It’s My Way & I’ll Write If I Want To

I admit it, my writing process is a bit…odd. That’s as good a word as any.

Actually, that’s probably the best word to describe my process of getting those jumbled thoughts out of my head and onto my laptop. And, eventually, published, so you can enjoy the end result.

I’m sure you’ve heard of the pantser vs. plotter debate. It’s as old as the idea of being a published author. And it’ll probably never go away.

Simply put, it’s someone who plans out their book before they start writing, versus the writer who figures out their plot as they type.

Some people feel very strongly that one way is better than the other.

(I’m not one of those people.)

Others claim you can be a mix of the two. As it turns out, for me, anyway, these ‘others’ may be right.

I’ve always insisted that I am 100% a pantser; no ifs, ands, or buts about it. I have far too many outlines without actual books taking up space on my hard drive to deny the cold, hard facts: If I outline a book, it will never get written.

Seriously. Here’s an example: There’s this heroine who’s an attorney and hero who’s a mechanic and also a single dad love story that I’ve had in my head for years. It’s probably been least five, maybe more. But when it first hit me (and they do, seriously; these ideas come out of nowhere and rarely at convenient times), I had way too much else going on to drop everything and start typing away. But the basic premise (the heroine is actually his ex-wife’s attorney and his kid gets kidnapped and she helps him find the little boy and of course they fall in love in the process) wouldn’t get out of my head and I really, really wanted to remember to write this damn story.

So I did a quick outline. I had every intention of returning to this book, after I’d cleared everything that was currently on my desk.

And what did I say? It’s been five years? I still think about this book, pretty regularly. And maybe, someday, I actually will finally get around to writing it.

In the meantime, I’m busy writing all those books I’ve not outlined.

But wait, I mentioned above that I may very well be a mix of these two contradictory writing processes, remember? So, after that example I gave above, what the heck am I thinking?

Stay with me, I promise, it makes sense. No, no, I don’t promise that, because honestly, not much of what I do makes sense to anyone but myself.

Okay, let’s get back to why I think plotting actually sometimes helps me, despite all the evidence against this idea.

See, I am a pantser. An idea will pop into my head, maybe an opening line, maybe an opening scene; sometimes even the end of the book. I’ll stew over this idea for a while. Usually a couple of days, until I have a reasonably large block of time with which to sit down at the laptop and start banging on the keys.

And then that’s exactly what I do: I sit and write. The research happens as I go. Names, often I use “X” or “Y” until something strikes me as appropriate. I’ll have six tabs open on my internet browser, as I verify locations and situations and of course spellings of words (I’m a notoriously bad speller) as I’m pouring my heart and soul into this book. I can hammer out 20,000 words in a weekend, if the idea is that insistent and I blessedly don’t have real world expectations of my time.

But sometimes, that doesn’t happen. Sometimes, the ideas are there but I can’t seem to type them on the screen. My hands hover over the keyboard, the curser flashing on a blank page. Usually that happens when I’m stressed out. Too many constraints on my time, courtesy of the real world. Or maybe it’s been far too long since my house has had a thorough cleaning and I can’t concentrate for all the dust bunnies collecting in the corners. Or maybe I’ve been under the weather with a cold or everyone’s favorite visitor – Aunt Flo. Whatever the reason, there are plenty of them, and sometimes they really do create writer’s block. Which is frustrating as hell because damn it, the ideas are there!

That’s when my concept of plotting comes in handy.

For example, last spring, I was invited to be part of a boxed set called Dark Moon Falls (wanna read it??? Click HERE.). Twenty-thousand words minimum. All authors must write within the same shared world. It takes place in the Pacific Northwest. Here’s a list of characters who live in the town that can show up in everyone’s books. Pick one of these and give him/her a happily ever after or make up your own. Here are the basic parameters.

Boom.

Close enough to the concept to call it plotting, as far as I’m concerned.

And guess what happened? I was hit with a story idea so strong, I had no choice but to ignore everything else in my life and furtively pour it from my brain into the computer. And when I got the first round of edits back from my editor, she said it was the best one I’d ever written.

Obviously, there’s something to this pantser/plotter combo mindset.

At least, for me.

Tami Lund writes books, always via pantsing, although sometimes she uses a vague form of plotting that might not be called plotting by anyone else. But hey, whatever works, right? Here’s her website, so you can check out her books: https://tamilund.com/

Love on the Mountain

There once was a group of authors who all decided to write in the same shared world. Shapeshifters, we decided.

Wolves.

We set the story in a fabled small town at the base of a mountain in the Pacific Northwest. The town, which we named Dark Moon Falls, was small, hardly a blip on the map.

Small, but full of intrigue.

Beside the pack of wolves, a witch’s coven also resided in this beautiful small town at the base of the mountain.

Humans hung out there, too. Some were aware of the paranormal beings living among them, some were not.

Most importantly, there was one true mate for every single one of the wolves in the Dark Moon Falls pack… they just had to find her. Or him.

There’s Jag and Storm’s story – she’s in Dark Moon Falls hiding out from a stalker, and Jag, who is a sheriff’s deputy in this tiny town, is determined to help her, come hell or high water.

There’s Kiera and Ryder’s story – she was almost sold to a rogue wolf pack but found asylum in Dark Moon Falls. Could she find love too?

Cat & Easton have a past – they dated briefly in high school – but then Easton left the pack and they went their separate ways. Now he’s back, injured, and she’s his physical therapist. Sparks fly, but there are secrets in this backwoods town, and Easton’s not sure their rekindled romance can handle the truth when it comes out.

Jaxon & Rhee hook up after meeting at the Wolf Inn, the only bar in town, and they figure it’s a one-night stand. Except they can’t seem to get enough of each other, which isn’t good because Rhee needs to get the hell out of Dodge before she gets herself killed.

In Maddox & Felicity’s story, Maddox is wrongfully imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. Follow along as he works to try to solve the mystery of who done it – while attempting not to fall in love.

Kali & Dane’s story – When Kali’s mother is murdered, she’s determined to bring the bad guy to justice. Dane insists on helping, despite her attempts to keep him at arm’s length, and naturally sparks fly since they are fated mates, after all!

Cooper & Kassidy – Cooper was banished from the pack years ago. Now he’s back to bury his beloved grandfather, who happened to have befriended Kassidy, Cooper’s high school sweetheart. He’s ready to pick up where they left off, but Kassidy needs answers first; namely, why he left in the first place.

Abel & Annalyna – Years ago, Annalyna’s father died helping Abel out of a dangerous situation, and she’s never forgiven him. Now they are forced to face their respective demons, and they just might find love in the process.

Lyall & Natalia – These two have been in love since they were teenagers, but Natalia left Dark Moon Falls in an effort to outrun her fear of turning into her mother. Now she’s back, and someone’s trying to kill her. Lyall has to protect her – while trying to keep his heart out of the mix.

Levi & Zoe – Levi is charged with seeking out Zoe and bringing her back to the Dark Moon Coven where she belongs, and of course they get more than they bargain for when they meet!

Ghost & Mackenzie – He’s a nomad; she’s a single mom just trying to make ends meet. Is a relationship even possible between these two opposites, both with their own issues to deal with?

There are fifteen stories in total, written by fifteen different authors. Some you probably know; some may be new to you. There’s a strong possibility you’re going to find your next book boyfriend in this boxed set.

Here’s the link, so you can get started with falling in love, over and over again: DARK MOON FALLS VOLUME I

PS – Yeah, you read that right. Volume I. Volume II releases in May, 2020. Check it out: DARK MOON FALLS VOLUME II

Happy Reading! 

Tami Lund writes all sorts of books: romcom, wolves, dragons, witches, suspense, and all of them are guaranteed happy endings! Her website has all the deets: https://tamilund.com/

 

 

 

Like Wolf Shifters? Me too!

Dark Moon Falls, a boxed set containing 15 novellas written by 15 different authors, is about wolf shifters. And it’s based in the Pacific Northwest. You know, where Twilight was based. There are witches. Action. Suspense. Sexy times. Hot alphas. Strong women. Great stories.

And all 15 stories are based in the same town, occurring at the same time, affecting the same characters.

Curious yet?

Here’s a tempting teaser from one of the books in the set! 

LYALL

She’s back.

His high school sweetheart. The love of his life.

The woman he let go because she needed to find herself.

Looks like she found herself back in Dark Moon Falls.

She also found herself an enemy.

And even though Lyall swore he was through chasing someone who didn’t want to be caught, he sure as hell was going to protect her from danger.

He’d figure out how to protect his heart later.

When she left town again.

Oh hell.

“Listen, Lyall, I know we didn’t work out so well the last time, but I was thinking—”

“Hey.”

Like a siren’s song, that voice pulled Lyall’s attention to the woman who had stepped up to the end of the bar. Her eyes looked sleepy and her hair was mussed, but not so much that it looked bad, more like it reminded him of all those times over the years they’d slipped upstairs for a quickie when he was supposed to be tending bar.

Her dark curls were pulled back into a loose ponytail at her neck, and she wore a striped T-shirt dress that fell to mid-thigh. There were a pair of bejeweled flip-flops on her feet. She’d put gloss on her lips and maybe some mascara on her lashes, but otherwise, she wasn’t nearly as made up as she was when she’d arrived in town earlier in the day.

Damn, he liked her like this. Natural. Real.

Or at least, that’s how it felt to him. This was the Natalia he’d known all through high school. The smooth, sophisticated woman who walked into his bar earlier was what Lyall liked to think of as Dallas Natalia. The woman who left him for greener pastures that, based on the sadness in her eyes, she hadn’t yet found.

Probably because there wasn’t any grass greener than right here in Dark Moon Falls.

Ava snorted and swirled her drink. “Oh. You’re back. Noticed you weren’t at the burning ceremony.”

Natalia winced.

“Knock it off, Ava,” he snapped.

Ava studied Natalia while sipping her drink.

“You want something?” Lyall asked Nat.

“I’m good right now. Can I help with anything?”

She wanted to stay busy. Was that because of her grief over her aunt or stress over the destruction out at the farm or because she’d just taken a nap in his bed and maybe being there reminded her of all the good times she’d walked away from?

Probably the first two, but he really wanted it to be the third option.

“You’re going to work? Here?” Ava asked.

Since he couldn’t just shut down the bar whenever Natalia breezed into town, it wasn’t unusual at all for her to help out while she waited for him to close each evening. She bussed tables, took drink orders if it was busy enough, and sometimes she even stepped behind the bar and helped him pour drinks. The first time she’d done it, he’d joked that they made a good team, that she should move back and help him run the bar.

She’d taken off that night, a day earlier than she’d planned.

Mental note: no jokes about running the bar together this time.

“I help out where I can,” Natalia said.

“Oh gods, please don’t tell me you’re moving back,” Ava said, taking another swig.

Natalia eyed Ava’s drink. Even though she used to deny it when she lived here and quit talking about it altogether after she left, Natalia was an incredibly powerful witch. Ava, most likely, had no idea, but Lyall was pretty sure Nat was contemplating using some of that magic now.

He placed his hand on the bar, his arm something of a barrier between the two of them. “No, she isn’t. She’s just here to settle her aunt’s estate.”

“I heard somebody trashed the place,” Ava said. She didn’t sound sympathetic or sad.

“News travels fast around here,” Natalia remarked.

Ava shrugged.

“That’s one thing. about small towns,” Natalia continued. “Everybody knows everybody else’s business.”

Ava took another drink and didn’t respond.

“And even if you’ve been gone for a while, say, a few years, all you have to do is stop by the Hot Joy Café and Joy Darling fills you in on whatever you missed.”

Lyall narrowed his eyes. What was she getting at?

“For example,” Nat continued. “I know how many men you’ve hooked up with in the last ten years.”

Lyall’s heart rate kicked up its pace. Ava’s lips curled into a catlike smile.

“And I know that Lyall was one of them.”

“Nat—”

Ava cut him off. “Hey, it’s a free country. And he’s obviously a free man. You’re the idiot who took off and left him behind.”

Natalia stepped around him and leaned over the bar so that she was eye to eye with Ava. “Well, now I’m back. And until I leave again, stop throwing yourself at him like a desperate old maid.”

Ava opened and closed her mouth several times, but no words tumbled from her lips.

Natalia touched the top of the rosemary sprig in Ava’s glass. “Also, I just want you to know that this garnish contains a love potion. You are going to fall madly and deeply in love with whoever you hook up with next, regardless of his feelings on the matter.”

Ava’s eyes went so wide they looked comical. She clambered off the stool and speed walked to the door.

Lyall grabbed the drink and dumped what was left into the sink under the bar. “You lied to her, didn’t you?”

“Yep.”

He shook his head. “Why, Nat? Why the hell act all jealous girlfriend and scare her off when you know damn well you and I aren’t going to hook up? Not to mention, you’re going to leave again. So what the fuck was the point of all that?”

“I—I just…I don’t know.”

“So no point is what you’re saying. You’re fucking with her head, and mine, for no reason? Jesus, Nat, I thought you were better than that.”

He reached under the bar and snagged the bottle of Maestro Dobel.

“Here, just take it. There’s no point in my hanging onto it anymore.”

Grab your copy HERE so that it’s on your ereader as soon as you wake up on November 12th!

Happy reading! 

 

Tami Lund is an author, wine drinker, and award winner. She writes shifters, witches, demigods, dragons, and contemporary romance. You should check out her website for more reads: https://tamilund.com/

Meet the Heroes from Dark Moon Falls

Oh, do I have a treat for you today! I’ve written a book that’s going to be part of a boxed set releasing on Nov. 12. There are fifteen total books in this set, all by different authors. The coolest thing about this set: all the books are set in the same world. It’s the same small town at the base of a mountain in the Pacific Northwest. The same wolf pack with the same alpha and enforcers and sheriff and all the excitement and challenges that come with being part of a pack. It’s the same witches coven that normally gets along swimmingly with their wolf-y neighbors, and yet, issues still arise. It’s the same small town bar (the Wolf Inn, for the record). The same grocery store, town square, local cafe…

It was such a fun project to work on, and I’m super excited for you all to read about this shared world!

To give you an idea of what the characters are like, I thought I’d introduce you to a few of the sexy heroes you’re going to be able to read about – in the authors’ own words:

Lyall (this one’s mine!)

When we were in high school, I thought she was “the one.” Until the day after graduation, when she ran away to the big city.
A decade later, she’s back in Dark Moon Falls, to settle her aunt’s estate. And guess what? That spark, that electricity between us? It still exists. But she’s determined to leave again, this time for good.
Problem is, somebody’s trying to hurt her, and whether we belong together or not, I’m damn well going to protect her.
I’ll figure out how to protect my heart later, when she’s gone again.

Cooper

I headed to the barn where Gloria sat, Kassidy right on my heels. I looked at her bare legs. Gorgeous bare legs that seemed to go on forever, but not the best for riding on my bike.
“You better go put some long pants on if you’re still hell-bent on coming with me.”
“We’re taking your bike?”
“We can’t exactly carry the rifles if we shift to our wolves.”
“Yes, but I thought we’d take the truck.”
“Gloria’s already got all my camping stuff on her and she’s ready to go.”
Kassidy stood there staring at the bike, her brows scrunched too tightly together.
“What’s the matter? You’re not afraid of riding with me, are you?”
She straightened her shoulders, obviously denying her fear. If I knew Kassy, she’d never admit she was afraid of anything. “No. I’ve just never ridden on a Harley before.”
“Trust me. It’s a piece of cake. Besides, all you have to do is sit behind me and hold on tight. I’ll do the driving.”
“Hmmm. Maybe that’s the part I don’t like.”
“Suit yourself. You can stay here.” I threw my leg over the bike and started the engine.
“Wait.” Kassidy ran to the house and two minutes later was back wearing a pair of straight-legged jeans. Was there nothing that didn’t look sexy on this woman? Then she hopped on behind me. “Just don’t crash, okay?”
“Trust me, baby. Gloria and I have a great relationship. I know how to handle her. Hold on.”
When she didn’t put her hands around me I decided to just go. I let out the clutch and we took off. I smiled when she let out a short yelp and then wrapped her arms tightly around my waist. And they felt good. Right. Like home.

Jaxon

Jaxson comes from old money and lives in a mansion on the mountain, but you wouldn’t know it to meet him – he’s down to earth with an unassuming way and oozes rugged masculinity. There is one catch, though… he harbors a closet full of emotional demons that stem from a devastating family secret, and it’s this very thing that ends up connecting him to Rhee, a wild child with a sharp tongue and the woman he wants to claim. Too bad for him, she’s only in town for three days.

Easton

Meet Easton Raines. Broody, hot, and, and currently battling demons from his past. If he wants to find peace, he’ll have to return to the one place he said he’d never go again. Only this time, his wolf isn’t letting him leave without its mate.

Ten years ago, Easton Raines left to start a better life. But a decade away hasn’t done much to solve any of the problems that sent him running. He returns home to find his world much like he left it: broken and empty.
Then he runs into an old flame.
Cat’s loved Easton since high school, but her knack for picking the wrong guy has put her in a dangerous spot.
Easton’s determined to heal himself and hightail it out of there, no strings attached. Will he love her and leave her—again—or will Cat’s past decisions catch up with her and break them apart for good?

Ryder

When I saw her emerge from the forest, covered in blood and dirt, I had to help her, regardless if I had back up or not. The scent of fear permeated the air, something I loathed to smell on a female, and I hadn’t experienced one so strong in the past. Once I reached her, it took a moment to register that she was Kiera, the daughter of an Alpha, whose pack was hundreds of miles away from Dark Moon Falls.
With no other choice, I took her to my home to rest and recover.
In the days that followed, I realized that I’d found my mate.
Kiera told me she felt the same, but her body and spirit were too damaged from what happened to her to commit. She was resisting the draw we had to each other, and I vowed to make them pay for what she’d suffered at their hands.

I’ll wait for her as long as I have to.

Dane

I like to make the ladies laugh. It’s adorable how some of y’all giggle even when I’m not trying to be funny. But I only have eyes for one girl and her name is Kali. I’m ready to settle down and she’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of when it comes to a woman. She’s funny and independent, all wrapped up in one beautiful package. What more could I possibly ask for? But she’s in a dangerous situation that involves the entire town and pack. Now people are dying. I’m hoping my help is enough to take down this evil before it takes more lives. Will our new love survive? I hope so because I can’t lose her now that I’ve found her.

Maddox

Thoughts of clearing my name dissipated when I saw her. She was the woman from my dreamscapes. The woman who appeared in my visions. But I wasn’t looking for something permanent.
She was supposed to have stroked my ego while I found the bastard who committed murder in my hometown. Once my name was cleared, I’d go back home.
But home was no longer a place. It had a face, and a body I couldn’t get enough of. And my wolf wanted her too.
When I was a kid, I had a relative who told me, “Our hearts chose who we loved.”
Maybe she was right.

Ghost

Ghost has been living the life of a nomad. A Lone Wolf. Riding his Harley, picking up odd jobs, and stopping only long enough to lay his head somewhere for the night. But life on the road is no longer as appealing as it used to be and he’s ready to settle down, find a mate, and begin the next chapter of his life.

Dark Moon Falls seems like a great place to do just that.

Mackenzie was born and raised in Dark Moon Falls, but ever since her ex-husband landed in jail based off of her testimony, she’s become a pariah to the shifters in town. Which is fine with Mac, because after being left to raise her son alone, she doesn’t have much faith in them either.

Ghost and Mac are two lonely souls, until fate finally intervenes and puts them in each other’s paths… But will they accept the gift of each other, or are they both too stubborn to see what’s right in front of them?

A man of my talents, I had no problem finding work, but as the years went on I found myself yearning for something more.

Something I’d never wanted… A pack. A mate. A place to put down roots.

After what felt like a lifetime of living out of a bag and roaming like a nomad, I was ready to have a touchstone. Somewhere to return to when the road got too long, and I grew weary of staying at the next motel.

A home.

That’s why I was currently pointed in the direction of Dark Moon Falls.

I’d heard of it numerous times during my travels. A town where shifters roamed freely and lived among humans.

A few of my buddies had settled there, and I’d met some members of the pack over the years, including their Alpha, Elias Grant, who was cool as a cucumber and had the respect of not only his pack, but the entire town.

Although I knew I’d never fully have the need to ride out of my blood, Dark Moon Falls seemed like a good place to settle down and begin this new phase of my life.

Abel

I loved her from the moment I saw her. I could give you a million reasons why but the only reason that matters is because we belong to each other. Leaving her was the hardest thing I ever had to do, but it was the only way to keep her safe.

Now that her father is gone, murdered, I may be the only one between her and those who would want to hurt her if they find out her secret. A secret she may not even know.

She once asked me, “What’s better? A man that would kill for you or die for you?”

I answered, “Both.”

Like what you’ve read so far? Click here to order the entire boxed set from your favorite ebook retailer: DARK MOON FALLS

Thanks for reading! ~Tami Lund

 

Run with the Wolves (aka discounted PNR books!)

Have you ever checked out these Wolf Pack Runs before? If you’re into paranormal reads, it’s well worth your time.

There are mountain lions and spirits and dragons and faeries and wolves and aliens and witches and gargoyles and a phoenix and vampires and magic and cyborgs and surely there’s something on this list that makes you curious!

Click here to learn more>>>WOLF PACK RUN

PS – There’s also a giveaway. A couple of Amazon gift cards. So yeah…click the link above and grab your summer reads!

PSS – The first book in my Lightbearer series is in this Wolf Pack Run, and it’s only 99 cents!      ~Tami Lund

Too Much Fun Scheduled…

It’s graduation/wedding/end of school season. For me personally, it’s also wedding anniversary-slash-daughter’s birthday season. Oh yeah, and summer; trying to get in every single possible second of glorious sunshine-filled days because I live in Michigan and fully understand how few and fleeting those days are.

This summer, so far, I’ve only received one wedding invite; scheduled for the last day of my vacation, no less. But I do have plenty of high school graduations. In fact, I had two invites for last weekend and two more for this upcoming one. There’s also my brother-in-law’s birthday party and my niece’s horse show, my daughter’s last day of school, and prepping (mentally and literally) for the vacation my husband and I are taking for our twentieth wedding anniversary (!!). And as soon as we return, it’s my daughter’s birthday, and after that, I think summer slows down for a few weeks until our annual family vacation (and that wedding) toward the end of July. Thank God.

Oh crap, and I just realized Father’s Day falls in there, too!

Meanwhile, I’m riddled with guilt as I try to juggle two jobs, a teenager, nurturing my garden so I can have fresh salsa by the end of summer, attempting to lose a few pounds so I actually don’t hate the way I look in my swimsuit; on top of all those obligations listed above. Which, by the way, ultimately, will be fun, so honestly, calling them obligations isn’t the correct term, but that’s how I feel at the moment.

Because it’s too much. And yet I want to—or at least feel obligated to—do it all. Two of the grad parties are for children of cousins whose parents are brothers, so optimally I’d like to only do one, but is that really fair? Truthfully, I may not be able to do either, which only adds yet another layer to my constant companion, Guilt.

And then there’s the reality that my husband and I chose to get married on Father’s Day weekend all those years ago, so we have to figure out how to celebrate that special event, honor three fathers (my husband and both our dads), as well as make my daughter feel special on her birthday, which is also right there in the mix. Oh, and three of my five nieces have birthdays all that same week as my daughter. This summer in particular, I am so grateful we enrolled my daughter in the school she currently attends if only because they end their school year a week before her old one does; otherwise, that grand event would be happening right smack in the middle of everything else listed in this paragraph.

Oy, we should have planned out our lives better!

I know, I know, that isn’t how it works, but that comment makes me chuckle because I am, while not strictly Type A, most definitely a planner, and I need to make everything fit, everything work; find order on the chaos that has become my June calendar. (Yes, I still use a paper calendar. Two of them, as a matter of fact. Because I don’t care what you say, it’s just easier.)

And so, up front, before the event-filled weekends even arrive, I have to mentally make the decisions: What will we do? What will we decline? And those decisions are, admittedly, made with my coveted writing time in mind.

If I go to the work event on Friday, the graduation on Saturday, the dinner party on Saturday, and the graduation on Sunday, when will I have time to write?  And so I start trimming obligations, so that I can sit on my backporch and work on yet another novel for your enjoyment.

Because I enjoy it too. And I don’t feel obligated to do it; I simply want to. Which is how writing ultimately is the winner in the end.

Rather, you are.

 

Tami Lund writes books and drinks copious amounts of wine to combat the guilt of choosing writing over all that fun stuff she should be doing. This book just released on May 31, if you want to check it out!

DRAGON IN DENIAL

 

 

HUNGRY LIKE A DRAGON Excerpt

Guess what? I just released a new book–yesterday! Here’s what it contains:

• dragons
• a sexy dragon chef
• a stubborn, strong, badass dragon heroine
• a cute dragon baby
• dragon humor
• witches (and dragons)
• gargoyles (and dragons)
• dragon sexy times
• a dragon-licious happy ending

And here’s a teaser for additional temptation:

“Okay, baby girl,” she murmured as she lifted the child onto her shoulder and gently patted her back. “Let’s get that gas out and then fall back asleep for at least twenty minutes. I need a shower.” Never, until three months ago, had she considered showers to be a novelty, a privilege, a damn-near euphoric experience.

For once, the bundle of adorableness decided to comply, belching loudly enough to make a grown man jealous and then promptly sighing and closing her eyes. She was so damn cute, Petra was tempted to just hold her like this, but reality called in the form of being clean for the date she’d managed to line up for tonight.

Gently placing the sleeping babe in the bouncy seat that was already parked on the bathroom floor, Petra quickly turned on the water and stripped down, ignoring the soft paunch she glimpsed in the mirror before climbing into the shower.

Sadie started crying five minutes later.

“Oh come on,” Petra complained as she rinsed conditioner out of her hair. “I need to shave. It’s been way too long. Birds are starting to look at my legs as possible relocation options.”

Sadie stopped crying.

Petra paused in the act of turning off the water. When the baby didn’t start up again, she picked up her razor, quickly lathered her leg, and got to work scraping off enough hair she worried the drain would clog.

Good thing she was able to get through the task, because she couldn’t wear long pants tonight even if she wanted to. She didn’t have any that were clean. Her choices were shorts or a skirt. Because she sure as hell couldn’t fit into the dozens of outfits she bought for Sadie. Working at a kids’ clothing store was probably not the wisest choice for someone who wasn’t good at self-control.

Clean and freshly shaved, she turned off the water and shoved aside the shower curtain, reaching for her towel.

And saw a man standing in the bathroom, holding her daughter in his arms, his body gently swaying to some silent beat.

Petra immediately summoned the magic, ready to shift into dragon form and scare the living daylights out of whoever the hell dared sneak into her house and pick up her baby girl and…

Her dragon, in stark contrast to Petra’s reaction, was doing a jig, a rather seductive one, at that. Why the hell wasn’t her dragon roaring in her head and demanding to come out so she could rip this guy’s limbs from his body?

The internal confusion gave the man enough time to turn to face her, and Petra’s heart stopped for a long moment, then kicked into triple overtime.

Oh. My. Gods.

Noah.

And jeez, did he ever look good, holding her baby like that.

Their baby.

Oh shit.

“Uh…” She finally tore her gaze away from the man she’d been fantasizing about pretty regularly ever since she sauntered away from him after the most amazing sex ever in the woods behind Gabe’s house. She snagged her towel and quickly wrapped it around herself, hiding her mom bod from view.

His gaze dropped south of the hem of the terrycloth. “Did I give you enough time to shave?”

Her face heated. “Uh…” Crap, was she incapable of forming words? Standing in the tub, water dripping from the ends of her hair, clutching the towel above her heaving breasts, she finally managed the concept of actual speech. “Wha-what are you doing here?”

He indicated the child sleeping on his shoulder. “Meeting my daughter. She is mine, isn’t she?”

Want to keep reading? Of course you do! Head on over to the Bad Alpha Dads website for all the buy links. While you’re there, take a look at the first book in the Taming the Dragon series, DRAGON HIS HEELS, which is on sale for 99c until 1/31/2019!

Happy (dragon) reading!

Tami Lund is an author, award winner, wine drinker, and writer of dragon romance. She also writes mafia romance, and the first book in her Detroit Mafia Romance series releases on 2/28/2019. Stay tuned for more deets…https://tamilund.com/