Birth of a Series

by Michelle Miles

When I wrote TALK DIRTY TO ME (Samhain Publishing, 2006), I never thought I would turn it into a series. But I finished that book in about six weeks and then started a new one. NICE GIRLS DO (Samhain Publishing, 2007) came second about a stripper trying to be good and a bad boy who can’t be good.

And then before I knew it, I had a third book started. TAKE ME I’M YOURS (Cobblestone Press, 2009) was next in line staring Marion and Graeme, a sexy painter who had been in love with her for years. Marion had a best friend who was sarcastic and loved fashion and she practically screamed for her own book.

SEX, LIES & MARTINIS (Cobblestone Press, 2010) followed on the heels of that. And before I knew it, I had a four book series which I fondly call The Coffee House Chronicles.

So when the deadline for Cobblestone’s 12 Days of Christmas came around, I knew I had to write something for that. The natural progress was writing something in the same series. I wrote THE COFFEE WARS (Cobblestone Press, 2010) in two weeks under a deadline pressure. I was so happy when I received a contract for it.

Writing a series has been a blast. I’ve enjoyed writing in cameos with the other characters. And the best part is, they’re all stand alone and you certainly don’t have to read them in order.

Here’s a little snippet from my latest release, THE COFFEE WARS:

Standing at the counter early one morning a few weeks before Christmas, Davis Sawyer expelled an exasperated breath as he inventoried their latest in icing-covered pastries. They were out of Christmas tree-shaped cookies, leaving only wreathes and stars. And no one had touched the slices of fruitcake since they arrived six days ago. He suspected the only thing they’d be good for was as a doorstop.

It was nearly seven-thirty. Where was the morning crowd?

“Where’s the morning rush?” Louise asked, echoing his thoughts. She was in her early twenties, putting herself through college to complete her master’s degree. “We’re usually busy as hell this time of year.”

David couldn’t agree more. The holidays at The Bitter End Coffee House started in early November with the first wave of special blends of coffee and tea, coffee mugs, Christmas ornaments, and holiday pastries. That was only the beginning. The postage stamp-sized stage had an act booked on it from the first weekend in November until New Year’s Eve.

“I bet it’s that damn Java Perks up the street,” he said, glaring at the new store through the front windows. “They’re stealing our business.”

The new store had been open barely a week, and already he’d seen a decline in business. Usually, he’d discuss this with his mother, owner and operator, but she was currently on a six-week-long cruise in the Mediterranean with the new love of her life. She wouldn’t be home until after the New Year. Meanwhile, his brother, Mark, had gone off with his little woman for a four-day weekend, leaving the store solely in his hands.

Which also meant he had to decide what to do about Java Perks. He made a mental note to do some recon later.

A new customer came in to busy Louise, while he scratched a note to order more Christmas trees. Putting down his order form and pen, he scanned the coffee house. Their holiday season was in full swing, and he expected larger crowds by now. There were clusters of people here and there, all sipping lattes or cappuccinos. He could smell peppermint wafting on the air, lingering with the scent of java, vanilla, and pumpkin bread.

There wasn’t a line, however, to order the latest drink of the season, only the regulars lounging in the leather chairs prolonging the inevitable—going to work. He wondered if the bitterly cold wind and gray overcast sky kept people away.

He scowled. Christmas was his least favorite time of year.

When the door chime signaled the arrival of another customer, he glanced up. She walked in with such cool confidence it rivaled the cold wind outside. She wore knee-high, brown suede boots, coupled with a mid-thigh length skirt, exhibiting plenty of her shapely legs. He idly wondered how she managed to keep warm in such a get-up. Her coat looked like something straight out of a 1950s high fashion magazine and, underneath that, she wore a fuzzy white sweater with a plunging neckline, showing off enough cleavage to be enticing yet not enough to be slutty. Her porcelain face seemed to be carved into perfection with pouty red lips, almond-shaped café au lait colored eyes fringed in dark lashes, high pink cheekbones, and shoulder-length brown hair falling in soft waves.

As she placed her order, he edged toward the counter, his blood pressure rising. Normally, David wasn’t a man to hit on the customers, but this one he couldn’t resist. She was different from the normal crowd, exuding an electric air about her.

Just looking at her wrapped in those layers of chocolate made him want to run his tongue over her from head to toe. She looked delectable. He had every intention of getting her under him as soon as possible.

“Will that be all?”

“And a blueberry scone,” the goddess replied. Her sultry voice matched her svelte body.

“On the house,” David said, smiling as he nudged aside his barista. “I’ll take it from here, Louise.”

Louise dutifully went off to brew the latte.

“That’s very generous of you,” the woman said. In her suede-gloved hands, she held a designer wallet with the embossed letters LV. “But not necessary.”

“Oh, I think it is.” David punched a few buttons on the register and swiped his manager’s card. “I insist.”

She paused a moment, considering, before putting away her wallet. “All right, then. I can’t argue. Especially since your competition up the street has a line out the door.”

“Competition?” He played dumb, hoping to get some insider information.

“You didn’t know about Java Perks?” The beginning smile tipped the corners of her perfect mouth. “It opened last week.”

David glanced around again to see only his faithful regulars. He was grateful to them. His mind raced, trying to come up with a marketing plan to reward loyal customers. But marketing wasn’t his thing. That was all left to his mother, Jody. Still, he made a mental note to do some Internet research to come up with creative ways to get his clientele back.

“You didn’t know,” she said, “did you?”

“Of course, I did.” He didn’t want to admit it. “They’ll be lucky to last a week. We’ve been around nearly ten years.”

Never mind they’d nearly lost the place to nasty developers, only to be saved by his bad-guy-turned-good-guy brother. Mark got half ownership out of the place and a girlfriend. Sometimes life wasn’t fair.

To take his mind off the thought of losing half his business to Java Perks, David packaged her blueberry scone as her order was called out from the other end of the bar.

“Thanks for the comp.” She dazzled him with a smile that seemed genuine. “Glad I stopped in.”

Available now for $3.99 at Cobblestone Press:
http://cobblestone-press.com/catalog/books/coffeewars.htm


About the Author:

Michelle began her semi-prolific writing career long ago in junior high when she and her then-best friend wrote and illustrated their own Indiana Jones comic books. Star Trek fan-fiction quickly followed, as well as Star Wars fan-fic. Later, she dabbled in her own science fiction stories and some historical fiction (princesses, towers, and handsome princes!), and finally found writing hot contemporary was just her cup of tea.

Michelle is a member of Romance Writers of America. She resides in suburban Fort Worth with her cat and her precocious son. In her spare time, she enjoys watching hockey, reading, adding to her shoe collection and--of course!--drinking coffee.