Weekend Writing Warriors ~ 12/19/21 ~ The Widow Wore Plaid ~ Fierce Desire

Posted on December 19, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors !

It’s beginning to look a lot like release day! I can hardly believe it! In just 17 days The Widow Wore Plaid will launch! Stay tuned for details.

So this week I’m going back to snippets from my historical romance, The Widow Wore Plaid. It’s the sixth and final book of The Widows’ Club series and I’m truly very excited to share it with you again.

BLURB:

The Battle of Waterloo made them widows, but each has found new happiness. And Jane, Lady John Tarkington, intends to keep her freedom, even if love—and one particular gentleman—are determined to claim her heart . . .

It is a truth rarely acknowledged—at least in public—that a wealthy widow is free to pursue a great many adventures. For two years, Jane has privately enjoyed her independence. Why should she remarry, even when the gentleman proposing is as wonderful as Gareth, Lord Kinellan? She entreats him never to ask her again. But as her Widows’ Club friends—now all joyfully remarried—gather at Castle Kinellan, Jane begins to wonder if stubbornness has led her to make a terrible mistake . . .

Kinellan needs a wife to give him an heir, and he wants that wife to be Jane. They are perfect together in every way, yet she continually refuses him. Just as he is on the point of convincing her, a series of accidents befall Gareth and point to an enemy in their midst. He has promised Jane a passionate future filled with devotion, but can he keep them both alive long enough to secure it?

I’m skipping ahead several pages for today’s snippet, to a scratch on Jane’s door. The sound she’s been waiting for. Enjoy!

EXCERPT:

A sudden scratching on the connecting door caught Jane off guard. She started up off the sofa, grabbing up her blue silk robe and thrusting her arms into the sleeves. The filmy garment covered almost nothing at all, but a former lover had explained that the things one could not see were more tantalizing than those one could. She would tantalize Kinellan to the very end.

Jane set her face into pleasant lines, not the barest hint of the serious thoughts she’d been indulging in. She sped to the door and lifted the latch, swinging the door inward to reveal Kinellan in his blue striped silk banyan, his chestnut hair shining in the light of the candle he carried.

“Good evening again, my love.” The fierce desire in his dark eyes took her aback. He shoved the candle onto a nearby table, wrapped his hands around the back of her head, and sank his mouth onto hers.

And a little more for good measure…

No matter how many times he kissed her—hundreds and hundreds of times by now—she never failed to thrill to the touch of his lips, firm, commanding, demanding the kiss as he ravaged her mouth. He pushed her back against the wall, then turned her head ever so slightly, aligning their lips perfectly so they melded together.

Her toes curled in her little blue slippers as her knees went weak. Kinellan had always been greedy about kisses, sometimes peppering her face with tiny fleeting brushes of his lips, sometimes dominating her mouth with an intensity that left her literally breathless, as now. Tonight there seemed a special urgency about him that transferred itself to her. If this was to be their final night together, or the beginning of a life spent with one another, then let their passion shake the mountains down around them.

He thrust his tongue into her oh so willing mouth, plundering here and there as if searching for something. Or was he memorizing every inch so he wouldn’t forget?

No, he’d not forget her. She’d make certain of that.

My Rafflecopter giveaway to celebrate the cover reveal and the upcoming release is still available if you’d like to enter it. And as the novel is set in Scotland, I’m giving away a little piece of the Scottish Highlands! A souvenir plot, to be exact, that entitles the owner to be styled Lord or Lady of Glencoe, Scotland! To enter the giveaway, just click this link and follow the Rafflecopter instructions.

UPDATE: I’ve just put my new contemporary Christmas novella, The Present, ON SALE for .99! It’s available on Amazon and on KU as part of a Christmas series called “Christmas on the Side.” It released on November 23rd. You can go check it out here.

On November 17, the Nine Ladies Dancing: Christmas Miracles anthology of Christmas novellas released and is now available on Amazon. My Christmas novella, It Happened at Christmas, is part of that nine author anthology, so you should check it out! Here’s the link. It will also be available on Kindle Unlimited at no cost for members.

And ALL of my historical Christmas novellas are on sale for .99 for the entire month of December: Hearts Beneath the Mistletoe, It Happened Under the Mistletoe, A Match Made at Christmas, Married by Christmas, and Seduction at the Christmas Court.

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the Warriors here. There’s some fantastic snippets to be read.

The Widows’ Club series

Posted in Blog Hops, Historical Romance, On Weekend Writing Warriors, Promotion, Regency Romance, The Widow Wore Plaid, The Widow's Club, Weekend Writing Warriors | Tagged historical romance, Jenna Jaxon, Regency romance, steamy romance, The Widow Wore Plaid, The Widow's Club series, Weekend Writing Warriors | 11 Comments

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ 12/12/21 ~ The Widow Wore Plaid ~ Did She Wish to Change Her Mind?

Posted on December 12, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors !

It’s beginning to look a lot like release day! I can hardly believe it! In just 17 days The Widow Wore Plaid will launch! Stay tuned for details.

BLURB:

I’m starting my snippets where I left off in November, so now we’re in Chapter 3. Gareth, Marquess of Kinellan has just finished dancing with Jane, Lady John Tarkington, with whom his is deeply in love. Jane loves him as well, but is wary of giving up the independence of widowhood, even for this man she loves. As the last snippet ended, they had just made an assignation for after the festivities are done for the night.

EXCERPT:

Of course, it really needn’t be their last.

Desperately Jane tried to stifle the annoying voice in the back of her mind that kept insisting she could simply tell him she had decided to accept one of his former proposals. He didn’t need to propose again. And this was completely acceptable because women were allowed to change their minds about such decisions.

Did she indeed wish to change her mind?

That was the question she’d been struggling with all day. All month, actually. Ever since she’d become painfully aware of Kinellan’s sudden silence on the topic of marriage. She should have been grateful that he’d done as she had asked and steered clear of the subject. But even louder her whispering voice had asserted that what she really wanted was another proposal.

And a little more for good measure…

That aggravating voice always became loudest just after she and Kinellan had made love and were lying in one another’s arms, sated and sleepy, or laughing and teasing themselves into another fit of passion. At that point, sometimes as she was drifting off to sleep, the bothersome voice bluntly told her to stop deluding herself and tell Kinellan she’d changed her mind so, yes, please, she wanted to marry him.

Well, she’d ignored that voice before and would do it again. Yes, she could admit she loved Kinellan, and the little voice would gloat in glee. But that was never the true issue. The question that tormented her was would love be enough for her to give up her independence. If the laws of the land had made marriage anything but the loss of all the rights for a woman, she’d be the Marchioness of Kinellan this moment. But English law was absolute. If she married, her husband assumed all of her property, save anything agreed upon in her settlements, and he became the guardian of her children. A husband took away all rights for her to choose—anything.

Additionally, my contemporary Christmas novella, The Present, is now available on Amazon and on KU as part of a Christmas series called “Christmas on the Side.” It released on November 23rd. You can go check it out here.

PLUS–Kensington has my full-length Christmas novel, The Widow’s Christmas Surprise, on sale for .99 as well. Lots of Christmas reading for a bargain price.

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the Warriors here. There’s some fantastic snippets to be read.

The Widows’ Club series

Traditional Victorian Christmas Dishes

Posted on December 9, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Happy Holidays!

Every month I write a post for another historical romance blod called Historical Hussies. I’m supposed to post the first Wednesday of each month, but somehow I completley forgot December 1st was the first Wednesday. So I was in the midst of writing a post to be posted yesterday, and I was called away and not able to schedule it until today.

Since I wrote about an historical Christmas topic–food–I thought my readers might like to hop over to Historical Hussies and take a look at it. As I was writing it, I really wanted to make some of these dishes for Christmas! Take a look and see if you don’t too! I’ve listed my sources and they have the recipes.

Traditional Victorian Christmas Dishes

One of my favorite Christmas movies is the 1970 musical Scrooge with Albert Finney. The production values of the film are wonderful—as you watch it you truly feel transported into the Victorian London of Charles Dickens. In one sequence Bob Cratchit is heading home, buying Christmas presents, food and drink for the family’s Christmas celebration the following Christmas Day. (For the rest of the article, click the link above.)

Flaming Christmas Pudding

Posted in Cooking and Recipes, Historical Hussies, Holiday Posts, Victorian romance | Tagged . Victorian christmas, Historical Hussies, Jenna Jaxon, Victorian Christmas food, Victorian romance | Leave a comment

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas Romance! Christmas Novellas on Sale!

Posted on December 7, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Happy Holidays!

Christmas romances are some of the most fun reading and really get readers in the mood for the holiday season. So, to fuel my readers’ passion for historical romance, I’ve put all of my Christmas novellas on sale for .99!

Hearts Beneath the Mistletoe–Jenny Crowley has been duped! At her eighteenth birthday celebration her parents announce that instead of having the London Season she’s dreamed of for years, Jenny has been betrothed from birth to Alexander Isley, son of family friends and heir to a title. A distraught Jenny refuses point-blank to marry Alec, and when her aunt offers to whisk her away to a Christmas house party, complete with many eligible young bachelors, Jenny jumps at the chance to enjoy a variety of entertainments, be courted, and perhaps fall in love.

It Happened Under the Mistletoe–Cajoling her parents into spending Christmas in Bath, Lady Sylvia is thrilled to meet Lord Daventry once more at the city’s Assembly Rooms. She and Roger manage a tryst under the mistletoe and Roger is ready to make a declaration for Sylvia’s hand. But when her father is called away on business, and her brother, Lord Chumleigh, arrives to chaperone Sylvia, Roger recognizes a man from his past who can sabotage his hopes of marriage to Sylvia.

A Match Made at Christmas–Unable to find a husband to her liking in three years, Lady Sophia Constantine is appalled to discover she’s promised to allow her grandmother to choose the gentleman. Balking every step of the way, Sophia is compelled to attend a family Christmas party where the man she’s expected to marry will be revealed. But when Grandmamma is delayed in London, Sophia decides to take matters into her own hands to find a husband of her choosing.

Married by Christmas–After two miserable Seasons, Miss Marianne Covington is determined not to have a third and enlists the help of longtime friend William Stanley to assist her. Will wagers he can find her a husband before Christmas. But when none of the suitors suit, he is ready to do something drastic for the woman who’s become more than just a friend.

Seduction at the Christmas Court–Alyse and Geoffrey, Lord and Lady Longford, have journeyed to the glittering Christmas Court of King Edward III in the year 1349 to wait upon the king and take part in some Yuletide merriment. However, when Geoffrey is suddenly called into the king’s service again, Alyse must remain at court, attending the queen and persuading her rebellious sister to accept an unwanted betrothal. When rumors of Geoffrey’s death arise, Alyse fends off an old suitor who wants to renew their friendship. But how long will he take “No” for an answer?

One of my Christmas novellas, It Happened at Christmas (the companion piece to It Happened Under the Mistletoe) is available this Christmas in the Nine Ladies Dancing: Christmas Miracles anthology. So if you’d like to grab the set, you’ll have nine yuletide tales to warm you this holiday season!

And–sing “Joy to the World”–Kensington Publishing has put my full-length Christmas romance, The Widow’s Christmas Surprise, on sale for .99! You might want to grab that while the sale lasts.

Again, Happy Holidays to everyone, and Happy Holiday Reading!

Posted in A Match Made at Christmas, Christmas stories, Hearts beneath the Mistletoe, Historical Romance, Holiday Posts, It Happened at Christmas, It Happened Under the Mistletoe, Jenna Jaxon, Married by Christmas, Medieval Romance, Promotion, Regency Romance, Sales Posts, Seduction at the Christmas Court, Seduction at the Christmas Court, The Widow's Christmas Surprise, Uncategorized | Tagged .99 Christmas novella sale, .99 sale, A Match Made at Christmas, Hearts beneath the Mistletoe, It Happened at Christmas, It Happened Under the Mistletoe, Jenna Jaxon, Married by Christmas, Nine Ladies Dancing: Christmas Miracles, novella sale, Seduction at the Christmas Court, The Widow's Christmas Surprise | 2 Comments

The Widow Wore Plaid–On Tour

Posted on December 6, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Happy December, everyone!

This December, because my upcoming Widow’s Club romance, The Widow Wore Plaid, is releasing on December 28th, I’ve scheduled a Blurb Blast blog tour throughout the month thru Goddess Fish Tours to help get the word out about the book.

As part of the tour I’m offering a $20.00 gift card to Amazon/B & N, so you might want to follow the tour around and enter whenever you come by. To help you visit, I’m listing all the stops on the tour with links below. Here is the list:

December 6: Mythical Books
December 7: Romance Novel Giveaways
December 8: Straight From the Library
December 9: Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin’
December 10: Literary Gold
December 13: Hope. Dreams. Life… Love
December 14: Long and Short Reviews
December 15: The Faerie Review
December 16: Sea’s Nod
December 17:Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read
December 27: Twirling Book Princess
December 28: Fabulous and Brunette
December 29: Cover to Cover
December 30: Crowvus Book Blog
December 31: Our Town Book Reviews
January 3: Iron Canuck Reviews & More review
January 4: Lynn’s Romance Enthusiasm
January 5: J. Lynn Rowan – Author of Romance & Historical Fiction
January 6: Westveil Publishing
January 7: Joanne Guidoccio

Each stop will post the blurb, cover, and an excerpt from the book. There will be a variety of excerpts so you can get a good feel for what the book is like. The winner of the gift card will be drawn at the end of the tour.

I hope to see you on the tour!

The Widows’ Club series

Posted in Blurb Blast for Widow Wore Plaid, Giveaways, Historical Romance, Promotion, The Widow Wore Plaid, The Widow's Club | Tagged $20 gift card giveaway, blog tours, Blurb Blitz Tour, Goddess Fish tours, Jenna Jaxon, The Widow Wore Plaid, The Widow's Club | 1 Comment

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ 12/5/21 ~ The Widow Wore Plaid ~ One Last Moment

Posted on December 5, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors !

It’s beginning to look a lot like release day! I can hardly believe it! In just 23 days The Widow Wore Plaid will launch! Stay tuned for details.

BLURB:

EXCERPT:

The mantel clock had struck twelve sometime before although it had not chimed the half hour yet. Jane sat stiffly on the sofa before the fireplace, staring into the banked embers, in the apartment usually reserved for the Marchioness of Kinellan. One thing to be said for Kinellan—he had not even attempted to be subtle in his wooing of her. Of course, her placement here could have been a simple logistical tactic. This comfortable chamber, with an expansive dressing room, neatly arranged sitting area, and massive four-poster bed, adjoined that of the marquess’s rooms so no one need see Kinellan when he frequently visited her late at night. Still, she thought he wanted to do more than hint at his intentions.

The clock’s insistent ticking reminded her that time was flying by. Not only tonight, but for her whole life as well.

And a little more for good measure…

Glancing at the timepiece yet again, she sighed and rearranged the folds of her dressing gown. Kinellan must have had more business to attend to than just that with his aunt. After their conversation in the garden, Jane had returned to the ballroom. To have retired too early would have been unacceptable as she was the de facto hostess. It would likely have been remarked upon as well. So she’d danced with Charlotte’s husband—Nash was an exceptional dancer—and then Matthew had begged the next waltz, so she’d stayed in company longer than expected. Many large men, like Lord Lathbury, didn’t dance well. They were often unsure of how to move their bodies gracefully on the dance floor and therefore took no joy in the exercise. But Matthew certainly acquitted himself well. As did Kinellan.

He’d not partnered her again, which was understandable, but neither had he sought her out for conversation, which would have been perfectly acceptable. When she was certain he meant to ignore her for the rest of the evening, she’d pled a headache to her friends—which had fooled no one—and had returned to her chamber to ready herself to steal one last moment of pleasure with her lover.

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the Warriors here. There’s some fantastic snippets to be read.

The Widows’ Club series

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ 11/28/21 ~ The Present: Christmas on the Side ~ What Would You Have Said?”

Posted on November 28, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors !

This week I’m continuing with another snippet from my newly released novella, The Present, part of the Christmas on the Side series of Christmas novellas. It released on Tuesday, November 23. It’s a bit different for me–as it’s a contemporary, sexy, Christmas story, but I had written a piece of Christmas flash fiction over 10 years ago, and I suddenly wanted to know what happened to those two characters. Next week I will return to The Widow Wore Plaid.

BLURB:

Tessa Avery’s Christmas has gone from bad to worse. Unemployed for six months and reduced to cleaning her heartless sister’s apartment to make ends meet, Tess is at her wits end how to get back on her feet. Then her sister comes up with an offer Tess can’t refuse: tell Janice’s boyfriend Hal she’s breaking it off with him—two days before Christmas—or Janice will withhold Tess’s payment.

Hal Chapman is livid that his supposed girlfriend tells him they’re through—not even in person, but by way of her sister—and is oh so ready to get even. He offers Tessa the present he’d gotten for Janice, a pair of diamond earrings worth enough to make Tessa’s financial problem a lot easier in exchange for a little revenge against his ex-girlfriend.

When their escapade is over, Hal asks Tessa out on a date. Tess is thrilled, but wary—is Hal really interested in her, or just interested in more revenge? As they come to know one another better, Tess begins to hope for a new beginning with Hal. But when a sudden crisis calls for Tess to make a hard choice, will her ultimate decision sink their budding relationship or turn their night together into the best Christmas present ever?

I’m beginning this week where I left off on Release Day. If you want to find that excerpt, check out the Release Day post.

Tess’s evil sister blackmails Tess into delivering the bad news to the sister’s boyfriend that she’s breaking up with him, just before Christmas.

Here’s a snippet just after Tess and Hal have been found sleeping on Janice’s sofa in a state of deshabille. We are in Tess’s POV.

EXCERPT:

Tess caught a glimpse of her sister’s face, which approached the purple reserved for eggplants, as the door slammed shut.

Hal pulled her down the short corridor toward the parking lot. Thank God her sister lived on the ground floor. It made for a quicker getaway.

Once they were far enough away she was certain Janice couldn’t hear them and hadn’t decided to follow them and keep berating them, Tess looked up at Hal.

A huge grin spread over his face, and he suddenly picked her up and spun her around, whooping with laughter. When he stopped, they leaned together, laughing until Tess felt boneless with relief. And a lot more tingly than she expected.

“Now services have been completely rendered.” He stepped back from her, though his hand seemed to linger as it slid down her arm.

And a little more for good measure…

“Quite to everyone’s satisfaction.” She paused a momentand grinned. “Except Janice’s of course. Revenge is very sweet.”

Hal pulled his coat on and adjusted the collar against the cold night wind. “I just have one question, Tess, if you don’t mind answering it.”

“What’s that?” Shivering, she dug in her purse for her keys, regretting not going for her coat, despite the personal danger she might have been subjecting herself to. That had been her only outer coat.

“What would you have said if I’d really asked you to sleep with me?”

If you’d like to read more, you can buy The Present or get it on KU on Amazon

All Wrapped Up is a collection of four pieces of flash fiction with Christmas themes. One of them, The Present, is the piece my new novella is taken from. It’s FREE on Amazon, if you’d like to take a look!

On November 17, the Nine Ladies Dancing: Christmas Miracles anthology of Christmas novellas released and is now available for purchase on Amazon or via KU. My Christmas novella, It Happened at Christmas, is part of that nine author anthology, so you should check it out! Here’s the link. It will also be available on Kindle Unlimited at no cost for members.

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the Warriors here. There’s some fantastic snippets to be read.

Happy Thanksgiving 2021

Posted on November 25, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

FROM MY HOUSE TO YOURS

As we give thanks for all our blessings over the past year, I wish for you the joy of the holiday season and a happy and healthy Thanksgiving Day.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Posted in Holiday Posts, Thanksgiving | Tagged Happy Thanksgiving, Jenna Jaxon, We Gather Together to Ask the Lord's Blessing | 3 Comments

Release Day: The Present–Christmas on the Side

Posted on November 23, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

**Happy Release Day for The Present!**

Seems I was just releasing a book the other day (I was), but my brand new contemporary Christmas novella, releases on Amazon today!

I’m thrilled with where the story went, although it was rough going switching to contemporary settings and characters after writing historical for so long. There are so many things you need to consider today that you didn’t in the 18th or 19th century (a major one being using protection if the characters are going to have sex!). But I will say I ended up having fun with these characters. So much fun that my editor has persuaded me to write a second book and maybe even a third using characters introduced in this one. So maybe look for volume 2 in July, perhaps? A little Christmas in July is always fun.

The Present is now available for purchase on Amazon! I hope you enjoy it and the other seven Christmas on the Side novellas!

BLURB:

When their escapade is over, Hal asks Tessa out on a date. Tess is thrilled, but wary—is Hal really interested in her, or just interested in more revenge? As they come to know one another better, Tess begins to hope for a new beginning with Hal. But when a sudden crisis calls for her to make a hard choice, will her ultimate decision sink their budding relationship or turn their night together into the best Christmas present ever?

The excerpt below is a continuation of the excerpt I started Sunday in my Weekend Writing Warrior post. If you’d like to read that excerpt, click here.

EXCERPT:

Janice had hurt him, and he wanted to get back at her in one of the most primal ways possible—sleep with someone else. The fact that the someone else was her younger sister would just add gasoline to the flames when Janice found out. Which would probably be tomorrow.

Tess couldn’t blame him for wanting to return the blow to his ego. In her opinion, Janice would be getting exactly what she deserved and more. Tess just didn’t know if she wanted Hal to use her to do it.

It would have been different under other circumstances. Hal was a hot, sexy guy. Tall, broad shoulders—if he kept unbuttoning that shirt she’d know in a minute if he had a six-pack under that designer shirt. What woman wouldn’t want a night in bed with that guy? But it would be revenge sex, short and sweet. It would mean nothing else to him.

Did she want it to mean something else to her? Or could she just chalk it up to a great one-night stand with the added benefit of a generous tip. A three-thousand-dollar tip.

Squeezing the jewelry box closed, Tess raised her chin. “What do you want me to do?”

****

The sound of the door opening brought Tessa up out of the deep sleep she’d fallen into. She turned her head toward the noise to find Janice silhouetted in the doorway. She attempted to raise herself up, but something had her weighed down.

“Tess? I saw your car. What are you still doing here?”

“What time is it?” Tess tried to look at her watch, but her arm was caught under something.

“Two-thirty. I went back to Kevin’s for a night cap and, well, one thing led to another—” Lights flashed on. “Oh. My. God!”

Tess blinked, shielding her eyes. She tried again to sit up, but the something still had her pinned down—when she could focus it turned out to be Hal’s big warm body. He lay sprawled half on top of her, wedged against the back of the couch, wearing only his unbuttoned shirt and very loose-fitting boxers.

“What the hell is going on here?” Janice’s shriek brought Hal’s head up.

“Huh? Morning already?” He peered down at Tess and smiled blearily. “You don’t need to leave yet, do you? I don’t have to be at work until eight.”

“What are you doing on top of my sister, Hal Chapman?” Janice’s voice could have cracked the sound barrier. She stared at them, her gaze going from Hal’s partially naked body to Tess’s equally unclothed one and her face deepened to the shade of the red hand-blown De Carlini Christmas ornaments on her tree. “This had better not be…What have you been…Have you lost your mind?”

Hal peered up at his ex-girlfriend. “I don’t believe I have, Janice.” Then he grunted, freed one hand from beneath them and ran a finger down Tess’s cheek. The unexpected caress made her shiver. “I don’t think I’ve lost anything at all.” He returned his attention back to Janice. “Except a lousy girlfriend.”

Gaping like one of the trout Tess used to catch on fishing expeditions with their father, Janice looked like she wanted to murder one—or both—of them. With no weapon to hand, however, she settled for the next best thing and stalked over to glare down at Tess. “And you, you little slut. You were supposed to get rid of him. Not screw him.”

Aching to haul off and smack the shit out of her sibling, Tess breathed deeply and aimed as low as she could muster. “I figured better me than you, Jan. After everything you’d told me about Hal, I just had to see for myself.” She eyed Hal up and down, a slow, thorough, look that lingered on his boxers. “I have to say, you weren’t lying.”

The audible gasp from Janice almost made Tess sputter with laughter as her sister’s face turned the awful shade of red called puce.

“Out! Both of you get out of my house, this minute.” Janice even stamped her foot, which made it even harder for Tess not to laugh.

Smirking, Hal shifted and eased off her until he sat on the end of the sofa, rubbing the back of his neck. Glancing around the room, he located his pants, draped over an end table. With a loud groan he stood and reached for them.

As he pulled them on, Tess sat up looking for hers as well. She located them wedged between the sofa cushions and pulled. Hal was sitting on them, so of course they didn’t budge. “Hal.”

He turned to her and she motioned to where her pants were trapped beneath him.

“Oh, sorry.” He stood and finished putting on his pants. The whirr of his zipper seemed loud as a chainsaw in the silent room.

Tess jerked her pants from under the sofa cushion, then stood and stepped into them, eyeing her sister.

Eyes bulging, chin quivering, chest heaving as though she’d run a marathon, Janice stalked back to the door and threw it open. “I never want to see you again.” Her gaze flashed from one of them to the other and her voice rose. “Either of you!”

A quick glance at Hal, who nodded, and Tess grabbed the velvet box from the coffee table and paused. She needed to get her coat, but it was in the closet, too close to Janice to chance it. She wouldn’t put it past her sister to throttle Tess if she came too close. She’d have to brave the winter’s chill long enough to get into her car. And pray the heater decided to work tonight.

Hal slung his jacket over his shoulder and put an arm around Tess, guiding her out the door and being sure to put himself between the sisters. However, he stopped just before they crossed the threshold. “Merry Christmas, Janice. Thanks for the present.” He squeezed Tess’s shoulders and promptly ushered her through the door.

Want to read more? Grab your copy of The Present on Amazon now!

Christmas on the Side Novellas

Posted in Christmas stories, contemporary romance, Holiday Posts, New Release, On All Wrapped Up, The Present | Tagged Contemporary Christmas romance, Contemporary holiday romance, contemporary romance novella, Jenna Jaxon, release day, sexy contemporary romance, steamy contemporary romance, The Present: Christmas on the Side | 1 Comment

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ 11/21/21 ~ The Present: Christmas on the Side ~ “It’s Over”

Posted on November 21, 2021 by Jenna Jaxon

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors !

This week I’m switching, just for this week, to my upcoming release, The Present, part of the Christmas on the Side series of Christmas novellas. It releases on Tuesday, November 23. It’s a bit different for me–as it’s a contemporary, sexy, Christmas story, but I had written a piece of Christmas flash fiction over 10 years ago, and I suddenly wanted to know what happened to those two characters. Next week I’ll return to The Widow Wore Plaid.

BLURB:

I’m beginning a little way into the novella. As the blurb states, Tess’s evil sister blackmails Tess into delivering the bad news to the sister’s boyfriend that she’s breaking up with him, just before Christmas. Here’s a snippet where Tess tells Hal her sister is dumping him. We are in Tess’s POV.

EXCERPT:

Swift and painless, like a surgeon. “She went without you, Hal. She said to tell you…” the words stuck in Tess’s throat, and she had to clear it before she could go on, “she said she didn’t think it would work out between you two.” God, she could still barely say the words. What must it be like to hear them? “That it was over.”

Hal stood in the middle of the room, staring at her in disbelief, then his brows came down in a thunderous frown as the lines of his handsome face hardened. His hand clenched on a small, brightly wrapped box Tess noticed only when the paper ripped under the strain.

Oh, shit, he did get her a ring! I’m going to kill the bitch myself.

And a little more for good measure…

He must have seen her eyes on the present because he gave a sharp laugh and thrust the box at her. “Here, Tess. You take it instead. Payment for services rendered as messenger.”

Shaking her head, she backed up a step. She wanted nothing more to do with this whole fiasco except to fix herself another drink then get the hell out of here and go home. “I can’t take that, Hal. You should return it.”

“Open it.” The command was harsh.

Hands trembling, she took the small box. “I’m really sorry she did this to you, Hal.” She looked at his face, but it had been wiped clean of emotion.

“Open it. Please?” The return to a softer voice gave his words a pleading tone, and Tess just couldn’t disappoint the man again tonight.

“Okay.” She finished tearing the red and white striped paper away, and exposed a small, burgundy velvet case. Heart in her throat, she raised the lid of the clamshell to reveal diamond earrings. A match for the swirled pendant on the necklace he’d given Janice. “Oh, Hal. They’re beautiful.”

“They’re yours.”

The words staggered Tess, constricted the air in her lungs. Those earrings could be sold, maybe help her to live until she found a real job. She raised her face and swallowed. “I can’t take these, Hal.”

“Not even for services rendered?”

Her heart took off like a racecar. “Wh…what do you mean? For doing Janice’s dirty work?”

His dark eyes glittered wickedly. “For delivering her message, yes.” She sucked in air, able to breathe again. “And for performing another little service for me.” He tapped the box with his finger. “That would earn those for you—and then some.”

Her breath stopped as Tess stared at him. She’d thought Hal a nice guy, a good guy. Had she been wrong about that? Was he suggesting what she thought he was suggesting?

Pulse racing, her mouth turned dry as he shrugged out of his Armani jacket, pulled his silk dress shirt out of his pants and started to unbutton it. She glanced down at the diamonds in her hand.

If you’d like to read more, you can pre-order The Present on Amazon, or get it on release day, Tuesday. 🙂