Release Day and Excerpt: WORTH WAITING FOR!

It’s release day for my sweet romance, Worth Waiting For! This book is the first in the Bailar series, which will all be sweet romances. Each one will have a Latin dance (or dances) to help the hero and heroine connect.

Who can resist an opposites attracts story? I can’t! Lol. Whenever opposites are thrown together in a romance, you know there’ll be some conflict. Each person is the missing half of a whole. The relationship would work, if only they could get together!

Freddie Mendoza and Julia Newman are no different. He’s an easy-going contractor, and she’s a serious-minded venture capitalist.

Not only are they opposites, but they’ve both been hurt in their past relationships. Freddie has been hurt by women excited by the novelty of dating a blue collar man but who never let the relationship get any deeper. Julia, on the other hand, was in a serious relationship for eight years that ended in disaster.

The excerpt below is taken from the chapter in which Freddie takes Julia dancing at a local Latin club so she can loosen up and have some fun for a change. The club is located on Buford Highway, a real roadway in Atlanta.

By the way, if you’re ever in the Atlanta area, you should drive down Buford Highway. It’s the place to go for cheap and authentic ethnic cuisine and an international melting pot where you’ll find Mexican taquerías , Vietnamese noodle houses, and a multitude of small businesses with signs in languages you probably never learned in high school.

Below is the first look inside Worth Waiting For. As always, leave your questions and comments below. Enjoy!

BLURB

Julia Newman doesn’t have time for love. Been there, done that, and she’s got the scars to prove it. Instead, she’s focused on her career. For the past few years, she has been living the life she wants. She drives a silver Mercedes, just purchased a four bedroom house in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia, and she’s on her way to becoming the youngest female partner in the history of the venture capitalist firm where she works. Life couldn’t be better. Or so she thought.

Frederico “Freddie” Mendoza is the owner of Mendoza Construction. He hasn’t given up on love, but he is fed up with women who are fascinated by the fantasy of being with a blue collar man and then relegate him to a certain part of their lives. His newest customer, Julia Newman, is the kind of woman he’s decided he’ll avoid from now on. He needs to work on expanding his business. Besides, she’s not his type. Or so he thought.

EXCERPT

Out in the middle of the club, Julia became intimidated by the fluid movements of the dancers around her. The men moved their partners around without effort, dipping and twirling them with the expertise grown from years of practice.

“I don’t know if I can do this,” Julia whispered to Freddie. She stood stiffly in the center of the dancers. “I don’t want to embarrass you. Everybody will be looking at us.”

“No one will be looking at us. They’re too busy dancing.” His teeth flashed an encouraging smile. He rested his hand lightly on her waist and lifted her other hand in his. “Relax, and let the music guide you. Listen to the beat.”

Good heavens, could he get any sexier, moving his hips slowly from side to side as he tried to encourage her to relax her rigid stance and get into the music.

Julia closed her eyes against the painful memories of some of the last words her ex had said to her. You’re not any fun, Julia. I need someone who’s fun and exciting. He said those words right after he’d told her about his pregnant girlfriend. After she’d spent eight years of her life with him.

“What’s wrong?”

She stifled a laugh. What’s wrong was that she was standing in the middle of a Latin club with an attractive man trying to be something she wasn’t. She was Julia Newman, venture capitalist, future youngest female partner in the firm. She was not Julia Newman, salsa dancer.

“I can’t,” she whispered painfully, trying to pull away. She didn’t want to humiliate herself. She should have never come. This was unfamiliar territory. There were no numbers to analyze and no reports to review.

He didn’t release her. Instead, his arm curved around her waist like a heavy belt, and his dark brows lowered over his eyes in concern. “It’s not that hard. I promise. I’ll guide you all the way.”

His gaze softened on her, and it encouraged her to make a tentative movement. He tried to guide her backward, but she practically tripped over her feet and stiffened against him.

“You have to let me lead. The man is in control in salsa.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she rewarded him with a wan smile. Looking down into her eyes, he said, “Move your left foot forward . . . one, two, three . . . step back . . . right leg backward . . . one, two, three . . .” He repeated the instructions several times. “That’s it.”

They moved slowly at first. Then, as she grew accustomed to the rhythm of the movement and the pressure of his hand indicating when she should move backward and forward, the speed of their movements accelerated to match those around them. Backward, forward, backward, forward. It wasn’t as hard as she had originally thought.

“Keep your hips moving,” Freddie coached. “Yes . . . just like that.”

He warned her he would try a spin move, and she didn’t get it at first, getting off beat on the turn. When they tried again, she mastered the spin, and she looked up at him, grinning widely.

“I got it!” She laughed.

He just stared at her. He didn’t smile back. She noted the hardening of his jaw and felt the split second tightening of his fingers around her own. Unexpectedly, he lowered his head until their mouths almost touched. Her breath caught in her throat.

“Perfect,” he muttered, before claiming her lips.

___________

Purchase Worth Waiting For now at Astraea Press. It will soon be available at other online retailers (Amazon, B&N, etc.).

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