Title: All Fired Up
(Novella)
Author: Nikki Dee
Houston
Genre: Erotic
Romance
Publication Date:
November 1st, 2013
Tour Host: Dreams Come
True Promotions
Fires aren’t all that’s sizzling at Hillwood
Station…
Cindy always wanted to be a fire fighter. When she tops the
class in the rookie academy, she takes her first job at the small but busy
Hillwood Fire Station—as their first female firefighter. Some of the crew don’t
appreciate a woman trying to do a man’s job. But when the crew risks their
lives in a series of factory fires, Cindy’s determined to not just keep up, but
to excel.
But the fires aren’t the only thing smoldering at Hillwood.
When Cindy comes face-to-face with the real-life, fireman-calendar pinup, she’s
left feeling shaky and gasping for breath. Their attraction is white-hot, the
sex is sizzling, and there’s no such thing as enough when it comes to their
lovemaking. But things turn nasty when a dark past comes back to haunt Cindy,
jeopardizing her career before it’s even really begun…
So, who is Nikki Dee Houston? I’m a businesswoman by day, an
erotic romance writer by night, and a lover all the time. I share a modest
beach shack on a small island close to the mainland with my very own real-life
hero, and our two cats.
I began writing seriously about three years ago, mainly
short stories and women’s fiction, but I’d always wanted to write the ‘behind
closed doors’ stuff. When I saw all the hype about readers wanting more erotic
fiction, I played around with a few stories, finally settling on erotic
romance. I believe that a strong romantic element, combined with an interesting
storyline, is necessary for good erotic romance. Having said that, I don’t
underestimate the expectations of readers for some hot and steamy scenes, and
try to deliver on all counts.
DreamCast:
Meet Dave Johnson
Captain Dave Johnson is the hero in my soon-to-be released erotic romance novella, called All Fired Up.
Dave runs a tight ship at Hillwood Fire Station. He’s well respected for his leadership style, and how he gets in and works as hard as his team members during emergencies. Although Dave doesn’t enjoy the paperwork side of his job, he gets in and does it by the book.
His crew admire him, both as a boss and as a fellow fire fighter. They like how he knows when to be a relaxed co-worker, and when to be the authoritative Captain. He expects the best from his team, and gets it.
When he first meets Cindy – his first female recruit – he lets her know straight up, that there won’t be any special treatment for her just because she’s a girl. Yet, in every way that he interacts with her, he is himself is guilty of acting differently than he would to the rest of his all-male crew.
Despite his efforts, Cindy captures his attention, and he finds himself watching her a lot more than he does the men. He likes her strength of character and determination. She has a great attitude to her work, and he admires that. Add to that, she’s gorgeous. Try as he might, he can’t stop thinking that. Even in her protective fire gear, hair wet with sweat, and black streaks across her face, she’s gorgeous.
Being a red-blooded man, he’s soon entertaining thoughts of getting to know his new rookie much, much better.
Meet Cindy Reece
After topping the class at the Fire Fighting Academy, Cindy embarks on her career, entering Hillwood Fire Station as their first female rookie. She has every reason to believe she’s going to succeed. She’s confident, fit, fulfilling her dream of becoming a fire fighter, and is determined to show that she is as good as any male fire fighter.
But there’s no getting around the fact she’s a rookie, fresh out of the academy. She knows she lacks experience, but is keen to learn from her colleagues. She doesn’t expect any preferential treatment because she’s a ‘girl’, nor does she mind getting in and doing the dirty work. Her appearance isn’t a priority, but gaining skills and experience is. She works hard to soak up all she can about being a fire fighter in a busy Station.
But there’s no getting around the fact she’s always had a ‘thing’ about male fire fighters, especially ones who work out and are fit and smart. When she realises that the gorgeous, hunky, and sexy fireman calendar pinup guy is none other than her new boss, Captain Dave Johnson, she knows she will have to be on her guard. Her attraction for hot firemen runs deep. She will have to try very hard not to let her private life interfere with her new career.
20 Fun Facts about Nikki Dee
Houston
1. Nikki lives on an
island, near the beach.
2. She enjoys
sailing her 18 foot Hobie Cat sail boat, feeling the wind in her hair, and the
salt spray in her face.
3. Nikki has two
cats, and two dogs, who are her babies.
4. Nikki thinks that
her own real-life hero is better than all her fictional ones.
5. Her favorite
color is blue.
6. When Nikki’s not
writing, she loves cooking and reading.
7. Her favorite food
is freshly caught seafood, grilled with lemon juice and herbs.
8. If Nikki was
casting the role of Captain Dave Johnson in a movie, she’d want Channing
Tatum.
9. Who would Nikki
pick to play Cindy Reece in the movie version of All Fired Up? Yvonne
Strahovski. (Look her up).
10. Nikki’s
first real boyfriend was a firefighter.
11. She has
visited 29 countries in the world.
12. Nikki has
several favorite movies: The Perfect Storm, Unfaithful, Nights in Rodanthe,
Titanic.
13. Favorite
author – Louis de Bernieres
14. Nikki grows
her own vegetables and herbs.
15. The book
Nikki’s read the most times – The Evening Class by Maeve Binchy – great
characterization.
16. Nikki's idea
of a great Sunday is when breakfast is served to her on the deck (particularly
eggs benedict); a scan of the Sunday newspaper; either a walk, or a swim or
sail; and then 'sundowners' - drinks with friends as the sun sets.
17. She plays
several musical instruments – not all of them well.
18. Three
things Nikki can’t live without: Internet, wine, and her pets.
19. The name of
Nikki’s next book is ‘Picture Perfect’.
20. Did she
mention she loves Chardonnay?
Excerpt 1
- PG
She removed her helmet and wiped the wet strands of stray
hair from her face. Her forehead was coated in beads of sweat, and her
breathing hadn’t fully recovered from the strenuous activity. Dave lowered his
eyes to her heaving yellow-clad chest, then leisurely looked up until he was
peering into her eyes in that unnerving way he had.
“You did really well. Just wanted you to know.”
“Thank you, Dave.” Relief swept through her, and she smiled.
Quite apart from the physical exertion she’d just undertaken, she felt her
heart rate suddenly increase. He smiled back at her, and she took an
involuntary inward breath, making her sound like she was choking. Her face
flushed.
“Well, I can see you need a break.” He turned and strode
back into the fire station, leaving her rooted to the spot, feeling like a
starstruck teenager who’d just met their favorite celebrity pinup boy in the
flesh.
Excerpt 2 (PG rated)
He tilted his head to one side and narrowed his eyes,
peering at her carefully. “You know, I feel we’ve met before. There’s something
familiar about you.”
Oh boy, she’d remember if they had, she thought. “Don’t
think so.” Then it hit her. Hm, maybe I’ve been caught out. She resisted the
impulse to glance over at the female firefighter calendar hanging on the wall.
Still he seemed to be racking his brain, trying to place where he knew her
from.
“So, what time does your class start? It’s just that I
wonder if…” He blinked and gave his head a slight shake, as though clearing his
thoughts.
“You wonder…what?”
He cleared his throat, and brought his eyes back to hers. “I
wonder if you have time for a drink?”
Excerpt 1
(18+)
Powerful arms enveloped her and she felt his body against
hers. He brushed her lips with his, then kissed her deeply, eagerly.
Electricity shot through her as she returned his hungry, lingering kiss,
willingly entering the passionate embrace. His tongue was warm, tasting of
bourbon and salt, as he probed and met up with hers. He broke away from her
mouth and bent his head, nuzzling her neck, and kissing her skin softly. Moving
slowly around to the front, his lips caressed the little hollow at the base of
her throat.
“Won’t your zumba group notice you’re missing?” As he spoke,
his day-old stubble grazed her neck.
“I don’t care.” Her words were breathy and soft. With one
quick movement, he removed her little T-shirt. He ran his hands up both her
bare arms, softly, gently, deliciously, until they reached her shoulders. He
inserted a finger under each of the black Lycra straps of her leotard, dragging
them aside. He kissed her shoulders and tugged the top down, revealing her
breasts, full, voluptuous, and begging to be kissed.
Excerpt 2 (18+)
“You look beautiful.”
“You look pretty good yourself.” Their lips met hungrily,
kissing each other with passion, their tongues caressing each other. Letting
out a loud moan, he let her go and ripped his shirt over his head, then undid
the belt of his black slacks, kicking them off. He reached down and removed his
shoes and socks. His magnificent body, the tan of his torso, his six-pack
stomach, and the white, untanned skin where his bathing suit blocked the sun’s
rays, looked so much better than his pinup spread in the calendar. Biceps
bulged effortlessly as he reached forward, and her breath caught in her throat
as she delighted in the view.
Hi Tabitha! Thanks for hosting me here on your fabulous blog. Best wishes to all your readers who enter the rafflecopter. Cheers, Nikki Dee.
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