Romance Writers Behaving Badly: Costa Mesa Series Playlist, Book Trailer, and Sexy Excerpt

Hey, Everyone! In my last post, I discussed the first Halloween-themed book in my Costa Mesa Series with Loose Id Publishing, Costa Mesa Book 1: Batten Down the Hatches

Today I’d like to discuss the playlist which inspired the book. Hang out for a steamy excerpt below.

Each of the Costa Mesa Series books is holiday themed, and I had an absolute blast writing them. In Costa Mesa 1: Batten Down the Hatches, Piper Goldhirsch is a sassy tabloid reporter out to expose a whale watching captain, but when she realizes Captain Jack’s the same hunk she had sexy shenanigans with at a Halloween Ball, things get tricky when they can’t keep their hands off each other. From the playlist below, two of the songs that bear a lot of weight to Batten Down the Hatches are “Over and Over Again” by Ariana Grande and Nathan Sykes, and “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten.

When Piper and Jack meet behind the concealment of their masks at a ritzy Halloween Ball, Piper captures Jack’s heart from the second he sees her. They dive feet first into a passionate affair in the billiard room, and though they part ways after, he’s deeply taken with this enigmatic, sexy woman.

Jack crashes into Piper’s life in unexpected ways; she’s successful at busting chops for a living on her show, but after the greatest sex of her life with Jack, the next day she gets called in to a meeting, and finds that he’s her job’s next target! She has to go undercover on a whale watching cruise and expose Jack, knowing full well he’s the same man who incited wild passion in her.

“Fight Song” is her mantra throughout the book as she struggles between her feelings for Jack and her obligation to her work. When Jack and Piper do meet up again, they can’t keep their hands off each other. Please enjoy this playlist I listened to while writing this first book.

Monster Mash – Bobby Pickett
Lady in Red – Chris De Burgh
Beautiful – Christina Aguilara
Over and Over Again -Ariana Grande and Nathan Sykes
Lemonade – Beyoncé
Tonight – Daughtry
Whole lot of Leaving – Bon Jovi
Fly Me to the Moon – Frank Sinatra
Queen of Swords – Idina Menzel
Home – Aloe Blacc
Ex’s and Oh’s – Elle King
Zombie Jamboree – Harry Belafonte
All of Me – John Legend
I’m Yours – Jason Mraz
Alone – Pat Benetar
Come Back To Me- David Cook
Fight Song – Rachel Platten
Captain Jack – Billy Joel
Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Israel Kamakawiwoʻole

Description: Roxanne D. Howard's holiday trilogy, the Costa Mesa series, is now available in a convenient e-boxed set!

Batten Down the Hatches
Piper Goldhirsch is the head reporter for Business Buster, an Undercover Boss-esque tabloid exposé show. While it was never her dream job, it pays the bills. When she attends a masked Halloween Ball and meets a sexy costumed pirate captain who calls himself Captain Jack, what starts out as a few kind words and exchanged kisses in the billiards room quickly becomes the greatest sex of her life, leaving her haunted by the powerful magic between them. Piper's not sure what she wants or even if she'll ever see her mysterious stranger again… until he becomes her job’s next target.

Captain Jack Spencer runs his own brand new whale watching company, Ahoy, Matey, on the outskirts of Costa Mesa and Balboa Island. He’s so good at it he’s garnered the attention of rival companies. Piper is called in by Jack’s nemesis to go undercover on an ocean tour to expose him, and reveal the alleged illegal tricks that have made his business so successful in a short amount of time. But when Piper realizes he’s the same sexy man she slept with at the Halloween Ball, she’s emotionally conflicted. Plus, Jack has been unable to forget the woman from Halloween, so when they do meet up again, they can’t keep their hands off each other. It’s time to Batten Down the Hatches, because the waves are about to get wild!

Toe the Line

After two months apart from Jack and working in desolate, war-torn Syria, Piper is on her way home to California for Hanukkah. The tides have turned dramatically, and she is now an established journalist with Channel Four News. Though she's proud of where she's at with her career, her heart aches for the painful way she left things with Jack. Jack is determined to make things right with Piper, no matter what.

When he receives a cash settlement from Business Buster, he uses his newfound wealth to whisk her away on his new yacht for a romantic getaway to Catalina Island. In no time at all, the two lovers reignite the fiery blaze between them, and their steamy passion rekindles out on the open ocean. But when a dangerous, hidden stowaway hijacks the yacht and holds them both captive, Piper and Jack find themselves at his mercy. With nowhere to run, they must work together if they want to escape alive. This holiday season, it’s time to Toe the Line.

Overboard

At the end of their romantic holiday getaway, Piper is one loved-up woman. She can’t get enough of the sizzling passion she’s found with Jack after all they’ve been through. The two lovers board Jack’s yacht and leave the idyllic hamlet of Catalina Island, California to head home for New Year’s Eve, and it seems nothing could be more perfect… until the day turns on a dime, and the waters rise.

When Jack receives a radio distress call from an old friend out on the open ocean, their initial efforts to free a trapped, massive blue whale soon becomes a dangerous struggle for life or death – their own. It’s a New Year’s Eve fraught with harrowing danger, narrow escapes, daring rescue missions, and heart-pounding passion. Top it off with one shocking discovery, and suddenly the boat isn’t all that’s rocking. With the weight of the knowledge pressing down upon Piper, can their love survive? This New Year’s Eve, get ready for some fireworks, because it’s all going Overboard.

Buy Links for Costa Mesa Series E-Boxed Set (Published with Loose Id):

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0714KGBTY/
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/costa-mesa-e-boxed-set-roxanne-d-howard/1126449065
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/costa-mesa-e-boxed-set
Loose Id: http://www.loose-id.com/costa-mesa-e-boxed-set.html

Excerpt (NSFW):

JACK LIFTED HER bare leg and kissed her ankle. He kept his eyes on hers. He wanted to savor each and every detail. Her pupils were enlarged, dark with arousal, and the top of her lily-white breasts peeked out over the cups of her bra. Jack kissed her calf and continued upward.

“Tell me what you want, Piper. I’ll give you anything.” He licked her delectable skin and reached her inner thigh. He kissed it slowly, his lips and nose bathed in the softness and her remarkable scent.

Piper bit her lip, and he thought she’d end it, but she opened her legs for him.

“Put your mouth on me, Jack. I want you to taste me, like you did last night.”

Oh, he didn’t need to be told twice. He moved his face between her legs. She lay back and clutched the old patchwork comforter on either side of her. He caressed her right breast as his tongue delved between her pussy lips. He licked her thoroughly from base to clit and fixed his lips around her swollen nub. The second he began to suck, she cried out and clutched the comforter tighter. He hummed and continued to massage her breast. He slid his thumb beneath her bra and grazed her sensitive nipple, which pebbled under his touch. God, he loved how responsive she was! He slid his other hand up her inner thigh. He parted her thighs and stroked her slick slit with the tips of his fingers as he feasted on her clit, then slipped them inside her.

Piper whimpered and writhed beneath him, and he attacked her even more with his tongue, delighting in the wickedness of having her at his total disposal and the sheer pride at watching her reaction. She tensed and rotated her hips into him when he swirled his tongue around her nipple and filled her up with his fingers, a slow and concentrated pace meant to feed the flames which had already been lit.

“Jack, yes…”

Jack groaned and sped up, and she became even wetter. He inserted his knee between her legs. Her petal-soft skin slid against his and demanded to be touched, and he knew he needed to be inside her.

Watch the Book Trailer (check out the other book trailers on Roxanne's YouTube Channel!):

Author Bio:

Roxanne D. Howard is a U.S. Army veteran who has a bachelor's degree in Psychology and English. She loves to read poetry, classical literature, and Stephen King. Also, she is an avid Star Wars fan, musical theater nut, and marine biology geek. Roxanne resides in the western U.S., and when she's not writing, she enjoys spending time with her husband and children. Roxanne loves to hear from her readers, and encourages you to contact her via her website and social media.