REVIEW: Calendar Men Series: February Lover by Rebecca Royce

February Lover
Rebecca Royce
Calendar Men – Mr. February Aidan Roux fled New Orleans fifteen years ago, leaving behind a woman he loved. Planning to keep it light because he has no intentions of sticking around, he’s caught off guard by his mother’s health crisis. Forced to stay, he challenges Stacey to be his lover for February with no expectations of anything else.

Stacey never stopped wanting Aidan, but she’s not a girl anymore and she meets his proposition with one of her own. A hero, just back from Afghanistan, he’s the perfect guy for her calendar contest. If he wants her in his bed, he’ll pose for her camera.
Stacey and Aidan seem made for each other—but old hurts cannot be forgotten and love isn’t always enough…
Genre: Contemporary, erotic romance, military romance Heat level: 3 Word count – 16k Cover art by Mina Carter
~Excerpt~
Stacey knew she should be horribly offended. He’d propositioned her to have sex for the rest of the month and then go their separate ways. But the truth was, the second he’d started talking she’d become so hot inside she could barely breathe.

There was no way to go back in time and fix things between them. No way she would ever find out exactly why he’d left, if there was something she could have done to make him happier. She wasn’t exactly certain she wanted to. When she’d told him his leaving had prompted her to go make her own career, her own life, she’d meant it.

But today he offered passion. They’d been kids together. She’d given him his first kiss. For all intents and purposes, it might as well have been hers. A sloppy kiss-and-run at twelve years old shouldn’t get to count. They’d lost their virginity together, and all of her early sexual education had been found in his arms.

What would they be like now?

She sucked in her breath. “You’re a hard man to say no to.”

“You didn’t say yes.” He took her hands in his. “I need a yes. I can’t leave here with you upset again. I won’t hurt you again. So, you have to tell me you understand what I’m offering and what I’m not, that you grasp completely I’m not going to be here in March.”

“I’m not a moron, thank you.” She stood up. “And I’m not the head-over-heels-in-love-with-you twenty-year-old with dreams of marriage and Sunday crawfish boils wrecking my brain. I have my own life here. I’m trying to decide if it’s worth disrupting it for you for an entire month of my life.”

She felt him when he moved behind her, his warmth filling her from the outside in. With a quick tug, he pulled her flush against his body. “I can promise you. It’ll be worth it.”
Author Bio:
As a teenager, Rebecca Royce would hide in her room to read her favorite romance novels when she was supposed to be doing her homework. She hopes, these days, that her parents think it was well worth it.
Rebecca is the mother of three adorable boys and is fortunate to be married to her best friend. They live in northern New Jersey and try not to freeze too badly during the winter months.
She's in love with science fiction, fantasy, and the paranormal and tries to use all of these elements in her writing. She's been told she's a little bloodthirsty so she hopes that when you read her work you'll enjoy the action packed ride that always ends in romance. Rebecca loves to write series because she loves to see characters develop over time and it always makes her happy to see her favorite characters make guest appearances in other books.
In Rebecca Royce's world anything is possible, anything can happen, and you should suspect that it will.

Sarah's Review:
Thanks to Decadent Publishing for giving us another amazing series to become addicted to.  Thanks to Rebecca Royce for writing a great story for my birth month.  Aidan will look great as my desktop background for February.  Thanks to JoAnne Kenrick for getting this off the ground!

When Aidan returns to his hometown after being gone for 15 years the first person that he runs into is Stacey, the girl he dumped before he joined the service.  Aidan is haunted by the ghosts of his past, but also doesn't want to be given credit for something that he feels he doesn't deserve.

When Aidan gives Stacey a proposition, she has to decide whether her heart can handle what will happen at the end of the month.  Watching Aidan and Stacey rekindle their romance was touching, but when they go to say good-bye, something happens that makes Aidan realize that he is more than just Mr. February. 

REVIEW: Hexed and Vexed by Rebecca Royce

Blurb:

Olive White has had a terrible six months. It's not bad enough that years earlier she earned the nickname "Worst Witch In Witching School," she is now being forced to watch the love of her life, Campbell Bane, marry her sister Cindy. And she’s being asked to do so in a pink, puke-colored bridesmaid’s dress. Vexed doesn’t begin to describe how she feels.

Her powers pick the wedding as the perfect moment to turn on, zapping both her ex and her to a magical island not found on any map. Someone is bound to find them, but perhaps Olive can get some answers, once and for all.

When Campbell falls ill, she uses her considerable skills to save his life, but can she believe him when he tells her he still loves her and always has? Was he hexed, or is it all a flimsy excuse for breaking her heart?

Excerpt:

“Tell me again how we ended up here. And speak slowly so I can understand every word you say.” A muscle clenched in his jaw.


“Well.” She might have preferred Campbell not bringing up her tendency to rush through speech when she felt nervous. “I think I may have, completely unintentionally of course, zapped us here.”


“You. Zapped. Us. Here.” He nodded in between each word like he needed to make sense of all of them individually before he could move on. He ran a hand through his dark hair. Strands she herself had once caressed on a nightly basis before he’d gone and decided to marry her sister, thus destroying her life.


“Exactly.” She hitched up her pink monstrosity of a dress and walked toward the inviting waves. The sea air tingled against her skin.


Campbell grabbed her arm. “Olive White, you’ve never successfully performed one spell. Not even one.”


“Yes, you would know that since you were with me every single time I bumbled one. The worst witch in witching school.” She hated that phrase and obviously, she’d made a spell work. Even if she hadn’t meant to. Maybe she could finally lose the nickname.


“Yes.” He smiled at her, letting her arm go. For a second, she saw his brown eyes sparkle like they had when he used to look at her, in the days before the whole world had shifted sideways. But then as fast as the adoration had appeared it vanished. “Well, since you can suddenly make the gift of the ancestors work, zap us back.”


Campbell tapped his foot on the sand like she should hurry up and get the job done. She stifled a laugh, covering her mouth with her hand, at the image he portrayed.


He still wore his tuxedo. In the sand.


Dark hair, dark eyes, and dressed in a designer tuxedo, complete with a black bowtie that had to have been Cindy’s idea, he stood on the beach looking like a fish that had suddenly found itself in a bird’s nest. He really didn’t belong in his current habitat. At least not dressed like that.


Olive covered her mouth to hide her smile. Campbell always fit in wherever he went and even though it seemed mean to laugh, especially because it was her fault that he’d landed on the beach, she couldn’t help but find amusement in how uncomfortable he appeared. After her months of pain, he deserved the hours ahead of him.


He stood waiting for her to answer his declaration. Her sister’s fiancé wanted her to bring them back immediately if not sooner.


“I can’t undo the spell, Campbell. And I’m not sorry about it. Not even a little bit.”


Erin's Review: Poor poor Olive! She has the worst luck ever!!!!! You have to feel bad for a witch who can't get a spell right, loses her love to her sister, and then ends up marooned with said lost love when the last thing she wants to do is even look at him. You just know something is up with that sister of hers the second she enters the story. She is the epitome of jealous. Watching Olive stand up to her and go after what's right was my favorite part of the story. I also loved watching her sister get what's coming to her too. If you like paranormal, this is the story for you!

REVIEW: I'll Be Mated For Christmas by Rebecca Royce

Blurb:

Bethany Johnson grew up one of the only humans in a pack of werewolves. She didn’t have an easy time and her self-confidence was almost non-existent. Finally, after some serious psychotherapy and the help of weight-loss surgery, she is feeling like the Bethany she has always wanted to be. But now she has to say goodbye to the werewolves in her life. Out with the old and in with the new this year…

Luke Denarius is the new Alpha of the Delta pack. He’s never met Bethany but the second he scents her he knows she is his. No way is she going off to Italy for adventure and hot sex with other men.

With the help of Madame Eve these two will find that a mating is in the works for Christmas.

Excerpt:

Bethany didn’t want to imagine what she looked like right at that second. She didn’t like flying and she particularly didn’t like doing it in a bush plane, even a private one with a very nice pilot. She smoothed down her hair and tried to smile at the receptionist who signed her in. To her left, she saw a man sporting a beard talking on the phone in a private office. She wondered if that was Nick Castillo, who ran the Castillo Lodge in Castle, Alaska.


Madame Eve had been downright mysterious when she’d e-mailed, telling her to get some warm clothes together and something nice to wear to a gala because she had to leave immediately for the Castillo Lodge. She didn’t have any other plans, having quit her job, so it wasn’t a problem. But still. It had been a little odd. Did Madame Eve handle all of her client’s dates that abruptly?


“You’re all set, Ms. Johnson.” The receptionist smiled at her and held out a key. “Down the hall is the elevator. Take it to the second floor. Mr. Denarius is already here.


“He is?” She tried to swallow away the nervous lump in her throat.


“Yes, ma’am. He arrived quite early this morning.”


“I see.” She hoped the receptionist didn’t notice her sweaty hands as she took the key. She had been counting on being there first. It would have given her some time to relax, take a bath, and make herself look somewhat presentable before she had to face her date.


As if in a daze, She walked toward the elevator. What had her so spooked? This was exactly what she wanted. One night with a stranger who could fulfill all of her yearnings. She’d get it out of her system and then she’d go on to Italy the confident, capable woman she knew she could be.


Lucian Denarius constituted a means to an end. Maybe he’d be a nice guy who she could see again someday if the situation presented itself. She shivered at the name. Madame Eve hadn’t sent his picture in the e-mail, but the name alone inspired all sorts of ridiculous fantasies for her. He sounded mysterious.


Author Bio
As a teenager, Rebecca would hide in her room to read her favorite romance novels when she was supposed to be doing her homework. She hopes, these days, that her parents think it was worth it.

She is the mother of three adorable boys and she is fortunate to be married to her best friend. They live in northern New Jersey and try not to freeze too badly during the winter months.
She is in love with science fiction, fantasy, and the paranormal and try to use all of these elements in her writing. She’s been told she’s a little bloodthirsty so she hopes that when you read her work you'll enjoy the action packed ride that always ends in romance. She love to write series because she loves to see characters develop over time and it always makes her happy to see her favorite characters make guest appearances in other books.
In her world anything is possible, anything can happen, and you should suspect that it w

 

Erin's Review 

 Bethany is a strong woman who is about to take the ultimate leap and say goodbye to everything she has ever known. She feels it's the only way to begin anew and to be honest, who has time for werewolves in their life? Certainly not Bethany. But one last fling thanks to Madame Eve is just what she needs to send her off .

 From the moment Luke walked in to Bethany's family's home, he was overpowered by her scent. He had to have her and there was nothing that was going to stand in his way. She was his mate....for life. She just didn't know it yet. But can Luke get her to understand that running sometimes isn't the answer and she has family, and a mate, for as long as she'll have them?

 Madame Eve is up to her old tricks again and this time, she must help Luke try to stop Bethany from leaving. The thought of her with another man sends Luke in to a frenzy and he is determined to make that one night count and does he ever. 

 The two have an unforgettable night and Luke's proposal is the icing on the cake. But can it work? Is she ready to be "mated" for life? The choice is still hers, she can walk away. She can have her independence, her freedom. Or does the longing for family win out and the chance to have a man love her unconditionally draw her back in to the fold. Sometime starting over brings you right back home.....right where you belong, in the arms of those that love you. 

A beautiful story of starting over, struggling self image and learning to accept that people will love you for you, no matter what's on the outside. Great story to start out the New Year !