to end,” she cried to no one.
A movement blurred by and Will’s hand was on her shoulder in that very second. “Hey, shh, Dani. It’s okay.”
“He wants me to stay here. He’s coming to get you.”
Will wrapped her in a hug which she sank into. “Damn. He’s got his reasons. Not saying I agree with him. He just, he doesn’t know how to do this with you. With anyone.” But he didn’t get to finish, if there was more, because Daisy popped in and Dani quickly wiped her eyes, pretending nothing was wrong and slipped out of Will’s hug. Daisy tugged him by the elbow out of her room and Dani encouraged Will to go with a good enough smile. The two disappeared. Dani didn’t follow. She needed a minute. All she could hear was Daisy’s excitement bouncing off the apartment walls.
A few hours later and Dani woke up with the sudden need to breathe. All she could think of was time but lying beside her was the bag Stefan had packed. The apartment was quiet. Daisy must have gone out. Dani unzipped the bag to find her toothbrush laying on top of a few other items. She pulled them out one by one. Everything was yellow. A shirt, a pair of stretchy shorts, underwear, socks. The small pillow from her bed. She rummaged through it some more and found a folded note. She ran her hands over his handwriting.
Dani, you should be pissed at me for doing this to you. Shit, I’m pissed at you for being so damn stubborn and not giving me what I wanted. You’re a good woman with a good head on your shoulders. Which is why I’ll never forget you and fucking May 25th. I’m not really mad. Sweetheart, don’t ever let a man hurt you. You’re better than that. Promise me. ~Stefan
She rubbed her fingers over the letter and held it to her chest. Her heart bucked wild and erratic but she couldn’t move. Knowing he was still in town for two more days was torture but they were at the worst stalemate imaginable. No one could win when they would both lose if they gave in.
About the Author:
Carlene Love Flores is a fan of the stars (especially Orion), music (especially Depeche Mode), and her traveling family (no favorites-she loves them all). These inspire her intimate romance stories.
If she could touch someone’s heart with writing the way others have for her, she’d say there never lived a luckier girl.
Website http://carlenelove.com/
Twitter https://twitter.com/cloveflores
Tour giveaway
~10 copies of Wicked Flower in ebook format (available to ALL winners)
~1 signed print copy of Sidewalk Flower (Book 1 of the Sin Pointe series) (Only available to US shipping addresses)
~1 custom designed Sin Pointe t-shirt (Only available to US Shipping addresses)
Hi there, just wanted to pop in and thank you for hosting Wicked Flower today. How's everyone's day going? Hoping all is well and just a little wicked. ;-) xoxo
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a good read. This is a new author for me. Thanks for sharing and posting!
ReplyDeleteHi Jenny, so glad you stopped in today. Thanks and have a great rest of your week!
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