Talk About My Favorite Authors: Bonnie Dee (My Guest Blogger)

Today is a special day because I have a special Guest Blogger, her name is Bonnie Dee and she has a new release today that she will be talking about today. Bonnie was nice enough to stop by the blog and talk about her new release Secrets, #23 anthology in which her story “Reflection of Beauty” is featured. I'm happy that she had enough time to stop by and tells us about how “Reflection of Beauty” came to be written and what it is about. You can visit her website, her blog and her Yahoo! Group Newsletter. Here is what Bonnie Dee had to say about how she came to write her story:

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When I wrote “Reflection of Beauty”, I was specifically targeting a story for Red Sage’s Secrets anthologies. I wanted to write a story that incorporated romance and erotica in equal amounts and thought a retelling of Beauty and the Beast would be a perfect opportunity to create that blend. I’d also recently watched Mel Gibson in “Man Without a Face” for the millionth time so the idea of a scarred man with a tragic past who believes himself unlovable was in my mind. The main sticking point as far as plot was figuring out a way to get the two protagonists together and I don’t remember how the idea of having her be an artist commissioned to paint his portrait came to me. Since then, I saw a Lifetime movie with a very similar premise, which chapped my ass because I’d thought I was being original.

It’s been almost two years since I wrote this story. After an editor chose it from the slush pile and decided there was something to it, I had to edit and add a couple of scenes. Then the story waited to receive final approval and was slotted for Secrets #23, which was several volumes down the line. But at last it’s out and available for purchase at Amazon or any bookstore if you request them to order it. Getting your local bookstores to carry the kinds of books you want is very important. It’s up to customers to say, “Hey, can you get more Red Sage, Samhain or Ellora’s Cave books into your store?” These small press publishers rely on the readers to create the demand that bookstores will then begin to supply.

At last! Secrets, #23, is released. The story I have included in this volume of sexy stories is "Reflection of Beauty." Here is the blurb:

Christine Dawson has been haunted for months by vivid, lucid dreams in which she must tear through barbed roses to enter a castle and rescue a phantom lover. In her waking life, she is a struggling artist on the brink of her first gallery show and a chance for success.

Eric Leroux is a scarred man both inside and out with a damaged face and emotional trauma from his youth. His wealth allows him to hide from the world, living in solitude. But one glimpse of vivacious Christine through a remote viewing of her show awakens a deep-seated desire he can’t deny.

He commissions Chris to paint his portrait in order to bring her to his secluded estate. Can she push through the barbed thorns of his defense and reach the man inside?

Dark Angel Reviews, Recommended Read, Reviewer Amanda Haffery

"REFLECTIONS OF BEAUTY stole my breath away...I really enjoy the fact that each story in this anthology is different. I get to enjoy all different types of genres from these amazing authors and I get to move with the characters from one world to another. The SECRETS books are some of my favorite collections and these authors and stories are the reason why."

JERR, Reviewer Laura Scott, 5 stars

Having read most of the Secrets anthologies, I had high hopes for this one and was not disappointed. Exotic new worlds, vampires, witches, erotic fairy tales, Regency romps—this book had it all. Each of the stories was well written, varied and kept my interest throughout. The female characters were all intelligent and strong-willed and actively contributed to the resolution of the plots. The male characters were quite different in personalities yet sexy and equally interesting.

Read on for an excerpt from the opening scene of "Reflections of Beauty." It is a little hot and heavy towards the middle so be careful where you read this…

“I had the rose dream again last night. The one where I have to tear through all those brambles trying to get to a door that leads through the wall.” Chris sipped her morning coffee and stared at the ring the mug had left on the table. “You wouldn’t believe how vivid it is. I can actually feel the scratching thorns. The brambles are covered with little pink roses and the scent is so strong I can still smell them when I wake up.”

“Olfactory dreaming. Interesting.” Tonya continued to mark the items she was ordering for the shop.

“You don’t sound that interested.”

“You’ve been telling me about this Secret Garden dream for months. I passed ‘interested’ a while ago.”

Chris set down her cup. “Well, listen to this. Last night something new happened. I made it through the wall.”

Tonya looked up, her brown eyes holding a gleam of curiosity for the first time. “Really? What happened next?”

“Inside the wall was a deserted castle. I walked through an empty courtyard and into the great hall. My footsteps echoing were the only sound. It was really eerie, but I knew I had to keep going.” Chris closed her eyes, summoning up the dream that had faded like a sepia photograph in the bright light of morning. “There was this presence somewhere inside and I had to get to it.”

“And did you?”

“Yeah.” Chris hesitated. The rest of the dream was too personal. She and Tonya shared explicit details about their sex lives, but the eroticism of last night’s dream wasn’t something she wanted to share. The almost transcendent nature of the sex would be lost in the telling. “I don’t remember much after that, but it was very sexy and … intense.”

Tonya propped her chin on her hand. “Hot! Tell me about it. I need a dirty story to jumpstart my day.”

Chris laughed. “You don’t get enough from those erotica sites you have bookmarked?”

“Hey, I have to do something to pass the time. The shop is practically customer-free ever since fucking Hobby Lobby opened.” Tonya nodded toward the front room where fine art supplies and craft items jostled for space in the small shop the two women owned. “I keep telling you we have to lose the craft supplies and concentrate on targeting the serious artists.”

Tonya’s voice faded away. Chris turned her empty cup around and around in her hands as she replayed every aspect of the previous night’s dream.

When she’d finally torn away the curtain of thorns to reveal the door in the wall, her heart pounded with excitement. She held her breath, expecting to wake up, but she turned the knob and the door swung open into a shady courtyard. In the center was a fountain with nymphs swaying in a sensual dance. If water had been flowing, it would’ve looked like the sprites were cavorting under a waterfall. Instead rust stains made their nude forms bloody and dried leaves collected in whispery pools in the basin.

Weed-choked paths wandered between overgrown garden beds where toppled, vine-covered statues lay. The presence beckoned Chris onward, demanding her attention and she passed through the desolate courtyard to the dark, ominous wall of the castle. She pushed through massive doors to enter a hall lined with armor. There was no patronizing butler or austere housekeeper to meet her. Her footsteps echoed in the stillness as she walked down the hall and ascended the wide staircase.

She didn’t stop to examine the remains of faded luxury in dust-covered rooms. The pull of the entity led her unerringly to a door with wood so highly polished Chris could see her faint reflection in it. This is how I will look to him, she thought. Dark hair. Dark eyes. Dark skin. Short, sharp, intense. That’s me.

In a hurry now to meet the presence that had summoned her for so many nights, she pushed open the door and entered the dark room beyond it.

At last. You’re here for me. The voice filling her mind was deeply masculine. It reverberated in her brain cells and throughout her nervous system, making her shiver with need. The presence was overpoweringly male and desperately hungry for her.

Chris was just as starved for his touch. The feminine, vulnerable aspect of her strong personality rolled over and turned belly up in submission. Here I am. Take me!

Her pussy clenching and releasing with each heartbeat, Chris walked farther into the room. There was a huge four-poster bed at one end. Bookcases and a large fireplace covered one wall. A leather armchair stood beside the hearth, but the owner of the room remained unseen.

Chris approached a long, oval, wooden frame between two tall windows. Sparkling shards of mirror lay scattered beneath the stand. Her bare feet crunched across them, the pieces slicing her feet just as the thorns had scratched her hands. She stared at the empty mirror frame and one remaining jagged shard dangling there. It reflected part of her shoulder and arm but nothing else. Where are you?

Right here. Heavy, warm hands rested on her shoulders, pressing down for a moment before sliding down her bare arms to lace fingers with her.

Chris was nude in the dream, but didn’t feel shy. She closed her eyes and relaxed into the invisible stroking hands on her breasts, stomach, thighs and sex. His touch was everywhere at once, a subtle tickling like a warm breeze blowing all over her body. It reminded her of the way her brush kissed the canvas when she painted.

She leaned back to find his body, warm and solid behind her. His mouth nuzzled the side of her neck and trailed kisses all the way to the curve of her shoulder. Chris turned her head to meet his soft, yielding lips. Her eyes may have been open or closed, but it didn’t matter which. She knew she wouldn’t be able to see him. That wasn’t allowed. She didn’t care. All she needed was to feel him, clasping her body tightly, exploring her mouth with his searching tongue, pressing his growing erection into the crevasse of her buttocks. She turned in the circle of his embrace until she faced him, her hands roaming over muscled chest and shoulders. Reaching down between them, she grasped his cock. It filled her hand, warm and heavy and solid—too solid to be a mere dream.

Chris stroked up and down the shaft. At the same time, she touched him everywhere at once, just as he was doing to her. Her body was charged with light, her being crackling with erotic energy. The glut of impressions in every cell of her body as they touched one another intimately was almost too much to bear. She thought she might come from sensation alone before he ever entered her.

This is a good dream. A bubble of laughter escaped her and shimmered in the air around them like dust motes dancing in the sun.

A very good dream. The rumble of his voice sent a delicious shiver through her. He was so sexy and masculine and smelled so good. She breathed him in, hot male skin and a subtle, woodsy aroma. He lifted her up with his hands beneath her ass and pushed inside her in one swift, fluid motion.

Chris gasped and held on tight, wrapping her arms and legs around him. His cock filled her completely, satisfying her open, yearning sex. It touched a place deep inside sending waves of pleasure surging through her.

Suddenly they were no longer standing, but stretched out on the silk covers of the massive bed. He rose and fell above her, driving deep inside and hitting that wonderful, magic spot each time. The unfocused sparkles of desire darting through her body coalesced into a strong, steady pulsing whole, like an Impressionist painting in which dabs of color form a complete picture. Her hips lifted to meet each hard thrust of her unseen lover. Her body rose higher each time until she was no longer on the bed, but floating somewhere above it.

The insistent pressure of her growing orgasm suddenly burst, exploding in crystal shards like mirror glass that showered through her entire being, leaving her breathless and exhilarated.

“Hey, Christine! Focus!” Tonia’s fingers snapped in front of her face. “Are you even listening to me?”

Chris startled, almost falling off her chair. She quickly covered by standing up. “Yeah. Of course!”

Tonia rolled her eyes. “For those who tuned in late, I said I’m going to take first shift in the studio. I had an idea last night I want to try out on the wheel.”

“Sure. Go ahead. I’ll open the store for the overwhelming rush of customers.”

Bonnie Dee's short Bio:

Bonnie Dee is a multi-published author with books available from Liquid Silver, Samhain and Loose Id in many different genres. See her complete back list at her website.