A warm welcome back to author Meg Harding joining us today to talk about her new release “Checking it Twice”.
Meg talks about her characters , shares an excerpt and brought with her a giveaway!
Welcome Meg 🙂
Hi! Thanks for having me back, Dani!
At one point or another in a romance novel, someone inevitably makes a mistake. A common theme in my novels is that they don’t normally say I’m sorry, but they show it. I’m going to admit; this is a personal quirk of my own. This is my feelings bleeding into the writing. I’m not a fan of the words “I’m sorry.” I don’t know about other people, but when someone says them to me, whether I want to or not, I find myself saying “It’s fine.” And I know this is something I don’t have to say, and I could easily say the opposite. But I find it very difficult. I’m made uncomfortable by the situation, and I’m willing to bet I’m not the only one.
My characters tend to believe in gestures. Personal gestures. In Dinner for One, James makes French dishes as an apology to Bastien. They feature things they ate together and things he knows Bastien is particularly fond of. In Will You Be My Escort, Jackson knows Aaron is a sucker for rescue dogs (and dogs in general) and Aaron knows Jackson loves costume makeup. They show their feelings for each other with personalized dates centered around these things. Checking it Twice, the third in the Carlisles series featuring Eric and Dorian, involves tailored dates and meaningful apologies with more than words.
I don’t know that I’ll ever write anything where the dates and apologies aren’t somewhat quirky and out of the norm. I’m the first to admit my personal life in the romantic department looks like a train wreck or a desert at any given time, and probably because of this some of my own… wants, I’ll say, shine through. I want to go on dates that show the person is paying attention to my interests. It’s a dream of mine to find someone who gets it right. Traditional is great—for people who like it. I don’t. I want dates at the zoo and at concerts. I want to go hiking or mini-golfing. I want apologies said with stuffed crust pizza at home and a Marvel film or a hockey game on the television. If you make me anything dessert like with lemon or cinnamon, I’m a goner.
It’s the little details. What are the little details for you that let you know it’s right?
Blurb:
Closeted professional hockey player Eric Belanger is falling hard for an out-and-proud male model. He’s unable to resist Dorian’s charm and pushing personal boundaries he never thought he’d cross. But Dorian is the kind of guy who deserves someone who isn’t afraid to be himself. Eric’s fears about what coming out will do to his career clash with the future he hopes to build with Dorian. He knows he’ll eventually have to make a choice.
Dorian Carlisle knows better than to date a man who wants to keep him a secret, but there’s something about Eric he can’t ignore. So he’ll take the risk, and it’ll be all right, because this isn’t a forever romance. He’s happy to live in the moment. But somehow, at some point, feelings sneak up on him and he’s not okay anymore. At a breaking point, Dorian must also make a decision. Their time together will either be the start of something wonderful or nothing more than a happy memory.
Somehow Dorian’s name got tossed into the ring for a winter clothing line spread in some sports magazine, and now he’s on a set in downtown New York City with five big, hulking hockey players. A few of whom are pretty damn hot, and the majority of whom aren’t American. He can admit he’s a sucker for an accent, and it’s a little distracting.
Jackson, his brother, flicks his nose. He stops staring at the tall European guy who’s talking to the tall French Canadian, who has his shirt off and an abdomen that Dorian would pay to be able to lick. He scrunches his face up at his brother, mimicking the judgey look being thrown his way. He can’t believe Jackson took this job. Isn’t it bad enough that he has to work with Denver—his twin—more often than not?
“What was that for?” he asks, gaze already trying to return to the guys. He can’t help it. He’s innately wired to appreciate beautiful things.
“I’m trying to do your makeup, and you’re making it difficult. Stop looking at the toys you can’t touch and look at me.” Jackson grabs his chin and tilts his head just so, wielding eyeliner in his other hand like it’s a weapon.
Dorian pouts, sticking his bottom lip way out. “You don’t know. I could touch them.” In my dreams.
Jackson gives him a stern look, which is ridiculous since he’s a year younger. Dorian should be the one giving the parental stare-downs. “Hands to yourself. Professional athletes are never a good idea. Now open your eyes wide and don’t blink.”
It takes a lot of self-control to not sneak glances at the hockey players while they get dressed and their makeup gets done. And well, he just doesn’t have that control. So he manages a peek or two. The whole process is a lot of clothes coming on and off, muscles flexing, watching stylists run their hands through gorgeous hair. It’s like being in a candy shop and getting told you can’t have anything. So not fair.
Dorian can list on the fingers of one hand the things he knows about sports, and all of it mostly has to do with what the balls look like and the overall purpose of them: score goals. It’s not that he’s not interested—well, okay, he is—but he just doesn’t have the attention span for it. He’s done jobs with plenty of athletes, both male and female, and their sports sound interesting enough when they talk to him about them. It just doesn’t translate to him watching it.
His lack of interest isn’t normally a problem, but athletes are a peculiar lot, and sometimes that makes working with them difficult. They have a hard time understanding the shoot isn’t about them. It’s about the photographer’s vision. The designer’s vision. It’s about serving a purpose. And then there are the times where it’s like they’re speaking a whole other language.
Like now.
Buy Links:
Choice of Ebook from Harding’s backlist
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Meg Harding is a graduate of UCF and Anglia Ruskin University. For as long as she can remember, writing has always been her passion, but she had an inability to ever actually finish anything. She’s immensely happy that her inability has fled and looks forward to where her mind will take her next. She’s a sucker for happy endings, the beach, and superheroes. In her dream life she owns a wildlife conservation and is surrounded by puppies. She’s a film buff, voracious reader, and a massive geek.
You show up at my house in the morning with coffee and donuts or if it’s after noon, a rainbow candy cherry slush, and apology accepted. You’re in deeper trouble, Chinese food and an evening of video games. You’re totally in the doghouse? Then it better be a night of me watching NHL Center Ice while you paint my toenails, and play me with beer and nachos.