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Title: Surrender
Release Date: July 12, 2010
Author: Heather Peters
Author website: http://heatherpeters.org
Publisher: Noble Romance Publishing
Buy Link: http://freyasbower.com, www.eredsage.com, www.nobleromancepublishing.com
Genre: Contemporary/Erotic/Romance
Blurb: Florist Isabella Beaumont through no fault of her own is about to lose her business. She might as well lose her soul. With no other options she turns to Lyon Sauvage, a man she dismissed from her life five years earlier. But is she willing to pay the unexpected price of ultimate submission?
Enigmatic millionaire Lyon Sauvage lost Isabella once. He has no intention of opening his heart and suffering that mistake again. When she appears on his doorstep desperate for help, Lyon presents her with a proposition she has no choice but to accept. But will his revenge get her out of his system? Or condemn him to greater heartbreak?
Welcome, Heather Peters. I’m thrilled to have you as my guest. Thanks so much, Rie. I'm so thrilled to talk with you again.
Can you tell us the journey you embarked upon to your first publishing contract? I'd been writing long-form contemporary romance for a very long time with no success submitting to the big print publishers. Then my dear friend and critique partner, Eden Elgabri, suggested we try e-books and tried our hand at erotic romance. We enjoyed writing together and knew we'd found our niche. We completed our first novella within weeks, and submitted Toy with Me. It was passed over twice, until it found a home at Freya's Bower. They offered us a contract, and since then, we've written another novella together, called Oz (Red Sage release in Fall, 2010), but my first solo effort is Surrender, released in July 2010. Being offered a contract for Surrender by Noble Romance Publishing, is a dream come true. It's based on my favorite all time favorite fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast, and I couldn’t be happier. I'm a very fortunate woman.
Which author(s) inspire you and why? Every author I read inspires me. All of them touch me in some way, whether its sensuality, romance or something else. All writers have something to offer, and I savor their gift.
Do you have a favorite book that you’ve written, and if so, what is your favorite scene? Confrontation scenes are by far, my favorite to write because it brings out the deep passion and emotion state of my characters. In Surrender, my current release, my hero, Lyon Sauvage, is trying to force the truth from my heroine, Isabella. She says the only reason she's come back to him after five years have gone by because she needs money to save her father's life. He knows better.
"Before you go home, don’t you think it's time you gave me some answers?"
She threw back the hair from her shoulders and straightened. "Are we back to this again? I told you, I had no one else to turn to."
"Bullshit."
She stepped back at the sound of his roar, but found no escape, only the closed door at her back.
"You have several wealthy relatives in Europe, and the trust fund your mother left you would have paid at least a portion of your father's debt. So I repeat my question. Why, Isabella? Why did you really come to me, and this time, tell me the truth."
Her hackles rose, despite the fact her heart bled at the sadness in his raspy tone. "How did you know about my relatives? Or my mother's trust fund? You intruded into my private life? You had no right!"
With long strides, he approached her; his hands tunneled through his hair and his nostrils flared. She found herself trapped against the door, face to face with Lyon so close, his puffs of breath fluttered errant strands of her hair. Primal heat sizzled through him, and he directed all that power at her.
"When someone comes to me asking for a quarter of a million dollars, everything becomes my right. Don't insult me with your lies any longer. You came here to cleanse yourself once and for all from the past. Yes, or no?"
His chest heaved, his anger evident. "You came back to find out what you'd missed five years ago, admit it."
Your favorite book by another author? My favorite all time book is Night Magic by Charlotte Vale Allen. I've read it at least a dozen times. Love the physically and emotionally scarred, tortured hero.
What book(s) are reading right now? Red Hot Reunion by Maya Banks. Her erotic romances are some of the best I've ever read.
If you could choose one author to co-write a book with who would it be? That’s easy. Eden Elgabri, who is my critique partner and co-author on my two previous e-books, Toy With Me, available now from Freyas Bower and Oz, to be released by Red Sage in late Fall. We know each other's nuances, and can almost read each other's minds. We have a rare partnership and our stories are seamless. You can't really tell who wrote which scene.
What do you think makes a good erotic romance story? Why, the sex, of course. I'm only half joking. Every story must contain a viable plot, conflict, and motivation of the characters. Their commitment to each other takes precedence over everything else. But I have to admit, physical love is what draws me when I read an erotic romance. And when it's written well, you've sold me. The physical exploration of a relationship, along with two characters that love each other in a monogamous bond between the H/H is, for me, the core of erotic romance.
What makes a scene sexy? For me, it's the emotional connection between two people, and acting on it in a physical way. Making one another feel as though they would die without the other. On the other hand, I think suggestive dialogue and eye contact without the physical, is sexy and arousing.
Who gets the best lines in your stories? Males or Females? I hope it's both!
What is one of your favorite lines said by one of your characters? My hero, Lyon Sauvage, my 'Beast" in Surrender, tells my heroine, Isabella my 'Beauty' "Roses are like women, possessed of a powerful strength, despite their delicate petals and seductive fragrance."
If you could be a character in one of your books, which book and what would your character be? I've always loved fairy tales and the HEA they promise. Surrender is an erotic Beauty and Beast tale, and I would love to be Isabella. Loving a scarred, sometimes dominant, emotionally tortured hero is so much more interesting than loving the idea of the perfect (is there such a thing?) man.
Do you think a geeky, nerdy, dorky H/H would be as interesting or accepted as the beautiful Greek god/goddess ones we read about all the time? Who wants to be a god, when an all-around geeky, warm hearted, tender geeky hero can charm the loafers off the nerdy, yet passionate, shy, gentle heroine. When they get together behind closed doors, I just know this H/H will strip each other of those taped eyeglasses, pen protectors and white socks, and proceed to burn each other like flame to dry tinder!
If you were a villain in a new book you were writing, what type of villain would you be and what’s the title of the book? It's called No Way Out, and I'm the woman trying to steal the hero (my former lover) away from the heroine; When she kills to prove to the hero how much she still adores him, her ploy does not work; he's a cop, tracks her down and corners her – Too late, she realizes that he doesn’t love her anymore; there's no way out.
You are the super hero in the book When Planets Collide, what is your super hero name and do you wear a cape and tights? Skin tight black one-piece body suit that accentuates my perfect, sultry, curvaceous body! No cape though, it would tangle with my long ankle length steel gray hair that can trap villains in the thick strands and paralyze them into submission. My name: Mane Squeeze.
What was one of the most surprising thing you learned writing your books? I was pleasantly surprised to experience the love and passion I have for telling stories. I'm an only child, and growing up, you could find me always playing pretend and talking to myself (I still do! What does that mean? Lol..) My make believe stories always had an element of danger and scary plots, but my ending were always happy. The only time I lose track of time is when I'm writing. Kind of a neat feeling when I find myself lost in my stories.
Before we say goodbye, could you tell us about your latest release and maybe give us an excerpt? Thanks so much Rie, for having me. I hope that we can speak like this again in the near future!
EXCERPT:
Isabella gasped when she found herself gathered into his arms. The scents of spice and male surrounded her, and one of his large hands slid down to cup her ass, his erection pressed against her hip, hard and long. God, what he truly wanted was clear to her now.
"This is just a preview. I can make all your woes go away, Isabella. You have five minutes to decide." He stared into her eyes as if daring her to refuse. "Don't waste my time."
When she could find her voice, she pushed off his chest, stepped away from him. "Please don't do this, Lyon. I-I need more time."
He looked at his watch, then back at her. "And I need to know what you intend to do. Four minutes, forty-five seconds, and counting."
She threw up her hands. "Have you lost your mind?" No, maybe I've lost mine.
"You're the one who came to me for help. What's your answer?"
She shook her head, swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. "I have no one else to turn to."
"I'll help you. But you won't walk away so fast this time."
She could see the tiny creases fanning out from the depths of those sapphire eyes as he continued to speak.
"You left because you were afraid, not of me but of your own inhibitions." He cuffed her wrist within his grip.
"No, I left because I lost David to another woman and I had nothing more to give anyone, including you." She tried to wrench free, but every effort proved futile. "Why can't you just lend me the money and I will pay you back another way."
"But this is what I want. Your body." He pressed his palm to her rear. "Your kiss." His lips were warm and a tiny tickle erupted in her stomach. "Your submission." He wrapped his arms tighter around her and crushed her mouth until a groan of arousal escaped her throat.
"Isabella, don’t you understand? You don't know the limits of your own passion."
Her legs almost gave way when he released her. Why was he tormenting her? Why did she feel empty all of a sudden? She cleared her throat, but her voice sounded weak, even to her own ears. "So, all I have to do is play your whore for a weekend, perform as your sex slave. And when you're through with me, my life simply goes on?"
"I don't like the word 'whore', Isabella. Think of this as a business arrangement, for want of a better word. Now, to continue, you will come to my home with nothing but the clothes on your back and you will wear only what I give you to wear. I will bathe you and feed you, and in return, you will be at my disposal for the entire weekend. Surrender is the name of the game, Isabella. I want it all." Lyon cornered her like a predator about to pounce on its helpless prey. "Are you willing to give it?"
"I'll never forgive you for this."
