McKenna Jeffries

Today’s snippet theme is Dumped. This is the scene with Jazz remembering what happened with her ex. Enjoy.

An snippet from Conquering Jazz…

Mia’s look of sorrow cut through her. Jasmine pulled her hand away and walked to the window. Looking out blindly, she ignored Mia as she came up behind her. Mia hugged her tightly, holding onto her while Jasmine lost herself in the memories of that night over four years ago.

Anxiously, she rushed from the car and ran up to the front door of the Tudor style house. She was so happy. She couldn’t wait to tell Derek.

Taking out her key, she fumbled to open the door. Then, dropping her bag and keys on the entry table, she walked into the living room, following the sound of the music. Confused, Jasmine looked around the beige and green room they had decorated together. Derek wasn’t there.

She made her way to the stairs and called out his name, but the music drowned her out. Jasmine debated if she should go back downstairs and turn it off. Deciding she was too excited to bother, she continued upstairs to the bedroom. Reaching the bedroom door, she opened it.

The moment she saw them, she felt like her heart had been ripped out of her chest.

Derek’s head was bent as he held another woman. He had only his slacks on, and the woman was in the robe Derek had given Jasmine for Christmas. She must have made a sound. They turned to look at her. She felt the knife in her heart twist as she looked at the woman’s rounded belly. She was pregnant.

Rage filled her as she flew across the carpet. Jasmine stopped as she saw her fiancé move the woman behind him protectively. She tasted the salty taste of her own tears as they rained down her face. She screamed at Derek, demanding an explanation. He just stood there with his head bowed and said nothing.

The woman moved away and walked to the other side of the bed. Jasmine stared at her in contempt. The woman pleaded with him to explain. Still, he said nothing. Jasmine took off his ring and flung it at him. It bounced off his bare chest onto the floor. Finally, he looked up at her. The pain in his face tore at her. He turned his back and walked to the window.

In a soft voice, he spoke. “Get out, Jazz. I can’t love you. I can’t love anyone.”

Numb. She felt numb as she walked to the door. Jasmine looked back as the woman rushed to his side and pleaded with him to explain.

He responded in the same tone. “Let her go, Lyric. She’s better off without garbage like me. Let her go.” She watched as he started to sob, and the woman named Lyric hugged him as if to comfort him.

Turning, she walked out the door, stifling more tears. She refused to cry anymore.

Copyright © McKenna Jeffries, 2008.
All Rights Reserved, Liquid Silver Books.

Go to the following sites to check out these other great authors snippets:

Lissa Matthews
TJ Michaels
Ashley Ladd
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
Shelli Stevens
Eliza Gayle
Vivian Arend
Mari Carr
Lauren Dane
Shelley Munro

The other day since it wasn’t too cold of a day I took a stroll around my neighborhood. I’ve walked my neighbor many times and seen so many interesting things. This time I turned down a street I hadn’t explored before and to my delight and surprise I came across a small park. I had no clue it was there.

After walking around a little I took a seat on one of the benches and people watched. As I mentioned it was a rare warm day in this cold winter we are having and others were out enjoying it as I was. I even had a conversation with some of the other park goers. I spent a little while in the park before I made my way home. As I went home I wondered how I had missed such a neighborhood treasure. Imagine a park within walking distance.

I made myself a promise that the next time there is a warm day I would go back to the park and take a book with me. Also I am looking forward to summer so I can spend some time there. I plan on exploring more of my neighborhood. Can’t wait to see what other neighborhood treasures I can find.

Today’s snippet theme is Humorous. Here is a look at a fun interaction between Reese, my hero and Jermaine, his best friend. It is long so placed it behind a link. Enjoy.

An snippet from Conquering Jazz…

Looking up, he saw Jermaine framed in the doorway. He came forward to sit on the side of Reese’s desk. His grin tipped Reese off that Jermaine was going to ask him to do something he wouldn’t like.

“Whatever it is, the answer is no.”

Jermaine chuckled. “How can you say no, and you don’t even know the question yet?”

“Like this. No. See how easy that was?”

Jermaine gave him a pleading look. Reese laughed, shaking his head. Jermaine put his palm to his head and slid off the desk to the floor. Reese stood, walked around the desk, and saw him lying on the floor on his back. When Jermaine saw Reese, he started laughing. Shaking his head, Reese watched him. The man was crazy.

From his prone position, Jermaine said, “You wound me, buddy. Haven’t I, without question, supported you in anything you needed…?”

Reese leaned back on his desk, getting comfortable as Jermaine tried to guilt him into doing whatever it was that he wanted done. Knowing Jermaine’s usual mode of operation, it could take a while for him to get to the point. Reese listened as his friend expounded on the virtue of his struggle to be a nice, forgiving man, sensitive to others and their needs. He continued on with how no one asked about his needs and wants. If he didn’t know Jermaine so well, Reese would have thought he was serious. Each time Jermaine really wanted something, he would deliver a flowery speech to lull you into submission, or a coma. Jermaine was slick, and if you weren’t careful, you would agree, just out of self defense, before you even heard what he wanted.

Chuckling, Reese thought of the last time Jermaine had talked him into doing him a favor that he lived to regret. He had come into the room and slid across the floor, belting out his own version of what friendship meant, to the beat of Proud Mary.

Reese remembered he had laughed so hard, he had agreed to finish up the negotiations for the Simpson account without knowing it. He would have normally had no problem with it, but he had to go to the Simpson’s chateau to finish it up. Still no problem, except Jermaine had forgotten to mention one tiny detail about Mr. Simpson’s wife, who was prone to show up naked in unsuspecting men’s rooms.

Jermaine hadn’t warned him to be careful, and he’d had a hell of a time running around the room trying to duck her, and then convincing her to leave. He did convince her, eventually, and when he had asked Jermaine about the lack of warning upon his return, Jermaine had laughed his head off, like he was doing now. Reese’s gaze narrowed. Jermaine really was up to something.

Wondering if Jermaine had found out him and Jasmine, Reese watched him closely. He didn’t seem upset as he lay on the ground. Jermaine seemed to be in one of his more playful moods.

He finally wrapped up by saying, “Isn’t it moi who came up with the idea to start this firm, and the one who is the senior partner?”

Reese made a rude snort at that. Jermaine looked at him, trying to act offended, but failing as he laughed. Standing, he leaned next to Reese, throwing his arm around his shoulder.

“My buddy and old friend, I need you to do something for me.”

Watching him, Reese thought, here it comes. He braced to say no.

Jermaine caught him off guard by saying, “Actually, I need two things from you. The first is easy for you to do, but the second is a little more complicated. First, I want you to find out who Jazz’s new man is.”

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Blogging at Romance Junkies for my monthly blog day . Check me out here.

When this year started I did my usual evaluation of things I did last year and what I have planned for this one. I was pleased with the things that I did last year. I got a few books completed. I haven’t subbed them yet still working on revisions/edits. Once that is done I plan to sub.

For this New Year I plan on subbing a few books and writing a few more. Also have some exciting projects in the works. Can’t say anything about those yet. All in all I am pleased with what I have planned for this year. Of course there will probably be a few things that will come to surprise me. Also I have a few surprises planned (wink). I love shaking things up. Doing the unexpected. Keeps things fresh.

So back to my evaluation. I checked through my future story files and found a few projects I definitely plan on completing this year. Of course I got caught up and found myself jotting down notes on other stories that will be written sometime in the future. This always happens to me when I evaluate what I have pending to write. LOL. Lots of ideas to get to and I will get to each of them. For now I can say I have so many story ideas that I have many books to write for a few years to come.

For now my evaluation for this year is done and now it is time to get to writing.

Today’s snippet theme is Mistaken Identity. Enjoy.

An snippet from Conquering Jazz…

Jasmine’s mind raced with the presentation to come as she opened her office door and stepped in. Her hand fell limply to her side as she came face to face with the one man she never wanted to see again.

Jasmine recognized him, even with his back to her. He stood looking out of the window.

Derek Christopher, her ex-fiancé and scumbag extraordinaire. She must have made a noise, because he turned and pierced her with lethal gray eyes that took in everything at a glance. His gaze speared through her, as if he could see into her soul.

Jasmine saw that he hadn’t changed. His sun-kissed skin depicting his Italian heritage still looked kissable and delicious. He still wore his hair long and tied back in a ponytail, as it fought to get loose and fall in curly waves around his sharp features. His body was still all lean muscle, while magnetism oozed out of his pores.

She felt a rush of heat consume her before it turned to deadly ice. Her head was going to explode. She took a moment to compose herself before she spoke. Her voice sounded cutting.

“Well, well. Look who blew into town. What the hell are you doing here? No, never mind. I don’t want to know anything from your arrogant ass. Get the fuck out of my office, before I drop you where you stand. You have the utter gall to show your face in front of me? You must think…”

“You haven’t changed a bit, Jazz,” said a smooth whiskey voice from behind her. “You still come out swinging. Come on. Tell me what you really think.”

Jasmine turned and looked at an identical face to the one in the window. Then, she glanced at the woman standing next to him. She could feel her eyes narrow and her throat ache as she fought to control herself. Before she could say anything, the man in the doorway spoke.

“Leave us,” Derek said, in the same demanding tone he’d always used when he wanted something done.

Jasmine watched as the man by the window, who she knew now wasn’t Derek, smiled arrogantly at her and walked out of the room, taking the woman with him.

The silence in the room echoed as Derek closed the door and turned to face her.

Why is he back after all these years? Hasn’t he done enough? He can’t hurt me, she thought.

Derek appraised her with a hungry gaze before his face closed up. “It’s been a long time, Jazz.”

“Not long enough, Mr. Christopher.”

“Why so formal, Jazz? What happened to ‘Derek’?” He smiled that crooked grin that used to turn her insides to mush. Now, it just made her lash out.

“Oh, I can call you something else if you’d like, but I don’t want to insult your mother.”

Pain flashed across his face briefly, before a cold mask slipped into place. “Still speaking your mind, and to hell with the consequences,” he said in a chiding tone.

Ignoring him, she walked away to look out the window blindly. She couldn’t take this today. She thought she was over the pain he’d caused her. Jasmine felt the burning knot in her stomach bubble. She could feel the intensity of his gaze. She felt so cold. Taking a deep breath, she decided to change the subject.

Turning, she said, “I didn’t know you at all. You said you had no siblings, that it was just you and your mom.”

She noted his surprise. “I didn’t until four years ago.”

She frowned, as he didn’t continue. “Is that all you’re going to say?”

“Yes. Why don’t you ask what you really want to know, Jazz?” She steeled herself as his expression softened.

“What rock did you slither from?”

His look changed to disappointment, then hurt, until finally a mask of indifference covered his face.

“I’m here on business, Jasmine.”

“I figured that, but that still doesn’t answer my question. Why here Derek?” She gestured, indicating the office around them.

Emotions raced across his face. Regret shone in his gray gaze. This was the most emotion she had ever seen him show. Jasmine couldn’t help but notice that mixed with his normal arrogance was an air of sorrow around him. Before she could think about it further, her thoughts were interrupted by his quiet answer.

“I’m proud of you, Jazz. I knew you would make Visions a success. We had such big dreams, and we’ve both done it.”

“That’s why you’re here? To tell me you’re proud of me?” She couldn’t keep the sound of disbelief out of her voice.

A look of discomfort flashed in his eyes. “No. I just wanted you to know that. I didn’t see Mia. How are she and the girls?”

Jasmine knew he was stalling, and she couldn’t figure out why. The Derek she knew would have gotten straight to the point.

“Let’s cut to the chase. You don’t care about knowing how the girls are. Why are you here?”

His gray gaze sliced into her, unblinkingly, as if looking for something. Whatever he saw caused his face to cloud in pain before smoothing out.

Copyright © McKenna Jeffries, 2008.
All Rights Reserved, Liquid Silver Books.

Go to the following sites to check out these other great authors snippets:

McKenna Jeffries
Vivian Arend
Ashley Ladd
Shelley Munro
Taige Crenshaw
Mari Carr
Shelli Stevens
Elisabeth Naughton

I’m blogging at Romance Studio. Check me out here.

Today’s snippet theme is Pets/Animals. Below is a scene from a book I co-authored Aliyah Burke. Enjoy.

A snippet from Wicked Burn…

Yasmine smiled softly as she watched a freshly groomed Rufus lie on a bed while a child rested a hand in the silky mahogany red of his coat. The young boy’s pale skin was marred by splotches of angry red. From head to toe, Caleb had been burned.

At the moment, he was speaking softly to Rufus, reading a book to him. The dog seemed perfectly happy to be where he was. But then, as a therapy dog, Rufus had always loved being with children. Coming here to the hospital–more specifically the burn wing–was a way she dealt with the stress of her job. She liked being able to give back even more to those who were injured. She’d adopted Rufus after he’d been retired from the show ring, and had found he was wonderful with young kids. It was easier to be around young survivors as opposed to adult ones at times, especially when they had a loving dog to turn their affections on.

Thinking of survivors, her mind drifted to a certain handsome man with amazing deep blue eyes and butterscotch skin–a man whose simple look could make her legs grow weak. His kiss could light up her whole world. Volunteering at the burn unit once a month was for her, and it was something she kept to herself, but as she sat there, the desire to share this with Sedeo filled her.

Silence filled the room, and she glanced toward the bed. Caleb had fallen asleep, his book resting on Rufus. Quietly, she got up and removed the book, placing it beside the bed, still within his reach. Dark brown eyes followed her every move, but Rufus never moved. And he wouldn’t, until she gave him a command to do so. A single gesture brought Rufus off the bed to settle beside her as he waited for her to attach the leash.

“With me, Rufus,” she murmured as she left the room and headed up the hall, waving and smiling at the staff as she passed them.

Caleb was always the last visit of the day. The child seemed to forget the pain he was in when he was with Rufus, so she stopped there last, so time wasn’t an issue. No matter how long they’d been, Rufus never got stressed out, and he was always so gentle with the burned child. She knew Rufus would be asleep before they got out of the hospital parking lot, for the day took its toll on him as well.

Making sure he had water and his bed was good, she walked to the driver’s side and climbed in. Low music was on as she drove home. It had been a good day. She’d gotten a good workout in at the firehouse, completed a bunch of shopping, and of course, gone to the hospital. Rufus sighed and snored, causing her to chuckle.

“I understand, boy. I’m tired too.” Tonight is going to be a quiet night. I need to unwind.

Yasmine placed a call and stopped to grab her curbside order, not feeling like cooking. Before long, she was home and had fixed Rufus his food before sitting down to feed herself. A low groan of contentment left her as she cut into her pepper strip steak and ate a bite of the savory meat. After she’d finished her dinner and cleaned up, she and Rufus adjourned to the backyard. She lay in her hammock and let the comfortable evening air calm her.

“Anyone here?” A deep voice woke her from a light sleep.

Sitting up in the hammock, Yasmine glanced toward the gate and saw Rufus standing there, his feathered tail wagging gently. Rubbing her eyes, she got to her feet and walked through the grass to the fence.

“Yasmine?” Sedeo’s tone flowed through the woods to her ears.

“Sedeo?”

“Yassie!”

A smile filled her heart as she swung open the gate. Shelby stood beside her uncle, and Yasmine’s heart stuttered as she stared at him. He looked so handsome it took her breath away.

“Hey,” he said. “We rang the bell, but there was no answer. She didn’t want to leave without seeing you.”

“She didn’t?” Yasmine questioned, holding his gaze.

“We didn’t,” he amended. “More importantly, I didn’t.”

Copyright © 2009 Aliyah Burke and McKenna Jeffries
All Rights Reserved, Liquid Silver Books.

Go to the following sites to check out these other great authors snippets:

McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
Ashley Ladd
Shelley Munro
Mari Carr
Jody Wallace
Shelli Stevens
Victoria Janssen
TJ Michaels

Today’s snippet theme is Explosions. Below is a scene from a book that I wrote with authors Aliyah Burke and Taige Crenshaw for our free read site called Satin Notes. Enjoy.

An snippet from Osborne’s Shelter…

“Drive faster. Niccele is inside Blue Moon.” Her tone held a certainty.

“How do you know?” he asked.

“A message from death.” It was said in the same tone.

Her calmness scared him more than anything else. Jared pressed the gas. Nina said nothing as he drove. She was so still he wouldn’t have known she was there if he hadn’t kept glancing at her. They pulled up some distance away from Blue Moon Café. There were too many cars to get through. Nina opened the door and took off at a run. Jared got out behind her, running after her. She was moving so fast and silently, he couldn’t catch up. She ran straight for the building.

“Nina!” he screamed, afraid she would run right into the burning building.

There was so much noise, he was sure no one heard him. He sped up. She kept going. Suddenly, someone stepped out of the crowd and caught Nina. She fought them hard. They held her, not letting her go. Reaching them, Jared saw it was William. Nina subsided and looked between him and William.

“Niccele is inside,” she said in the flat tone.

“I know, Nina. I know. Sh-“

A loud boom cut William off. The earth shuddered under them. Jared grabbed Nina and held her. “Niccele!” Nina screamed.

Horror filled him as he took in the raining debris and blazing flames.

“Niccele!” Nina screamed again.

Jared held her as she went nuts trying to get away to go to the building.

“Nina, s-“

A loud voice cut him off. “Get off me! Don’t make me have to hurt you. I need to go to my sister. Let me go!”

Surprised, he let go of Nina and turned to where the voice sounded like it came from. Nina was already on the move. A path cleared. Niccele was arguing with an EMT. Nina stopped just before she reached her. Niccele stopped arguing and looked at Nina.

“Peanut,” Niccele said, softly putting out her hand.

“Mello,” Nina whispered.

She made a weird noise and went to Niccele. The sisters embraced fiercely. Jared
smiled. Nina and her family had nicknames for each other. They wouldn’t tell him why they picked the names they had. ”Mello” was short for Marshmallow. He wasn’t sure what Nash’s was. The sisters talked quietly.

“Nina cares very deeply,” a soft voice said beside him.

“I know.” Glancing at William, Jared eyed him up and down. “Why do you always seem to be around her?”

“I’m one of those she cares about.” William smiled.

“We’re together now, William. Back off.” He growled.

William blinked, then started to laugh. As suddenly as he’d started, he stopped. His expression was cold, and his smile even colder.

“I’m not going anywhere. You’ll have to deal with me.”

“We’ll be talking about this soon,” Jared promised.

William’s pale gray eyes were unwavering. “I’m looking forward to it.”

William walked over to the women. Jared’s eyes narrowed as Nina and Niccele glanced at William, then each held out a hand. He took their hands, and they pulled him into their circle. Jared gritted his teeth. Something about the way William acted around Nina was almost possessive. He didn’t like it one bit. They would talk, and he would get to the bottom of what was between William and Nina. He walked over to them. Nina glanced at him and smiled. She let go of William’s hand and took his. Jared glanced at William. William had a small smile on his face. Jared clenched his other fist. He could imagine how it would feel to break William’s nose. William’s smile widened. Jared focused on Niccele.

“Nina, I thought it was you. They had on the same clothing you were in earlier and waved me in. I wondered why you were working so late instead of out with the hot stud here.” Niccele winked at him, then continued. “It wasn’t until I was inside that I realized it wasn’t you, but a man. He moved so fast.” She shook her head. “Everything went dark. I think I was only out for a few moments. When I woke, I could smell the smoke. He had me tied up and behind the partitioned off area that Jared is building for the café. He was waving this big ass knife with a nasty grin on his face. It made the scar on the right side of his face stand out. I thought I was a goner.”

“It was just for show. How did you get out?” Nina asked.

At the certainty in her tone, Jared stared at her. She had an inscrutable look on her face. He glanced at William and saw the same look. Jared narrowed his eyes. They knew something which they were not saying. He noticed they didn’t ask Niccele if she recognized the man. Niccele’s reply caught his attention.

“Ziva. Damn, she’s one fierce woman. She came out of nowhere and kicked the man’s ass. They were moving so fast. Knives flying, fists going, back flipping, and cursing all over the place. Ziva cut him across the left cheek. I could see the bone. ” Niccele’s tone was awed. “The man ran, and Ziva looked as if she was going after him, but she came back. She lifted me up, threw me over her shoulder, and got me out of there. She’d make a hell of a firefighter.” Niccele smiled sheepishly. “Imagine, a firefighter being rescued.”

“Your rep is safe. You were tied up.” Nina winked.

Niccele laughed, then sobered. “What’s going on, Peanut?”

“You know better than to ask me that,” Nina replied.

Copyright © 2008 Aliyah Burke, McKenna Jeffries and Taige Crenshaw.
All Rights Reserved, Satin Notes.

Check out the rest of Osborne’s Shelter and more free reads at Satin Notes - http://satinnotes.com/

Go to the following sites to check out these other great authors snippets:

McKenna Jeffries
Vivian Arend
Ashley Ladd
Kelly Maher
Shelley Munro
Taige Crenshaw
Mari Carr
Eliza Gayle
Victoria Janssen
TJ Michaels

Blogging at Romance Junkies for my monthly blog day . Check me out here.