Today I am so pleased to welcome Chloe Archer to Joyfully Jay. Chloe has come to talk to us about her latest release, The Orc and the Manny. She has also brought along a great giveaway. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!

Exclusive Excerpt

Hulkalicious comes striding toward us, a scowl on his rugged, square-jawed face. 

“Hello, Daddy,” I whisper breathlessly to myself.

Evidently, not quiet enough.

He comes to a halt and frowns. “What?”

Get your act together, Max!

“You must be the daddy,” I say more loudly and nod to the two children.

He blinks in surprise. “Oh…well, I suppose that’s close to the truth. I’m not their biological father, but I am their permanent guardian now.”

Oops! Close one.

The man—er, orc—looks so adorably lost just saying those words that my heart starts to melt like a stick of butter in the microwave. 

I’ve always been a bit of a softie, but this man immediately has my caregiver instincts on highMr. alert.

The poor guy is disheveled and appears more than a little out of his depth—and probably at the end of his rope. He’s wearing tan slacks and a white button-down shirt with a tie, but the clothes are rumpled and his short salt-and-pepper hair is tousled like he’s been running his fingers through it. The bags under his pretty amber eyes speak volumes.

Well, he won’t have to worry any more now that I’m here.

“Dr. Wildethorne, right?” I reach out my free hand to shake his. “I’m Max MacLeod. ASSES sent me over. I’m your new manny.”

The children start giggling and snorting. 

My new employer’s large, green hand engulfs mine, making me feel small for the first time in my life as he shakes it gently. The sleeves of his dress shirt are rolled up to reveal his thick but defined forearms. It’s almost like he knew one of my major weaknesses in advance! I’m going to have so many dreams about those forearms.

His touch is warm and oh so careful. Swoon! By all that is holy, I want to feel those hands all over my body. 

When he lets go, I have to fan myself. Damn it. I cannot be getting turned on by a handshake.

“You said a bad word!” the boy shouts with glee.

I wink at him. “Sorry about that. Entirely unintentional. I was talking about the company that hired me, All-Species Specialized Employment Services. It’s their acronym, so it’s not technically a swear word in this context.”

The side-eye he gives me is one hundred percent calling bullshit, so I beam at him and reach back into my purse for the gift I prepared. Redirection is always an effective strategy. “You must be Harn. I’m Max. Hope you like chocolate chip cookies because I made some just for you.” I pull out the plastic bag tied with a green bow and hand it to him.

His eyes, which are the same amber color as Dr. Hottie Orcalicious’s, go wide. “You can make cookies?” The note of amazement in his voice is reassuring. If I can win him over with food, I’ve got this in the bag.

The bag of cookies, no less.

Blurb

Monsters Hollow, Book 1

Welcome to Monsters Hollow, where love knows no bounds—even in a town full of monsters!

Targan Wildethorne

A confirmed bachelor, and a historian by training, I haven’t the faintest clue how to care for twin orclings when I unexpectedly become their guardian. I’d love to retreat into the comforting sanctuary of my study, surrounded by my books and papers, but first I need to hire someone to help me with the children. Someone who can teach me the ropes of this new role.

Thank the Light for the All-Species Specialized Employment Services! In my most dire hour of need, they find the perfect nanny—ahem, manny—to help me look after my young wards. Now I can finally get back to writing my history of orc folklore for a few hours a day.

Or so I thought.

Instead I find the captivating new man in my home far too distracting. Max is so much more than I had expected. I’ve never fallen for a human before, but I can’t get him out of my mind. Could he ever feel the same about an orc? Humans are usually too intimidated by our large size and outer appearance. Can Max look past my green skin and tusks to see a man with a heart that yearns for him? And if he does, when he learns the truth about the children will the danger on the horizon send him running?

Max MacLeod

Working with kids is totally my jam and I’m damn good at what I do. Just call me Maxy Frickin’ Poppins! When a new job prospect comes my way, I’m intrigued. A chance to move to Mystic Hollow (aka Monsters Hollow) to be a well-paid manny for two adorable orclings? Talk about a dream position. Sold! But when I lock eyes with the seriously sexy orc who’s their guardian—and my new de facto boss—for the first time, I’m a goner. Big, muscular, and green all over–he’s giving me full-on Hulk meets stern professor vibes—and I likeit.

As I get to know him, over meals with the kids during the day and soft-spoken conversations about history at night, I soon realize there’s so much more to Targan than the gorgeous orc who keeps starring in all my naughtiest dreams. He’s quite possibly the kindest, gentlest man I’ve ever met. And he accepts and appreciates every part of me and my flamboyant, full-figured fabulousness. I just want to feed and take care of him—and find out if he’s so deliciously big everywhere. Before I know it, I’m dreaming of being part of a forever family with him and his adorable twins. But an unexpected threat looms in the shadows that could threaten the safety of us all…

The Orc and the Manny is a (94k words) cozy small town M/M monster romance featuring a Hulkalicious silver fox orc professor who’s better with books than kids, a flamboyant human manny with ALL the skills (think Nathan Lane in The Birdcage meets Mary Poppins), an age gap, a size difference, a three-headed hellhound and a feisty rescue Chihuahua, two adorable orcling twins, and copious amounts of orc…joy!

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Bio

Chloe Archer writes M/M sci-fi and paranormal rom coms with laugh out loud humor because she’s all about bringing the funny-sexy back. Oh, yeah!

She currently calls Minnesota home, but has lived abroad in places like Montreal, Edinburgh, and Tokyo. She’s hoping to relocate to Scotland permanently one day if the stars align.

Chloe is a fur mama to two adorable Yorkies, Jasper and Teddy, and she loves them in a crazy dog mama kind of way. When she isn’t busy writing, she enjoys visiting friends and family, traveling, reading, binge watching movies and TV shows, and practicing her karaoke skills. She does a mean cover of Pat Benatar and Cher, or so she’s been told.

Connect with Chloe:
Website: https://chloearcher.com/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071621497295
My FB Reader Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/chloescosmos/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/chloearcher_author/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/chloe-archer
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@chloearcherwriter
Newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/3ax9we3p

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of The Orc and the Manny, Chloe is giving away a $5 Amazon Gift Card, and a Signed Copy of the release! Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for your chance to win!

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