Spotlight & Excerpt: Dating the Intern + Giveaway

dating the intern banner
Dating the Intern
by Natalina Reis
Genre: Romantic Comedy, Chick-Lit

 

Who would have thought that pretending to be in love could feel so real?
 
Ivory Tower is the successful owner and CEO of an online dating service who prides herself in matching her clients with their true love. Everyone except herself. When a TV studio wants to spotlight her company live on air, Ivory runs into a problem; she can’t produce the boyfriend she needs so she doesn’t look like a fraud.
 
When Li Qiang, her ten-years younger and toe-curling handsome intern, offers to pose as her boyfriend, Ivory thinks her problem has been solved, but it’s going to take more than the perfect algorithm to get out of this situation. Li Qiang is too easy to love and too hard to forget, and the question remains; does he really love her or is he only playing his role?
 
Dating the Intern is an age-gap romantic comedy that will make you smile, break your heart, and then make you believe in love all over again.
 
 
**On Sale for only $2.99 for a limited time!**

 

dating the intern teaser 5
datingtheintern - excerpt
“You must be wondering why I’m here.” The little flame of curiosity had turned into a full tundra fire. “I work for programming at the TV station, and Mr. Robertson put me in charge of the details for the Spring Into Love spot. We have received the signed contract, thank you very much for being so prompt.” I had to be, otherwise I’d forget. That was a strategy I’d learned as a kid—do what you have to do right away before your brain puts it in a dark, forgotten room in your mind.
“Was there a problem with it?” It was a pretty standard, no-frills legal document that made my agreement to be featured on their news official.
She laughed softly. “No, no problem. I just want to go over some of the specifics. We have your professional bio, but we need something a bit more personal.” I startled a bit at that. How was my personal life of any interest? “The public loves to feel as if they have an inside look into your life. Don’t worry. We don’t have to give them anything terribly private, but it will help if it’s something that is directly connected to your job—in your case, the matchmaking services.”
I was confused, and I was sure it showed because she tilted her head as if assessing whether I was fooling around or just plain stupid. “I’m sorry. I don’t quite understand what kind of information you’re looking for.”
“Your love life.” What? What was she talking about? “You’re the CEO of a successful matchmaking company who stands out from others because of the personal interaction with your clients, the advice you give them. You have a special insight into the world of dating and romantic relationships, which is what makes your services so successful.” I was still confused, and I furrowed my eyebrows in response. “In other words, we need information about your love life. We’d love to meet and interview your SO.”
What fresh kind of hell was this? “You want me to do what?” I was so shell-shocked I forgot to hide my surprise.
She raised her hands in a reassuring gesture. “Don’t panic. It won’t be anything too personal, just a matter of bringing your boyfriend along—I’m assuming you’re not married—and answering some simple questions about your own relationship.”
“What kind of questions?” What I should be asking was “What boyfriend?” but I was too stunned to think straight.
“You know, where did you meet, how did you know he was the one, are you planning a wedding soon… simple stuff.” Simple enough for someone with an actual boyfriend.
“What if I don’t have a SO?” Which I didn’t.
“That would look really bad for you and your company,” Teresa said, her lips cutting a small smile again. “How can someone without a romantic relationship dish out advice on it? You would lose the trust of your clientele.” She gave me a sideways glance. “You’re just being coy, right? You do have a fiancé or at least a boyfriend.” Oh, you have no idea of how much I’m not bullshitting you.

 

Natalina wrote her first romance at the age of thirteen. Since then she has published eleven romances that defy the boundaries of her genre. She enjoys writing all kinds of rebels and outcasts into her stories and she always roots for the underdog.
Natalina doesn’t believe you can have too many books or too much coffee. Art and dance make her happy and she is pretty sure she could survive on lobster and bananas alone. When she is not writing or stressing over lesson plans, she shares her life with her husband and two adult sons.

 

Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!
 
$20 Amazon

Book Blitz: Spring, by Janis McCurry & Lynn Mapp

Spring

 

Spring
The Matchmaker Chronicles Duets, Book 4
Janis McCurry & Lynn Mapp

Chick Lit, Romantic Comedy, Multicultural Romance

Date Published: March 2021

Publisher: Mapp & McCurry LLC

 

Mothers. Meddling. Matchmaking. What could possibly go wrong?

Matchmakers Maggie Barnes and Rina Thorn are back “helping” two new couples navigate the journey to find love.

It’s a simple marriage of convenience. She needs a temporary husband. He needs the money she’s offering.

Christy Roban walked away from her brief marriage with a battered heart and damaged pride. The entanglement-free life she’s built suits her just fine, until she finds herself in need of a temporary husband.

A committed relationship is the last thing Aaron Thorn is looking for, but Christy makes an offer he can’t refuse. Besides, he’s a sucker for a damsel in distress.

What happens when the lines blur and their simple fake marriage of convenience starts to feel like the real thing?

* * *

He starts their relationship with a lie. Now he has to tell her the truth.

Disillusioned by his broken engagement, Phil Wentworth wants a woman to love him for the person he is, not the riches he has. He wants a future with Marissa, but when she finds out he lied, will she forgive him?

Marissa Stone didn’t expect falling in love would be so complicated. They are from two different worlds. What if their sizzling chemistry fades? What if she’s only a rebound romance? Can she trust him again and find her happily ever after?

Buy Spring: Book Four of the Matchmaker Chronicles for another heartwarming romance duet, because who doesn’t love Margarita-sipping, meddling, matchmaking mommas.

Purchase Link

Amazon

 

Other Books in the Matchmaker Chronicles Duets series:

 

Summer

The Matchmaker Chronicles Duets Book 1

Autumn

The Matchmaker Chronicles Duets Book 2

Winter

The Matchmaker Chronicles Duets Book 3

Amazon

 

 

Janis McCurry was born and raised in Boise, Idaho, nestled in the beautiful Treasure Valley. She’s never wanted to live anywhere else. She loves to write believable characters with humor and tenderness. She writes romance because she believes in happy endings, whether with a first-time or a second-chance love.

Lynn Mapp was a Navy brat, born in San Diego, California. While she was born in California, her Idaho roots are deep. Her mother and grandfather were Idaho natives. She has always looked for happily ever afters, the light after the darkness. Families and humor are central in her life and her stories.

Contact Links

Website

Twitter

Facebook

Instagram

Facebook

GoodReads

GoodReads

Promo Link

RABT Book Tours & PR

Book Blitz & Excerpt: One Motion More + Giveaway

One Motion More Banner

One Motion More
by L.A. Tavares

Word Count: 83,762
Book Length: SUPER NOVEL
Pages: 314

GENRES:

CELEBRITIES
CHICK LIT
ROMANCE
SWEET ROMANCE

Add to Goodreads

 

Actions speak louder than words.

Long-haired bad-boy guitarist Xander has skeletons in his closest that refuse to stay dead. After a series of setbacks, Xander hits new lows, almost costing himself his reputation and career. While trying to take steps in the right direction toward better decisions and good choices, he meets Natalie, and for the first time—maybe ever—Xander sees past himself and past the music his rock band is famous for.

Their relationship is an unlikely one, with outside factors creating obstacles the two would have to tackle to make their love work.

He is reckless while she responsible.

He thrives in the spotlight while she will do anything to avoid it.

He speaks fluent profanity while she doesn’t speak at all.

He works to win her heart, despite having to overcome the communication barrier, while she tries to look past the intensity of the spotlight they find themselves in.

Excerpt

The locked, guarded door and shiny new mark on my already scarred record are laughable penalties. The real punishment is the smell in these small quarters—body odors, stale alcohol. One thing is for sure… There are no VIP suites in New York police stations.

More like a bench than a bed, the slab of flat ceramic I lay on is uncomfortable and determined to punish me with back problems that will last longer than this overnight hold.

My eyes snap shut each time I try to open them—an involuntary response to block out the outdated fluorescent light overhead. I press the palms of my hands into my eye sockets and run my fingers through my overgrown hair. Sure, the lights don’t help my already throbbing head and the sleeping arrangement is a far cry from comfortable, but the atmosphere is ‘welcoming’. I purposely bent the rules just far enough to win myself a one-night, all-inclusive stay at the nearest precinct.

Quiet. No crowds. No screaming fans. Nowhere for me to be, no way for me to screw up. Most people would find the locked doors, silence and lack of company alarming. Not me. For me, it’s tranquil. A vacation. Maybe that’s why I frequent the sin-bin so often.

“Hey there, sunshine,” a plump guard says, opening the thick-paned glass door so it swings into the hallway. He leans into the metal door frame, holding a large stick of beef jerky in one hand, tearing off a chunk between his teeth and chewing so I can hear it.

“The doors are a nice upgrade,” I say through a yawn as I knock on the glass. “They were bars when I was here last.”

He gnaws on the dried meat, unamused. “There’s someone here to pick you up,” he says as he chews, spewing small chunks of meat and saliva as he speaks.

“Aw, so soon?” I bring myself to my feet and stretch—every muscle protests. “Guess I’m not twenty-one anymore, eh?” I ask.

“Maybe you should stop trying to be,” he says. His stone expression remains as such.

“Noted,” I add, and salute him as I step away from the cell, turn around and head toward the station’s lobby to retrieve my sunglasses and cell phone before heading out of the doors.

Blake—my bass guitarist and lifelong best friend—leans against a car I’ve never seen before, opens the back door and gets in without waiting for me to approach him. He slides to the opposite side of the hired car and I slide in next to him, closing the door as the driver pulls away from the curb.

“How bad this time?” I ask, one side of my mouth lifting at the corner.

“You really don’t remember?” he asks.

“No. That was the whole point.” I drop my phone into the breast pocket of my shirt and place my sunglasses over my eyes.

Blake tilts back the top of a box of Marlboro Reds, a flagrant disregard of the No Smoking sticker adhered to the car’s dash. The lingering tobacco smell of the car tells me he’s already broken that rule.

“Never fear,” I say, elbowing him in the arm. “Social media and the news will remind me, I’m sure.”

“If Cooper doesn’t kill you first,” Blake adds, cracking the window and fishing for a Bic in his breast pocket. His words come out draped in a mix of his slightly faded South African accent and the dialect he has picked up during his years in the States.

Blake moved into my house at a time when his mother couldn’t provide for him anymore—right as we started tenth grade and, truthfully, his appearance hasn’t changed much since I met him in junior high. He looks almost the same way now as he did then, down to his stupid blond-tipped faux hawk and slightly spaced teeth. Only now, the tall, slender physique he boasted back then has morphed into a ‘definitely enjoys beer’-type body. Though, the same could be said for me.

The car arrives back at the venue where we are set to have our second show in a back-to-back schedule.

We enter the building and Blake walks ahead of me by about five strides. I am in no condition to keep up. He turns a corner, disappearing from view. As I turn the same corner, Cooper, our band’s manager, is standing there waiting for me. Startled, I jump out of my boots and my stomach takes a drop it can barely handle. I swallow back whatever threatens to make a reappearance.

“Jeez—” I start, but he has no intention of letting me talk.

“Leave,” he says, his eyes an even deeper brown than they usually are, enhanced by the dark bags beneath them. “Go find food, water and a shower. Whatever it is you need to do to clean up and be ready for today.”

“I’ll be ready, Coop. I always am.”

“You should be grateful we have a show today because I can tell you—no, I can promise you—if I didn’t need you today, you would still be sitting in that cell.” Cooper paces the width of the hallway, pausing every few moments to make a hand gesture my direction, as if he can’t walk and shake his fist all at the same time. “You’re lucky the cops here are fans of yours, you know. There will come a day where just being Xander Varro doesn’t get you what you want. Your status won’t get you out of everything forever. The sooner you understand that the better.”

“I had a few drinks. I was having a good time—”

“Drunk and disorderly, disturbing the peace, resisting arrest.” Cooper starts listing off, using his fingers to keep track of all the misdemeanors. “This band can’t keep a publicist because they’re tired of covering for you. You can’t keep yourself out of the negativity and the spotlight. You’re dependent on drama. You’re going to be a father, for crying out loud. When do you plan to grow up, Xander? When is enough, enough?”

He’s right, but I’m too proud to admit it. Cooper’s growl shifts to a hushed pause, allowing me to say my piece or apologize, but I don’t do either, so he continues, filling the silent void.

“This isn’t just about you, you know. Your band counts on you. Your fans count on you. I count on you. Someday your kid will count on you, and you are becoming the kind of guy who can’t be counted on.” His pacing comes to a halt and his eyes soften. His voice quiets, falling so calm that I would almost prefer the yelling. “You have it all, Xander. Everything. Stop trying to throw it all away.”

I nod, a silent response, even though I know Cooper wants more from me. It’s all I have to offer.

“Just go, Xander,” he says. “Come back when you’re ready to be on that stage and not a second sooner.”

“Can you send a car to take me back to the hotel?”

“You can walk.”

I laugh at his joke, but the sound becomes a scoff when I realize he’s serious. I nod without enthusiasm and turn toward the door, slamming my bodyweight into the metal push bar though the signs clearly indicate Emergency Exit Only.

The hotel is only just over a mile away, but I’m still annoyed. These boots definitely were not made for walking. My feet are throbbing by the time I arrive at the lavish hotel doors. The lock clicks as I hold the key card to the door of the hotel room that I was supposed to be long-checked-out of. I lay on the bed longer than I should, ignoring the clothes and other items strewn across it. A red light blinks at the base of the landline phone the hotel provides, most likely a wakeup call ordered by Cooper or a message about the late fees incurred as a result of the ignored check-out. I almost delete it without listening, figuring whatever message it holds is either now irrelevant or I just don’t care what it has to say.

But I click it, and my girlfriend’s voice is on the other end. I smile at first, listening to her words.

“Hey, it’s Mariah.”

But the smile fades to a flatline. Why would she call the hotel and not my cell phone?

“I have something to tell you.”

Buy Links

Choose Your Store
First For Romance

About the Author

L. A. Tavares

When it comes to romance, L A doesn’t have a type. Sometimes it’s dark and devastating, sometimes it’s soft and simple – truly, it just depends what her imaginary friends are doing at the time she starts writing about them.

L A has moved to various parts of the country over the last ten years but her heart has never left Boston.

And no, the “A” does not stand for Anne.

Follow LA on Facebook and Twitter.

Giveaway

Enter to win a fabulous gift package and get a First For Romance Gift Card!

L.A. Tavares’ One Motion More Giveaway

L.A. TAVARES IS GIVING AWAY THIS FABULOUS PRIZE TO ONE LUCKY WINNER. ENTER HERE FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A LOVELY GIFT PACKAGE AND GET A FIRST FOR ROMANCE GIFT CARD! Notice: This competition ends on 23rd March 2021 at 5pm GMT. Competition hosted by Totally Entwined Group.

Scroll Up