Spotlight & Giveaway: Accidentally in Love by Danielle Jackson

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Danielle Jackson to HJ!

Hi Danielle and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Accidentally in Love!

 
Hello! Thanks so much for having me.
 

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

ACCIDENTALLY IN LOVE is a grumpy/sunshine summer fling contemporary romance novel set in Chicago. My heroine, Sam, is the grumpy girl of my heart! She’s the office manager at a luxury boudoir and pinup photography studio in River North and she’s burnt out, but still wants to excel at her job. My hero, Russ, is an aspiring chef who works at a hot restaurant in the city, but has big plans on the horizon that will take him to culinary school at the end of the summer. They’re part of the same friend group–her best friend/boss is engaged to his older brother–and have been dancing around each other for about a year, and they both just so happen to be overseeing special projects at their jobs on the busy Chicago summer street festival circuit… To blow off some much-needed steam, they agree to have a summer fling before Russ leaves, but then feelings get in the way, family drama drums up a ton of angst, and they both have to figure out what matters most to them before it’s too late…
 

Please share your favorite line(s) or quote from this book:

“The moment Russ first laid eyes on Sam, she grimaced her way into his heart. “

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• Accidentally in Love was the working title of this book and just stuck around, LOL!
• All of the street festivals mentioned in ACCIDENTALLY IN LOVE (Randolph Street Market, Do Division, Roscoe Village Burger Fest, Lollapalooza, and the Renegade Craft Fair) are REAL Chicago Festivals! I played around a bit with the dates and vendor types, but they are actual events you can visit in the city.
• My heroine, Sam, is diagnosed with Graves Disease, an overactive thyroid autoimmune disorder–something she and I have in common! Much of her health journey is based on my own experiences, as well as those of friends who have grappled with endocrine disorders.

What first attracts your Hero to the Heroine and vice versa?

Russ is absolutely obsessed with Sam the first time he sees her… which was at a lingerie and swimsuit photo shoot she was modeling in about a year or so before the events of this book (it happens at the end of THE ACCIDENTAL PINUP). He’s obsessed with her grumpy demeanor but also sees through it. He wants to do whatever he can to make her smile (a seemingly rare occurrence). She’s determined, organized, and always has a plan… all things he does not excel at. But when he starts to make plans for his life–plans that could take him away from Chicago–Russ also wants to make Sam proud of him, too.

Sam has been secretly pining for Russ since that fateful photo shoot, but she’d never actually tell him that, LOL. She knows he’s had a hard upbringing, but he’s still happy-go-lucky and laid back which she admires and also finds incredibly infuriating (and hot). Even though she knows he’s leaving for the summer, Sam is more than ready to see what could happen during their casual summer fling… if only her feelings didn’t have other ideas!

Did any scene have you blushing, crying or laughing while writing it? And Why?

I did all three of those things–blushing, crying, AND laughing–while I wrote a big set-piece scene at an engagement party Sam helps plan for her friend, Cassie, and Russ’s brother, Reid, which has a sexy Alice in Wonderland theme (just go with it, haha). Blushing because Sam and Russ are both trying their best to appear calm and collected around each other in a social setting… and the fact that Sam is wearing a sexy dress doesn’t help matters. Crying because I know what happens right after this little interlude! And laughing because they get caught having a moment and it’s captured on film:

Sam reached up and was about to place the accessory [an eyepatch for his Knave of Hearts costume] to complete Russ’s costume when she heard the familiar sound of a shutter click.

The aforementioned March Hare [Cassie] was in her natural element, taking photos, even though this was her own engagement party. Sam was used to it, but she wasn’t sure in this instant that Cassie’s motives were entirely innocent.

“Sam, can you start that over? I want to capture the entire process. You two are just too cute tonight.” Cassie exaggerated a pout at both of them when they just gaped back at her. “Do it for me? The affianced whom you celebrate this evening?” Sam’s scowl softened to an eye roll at Russ, and she took the eye patch and started again.

“Okay now, Sam, hitch your butt up ever so slightly? On your tiptoes, please?”

Somehow Sam was now in the middle of a photo shoot where she, the Queen of Hearts, was dressing Russ, the Knave of Hearts. Following Cassie’s direction, Sam stood on the sturdy tips of her combat boots, and judging from the direction of Russ’s gaze and the fact that his face was now as red as her outfit, he could see down the front of her chemise. A feeling of satisfaction warmed Sam’s skin as she looked at Russ while he was looking at her, his entire face and neck turning more and more red, and—

Click.

They snapped out of the trance neither of them was aware they were under, both suddenly very aware of how intimately they were positioned. Russ was perched back against the desk and Sam was over him. She had both of her arms extended almost around his neck as she had already placed the eye patch and was posing for the sake of Cassie’s picture. She was also straddling him.

Cassie looked at the screen of her camera and winked at Sam.

What a weird party.

Readers should read this book….

if they want a fun summer romance novel! Chicago is one of the best cities to spend summer and I showcased some of my favorite hidden gems. It is also a story about two people at turning points in their careers and lives. Sam and Russ are both making decisions that will influence things to come. They also just so happen to be falling in love during this tumultuous time, and neither of them expects it. And even though one of them finds this incredibly annoying (coughcough SAM coughcough), they both find solace and true happiness when they are together.
 

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have in the works?

I am currently working on new material that will be going out on submission soon! I can’t say much more than that!
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: Signed copy of ACCIDENTALLY IN LOVE + stickers and character art! US shipping addresses only, please!

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: My heroine, Sam, is known for wearing all black all the time–from her eyeliner to her combat boots. If you had to wear one color from head to toe, what would it be and why?

 
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Excerpt from Accidentally in Love:

**In this scene, after keeping Russ at a distance for so long, Sam finally opens up to him about something personal. But when she offers to give him a tour of the Buxom Boudoir Photobooth Bus, Sam decides it’s time to kick their summer fling into high gear… **

“So, how are your parents?”
“Still dating, I guess,” Sam replied with a shrug. “Last I heard, which was a very brief phone call a couple of days ago, my dad is staying at my mom’s house . . . indefinitely.”
“That’s wild,” Russ said. “How do you feel about it all?”
“On the one hand, it’s cool. I’ve only ever known them as on-again, mostly off-again. Like I told you before, my dad isn’t exactly known for sticking around. But on the other hand, it’s strange for me and nice for them. They’re both really happy about it. My dad had an epiphany or something after his heart attack, and suddenly he wants to be involved. It’s just . . .”
“What?” he asked gently. He didn’t want to force her to talk about it, but this was the most he had heard her talk in weeks, so he didn’t want her to stop.
“For so long, it’s just been me and my mom. My dad’s family is really great—they always include both of us at gatherings, and they’ve never been mean to my mom or anything like that, but my mom and I are just in sync with each other.” She let out a sigh, and Russ took her hand, squeezing it to let her know he was listening. “I guess I have to get used to the idea of him being around all the time. Both because he lives here now, but also as my mom’s boyfriend. The whole thing is frustrating and weird and who knows how it will all turn out.”
“I get it, it’s complicated to let someone back in your life when you’re so used to them being one way. It was like that with me and Reid, too. Work has been a good way to defuse all the feelings.”
Sam moved his hand to guide his arm around her shoulders, and she leaned into his embrace. Russ loved how perfectly she fit next to him, how good she felt in his arms. He shifted slightly so he could properly hug her.
This, Russ could get used to. The sweet but still slightly salty Sam who let her guard down and talked to him about whatever came to her mind. He wanted things to stay like this. He wanted to tell her things, too.
“Feelings are overrated,” Sam said, her voice muffled by his shoulder. Too soon, she pulled back to look at him. “Would you like a tour of the photobus?”
“Sure,” Russ said, but he was reluctant to let go of her. She took him by the hand again and led him to the door.
“So, as you saw from across the way, this is the BBPB. We found it for a steal of a price, and Reid knew a guy who promised a quick turnaround on our renovation, so Cassie is the proud owner of these vintage wheels.”
“Impressive,” Russ replied. He’d been so busy with work, he’d barely spoken to Reid and Cassie at length in the weeks leading up to the flea market, so this was all news to him. The interior of the bus was delightfully retro—light wood floors with arrows and dots on them that looked like a bowling lane, a table and wraparound booth behind the driver’s seat for meetings that looked right out of a ’50s diner, and a photobooth set up behind an accordion partition at the far end. Between the meeting space and photography area, sideways bench seats had been added, upholstered in a classic black-and-white houndstooth fabric, and prints of the work that BB had done were hanging on some of the windows—pinup photo shoots and Dana and Cassie’s lingerie ad campaigns, as well as behind-the-scenes photos of the Buxom Boudoir crew, featuring Cassie behind the camera, Dana measuring a client for clothes, Kit applying makeup, and Sam decorating a set.
“This week, we went with ‘summer chic’ as the theme—gingham prints, barbecue props, oversized sunglasses,” Sam said, walking toward the photobooth area and beckoning for Russ to follow her with a very cute finger curl.
His eyes adjusted to the dimness in the back of the bus, lit only by a few strings of market lights.
“Normally there’s a brighter spotlight, and the light from the touchscreen for options, and we open the curtains. But I thought this would be . . . cozy.”
“I like cozy.” Russ kicked off his shoes and moved in Sam’s direction, but she stopped him.
“Your mark is the gold duct tape X on the floor.” She pointed to where he was supposed to stand.
“Sam.”
“Russell.”
“Are you really going to make me do this? Alone?” He hoped he sounded stern, and he folded his arms across his chest and feigned a pout.
Sam nodded, her eyes sparkling. Russ felt his shoulders ease, and he followed her directions, taking his place in front of the digital camera mounted on a tripod in front of her.
“Say cheese,” she said as she pushed the shutter button. Russ noticed that a little light started to blink in the corner, and Sam, right below it, started to unbutton her shirt.
Click.
“Russ, pay attention.”
“I am.” He was not. Russ didn’t know how to look away—all he could focus on was the way the light glinted against her brown skin. Suddenly he could see much more of it as she took off her shirt. And threw it at him.
Click.
Russ pulled the shirt off his face and blinked in disbelief, almost in unison with the blinking timer that was counting down to the next photo . . . and the next article of clothing to come off Sam’s gorgeous body.
“You’re not smiling, Russell.” Her voice was barely above a whisper, and her shorts hit him in the chest.
Click.
He was smiling that time. Because when the light started blinking again, Russ took off his shirt.
Click.
And then his pants.
Click.
And then Sam was in his arms once again, mouth crashing into his, hands feeling everywhere.
Click.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

When Sam is stuck sharing the streets for Chicago’s summer festivals with a man she can’t stand, she’ll find it’s often a bumpy road that leads to love….

As office manager of the city’s leading luxury boudoir and pinup photography studio, lovable grump Samantha Sawyer has everything under control. With an eventful summer season on the horizon, Sam is balancing a hectic workload while preparing the Buxom Boudoir “Photobus,” a vintage coach bus converted into a mobile photobooth and meeting space, to make the rounds at Chicago’s bustling summer street festival roster. Sam’s busy schedule makes avoiding the difficult parts of her life much easier, but there’s one person who can see right through her to-do lists and icy façade, really see her.

A lot has changed in the last year for Russell Montgomery. Years of odd jobs and couch surfing around the country had left him scrambling, but after reconnecting with his brother, Reid (and coming as close to settling down as he’s ever been), Russ now works at a hot local restaurant. Russ has been welcomed into his newly engaged brother’s circle of friends—all except a close friend and coworker of Reid’s fiancée, an intriguingly stormy woman named Sam.

Luckily, Sam is certain that the chaos of her calendar will ensure their distance, and she won’t have to deal with Russ or his irritating, handsome smile. But when Russ is charged with the launch of a restaurant food truck for the festival circuit, the sizzling Chicago heat is no match for the fire between them….
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Meet the Author:

Danielle Jackson is a contemporary romance author, avid reader, lackluster-yet-mighty crafter, and accomplished TV binge-watcher.

Once upon a time, she was a publisher publicist and continues to cultivate her love of books and reading by chatting with the best authors in the business as the Editorial Manager of FreshFiction.com and co-host of the Fresh Fiction podcast. Danielle also moderates industry panels, interviews authors, and hosts a romance book club.

Danielle lives in Chicagoland with her very own romance hero husband, darling daughter, and two tempestuous cats. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram, @DJacksonBooks.
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