Saturday's Excerpt Three's A Crowd by Melissa Keir

Blurb:


For Lissa, the second time at love was a charm but in marriage, three’s a crowd.



Single mother Lissa Vincent found her soul mate in her best friend’s ex-husband. Alex Hunter couldn’t believe his fortune when his ex-wife told him her best friend was available. After divorce, finding love again could be a challenge but it appeared Alex and Lissa had gotten lucky. Yet as they start their lives as newlyweds, Alex and Lissa don’t realize just how difficult it might be to blend a family.



When Alex’s ex new marriage begins to unravel, she sets her sights again on Alex. Does Alex still have feelings for the mother of his child? Will Lissa keep her best friend or lose her husband?



Fairytales promise a happily-ever-after. But what really happens after the after.



Excerpt:





When my cell phone rings. I look down.

It’s Steve and I don’t want to answer. I’m on a date with my husband. The children are safe with Steve. I—we—deserve this time together. Pushing the off button, I ignore the call.

“Was that Steve?”

Alex understands my dilemma. Steve has anger issues and isn’t happy that I’ve remarried. The phone rings again.

“I’ll call him back later.”

I cut a small piece of beef burgundy from my plate and lift it gently to Alex’s lips. Feeding each other is a very sensual experience. My legs tingle watching his tongue dart out to catch a drop of sauce lingering on his mouth. I reach across the table to run my thumb over his lips then pull his face close to mine in search of a passionate kiss.

When my phone rings for the third time, I know it must be important.

“Hello?”

“Scotty and Mac were playing around when Scotty tripped and fell, hitting his head on the corner of the door frame to his room. We’re on our way to the urgent care. He probably needs stitches.”

“Which urgent care are you going to? I can meet you there.” My stomach clenches in anxiety.

I obtained all the details while Alex paid the bill and had our food wrapped to go. We rushed out into the night, our romantic evening ruined, fright replacing passion.

Guilt began to eat at me. Why didn’t I answer the phone sooner? How was Scotty handling things? What kind of parent was I to put myself over my child? Alex seemed to understand what I was feeling and reached over to hold my hand. Without saying a word, his touch made me feel better.





Bio:

As a writer, Melissa likes to keep current on topics of interest in the world of writing. She’s a member of the Romance Writers of America and EPIC. Melissa is always interested in improving her writing through classes and seminars. She also believes in helping other authors and features authors and their books on her blog.

Melissa doesn’t believe in down time. She’s always keeping busy. Melissa is a wife and mother, an elementary school teacher, a book reviewer, an editor for a publishing company as well as an author. Her home blends two families and is a lot like the Brady Bunch, without Alice- a large grocery bill, tons of dirty dishes and a mound of laundry. She loves to write stories that feature “happy endings” and is often found plotting her next story.

This is what readers are saying about Melissa’s books:

Amazon 5 star review for Second Time’s the Charm- “Such a sweet and heart warming story. As I read it, and the details unfolded, I was engrossed to see if that I thought was going to happen, would really happen.” – Lacey Wolfe, Romance Author.

Barnes and Nobel 5 star review for Protecting His Wolfe- “Great read. I couldn't put it down. I really liked the characters, especially Betsie and the Pigg brothers. A love story with suspense and surprise.” – Anonymous



Melissa loves hearing from readers!

www.melissakeir.com

http://www.facebook.com/melissaakeir

http://www.facebook.com/AuthorMelissaKeir (fan page)

www.twitter/melissa_keir

Friday's How She Does It featuring Melissa Keir

We all know there are six elements of fiction. Who, What, When, Where, Why and How. I believe the first five lead to the sixth which for me is plot. What's your take on this> Thank you for having me visit Janet. I think that the six elements of fiction are so closely intertwined. The first five lead to plot and a better story!



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1. How do you create your characters? Do you have a specific method?

My characters are a mixture of people I know and people I've witnessed in life. To me, I love to people watch. There is nothing better than seeing people about at a mall or at a job and wondering about their stories. I feel that the characters are very important and usually have a picture of who they are in my head. For example, in my Wilder Sisters series, I have five girls who left their small town after graduation. I am the oldest of five girls in my family. So I have a lot of knowledge about the interactions between siblings and what it is to grow up in a small town. However, the five girls are not me or my sisters. I wanted these girls to be women I'd love to hang out with or be friends with. You know... the kind you can call up and go shopping with. They are all struggling with how to balance their wants with their needs in a complex world that we live in.



2. Do your characters come before the plot? Do you sketch out your plot or do you let the characters develop the route to the end?

Each story is different. Sometimes I have the plot first and other times, the characters lead the show. I love that each story can be different. In Beach Desires, I knew the main characters but I didn't know where the story was going to go. In fact, I rewrote the ending a few times. But for A Christmas Miracle, I had the whole plot planned out and then the story was fleshed out. I am by definition a plotter. I don't write out my plots or character descriptions but I do have a bunch of story ideas and interesting facts written down so that I can use them when they work into a story.



3. Do you know how the story will end before you begin? In a general way or a specific one?

I mostly know how the story will end. I want my stories to end with a Happily Ever After, but sometimes the story surprises me. When I was writing Protecting His Wolfe, I knew who the bad guy was but I didn't see all the other twists and turns. It surprised me when someone else stepped up and did some bad things! Of course the reason made sense but it was a shock.



4. Do you choose settings you know or do you have books of settings and plans of houses sitting around?

I love to choose setting of places that I know. One of my hopes is that readers will fall in love with these places as much as I do. The Wilder Sisters series takes place in my hometown. It's the place I grew up and my family still lives there. I moved a long time ago but still consider Amherst, the home of my heart. Small towns have such a unique feel to them. Everyone is aware of what everyone else is doing and there's a nice sense of community. I only hope that I do these places justice with my stories.



5. Where do you do your research? On line or from books?

I do most of my research online but sometimes a book is certainly the best choice. I'm open to whatever I need or what works.







6. Are you a draft writer or do you revise as you go along and why?

I always revise as I go along. Since I have a day job, I don't always get a chance to sit and write in long periods of time. So I have to go back and re-read what I've already written so that I can pick up where I've left off. This lends itself to editing as I go. I actually enjoy this process. I can always find something that I need to correct or make more clear. Since my muse loves to talk to me while I'm driving to and from work, coming home to my manuscript is a great time to revise!