Greetings! It's day 5 of my blog tour and I want to thank my awesome CP, Victoria Smith, for allowing me to come on her blog and share an excerpt of my book, The Truths about Dating and Mating, which releases tomorrow!
I
tossed my head back and laughed as he walked away, and then clapped my hands as
the opening beats of Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” came on the jukebox. “I
love this song!”
I
jumped up from my stool and starting dancing, singing along with half the
patrons in the bar.
For
the second time that night, Ian watched me with a smile of amusement as he
leaned his weight on his cue stick. I made an exaggerated fish face as I danced
around and cocked my brow at him. He shook his head, and I could only imagine
the number of synonyms for "nuts" he was coming up with in his head.
Gliding
forward to the beat of the song, I placed my hands on his hips and tried to get
him to move. “Come on, Ian, dance! Move those hips.”
“I
don’t dance,” he said in a monotone, refusing to budge.
“Well,
you know what they say: bad dancer, bad in bed.” I gave him a saucy wink and
pivoted away to grab my drink. I turned back to look at him a moment later,
wanting to see his reaction, but stepped back in surprise when I realized he
was directly behind me. “Whoa. Hello,” I said with a laugh.
With
a wicked glint in his eyes, Ian took the drink from my hand and put it on the
table.
“Hey!
What are you…?”
He
grabbed my hips and pulled me back against him, resting his chin against my
cheekbone. Then he swayed us from one side to the other, winding us slowly and
sinuously toward the ground and back up again in time to the music.
Guh!
“I said I don’t dance,” Ian said into
my ear. His licorice-flavored breath tickled my cheek like a feather and his
whiskers scratched my jaw. “Not that I can’t.” With a playful swat on my
behind, he moved away.
I goggled at the wall ahead of me. Did that just happen? I wouldn’t have believed
it if not for the small sparks arcing back and forth in my nerve endings. I immediately
wanted that feeling – whatever it was – back again. I spun to find him leaning
against the pool table. His mouth was still pulled into that little smile, but
it was missing from his eyes. He actually looked a little uncertain.
Shaking off my lust-induced stupor,
I pointed a finger at him. “You’ve been holding out on me!” I marched over and
grabbed his hand. “Come on.”
He resisted my pull. “Where?”
“We’re dancing.”
He dug his heels in even deeper and
pulled his hand from mine. “No.”
I thrust out my bottom lip.
“No! That was just a…”
“A tease,” I accused. “And it was
nice, but the evidence is still inconclusive.”
“Evidence of what?” he asked with an
exasperated laugh.
I shrugged. “Of whether you’re a
good dancer, and therefore, good in bed.”
His brows lifted in surprise. A
second later, though, a very slow smile moved over his face. He leaned forward and
dropped his mouth next to my ear. “I can give you proof, but like I said, I
don’t dance.”
My
stomach somersaulted. That wasn’t a nudge. That was more of a whack upside the
head. “Why, Mr. Hollister, are you propositioning me?” I asked in a horrible
fake southern drawl.
He
assessed me for a moment. “Maybe I am. Would that be so wrong?”
What
a frustrating move, turning it around on me. My insides trembled, but a rush of
excitement took flight in my bloodstream. I knew I should just laugh it off and
get back to the game, but a part of me was itching to see how far he was
willing to take this flirtatious banter.
I
smiled coyly and shrugged. “Another drink, and I may be propositioning you.”
He
stood and grabbed my glass from the table. “Allow me to get you a refill,
then.”
Well, there you go! Thanks for reading!
The Truths about Dating and Mating
Author: Jaycee DeLorenzo
Release Date: November 21, 2012
Spunky Italian coed Ivy
Rossini likes to talk and push the boundaries. She gets to do both as she
co-hosts Riordan College’s radio program, The Truths about Dating and Mating,
alongside her lifelong best friend, Ian Hollister.
Being the only girl who cares to see beyond Ian’s bad boy reputation has its
advantages, especially when he’s scaring off the jerks who just want to nail
the campus sex-guru. It’s when he’s “protecting” her from the advances she
welcomes that she wants to lob him over the head and tell him to butt out. But
Ivy’s feels like she’s the one who’s taken a hit when Ian almost kisses her at
a party. She knows she should feel relieved when he pulls away, so why is she
disappointed instead?
What’s worse, Ivy’s now getting aroused by Ian’s slightest touch and can’t stop
entertaining thoughts of a romantic future. But Ian doesn’t do relationships,
and she’s not interested in anything casual. In the end, Ivy decides it’s best
to keep her growing feelings a secret and hope they’ll pass. However, when Ian
begins hinting at wanting to take things to the next level, she’s forced to
decide if a chance at something more is worth risking everything they’ve built.
With their friendship and her heart hanging in the balance, can Ivy follow the
advice she and Ian give their listeners - to communicate, be honest, and trust
in themselves - or will insecurity, stubbornness, and pride ruin any chance of
their relationship getting off the ground?
About The Author:
Jaycee
DeLorenzo hails from Tucson, Arizona, on the outskirts of the Saguaro National
Park – which she believes to be the most beautiful spread of desert in the
world. By day, Jaycee is an English language teacher to elementary students. By
night, she’s a wife, mother, writer, cover artist, website designer, and
blogger. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, cooking, singing (very poorly),
catching up on her favorite T.V. shows, and researching.
The Truths about Dating and
Mating is Jaycee's debut novel, and the first in a series centering around
students of the fictitious Riordan College.
Find me on the web:
