Need some more books? Of course, you do! We all have our ways of dealing with this pandemic – I bake and there’s hardly any room left in this house because I’m growing things. How I’ll fit it all in our garden once it’s warm enough to bring the plants outside, I don’t know, but every day I put a few seeds in a pot and I feel like I’m at least doing something. False security at its best.

But, another great way to deal with social distancing is to read. I’ll get there soon, I hope, to that place when I can sit down and relax with a book. Right now I’m in a more frantic state *hysteric laugh-sob*. Nah, it’s not that bad…let’s pretend it’s not that bad.

A couple of weeks ago, JMS did a huge giveaway to help cure the boredom of quarantine. Now, we’re doing it again. It’s different books than in the last giveaway, and last I checked there were 96 titles.

So check it out!

My contribution this time around is Pine Tree Mary.

Hush slid off the moose, patted her on the flank, and went into the cave where he’d slept the last week or so. He didn’t have much in ways of belongings—a few dresses, a bearskin wrap, deerskin moccasins, and a few other items to keep him warm in the winter.
He chewed on a piece of dried meat, more to have something to do than out of hunger. Food, while nice to consume, wasn’t what kept him alive.
“You need to get rid of him.”
Hush bit his tongue in surprise as Solstice walked into the cave. The coppery taste of his blood mingled with the meat. He swallowed and winced as the too-big piece slid down his throat. He’d believed he’d managed to hide his whereabouts, though Solstice could just as easily tap into the animals’ consciousness as he could, so there was no hiding.
“Petal’s gonna have your head if that man doesn’t stop calling for you. Disturbs the entire forest.”
“He’s here?”
Solstice fluffed her fiery hair and gave Hush a pouty look. “Why isn’t he reacting to us?”
“I don’t know.”
“I think Petal hates that more than the disturbed peace.”
She probably did.
“Is he feeding you, Hush?”
The no was on the tip of his tongue, but he had, hadn’t he? Only a few trickles, but they had been there. “A little.”
She nodded. “Go to him.”
Of his sisters, Solstice was the least terrible.
Hush packed away the meat, grabbed his bag with all his belongings, and went toward the clearing. Solstice melted away between the trees and soon he heard the familiar sound of a moose moving away.
Hush’s heart was thudding in his throat as he neared the clearing. Manning was standing by the tree he’d been tied to. The thorny string was still there.
“We should remove it so no one hurt themselves on it.”
Manning whirled at his words.
“Hush.” His shoulders slumped as if he’d been…worried. Hush’s stomach somersaulted. No one had ever worried about him. It couldn’t be worry. He studied Manning for a few seconds. He was tired. His hair was tousled, the stubble on his cheek deliciously dark, and he looked far more worn out than when he’d left Hush at the police station. He needed energy.
“Come on.” Hush nodded in direction of the city. “You need to eat.” It was how humans recharged, right?
“Eat?” Manning didn’t move. His eyes slid from Hush’s face down his body and up again. A small, almost undetectable drizzle of desire spilled from him.
Hush smiled.

---

Detective Quinn Manning wants nothing more than to see Diamond Dace, one of Fagerdal’s most notorious drug lords, behind bars. After years of the man eluding the authorities, when Manning accidentally stumbles onto an opportunity to catch the powerful dealer red-handed, he doesn’t hesitate. But what should be a simple tail, instead drops Manning into a real-life world of myth and legend.

Hush is a hulder, a forest spirit also known as a pine tree Mary. Since the beginning of time, his people have lived in the forest, feeding off the energy they derive from the lust and desires of passing hunters. But Hush is an abomination, the only male of his kind.

After a lifetime of starvation, Hush has struck a deal with a human. A simple trade that will give the human what he desires and keep Hush from wasting away completely.

When Manning saves a young man from Diamond and one of his men, his view of reality is altered forever. And Hush, who has never met anyone like Manning, finds the man’s attraction to him enough to finally stave off his constant hunger.

When together they set out to rescue Manning’s partner, their connection to one another grows. But can a human detective have a future with a creature of the forest, a creature who isn’t supposed to exist?

We’re living in a scary time right now, and to help take your mind off things, several authors are offering books for free or at a discount. The authors over at JMS-Books are as well.

For this week, 51 books are 100% discounted. So have a look around. I plan of grabbing a couple myself, actually.

My contribution is Nine Stones, a paranormal romance with a cat shifter and his neighbour.

Felix Lane brought the coffee cup to his lips while staring at the empty birdcage in his kitchen. He should get rid of it but doing so would mean erasing Sunny and Sunny had been his only companion for more than seven years. Sighing, he looked out of the window only to quickly turn away.

Across the street, Kirk Shoo was standing by his mailbox staring right at the window as if he could see Felix through the glass. Perhaps he could. Sometimes Felix suspected Kirk could read his mind or had placed a tracker in Felix’s car or something. No matter where he went, Kirk would show up.

Sometimes he believed he was crazy, that his subconscious turned every tall, dark-haired guy into Kirk, but every so often the real Kirk would walk up to him and try to strike up a conversation.

Heat climbed Felix’s face, and he moved farther away from the window while waiting for Kirk to go back inside. A minute went by. Felix didn’t have time to wait him out, he couldn’t be late to work. Pouring the coffee into a to-go cup, he prepared to make a run for the garage. He glanced out the window again. How long did it take to fetch the paper?

His avoidance of Kirk may or may not have gone a bit overboard. Felix couldn’t explain it—it was the way Kirk looked at him. Most often he wore sunglasses, but when he didn’t, his eyes were so intense, almost yellow when the light fell a certain way, and Felix always broke out in sweat—not to mention the way he stuttered as he tried to come up with an excuse to run and hide behind the nearest door.

It was the way he towered over Felix, how he stepped into his personal space every chance he got as if Felix was a magnet and he couldn’t resist the pull. It was the way he smelled. Felix wanted to bury his nose in his neck and inhale, and he couldn’t say what the scent was, no cologne smelled like Kirk did.

But, most of all, it was because of the coffee incident.

Felix had been late for work and had yet to learn Kirk’s newspaper-fetching routine. He’d grabbed his bike from the garage, a to-go cup in hand, and he’d been pedaling for all he was worth straight into Kirk.

There had been coffee everywhere.

How he could’ve failed to see him was a mystery, it was as if he’d appeared out of thin air.

You’ll find Nine Stones here and all free books here.

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The only thing worse than having a hot neighbor you’re too intimidated to talk to is accidentally hitting his cat with your car.

Felix Lane was perfectly content to spend the rest of his days with Sunny, his canary life companion, in their quiet little corner of the suburbs. But then Kirk Shoo with his unusual eyes moved in across the street, and Felix’s carefully constructed life is starting to unravel.

When your every bad-boy fantasy lingers at the mailbox, stands too close and smells too damn good, what’s an under-appreciated administrative assistant to do? Besides sneak out the backdoor to go to work? But when Kirk’s cat runs out in front of Felix on his way home, he has no choice but to face the music and his dream man. Unless …

What starts as a tragic accident turns into something far more bizarre. And when Felix’s backyard begins to look like a pet cemetery, he has no choice but to come clean. That is, if he can manage to find his sexy neighbor at all.