Mary E Thompson

it's a curvy road to happily ever after

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Is it really fair?

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It’s release day for All’s Fair In Love And Wine! Like all my couples, Sara and Leo gave me a little trouble, and were frustrating at times, but in the end, their story is a pretty great one.

Leo is the kind of guy you want to cheer for. The guy who is not only sweet and sexy, but funny and kind and just plain good. He goes out of his way for his family and says yes to everything, which bites him in the ass a few times.

Leo wants what his siblings and cousins have. He wants someone to come home to. Someone to share his struggles with. Someone to love. Too bad he’s falling for the one woman in Bereton who promises she’s not sticking around long.

Maybe he can change her mind…

All’s Fair In Love And Wine available now!

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Excerpt from All’s Fair In Love And Wine

Alls Fair In Love And Wine

Her eyebrows drew together, and she tilted her head. “You don’t know my name?” 

He shook his head. 

“I gave you my credit card.” 

He chuckled. “No, you didn’t. You paid at the gift shop.” 

She tilted her head again, then her brown eyes brightened and she laughed. “Yeah, you’re right. We’re strangers. And it would have been pretty weird if you started the conversation telling me you owned the place.” 

Leo nodded. “You either would have thought I was hitting on you or lying. Or both.” 

“Since you were hitting on me, I would have assumed lying.” 

Leo laughed and shook his head. “True. So, now that my secret is out, are you going to tell me yours?” 

Panic flashed across her face, eyes wide with fear. She tried to recover, but it wasn’t before he realized she had a few secrets. 

“Your name,” Leo said, hoping to calm her. 

She visibly relaxed, her shoulders falling and her breath coming out in a relieved sigh. “Oh, sorry. Sara. Sara Donovan.” 

“Wow, I get a last name, too? That’s impressive.” 

She laughed again. “Yeah, well, I know where you work and I met your sister, so I guess we’re even.” 

He shook his head. “Hardly. Are you hungry?” 

Her eyebrows drew together. 

“I have dinner, and it’s too much for me to eat. We can sit outside and share. I figure that’s more likely to get a yes out of you than inviting you back to my place.” 

Her wide eyes and lustful look told him he might have gotten a hell of a lot more than a yes out of her if he’d gone for door number two. 

“Sounds good,” Sara said.

New Girl in Town

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It’s never easy being the new person. In a small town where everyone knows everyone, you stick out like a sore thumb. It also means everyone is curious about you, and if you don’t want to get too close, that’s definitely not good.

Sara is running, constantly. She doesn’t like staying put for longer than a few months, so she packs up and moves to a new place, finding seasonal work wherever she ends up. Bereton is just the latest stop on a long road of stops. She has no interest in settling down, not even if the town is perfect, her job is fun, and she meets not one, but two cute guys in her first few days.

Sara’s the kind of person who likes to curl up with a book, because books don’t judge her. She’s happy with the way things are. At least, she tells herself she is. Sara’s searching for something, but she doesn’t know what it is. What she does know is she’ll never find it.

All’s Fair In Love And Wine is available June 25. Preorder today!

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Alls Fair In Love And Wine

Excerpt from All’s Fair In Love And Wine

Sara stopped short when she walked into the tasting room. Leo was talking to Peter. Both of them, together. The look in Leo’s eyes said he knew everything. 

She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. 

“Hi,” she said cheerfully, hoping both men bought it. 

“Hey!” Peter said with his trademark grin. His eyes lit up like they always did, and he hopped off his stool and went to her. “I didn’t know you were going to come here. I already ate. But this is good. You can meet Leo. He’s awesome. You two will get along great.” 

Peter turned and grinned at his buddy, the friend he’d been telling her about for weeks. If he only knew just how well she knew Leo, he wouldn’t be introducing them. 

“Uh, I already know Leo.” 

“You do?” Peter asked. His eyebrows drew together, confusion plain on his handsome face. 

Sara nodded. “Yeah, I—” 

“She came in here a few weeks ago for a tasting. It’s nice to see you again. Have you gone through all the wine you bought?” Leo said smoothly, holding her gaze. 

Sara’s heart sank. He didn’t want his best friend to know about them. About her. She was his dirty little secret. 

“This guy is a spectacular salesman. How much wine did he talk you into buying?” Peter asked. His grin was back. He shook his head at his friend, laughing like he was in on the joke. 

But the joke was Sara. She never saw people for who they were, just took them at face value. And ended up hurt for it.

A little extra romance?

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When 50 Shades of Grey came out, my husband encouraged me to buy it. He heard ‘good things’ about it, and said I should pick it up.

It didn’t quite have the effect he hoped for, but it made me think about reading. There are those books that keep you up all night because you’re worried that your significant other is really plotting your murder and if you go to sleep, you won’t wake up again. Yep, read one of those this week. Then there are those about struggles people have gone through (real or fiction, still serious struggles). Those make you think and appreciate everything you have.

And then there are romances.

When their eyes meet and her pulse races.

When they kiss for the first time and her lips tingle.

When a kiss leads to a lot more and…

Mission accomplished.

Hubby didn’t get what he bargained for when I read 50 Shades, but romance is very, very good for your sex life. It just has to be the right romance. Maybe you need something sweet. A story about childhood best friends falling in love. Or something a little funny with a friends or enemies to lovers story. Or something with an element of danger that makes you snuggle up close to him.

If you like the last one, Pilar and Jack could be the right couple for you. Her brother is kidnapped by her ex, and Jack’s there to protect her. Even though both of them know getting involved is a bad idea, neither can resist the thread that pulls them together. She’s his job, but one he’s more than willing to…do.

Tell us below if you like a little danger with your romance!

Click to buy First

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From First

“Jesus. You two need to break it up. This is a job, Jack. Not your personal fuck time. And that’s my damn couch, dude.” Howler whimpered. “I’m taking the dog out. When I get back in, please…don’t be naked on my couch.” 

Jack nodded and waited until the door slid closed behind Slade, then groaned. “You’re going to kill me.” 

Pilar giggled. “I’m sore, but I want you again.” 

Jack pulled back and looked at her. “Shower?” 

She grinned. “It’s economical. Saves time and water.” 

“Yeah, we’re saving the earth.” 

“Exactly,” she said.

First…date?

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A first date is a lot of pressure. You’re getting to know someone with the hope that you can find love. Even if you don’t go into it thinking long term, any date has the potential to turn into your last first date.

When I started dating my husband, I was fresh out of college and we were both broke. We went to dinner and a movie. Not very original, but we had a chance to get to know each other a little better over dinner, then the pressure was off during the movie. And we bonded over the fact that we ended up at the worst movie in history.

Last week we celebrated our 15th anniversary. He’s the first man I ever truly loved, and someone I can’t imagine not having in my life. And it was pretty fitting that First came out the same week as we were celebrating. Obviously, it’s been a long time since I went on a first date, though!

Jack and Pilar never got their first date. They met at a parade (which would have been a pretty fun first date), and went from first meet to moving in together in a few hours. Talk about moving fast!

Getting to know someone, especially if you didn’t know each other well before your first date, is a tall order. A first date should be fun. Something where you can get to know the other person. Some of my favorite dates have been ones where we get a little competitive – mini golf or go-kart racing or arcades. It’s a chance to show each other how you handle pressure, and how you handle losing (I’m not very good at either!). It also gives you the chance to play and tease and have some fun.

I had Jack and Pilar meet at a parade because it made sense for them. It showed that they’re both fun, lighthearted people who could laugh and be silly and have fun. Obviously, things didn’t exactly go as planned, but it was a great start for them. Who wouldn’t want to meet someone at a parade where you throw sausages and hit each other with pussy willows? Sounds fun, right?

What did you do on your best (or worst) first date?

Available Now!

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From First

Pilar took a deep breath and set her hand between his legs, connecting with the soft cushion. Before she could think about it, she pushed back and swung her top leg over his, balancing on one knee and the other foot. 

She looked up at him to make sure she didn’t wake him up and gasped, nearly falling back to the couch. 

“Nice moves,” he said. His voice was all rough and raspy like men’s voices were first thing in the morning. 

It was more than a little sexy, and coupled with the erection now very visible since she’d dragged the blanket off him, she was in serious trouble. “I was trying not to wake you.” 

“I’m already up,” he said, his gaze not leaving hers.

She has the right amount of sass

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I love a woman who’s going to fight back. One who won’t just sit back and let life happen to her. We all need a friend like that. Someone who will inspire us, drive us, encourage us.

Meet Pilar

She’s the kind of woman I want to be when I grow up. She’s smart and funny and compassionate. She’s a fighter and a lover and she doesn’t give up. She definitely has her moments, moments of self-doubt and paralyzing fear. But you know, shit’s going down in her world and she’s entitled to those emotions!

I frequently connect more to my heroines than I do my heroes. Not because they aren’t fabulous, but because I feel like she’s a new friend. As an adult, it’s tough to make new friends, but Pilar is my newest. She’s someone I’d sit down with in real life and enjoy a glass of wine with. Or a tequila, because she’s fun like that, too.

Get to know Pilar on April 30!

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From First

***The following excerpt is definitely Not Suitable for Work!***

“What the fuck?” Slade again. 

Jack finally opened an eye and saw Slade standing over them, phone in his hand. “Dude! Are you taking a picture?” Jack dragged the blanket up to cover Pilar. Her breasts were pressed against his chest, but nothing covered them above the waist. 

“I…No. Fuck, Jack. What did you do?” 

She kissed his chest. “I think that’s pretty obvious.” 

Jack snorted and kissed the top of her head. 

“Jesus. Are you two drunk? Or high?” 

“Tired,” Pilar said, pulling the blanket tight around her shoulders. “Didn’t get much sleep.” 

Jack grinned and palmed her ass. His hand was under the blanket so Slade couldn’t see. He knew there was a reason he was supposed to stay away from her, probably a hundred, but sometime during the night he stopped caring. All that mattered was Pilar and being what she needed. 

She moaned softly and wriggled closer to him. Her hand slid between them and wrapped around his cock. 

He saw stars.

He’s like a lava cake

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Jack Farrell is the kind of man you don’t have to work hard to like. He’s funny and sweet and oh, so very hot.

He’s like a lava cake.

I have to admit, I’ve been testing out mug cake recipes lately. A whole recipe just invites me to eat the whole thing, which is great and all, but then I feel sick. So a mug cake is perfect. And then I found lava mug cakes.

O. M. Yum.

But I digress, because this is about Jack, not the amazing lava mug cakes I found on Pinterest (you’re welcome).

Jack’s always been the smart ass of the group. We don’t know much about him because he’s the kind of guy who makes a joke and stirs the pot then walks away. He doesn’t get in deep, and he refuses to fall in love. Won’t even consider it.

Those are always the best ones to watch fall. Like a tree in the forest, he’s going down hard. (Oh, so many dirty jokes Jack is dying to say right now.)

Jack has his wounds. He has a few scars from his past. But he’s a good guy. He will always make you smile, and he’ll have you turned inside out so fast you won’t know what hit you.

Don’t worry, it’s just Jack. The lava cake man who burns hot, is sweet enough for a tooth ache, and will have you begging for more the minute you’re done.

Watch out, ladies. Jack’s coming April 30!

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From First

Jack grabbed her arm and yanked her back to him. Surprise tilted her off balance and she fell against him, her hand pressed against his bare chest. “We’re not done, Pilar.” 

“We’re not?” she asked. The gold flecks shined again. 

Jack shook his head and slowly lowered his head. She stared up at him as he came closer. The second their lips touched, her eyes fluttered closed. He thrust his tongue between her lips for a kiss that tortured both of them.