Hey, I Know What! Let's "Dirty Kiss" And Then Do A Little Backlist Book Bump Giveaway With Rhys Ford!

A long time ago—okay, really not that long ago—a couple of years at the most, I wrote a book. Slapped a title on it—Dirty Kiss—and sent it off to Dreamspinner Press in the hopes of someone there maybe liking it.

And they did.

And they bought it.

And I squeed.

No, really. I squeed because damn it, I wanted to toss Cole and Jae out there to the shark-infested waters to see how they would do. *grins*. They swam and I’m pretty sure Cole punched a shark in the nose. Hit fast-forward and I’m looking at a Spring 2014 release for their fourth book, but oh, there is always the start of the journey that has such fond memories.

There were several things I wanted to accomplish with the series. One, to get it out of my head and two, to write about two men from different cultures who meet and fall into a relationship. I wanted to explore the personal trials each of them have to endure because they are gay — from an American and a traditional Korean viewpoint.

Most of all, I wanted the reader to have fun. And maybe throw the book at my head, but that kind of thing is going to just happen. *grins*

To celebrate my first novel with Dreamspinner Press, I am offering a giveaway of ALL THREE of the Dirty series books AND a Dirty Kiss short sleeve t-shirt from my CafePress store. Black, white or any of the variety of colours it comes in… including camo. I’m not sure why you’d want it in camo but hey, someone might. Just leave a comment under the excerpt and you’ll be entered!

Contest Ends Saturday, November 23, 2013 at 11:59pm Pacific time. One winner will be chosen by a random number generator on Sunday, the 24th, and notified via email for prize delivery. International entries welcome!

Good luck!

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Cole Kenjiro McGinnis, ex-cop and PI, is trying to get over the shooting death of his lover when a supposedly routine investigation lands in his lap. Investigating the apparent suicide of a prominent Korean businessman’s son proves to be anything but ordinary, especially when it introduces Cole to the dead man’s handsome cousin, Kim Jae-Min.

Jae-Min’s cousin had a dirty little secret, the kind that Cole has been familiar with all his life and that Jae-Min is still hiding from his family. The investigation leads Cole from tasteful mansions to seedy lover’s trysts to Dirty Kiss, the place where the rich and discreet go to indulge in desires their traditional-minded families would rather know nothing about.

It also leads Cole McGinnis into Jae-Min’s arms, and that could be a problem. Jae-Min’s cousin’s death is looking less and less like a suicide, and Jae-Min is looking more and more like a target. Cole has already lost one lover to violence—he’s not about to lose Jae-Min too.

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And now, an excerpt from Dirty Kiss:

Dabbing a new gauze with alcohol, he returned to abrading my skin. “With Hyun-Shik gone, she doesn’t have to bring Will around to the Auntie or Uncle unless they do what she wants. They’re worried that he’s not going to be Korean enough.”

“Not Korean enough?” I cocked my head back to look at him, curious about what he was talking about. “What do you mean? How can he get less Korean?”

“Like you,” Jae said, as merciless as he was about scrubbing my face clean. “You’re Japanese but not Japanese. You don’t know even the simplest things about being Asian. There’s no connection to your mother’s family or blood, is there? They’re dead to you.”

“Hold up,” I protested, grabbing at his wrists and pulling his hands away from my face. “Just because I wasn’t raised by my mother doesn’t mean her family’s dead. They’re still in Japan being as Japanese as they want.”

“They might as well be dead.” He shrugged, the white shirt catching on the rise of his chest. Jae’s nipples poked ridges into the fabric, momentarily distracting me from what he was saying. “It’s not a bad thing, for you. For Will, his family is right here. Koreans live for their children and their grandchildren. It’s what makes the family go on. Having Will was the only reason Hyun-Shik got married; not because he loved Victoria, but because he had to provide family to live on.”

“So he decided he wasn’t gay anymore because he needed a kid?”

“He wasn’t going to stop loving men but couldn’t afford to be that person anymore.” Jae didn’t struggle out of my hold, settling his knees on either side of my legs. “It was time for Hyun-Shik to grow up and have a family. If he was smart, he would have married a Korean girl, but Vicki was good for Uncle’s business. She came with a lot of connections.”

“You couldn’t have told me this before I headed over there?” I let go of one of his arms, holding the other loosely. Putting the bloodied bandage down on a torn wrapper, he shook his head at me.

“Hyun-Shik put that behind him,” he murmured, dropping his eyes. “Hyun-Shik’s son has to be… sheltered from who his father was. It’s better that way.”

I wasn’t sure if the shyness was real, but the contrite glance he gave me from under his lashes did me in. Victoria had nothing on seduction, compared to Jae-Min. If it was artificial, then he was damned practiced at it.

My hands were in his hair before I even thought about wanting to touch him more. Scraping back the black strands, I paused when I saw the small plaster bandage on his temple. Jae’s eyes widened, and he gasped, unsure of what I was going to do. I had to admit, I wasn’t certain myself, but in the middle of trying to figure out if his cousin had killed himself or if he’d had help, I’d tossed aside my feelings for Rick and was falling for a lying, sleek Korean man. Guilt ate at me, worms of censure working through my thoughts as my thumbs ran over Jae’s cheekbones, bringing a blush to the surface of his pale skin.

“Don’t,” he pleaded. There wasn’t much conviction in his voice. It sounded more like a please than a stop. “You don’t want this.”

“Want this or want you?” There’d been other men who’d caught my interest, but none had really made me lust before. Not like this. I needed to push Jae down and make him scream my name. I wanted his hands on my back and to feel him around me. “No one’s made me need them more since Rick.”