Sasha White

It’s the last day for Brenda Novak’s Auction. Which means get in there and bid for something, the money all goes to charity. If you can;t think of anything to bid, on, then look at this!

GENREALITY AUTHORS Auction Package

Package includes:
The complete SG 5 series from Alison Kent – signed

Signed copies of Riverwitch and Heretic from Joseph Nassise

Signed copies of Kitty and the Dead Mans Hand, and Kitty Raises Hell, along with cd’s of the Playlists for each book from Carrie Vaughn.

Complete set of Sasha White’s Berkley contemporary novels, including the out-of-print Bound – signed.

The Complete Darkyn Series and a nice piece of art from Lynn Viehl – signed

The first three Henry Parker novels, from Jason Pinter – signed.

The Artwork:The piece is titled “Fantasy” by Cindy Gillick, a distressed mixed media piece of paper, paint, stamps and Swarovski crystals on a mini gallery-wrapped canvas. It is also signed and dated 2008 by the artist.

Thats 30 books, a couple of rock’n playlists, and a nice piece of art work.

BID ON ME

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I’ve posted part of this excerpt before, but I just love it, so when I learned the topic for this weeks Saturday Snippet was First Kiss, I knew it had to be this scene from NO ANGEL, one of the novellas in my June release , the single author anthology Most Wanted

Ten minutes later she stomped into some dingy pub on the corner of Bernard and Wilson. With big screen televisions over the bar, team jersey’s of all sorts hanging from the walls and two pool tables in the middle of the room instead of a dance floor, she got the hint. It was a sports pub.
The waitress who wondered over to the booth Anna had slid into and stood at the edge of the table. She wore a tight white V-neck T-shirt that showed off impressive cleavage and too much make-up. The bright red nametag on just above her right breast said Sally. Sally cocked her hip out and smiled wanly. “What can I getcha?”
All she needed to do was snap her gum and she’d be a total cliché. “Pint of draft and three shots of Tequila. Gold if you have it.”
Sally’s eyes widened and she looked at the empty bench space on either side of Anna. “Expecting company?”
Anna smiled, baring her teeth. “Nope, it’s all for me.”
Sally walked away, shaking her head and Anna bit back a sigh. It didn’t matter that she showed her teeth, shit, she could curse and growl and threaten, and people just looked at her and shook their heads, or worse …laughed.
It was her Mom’s fault. The silky blond hair and fair skin came from her. Mom said the full mouth, and foul language came from her Dad, but since he’d died before Anna was born, she didn’t see how. Whatever. She was what she was, and she’d long since given up on caring what people thought about her.
Sally came back with her drinks and Anna paid cash, making sure to tip the girl. She’d waited table before, and knew it wasn’t an easy job. She slammed the two shots of tequila immediately, one right after the other. The burn down her throat and into her stomach was not so welcome, but the warmth that spread through her veins and mellowed the throbbing pain in her head was.
Anna sat there, staring at the empty shot glasses and wondered if the supernatural bounty hunters would ever leave her alone. She felt like crap. Her jaw hurt, there was a good sized knot on the back of her head, and thanks to that sappy movie and lovely demon attack, she was feeling lonelier than ever.
It didn’t seem to matter what she did or where she went, they always found her. She’d only been in Pearson for two days!
Sipping her beer she scanned the pub. The crowd was sparse, and the clientele seemed to be made up mostly of the blue-collar type. The mean wore jeans, T-shirts, and steel toed boots, the few women wore denim shorts or skirts, tank tops that ranged in color but helped showcase cleavage, even the ones with little to showcase. No one stood out as particularly dangerous, and even though most glanced her way at some point in those first few minutes, no one approached her table.
Anna watched two men move up to the pool tables and get ready to start a game. In all honesty, it wasn’t until the blond one kept glancing her way, that she really took note of him.
He was good looking, in a cocky, king-of-the-world sort of way. His well-worn jeans hugged him in all the right places, his T-shirt was mostly clean, and his smile was seductive.
Anna watched him bend over the table to line up his next shot and a little tingle went through her. He had a very nice ass. Round, and firm. She could picture her hands on it, her nails digging in and urging him on as they flexed and filled with every thrust of his hips.
Ohh, she thought. That would feel so good right now.
He sank three more balls and then he was lining up the black eight ball. With a smooth sure stroke, he put that one in the corner pocket. He straightened up, looked over his shoulder at her, and winked.
The tingle in her belly spread lower and she smiled. He was just what she needed. Too wrapped up in himself to want more than one night, he would be the perfect distraction from her dismal thoughts.
She took a sip from her beer, and put a little sparkle behind her smile the next time he glanced her way. His swagger increased as he moved around the table and Anna chuckled silently. Oh yeah, he was definitely what she needed to get her mind off her life.
When the second game was over, he set his cue stick down and made his way to her booth. He moved with a smooth liquid grace that had her blood heating and her mind stripping him naked.
“Hi there,” he said. “Can I get you another drink?”
She glanced down and realized not only had she finished her beer, but the third shot glass was empty too. She didn’t even remember drinking it, and her headache was pretty much gone.
“No, thanks,” she replied. She better not drink anymore. Safety first, and alcohol slowed her reflexes and dimmed her control over her powers. “But you should join me anyway.”
“I’m Gabe,” he said as he slid into the booth. “How are you doing tonight?”
“Better every minute,” she replied honestly.
His eyes widened and she noticed they were a nice deep blue. Very pretty eyes for a man. When he chuckled his white teeth flashed and she thought they were pretty too.
Funny, she’d never thought of teeth as attractive before. Maybe it wasn’t his teeth, it was the lips that surrounded them. They were nice. Yes, very nice and full. Very kissable.
Without another thought she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.

Gabe sucked in a breath at the soft touch of the woman’s lips and then went with it. He leaned in, parted his lips and slicked his tongue over her teeth. She tasted of tequila, and something sweet, but before he could deepen the kiss, she pulled back.
“You’ll do,” she said.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m looking for a distraction from my own thoughts, and I figure you’ll do.”
He sat back against the booth and looked at her. Really looked at her. Cute blond curls, pretty face, naughty smile. She definitely looked normal, even if she was slightly mussed up. The gleam in her dark eyes was sexy, not psychotic and he wondered if maybe he’d just misinterpreted what she’d said.
But there was really no way to misinterpret the kiss.
“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Smooth, Gabe.
“What do you think I’m saying?” Her laugh was husky and seductive, not at all what he’d expect from such an innocent looking thing. Unexpected was good though, she was pretty enough to catch his eye, but that laugh, it stroked him all over and made his dick harden to hammer strength.
“That you’ve already decided to spend the night with me.”
“Yes. That’s what I’m saying.” She looked at her empty glass pointedly. “Let’s go, shall we?”
For the first time in his life, Gabriel Mann didn’t know what to do. He wanted the woman. Hell, he’d wanted her from the second she’d stomped through the door. He’d been sharing some beer and some laughs with friends in another booth at the back of the bar and she’d caught his eye immediately. And while picking up women had always come easy to him, there was something off about how easy it had been this time.
“Maybe we should sit and talk a bit first.” He couldn’t believe he’d just said that.
“Why?”
Ignoring the hard-on pressing against his zipper he thought fast. “I don’t even know your name.”
“I’m Anna,” she said. Then she smiled, her lips turning up at the corners slowly. “Did I scare you? I’m sorry. I’m just not that great with social skills.”
Intrigued, he leaned forward. “Why not? You’re beautiful. I’d think you get hit on all the time.”
“Yeah, I do get hit on a lot.” She put a hand to the back of her head and winced. She must’ve noticed his puzzled expression because she laughed again, this time a bit self-consciously. “Sorry, private joke.”
“Let’s start over, shall we?” She took a deep breath and he tried not to stare as her breasts rose and fell with it. They were the perfect size, round and firm and just more than a handful. He could already feel their warm weight in his hand. “I’m Anna, and I’d love another beer.”
A little unsure what to do, Gabe waved Sally over and ordered two more beers. When the waitress had walked away he turned to Anna.
“So tell me Anna, why do you think you’re not good with the social skills?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
His lips twitched. He couldn’t help it, she was so cute when she scowled. “I don’t know. I think your quick decision making skills are an asset. I mean, I knew as soon as I saw you that I wanted to spend the night with you. I can hardly hold it against you that you did the same thing.”
She beamed at him. “Exactly!”
Sally set their drinks on the table and he watched as the girl held out some money. “I’ve got them,” he said, waving it away. “Sally’ll put them on my tab.”
“Thank you,” she said.
“See? That was proper social etiquette and it wasn’t that hard.”
Anna’s gaze snapped to his and he grinned. She saw that he was joking around and laughed. Relief hit him and he relaxed. Okay, so she was a bit different, but she had a sense of humor.
As they drank, they talked the small talk that people who really had nothing to say talked.
“Let me get this straight,” he said a while later. “You went to see Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and it made you cry,-“
“Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Two.”
“Sorry, Two. The point being that it made you cry?”
“Yeah,” she shrugged. “I know I’m a sap. But the magic of their friendship was so special.”
He snorted. “Magic?”
She slid him a glance. “You don’t believe in magic?”
Magic, psychic abilities, shapeshifters … all topics of conversation he desperately wanted to avoid. Time to change the subject, fast. “So you’re new to Pearson?”
“Just got here yesterday,” she replied. “It’s a nice small city, but the people aren’t very friendly.”
“I’m friendly.”
She eyed him. “You could’ve been friendlier.”
“Friendlier?”
She waggled her eyebrows up and down lecherously and he laughed. It was truly rare for a women to catch him off-guard like that, but at least the initial awkwardness of conversation was definitely gone. And he was getting used to her bluntness.
Sure, she’d shocked the shit out of him, but he was kicking his own ass now for not jumping out of the booth and leading her out the door when he’d had the chance.
As if reading his mind she, finished her beer, smacked those luscious lips together and met his gaze. “I have a room nearby, you ready to go?”
Excitement washed over him and his skin tightened all over his body. Oh, yeah. He was more than ready. “Definitely.”
He slid from the booth, highly aware of the bulge in his pants. When she followed behind him, slapping his ass playfully when he stood he forgot all about anyone else in the pub. He reached for her hand and wrapped his fingers around hers. “So where is this room you mentioned?”

Don’t forget to surf these sites for more exciting First Kiss excerpts.

Lauren Dane
Cynthia Eden
Vivi Anna
Moira Rogers
Mandy Roth
Anya Bast
Viv Arend
Sylvia Day
Beth Williamson
Elisabeth Naughton
Michelle Pillow
Jaci Burton
Taige Crenshaw
McKenna Jeffries
Victoria Janssen
Shelli Stevens
Maggie Robinson
Juliana Stone
Maura Anderson
Shelley Munro
Jody Wallace
Kelly Maher

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So, if anyone reading this stayed at the Wyndham Orlando Resort during the week of the Romantic Times COnference, it would be a good idea to check your credit card bills right now. If there are no curious charges on it, still call your card company and check on it.

Because a reader sent me a heads up via email (THANK YOU DANNY) I checked mine and found $1,000 worth of extra charges. Theory is someone who works at the Wyndham was cloning cards. My credit card company was already suspicious of mine the ones on mine as after having that card for almost 20 years they know my habits well.

If you discover a problem, please also notify the Hotel, (I just called their main line and asked for whoever is in charge if billing and credit cards) so they can maybe connect the common denominator in who had access to all of our cards.

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Lord, I can’t believe it’s almost the end of May! The end of MAY people!!!.

I’ve been trying to get some writing done, and while I have gotten some done, nit’s not as much as I wanted. I have a dilemma. You see, I had an original idea (or so I thought) and I found someone I respect to help me work on it. And after all my times of asking for someone to give me feedback, I found it. Only to find that too much input and feedback really messes me up.

So after a month of trying to figure out how to work with my idea, I was ready to give up. Start something new, maybe go back to my first idea in a year or so. not one to give up so easily, I gave myself a deadline-today in fact- to have something to show for this idea. And the night before I started to write agian, another idea came to me. One I like even better. One that would take me on a different path, but yet, it seemed easier than the task I’d already set myself up for. So…what to do?

Well, I’m doing both. For now.

So, yes, I’m writing again. and writing a lot. One project that requires lots of research and so much thinking my brain totally hurts and I wonder if the story will ever see the light of day, because it is truly challenging. The other an idea I can have fun with. The funny part, I’m not sure either of them will ever see thelight of day with readers.

Okay, thats not true, one of them will for sure, but I’m not sure which one, or when. When /if I have news to share about either of them, I will share here first, but for now, I’m just telling you I’m writing again. That I actually have pages written, and not just an idea.

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Today’s snippet is from WICKED, one of my contemporary erotics from Berkley. WICKED is a BDSM story, but don’t let that scare you off if this is a new genre for you. This story is about the relationship and trust that is built when people embark on this sort of lifestyle choice. And I’m pleased to mention that WICKED also won an Honorable Mention in the Pauline Reage Novel Awards.

SNIPPET:
Lara was already at the pool table when Karl entered the pub. He stood and watched her from a distance for a few minutes. She was good, but he could beat her. She played her opponent more than the table. Bending, stretching and smiling flirtatiously.

Her tight leather vest plumped up her cleavage deliciously, and her short skirt showed off legs that every man in there wanted wrapped around his waist. No, she was no sweet submissive miss – but she was a dirty girl through and through. One who was willing to try anything once.

When she flipped back her hair, bent over, and sent the eight ball into the corner pocket with a sure stroke, he stepped forward with a small smile. “Nice work.”

She winked at him as she tucked the bills from the edge of the table into her hip pocket. “Thanks. You wanna play?”

He couldn’t hold back the images that flooded his mind at that invitation, and he grinned. “Oh yeah, but not pool. Let’s grab a seat.”

He pointed to a booth near the back corner and they headed toward it. When she slid in one side, he fought his natural urge to slide in next to her, and settled in across the table. The waitress was there immediately, smiling at him and bending over the table to give him a good view down her little tank top. “What can I do for you tonight?”

“Lara?” he asked.

When she ordered a cola, he ordered a beer and sent the waitress away with a lazy smile.

“Do women hit on you everywhere you go?”

He slouched back in his seat and cocked an eyebrow at her. “Do men hit on you everywhere you go?”

Her husky chuckle filled the air between them and a knowing look passed between them. They were a lot alike.

“You don’t like to play pool?” she asked.

“I do, but there are other games I’d rather play with you. Ones that will help us get to know each other better.”

She leaned forward, her eyes sparkling, her smile wicked. “Do you really want to get to know me better, or do you just want to fuck me?”

What did he want from her?

He didn’t bother checking out the cleavage displayed so temptingly before him, he knew she was sexy. Instead, he gazed into her eyes. Searching past the spark of desire therehe saw the walls she’d built to protect her thoughts, and he wanted to knock those walls down. He wanted to know what lay beneath the surface.

And he wanted to bend her over and sink his cock in deep.

“Both,” he told her. “I think you and I can embark on a journey together – a very pleasurable one.”

Tilting her head to the side she narrowed her eyes at him. “Stop talking like a lawyer.”

“I’m not talking like a lawyer. I’m talking like a Dom, sugar.”

She sat back, surprised. “A Dom? As in, tie me up and spank me?”

He chuckled. “Something like that, yes.”

The waitress arrived with their drinks and Lara watched as he paid her, tipping heavily before sending her away with an absent smile.

A Dom.

Damn, that sorta sucked, she’d been looking forward to having that delicious cock of his buried deep inside her. She hadn’t had a good hard fuck in way too long, but she wasn’t into being spanked.

“I don’t know,” she said, shaking her head slowly. “I am not a submissive person.”

“I think you might surprise yourself. You enjoyed sucking my cock the other night right?”

His small smile was starting to irritate her. “Yeah, but that’s not a submissive thing. Men are ruled by their dicks. If I can rule the dick, I can rule the man. That’s not exactly a submissive way of thinking, is it?”

“So you got no pleasure from hearing my groans of pleasure, or words of praise? No satisfaction in feeling my cock throb against your tongue as my come filled your mouth?”

His words filled her head, clouding her thoughts as the memory of the other night filled her mind. His hand in her hair, his cock in her mouth, his voice being the only thing she heard beyond the pounding of her own rushing blood as he growled his satisfaction.
She’d swallowed for him. Something she’d never done before. More than that, he was right, she’d enjoyed the whole thing. Walking away from him then had been a point of pride she’d paid for when she was alone in bed with her vibrator.

She’d never shied from a challenge before, yet Karl’s words didn’t feel like just a challenge. They felt like an … invitation? She gave herself a mental head slap. Did it really matter? She wanted him, and she would try anything once.

So she straightened her spine, thrust out her breasts and boldly met his gaze. “Do I have to call you Master?”

“Master, Sir, Karl.” He shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. You can call me what you want, whatever feels natural.”

Excitement heated her blood and kicked her pulse up a notch. “Okay, how do we do this?”

“Why don’t we start with something simple?”

“I’m ready when you are.”

His voice lowered. “Are you wearing panties?”

Adrenaline surged through her. “Yeah.”

“Take them off, please.”

She started to slide out of the booth only to be stopped by his foot blocking her way. She glanced from the black boot to the man across the table, her forehead wrinkling. “Excuse me?”

“Stay here and take them off,” he commanded softly. “You proved the other night that you were adventurous when it came to taking risks in public, this should be nothing to you.”

He was right – it was nothing. So why was her heart suddenly pounding so hard it vibrated through her chest?

Without bothering to think about it, she shifted forward on her seat a little and reached under the table. Keeping her eyes locked with his she slid her fingers up her outer thighs and under her denim skirt. She planted her feet on the floor, lifted her hips and tugged at the elastic until the thong slipped from between her cheeks and down her legs.

Bunching the lace in one fist she felt the damp proof of her excitement against the palm of her hand, and pride zipped through her.

“Can I get you anything, sir? Another beer?” The waitress stood at the edge of their table, eyeing Karl.

Deliberately, Lara put her hand on the table between them, and opened it up, offering Karl her panties. Karl smiled his approval and reached for them while he spoke. “No thank you. I have everything I need for now.”

Lara tried not to smirk as the waitress stomped away. When she saw Karl lift the bundle of lace to his face and inhale, her moment of satisfaction faded into a blur of uncertainty.

“You smell wonderful,” he said. “Already turned on, are you?”

“Yeah.” She shrugged. Trying not to let him see just how affected she truly was.

“Yes,” he said.

“Yes, what?”

“When I ask you a question, I’d like you to answer clearly. Yeah, isn’t a proper answer.”

“Okay.” She nodded, feeling like a chastened child.

“Okay isn’t acceptable either.” His body didn’t move, but the energy around him shifted. Becoming almost palpable in its force as he stared at her. “Clear communication is essential, Lara. So is honesty. You always have the right to say no, or stop, at any time, and I will honor your choice. But you have to be clear. Yeah and okay imply uncertainty or disinterest, and that does neither of us any justice.”

Her nipples ached and she squeezed her thighs together. He wasn’t touching her, and his words weren’t particularly dirty or sexy, but her body was reacting in a big way to his tone of voice.

Pushing the heady clouds of lust away from her brain she focused on what he’d said. “I can say no at any time?”

“Yes.”

“But aren’t I supposed to do whatever you say?”

“Only if you want to. That’s what makes the power exchange of D/s so potent. It’s a free exchange, one that is meant to give us both what we need.”

Need. She nodded, even though she didn’t really understand what he was saying. She’d understood she could say no at any time, and that was all she cared about at the moment. Need was flooding her pretty damn fast and she hoped he was going to do something about it soon.

Oh hell, he wanted honesty. She licked her lips and leaned forward. “I need you to fuck me, and soon. Is that clear enough?”

Heat flashed through Karl, straight to his cock at her words. “Very good. Shall we go then?”

He slid out of the booth and waited for her. Lara’s eyes widened and she stared up at him. “It’s as easy as that?”

“It is tonight,” he said as she slid out of the booth and stood in front of him.

Karl kept his hand on the small of her back, ignoring the looks as they headed for the door.

*******

A bunch of talented authors have gotten together and decided to make Saturdays special for everyone. SNIPPET SATURDAY is going to be all abotu flashing you our bits. Bits of our stories that is. Each week will have a theme, and the authors participating will all be linked to at the bottom of each post so you can easily surf from site site and just read story snippets all day long.

Not all of the authors write in the same genre so you’ll get a good sample of what’s out there, and maybe you’ll find a new-to-you author that will become a favorite.

More Saturday Snippets:
Lauren Dane
Cynthia Eden
Vivi Anna
Moira Rogers
Beth Williamson
Leah Braemel
Jaci Burton
Mandy Roth
Anya Bast
Viv Arend
Juliana Stone
Elisabeth Naughton
Michelle Pillow
Taige Crenshaw
McKenna Jeffries

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So, I was sick all week. I blame it on living in northern Alberta where it’s warm shining sun one day, and then snowing the next. Yep, it’s May in Alberta, and it’s impossible to know if I should have and extra sweater in my car or blanket on my bed. That of course leads to a nasty cold – and I’m either a whiny baby or a mean bitch when I get sick.

But, I think I’m better now. I’m hoping I am, cuz I have things to do and people to see. :)

However, I did do some reading while I was sick…so here’s my thoughts on a couple of books.

RELENTLESS by Lauren Dane.
Loved it. RELENTLESS is a sequel of sorts to UNDERCOVER, Lauren’s first book for Berkley. By of sorts, I mean it’s set inthe same world, and you get a glimpse of the characters from the first book. But the story stands alone. If you’ve not read UNDERCOVER don’t let that stop you from reading this one. It was quite a bit more political than I expected, but that didn’t bother me. Ms.Dane wrote the story in a way that even I- the most unpolitical person you can imagine – enjoyed it. There weren’t any real surprises plotwise in the story, but that didn’t matter either. This book wasn’t about intrigue or twisty surprises, it was about the characters, their relationships, and their world. I don’t need to tell you it was hot and steamy, because that’s a given with this author. I was sucked into their lives, and I didn’t want to leave until they had their happy ending. Even then, I didn’t really want it to end. The good news is that there will be more stories set in this world from Ms.Dane in 2010.

DEATH ANGEL by Linda Howard.
Linda Howard is a hit and miss author for me. Some of her stories I love, some I can’t get past the first chapter. DEATH ANGEL I loved. I’ve always bee n a fan of the “Bad Girl” and this story delivers. It hooked me from the first page, and kept me enthralled and cheering for the protagonist the whole time.

MAGIC BITES by Ilona Andrews
It was good. I would like to say I loved it, but I didn’t. I liked the story idea, I liked the authors voice, and I liked what I thought the characters could be, but for me personally, it felt like it was lacking something somehow. I can’t tell you what because I couldn’t put my finger on what it was. It was just one of those books that I read right through, and enjoyed, but ultimately it left me feeling a bit let down. I like it enough that I will pick up the next book in the series though, because who knows, maybe it was just my mood that day.

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It’s been a few days. I should blog something for you guys that are still around after my sabatical. :)
But I’m in full writer mode right now, trying to get some shit together so I might have an actual book release next year. You’d like that right? A new book from me?

So for now I’ll just share some news bits:

MOST WANTED is shipping (2 weeks early) from Amazon. I hope that means I’ll be getting some reader feedback soon. This book came about strictly because I regularly got requests for sequels to certain stories, so I hope readers are happy with what I’ve done.

My Berkley editor has informed me that TROUBLE and KINK are going out of print soon, so if you haven’t gotten a copy yet, I suggest you buy soon.

And a POLL.
Want to see the colors as they’re used on my website?
Purple
Green
Blue
Creme

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Yesterday was one of those days that really should be a movie (or a book). After trying to write all day, but being unable to focus beyond website/business choices, I went to work. For those of you just joining me here, I work part time in a sports bar/lounge. It’s popular place, with 8 big screen TV’s, a few video games (Golf and Buck Hunter) and almost a dozen VLT’s for the gamblers. (Video Lottery Terminals)

I can normally get a bit of writing done even while working part time, but I’ve come to accept that my brian sometimes just needs to focuss on the story exclusively. It works for me. Like binge eating, I binge write. So next week my schedule is I have three days off, then work one night, then another day off. I figured if I could get rid of my shift on Tuesday, I’d have 5 days off to do nothing but write, and I can get a lot done in 5 days. So I went to work and set about getting rid of my Tuesday shift next week. I work with a lot of college students and they’re done exams now, so they’re all in good moods, and they all want extra hours. A little finagling and I got it done. I was all happy and tell Shawndra, the other bartender in the bar with me, “I have 5 days off starting Saturday, I’m going to hermit away and write a book.”

She laughs and says. “You know, it’s funny. People often say they’re going to write a book, but you’re actually someone who will do it. ”

So everyone is in a good mood, the sun is shining, and the place is Not busy. We’re joking around as we work, nothing unussual, nothing special. Then about an hour later Shawndra tells me 2 guys are fighting over whose ticket is whose (from the VLT’s, one guy is accusing the other of cashing out his machine IE: steaing the guys money) I get the manager, because it’s her job to deal with these things. The manager speaks to them then goes upstairs. I figure she’d gone upstairs to check our security cameras and see what happened at the machines.

The one guy gets louder, and more obnoxious, cursing, causing a scene. So I ask him to keep it down. He said “My voice isn’t what you need to worry about.”

Uh Huh. So I talk to him for a second more, determine this guy is going to be a problem. No matter what happens it’s clear to me that this guy is looking to cause trouble. Not only have I been a waitress/bartender for 20 years (on and off) but I also spent a few years doing security work and dealing with specific situations much like this. My instincts are pretty good, I can usually read people pretty well. So I go call the police, and calmly explain the situation and ask them to send a car. Police think I’m clueless waitress who doesn’t know what she’s talking about and just need a big strong man to come save me. They say if it’s not a problem right now, call back when it is. He has a 911 call to answer. So I’m like. “Okay, but it’s gonna happen, I thought if you came now maybe we could avoid it.”

I go back to bar, and see new guy, one of my customers, in front of troublemaker guy and think. “Shit. Now we got customers trying to step in.” and head over to intercept and break up. Shawndra says new guy is a cop. As she says this, troublemaker guy say “I don’t give a shit about your badge,” and pushes cops hands off him. They take it to the ground and tussle. I step in to get 2 more customers to back off. Sure, they just want to help cop, who is admittidly about a foot shorter and 80 pounds lighter than troublemaker guy, but my thought, uh uh, no way do we want this turning into a brawl, back off. I get other guys to back off, give the cop some room. Cop is trained, let him handle it. Cop did. He soon had troublemaker subdued,(Pinned from behind and held in a half-nelson) but could not let him go, cuz guy did not want to give in.

Shawndra was on phone with 911(About a total of 2 minutes after I hung up with them, and maybe slightly less calm,) saying we had fight in progress, we need help. The response? They have no available cars right then.

She says, “Uhmm, just so you know, one of the guys in the fight is one of yours.” They send 4 cars right away. LMAO.

Not only was that funny, but Shawndra and I spent the night laughing over our good karma to have had an off-duty cop in the place at the exact time we needed him. He’d been sitting not 10 feet from it all the whole time, and he didn’t get involved until the troublemaker guy started really pushing the first guy to get physical. (This is while I was in the service area on the phone with the cops & couldn’t see what was happening).

Shawndra says she’s glad I was there to deal with it because she wouldn’t have stepped in to stop the others from joining in the fight, and it was obvious there wouldn’t been a bigger problem. I say I was glad the cop was there, because if he hadn’t been it would’ve been me who had to deal with trouble maker, and while chances of it getting pysical with me are smaller,but not non-existent, it would’ve taken longer and been more of a drawn out scene. Yes, our manager, who is a new manager, and a young female, and not comfortable with any sort of confrontation, was upstairs in the office while everything happened. When she came back down, the fight was over and the cops were there.

After dealing with that stuff, the handle on our slush machine came off, and it sticky slush mix spewed on the floor. So we began watching and waiting for the faucet to come off our tap and shoot a fountain of water into the air and over the customers sitting at the bar, as it’s done half a dozen times already this week, but karma was still in our corner, and it never happened.

The lesson meant for the police? When a woman calls and tells you calmly that there is going to be trouble, don’t think just because she’s calm and not screaming, that it’s not true. Not all of us get hysterical when we sense trouble coming.

The lesson for us, Shawndra and I are a good team. I’m good under pressure, and she’s good at smoothing ruffled customers afterwards.

Now I’m off to work for tonight,*fingers crossed for a good night* and then I still get Tuesday off and have five days to write uninterupted.

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I’m blogging at GENREALITY today about Bad Girl Heroines.

Also, if you have a minute. a friend of mine, Lila, is a finalist in a local singing contest. It’s sponsored by a radio station, and is for the Anthem singer at some sports events. You can GO HERE and see the top 5, and vote for your faves. :)

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Something sort of strange happened to me last night. I got an email from a friend who needed to talk – if I was available. Doesn’t sound strange right? I mean friends talk all the time. Friends are there when you need to talk. What makes this sort of strange is that this is a friend I’ve known for at least two years, yet we’d never spoken on the phone before. And then, about half an hour into our conversation, I asked her where she lived. As in what state even.

This is someone who emailed me they needed to talk, and I didn’t hesitate to say Yes, yet I had no clue where she lived. I think many people would find that weird. In fact, we laughed about it. That’s being a writer for you. We meet at a conference, occasionally talk through emails, hang out together for a week every year and share intimate details of our lives, connect in a way that good friends do, and yet we’d never talked on the phone, and we had no idea where each other lived, or even in what time zone.

It truly brought home to me that a friend is a person who cares. Someone you can talk to, and who will be honest with you. Last night we talked on the phone for almost three hours, and man…I’m so not normally a phone person, but I really enjoyed talking to her. I hope I helped put her mind at ease about some things, and I know she ended up helping me out with some of my own jumbled thoughts on things.

It made my heart warm to know I had another friend out there, and that I was there for her. After all, thats what friends are right? Someone who’s there for you when you need them.

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