Although the greats such as Bram Stoker, Edgar Allan Poe, and Daphne du Maurier are long dead, these contemporary authors keep the Gothic spirit alive and well by interpreting it in new and exciting ways. Red Velvet and Absinthe offers readers a collection of unique and original stories that conjure up the atmospheric and romantic spirit of the Gothic masters (and mistresses) but take things a bit further by adding to the brew a generous dosage of eroticism. Lie back and listen to the wind howling outside your window as you read these stories in the flickering light of a candle, the absinthe you’re sipping warming your body like the caressing touch of a lover’s fingers . . .Includes:Snowlight Moonlight by Rose de FerCover Him with Darkness by Janine AshblessA Rose in the Willow Garden by Elizabeth DanielsThe Blood Moon by Mitzi SzeretoPainted by Anna MeadowsDolly by Charlotte SteinLa Belle Mort by Zander VyneThe Persistence of Memory by Even MoraScratched by Ashley ListerBitter and Intoxicating by Sharon BidwellTea for Two by Claire BuckinghamMilady's Bath by Giselle RenardeThe Way Home by Cary WilliamsThe Queen by Tahira IqbalBenediction by Bonnie Dee

    Titles include:Chasin' Mason by Stacey Joy NetzelCatch the stallion ~ win the ranch. A simple competition between bitter enemies, but once tempers and passions flare in the Texas heat, all bets are off. Deadly Addiction by Kristine CayneA violent clash of cultures tests the forbidden love between a Native American man and a white female cop. When police sergeant Alyssa Morgan and Rémi Whitedeer meet, their forbidden attraction flips both their lives ass over teakettle, but they aren't the only ones in turmoil. After the duo uncovers a drug-fueled conspiracy on the Blackriver Reservation, blood is pitted against blood, and Rémi has everything to lose. His Lady Godiva by L.C. GirouxDr. Michael Dennison put broken bodies back together so no one would have to live like he did. As many obstacles as he had overcome, he never wanted to burden a woman with his disability. He was safer never to risk his heart. Violet Bellows lived a guarded life. The accident had taken so much from her but she still had something to give. For her surgeon she would risk everything to make him hers, body and soul.Love By Design by Liz MatisIn this Sex in the City meets HGTV romp sparks fly on camera as interior designer Victoria Bryce breaks in temporary co-host Aussie Russ Rowland. Arguments over design plans and measurement mishaps ignite passions behind the scenes.But when the past collides with the present will the foundation they built withstand the final reveal?Run Rosie Run by C.C. MackenzieThink Easy Virtue meets No Reservations…She’d wasted enough of her life madly in love with a man she could never have…Perhaps it was time to give another man a chance... But now Rosie has two men who want her and will stop at nothing to win her heart…Which one will she choose...Sexy in Stilettos by Nana MaloneOrganized, event planner, Jaya Trudeaux is used to doing things by the book and never making waves. The only thing that can tie carefree, playboy, Alec Danthers down is a promise he made to his mother. Can Jaya put the lists down long enough to enjoy the ride?Six full length books, Over 1000 pages, from six top selling authors. If you like your contemporary romance on the steamy side this book is for you!

    Problem is, she isn’t being forced into the Army, she’s been chosen as a Kindred bride. The Kindred are huge alien warriors—a race of genetic traders whose population is ninety-five percent male. After saving Earth from the threat of invasion they demand a reward—the right to find brides among the population. The chances of being chosen are about the same as those of winning the lottery—guess it’s just Liv’s lucky day. Baird is a Beast Kindred who recently escaped imprisonment and torture at the hands of the malevolent Scourge. Through the torment and pain only one thing kept him sane—the thought of finding and claiming his bride—Olivia. His need to possess her is a burning intensity that threatens to consume them both.Angry at having her future and her family taken away from her, Liv vows to fight back the only way she can—by resisting. She has one month on the Kindred Mothership with Baird—their claiming period. If she can keep from having bonding sex with him during that time, she can go home and get on with her life on Earth. But Baird isn’t going to make it easy for her. Every week he is allowed to touch Liv more and more intimately and according to the contract she signed, she has to let him. She’s determined to resist him but his touch sets her on fire. And just as she thinks she knows what she wants, a twist of fate and an attack by the faceless Scourge AllFather changes everything…

    If she doesn't find work soon, she'll need to return to her native Maine, where the job situation is even more bleak. And where her abusive parents lie in wait.But when an unorthodox arrangement is proposed, Jennifer decides to take it. She agrees to be the "girlfriend" of Alexander Wenn, the reluctant, billionaire CEO of Wenn Enterprises, who is so devastatingly good looking, he needs a beautiful woman like Jennifer on his arm to "keep the wolves at bay." In this case, the wolves are other women, all of whom vie for his attention so aggressively, they keep him from focusing on business at the exclusive events he must attend. It's there that deals are cut. What they want is his money and his power. Damaged by a past event, the only thing Alex wants to do is focus on work. And to forget the past.But can Jennifer deny their white-hot chemistry? As she's swept into this glittering otherworld of society and big business, she finds herself struggling to keep from falling for Alex, an almost impossible feat she nevertheless must meet.Armed with her MBA, Jennifer Kent knows about business. But what she doesn't know is what could destroy her--the business of protecting her own heart. And maybe her own life.This story unfolds over multiple volumes approximately 50,000 words each.

    Thomas. But when her secret double life follows her home to Philadelphia, things swing wildly out of control as she tries to walk the line between sexy woman and sex object. Worlds collide when a street-smart beauty scores with a multimillionaire during a summer that climaxes with the New York City blackout. Crystal Lacey Winslow captures the edgy thrills—and the dark side—of carnal pleasures in Sex, Sin & Brooklyn. In Rochelle Alers' Summer Madness, a sexy brother with a mysterious past turns a pretty librarian's play-it-safe Hamptons vacation into a torrent of sensual delights. But can she trust him without knowing his whole story? A jilted bride is on the Rebound in ReShonda Tate Billingsley's tale of passion in unexpected places. A Houston attorney goes solo on the Belize honeymoon she was supposed to share with her husband—and makes a sizzling connection with a handsome stranger in paradise.

    Kassidy is a good girl who wants to be bad. Dag is a bad boy who is very, very good. And Chris? He likes to watch… When wicked-sexy Dag returns to Chicago to catch up with his old college buddy Chris and meet The Girlfriend, none of them are anticipating the unexpected turn of events that switches a loving twosome into a scorching hot threesome. As old feelings resurface, and new attractions are explored, a storm of sexual sparks is unleashed that leads them into forbidden areas. Always the good girl, Kassidy blossoms under the attentions of two loving men, but neither she nor Chris are expecting the ménage to take a quarter turn toward Dag…and his feelings for Chris. When it’s revealed that Dag’s attraction to Chris is one big reason he left town, a tangled mess of old hurts and new feelings might destroy friendship. Love. Might destroy everything.Product Warnings: This book contains a couple already in love, a couple falling in love and a couple in love who didn’t know it; also multiple scorching sex scenes including girl with boy, girl with two boys, boy with boy and two boys with girl...whew!

    This all-star lineup of bestselling authors includes... Tijan, Alessandra Torre, Lauren Blakely, Skye Warren, CD Reiss, Anna Zaires & Dima Zales, Red Phoenix, Cherise Sinclair, Kendall Ryan, Chelle Bliss, TK Leigh, Toni Aleo, Sam Crescent, Jenika Snow, Julia Sykes, Nina Levine, Cari Quinn & Taryn Elliott, Ainsley Booth, Katy Regnery, Shari Slade & Amber Lin, Shoshanna Evers, Pam Godwin, Carolyn Crane, Molly Joseph, Ella Sheridan, Karla Doyle, and Brooke Cumberland Download TASTE ME now for a sneak peek of Hold Me, the highly anticipated third book in the dark romance Twist Me series from Anna Zaires. Push your boundaries with a twisty scene from Tight by Alessandre Torre, one of the blockbuster books of the year. Sink your teeth into an alpha rocker bad boy in the not-yet-released Second Chance with a Rock Star from Shari Slade and Amber Lin. Note: This compilation is intended as a FREE preview of this year’s hot releases to help readers find their next scorching read. May not be free in all countries due to price matching delays.

    Fun, flirty, sweet and sassy - always with the perfect happy ending.Each story is 8,000 to 11,000 words in length (approximately 32-44 typical book pages in length. 53,000 words total, or 210 typical book pages.)The stories include:"The Hot Girl's Friend"How can a plain Jane find love when her best friend is a curvy blonde man magnet?Jane usually busies herself during a night on the town, fending off the men lusting after her gorgeous friend Miranda. When Brady the bartender overhears her inspired, ludicrous excuses, he resolves to hook up Jane with his friends. But Jane would be quite happy with him. Pine along as Jane tries to find her own happily ever after."Wrong Place, Right Guy"She's in the wrong place at the wrong time. Can the guy who saves her be Mr. Right? Or will his past keep them apart?When Kristen is jumped in a parking lot, Tony jumps in to save the day. While she thinks her hero could also be her heartthrob, Tony's worried his past is reason to stay apart. Will the good guy get the girl in the end?"Not You"One night with a stranger - gets even stranger the next day.Single, lonely Carly thinks the best way to handle her mother's third wedding is by throwing her own bachelorette-party-for-one the night before. What's the harm in her first one-night stand ever? She'll find out the next day."Desperately Seeking Cupid"Does she finally have the key for finding love?Brianna has tried everything to find love - with no luck. So she's turning to feng shui to bring romance to her world. Too bad the guy she's after thinks its bunk. Will her formula for love work - or blow up in her face?"Never Been Dumped"It's a relationship with an expiration date and it's going to go bad.Rachel hates breaking hearts. She's never been dumped, and she's tired of being the one to walk away. But a handsome stranger in town for the summer promises he'll dump her after their summer fling. Will they be able to say goodbye?Flirts! Five Romantic Short Stories to make you smile and swoon. Look for Beach Flirts! 5 Romantic Short Stories due out in late summer 2011.

    In the five years since Michael finally left his abusive ex-partner, Josh and his husband Ian have helped him leave that horrific past behind him. Michael seems to have adjusted well enough…until he admits he’s afraid to date because the abuse has left him terrified of physical intimacy.Josh is stunned again when Ian proposes a solution—Josh can help Michael learn to enjoy sex again. It isn’t like it would be the first time. After all, Josh and Michael lost their virginity to each other years ago. Michael hesitates, but then takes him up on the idea. It isn’t long before Ian’s getting involved too… and it’s all fine and dandy until emotions come into play that threaten their friendship, as well as Josh and Ian’s marriage.Warning: Contains three guys who will do anything for each other, a hot tub that’s always the right temperature, and a cat with an attitude problem.This 73,000 word novel was previously published.

    Introduced in Heaven and Hell, readers learned, after a heartbreaking journey through grief, Luci was ready to take another chance at love. But Hap was adhering to “the code” between brothers, unwilling to betray his dead friend Travis by falling for Travis’s widow. Further, Hap can’t quite believe a beauty like Luci could fall for a normal guy like Hap. But for Luci and Hap the heart can’t be denied. Especially when the stars align.The Favor, a short story – Deacon and Cassidy from Deacon of the Unfinished Heroes series go back to their favorite cabin at Glacier Lily, and there, Cassie asks her husband a favor. He’ll give her anything she wants. Including this.More Than Everything, a novella – Readers left Diesel, Maddox and Molly at a crossroads at the end of The Greatest Risk of the Honey series. Maddox and Molly were all in with their commitment to their unconventional love triangle. But Diesel was letting the pressures and prejudice of family and society sink under his skin, making him hold himself distant from the man he loved. Can Maddox and Molly lead Diesel fully into their lives and give him more than everything?Rock Chick Renewal, a short story – Tod has been planning Rock Chick weddings for years. He’s got a new one on his hands. And it’s not what he expected.

    Not all of them stuck, but those who did became Eli’s quasi family. Their bonds, forged in fires set by their personal demons, are unbreakable—or so Eli wants to believe. Especially since he and Alanso, his best friend and head mechanic, witnessed the overpowering allure of polyamory while visiting the Powertools crew. Much as Eli would like to deepen the relationships among his foster brothers and sister in the Hot Rods Restoration Team, he’s hesitant to risk everything on a quick romp behind a stack of tires. But when Eli catches Alanso exploring their mutual fantasy at a known hookup spot in a public park, all bets are off. And Eli must decide if it’s time to jump in full throttle—and trust his instincts to guide him through the night. If the pair of mechanics can dodge the potholes in their own relationship, maybe they can race together toward the unconventional arrangement with Mustang Sally they both desire. Warning: Fasten your seatbelts, this is going to be a wild (and naughty) ride!

    Your muse is back. The thing that gave you passion, tormented you, and haunted you is back. You're reeling in ecstasy and dread. It's something you want, but can't ever have. And the one that brings the pain is pure, white as snow... and standing in front of you."One kiss could have changed Abby's life, but when it didn't happen, she ran. Jack was everything to her and when he didn't respond, Abby couldn't bear it. Everything about that night--leaning in close to his face, feeling the night breeze teasing her hair, the way his scent filled her head--was burned vividly into her mind, including the moment when Jack pulled away. There was no kiss. Abby was wrong. She was wrong about him, wrong about them. Maybe she didn't have to go to college two thousand miles away, but she did. She had to forget about him. Abby threw herself off the grid, disappearing completely from the life she knew. After completing her undergraduate degree, she enrolled in seminary. All contact with her old life was severed and she never looked back, until she was forced to.When Abby puts idealism into practice, her congregation throws her out. If she can survive a year on her own, they'll take her back, and continue to pay off her student loans--but if she fails, Abby is on her own with enough debt to fund a small town. Seminary wasn't cheap. With no place left to go, Abby returns to New York and her best friend takes her in. Desperate to make it on her own and prove she was right, Abby follows a job lead to an art studio on Long Island. It isn't until she hears Jack's voice that she freezes. The hairs on the back of her neck prickle as she turns to see Jack, ten years later, looking even more tempting than before.Fate is cruel. Abby left this life behind, but she's thrown back into it, head first. It's like someone hit rewind on her life and its ten years earlier. She's the cotton-mouthed girl that she always was around Jack, and now her future relies on the man who rejected her.SCANDALOUS 2 WILL BE RELEASED SPRING 2013

    They may enforce the rules, but when men in uniform are off duty and under the covers, they're experts at breaking them. In this searingly sexy anthology, popular authors Maya Banks, Sylvia Day, and Karin Tabke present men in uniform-unzipped...Taking the Heat by Sylvia DayIt’s time for protected witness Layla Creed to come out of hiding and take the stan. Layla has only three days to reconnect with federal marshal Brian Simmons—and slake the white-hot lust that has simmered between them for years…Soul Possession – Maya BanksJessie spends a hot night with two sexy-as-sin detectives, only to be accused of murder the very next day. But when Jessie becomes the target of a serial killer, her two detectives will risk everything to have her back in their arms—and in their bed…Karin Tabke’s Wanted follows the X-rated exploits of bad-boy cop Colin Daniels and the soon-to-be-ex-wife of a mob boss. He’s been hired to guard her body, but it drives him to distraction instead, putting his career—and his life—on the line…

    When she decides to write an article about BDSM in popular culture, she tells herself it's just research and nothing personal for she can't afford to become the target of gossip or scandal. She hopes that the carefully worded agreement she writes up will keep her relationship with the Dominant she will interview strictly professional. Then 'Master D' - Drake Morgan - walks into the interview and Kate is mortified for not only is he gorgeous, he's the son of her father's best and oldest friend… Drake Morgan, MD, bass player, philanthropist – Dominant. Known as Master 'D' in Manhattan's BDSM Community, Drake must keep the kinky side of his life secret to protect his very successful career as a neurosurgeon. After a heartbreaking divorce, Drake doesn't do girlfriends, he doesn’t do sleepovers, and he certainly doesn't do breakfast in bed the morning after. He keeps everything in his well-ordered life separate and under his firm control. Then Kate McDermott crosses his path and screws everything up. Now, nothing is neat and tidy anymore, and no longer under control for Drake is smitten and things are going to get messy… From Amazon Bestselling Romance author S. E. Lund comes a story of two people who find themselves in each other's arms. The Agreement will stay with you long after you read the final page. 18+ only for mature content.

    He has a rewarding job and friends, but the experienced Dominant wants more than the Do-Me submissives who flock around him. He needs a woman who will give her heart as well as her body. Virginia, “Gin,” is damn good at her challenging career as a prison psychologist. However, one problem inmate is mired in misery and unable to overcome his guilt at causing a friend’s death. To clear her mind, she joins a friend’s kinky backpacking excursion, planning to hide in her tent during the evening BDSM pursuits. But Atticus lures her into the activities. She’s read about BDSM, but submission under the hands of a powerful Dom is beyond anything she’d imagined. She doesn’t trust men, doesn’t want a relationship, and yet…wants more from him. Finally, Atticus has found the woman he wants in his life. In his bed. In his cuffs. But she’s not only his brother’s therapist, but also works in a prison. How can he tolerate his woman walking into danger every single blasted day? Gin knows she has no future with Atticus Ware, but still, hope is rising in her heart.