Which was an embarassing reaction while I lived in cowboy country. A man passing me in the parking lot at the grocery store might tip that great big hat as he passed and I’d blush brighter than a ripe tomato.

I lived in Texas Hill Country. It was considered prime real estate before that sector of the economy went bust. Rolling, rocky hills, live oak, prickly pear cactus…that was my front yard. In the back, was a working cattle ranch.

Before we got our own fence up around that back yard, it wasn’t unusual to wake up hearing a cow mooing next to my bedroom window (they were always slipping through fences). But unless the cowboy just had an urge to saddle up, he’d more likely be on four-wheeler chasing that cow back home. That’s sexy too. Okay, so I’m just really easy to please.

I’ve loved having the chance to write about my lonely cowboys for Kensington. They were fast books because those sexy drawling voices, the mannerisms and idioms are all there in my head. I’ve loved the emails y’all have sent telling me how much you enjoyed the stories. Whenever I get a little down, thinking about an uncertain future in publishing, those emails make me smile. I keep them all for a quick-fix therapy moment!  

This last novella, “Hot Blooded”, appears in Tempted by a Cowboy. If the cover alone isn’t enticing enough, be sure to click on the picture and follow the link to my webpage where you can read an excerpt.

Oh! And there are still three days left on my Summertime Contest Countdown, so be sure to visit my blog to enter!

*hugs* DD

Just over a week ago, I got this lovely tattoo.

I know my foot looks grubby, but it’s the dye bleeding, and my foot’s swollen. I was in pain, but the tatt looked great. I haven’t taken a new picture for a very good reason. Right now the skin over the tattoo is shedding like snakeskin. I get large pretty flakes of it every time I rub my finger over the flowers and leaves.

I’ve been spending a lot of time looking at my feet. And like the crack addict who is never satisfied, I knew something was still missing from the picture my foot made. So I’ve ordered a toe ring. That’s what the dental floss is for. Ever try to get a tape measure around your little piggy? It’s hard enough at my age to bend that far and wrap dental floss around it and SEE what my pen is marking.

And that’s my excitement for the day. I have a story to wrap up. And a book about to release that I need to start talking up.

Tempted by a Cowboy is due out on June 30th!

If the cover isn’t enough to tell you what’s inside, let me just tell you that there’s plenty of sexy cowboys in tight Wranglers and hot sweaty sex. But hey, you can read an excerpt on my site if you’re still not convinced this is the book for you!

Read an excerpt!

Enjoy!

One brother is here with his third wife of ten years and his daughter. He’s the brainiac of the family, a chemist and doing quite well. I’d never really known how to take his wife, but this time, we’re bonding over tattoos. She had the idea that all the women should take my mom and get tattoos together, something to remind us of our time together. My mother’s wild about the idea and she’s decided on a dragon in a place no one can miss. She’s seventy—she’s entitled. Now, I’m thinking my SIL is one of the coolest ladies on the planet.

My other brother surprised us by rolling in on a motorcycle with his ex-wife whom he’s been divorced from for about fifteen years. Today, while we were all sitting around the pool, he announced they’re remarrying and that they’ve decided on an Elvis wedding in Las Vegas later this summer. Could have blown me over, but since I always thought it was a damn shame they didn’t work out the first time, I couldn’t be happier.

My sister, well, she’s only four hours away and we see each other often, but I was bummed she wasn’t coming due to work conflicts. She called today to say she’s coming, but only for a few hours tomorrow. Now it feels complete.

We’re all older, some broader, someone’s balder, but when we talk about things from our childhood or discover we still laugh at the same things, it’s like we never lost touch. That’s the magic of family. And when all of them talk about carving up my parent’s property to build their retirement homes, I find I’m really looking forward to the day when we’re rolling our Hoverchairs to the pool.

April 30: Fished a shrew out of the pool and a ton of fuzzy walnut tree “balls”. Water 72 degrees. Could feel the difference. Went deep end diving for crickets.

May 1: Talked mom into joining me. After laughing my ass off at her gasping for breath, checked the temp. 73 degrees. Mom, don’t be a weenie.

May 2: Still 73 degrees—and the wind whipped up. Storm rolling in kept the air cooler than the pool. Nice!  

Okay, so maybe I’m a bit obsessed. But after a winter of taking care of a pool that didn’t provide me a minute of joy, I’m soooo ready to get in that I don’t care that it’s not comfortable. I don’t like to exercise. But I will swim. When the pool’s warmer, it will be an hour in the AM before I start writing and an hour in the PM after I finish my daily pages. I’ll admit I’m a water baby. Maybe it’s because I’m a Cancer.

I prefer the pool to the lake. It’s cleaner. I don’t like green mossy slime under my feet (reminder to self to add the algae-killer to the pool water), I don’t like fishies nibbling at my toes. I don’t like a ton of people around me when I swim. Swim-time is like meditation for me. I do laps, okay short laps since the pool is only 18×36. But after I “feel the burn” in my arms, back and legs, I roll to my back and float. The water seeps into my ears and I only hear the drone of the pump. I can’t feel any pressure around or under my body so I imagine that it doesn’t exist, and all I am is the view above me. I live in the boonies of Arkansas, and that view is filled with green tree branches and birds.

My favorite times to swim are during storms. Not during lightning, I’m not that stupid. But during a really heavy rain, I love to swim because then it’s hard to tell the difference between the water below me and the water falling on me, and I feel primal. And sometimes, when it’s dark I’ll creep outside, turn on the underwater pool light and skinny dip. It feels naughty even when I do it all by myself with no one but the frogs and crickets to see.

This year, I felt virtuous. I made it past every single tryout and even managed a casual, “What cities are they going to next?”—just to make conversation with my daughter because she never misses an episode. And still, I wasn’t the least bit tempted.

Then last week, my daughter invited me over for dinner, and while we waited for the SIL to finish cooking (I taught my daughter well), she turned on the DVR and said, “Mom, you have to see this guy.”

Yeah, I’m talking about American Idol. And if you’ve been watching this season’s finalists, you’ll figure out who I’m talking about PDQ. I sat staring at this gorgeous man trying to figure out where I’d seen him before. Daughter piped in, “He looks just like Elvis.” I corrected her. He looks like Kurt Russell doing Elvis. Know who I’m talking about now? The performance she had me watch was his rendition of Smokey’s Tracks of My Tears. I’ve always loved that song, but had never heard it sung the way he did it. My heart melted, goose bumps prickled on my arms. When he finished, I was blinking because there was no way in hell Daughter was going to catch my crying when I’d been so proud of the fact I hadn’t succumbed to the AI lure this year.

I’m talking of course about Adam Lambert. This week, I secretly recorded the Tuesday night performances, fast-forwarding through the wince-worthy ones, pausing to hear Danny Gokey’s and Allison Iraheta’s—both passable—but it was Adam I really wanted to hear. When they announced he’d be singing Play that Funky Music, I cringed. No, he wasn’t going to go there! Simon would crucify him for sure. But I should have had more faith. The boy, as Paula would say, could “sing the phonebook” and make it interesting.

So, I’ll admit it. I’m hooked again. My DVR is set to record every episode for the next few weeks. I haven’t done the phone thing yet, but I know that’s coming. I won’t be able to resist. Just don’t tell my daughter. She loves it when she can say “I told you so.”

Let me know your impressions of this season’s finalists and your favorite to win the competition for a chance at winning an autographed copy of my latest Aphrodisia release, TEXAS MEN.

Due to a scheduling glitch, I find myself playing host to two loops today. So, I’m inviting you to learn about the inspiration for the opening scene for my new book, coming out February 24th, and then asking you to join me at the Access Romance blog to read the excerpt. And since I’m asking you to follow me there, I’m offering a bribe! But you’ll have to read to the bottom of this post to find out the juicy details!

Last spring, just before I began writing Texas Men, I struggled with coming up with a concept for the opening. Openings are important for a book because you want to grab a reader’s attention from the very start so they don’t close the book and put it back on the shelf.

A friend of mine who lives in Hot Springs, Arkansas invited Shayla Kersten and myself to attend a charity bachelor auction. I knew it would be fun—I didn’t know the experience would write that opening scene all by itself.

We arrived at the hall, stood in line with a couple hundred women, some dressed to the “nines,” paid our entrance fee and received strings of Mardi Gras beads and paddles with a  plumbing company’s logo pasted on them. We took seats at a pizza-sized round table and waited for the hunks to entertain us.

I said hunks, right? Ahem. A few of them were actually attractive. Not a one of them could dance, but most tried a bump and grind as they strutted across the stage. Some looked to be in excrutiating pain, but maybe that was just how they look naturally when they have to dance in front of a crowd of screaming, laughing women.

The room was so ripe with sexual tension and energy that I pulled out my notepad and began to write. Eight pidgeon-scratched pages later, I had my opening scene, complete with dialogue, thanks in great part to the wonderfully descriptive auctioneer.

Did I mention that both Shayla and I “purchased” two fine gentlemen? She won dinner with a local deejay—a tall, skinny dude with dreadlocks. I won an evening with a conservative judge up for re-election. You can bet I never mentioned once what it was I did for a living.

How about a reward for following my directions! If you post to this blog, you will be in the running to receive an autographed copy of Texas Men before it’s even available in the stores. If you’d like a second chance to win, follow this link: Access Romance

My latest phase is leaving my bank account a little light. Half a dozen books, tons of herbs, candles, incense and crystals. Guessed yet? Yeah, I’m researching witchcraft and that means I have to drown in it for a while…try it on for size. Being the anal person I am, I have the moon phases posted on my calendar and know exactly when I have to consecrate my space, cast my spell circle, draw down the moon, and only then can I try out a couple of spells I’ve chosen.

I don’t just try things out, I have to work with them, believe in them, and then see what happens to me. I’m a very “believing” kind of person. Daddy told me to look into the sky because Santa was pulling his sleigh right over our rooftop and I swear I saw him. I walked two miles along railroad tracks to find the “Gurdon Lights” and I know for a fact I saw them swaying in arcs just like a railroad foreman’s lantern might (his ghost carries that lantern). So, if I cast a spell, I know I’m going to discover something new.

Having excuses to do research is the most exciting part of the process of creating stories–for me, at least. I love cold-calling funeral directors and asking them what a body looks like after it’s been carved up for an autopsy and delivered for burial. I ask about the equipment, the smells, their emotions—and you know what? They tell me.

I called a firestation and asked for someone who knew something about cave rescues and found the expert. We spent an hour with him telling me about his experiences. And then I spent hours surfing on the webs for articles about spelunking, websites selling climbing equipment, etc.

And don’t get me started on what websites I’ve visited or the people in the lifestyle I’ve hunted down for some of my sexier research. Some of it I have to try out for myself, but I’m not telling you what in particular. Some things are better left to the imagination.

Delilah Devlin

The realization struck me yesterday that I have the backbone of an invertebrate. There I was, working toward a deadline on my next book, with the month already filled with time-management minefields, and I get a call from the local high school asking if I could substitute teach. The woman on the other end of the line sounds flustered and desperate, and I’m feeling sympathy pains for her dilemma as she describes the number of teachers who’ve called in sick because of colds, the number taking days to Christmas shop, and could I please fill in for Mr. X tomorrow? It would be such a help.

I’m making faces at the phone, wriggling in my chair because I want to scream, “Not just no—hell, no!” Instead, I hear myself meekly agreeing to show up at 8:30 AM to face a classroom of 14-year-olds. Mind you, I’m a certified teacher, but it only took me two years on the job to know I haven’t the temperment to deal with hormonal youths.

I twitch when they smirk. My first instinct when one talks back is to wrestle him or her to the ground in a chokehold until the little shit cries uncle. I survived those two years, but only because I saw light at the end of the tunnel. I knew I was going to be a full-time writer, and then I would have my revenge on anyone who’d ever caused me grief.

So think about me today. I’ll be in a classroom instead of spending time here with you. And if one of your children comes home with stories about a very strange substitute whose face turned beet red and twitched whenever Johnny blew spitballs—well, you’ll know it was just me.

And in case you didn’t know it, I have a new book out. It’s getting rave reviews and was featured in the Doubleday and Rhapsody bookclubs (I’m sure they only bought it for the studly cowboy on the cover!).

If you’d like to take a peek inside, follow the link: Down in Texas

If you post a comment today, I’ll be sure to respond when I get home later. Just don’t expect me to be coherent or sober.

Yes, it’s finally here, and I couldn’t be more excited! It’s getting some fabulous reviews, which is a relief (I’ll share them below!). Mostly, because it’s the first in a series about men who live in a little town in Texas called Honkytonk. If I get my wish, I’ll be writing about those sexy cowboys for a long, long time.

“…HOT! HOT! HOT!…All I wanted was more, so I read DOWN IN TEXAS again, enjoying it for a second time…DOWN IN TEXAS is now a book in my permanent re-read pile…”
Recommended Read, Emmy, Joyfully Reviewed

“Delilah Devlin’s DOWN IN TEXAS is a fabulous anthology that kept my attention throughout each and every story…The stories are all special in their own right but together they’re truly spectacular…Ms. Devlin has proved herself a capable storyteller before but with DOWN IN TEXAS she’s cemented a place on my ‘most watched authors’ list.”
5 Blue Ribbons, Chrissy Dionne, Romance Junkies

“…one of the most decadent reads of the year for me…Delilah never fails to deliver on any front, and this is just another testament to an extraordinary writer. As always, I look forward to more of her extraordinary novels…”
5 Angels and Recommended Read, Darksnite, Fallen Angels Reviews

“Devlin delivers in this anthology of love in the Lone Star State… This is a good, hot and sexy read.”
4 Stars, Devon Paige, RT BOOKReviews

But you don’t even have to take their word for it. Check out the first chapter on my website before you make up your mind.

Know what I miss most?

Yeah, the cowboys. The sight of a rounded, muscled backside in a snug pair of wranglers, bronzed skin that doesn’t have a thing to do with a tanning bed, a slow smile, and polite tip of a hat…sigh…

Must be why I’m so content to revisit Texas in my mind with every story I’ve penned lately for Kensington. My next release is Down in Texas, and it comes out October 28th. Here’s a bit about the three heroes you’ll meet and a glimpse inside the pages.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Down in Texas, there’s a little town called Honkytonk, where the women get exactly what they want…and the men know just how to give it to them.

Wearing His Brand

Lyssa McDonough just got tangled up in a coil of barbed wire, and her clothes are ripped to shreds. Rancher Brandon Tynan to the rescue—but why is she so ornery? Could it be the whole state of Texas isn’t big enough for the two of them? Hell, they’ll still have to share one horse to get home. Lyssa better hang on tight—she’s in for the wildest ride of her life…

Slow Ride

Maggie McDermott doesn’t know the first thing about horses and Daniel Tynan is more than willing to show her the ropes. His gentle ways melt her heart and his sensual passion burns away her inhibitions. Daniel takes the time to love her right.

Straight Up Soldier

Suki Reece needs protection and she can see that Mac McDonough has the muscle. Too bad he can’t stand taking orders from a woman. The rugged ex-Marine won’t listen to a word she says until Suki distracts him with a sexy striptease. That gets his attention. Suki may have gotten the upper hand, but Mac is going to be on top…

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Mac McDonough’s body ached with the need to sink into soft, wet woman.

An escape, no matter how brief, from the constant, throbbing in his shattered leg.

Like an answer to his prayer, a familiar SUV crawled up the rough gravel road. His body tightened. Tara Toomey had offered the last time she paid him a visit, for old time’s sake, but he’d turned her down because he’d still had just enough pride and just enough affection for his old friend not to want to use her like that.

Today, she wouldn’t make it past the door. The thought of her blond flyaway curls wrapped around his dick made him throb with anticipation.

As she slowly made her way up the winding, rutted road, Mac McDonough closed his eyes and turned his face into the gusting, humid air and inhaled the fresh scent of the coming rain—a fierce reminder of just how far he’d come.

Over seven thousand miles and another lifetime.

The cabin nestled high on a ridge overlooking hills covered with live oak and cedar seemed as far removed from his version of reality as the face of Mars.

Sure the ground was a bed of sand and rock, but the sand was grittier, the grains larger than the wheat flour a Hummer could kick up into the air, leaving a trail that could be tracked for miles across the desert floor.

The air was almost as hot, but filled with so much moisture it felt thick as he dragged it deep into his lungs.

Mac curled his fingers around the porch rail and leaned into it, savoring the solitude he’d needed to heal his soul that no amount of therapy or medicine could compare with.

Only thing missing from the picture was another case of whiskey to help him sink into a stupor to ease the pain-filled tension in his body and shut out the memories that haunted his dreams.

And a woman. Not that he was willing to leave the cabin to go on the prowl for one, but the longer he remained in his self-imposed isolation, the more urgent became the need. Any woman would do—so long as she didn’t want to talk, didn’t want to be wooed. He hadn’t the time or the heart left for either.

However, if all Tara offered him this go-round was whiskey, he might make it through another week before he lost his mind.

The silver SUV ground to a halt. Tara slammed open her door and jumped down from the cab, her arms already opening wide as she approached.

He stiffened automatically as her embrace surrounded him, and then forced himself to relax. “Tara, let’s get it on,” he growled.

Tara flung back her head and laughed. “Soldier Boy, that’s the least appealing proposition I’ve gotten today.”

His arms clamped hard around her lean body. “I’m not kidding. Right here, right now. Let’s do it.”

Her blue eyes clung to his face, and her smile dimmed for just a moment, before stretching wide again. “You’re in a bad way, aren’t you?”

“You gotta ask?” he said, rutting his groin crudely against her soft belly.

Air whistled through her pursed lips. “Now, there’s something I don’t feel every day. Almost forgot you come packin’ some serious hardware.”

“Is that a yes?” he bit out irritably.

Tara gave him another hug then eased out of his arms. “As tempting as your offer is, I’m gonna have to say no. I’m saving myself these days.”

He lifted an eyebrow, not missing the slight blush that painted her cheeks a pretty rose. “Well, fuck.”

She laughed again, and whirled, heading back to her vehicle. “Go get off that leg. I brought gifts. We’ll talk.”

Mac cussed again. The last thing he wanted to do was talk. About anything. Especially about anything to do with his returning home. He wasn’t ready.

Fact was, he didn’t know if he ever would be.

He gathered the cane he’d left leaning against the rail and limped into the cabin, heading for the lounge chair and the overstuffed ottoman that had served as his bed more times than the mattress in the cozy room at the back of the one-bedroom cabin she’d lent him.

Tara returned with two grocery bags and set them on the kitchen table. She hummed as she put away her purchases in the cupboard, and Mac closed his eyes, pretending to nap.

When something cold touched his fingers, he peeked from beneath his eyelids and gratefully accepted the tumbler with a double-shot of whiskey on ice.

He raised his glass and gave her a glare which had her chuckling as she took a seat on the small sofa opposite him.

“A toast,” she said, raising her own glass.

“What are we celebrating?” he said, determined to make the effort to be polite even though his “condition” still screamed for attention.

“To friends,” she replied, her gaze sliding away.

Suspicion raised hackles on the back of his neck, but he remained silent, watching Tara fidget on the sofa as she sought the right words to start the conversation.

He sighed, knowing he had to show polite interest. “Lyssa and Brand set a date?”

“They’re waiting for you.”

Mac’s lips twisted. “Tell her to plan it. I’ll walk her down the damn aisle.”

“They want you home first. To stay.”

“Thought Brand had everything under control. They have any more problems with smugglers?”

“No signs, lately. DEA and the Rangers scoured the place and set up patrols up and down this side of the river. They think the bastards moved their route.”

Mac eased back in his chair. “Then he’s got it covered.”

“They’re both run pretty ragged. Brand’s got his own spread to manage; Lyssa’s working yours. Of course, they’re not getting much sleep.”

Mac grimaced, knowing exactly why his baby sister wasn’t getting any rest. “Danny still back at Wasp Creek with his woman?”

Tara nodded, a smile stretched her mouth. “He’s got his hands full. Maggie’s pregnant, and he’s decided to pitch in to run her place.”

“Pregnant? Is he marrying her?”

“They did it last weekend at the saloon.”

A pang of regret tightened his chest. In that other lifetime, he would have been there. “Good for him.”

“Mac…”

He tensed, knowing she was finally getting to the point of the visit and girding himself to refuse. Saying no to family or Tara tore him up, but he just wasn’t ready to reenter that world again.

Too many shadows hovered around him. He felt too tense, too rangy. His mood swings still verged on dangerous. Habits he’d picked up in the desert, instincts he couldn’t turn off, left him feeling out of control of his reactions and emotions.

Maybe if he could get a good night’s sleep, just once without the aid of alcohol…

Just one night…

“Go ahead and spit it out,” Mac ground out. “I’ll tell you no. You can nag me to death until you go. Then you can tell the folks at home you tried. But Tara, I’m not going back. Not yet.”

“This is something else…”

The quiet tension in her voice caught his attention

“…And I don’t know who else to ask.”

He stared into the glass, not willing to see the plea in her blue eyes. “What is it?”

“I have this friend who’s in trouble. Her ex boyfriend’s gonna kill her.”