Today I am so pleased to welcome JS Harker to Joyfully Jay. JS has come to talk to us about her latest release, Tit For Tat. She has also brought along a great giveaway. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!

 

Hey, JS here. I wanted to take this opportunity to congratulate you on making it through the first week of the new year! I’m excited to share an exclusive excerpt from my recently released book from Dreamspinner called Tit For Tat.


Excerpt

Derek took Flynn’s hand. Each step on the ice felt like he was about to slip off the edge of the world to meet a harsh and cruel humility. He clutched Flynn’s hand hard enough to make his hand ache. Skating was such a terrible, terrible idea. He had no ability, no sense of balance, and absolutely no confidence either of those things would change. Especially not in the next few minutes.

When they tried to turn, Derek’s body decided it was time to get in motion. He spun instead of drifting, the arc too harsh. Once again he was on his ass, looking up at Flynn.

At least Flynn wasn’t laughing at him. He looked like he might want to, but he wasn’t openly doing so. “You’re trying too hard. You’re scared, and the ice knows it.”

“The ice knows I’m scared,” Derek repeated incredulously. After agreeing with Flynn and finding poetry in the avalanche video, he was willing to give sentient ice a chance. Sort of. Enough to wait for whatever potential advice Flynn had.

“It doesn’t want to hurt you. It merely exists.” Flynn held out both hands this time. Derek took hold of him, and they gradually got him onto his feet. “It wants to be friends with you.”

“Friends don’t usually go around marking each other with razor blades. Maybe it wants vengeance.”

Flynn snorted. “I’m being philosophical, not literal.”

Oh.”

“Take a deep breath, let it out. Good. Do it again and take a step as you let it out.”

Flynn skated backward in front of him, holding on to Derek’s hands. Focusing on his breathing, on Flynn’s bright blue eyes, and taking those steps made skating almost easy. He wobbled less and less as they made their way around the lagoon. Flynn let go of him and moved to skating by his side.

“You’re getting better already,” Flynn said.

Derek opened his mouth to thank him, but his knee went sideways, and his balance was off. He was heading face-first for the ice when Flynn scooped an arm around him and hauled him up. They twisted—Derek unsteady and Flynn in perfect control—until Derek wound up standing, clutching Flynn’s shoulders. Flynn had his arms around Derek. Their lips were only inches apart. They were out of breath, panting in rhythm together.

Flynn was right there. Screw what anyone else thought. Derek wanted a kiss. He took a deep breath. He had a brave bone in his body. All he had to do was give in.


Blurb

Cold has never been so hot.

College sophomore Derek is busy working over his holiday break—but his shifts at the toy store are no hardship if they mean more opportunity to dream about the sexy new guy working as an elf in Santa’s Workshop. When his mother gifts him a bag of cookies, Derek regifts them to Flynn as an excuse to get to know him. Flynn has presents to offer as well, and soon they’re dating, with Derek finding out his comfort zone is bigger than he imagined.

But Flynn is hiding a secret—he’s really a winter fairy whose magic is bound to the season. He can’t stay in the mortal realm, and Derek doesn’t want to lose contact with his family. Can they find a way to hold on to each other when the snow and sugar plums melt away?


Bio

JS Harker loves stories. She was one of those kids who always had a book in her hands and spent many hours adventuring with her siblings. These days she wanders into her imaginary worlds and conjures up tales of magic, passion, and happily-ever-afters. She currently lives in the part of the Midwest that makes Tatooine look interesting by comparison (not that she’s ever obsessively thought about becoming a Jedi or anything).


Giveaway

JS has brought a $10 Amazon gift card to give away to one lucky reader. Just leave a comment at the end of the post to enter. The contest ends on Saturday, January 12th at 11:59 pm ET.


  • By entering the giveaway, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
  • Winners will be selected by random number. No purchase necessary to win. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.
  • If you win, you must respond to my email within 48 hours or another winner may be chosen. Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from Joyfully Jay.
  • Winners may be announced on the blog following the contest. By entering the contest you are agreeing to allow your name to be posted and promoted as the contest winner by Joyfully Jay.
  • Prizes will be distributed following the giveaway either by Joyfully Jay or the person/organization donating the prize.
  • All book prizes are in electronic format unless otherwise specified.
  • By entering you are agreeing to hold Joyfully Jay harmless if the prize or giveaway in some way negatively impacts the winner.
  • Readers may only enter once for each contest.  Duplicate entries for the same giveaway will be ignored. In the event of technical problems with the blog during the contest, every effort will be made to extend the contest deadline to allow for additional entries.
  • Void where prohibited by law.
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