SUMMER SIZZLE is published by The Wild Rose Press and released from The Wilder Roses, the Scarlet Rose line of erotic romance. The book is available in both print and ebook from Amazon and other online vendors.

He lives only for today... she has eyes on tomorrow.

Growing up, Victoria Templeton watched her mother scrape for every penny and vowed that would never be her. She's become a woman so busy worrying about tomorrow, she doesn't allow time for today. And she has plans for the summer that don't include sharing a house with a carefree beach bum with no ambition, even one with a signed lease and a smokin' hot bronzed body.

The tragic loss of his six year old son caused Blake Callahan to learn the hard way no one is guaranteed a tomorrow. He now lives only for today -- wine, women, and flying kites on the beach. Until an uptight female with soulful eyes and mouth-watering curves invades his beach house, claiming it's hers for the summer.

Forced to share the place until the mix-up is straightened out, Blake and Vicki find they have nothing in common...except a sizzling heat that has nothing to do with summer.

Excerpt #1 PG-rated (first kiss -- publisher's excerpt)
Excerpt #2 R-rated (lead in to first love scene)
Excerpt #3 R-rated (after making love)
Excerpt #4 PG-rated (kite flying lesson)
Excerpt #5 R-rated (playing sex games)
Excerpt #6 PG-rated (after the movie)
Excerpt #7 G-rated (she has to make him listen)

Excerpt #1 PG-rated (first kiss -- publisher's excerpt)

"You know what I think, Victoria Templeton?" His soft voice sounded so very sexy as he moved to stand directly behind her, his nearness sending waves of heated desire coursing through her veins. "I think you've never done a spontaneous thing in your life."

"How dare you make such an assumption!" She whirled around to face him and found herself looking up into his mesmerizing blue eyes. She tried to force a confident tone into her voice, something she definitely didn't feel. "You don't know a thing about me or my situation."

"I'll even go so far as to guess that you don't know how to be spontaneous." He stared at her as if trying to reach inside her head and drag out her thoughts. "You're so busy worrying about tomorrow that you won't allow yourself any time for today."

"You think I don't know how to be spontaneous?" Her words were spoken half in anger and half in disbelief. He had challenged her, something she couldn't allow to go unanswered. She stepped close to him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and plastered her mouth against his.

Excerpt #2 R-rated (lead in to first love scene)

Her eyes gravitated to Blake's physique -- his broad shoulders, the wisps of sandy-colored hair scattered across his hard chest, his flat belly, the way his sweat pants rested low on his hips, and the obvious bulge at his crotch that said he wasn't wearing anything under his sweat pants. Did he sleep in the nude? She tightened the sash at the waist of her robe, acutely aware of the way the soft silk caressed her bare breasts, causing her nipples to pucker. She forced down the sudden nervousness that welled inside her. A moment of eye contact said he wanted her as much as she wanted him. Moisture seeped from between her pussy lips, dampening the curls adorning her mound.

He grasped her hand and pulled her toward him. "You have every right to say no." His words came out in a husky whisper. "And I'll respect your decision."

He paused for what seemed to her like an eternity but in reality only a few seconds, before tugging at her sash until it came undone and the front of her robe fell open.

Excerpt #3 R-rated (after making love)

He smoothed her hair away from her damp face. "Vicki, we need to talk about--"

"No." She placed her fingertips against his lips. "Please don't make more of this than it is. I want you to know I'm not in the habit of falling into bed with every man I meet, with men I've only known a few hours. You and I... we don't have anything in common. Our lifestyles and goals are completely different, but there's obviously something about our body chemistry, something pulling us--"

Now it was Blake's turn to place his fingertips against her lips to stop her words. "I never thought for a moment that you promiscuously hopped into bed with every man who crossed your path. If you don't want to talk about this right now, we can wait until--"

Vicki stopped his words with a kiss. Even though it felt strange with neither of them mentioning what had happened the night before, she didn't want to confront the truth. Didn't want to deal with where it could lead. Two ships passing in the night. As different as could be in what they wanted from life...except in bed where they both wanted the exact same thing. To fuck each other into exhaustion and satisfy every carnal desire. The best thing to do was simply leave it at that. Accept it for what it was -- two people with an incredible case of the hots for each other and nothing more. A short term situation with no long term consequences to consider.

At least, that's what she wanted to believe. She couldn't allow a thought to the contrary. No way would she entertain the possibility of anything more with this man. She had her entire future planned out, and he absolutely did not fit into that plan. Nothing about him fit into her life even though everything about his body fit with hers.

"We have to talk about this, Vicki. Not now, apparently, but sometime soon. This is too hot. Too all consuming. Much too..."

Excerpt #4 PG-rated (kite flying lesson)

"I guess I'm ready." Her voice sounded more like someone being led to an unavoidable ordeal rather than a person enthusiastically participating in a fun activity.

It had taken a bit of convincing for him to get her to agree to a kite flying lesson. She kept using the words frivolous and waste of time. Although totally uninhibited in bed, she continued to vacillate between being uptight and guarded when dealing with innocent fun.

"Come on, let's get away from the house." He led her out onto the sand and held the kite toward her. "Here, give it a try."

"What do I do?" She looked at him with reluctant eyes, making no effort to take the kite.

"Hold the kite in your left hand and the string in your right, like this." He moved behind her and reached around to show her how to handle the kite and string. His body brushed her back as he guided her hands. Warmth washed through him at the momentary physical contact. He hoped his voice didn't sound as unsteady as he felt. "Let out a little of the string and run along the beach until the wind catches the kite, then continue to let out the string until it's flying high."

He stepped away from her and offered her an encouraging smile. "There's nothing to it."

Excerpt #5 R-rated (playing sex games)

Before she had an opportunity to protest, he glanced at his watch, then quickly made a notation on her daily planner. He placed his hands on her shoulders, plumbed the depths of her eyes for a moment, and flashed a truly mischievous grin as he pointed to the calendar.

"You don't have any choice. It's on your schedule."

Before she could react, he cupped her face and captured her mouth with a soft kiss. He pulled back, then quickly brushed his lips against hers again. He grabbed the pen and made another entry on her daily planner. A satisfied little grin tugged at his lips. One way or another, he intended to loosen up her tightly controlled existence and teach her how to have fun. Perhaps he, too, could learn to truly enjoy life again rather than just going through the motions. He turned and left the room.

Vicki watched Blake climb the stairs. Several seconds passed before she collected her senses and composed the tremors of excitement dancing inside her. She glanced at her schedule book. In large, bold letters, next to the appropriate time slot, he had printed kiss Blake. Beneath that notation, in the next fifteen minute time slot, he'd written play game of stable boy ravishes innocent milk maiden and had drawn a line to block out the next two hours.

A smile slowly curled her lips. Even though they had indulged their sexual appetite first thing that morning, a rush of moisture dampened her panties and her nipples puckered into taut buds. How was it possible for him to turn her neatly ordered existence into a mass of disorganized confusion? For the first time in her life, she made the decision to abandon her work in the middle of a weekday for the sole purpose of pandering to her own pleasure. And what was worse, she knew she wanted more of him -- so much more.

Excerpt #6 PG-rated (after the movie)

"That's one of the funniest films I've seen in a long time." Vicki's exuberance flowed with the same excitement as her words. She continued to laugh over a particularly funny scene from the movie as they emerged from the theater.

Blake put his arm around her shoulders and drew her closer. "I really like seeing you laugh. Your whole face lights up. You should relax more often, let your hair down, have fun."

She shot him a sly look. "You mean fun other than what should only be enjoyed behind closed doors? Unless you're into really kinky stuff."

"Oh? Are you saying if I took you outside on the deck, bent you over the railing, and had my way with you, that would be kinky? But if I bent you over the kitchen table and had my way with you behind closed doors, then it wouldn't?" He looked at her questioningly, a teasing grin playing across his lips.

Heated embarrassment flushed her cheeks. Her actions had surprised her when she agreed to go to the movie with him rather than returning to work after their scheduled time out for a sex romp.

Excerpt #7 G-rated (she has to make him listen)

"What the hell are you doing?" Blake's angry voice sliced through the air, cutting off her thoughts. She jerked to attention and found an equally furious looking Blake standing in the doorway scowling at her. He crossed the room in several quick, long strides and grabbed the photograph from her hands. He placed it in the box with everything else, then put the container on the top shelf of his closet.

He whirled and faced her. "Why were you going through my personal belongings?"

"I -- I wasn't. It was on the floor-- "

"Stay out of my things." He snapped out the words as if not even aware she'd been talking, then turned and ran down the stairs. She heard the outside door open and slam shut...then silence.

Her insides collapsed into a jumbled mess, as if he'd slammed the door shut on whatever future they might have had together. Tears welled in her eyes and trickled down her cheeks. She wiped them away with the back of her hand. The last thing she wanted to do was cry. But she didn't seem to be able to stop or control the tremors. A sick churning knotted in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't have been more stunned if he had actually struck her. Nor could she have been suffering more anguish or been in any greater emotional pain.

She glanced at the box on the closet shelf. What did it contain that had caused such an irrational, angry outburst? More tears ran down her cheeks, only this time she didn't make any effort to wipe them away. Wave after wave of raw pain crashed through her body, draining her of all energy. Whatever that box contained, it was obviously an issue for him. As much as she wanted to know what was in it, she resisted the urge to take it from the shelf.

She tried to assemble her thoughts into a pragmatic mode, to brush aside her pain and focus on the problem at hand. Somehow she had to force Blake to listen to her explanation, to make him understand she hadn't been prying into his life or snooping in his personal belongings. But how?