Since it’s almost Halloween, I thought I’d share a throwback to my sister, hubby (then boyfriend) and I all dressed up for a college Halloween party! We had a lot of fun putting together the costumes. My sister and mom worked on her Cowardly Lion costume. My mom helped me with my Mickey Mouse shorts. Hubby’s sister provided the big swatch of fabric for his cape and boy was it heavy. Hubby had an old Cadillac hood ornament hanging around that he used as his “Count” medallion. I guess I had a thing for vampires even then! LOL!
Yo Ho Yo Ho A Writer’s Life for Me
I knew in the fifth grade after doing a class project that I wanted to one day write a book. I kept at it over the years until I finally finished my first book. After that came revisions, submissions and rejection letters until I finally got “The Call.” Yeah! Some of you may wonder what my writer’s life is like and it’s pretty simple. I get up early and spend a few hours writing. Usually with the television on for background noise. Coffee, of course. I need to start the morning with a big cup of coffee, light and sweet.
You may wonder what else I need to write. My trust laptop and paper and a pen when I’m working out a rough outline. Don’t know why, but I like doing the outlines the old-fashioned way.
To keep me going at night as I prep a blog or work on social media, the occasional glass of wine or some chocolate. Lindt is my favorite!
That’s all it takes for my writer’s essentials!
South Beach Love Movie Premiere Giveaway Winners
Sorry for the delay but I was at a conference and am just getting back to normal! Thank you all so much for celebrating the release of the South Beach Love movie! It was so exciting and even better because you all were with me for this wonderful event. The winners are:
- Grand Prize: Shannon Rush (book, $100 and other goodies)
Second Chance Prizes: Nicki Ortiz ($50) and Paula Johnson ($25)
Look for another giveaway soon to celebrate the release of Trapping a Terrorist and please show my 25th Harlequin book some love at https://amzn.to/3jg5giF.
Last Doll Quinces Tradition
If you watched the South Beach Love Hallmark Movie, you may have seen some dolls during the scenes at the quinces party! Wonder what that’s about? Well in the quinces tradition, the young girl who is becoming a woman will give the doll to a younger girl to signify that she is now a woman. But it is also part of the tradition that the father will gift the young woman a doll that will become her last toy. That doll is one that is usually a keepsake for the young woman. This is a photo of my daughter’s quinces doll!
Don’t forget today is the last day to enter the South Beach Love contest at https://www.facebook.com/Caridad.Author/posts/10158235547410913. Post a photo of yourself or link to a photo to enter for the grand prize or tag/like/share for entries for the second chance prize.
Best Wedding Dress Ever
Whether we’re talking about Trapping a Terrorist or South Beach Love, we all want a romance to end Happily-Ever-After. Personally, I love seeing the wedding at the end of the story! That’s the final icing on the sweet promise of a romance novel. But if you’re having a wedding you need a wedding dress! So many choices to make. White or blush or some other color. Veil, no veil. Sleeveless or not. And of course, long train or short train. Personally I love a long train, but nothing like Priyanka Chopra’s 75 foot wedding veil! What about you? Which one do you prefer?
Teasing you with a free read from Trapping a Terrorist
The tension between FBI Agent Miguel Peters and heroine Maisy Oliver in Trapping a Terrorist was really special for me. Miguel and Maisy are both wounded souls who are still carrying around a lot of baggage. But facing danger together helps them let go of the past and imagine a happier future may be possible for them.
In this scene, Miguel and Maisy have come back from dinner and Maisy has gone to bed with Miguel has gone back to working the investigation into the serial bomber. As he’s working, he hears Maisy in the other room, tossing and turning and realizes she’s having a nightmare. He goes to comfort her and… I don’t want to spoil it!
Teaser
AM I OKAY? Maisy asked herself and shook her head.
“It was a dream, but it was so real. My father…he was there, and bombs were exploding everywhere. My mom was with me and I was trying to protect her, but…” She couldn’t finish because the vision in her mind was too extreme. Too scary.
Too alone, which made her lean toward Miguel, seeking his comfort.
Comfort he didn’t fail to give.
He wrapped his arms around her and drew her into his lap. Held her against him as he murmured, “Your dad can’t hurt you anymore. I’ll make sure of that.”
“I know,” she said, hating how childlike she sounded. Much like she had sounded over a decade earlier, when the reality of her father’s actions had come to light.
He surprised her then by exploding to his feet, cradling her in his arms and walking with her to his bed. “Miguel?”
“It’s big enough for both of us,” he said and laid her on the comforter.
She nodded and as he released her, she slipped beneath the sheets. He joined her a second later and as he had before, drew her into his arms, belying his comment that the bed was big enough.
It felt way too small with his hard body pressed to hers, but it wasn’t just desire that filled her, but comfort. Safety. He was a rock. Her rock and she believed him when he said she would be safe.
Armed with that, the nightmare faded into the dark, replaced by a lightness in her soul created by his touch.
*
MAISY WAS STIFF in his arms at first, but the tension fled her body little by little and her breathing lengthened, confirming that she had fallen asleep.
But sleep didn’t come as quickly to him, lying there beside her. Her lithe but strong body pressed to his, forcing him to tamp down unwanted desire. Desire that would only complicate even more the confusing thoughts he was having about her.
To keep those thoughts at bay, he turned his attention to what he’d been working on before Maisy’s nightmare. The list of suspects. The dynamite. Wire. Locations. Rothwell. Rothwell. Rothwell.
Annoyance at the politician flared through him, which was good. It would keep him from thinking about Maisy’s body.
Her warm breath, toothpaste fresh, spilling across the skin of his chest. Her skin, smooth, so smooth along his.
He muttered a curse as desire flared to life again, but luckily, Maisy peacefully turned in his arms and shifted away from him.
Safe. He was safe, at least for tonight. And she was safe and that had to be what he focused on: keeping Maisy and Seattle safe.
He couldn’t let anything else distract him.
Order
Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/3stMJSx
Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/3dmWs6L
Amazon Box Set: https://amzn.to/3lWYdvf
Apple: https://apple.co/3fp4NcL
Apple Box Set: Coming Soon!
BN E-book: http://bit.ly/BNTrap
BN Box Set: http://bit.ly/BNBoxSetTTrap
Kobo: http://bit.ly/KoboTrap
Kobo Box Set: http://bit.ly/KobpBoxSetTrap
Additional Retailers: https://books2read.com/TrappingATerrorist
From Harlequin Intrigue: Seek thrills. Solve crimes. Justice served.
Discover more action-packed stories in the Behavioral Analysis Unit series. All books are stand-alone with uplifting endings but were published in the following order:
Book 1: Profiling a Killer by Nichole Severn
Book 2: Decoding a Criminal by Barb Han
Book 3: Tracing a Kidnapper by Juno Rushdan
Book 4: Trapping a Terrorist by Caridad Piñeiro
Video
Still Flying in the Clouds
I’m still flying high in the clouds over the movie premiere of South Beach Love as you can tell! If you didn’t catch the premiere on Saturday, you can catch reruns on:
- Thursday October 14 8:00 PM
Sunday October 17 12:00 PM
Tuesday October 19 12:00 PM
Thursday October 21 6:00 PM
You can also stream the movie on the Hallmark Channel website until October 13th!
Don’t forget that I’m running a contest to celebrate the premiere! For a chance to win a copy of the book autographed by the cast and me as well as some nice swag, plus second chance gift card prizes, enter the contest at https://www.facebook.com/Caridad.Author/posts/10158235547410913.
Also, if you can, please share some love for Trapping the Terrorist, my new Harlequin Intrigue release at https://www.caridad.com/books/suspense/trapping-a-terrorist/!