An excerpt

It's been a while since I posted any excerpts. So...

From Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4, an excerpt from Maidensong:

“Interested in Pictish symbols, are you?”

The voice startled her. It came from directly behind herand she whirled around so quickly that she became offbalance.Her body tipped and she banged her shoulder intothe ten-foot-high pink granite stone she had been examining.

“Shit!” Dianne cried as she grabbed her shoulder. Stars danced behind her eyelids as the pain raced through her body.When it subsided she opened her eyes.

The owner of the voice was tall and handsome in a ruggedsort of way. His hair fell in full ebony curls across hisbrow and his eyes were a deeper, richer green than the lushgrass that they were standing on. He was tall, with broadshoulders and a muscular body and wore the outfit of everyhiker in the Scottish highlands: jeans, a woolen sweater andhiking boots. His sweater was a deep loden green thatmatched his eyes.

“Didn’t mean to scare you. Are you all right?” He leanedcloser to where she stood, rubbing her shoulder, and lookedinto her eyes with such intensity that she wondered what hewas doing.

“Do I look all right?” she asked, scowling. “And what areyou looking for, anyway?”

He pulled away from her and smiled. When he smiled itwas as if the sun dimmed, she was so overwhelmed with theway his features moved on his face.

Handsome when you’re serious, Lord-have-mercy gorgeous whenyou’re smiling.

“I was looking to see whether or not you had a concussion,”he answered. “Apparently you do not.”

“I smacked my shoulder, not my head. And what wereyou doing, sneaking up on me like that? Did you try to scare me half to death?”

He tilted his head and a lock of black silk fell across his eye. “I am sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you at all. And Iwasn’t sneaking up on you, either. I didn’t try to conceal myselfin any way.”

“So what, then? What were you doing if you weren’t tryingto scare the pants off me?” She stopped rubbing her shoulderand stood with her hands on her hips, waiting for an answer.

“I was merely trying to meet you, that’s all. It’s not everyday I find a beautiful woman at the Maiden Stone,” he said. Hesurveyed her the same way she had examined him. When hiseyes met hers again he grinned. “And I did not say I wasn’topen to getting your pants off of you, mind.” He waggled hiseyebrows rakishly and, coupled with his thick Scottish accent,the effect was hilarious.

She threw her head back and laughedout loud, a sound that reverberated through the trees at theedge of the clearing.

What they're saying about CLK, Vol. 4

“I loved Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4 by Rusty Wicks. This
is a small volume that is big on entertainment and I had too
much fun reading it!..."

--Fallen Angel Reviews

Maidensong Excerpt

From Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4, an excerpt from Maidensong:

“Interested in Pictish symbols, are you?”

The voice startled her. It came from directly behind her
and she whirled around so quickly that she became offbalance.
Her body tipped and she banged her shoulder into
the ten-foot-high pink granite stone she had been examining.

“Shit!” Dianne cried as she grabbed her shoulder. Stars
danced behind her eyelids as the pain raced through her body.
When it subsided she opened her eyes.

The owner of the voice was tall and handsome in a rugged
sort of way. His hair fell in full ebony curls across his
brow and his eyes were a deeper, richer green than the lush
grass that they were standing on. He was tall, with broad
shoulders and a muscular body and wore the outfit of every
hiker in the Scottish highlands: jeans, a woolen sweater and
hiking boots. His sweater was a deep loden green that
matched his eyes.

“Didn’t mean to scare you. Are you all right?” He leaned
closer to where she stood, rubbing her shoulder, and looked
into her eyes with such intensity that she wondered what he
was doing.

“Do I look all right?” she asked, scowling. “And what are
you looking for, anyway?”

He pulled away from her and smiled. When he smiled it
was as if the sun dimmed, she was so overwhelmed with the
way his features moved on his face.

Handsome when you’re serious, Lord-have-mercy gorgeous when
you’re smiling.

“I was looking to see whether or not you had a concussion,”
he answered. “Apparently you do not.”

“I smacked my shoulder, not my head. And what were
you doing, sneaking up on me like that? Did you try to scare
me half to death?”

He tilted his head and a lock of black silk fell across his
eye. “I am sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you at all. And I
wasn’t sneaking up on you, either. I didn’t try to conceal myself
in any way.”

“So what, then? What were you doing if you weren’t trying
to scare the pants off me?” She stopped rubbing her shoulder
and stood with her hands on her hips, waiting for an answer.

“I was merely trying to meet you, that’s all. It’s not every
day I find a beautiful woman at the Maiden Stone,” he said. He
surveyed her the same way she had examined him. When his
eyes met hers again he grinned. “And I did not say I wasn’t
open to getting your pants off of you, mind.” He waggled his
eyebrows rakishly and, coupled with his thick Scottish accent,
the effect was hilarious. She threw her head back and laughed
out loud, a sound that reverberated through the trees at theedge of the clearing

A taste of Tully

I'm so excited! Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4 is out at Whiskey Creek Press Torrid! I love Celtic lore so writing Taming Tully and Maidensong were truly labors of love. I hope you'll go check it out!

Here's a taste of what you'll find inside the pages of CLK4:

Taming Tully is a story filled with pookas, cluricauns and fairies—but it’s also filled with love. When Maureen meets Sean she promptly forgets all the strange things that have been happening to her since her arrival in Ireland.


An excerpt from Taming Tully:

“What are you looking for, Maureen? What is it that’s got you in such a state this fine morning?”

“My colored pencils…they’ve gone missing.” Maureen dropped to her knees and looked beneath the chintz sofa, assorted armchairs and knick-knack covered tables in the room. She didn’t see the expensive pencils anywhere.

Damn. Yesterday it was my red bra, today it’s my pencils. What the hell is going on in this place, anyway? How can anyone live where things disappear on a daily basis?

Maureen stood up and looked down to where her aunt sat, nestled on the sofa like a kite tethered to a tree. She seemed small and frail, as if a gentle breeze could lift her up and away. But despite the nearly translucent cast to her wrinkled face, Aunt Tess looked better than she had yesterday. And that was the point, wasn’t it?

The elderly woman had just gotten past a vicious bout with pneumonia. Since there was no one else in the family who could tend her during her recovery…well, Maureen found herself in Tully before she knew that the family whirlwinds had even convened.

She reached down and tucked a brightly patterned green quilt around her aunt’s shoulders.

“Have everything you need, Aunt Tess?”

When the woman nodded her cap of white curls and smiled up at her, warmth flooded Maureen’s heart. She knew that coming to Ireland had been the right decision. After all, putting her life on hold for a month or so wasn’t the most terrible thing in the world. It wasn’t as if her life had been going that well, anyway.

“I do, dear heart. Going for a walk in the glen, are you? That’s good, then. Don’t forget to take your jacket. It’s a stiff wind I’m feeling in my bones.”

Aunt Tess sipped from the ever-present delicate Beleek teacup before setting it on the table beside her.

“You sure you don’t need anything?” Maureen’s gaze passed over the table holding the tea things. She did a quick mental inventory to see that all of her aunt’s needs were spoken for.

“No, don’t worry a bit about me. I’ve got my e-reader, you know.” The elderly woman held up the small silver device and grinned. “Today I’ve a Maeve Binchy. What else could I need? Tea and Maeve on an afternoon…I’ve got it all.”

“I won’t be too long, then. Love you.” Maureen planted a fast kiss on the white curls.

“Don’t forget the jacket,” called Aunt Tess. “And mind the pookas, you hear?”

I love Tully!

I'm so excited! Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4 is out at Whiskey Creek Press Torrid! I love Celtic lore so writing Taming Tully and Maidensong were truly labors of love. I hope you'll go check it out!

Here's a taste of what you'll find inside the pages of CLK4:

Taming Tully is a story filled with pookas, cluricauns and fairies—but it’s also filled with love. When Maureen meets Sean she promptly forgets all the strange things that have been happening to her since her arrival in Ireland.


An excerpt from Taming Tully:

“What are you looking for, Maureen? What is it that’s got you in such a state this fine morning?”

“My colored pencils…they’ve gone missing.” Maureen dropped to her knees and looked beneath the chintz sofa, assorted armchairs and knick-knack covered tables in the room. She didn’t see the expensive pencils anywhere.

Damn. Yesterday it was my red bra, today it’s my pencils. What the hell is going on in this place, anyway? How can anyone live where things disappear on a daily basis?

Maureen stood up and looked down to where her aunt sat, nestled on the sofa like a kite tethered to a tree. She seemed small and frail, as if a gentle breeze could lift her up and away. But despite the nearly translucent cast to her wrinkled face, Aunt Tess looked better than she had yesterday. And that was the point, wasn’t it?

The elderly woman had just gotten past a vicious bout with pneumonia. Since there was no one else in the family who could tend her during her recovery…well, Maureen found herself in Tully before she knew that the family whirlwinds had even convened.

She reached down and tucked a brightly patterned green quilt around her aunt’s shoulders.

“Have everything you need, Aunt Tess?”

When the woman nodded her cap of white curls and smiled up at her, warmth flooded Maureen’s heart. She knew that coming to Ireland had been the right decision. After all, putting her life on hold for a month or so wasn’t the most terrible thing in the world. It wasn’t as if her life had been going that well, anyway.

“I do, dear heart. Going for a walk in the glen, are you? That’s good, then. Don’t forget to take your jacket. It’s a stiff wind I’m feeling in my bones.”

Aunt Tess sipped from the ever-present delicate Beleek teacup before setting it on the table beside her.

“You sure you don’t need anything?” Maureen’s gaze passed over the table holding the tea things. She did a quick mental inventory to see that all of her aunt’s needs were spoken for.

“No, don’t worry a bit about me. I’ve got my e-reader, you know.” The elderly woman held up the small silver device and grinned. “Today I’ve a Maeve Binchy. What else could I need? Tea and Maeve on an afternoon…I’ve got it all.”

“I won’t be too long, then. Love you.” Maureen planted a fast kiss on the white curls.

“Don’t forget the jacket,” called Aunt Tess. “And mind the pookas, you hear?”

September 1st releases at WCPT!!

Hi everyone! Happy September 1st! Hope you're all having a great holiday weekend. I'm supposed to be grilling hot dogs right now but I thought I'd just pop in really, really fast and say hello.

I've just been over to the WCPT site and taken a good long look at the new releases for September. Woo Hoo!! Now that's a lovely lineup of covers! And the stories sound hot, with lots of choices so that everyone seems destined to find something to their liking.

I've got to say I'm loving the Celtic Love Knots covers, not just because mine is this month's selection, either. I mean, that cover is just so perfectly attuned to the sort of stories it holds each month. This month Taming Tully and Maidensong will hopefully entertain readers, and do justice to the beautiful cover. Fingers crossed!

September's selections are all exciting and all look perfectly fabulous. I think I may just have to begin reading them today, and work my way through the list, LOL. I mean really, who can resist? Especially with titles like

Tarot Card Anthology: Book 1,

The Peacekeeper Journals II: The Gates of Life,

The Bride Wore Boots,

Cindy Revisited,

Loving Gabriel,

A Slave's Way Out,

Bird in a Gilded Cage: The Myth of Mirabella,

Men of Alaska: Heart of the Storm,

Torrid Teasers Volume 34:Can't Walk Away/Captive Audience,

Torrid Teasers Volume 35: Treasure/Black Angel, and

Celtic Love Knots 4: Taming Tully and Maidensong.

Whew! So much to read, so little time! Oh, that's right--I've got a whole month's worth of interesting reading right at my fingertips, don't I?

Best get cracking. First, back to my grill...

See you in September!

September 1st my Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4 is being released from Whiskey Creek Press Torrid. I am so excited about this release. Taming Tully and Maidensong were fun to write, especially since they deal with a topic I'm very much interested in--Celtic lore. I hope you'll check the CLK4 out. It's getting rave reviews! :)

And now, a short excerpt from Maidensong. Enjoy!

“Interested in Pictish symbols, are you?”

The voice startled her. It came from directly behind her and she whirled around so quickly that she became off-balance. Her body tipped and she banged her shoulder into the ten-foot-high pink granite stone she had been examining.

“Shit!” Dianne cried as she grabbed her shoulder. Stars danced behind her eyelids as the pain raced through her body. When it subsided she opened her eyes.

The owner of the voice was tall and handsome in a rugged sort of way. His hair fell in full ebony curls across his brow and his eyes were a deeper, richer green than the lush grass that they were standing on. He was tall, with broad shoulders and a muscular body and wore the outfit of every hiker in the Scottish highlands: jeans, a woolen sweater and hiking boots. His sweater was a deep loden green that matched his eyes.

“Didn’t mean to scare you. Are you all right?” He leaned closer to where she stood, rubbing her shoulder, and looked into her eyes with such intensity that she wondered what he was doing.

“Do I look all right?” she asked, scowling. “And what are you looking for, anyway?”

He pulled away from her and smiled. When he smiled it was as if the sun dimmed, she was so overwhelmed with the way his features moved on his face.

Handsome when you’re serious, Lord-have-mercy gorgeous when you’re smiling.

“I was looking to see whether or not you had a concussion,” he answered. “Apparently you do not.”

“I smacked my shoulder, not my head. And what were you doing, sneaking up on me like that? Did you try to scare me half to death?”

He tilted his head and a lock of black silk fell across his eye. “I am sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you at all. And I wasn’t sneaking up on you, either. I didn’t try to conceal myself in any way.”

“So what, then? What were you doing if you weren’t trying to scare the pants off me?” She stopped rubbing her shoulder and stood with her hands on her hips, waiting for an answer.

“I was merely trying to meet you, that’s all. It’s not every day I find a beautiful woman at the Maiden Stone,” he said. He surveyed her the way she had examined him. When his eyes met hers again he grinned. “And I did not say I wasn’t open to getting your pants off of you, mind.”
He waggled his eyebrows rakishly and, coupled with his thick Scottish accent, the effect was hilarious. She threw her head back and laughed out loud, a sound that reverberated through the trees at the edge of the clearing.

“Fair enough. Hard way to meet someone,” she said.

“Ach, I did not say anything about hardness, either,” he answered with a grin. “Let me introduce myself. I’m Cabe Pitts, and you’re…” He let his words trail off as he lifted an eyebrow and tilted his head, his intention obvious.

What have I got to lose? A handsome man appears out of nowhere in a romantic spot and wants to know my name – how did I get so lucky? So what if he’s broken my shoulder first.

“Dianne Tomes.” She put her hand out to him and when he surrounded it with his big one she felt a distinct jolt. Her nerves tingled and her nipples puckered beneath the thick sweater she wore. And she felt other slippery sensations, too. She rubbed her thighs together as she let his hand go. “Nice to meet you.”

“The pleasure, fair Dianne, is all mine. So, what are you doing here, in this magical spot? What brings you here?” Cabe leaned against the mammoth stone and crossed his arms. She saw his muscles tense beneath his jeans as he crossed his legs at the ankles.

This guy is hot. Who knew Scottish men could be so rugged? But where’s his kilt? I’d pay to see his legs!

“The Maiden Stone, of course.” Dianne ran a hand across the cool granite, touched her fingers to the carved symbols. “I read about it and decided to look for it when I visited Scotland. I’m staying at the Inverurie Inn for a few days, so here I am.”

She realized she was babbling but felt powerless to stop it. He grinned at her as if he knew it, too. She wondered if he had this effect on every woman he met.

I’ll bet you drive all the women wild, Cabe. And I’ll bet you know that you’re doing it, too.

“You’ll know, then, the legend of the stone,” Cabe said. He looked at the Celtic cross above his head with a serious expression on his face. “You’ll know that this stone is the result of a wish that was granted. It’s said that any wish uttered here will come true—eventually.”

“I’ve heard that,” answered Dianne. “This is the spot where a beautiful maiden met a handsome young man, isn’t it?”

“Aye.”

“And that handsome man pushed her into making a bargain with him,” she said.

“Well, I canna say for sure that he pushed her. It’s quite likely that she stumbled or fell but yes, a bargain between the two was struck,” said Cabe, nodding his head.

Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4

September 1st is the release day for Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4 from Whiskey Creek Press Torrid! I am beyond thrilled about this release. I had such a blast writing the stories for it because they involved a bit of research into an area that I'm very much interested in--Celtic lore. Maidensong and Taming Tully are getting rave reviews!

Marlene at Fallen Angel reviews said..

"I loved Celtic Love Knots, Volume 4 by Rusty Wicks. This is a small volume that is big on entertainment and I had too much fun reading it!...Maidensong is clever, and fun, and I enjoyed every bit of it. Dianne’s internal dialogue is wonderful and the reader gets a true glimpse into the mind of this character. The plot is fast paced and well written. ...Taming Tully is sharp and witty, with a twist at the end that made me laugh out loud. It was a mystery of sorts, with romance and humor thrown in as well. The writing is clear and concise, and vivid enough that I felt I could see the whole picture before me as the story unfolded. The premise of this story is enchanting.Kudos to Ms. Wicks for a perfectly wonderful read!" - 5 Angels

Brandywine at Enchanting Reviews said...

"I was enthralled from beginning to end!" - 4 Enchantments