The instant Beth Walker comes face-to-face with her new boss—tall, tanned and incredibly toned Aidan Voss—they can’t take their eyes off one another.
CEO Aidan has one rule of business: keep his personal life out of the office! But is Beth the exception to the rule? He may not be able to offer her any more than a hot-and-steamy fling, but he’s a master of seduction—and he’s moved Beth to the top of his to-do list….
FANTASIES
I’m an avid reader. I devour books; have ever since I was a kid.
I read widely, across genres and could happily spend a day/week/month curled up with my nose in a book.
For me, part of the appeal of reading is getting engrossed in another world, being so absorbed in the characters’ lives that I’m almost there alongside them, laughing and crying and feeling their pain.
It’s sheer pleasure to be swept up in the fantasy as I turn the pages, eager to reach the end yet reluctant to do so because I love the story so much.
In my books, I tend to ground them in real settings, particularly my fabulous home city of Melbourne, which I adore!
So how do I blend fantasy with reality?
My current release, THE BOSS’S BEDROOM AGENDA (which has just hit the Waldenbooks Bestseller List!) started with a healthy dose of reality.
My kinder kid loves the museum and it was on one of our many treks there that this story started…As I walked those quiet, pristine, hallowed halls holding my kiddies’ hands, I wondered what it would be like to work at such a place if you were loud and exuberant and bubbly.
My heroine Beth Walker was born at that moment, an effervescent sprite with a shoe fetish and a permanent smile on her face. I was entranced.
I wanted a hero to tempt her, to challenge her, to shake her up a little (okay, a lot) and in strutted Aidan Voss, sexy archaeologist and stand-in CEO.
Well, he strutted into my imagination (I still scour those hallowed halls every time I visit the museum hoping for a glimpse of a fantasy guy like Aidan…)
Beth and Aidan are pure fantasy yet the setting is a reality. (And yes, I had to eat loads of fabulous cakes, all in the name of research, at Brunetti’s, another real place in Melbourne that features in the book. It’s a hard job, but somebody’s got to do it!)
Its fun doing first-hand research yet letting my imagination run free. I hope you all enjoy the results in THE BOSS’S BEDROOM AGENDA.
To celebrate its release I’m giving away a signed copy.
To win, share a fantasy with us (keep it clean, please!) in the comments. It could be a fantasy date, fantasy dinner, fantasy destination, fantasy celebrity. Go ahead, use your imaginations 🙂
First of all, I have to say that I LOVE boss/employee stories – they are my favorite HPs. I think my ultimate fantasty would be to go to Scotland and meet the man of my dreams (Scotish). I think the Highlands are one of the most beautiful places – and I love the accent!! Some of my favoirte romances are those based in Scotland.
Humm a fantasy? Hummm that’s hard. I’d probably say my fantasy location is Scotland, more to the point the Highlands of Scotland. I would love to go for a few months and spent time in an area that is completely cut off the “today”. By that I mean, no cell phones, no computers, no sate, just the beauty of the Highlands and the magic of being there to enjoy and love.
Only other Fantasy would be to travel back in time and speak with some of my long ago relatives, I’d love to know the real reason the brothers left Scotland to relocate to NC, I’d love to know why my Irish ancestors traveled to be here, and I’d love to know how a Dutch and German got together and how a Native American Princess married a white man……………….so many great people lie in my family’s past and most of their stories are lost to time. So I’d love to take a trip back in time and just hear them tell me their stories……………..
I can make them up in my mind but it’s not the same…..
Sounds like a good book.
I have a question, since you set your story outside the US do you find it harder to market it to the US reader?
hugs,
WendyK
My fantasy would be to spend about a month with a nice looking highlander in Scotland. It has always be my dream to go to Scotland.
My fantasy would be to visit Ireland and meet a handsome irishman with an accent that would take my breath away! Ah gotta love those accents… 😀
I would love to spend some time with a hot Aussie(Eric Bana) on a private Tahitian beach.
Since today is so cold my fantasy is of my husband and I being on vacation on a warm beach with no kids bugging us.
my fantasy right now is to get into a great law school and marry a man crazy about me!
My fantasy would be to spend a week in a snowbound cabin with a different hero, from your books, each day! I was going to say a month but didn’t want to sound greedy. 🙂
My fantasy is clean because it involves my kids. lol I would love to be able to drive with dh and the kids in a RV to Yellowstone Park and go camping. The fantasy part is that we would not only have fun and enjoy the time together but we would survive it!
My fantasy is to be debt free, and to buy a new car. Not original but it is what I fantasize about.
Kara,
I love the Scottish accent too!
Might’ve had something to do with a mighty sexy Scotsman I once met when I was 19…
Hi Wendy,
time travel fantasy sounds interesting!
As to Aussie settings being marketed to US readers, from all the feedback Harlequin have (and personally as an author), readers all around the world love hearing about Australia.
I’ve set books in Melbourne, Sydney, the Gold Coast and the Whitsunday islands and all have been well received 🙂
Hi Quiltlady,
wow, another Scottish fantasy!
Must be something about those Highlanders…are you all fans of Jamie Fraser in the ‘Outlander’ series?
Yum…
My first love was an Irishman, Colleen, so I totally agree on the accent. Yummy 🙂
Cyclops8,
Tahiti sounds nice…
Maureen,
with 2 littlies here demanding my constant attention, I hear you on the private beach with no kids 😉
Becky,
that’s a great fantasy!
Susan,
I’m so glad you enjoy my heroes as much as I do 😉
Sounds like a load of fun, Leslie 🙂
Greta,
I think that’s a fantasy a lot of us aspire to 🙂
Nicola, this story sounds fantastic. I’ve been anxiously awaiting the release since I first read about it a few months ago. Aidan sounds really fantastic.
My fantasy would be to spend at least a month going around Ireland enjoying the beauty of the countryside. Of course, the best part of that would be if I met a wonderful man to go along with me. 🙂
Karin,
if you’re in the US, the book is out right now 🙂
And another lovely Irish fantasy…loads of lovely Irish men there too, I believe 😉
My fantasy date would be to have a guy I loved fly us to Paris for a remarkable, enjoyable, romantic supper at the best restaurant that is #1 there. Then we’d fly home in our private jet enjoying cocktails and talking about the night.