Why Romance?

I’m often asked why I write romance.  And the answer is simple really, I love reading complicated relationship stories that are about the ups and downs of falling in love.  I like seeing two people meet at the wrong time in both of their lives and then start on the journey to falling love.

The truth is few of us (I don’t know of anyone, but just in case!) will find love when we want it.  Love comes unexpectedly into our lives.  And in fiction that makes for some good conflict.  In my upcoming title for Harper Impulse EYE CANDY (AUG 13) Hayley wants change.  But that change can’t come from the outside it really has to come from something inside of her.  And Hayley’s not afraid to go after what she wants.  She’s never taken the easy path.

I’m one of those people who believes that both people have to work at a successful relationship so in my novels I try to ensure both the hero and the heroine are complicated people.  Men and women who don’t need another person to ‘complete’ them or make them happy. But who aren’t opposed to have someone along with them on the journey.

My favorite romances are the ones that have two strong protagonists.  I don’t think I’d be very good at writing someone who needed to be rescued since I’m usually the one who will just do whatever needs doing.  Standing around and waiting for rescue doesn’t appeal to me.  But I do like a man who can see past all that I-can-do-it attitude and can pamper his woman. 

Here’s a little excerpt from EYE CANDY:

She glanced up at him because even in the ridiculous heels he was still much taller than she was.  She saw he was watching her with that steady, even gaze he'd had on the street but also a little bit of amusement.

He thought she was frivolous.

For a moment the shy girl inside of her withered a little and wanted to retreat but she wasn't hiding any more.  She leaned up and let her breasts brush against his chest as she wrapped one hand around his shoulder for balance before she canted her body forward.

"Is something funny, officer?" she asked in a deep husky voice, making sure her words were spoken right into his ear.

She felt him shudder and his hands came to waist and he drew her off her feet more firmly into the cradle of his body but then everything shifted and she felt them starting to fall.

He cursed and held her tight as he ensured she landed on him with her half on top of his chest and half on the floor.  Hayley started laughing as she realized that maybe jumping from mousy to sexy was too much for her to accomplish in one night.

She glanced down at Garrett to find he was scowling.

"Are you hurt?"

"Just my pride," he said with a wry grin.

"Pride goeth before the fall?" she quipped.

"Definitely," he said.  He grabbed her waist and pulled her more fully on top of him.  She felt his jean-clad legs part and her silk-encased ones slid between them.

There was something almost erotic about the feel of the denim against her thighs and she shivered a little inside.  She put her hands on his chest but his hand on her waist moved up her back and he pushed his fingers into her newly cut hair, his hand shaping her head and drawing her down.

"What are you doing?" she asked on a breathless sort of sigh.

"Regaining the ground I lost," he said, moments before his lips met hers. 

Hayley closed her eyes and then the timbre of the kiss changed as he angled his head and parted her lips with his.  The warmth of his breath as it entered her mouth sent shivers of awareness down her spine.  The smooth glide of his tongue over hers short-circuited her thoughts.

She stopped breathing.

Every nerve in her body was at attention.  As his mouth moved over hers she felt the caresses of his thighs over hers.  The movement of his hands over the back of her head as he massaged the muscles in her neck and she turned to putty.

She melted against him and over him.  The kiss transformed her the same way the clothing had.  He was awakening something inside of her that she'd thought only existed in epic romance books and movies, but not in real life.  Something she'd always longed for, but thought she'd never find.  Something dangerous because though she was ready to change inside she hadn't yet.

She pulled back and looked down at him.  His eyes were half-closed and a subtle flush had spread under his beard-stubbled cheeks.  His lips were moist and swollen from kissing her.  She lifted one hand and rubbed her finger over the stubble on his jaw enjoying the slight abrasion against her skin.

He opened his eyes and she saw how beautiful they were up close.  She would have said they were gray before but at this angle she could see they were flecked with green and blue.  She moved her hand from his jaw and traced the line of one eyebrow and then found a tiny scar at his hairline.  She rubbed her finger over it.

"Ah, bad girl, you are killing me," he said, his voice was deep and sort of husky now.  The words brushed over her senses like a blast of heat from a fireplace on a cold night.  And this was a cold January night.

~

You can pre-order it here

Price $4.99 £2.48

ISBN 9780008142520

Amazon.com * Amazon.co.uk * ibooks * bn.com * Sainsburys.co.uk * Google Play

What’s your favorite kind of romance?  Tell me to be entered to win an autographed copy of my latest release CARRYING THE KING'S CHILD.

Happy reading!

Katherine