It's October! The Halloween month, so we're celebrating a little early and you're all invited to Tena Stetler's Halloween Masquerade Party!
“You’re Cinderella,
but you’ve missed the turnoff to the ball?”
Lilly rolls her
eyes at Lyn’s suggestion. The Roast hostesses have spent the whole trip to Tena
Stetler’s Halloween masquerade party coming up with characters, each one more
ridiculous than the last.
“If I were, those
feet of yours would make you one of the ugly step-sisters wouldn’t it?” she
asks sweetly.
Lyn pretends
affront and pouts, the move making her zombified made-up face even more
alarming. Just then, the taxi pulls to a stop before an imposing turreted
building. They walk up the path, dusk turning everything into shadows,
lending an eerie feeling to the night. The hostesses pair up and link arms
until they reach the entrance.
“I love the way you
Americans go all out for Halloween, but why do there have to be cobwebs?”
LaVerne shudders and waves a hand to indicate her fellow hostess to go first.
“After you, Debby.”
“You do realise
they’re fake?” Mary inquires from the back.
“Doesn’t make it
any less creepy,” LaVerne mutters, not moving an inch from her position at the
side of the entrance. “It makes me think of spiders and my skin starts to
crawl.”
“You and your skin,
girl.” Shaking her head, Debby steps forward, only for the hair she’d spent
the best part of the evening teasing into a gravity-defying ‘do' to snag. “Gah!”
“What’s the
holdup?” Mac pipes up from the back. “Come on, guys, get a move on, I’m
starving. Tena promised prime rib and baked potatoes at her Roast party and it
smells like she delivered.”
Just then, Oliver
glides up to the entrance to see what the commotion was about. With a wry grin
and a shake of his head, he places the tray of blood-red drinks down onto the
hallway table and in a matter of seconds, has Debby freed from the fine thread.
She flutters her lashes at him, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink.
“Thank you, Oliver.
What would we do without you?”
He gives a courtly
bow and smiles, his top lip lifting just enough to give a glimpse of fangs then disappears back into the crowd. The hostesses watch him go, the red-lined
black cape he wears billowing behind him and sigh in unison.
“It’s always nice
to see him, but boy, is it mighty fine to watch him leave.”
“Always right on
the money, Mary,” Lilly agrees with a laugh, then lifts her head and sniffs
the air.
Mac snaps her
fingers. “Now I see it. You’re Samantha from Bewitched!”
Lilly groans. “No.
But I spy Tena over by the food. It looks awesome. There’s even cupcakes and
bat-shaped cookies. I hope they’re chocolate. Yum. Ooo - even yummier, it looks
like she managed to get Bruce along to party with us too.”
“Oh, my,” breathes
Mary. “He’s a gorgeous one, isn’t he? I wonder if he’s taken.”
Lyn nods as he
pulls a stunning looking woman close. “I’d say so. That’s Angelique.” She
assesses Mary’s black dress and cone hat and scoffs. “I’ve got it on good
authority, she’s a real witch. A
lovely girl, but I wouldn’t want to get in her bad books.”
Tena glances over
and steps towards them, her smile wide. “Ladies! Drinks are to your left.
Grab one and join us. Oliver mixed us up Witches brew cocktail and Black Devil
Martinis for the adventurous sorts, or if you prefer a non-alcoholic drink try
the Dragon’s Blood Punch. It’s delicious.”
After selected
their drinks of choice, introductions are made. It is soon obvious how
perfectly matched Bruce and Angelique are for each other. The tender touches
and adoring glances exchanged between the couple have the hostesses smiling.
Debby lifts her
glass. “Let’s raise a toast to Tena, Bruce and Angelique, and the release of their
book, A Demon’s Witch.” Glasses are
raised into the air. “Congratulations for releasing your magic into the world.”
Today's introductory skit was written by LaVerne
Blurb - Keeping a lid on
all the paranormal beings inhabiting Washington D.C., is a daunting job. Bruce,
a six hundred year old demon and the Territory Overlord of the Western
Hemisphere, keeps his finger on the pulse of DC’s power players through the activities
at his highly successful Wycked Hair Salon. His movie star good looks and body
builder physique keeps his dance card full and the rumor mills running. Within
these walls, his anonymity is safe, mostly.
Bruce’s world
spins out of control when Angelique, a pint size, gorgeous witch, with an
attitude breezes through the doors of his salon. She is the younger sister of
Tristian, Bruce’s long time trusted enforcer, whose professional skills are
second to none. Tristian is furious at the relationship between Bruce and
Angelique, a dangerous situation. The undeniable attraction between demon and
witch promises to tear apart both their professional and personal worlds.
Excerpt:
Suddenly,
he felt the magic aura shirt and switched his attention to the front door. She breezed in, hair like spun gold
flowing to her waist, with a seductive yet regal body and a sway to her hips
that should be illegal even in DC. She wore a snug rose and cream colored
sweater, cut low enough he could see the swells of her rounded breasts, tailored
black slacks that fit her cute ass like a glove and four-inch spike heels. She
paused in the center of the salon, wet from the sudden spring storm, and
lowered the briefcase she’d used as an umbrella. Her sparkling violet eyes
glanced up to the mezzanine where Bruce stood watching. Blatantly her gaze
wandered over his well-muscled body, undressing him piece by piece, until he
felt naked. He shook his head slightly and smoothed his shirt and slacks with
his hand, just to make sure he was still wearing them.
Author Bio – With the majestic Rocky Mountains for a backdrop, Tena Stetler is a paranormal romance author with an over-active imagination. She wrote her first vampire romance at the age of eleven, to the chagrin of her mother and the delight of her friends. Tena finds stories in the strangest places, while camping, kayaking, or hiking in the mountains. Even at the hair salon ie,
A Demon’s Witch. So far, she’s only found one dead body (imagined not real) during a camping trip, turned it into an exciting paranormal romantic suspense that’s nearly complete. For many years, Tena worked as a paralegal for a criminal law firm. You won’t believe the tales she can spin from that experience! Colorado is her home; shared with her husband, a brilliant Chow Chow, a spoiled parrot and a forty-year-old box turtle. She loves the adventure of a road trip. Together with her husband and their companion animals, they have logged thousands of miles in their RV visiting over 3/4 of the United States. The great northeast is still on the bucket list. Any winter evening, you can find her curled up in front of a crackling fire with a good book, a mug of hot chocolate and a big bowl of popcorn.
***GIVEAWAY***
To win a copy of Tena's book, all you have to do is just leave a comment and your e-mail address.
Contest ends on Sunday and everyone who comments is eligible.
(We reserve the right to waive the prize in any week when there are not enough contestants for a draw to be deemed fair and unbiased)