About Me
- Pamela Clare
- I grew up in Colorado at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, then lived in Denmark and traveled throughout Europe before coming back to Colorado. I have two adult sons, whom I cherish. I started my writing career as a columnist and investigative reporter and eventually became the first woman editor of two different papers. Along the way, my team and I won numerous state and several national awards, including the National Journalism Award for Public Service. In 2011, I was awarded the Keeper of the Flame Lifetime Achievement Award for Journalism. Now I write historical romance and contemporary romantic suspense.
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Monday, November 16, 2009
Naked Edge wallpaper/Excerpt
I just had to share this right now. Jennifer Johnson made it for me this evening, and it will soon be up on my Web site as downloadable wallpaper beside the other fun wallpaper she's made for the I-Team series.
It won't be up online for a while, so if you just can't wait, email me and I'll send it to you.
Thanks, Jennifer!
I'm in the middle of a massive Web site update. There are many new foreign covers, as well as an excerpt from Naked Edge and the novel-length author's note. OK, it's not quite that long. It's only eight pages, but for an author's note, that's looooong. My editor read it and said, "It's a lot more than I expected but then you never do anything half way."
Work at the paper is ratcheting up for the holidays, and things are busy with this book even though I'm done writing it. I'm almost done proofing the second round of copy edits to make sure no one added mistakes to the book. In some places, the accents on the Navajo words were changed, which if you know anything about Navajo, is a big deal. So I'll get those fixed. And then the book will head off to the presses. Before long there will be Advanced Review Copies (ARCs), and I'll be holding contests here and on my Yahoo group to give some copies away.
For now, though, just wallpaper. And this excerpt...
Haha! Yes, it's torture time again!
From Naked Edge:
Geee-zus!
Gabe sucked in a breath, shocked by the blistering impact of Kat’s unexpected kiss, heat shearing through his gut at the first clumsy press of her lips against his. Even as his body responded, some part of his brain knew this shouldn’t be happening. “Kat, you’re upset and tipsy and—”
She kissed him again, tilting her head to better slant her mouth over his.
Christ!
He turned his face away, felt her lips brush his jaw. “Honey, you don’t really want this. You’ve just lost—”
She made a little sound of protest, her arms sliding behind his head, drawing his lips closer to hers, as if to show him that she did really want it.
Good. So did he.
Ignoring the pathetic warnings of his conscience, he took control of the kiss, drawing her tight against him, capturing her mouth with his.
God, she tasted sweet! She smelled sweet, too — like honey and woman. She gave a little whimper, melting against him in a way that was utterly feminine, every inch of her soft body molding to his, her breasts pressing against his ribs, her lips parting to give him access. He swirled his tongue over hers, felt her body tense. And through a pheromone fog, he realized she wasn’t just a virgin between her legs.
Kissing — real kissing — was new to her, too.
Not just virgin, buddy — extra virgin.
He reined himself in, gentled the kiss, slowed it down, brushing her lips lightly with his, teasing their outline with the tip of his tongue, nipping their fullness, his lust for her at war with some strange urge to protect her from himself. In his world, any night that started with kissing ended soon after with fucking. His cock had already risen to the occasion and strained painfully against his fly, looking for the surest route out of denim and into her. But that couldn’t happen — not tonight, not when she was vulnerable and afraid and hurting, probably not ever. She wanted happily ever after, and all he could give her was sex. Still, he could keep kissing her…
Hell, yeah.
He claimed her mouth in a no-holds-barred kiss, penetrating deep, taking her tongue with his, sucking it into his mouth, biting down. She whimpered, kissed him back, meeting the strokes of his tongue with her own, her fingers curled in his hair, her body almost undulating against his, communicating in a primal language of its own, one Gabe’s body understood only too well.
Katherine James might want to save her virginity, but her body had other plans.
With a groan, he drew her beneath him, testosterone shorting out his brain, his body taking over, his blood running hot and fast. He found her throat and pressed his lips against the rapid beating of her pulse, kissing a path over soft, sweet skin, tasting her, nibbling her earlobe. And he wasn’t finished — not by a long shot.
Kat heard herself whimper and turned her head to the side, surrendering her throat to Gabe, the heat of his lips raising goose bumps on her skin, his male scent filling her head, the hard press of his body on top hers making her belly flutter.
She’d never felt anything like this, never even imagined it — the heat, the intensity, the overwhelming physical force of it. Her body trembled, and her heart raced, her breathing uneven as if she’d been running. And she was running — from her grief, from her fear, from everything that hurt. Some part of her knew this, but that only made her run faster.
The rules don’t apply tonight.
She didn’t stop him when he slid a callused hand beneath her sweater to trace tiny circles up her ribcage. She didn’t object when his clever fingers found the clasp of her bra between her breasts and unhooked it. And when he cupped her left breast, when his thumb flicked her nipple...
She gasped, stunned, the sensation too astonishing, too arousing, too wonderful to be real. Jagged shafts of heat seemed to shoot straight from her breast to her belly, turning to liquid between her thighs.
“You like that, don’t you?”
At the husky sound of his voice, her eyes flew open. She found him looking down at her, his breathing as rough as hers, his blue eyes burning, a smile on his wet lips. She forced herself to hold his gaze, shocked by the intimacy of watching him as he watched her, as he watched the effect his touch had on her, his hand still cupping and shaping her breast, his thumb tracing lazy circles over its aching crest.
And the heat in her belly became a wildfire.
Then he pushed her sweater up, baring her breasts, his gaze raking hungrily over her. “God, Kat, honey, you’ve got beautiful breasts. They’re so… Mmm.”
Whatever he’d been about to say became a moan as he ducked down and drew one of her nipples into the scorching heat of his mouth.
“Gabe.” Kat’s body jerked at the initial shock of it, the pleasure staggering as he suckled first one nipple and then the other, tugging at her with his lips, teasing her with velvet strokes of his tongue, tormenting her with nips of his teeth. It was sweet, so sweet, and terrible, too, the fire between her thighs now a throbbing ache. She heard herself calling his name, felt her hips lifting toward him, wanting, wanting…
Wanting him.
He groaned, settled his weight between her thighs, and answered her need, grinding what could only be the thick ridge of his erection against her… there. Slowly, so slowly he moved against her, taking the edge off the ache, only to make it so much worse. She was wet, the emptiness inside her burning, her inner muscles clenching around nothing. And she knew.
If he kept going, if he pressed her, she wouldn’t be able to stop him. She wouldn’t want to.
Gabe’s body was strung so tightly he thought it might snap. He’d been a damned idiot to take it this far. He’d wanted to give her the comfort she so obviously needed, and one thing had let to another. Or that’s what he’d told himself. In truth, he’d wanted to kiss her and hold her — and so he had.
He needed to stop. But how could he when Kat was coming apart in his arms, her response burning him up? Her little mewls and whimpers were driving him out of his mind, her wine-dark nipples drawn into tight buds that begged for his mouth, her hips moving in a way that was both feminine and undeniably erotic. He didn’t want to stop — oh, hell, no! He wanted to fuck her long and hard. He wanted to make her come again and again. He wanted to forget himself inside her.
And then what, buddy? You’ll pluck her sweet cherry and show her the door? She deserves better than that, and you damned well know it.
Gabe dragged his lips from hers, forced his hips to hold still, sexual need grinding in his gut, blood pounding through his veins. “Kat.”
She looked up at him, so beautiful it made his chest ache, confusion and longing in those hazel green eyes, tear stains on her cheeks, her lips red and swollen, her delicious breasts rising and falling with each rapid breath — no makeup, no silicon, nothing but sweet, soft, sexually aroused woman.
He fought the urge, so elemental, to kiss her again and settled for running his knuckles over her cheek. Somehow, he managed to string a few words together. “If I don’t stop now, honey, we’re going to be at this all night.”
(c) 2009 Pamela Clare
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Kat is the first contemporary heroine I've written as a virgin — and for reasons that become apparent in the story. It was an interesting experience. But more on that in another post. I have pages to copy edit!
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29 comments:
You are more than welcome Pamela! It's always a lot of fun working with you and a huge honor. :)
I can't wait for the book to come out!!! Woohooo that excerpt is HAWT!!! You sure know how to turn up the heat and how to torture us, but in a good way. :)
Oh wow I cant wait for this book to come Im counting the days till it comes
Cant wait for this to come out. That was hot! Which chapter is this in? I'm trying to figure out the chronology of the excerpts. LOL! ;D
Have a nice day Pamela!
Wonderful excerpt, Pamela! I really like the fact that Kat is a virgin...I guess I can relate to her much more easily than a more sophisticated woman who has had multiple lovers. I have a harder time connecting emotionally with a character who doesn't look at physical intimacy as a deeply personal moment--that's just me and the way I'm wired. Come to think of it most of my friends are 'one man' kind of women...hmmm.... Anyway, you've written Kat beautifully and I can't wait to read the whole book. Any tentative release date yet?
Aw, thanks, Jenn! I really appreciate your words and your help. I must have a sadistic side because I do enjoy the torture part. Then again, this is mostly pleasant torture (I hope). :-)
Thanks so much, Tena. Not too long now. OK, so about 3.5 months. LOL!
Hi, Ronna — That excerpt is a snaxy little bit from Chapter 6. Do I have the chapters on the other excerpts?
And make sure you vote for your fave pie, everyone. The Pumpkin Piers are beating the rest of us. I vote for Pecan. And who are you anti-pie people? Show yourselves! ;-)
Hi, Rita — That's good to hear. I worried that contemporary women might have a hard time relating to Kat because of that. It's a cultural thing for her, as well as part of her personality. There's actually a release date — and it's official and iron-clad: March 2. So it's kind of a birthday present to me. I don't have a birthday this year, but if I did, it would be two days prior to the book's release. :-)
Great excerpt, Pamela. I also like the fact that Kat is a virgin. It makes scenes like this more emotional as well as HOT! Can't wait till March.
Jenn! Fantastic Job! I can't wait, this is so going on my laptop!!
Ohh, I don't want to wait to read Naked Edge!!!!
You have it on some, but i can kinda figure out through the excerpts, sorta. Cause you mention some of the past events in that chapter. So I can kinda tell which one's first. ;D
Wow, the wallpaper is gorgeous, Jenn.
I loved the excerpt, Pamela. I can't wait.
Ooooo, very nice, PC!;)
Great job Jenn!
My God! You had me panting in the shop (vbg). Wow, that Gabe is something else (drool).
Pam, are you going to RomCon next year?
Hi Ms. Pamela, I found you thanks to the wonderful Ms. JennJ!!! And all I can say is that I just have spent hours in my freeze trying to cool off from that excerpt!!!!
I have it posted up on my side bar of upcoming releases... In March, right??
I am now a follower!
Hi, Linda — I'm glad you're not bothered by the fact that Kat's a virgin. These days, probably not one in 1,000 women who are 26 or older are virgins (excluding nuns, of course). But Kat, because of her heritage and upbringing, is a virgin.
At one point in the story, Gabe wonders how long it's been since he's heard the word "virgin" used for anything other than olive oil. So the "extra virgin" comment in this scene refers back to that.
Hi, Book Junkie — Send me an email (pamelaclare at earthlink dot net) and I'll send you the wallpaper now, so that you don't have to wait for that, at least. And it's beautiful, isn't it? I just love this cover.
Hi, Ronna — Well, I will say that this is Kat and Gabe's first make-out session. This is their first kiss. Does that help? ;-)
Hi, Jane — Jenn is very creative and has a great eye for these things. She's designing a new header for my blog. Woohoo! I got a sneak peek this morning and loved what she's doing. And I'm glad you're excited. Me too!
Hi, Debbie — Thanks so much on both counts. :-)
Hi, Lucy — Yes, I'll be at RomCon. Are you coming? I'll be blogging about it soon. I can't wait to meet Anna Campbell, who will be there. Christine Feehan will also be there. And Tara Janzen, whom I adore and who lives about 40 minutes away from me.
I'm glad the scene got you hot and bothered. :-)
Hi, Cecile! Welcome to my blog! I'm so glad you found your way here. JennJ is wonderful, isn't she? She's one of the kindest women you could hope to meet. And a talented artist.
Yes, NAKED EDGE will be out in March. And thanks so much! I'm glad you liked the scenes. There are several others posted here and on my Facebook page if you want a bit more. *bg* I'm thrilled to have you as a follower!
Well, everyone, I brought a mountain of work home from the paper. I'd best get to it while my brain is functioning. :-p
Yeah. It does. This is what I got so far.
Chapter 1(assuming it is chapter 1): When Kat met Gabe
Chapter?: Kat and Gabe meet again when some lame police guy interrupts Kat's ritual(this was in the back of UNLAWFUL CONTACT)
Chapter 6: Kat and Gabe's first make out session
Chapter 10(I dunno which is first, but I'm guessing it's the drunk Gabe): (1)Kat picks up a drunk Gabe from the bar, then Gabe wakes up win a total hangover; (2)Gabe watches Kat while she sleeps while trying to keep his hands off her
Chapter: 19: Kat and Gabe sorta did it. Kat made dinner while Gabe is totally mesmerized by Kat
Chapter 25: Kat and Gabe were just going to do it.
I usually don't like spoilers, but I can't resist excerpts! My favorite was when Kat picked up Gabe from the bar. Hilarious, awkward, sweet and hot at the same time. ;D
O M G!!! I can't believe you stopped there. That is so hot. Jo Davis has a virgin firefighter in one of her books. You've proven that you can still write a sexy book with that premise. You dare to be different. Bravo. You dare to tease too but that's cause you're out of reach LOL.
Oh. My. God. Wow! That was just wow. I am so crazy in love with the I-Team series, and am so excited for the newest book! Thanks SO much for the teaser!
Lord have mercy!! I don't know if I can wait for March to get here!! I will definitely be on the lookout for Naked Edge. What a great cover.. I have read all your contemporaries and I love them!!
Hi, Ronna — Well, you definitely have them in the right chronological order for sure. You know, I love the drunken Gabe scene, too, even though it can't be too sexy to see a guy puking his guts out. But somehow he's so vulnerable and ridiculous in that scene. (I always feel like the characters do these things and that I had nothing to do with their creation so this probably sounds weird...) Anyway, I love that one, too.
Hi, Mary G — A virgin firefighter? That's interesting. I had to cut this scene off where I did — and start it no sooner than I did — because I didn't want to give away a KEY bit of information that I think would be a true spoiler. And I couldn't do that to you. I laughed out loud when I read the part about being out of reach. Yes, I'm safely at a distance. So I can torture you all without having to run. :-)
Hi, KristinCP — I'm so glad you love the I-Team. I have to admit being pretty enamored of the characters myself. Do you have a favorite hero? I'm so glad you enjoyed the little excerpt.
Hi, Martha — Thanks so much! I'm so glad you love the cover. They do such a fantastic job with them, I think. I like every I-Team cover, and this one is so wonderful. Hopefully, March will come quickly.
Pamela--Thanks so much for writing back! I have to admit, I've only read Unlawful Contact and Hard Evidence so far, but Extreme Exposure is on order at B&N right now :) Of the two, Hunt is my favorite. Maybe because Unlawful was the first I read? But Julian is absolutely amazing as well...and I have NO DOUBT that ALL of your heroes are equally brilliant! Keep writing the series, and I'll keep reading!
Hi, Kristin — You're so welcome. My pleasure. I truly enjoy chatting with you all.
You know, I've found that the first I-Team book a person read tends to be their fave hero. I'm not sure why. Perhaps because the first book we read by a new author really imprints on us because that's our first taste of that author's voice and writing style. Then again, each of the heroes is different (I HOPE!) and people like different things.
One thing I observed while writing them is that Marc seems darker on the outside than Julian, being a convicted murderer and all, while Julian is darker on the inside. I guess whom you like most depends on how that works for you.
Reece is in a different category all together. But I'll let you discover that on your own. :-)
BTW, someone searched this blog this morning asking how old Julian is. I can't remember. Do any of you know?
You know, I think you're probably right. I think most of the books I read, especially where the heroes and heroines switch throughout a series like yours do, I tend to fall for the first one I read.
The thing about Hunt for me was probably like you said, he's dark on the inside. He has such a dark past, and a horribly sad story, but he's like a giant (sexy as hell) teddy bear, and I couldn't help but fall in love with him.
I have to tell you also that I truly love that your series takes place around journalists, I'm an editor and reporter for a small weekly newspaper (not NEARLY as exciting) but still, I relate to those aspects of the journalistic world :) Just one more thing that hooked me to this series!
O.M.G! Another journalist! Lots of questions: Where's your paper? Is it an altweekly and AAN member? What do you report on?
I'm editor-in-chief of an altweekly in Boulder, CO. I used to be E-in-C of a daily.
Tell me more about it.
No, it's not part of AAN. It's actually an all agriculture based newspaper in California's Central valley (we're in ag country here!). Like I said, not nearly as exciting as the I-Team ;-p We're published by a non profit county farm advocate group (Farm Bureau), and we're the only weekly of its kind in the country. That's my bragging right! lol
I like the weekly schedule, and as much as I used to want to end up at a daily, I honestly don't see myself wanting to after four years at a weekly pace, you know? Does that make me lazy, or just comfortable?
But even in agriculture, I'm surprised that every once in a while, I do get to report on exciting things. Like this week, I followed around a CA state senator for an interview, and tomorrow I'm writing a feature on a former secretary of agriculture for the state of CA. I've met a lot of politicians, and acquired a huge list of contacts. Then again, sometimes I write about cows and poultry. Still, I'm in print journalism, a dying genre of news, and I love it!
I knew when I read Unlawful Contact that you had to have a journalism background, then I read your bio, and wasn't surprised :)
Oh, I'm so tempted to go to RomCon but the RWA conference is on later that month too. Hmmm, maybe I can go to Colorado, tour around a bit for 2 weeks, then go to RWA, then come home :) I just don't like the thought of all those flights (argh!).
OK avoiding excerpt.... I will be strong!
Fantastic wallpaper yummmmmy!!
Can't wait for the release!
Absolutely out of this world excerpt! Listen to my fangirl squealing. LOL. Loved it and look forward to the book.
All the best,
Denise A. Agnew
www.deniseagnew.com
Lucy, I think a Colorado vacation is just the thing! I'd be happy to be your tour guide. :-)
Hi, Amanda — You've got strong willpower! March isn't too far away. If you want the wallpaper early, just email me and I'll send it your way.
Hi, Denise! Wonderful to "see" you! Thanks for the fangirl squeals. I'm so glad you enjoyed the excerpt. I hope all is going well for you. When's your next book out?
Ooh, that was not nice, torturing us like that, Pamela.
I'm another person who likes (okay, LOVES) virgin heroines. It's hard for me to read a book if the heroine isn't one. *shrugs* I don't know why. I don't care if it's contemporary. It could be the year 2090 and I would not complain if the heroine was a virgin.
Shaz :)