A Naughty Jolly Christmas
The Holiday Chronicles Book 1 by Denise M. Wheatley Genre: Contemporary Romance Publisher eXtasy Books Inc December 28, 2018
Sasha Williams is an African-American public relations powerhouse who’s come a long way from the tough streets of Chicago to glamorous Los Angeles. While she loves her LA life, she hasn’t forgotten her roots and always goes back home to celebrate Christmas with her tight-knit family.
This year, however, Sasha’s holiday plans are nixed when she’s forced to accompany her sexy, notoriously naughty new client, Drake Lancaster, on the press tour for his upcoming Christmas movie. Sasha’s furious, yet finds herself overcome with lust when Drake strolls into her office. She’s surprised, considering she’s never dated a white man. Drake’s attraction toward her is just as intense, and the pair partake in a hot, steamy sex session right there in her office. Despite Sasha’s promise to keep things all business during the press tour, their sensual trysts heat up even further while out on the road. In the end, Sasha must decide whether their cultural differences, along with her secret painful past and Drake’s playboy reputation, are worth her risking her heart and career—especially without knowing whether this is the real thing or a racy fling.
Drake appeared in Sasha’s office doorway, up close and personal, in all his sexy glory. He slowly eyed her from head to toe. Judging by the look of admiration in his penetrating gaze, he liked what he saw.
“So,” Drake began, his titillating tone filled with flirtation, “you’re the notorious Sasha Williams who’s been hired to clean up my image and take me to the next level…” Drake’s smooth, deep voice sent shivers through her eardrums straight down to her panties. And just like that, her self-control slipped away. Sasha struggled to compose herself. She managed to force a smile and extend her trembling hand. “Hello, Drake. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He gently took her hand in his and bowed slightly, kissing it softly. “The pleasure is all mine.” Drake straightened up but didn’t let go of her hand. His firm grip and rugged skin sent delicate tremors straight up her arm. He slowly studied her face. Then he shamelessly became transfixed on her breasts, licking his lips hungrily. Sasha froze. She felt lost underneath the spell of his intoxicating stare and stimulating touch. Drake sauntered over to the door and locked it. Sasha swallowed hard. “Can I, uh, can I get you something to drink?” “Nope. I’m good. I’ve got everything I need right in front of me.” Sasha’s heart thumped erratically. She watched Drake head over to the other side of her office. “Should we take a seat on the couch so you can tell me everything you’re going to do for me now that I’m officially your client?” Drake didn’t wait for her to respond. He wrapped his arm around her waist and led her over to the couch. When she bent forward to sit down, his hand slid past her hip and cupped her ass. Sasha gasped as Drake sat dangerously close to her. She moved over a few inches to put some space in between them, but he promptly moved in even closer. “You’ve got such a beautiful complexion, Sasha. And I love your hair,” he murmured, lightly running his finger over her cheek. She leaned back and eyed Drake suspiciously. “Do I really? Wait, let me guess what’s coming next. You’re going to tell me how exotic I look, then ask if you can touch my hair, right?” “Actually no, I was—” “Because, newsflash,” Sasha interrupted, now in full rant mode, “I’m just your typical, standard-looking African-American woman. My complexion, my hair…my entire look is the norm where I’m from.” Sasha was so worked up she was beginning to perspire. She hadn’t meant to go off the deep end, but she was tired of that same old narrative of being viewed as some sort of foreign object—as if her form of beauty was somehow atypical. But Drake actually appeared somewhat amused. “You made mention of where you’re from,” he said. “Where’s that?” “Chicago. South side.” “Ahh. Chi-town.” “Please don’t call it that.” Sasha giggled. “It sounds so basic.” “All right then, the Windy City. Great town. I shot a movie there last year. Fantastic food and even better people. Oh, and I hate to break this to you, Sasha Williams, but here’s my newsflash. There’s nothing typical about you, and you don’t resemble any other woman, period. You’re absolutely stunning.” The compliment flipped Sasha’s feelings from offended to flattered within seconds. She looked into Drake’s eyes and saw nothing but sincerity, then felt herself falling under his spell once again. “Thank you,” she replied quietly. “And no, I’m not going to ask to touch your beautiful hair, unless you want me to, of course. But your hair is not some sort of peculiar phenomenon to me. You’re not the first woman of color I’ve encountered. My guess is that you’ve never been with a white guy, though, have you?” Sasha shifted in her seat. She wasn’t comfortable having such a personal, race-related conversation with this man she’d just met. “I’m sorry, Drake. But we’ve really gotten off track here. Why don’t we get back to business?” “Sure. Whatever you want…” Drake’s jeans rubbed against Sasha’s bare leg. He placed his arm behind her along the back of the couch, then let it slip forward over her shoulder, his fingertips practically brushing across her hardened nipples. If she moved an inch, her breast would fall right into his hand. Her entire body stiffened up. “I’m sure you already heard about the altercation I had at the Hollywood Hills Resort last weekend. Do you think you could spin the story to somehow make me look like the victim? Because I’ve been slaughtered in the press, and when we go out on this press tour for Deck the Halls with Love, I need to have the fans’ sympathy and support.” Sasha cleared her throat and allowed herself to slowly exhale, somehow managing to avoid having her hardened nipple graze Drake’s lingering fingertips. “Well…” she began, struggling to steady her trembling voice. “The so-called fans who mobbed you at the resort were obviously trying to pick a fight. Their goal was to record the incident and upload it onto social media for likes and followers. I’ll counter the negative press by saying your actions were simply a matter of self-preservation. You were being attacked and had no security with you, so you had no choice but to protect yourself.” Sasha was pleased with her impromptu response. And apparently Drake was, too, because she glanced down at his crotch and noticed he was fully erect. “Wow, Ms. Williams. That was a very impressive answer.” Sasha gazed into his eyes and saw a glimmer of insatiability. She became so memorized that when he slid his hand onto her thigh and gripped it firmly, she didn’t stop him. He boldly took her chin in his hand, pressed his soft, moist lips against hers, and slipped his tongue inside her mouth. Her rigid body slowly relaxed. She couldn’t believe this was happening and was even more shocked by the fact that she was actually kissing Drake back. When his hand glided up her leg, underneath her dress, and he slid her panties to the side, Sasha’s first instinct was to close her legs and deny him. But desire overtook her, and she instead opened her legs wider to give him easier access… * B&N * eXtasy Books
Interracial entertainment industry it couple Sasha Williams and Drake Lancaster are still going strong. Her impeccable publicist skills have kept him on the A-list, helping Drake land the lead role in a major Valentine’s Day movie. When filming wraps, the couple plan on heading to Cabo San Lucas, inviting both their families along to meet for the first time.
But plans go astray when Drake reverts back to his bad boy ways during filming and gets into a huge altercation with the director. He’s booted from the movie and replaced by Mitch Morrison, a hot young African-American actor who’s recently taken Hollywood by storm. While Drake struggles to repair his image, Mitch hires Sasha to help manage his burgeoning career. The move infuriates Drake, but Sasha insists it’s a great business opportunity. She doesn’t realize Drake’s threatened by Mitch’s good looks and charismatic personality and is worried the pair will bond over their African-American heritage. The stress of it all puts a strain on the couple’s relationship, especially when Mitch admits to Sasha that he’s developed feelings for her and she realizes the sentiments may be mutual. With the pressures of Sasha and Drake’s rocky union continuing to mount, the anticipation of their families meeting, and Sasha’s elusive affections towards Mitch, the couple can’t help but wonder whether their once booming relationship is about to crash. In the end, they must figure out whether their love is strong enough to withstand these challenges and carry them through this Valentine’s Day.
Sasha sped along the Pacific Coast Highway with her car top down and music blaring. The crisp ocean wind whipped through her hair while the setting sun warmed her skin. She readjusted her sunglasses and leaned back, relishing the moment. Sasha was happier than she’d been in quite some time. Life was good. As a matter of fact, life was great thanks to today, because everything had suddenly taken a turn for the better.
After she’d knocked her presentation out of the park that morning, Sasha received a text from Drake letting her know he had gotten the part. She’d screamed so loudly that Lori came tearing into her office, thinking something had happened to her. Drake then informed her he’d made dinner reservations at Hinata Sushi, the most exclusive restaurant in Malibu, and afterwards they’d check into the royal suite at The Malibu Oceanside, where they would spend the rest of the evening indulging in dessert and one another. Sasha had something in store for Drake as well. That afternoon, she’d solidified plans for their Cabo vacation after deciding she would rather spend the evening reconnecting with him than coordinating the trip. She made some executive decisions on her own and created an elaborate agenda confirming the exact travel dates, resort location, and list of activities. Sasha sent the agenda to both sets of parents, and just as she’d expected, they got lost in the fancy presentation and agreed to everything. She stopped at a red light and grabbed her phone, activating the voice-to-text feature then sending Drake a message asking whether he wanted to drive out to Malibu or arrange car service. She hadn’t heard from him since early that after noon, which was strange after they’d been communicating nonstop all morning. Sasha assumed he had gotten caught up in the whirlwind of preparing for his shoot and figured they’d hash things out when she got home. She turned down her block and approached her house, expecting to see Drake’s car parked outside. When she didn’t, Sasha pulled into the driveway and tried calling him. She got his voicemail. “Hey, babe, it’s me. Tell your film director Lee that he’s going to have you all to himself in Ontario soon enough and you need to take a break from your meeting to call your girl. But anyway, I just got home. Getting ready to freshen up and pack for our night. I’m so looking forward to this. Love you.” Sasha disconnected the call and practically floated inside the house. She set her tote down on the couch, then walked over to the closet to grab her suitcase. On the way there, she saw a printout lying on the bar. She picked it up and squint-ed while trying to make out exactly what she was looking at. Upon further inspection, Sasha realized it was a dark, grainy photo of her and Mitch, sitting in the booth at the Diamond VIP Bar. Her stomach dropped to her knees. She trembled all over as beads of sweat formed along her hairline. Sasha held her breath, then read the blurb underneath the photo. Our sly sleuths here at Gotcha! strike again, this time catching powerhouse publicist Sasha Williams cozying up to A-list actor Mitch Morrison. Sasha, who’s known for mixing business with pleasure, is also Mitch’s new publicist. So does this mean it’s a wrap for her and Drake Lancaster? Apparently so, making it Drake’s second humiliating termination in recent weeks after he got booted from King Gary Rosen’s latest blockbuster production, On Bended Knee. What’s worse is that Mitch was hired to re-place Drake on the film. Ouch! Will Sasha and Mitch make it down the aisle? Will Z-listed Drake go back to waiting tables? Stay tuned, as we here at Gotcha! work to getcha all the latest scoop! Sasha leaned against the wall and slid to the floor. Tears streamed down her face. She looked down at the article again. A note from Drake was scribbled at the bottom. Of all the guys you could’ve replaced me with, you chose Mitch Morrison? And I had to find out through some trashy blog? I thought we were better than that. Guess I was wrong. Sasha balled the article up and threw it across the room. Her chest heaved with remorse. She sobbed for several minutes before grabbing her phone and dialing Drake again. The call went straight to voicemail. She hung up and sent him a text, apologizing profusely and asking him to please call her. Right when she hit send, a message came in from Nick. In a meeting and can’t talk, but I got a call from Drake saying he wants to sign with a new publicist, effective immediately. What’s going on? Sasha swallowed the bile that was creeping up her throat and struggled to steady her breathing. “This isn’t happening. This isn’t happening,” she said to herself over and over again. She closed Nick’s message without responding and sent Amanda a text, telling her she had an emergency and asking if she could come over ASAP. Amanda replied immediately. I’m on my way. * B&N * eXtasy Books
Denise N. Wheatley is a lover of romance, happy endings and the art of storytelling. She used to cry as a three-year old child when her mother read to her because she so badly wanted to read the books herself! Once she learned, Denise constantly had her nose in a novel (especially the ones she’d sneak from her mom’s bookshelf). She’s been writing for as long as she can remember and draws inspiration from Chicago, the city where she was born and raised, as well as Los Angeles, which is one of her favorite places in the world. Denise has published several books and novellas with Simon & Schuster, Red Sage Publishing, eXtasy Books and independently, has written screenplays and teleplays, and has ghostwritten for some of your faves. When she isn’t sitting behind her computer, you can find Denise in a movie theater, on a tennis court, watching true crime television or chatting on social media.
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1 Comment
Denise N Wheatley
19/5/2019 03:04:47
Thank you so much for posting my series, and best of luck to the giveaway entrants! <3
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