Title: TEN MINUTES IN THE SIN BIN
Author: M.J. Schiller
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Hockey Romance
Book Blurb:
Scottie McCord is a busy NHL player. And, as a forward, he doesn’t do a lot of looking back. But when Elise Scofield moves to the same West Coast city he plays for, he can’t help but reminisce about his first kiss with her.
I’m psyched Elise will be close by. She’s a lot of fun, and I need to get the 411 on her breakup with Hunter. I thought wedding bells would be ringing for those two soon. If Hunter broke her heart, I may have to pay him a visit. I warned him when they first started dating that I would be none too happy with him if he hurt Elise. Not that I have a thing for her. Sure, that kiss when we were kids was the hottest moment of my life, but that’s just because it was a first. She’s like a sister to me now.
Elise Scofield is making a fresh start. She still loves Hunter, but they want different things and he’s found someone else. A move to sunny California may be just what she needs, especially with Scott there.
Scottie and I have always been close, “two straws in a soda” is my mom’s weird way of putting it. We’d gotten over that awkwardness of having kissed a long time ago, and fallen into an easy brother-and-sister-type of relationship. He’s the best. Always there for me and he’s the one who picks me up when I’m feeling down. And who knows? He might even introduce me to an eligible hockey player or two.
But when Scott’s teammate says he’d like to spend TEN MINUTES IN THE SIN BIN with Elise, for some asinine reason, Scott becomes hot enough to melt the ice that he plays on. Then Elise and Sergei start dating. When Scott finds out his opposite winger is only trying to win a bet by bedding Elise, he wants to check his teammate into oblivion. But why are his feelings always so amped up around Elise?
One thing’s for certain; he’s determined to keep Sergei from hurting Elise. And when he’s determined, —like in his rookie year, when he made his team’s list of top five goal scorers of all time—he gets what he wants.
The only problem, though, is this time around he’s not sure what it is he actually wants.
Excerpt:
This one needs a little setup. They are at a Fire and Ice fundraiser. The hockey team the hero plays for is the San Francisco Fire and they are pitted against members of the fire department in a game, (thus the fire and ice) and there is also a bachelor’s auction. The hero, Scott, has given the heroine, Elise, $500 to bid on him--thinking that would be more than enough--so he doesn’t have to go out with a stranger…
When my turn came, I took a deep breath, accessorized with a smile, and headed on stage.
“Ooh, it’s a good thing the fire department is here because Scott McCord is one hot forward for our San Francisco Fire. I wouldn’t mind if he got a tad forward with me. How about you, ladies?”
I fought to keep my facial expression neutral. Strutting around on the stage was one of the most awkward things ever, and I hated it a little more each year. Various cliché remarks were being thrown my way.
“I’d like for you to take your best shot with me, handsome.”
“You can score on me anytime.”
Yada, yada, yada.
I recognized a voice sliding through all the others, shouting. “Work it, baby!”
I glanced at her. She gave me a sexy smile. “Knock it off,” I said out of the corner of my mouth on my next pass by her, but I was having a hard time not laughing.
She sat forward, running her gaze over me. “Give us your pouty look, McCord.”
I could see several guys peeking from behind the curtains and laughing. I was so gonna kick her butt for this later.
“Let’s start the bidding at a hundred dollars for this fine gentleman. Can I get a hundred?”
An attractive, middle-aged woman at the end of the runway raised her hand.
“One hundred. Can I get one-fifty?”
Someone in front of the first lady gestured.
“Two hundred,” someone yelled on my right. I peered in her direction. She was close to my age, with long, black hair drawn up into some elaborate ‘do.’ The fire-engine red dress she was wearing hugged the curves nicely and a lengthy slit revealed legs that seemed to go on forever. I gave her a grin.
“Two-fifty,” the first lady who bid countered.
“Four hundred dollars,” the lady in red interjected, skipping a few levels.
Wow, nice.
“Well, we’ve got one determined bidder here. Anyone for four-fifty?”
The lady at the end shook her head with a sigh, shooting the other bidder a glare.
“Four hundred dollars going once, tw—”
“Five hundred,” Elise said clearly. A murmur of surprise ran through the room.
“Six hundred,” Red said. I threw her a wink.
This is actually kind of fun having two women in a bidding war, even if one of them is backed with my money.
“Six-fifty,” Elise bid, her voice wavering a little.
The lady in red leveled a stare at Elise. “Eight hundred dollars.”
Well, all right. Now we’re talking.
Elise blinked but didn’t give ground. “Eight-fifty.”
Getting tired of walking, and hot under the lights, I removed my jacket and posed with it slung over my shoulder, which incited the crowd to more yelling and whistling.
Her opponent didn’t hesitate. “Two thousand dollars.”
Elise’s mouth fell open.
“The highest bid is two thousand dollars.” The MC looked at Elise, but she stood frozen. “Can I get two thousand fifty dollars?”
Why is she hesitating? It’s not her money. I dropped a grand on dinner the other night, surely she knows I can cover a couple thousand.
Elise fluttered a hand.
The auctioneer raised a brow. “Is that two thousand fifty dollars?”
“Yes,” Elise said weakly. She cleared her throat, then reiterated more strongly, “Yes.”
Her competition gave Elise a catty grin as she leaned forward. “Four thousand dollars.”
People gasped.
Really? You’re willing to pay four thousand dollars for a date with me? It’s not like you’re homely and can’t get people to date you.
I smiled at her, amazed she would go this far.
Elise’s shoulders slumped and her face drained. “I can’t do that.”
What? I tried to catch her eye to tell her it was okay; I didn’t mind giving that much to the hospital.
“Going once, going twice, sold to the lady in red.”
Buy Links:
ON SALE FOR A LIMITED TIME FOR ONLY 99¢!
Books2Read: https://books2read.com/TenMinutesInTheSinBin
What’s your favorite thing about autumn:
Autumn baking. We’re talking muffins and pies, pumpkin bars… But this year will be a bit different because I’ve taken on a new goal of eating more healthy meals. Some of the healthy versions of those dishes are pretty tasty too!
What inspired you to write this story:
I LOVE hockey! And Elise and Scott are the children of two of the main characters from my chick lit series (DEVILISH DIVAS SERIES) and always seemed like they belonged together. So they decided to start their own spin-off romance series, the DEVILISH DELIGHTS SERIES.
Giveaway –
One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon US or Canada gift card
Open internationally. You must have a valid Amazon US or Amazon CA account to win.
Runs September 1 – 30
Drawing will be held on October 3.
Author Biography:
M.J. Schiller is a retired lunch lady/romance-romantic suspense writer. She enjoys writing novels whose characters include rock stars, desert princes, teachers, futuristic Knights, construction workers, cops, and a wide variety of others. In her mind everybody has a romance. She is the mother of a twenty-seven-year-old and three twenty-five-year-olds. That's right, triplets! So having recently taught four children to drive, she likes to escape from life on occasion by pretending to be a rock star at karaoke. However…you won’t be seeing her name on any record labels soon.
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