Today I am so pleased to welcome Deanna Wadsworth to Joyfully Jay. Deanna has come to talk to us about her latest release, Always the Best Man. She has also brought along a great giveaway. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!
Exclusive Excerpt
“Boyfriend not jealous you’re going to Vegas with us, Mike?” Jackson asked his cousin. He reclined in the booth, draping an arm behind Dillon and resting one foot on his knee. That knee brushed Dillon’s thigh and he was proud of himself for not flinching or moving away. He was less proud of himself for liking it—but that was beside the point.
“Anna was jealous she wasn’t invited,” Mike’s twin Danny said with a laugh, referring to their younger sister.
“Nope, I love Anna, but boys only this weekend,” Jackson declared.
“She understands,” Danny said. “But she was jealous.”
Mike smiled. “Beau understood that you needed us, too. All of us.”
“We’re here for you, cuz,” Danny agreed.
“I’m glad you’re here.” Then Jackson turned his gaze on Dillon, a faint smile on his full, defined lips. “Wouldn’t wanna spend this weekend with anybody else.”
“How are you doing, man?” Mike asked with a sympathetic smile.
Jackson groaned dramatically and shifted his arm and legs—sadly not touching Dillon anymore—to lean forward and place both hands on the table. He looked at each of them in turn. “Please, no more pity. I can’t stand it. Everybody at the office keeps giving me these pathetic looks and treating me like I’m some delicate vase that might break. I’m fine. The situation is fine. I just wanna have fun with my boys and forget all about weddings, women, and drama. Deal?”
“Well, I can’t promise not to be thinking or talking about women, because I wanna see some skin,” Danny declared.
“Yo,” Mike said, slapping him on the chest with the back of his hand. “I’m not going to a tittie bar.”
“You’re bisexual. That means you still like, um… the ladies. Why can’t we go?” Danny complained, his innate modesty visibly battling with the hormones of a twenty-something male.
Dillon tried not to chuckle at the twins.
“No,” Mike said firmly. “I’m getting married and you know I hate strip clubs. They’re filthy and degrading. You don’t know what someone did on that seat you’re sitting on. And jeesh, those girls are someone’s daughter. Their niece.” He raised his thick brows for emphasis. “Ever think about that?”
“Way to ruin it for everybody,” Danny griped. “I guess we can find an overpriced review. Those girls are probably fighting to be on stage in Vegas, and you can’t make me feel guilty about that.”
“Or not. I’m perfectly content not seeing titties,” Dillon announced.
Jackson laughed loudly and threw a brotherly arm over Dillon’s shoulders, tugging him into a playful headlock. “Alright then. Dillon decided. No tittie bars or topless reviews.”
“Poor, Danny,” Mike teased. “You won’t get to live out your Motley Crüe Girls, Girls, Girls music video fantasy.”
“You guys suck,” Danny grumbled.
“Oh, I don’t know how much we suck,” Jackson said, arm still slung around Dillon, which he enjoyed way more than he should. “But I hope Dillon does. And for Beau’s sake, I hope Mike does, too.”
Dillon laughed and pushed Jackson away. “So lame,” he teased, the playfulness easing some of his nerves. He needed to stop being such a weirdo in his head, and just loosen up.
Mike turned twenty shades of beet-red. “Oh my God, be quiet.”
That made Danny burst with laughter, which was doubtless what Jackson intended because he fist-bumped him as they teased a blushing Mike. Dillon rolled his eyes at their antics.
This would be an interesting trip.
“And this weekend won’t suck,” Jackson said as he withdrew a large gray envelope from his bag. “This jilted groom’s package is pretty epic. The travel agent lady gave me all kinds of free food and loads of drink tickets.”
Dillon hoped there weren’t coupons for the Bunny Ranch in there.
Can you get discounts at a whore house?
He leaned closer and took a deep inhale of Jackson’s herbal cologne before he could stop himself. Jackson didn’t seem to mind Dillon in his personal space as he turned the open envelope so Dillon could examine the contents, too. The agent who put the package together went by the name Lady Phoebe—was she some kind of royalty or was Lady her first name?
“Unlimited drinks at the swim-up bar all weekend,” Jackson continued. “Cocktail coupons for the lounges. A complimentary dinner for all four of us at some Mediterranean place, free appetizers at another Fourth Base. Ziplining, loads of gambling vouchers, and four tickets to one of the Cirque de Soleil shows. For some reason there’s a candlelit dinner-for-two included in here that’s probably a mistake,” Jackson said, yanking it out.
Before he could crumple it up, Dillon grabbed it. “Hey now, don’t be throwing free food away. Not all of us are fancy lawyers.”
“And not everybody got to follow their dreams,” Jackson said, smiling softly with those dimples.
Why does he keep giving me that soft, dreamy smile?
It’s not dreamy, dumb-dumb! He’s probably just being sad and nostalgic!
Either way, Jackson’s lingering smile made Dillon awkward so he turned away. He’d never seen that look on Jackson’s face before. Yes, he knew all too well when they’d gone to college Dillon had pursued his passion for the arts, choosing to become a middle-school art teacher. While Jackson’s parents—never satisfied with their perfect son—had insisted on law school. He’d made comments about Dillon being able to follow his dreams before, but it had usually been to grumble about his parents, not with a wistfulness bordering on… what? Pride? Jealousy? Happiness?
Dillon couldn’t quantify Jackson’s weird expression, didn’t want to read into it either.
Maybe Jackson was reevaluating his life choices. Being left at the altar would do that to anyone.
Blurb
Destiny Ink Romance, Book 13
What happens in Vegas doesn’t just stay in Vegas.
Since high school, Dillon Hintz has been in love with his straight best friend, Jackson McCaughey. He knows nothing will come of his crush, however, because Jackson is getting married… until his fiancée leaves him at the altar. WTF?
To compensate for a lost honeymoon, Destiny Resorts offers Jackson a jilted groom vacation at their luxurious Las Vegas casino, courtesy of the sisters Fate. Jackson invites his twin cousins and Dillon to be his plus-threes, and the guys set out for a fun-filled weekend to help Jackson party away his heartbreak. But Dillon is surprised to find his best friend isn’t very heartbroken.
In fact, Jackson is being unusually attentive with Dillon. Flirty even.
It has to be Dillon’s imagination, right? There’s no way his straight best friend is interested in nerdy Dillon.
But after one night of too much fun and alcohol, Dillon wakes up in Jackson’s bed… wearing a wedding band. WTF?
Just what did they do last night?
Bio
Deanna Wadsworth might be a bestselling erotica author, but she leads a pretty vanilla life in Ohio with her wonderful husband and a couple adorable cocker spaniels. She has been spinning tales and penning stories since childhood, and her first erotic novella was published in 2010. She has served multiple board positions for different RWA chapters, including President of the Rainbow Romance Writers in 2017. When she isn’t writing books or brainstorming with friends, you can find her making people gorgeous in a beauty salon. An avid reader, she also loves gardening, cooking, music, and dancing. Often she can be seen hanging out on the sandbar in the muddy Maumee River or chilling with her hubby and a cocktail in their basement bar. In between all that fun, Deanna cherishes the quiet times when she can let her wildly active imagination have the full run of her mind. Her fascination with people and the interworkings of their relationships have always inspired her to write romance with spice and love without boundaries.
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You can also find her young adult alter ego, K.D. Worth Amazon?Twitter?BookBub
Giveaway
To celebrate the upcoming release, Deanna is away 2 e-copies of Book 2 Accidentally Beautiful! Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for your chance to win!
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