Today, Elizabeth Noble is here to share a little from her story, Electric Candle. Welcome, Elizabeth!

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Soulmates!

Hello and thank you Ofelia for hosting me today!

I’m Elizabeth Noble and I write in a variety of genres, but paranormal romance and romantic thrillers are the category most of my books fall into. All my books are MM and always have a HEA!

I cowrote a paranormal romance/urban fantasy series, The Sleepless City, with Anne Barwell. I wrote books two and four of the series, Electric Candle and Shifting Chaos.

When Anne and I were planning our series, we knew that all the books would feature soulmates and fated mates as a major plot element throughout the stories.

My pair of soulmates are both vampires. Jonas Forge has been a vampire for nearly 200 years. Blair Turner for less than a decade. They’re driven by nature to soulbond with each other. Soulbonds and fated mates don’t require dating and trying to meet the right person. That’d be great except these two guys barely know each other and one of these men is already in a relationship!

A basic premise of Electric Candle is what happens if fated mates aren’t perfect for each other?

When I was writing this book, I wanted to do something a little different than ‘they meet, and everything is automatically hearts and flowers and love at first sight’ sort of story. I asked myself the question, what happens if fated mates aren’t thrilled with each other? It’s one thing to have preordained feelings of love for another person. It’s quite another to learn to like the person you’re destined to spend the rest of what could be a very long life with.

Forge’s current role in life is as a homicide detective for the town of Boggslake. He not only hunts human criminals but supernatural ones as well. It’s during an investigation that his soulmate, Blair, arrives unannounced in Boggslake. Forge and Blair aren’t complete strangers. Over the years Blair offered Forge, and others, information on their investigations of supernatural criminals. Except Blair and Forge have never met in person, only via a voice connection over the internet. Neither one knows the other is a vampire. The real surprise is learning they’re soulmates!

Of course, they discover the other’s true nature when they meet in person. Forge and Blair are two completely opposite personalities. Blair’s only understanding of what being a vampire means is comes from pop culture. Forge has lived the majority of his two hundred plus years as a vampire. Things are complicated because Forge has been in love with another vampire, a man named Declan, for almost as long. Being soulbonded to another man creates an interesting conflict for everyone involved.

Forge and Blair travel a bumpy, imperfect path to becoming real partners, taking them a step beyond soulmates to friends, as well as lovers. It doesn’t happen overnight and it’s not a painless process, but one that makes them both stronger as individuals and as a soulbonded pair.

Excerpt:

No one was there, yet Forge couldn’t shake the feeling he wasn’t alone. He wandered down the beach a few yards. Water splashing against the shore and spraying made him go closer for a better look. The lake’s edge here wasn’t gently sloping sand but a sharp lip of concrete. Hunkering on the ledge, Forge leaned over for a look.  
 
The wall ran a good half mile in either direction. He could see large spots that were darker than the surrounding area. Forge had read about the secret rooms constructed all along Lake Erie during Prohibition. Illegal booze and guns were stashed in them. One could only access the rooms by going under water. At high tide, many of the outer parts of the rooms were completely submerged. He’d never been in one.  
 
More than likely he’d have to get wet to justify the expense of divers. Forge was still contemplated getting a dive team in when he heard shouting.  
 
“Stop. Wait!”  
 
The voice sounded familiar, but Forge couldn’t place it. That always made him nuts. Turning, he looked up at the top of the stairs. Then he squinted and shook his head. Who belonged to the voice made him stare in a type of horrified wonder, like one looked at a train wreck.  
 
The fact his cock picked then to persistently remind him of its presence and give a few twitches and throbs didn’t help.  
 
It was a man, though the horror Forge was feeling might have been less if it’d been a woman. He wore what appeared to be homemade steampunk goggles with dark lenses, a long sleeved black shirt, and black jeans.  
 
“Sweet mother of God, is that a cape?” Forge muttered and took a few steps forward. “No, stop, don’t—”  
 
It was too late. The oddly dressed man began to run down the steps—the slippery, wet steps, waving his arms. He’d gone about three steps when his feet slid out from under him and his rear hit the stone stairs. The man yelped, and Forge’s cock gave another twitch. He had the fleeting thought of how disturbing on several levels that was.  
 
“What the hell?” Forge ran to the bottom of the stairs.  
 
Bouncing head over heels down the steps, the guy finally flopped to one side and rolled the remainder of the way down, finishing his descent with a hearty splash in the chilly lake water.  
 
Floundering and shouting, the man slapped the lake’s surface, went under, bobbed up, and spit water out of his mouth, and garbled, “Can’t… swim.”  
 
Throwing his arms wide, Forge grumbled, “It’s not as if vampires drown.”  
 
The guy went under, the water churned, but he didn’t come to the surface. Jerking his jacket off and dropping it to the ground, Forge made sure his phone was with the garment.  
 
“This has got to be a joke. A really bad joke.” Forge ran to the edge and dove in. The only thing that prevented him from ejaculating the second his fingers touched the man was the cold water. He shuddered when he pulled the guy against his chest and wrapped one arm around him, using the other to help propel them to the surface.  
 
When he got to the concrete edge, he hefted the guy over and onto the ground. Forge hoisted himself out of the water and hit the guy, who looked to be in his twenties, between the shoulder blades to expel lake water.  
 
A shiver and spark of electricity ran from Forge’s palm and coursed down his spine to settle in his groin.  
 
This couldn’t be his soulmate. Yet even as he finished that thought, he knew, and there was no denying what his body was telling him. The fool dressed as some superhero wannabe in a really bad outfit was Jonas Forge’s mate for eternity.  
 
Forge wondered if other vampires would penalize him for killing his soulmate. 

Blurb:

When a vampire finds his soulmate, the bond is forever. It’s love at first sight.

Or is it?

Homicide Detective Jonas Forge has been a vampire for centuries. He’s fought wars, seen life go from the simple colonial days to the modern high-tech world. He’s evolved with the times, adapted to each new era, blended into each new life. The one constant is his best friend, mentor, and lover, Declan. Even though not fated to bond as soulmates, Forge and Declan are happy and settled in their life together.

Until Forge’s real soulmate falls, literally, into his life.

Forge isn’t thrilled with the guy, despite the pheromones attracting them to each other, and the feeling seems mutual. While trying to adjust to his clumsy soulmate and equally awkward feelings, Forge is also on the hunt for a serial-killer witnesses can’t identify who’s leaving a trail of bodies in its wake.

Will the bond Forge is finally forming with his soulmate be destroyed when the hunter becomes the victim?

If you like fated mates who aren’t perfect for each other, a paranormal killer who might not be caught and found families then you’ll love Elizabeth Noble’s Electric Candle.

Author’s note: This book was originally published in 2014 by another publisher. This edition has been revised and re-edited.

Electric Candle by Elizabeth Noble

A found family of supernaturals protects humanity from the stuff of nightmares.

Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2ZGC7Ud

GoodReads: https://bit.ly/3a6TrW2

ASIN: B08D83MDG3

About Elizabeth Nobel

Mystery, action, chills, and thrills spiced with romance and desire. ELIZABETH NOBLE lives by the adage “I can’t not write.” She doesn’t remember a time when she didn’t make up stories and eventually she learned how to put words on a page. Those words turned into books and fan fiction that turned into a genuine love of M/M fiction. A part of every day is spent living in worlds she created that are filled with intrigue and espionage. She has a real love for a good mystery complete with murder and twisty plots as well as all things sci-fi, futuristic, and supernatural.

When she’s not chronicling the adventures of her many characters, Elizabeth is a veterinary nurse living in her native Cleveland, Ohio. She has three grown children and now happily shares her little, brick house with two spunky Cardigan Welsh Corgis and their feline sidekicks. Elizabeth is a fan of baseball, basketball (go Cavs and Guardians) and gardening. She can often be found working in her ‘outside office’ listening to classic rock and plotter her next novel waiting for it to be dark enough to gaze at the stars.

Elizabeth has received a number of amateur writing awards. Since being published, several of her novels have received Honorable Mentions in the Rainbow Awards. Jewel Cave was a runner-up in the Gay Mystery/Thriller category in the 2015 Rainbow Awards. Ringed Love was a winner in the Gay Fantasy Romance category of the 2016 Rainbow Awards.

Website http://www.elizabeth-noble.com 
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Today, fellow JMS author Gavin Atlas is here for an interview. Welcome, Gavin!

Why do you write?  

I can think of two reasons.  First, I have to.  I think even if I could only write for myself or a small group of friends, I would still write.  Second, because I want to make people happy.  I started with literary fiction, but it seemed like most of that was depressing.  Writing gay erotica or romance (or humor) makes me feel hopeful I’m making my audience feel satisfaction or joy.  

Do you believe in writer’s block? If so, what do you do to avoid it?  

Absolutely.  I have ADHD, so I write slowly when I write at all.  To focus myself, I choose one of my obsessions to form a plot around.  At different times I’m intrigued with art, music, colognes, tennis, gemstones, travel, colleges, and airlines, among other things.  So, if I can create a character with one of those obsessions and obstacles related to it, I have a good start.  Perhaps the character is also lonely and needs love.  For Hurricanes and Rainn, I focused on a beautiful green island in the Caribbean, Dominica.  My love for the setting helped power me through writer’s block. Moreover, Dominica is not exactly pro-gay, so the setting also created obstacles that propelled the story forward.  

How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have, and do you plan to finish them? 

As far as unfinished stories, I understand there’s an incredibly large number called “googleplex,” which is the number 1 followed by a hundred zeroes raised to the power of 1 followed by a hundred zeroes. I suspect that’s probably close.  I would like to finish much of what I’ve started.  I have a romance set on a luxury cruise liner I like.  There’s another with a handsome aspiring perfumer whose world collides with that of an airline magnate.  Furthermore, I have ideas for two or three more collections of short erotica.  I also have ideas for one or two books of humor fiction, and I’ve also started a couple novels. Finishing one or both would surprise me, but perhaps I’ll give it a shot.   

What are you working on right now? 

I’m working on a triad romance, which is something I’ve never written before.  As I love art and art museums, and I also love being silly, the main character is the adorable young curator of a terrible museum of art.  It’s a collection of “old masters” that are less than masterful, located in the dusty, remote town of Egbert, Texas.  The protagonist absolutely needs rescuing, and a pair of dashing, noble alpha males might just swoop in.  

Blurb from Hurricanes and Rainn 

Rainn may fear tropical storms more than anything, but his love of flowers has landed him a gardening position on the Caribbean island of Dominica. Loneliness leads him to take tours with breathtakingly handsome local guide, Sam. 
 
Sam is taken with Rainn but not at all with the planned hotel where Rainn works as a gardener. Windemere Resorts is quietly destroying Dominica’s natural beauty, and now Sam and his friends hope Rainn will help them obtain information they need to stop the hotel from being finished. 
 
Rainn wants Sam badly, but what if he’s being used? An out-of-season hurricane bearing down on the island makes his worst fear a reality, and now he must decide if he should break the law for Sam. Can he trust Sam with his heart and body? 

Excerpt:

Rainn didn’t know this song, but it had a regular groove, sexual and grindy. He soon found his rhythm. He saw Roger nearly choke on his drink and then scurry over to him and Sam. 
 
“Ooh, Rainn. You’re a good dancer,” Roger said. “I bet you’re fun in bed.” 
 
Rainn laughed and felt himself blush. Sam turned and smacked Roger on the shoulder. Then he turned back and put his hand around Rainn’s waist. 
 
“Is this okay?” Sam asked. 
 
Rainn nodded. It was more than okay. 
 
Rainn hated to sound like all he did was panic about storms, but it was on his mind. “So, I heard on the radio the activity east of here is almost definitely going to form Tropical Storm Alex. Isn’t that crazy? I mean, it’s only April.” 
 
Sam shrugged. “It’s the dry season. Even if there’s a fluke storm, it can’t be that bad.” 
 
“I heard some of the other laborers say the trailers the Windemere has for us aren’t hurricane safe. We’re supposed to have places in the hotel to live in by June but …” 
 
Sam massaged Rainn’s shoulders. “Relax, baby. Why do hurricanes scare you so?” Rainn inhaled Sam’s cologne, warm with musk and vetiver, and felt calmer. 
 
“When I was little, I liked the rain because of my name,” Rainn said. “I was staying with relatives in Houston for summer, and I was out riding my bike in a storm. I didn’t want to go home. I was swept away in a flash flood and almost died. To this day I feel faint when I hear thunder.” 
 
Sam whispered in Rainn’s ear. “Shh. We’ll keep you safe, I promise. I, personally, will keep you safe.” 
 
“Sorry to bust in,” said Cyprian. “But have you been working for that hotel for longer than the month and half you’ve been here?” Cyprian asked. 
 
“Because you should know the people there are an evil bunch,” Roger added. He was loud enough to be heard over the music. Again, several nearby men turned to look at Rainn. Sam said something Rainn couldn’t understand, probably a rapid Creole. From the tone, Sam suspected it was something akin to “hush up.” 
 
“I’ve always wanted an evil friend,” Roger said quickly. Then he smiled flirtatiously at Rainn. Whatever Sam then said to Roger sounded very similar to what he’d said a moment ago, but it sounded gentler. 
 
Sam looked at Rainn. “I said, ‘Hands off. He’s mine.'” 
 
Rainn laughed again. 
 
“I love how you can’t stop blushing,” Sam said with a grin. 
 
This was thrilling, Rainn thought. He was delighted by all the flirting, but he still sensed tension in the room. Clearly his employer bothered Cyprian. Roger and Sam, too. 
 
Sam caught Roger blowing Rainn a kiss and pointed two fingers at him to tell him, “I see you.” He said, “I love Roger, but I worry his big mouth, or his leering eyes, will get him in trouble sooner rather than later.” 
 
The song changed to something faster, and the crowd whooped. 
 
Sam leaned in to whisper. “You are adorable. How sho — uh, how tall are you?” 
 
Rainn laughed. “You were about to ask how short I am. I’m 5’6″.” 
 
“My little pocket gardener.” 
 
Rainn laughed again, then flexed his arm. “But hey! I’m nobody’s wimp.” 
 
Sam smirked. “Pint-sized but powerful.” He squeezed Rainn’s bicep. “May I slide my hand lower?” Sam asked. 
 
Whoa, what? Rainn felt a ripple of pleasure run through his body. He couldn’t look at Sam but nodded. He felt Sam grab his butt. Delirium and lust shot through Rainn. It had been months since Rainn had been touched like that. 
 
“Such a nice ass,” Sam said. “You think I didn’t notice? Because I did on all three tours.” 
 
“Wait. You noticed me even on the first tour?” 
 
“I should have guessed you’re part Indian. I noticed your beautiful brown eyes right away.” 
 
“Oh, yeah?” 
 
“I also noticed your shorts can’t hide your gorgeous chunky ass. I have to have it.” 
 
Wow. Rainn gaped at Sam’s brazenness. He loved it, but he couldn’t believe it. 
 
Sam burst out laughing. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m not normally like this. I think you may have put a spell on me because I’ve never said anything like that before.” 
 
Rainn wasn’t someone who slept with a guy on a first date. He didn’t know what to say. But he continued to dance, keeping his lower body within easy reach of Sam’s hands. When the song ended, Cyprian was at Sam’s shoulder, looking impatient. 
 
“Kiss him already,” Cyprian said. “It’s past time we talk to him.” 
 
Talk to me? About what? 

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