Today I am so pleased to welcome Annabeth Albert to Joyfully Jay. Annabeth has come to share an exclusive excerpt from her latest release, Feel the Fire. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!

 

Excerpt

Greetings! I’m so happy to be here on one of my favorite places on the internet celebrating the release of FEEL THE FIRE. This is book 3 in my Hotshots series which centers around smokejumpers and wildfire fighters, but the series can be read out of order! We met Tucker briefly in book 2, HIGH HEAT, and you’ll see small easter eggs from the couples of books 1 and 2 in FEEL THE FIRE. In FEEL THE FIRE, I shed light on some unsung heroes—the people behind the scenes in Wildfire Fighting, calling the shots, arranging logistics, and deciding how best to approach a fire season. This year my state of Oregon has been in the news with a very active and heartbreaking fire season that claimed over a million acres. While FEEL THE FIRE includes a number of the realities of fighting wildfires, it’s uplifting and hopeful in tone as it features a reunion romance of two childhood sweethearts meeting again as adults and coworkers. There’s lots of family and feels and sexy tension!

Speaking of sexy, I know how you all love the sexy, so I wanted to bring you a little snippet of their first kiss as adults. It’s sexy and sweet, and I hope you enjoy it!

***

Even keeping to his side of the swing, their shoulders still brushed, electricity zooming down his arms. He’d gone years without feeling this kind of desire, and now he was drowning in it. The wind brought a whiff of Luis’s aftershave, the scent quickly becoming Tucker’s new favorite. Luis took a sip of the beer, and the simple act of him swallowing had Tucker close to groaning.

“Damn it, Tucker. Quit looking at me like that.”

“Like what?” Maybe playing dumb would help him.

“Like you’re dying for me to kiss you.”

Or not. Luis always had been the more direct of the two of them. “Sorry,” he mumbled into his beer.

“Sorry? That’s not a denial.” Luis’s laugh was warm and intimate.

“Can’t lie to you.” That was the truth. He never had been able to keep things from Luis—every secret wish and private transgression had been shared once upon a time, and that kind of trust apparently didn’t evaporate even with years apart. “And you can’t tell me you’re not curious.”

If Luis was going to be bold enough to bring up the tension that had been simmering between them, then Tucker was damn well going to call him on his share of it. This wasn’t all Tucker’s overheated imagination.

“I’m curious about lots of bad ideas.” Luis shrugged but his eyes sparkled.

“I’m not denying it would a big mistake,” Tucker was quick to add even as his pulse sped up.

“The worst.” Luis held his gaze, those sparkles giving way to scorching heat. Somehow they’d drawn closer, faces mere centimeters apart now.

“Can’t do it,” he whispered, voice little more than air now, especially once Luis’s hand landed on his shoulder.

“Nope.” Luis was so close now that his breath was warm on Tucker’s cheek.

And then they were kissing, simple as that. One second bantering, the next desperately kissing. No preamble, soft exploration, or tentative feeling out. No, this was flat-out hunger, and Tucker couldn’t get enough. Luis used his grip on Tucker’s shoulder to haul him closer. Groaning, Tucker met him partway, clutching at Luis’s biceps as he welcomed in his questing tongue. Damn. Felt like Luis wanted to devour him, his aggression sexy as fuck, and Tucker moaned against his lips, letting him deepen the kiss. He tasted vaguely like cinnamon and beer, but there was also a familiarity there, a flavor that was Luis’s alone that dominated Tucker’s senses.

“More,” he demanded, pulling Luis until they were well and truly tangled together, chests meeting, hands roving, swing swaying.

***

Do you want more Luis and Tucker? Check out FEEL THE FIRE! And if you get it and love it, do let me know. I love hearing from my readers on social media and in my Facebook reader group!


Blurb

The third installment of Annabeth Albert’s Hotshots series—the emotions and intensity of Chicago Fire with the raw, natural elements of Man vs. Wild.

When their career paths bring two high school sweethearts together again, the forest isn’t the only thing ablaze…

Fire behavior specialist Luis Riviera goes where his job takes him. But when he’s assigned to an arson investigation in Central Oregon—the place he left his broken heart twenty years ago—he’s afraid of being burned all over again.

Tucker Ryland had planned to join his first love, Luis, in LA after high school graduation, but life got in the way. Now a fire management expert and a divorced father of teen twins, Tucker’s thrown for a loop when he finds himself working side by side with his Luis, now all grown up and more intriguing than ever.

Though consumed by a grueling fire season and family responsibilities, the two men discover their bond has never truly broken. Tentative kisses turn to passionate nights. But smoking sheets aside, old hurts and new truths stand in the way of this time being the start of forever.

Danger lurks everywhere for Central Oregon’s fire crews, but the biggest risk of all might be losing their hearts. Don’t miss the Hotshots series from Annabeth Albert: Burn Zone, High Heat and Feel the Fire.

Buy Link: Amazon


Bio

Annabeth Albert grew up sneaking romance novels under the bed covers. Now, she devours all subgenres of romance out in the open—no flashlights required! When she’s not adding to her keeper shelf, she’s a multi-published Pacific Northwest romance writer.

Emotionally complex, sexy, and funny stories are her favorites both to read and to write. Annabeth loves finding happy endings for a variety of pairings and is a passionate gay rights supporter.  In between searching out dark heroes to redeem, she works a rewarding day job and wrangles two children.

Connect with Annabeth Albert

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