Where There's Smoke - MidWeek Tease

July 11, 2018

**Updated 4/2/21 - the MidWeek blog hop has been discontinued.**


Am I in the doghouse? Yes! My last MidWeek Tease was about a cat. Deuce did not like this! So this week I'm giving the dog equal time with a tease from Where There's Smoke. And the lovely black cover model? Yes, that's Greenbrier Smokey Deuce. I'm paying his royalty fees with very expensive Griller treats. 

So welcome to the MidWeek Tease blog hop! I'm so glad you stopped by and I remind you to check out all the participant blogs by using the linky list at the end of this post. Enjoy!

_*_*_*_*_

“No. My dog attacked you, Leon. I wanted to do a good thing by giving him a home. Now I don’t know if I can keep him, even if they don’t put him down.”

I wished I could reassure him, but the dog’s future wasn’t totally in my hands.

The folks at urgent care were great. They cleaned the wound again and gave me a tetanus booster. When the intern said I needed stitches, I held my hand out to Jere. “Hold my hand. I hate needles.”

“So do I. How about I run for the hills?” He pressed his cold palm to mine. I wrapped my warmer fingers around his.

“This is when the questions come, you know.”

He looked stricken but didn’t say a word. There wasn’t time. A petite Asian woman carrying a tray entered the room and introduced herself as Dr. May. She examined my wound and then picked up a mother-fucking huge needle.

“Procaine,” she explained. She looked at our joined hands. “Are you guys a couple.”

“No.”

“Working on it.”

She grinned at me. “He says ‘no’ and you say ‘working on it’. Looks like you may be winning.”

I clamped my jaw tight as the tip of the needle penetrated my skin. It burned for a second, then flushed hot, and finally cold and numb. “I’m a patient man.”

“That’s good because he’s cute.”

I glanced at Jere. He was blushing. I winked at the doctor. “I think so, too.”

She withdrew the needle and rubbed the spot. “Let’s talk while that works. Would you like to tell me what happened? Whose dog is it?”

I met her gaze. “He belongs to Jere. How well versed are you in same-sex relations?”

“Ah.” She looked at Jere. “So the dog didn’t understand what was going on between the two of you and went into protection mode?”

Jere gazed into his lap. “Yes, ma’am. That pretty much sums it up.” He looked at me, his gorgeous hazel eyes bright and full of an inner imp I hoped to meet again. “Leon gets loud if you know what I mean.”

Heat crept up my neck and into my cheeks. The little shit had bested me at my own game.

Dr. May laughed as she picked up the first threaded needle. “Some folks do. Okay, if that’s your story, that’s what I’ll put in my report. It still has to go to animal control, though.”

I didn’t actually feel anything as she set the first stitch, but I still winced. I turned my head to look at Jere. “I can’t watch, but you can if you want.”

“No thanks.” He jumped and released my hand to pull his cell phone out of his pocket. “It’s Dr. Widmyer.” He answered, and the doctor and I listened as they finalized the arrangements for Gale to stop by his house and get Mo.

A few moments later, I had six neat stitches, a five-day zee-pack of an unpronounceable antibiotic, a bandage over the tetanus injection site, and a sheet of instructions I knew I’d not follow since I needed to get back to looking all macho in front of Jere.

I asked him to drive my vehicle back to his place. He agreed and when he came around to open the door for me, I backed him against the Blazer.

He licked his lips. “Please say this means you’re going to kiss me.”

“Why waste time talking?”

I touched my lips to his in the barest whisper of a kiss. He grasped my waist and pulled me closer. I kept the kiss brief, seeking to give him assurance I wasn’t angry with him or Mo, not arouse him, or myself. He rested his forehead on my shoulder.

“Oh, God, Leon. I was so stupid. A card game. A fucking card game and I used it as an excuse.”

I cradled the back of his head in my hand. “I know you’ve been hurt worse than I can begin to imagine, but I’m not that guy. I’m not any of those guys.”

He raised his head and looked at me, searching “What do you want with me?”

How did I answer that without sounding like an idiot? “At first I thought I’d try to be a friend. Then I wondered about more because I really like you. And then, well, you’re pretty hot, you know. You make me horny.”

“Oh, great. All you want is sex.”

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE

Leon McNamee successfully worked his life plan to a good job, his own home, and the one thing he always wanted as a boy - a dog. He hasn’t had much luck in the relationship department, but in Smoke, he has all the company he usually needs.

Jeremy Cooke’s new plan is to stay clear of entanglements and not get hurt again. He moves to Marionville to start over and decides to rescue a damaged dog. After all, he’s well acquainted with abuse.

Leon and Jere get acquainted over their shared love of dogs, but Jeremy holds close his secrets. When an argument escalates, disaster strikes. Leon has to fight to save Jere’s dog - and the man’s trust. At the end of the day, his best ally is a black Labrador Retriever named Smoke.

AVAILABLE NOW AT:

Amazon

www.amazon.com/Where-Theres-Smoke-Marionville-Book-ebook/dp/B01N7H231Z

iTunes/Apple     

itunes.apple.com/us/book/where-theres-smoke/id1168359746?mt=11

Barnes & Noble/NOOK

www.barnesandnoble.com/w/where-theres-smoke-kc-kendricks/1124986359?ean=2940153524337

Kobo

www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/where-there-s-smoke-49

KC Kendricks

http://www.kckendricks.com

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks

www.pinterest.com/kckendricks

www.facebook.com/kckendricks

2016 Retrospective and the Kendricks 800

December 31, 2016

New Year's Eve

As I begin this entry, I think it's significant to note it's number eight-hundred here at Between the Keys. I wonder what reasoning the universe had for arranging for the Kendricks 800 to fall on New Year's Eve? One shouldn't discount any possibility. 

The word 'retrospective' conjures a bit of nostalgia. We tend to view the past through a rosy lens when we keep our focus on a brighter future. Some years, achieving that rosy glow on past events takes a little longer. Sometimes there is no rosy glow. So it will be for parts of 2016. 

I had BIG PLANS for 2016. I put eight books in development, all set in the fictional town of Marionville. I figured I could write four in 2016 and four in 2017. Now I think the project will run into 2018. 

The Year of our Lord Two Thousand Sixteen dawned with the anticipation of the release of Fly By Night at Amber Quill Press. Day 2 of 2016 saw that vision crushed with the announcement Amber Quill was shutting down, ceasing operations. I was, in a word, dismayed. I knew having forty books with one publisher was a gamble. I knew, given that the quality of the covers and editing had slipped, something was a bit off. I'd already self-published Hey, Joe and a couple of the old Rayne Forrest books to test the do-it-yourself waters. Darn good thing as it turned out. 

And now it seems 2016 is closing on a similarly dismal note. On December 28, 2016, Lori James announced the closing of her company, All Romance eBooks on December 31, 2016. The fourth quarter settlement she's willing to give publishers/self-published authors is laughable. I immediately pulled all the titles I have control over off her storefront. (How can you lose money on just a digital storefront?) It looks like the prophecy is coming true. Amazon is the only viable game in town.

Now to recap the year that was - 2016.

January

Scramble mode. With Amber Quill closing on March 30, I had ninety days to improve my Photoshop skills and get covers made. Then my mother had surgery and my world really went to hell. 

January 22 also brought us the Blizzard of 2016. On January 23, my county had its fourth-highest twenty-four-hour snowfall since records have been kept - 21.4 inches. Everything took a backseat to keeping our 975-foot long lane passable. 

February

In 2015, I had contacted several Labrador Retriever breeders in Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Remarkably, the one a mere ten miles from my home finally emailed with the news she had a litter, and did I want to come to select a pup? I broke every speed limit getting there. Did I choose Deuce or did he choose me? I don't know or care. If I survive the extended puppyhood Labs have, he'll be a great dog. 

Work continued on SABRE, as did making covers to self-publish the back list.

March

Amber Quill closed on March 30. On March 31, Fly By Night went live. Fly By Night had been under contract but never released. I've often wondered why AQP even issued a contract on FBN. 

We brought Greenbrier Smokey Deuce home on March 14. I'd like to be able to say I kept working, but I think I spent at least two weeks spending every moment with the puppy so he'd bond with me. What was I thinking???? I now have two shadows. 

April

The first batch of books was republished, including Double Deuce, Deuce of Diamonds, Ace Deuce Trey, and Circle of Steel. I was thrilled to get the ball rolling. 

In years past, I enjoyed participating in the annual A to Z Blogging Challenge. In 2016, not so much. I made the decision this would be the last year. 

Bored, Stroked, and Blueprinted was re-released through Loose Id. I was with LI many years ago. My experience with the editorial staff wasn't positive, then or now.  It's like dealing with a used car salesman. It's "upper management" this, and "upper management" that. If one's editor is being micro-managed then you are being micro-managed multiplied. Just admit it - big mistake. 

May

SABRE was released in May. Confession time - I saw this guy and had to write a story for him. I rifled through the ideas folder and realized he was perfect for a "secret agent" idea. The downside of this tale is I wanted to do a SABRE series. That got put on hold when I had to shift gears and indie publish the backlist.  Now I know a SABRE series won't happen. I told his story in one book.

SABRE reached No. 7 on the All Romance eBooks bestseller list. I was thrilled! Then I realized I'd never checked to see how Fly By Night did on the list. Live and learn. 

My spring vacation was spent playing with Deuce and not writing. Priorities, you know. 

June

With a good portion of the backlist republished, I finally got to work on the plan to revisit Marionville with The Right Brew. 

July
The Right Brew was released and immediately hit the All Romance eBook bestseller list! It really gave me a much-needed mental and emotional boost. 

August
This month found me still re-publishing backlist items and lazing in the pool. Things were busy at the day job as everyone filled in for others to cover for vacations. I picked and pecked at my ideas folder to flesh out character bios for the next Marionville book, and got Where There's Smoke underway. 

September
What's not to like about a month that starts with a week off from the day job? Yes, I finally got my turn and I only used four vacation days. Waiting until last gives me Labor Day as part of the vacation. It also gave me the opportunity to do a lot of work on Where There's Smoke. 

Then I tossed a new paranormal into the mix. It's a shapeshifter, but it's not part of the Sundown saga.

October
Where There's Smoke was released on the 22nd and immediately climbed the ARE bestseller list to #5. Deuce posed for his first book cover. He's a twitchy little doggie model. Extremely difficult to work with. And he demanded food after every shot. In the end, he did give me what I needed. What's male for diva? Divo? He is one.

I also started on the next Marionville story. The character of Kory was introduced in WTS and savvy readers will pick out the crossover scene between Leon (Smoke's dad) and Kory. 

November
With my mother in an Alzheimer's care facility, my personal life is in a time of transition.  As the holiday season approached, I was tempted to throw my hands in the air and run away from home.

As the month progressed, so did work on Kory's story. I decided on a title, made a cover, and did the template for a page at my website. I got Undeniable formatted and then decided, with the holiday season upon me, to wait until the new year to release anything else.  

December
I will admit it. December isn't my favorite time of year. The weather turned cold. Work continued in the realm of Marionville - when I worked. The day job had me pulling my hair out, and I breathed in something that sent me into fits of coughing that lingered for days. After I recovered from whatever airborne spore laid me low, I did some good writing. I just wish it had all been on the same story! (I spread it around in December.)

And so we've arrived at the eve of the new year. My beloved and I have no great plans to celebrate. We'll ring in 2017 quietly - or as quietly as Deuce will allow. I suspect we'll select a favorite movie, settle in front of the television, and do our best to stay awake until midnight. With or without us, 2017 will arrive. 

As always, to those who follow along here at Between the Keys I wish you health, happiness, peace in your heart, and great joy in the New Year. 

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_

 KC Kendricks

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Key

Where There's Smoke for #MSS165

October 29, 2016

Welcome to My Sexy Saturday #165! 165? To use a word that's way over used, that's awesome! My Sexy Saturday is a weekly blog hop that allows you to sample some of the best romance available today. Use the list at the bottom of this post to navigate to the participating blogs. But most of all - enjoy! 

Here are seven sexy paragraphs from my latest release, Where There's Smoke. (Where There's Smoke is already a best seller at All Romance eBooks. Just saying.)

KC

_*_*_*_*_

“Fuck if I know.” I let go of his hand and took a couple of big swallows of ginger ale. I stood and offered him my hand again. “Let’s go dance before the thumpa-thumpa starts again.”

He held my hand as we walked down to the dance hall. We joined the slow-dancers, cautiously moving into the classic positioning for the fox trot. I noted he moved stiffly, as though he didn’t dance often or, heaven forbid, he felt trapped by my arms around him.

Or worse yet, he was aware of my growing erection and believed I’d lied about coming here for sex.

He looked at the sparkling mirror ball over our heads. “I love this song.”

“I love everything by DeRocher, but this might have just become my favorite.” I applied a little pressure to his back to coax him closer.

He resisted at first, and then suddenly closed the distance between us. Chest-to-chest we moved to the slow beat. He shifted his posture and I came dick-to-dick with another truth. He wanted me. It would be gauche to mention it, but privately I danced with glee. I brushed a kiss to his temple.

Jere leaned away, which had the effect of pressing our lower bodies even closer.  He looked worried, unsure. The dance floor lights sparkled in his dark eyes. “Leon, do you want to go to the back room?” 

*_*_*_*

WHERE THERE’S SMOKE

Book #10 of the Men of Marionville series

Contemporary gay romance 

Available at Amazon.
www.amazon.com/Where-Theres-Smoke-Marionville-Book-ebook/dp/B01N7H231Z/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1482971650&sr=8-2&keywords=kc+kendricks

Leon McNamee successfully worked his life plan to a good job, his own home, and the one thing he always wanted as a boy - a dog. He hasn’t had much luck in the relationship department, but in Smoke, he has all the company he usually needs.

Jeremy Cooke’s new plan is to stay clear of entanglements and not get hurt again. He moves to Marionville to start over and decides to rescue a damaged dog. After all, he’s well acquainted with abuse.

Leon and Jere get acquainted over their shared love of dogs, but Jeremy holds close his secrets. When an argument escalates, disaster strikes. Leon has to fight to save Jere’s dog - and the man’s trust. At the end of the day, his best ally is a black Labrador Retriever named Smoke.

KC Kendricks
www.kckendricks.com
www.twitter.com/kckendricks

Join my new release mailing list by clicking the Yahoo group button on the left sidebar. Low volume, no chatter, just the news on new books. 

Where There's Smoke by KC Kendricks

October 23, 2016

Where There's Smoke is now available! "Smoke" is the tenth book in the Men of Marionville collection.

When I wrote A Cat Named Hercules, which featured combined stories from those special felines who shared my life, I knew I had to write a story that included a special dog. I thought that dog would be Jett, but it turned out to be both Jett and Deuce. (That's Deuce on the cover.)

I hope you'll enjoy Where There's Smoke.

KC

_*_*_

WHERE THERE’S SMOKE

Book #10 of the Men of Marionville series

Contemporary gay romance available at:

Amazon
www.amazon.com/Where-Theres-Smoke-Marionville-Book-ebook/dp/B01N7H231Z/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1482971650&sr=8-2&keywords=kc+kendricks

Leon McNamee successfully worked his life plan to a good job, his own home, and the one thing he always wanted as a boy - a dog. He hasn’t had much luck in the relationship department, but in Smoke, he has all the company he usually needs.

Jeremy Cooke’s new plan is to stay clear of entanglements and not get hurt again. He moves to Marionville to start over and decides to rescue a damaged dog. After all, he’s well acquainted with abuse.

Leon and Jere get acquainted over their shared love of dogs, but Jeremy holds close his secrets. When an argument escalates, disaster strikes. Leon has to fight to save Jere’s dog - and the man’s trust. At the end of the day, his best ally is a black Labrador Retriever named Smoke.

EXCERPT

“Yeah, it’s like twice the size and population. I think people here are nicer, though.” He paused and took a deep breath. “I…had a bad relationship. Like, really bad. My bad judgment. I knew someone here, a relative of sorts, so I came here to… I guess start over.”

The flat tone of his voice spoke volumes. It was a hopeless defeat, a tiredness I’d never personally experienced. What tore at my heart was the total absence of any defiance.

I’d been bitter when Allan decided he didn’t like my dog enough to stay with me. Good riddance, I’d said. I’d been determined to put him behind me and move on - and I had. I sensed Jeremy had floundered on his way to ending the relationship. Maybe he still did.

Today wasn’t the day to pry further. Today was for building a friendship and finding possibilities.

I put my hand on his knee. “Are you sorry it ended?”

He stared at my hand but didn’t move away. “I’m sorry it began.”

I patted his knee. “Well, it’s Saturday. What should we do now? Take in a flick?”

“You’re nothing if not predictable, Leon. I knew you were going to suggest a movie some time before I let you drive me home.”

“Okay. No movie. You like boats?”

He leaned away and looked down his nose at me. “Seriously? You really can’t help yourself, can you? What’s wrong with sitting here and chilling out?”

“My dog is on a leash. My dog ate and will no doubt want to poop in public grass where kids play, and I won’t allow him to do his outside activities here. My dog needs to go home to his backyard, and then his crate for a nap.”

Jeremy straightened. “Good points. I guess you should take me and Mo home so you can get on with your day.”

I didn’t want to do that. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to him for fear I’d never see him again. My instinct said he’d never call me, and if I called him, he might hesitate to answer. I showed my desperation.

“Do you like baseball?”

“Yeah, I do! It’s really cool Marionville is getting a double A team.” He narrowed his eyes. “What?”

I hung my head. “I don’t know a fucking thing about baseball.”

“So why the hell did you ask me if I liked it?”

“Would you like to hang out at my place and watch the game? You can teach me about it.”

He stared at me, lips slightly parted, an enigmatic expression in his eyes. “Do you like anything other besides dogs?”

“I like to ski.”

He glanced at the sky, and then looked at me. “Water or snow?”

I grinned at him. “Both.”

“Thank God. I’ve never been water skiing, but I’m pretty good on the slopes.”

“I didn’t know they had mountains in Peoria,” I quipped, still smiling.

He smirked at me. God, he was adorable when he wrinkled his nose and rolled his eyes.

“When I was a mere lad, we spent every, and I mean every fucking Christmas at my grandfather’s place in Pennsylvania. I learned to ski. And you’re a smartass, Leon McNamee.”

“And you’re just too cute Jeremy Cooke.”

I didn’t actually think about it. Maybe if I had, I wouldn’t have done it.

I slipped my arm around his shoulders, leaned in, and kissed him.

He started and sucked in a quick breath. I’d never had anyone go so still in my arms. But he didn’t pull away. His lips trembled under mine, and yet he didn’t push us apart. I moved my lips over his in a soft caress and ended the kiss.

WHERE THERE’S SMOKE

Book #10 of the Men of Marionville series

Contemporary gay romance available at:

Amazon
www.amazon.com/Where-Theres-Smoke-Marionville-Book-ebook/dp/B01N7H231Z/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1482971650&sr=8-2&keywords=kc+kendricks

KC Kendricks
www.kckendricks.com
www.twitter.com/kckendricks
www.facebook.com/kckendricks

Where There's Smoke - cover reveal

September 18, 2016

One of really great things about self-publishing is the control one has over book covers. I truly enjoy playing around with Photoshop and creating my own covers. Some really work - others not so much. Either way, it's fun to do. Plus, if a few months down the road I think a cover isn't working for the long run, I can update it without begging or paying for the update. It's a handy skill to have. 

I've been working on a story set in Marionville about a guy and his dog meeting another guy and his dog. So of course I had to put Deuce on the book cover. 

Do you know how difficult it is to get Deuce to sit still and pose for a picture? He's only nine months old and in constant motion. I had to bribe him with food. Yes, it's true. I stoop to bribery with my dog.

Where There's Smoke will be out before the end of 2016. Having the cover ready is encouragement to write faster. 

KC Kendricks
www.kckendricks.com