Spotlight & Giveaway: Big Stick: by Kelly Jamieson

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Kelly Jamieson to HJ!

Hi Kelly and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Big Stick:!

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

Big Stick is a romance about a grumpy man who thinks he hates people and kids, and a single mom who loves people but has given up on romance.
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

Nick would rather be having his back, sack, and crack waxed than be going to a party, but it was his best buddy Hallsy’s birthday, and Hallsy had been through a rough time the last couple of years. Actually, so had he; they were a sad pair. Anyway, after what they’d been through he could at least do this.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• I don’t write many books with children in them, but I loved writing Zyana.
• My aunt collected elephants and her collection was passed down to me. They are amazing creatures.
• I wrote this book because readers commented that they loved the idea of a big tough hockey player falling for a sweet little girl.

Please tell us a little about the characters in your book. As you wrote your protagonist was there anything about them that surprised you?

Jodie’s an unusual single mom in that she decided to have a baby on her own. She loves her daughter and doesn’t regret the decision but she admits that it’s difficult at time, and sometimes lonely without someone to share not only the difficult times but the happy times as well.

What surprised me about Nick was his creative side. He’s a hockey player and taciturn and a bit of a hermit, but he loves spending time doing woodwork and turning old furniture into something beautiful.

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would you use for the audition of the main characters and why?

I like the scene near the beginning of the book when Jodie joins Nick out on the balcony to smoke cigars. Here’s a little snippet where she calls him on his mood:

Nick got lost in thoughts about what projects to take on next, and so the feminine voice startled him.
“Oh, it’s you,” she said.
He recognized the voice—Jodie, who he’d been talking to earlier. He turned. “Hey.”
“You’re missing the party,” she said.
“Not really,” he said wryly.
She tilted her head, then said, “Wow, you’re rude.”
His chin jerked back. “What?”
“You’re at a birthday party. You were hanging out all by yourself in the dining room earlier, now you’re out here. It seems a little rude to your host and hostess to not even hide the fact that you don’t want to be here.”
That obvious, huh? He scrubbed a hand over his mouth. “At least I came,” he muttered.
She gave him a disbelieving look. “You didn’t even want to come to your own friend’s birthday party?” She shook her head. “That’s sad.”
Annoyance rubbed inside him. Who the hell was she to judge him?
“Hey, is that a cigar?” She moved closer.
“Yeah.” He gave his head a shake at the swift change of topic.
“Can I have a puff?”
“Uh . . .” He looked down at the cigar, bemused, then held it out to her. She took it and, damn, watching her put her lips on it where his had been was inexplicably hot. She leaned on the railing of the balcony next to him and blew out smoke into the cool night. “Nice.”
“Only the best for Hallsy.”
“So why are you such a grouch? Not enough fiber in your diet? Can’t be PMS.” She puffed again on the cigar, then handed it back to him. “Oh, I know—not enough sex. That’ll do it.”

What do you want people to take away from reading this book?

Nick grew up in a very poor family. He also thinks he’s better of without people in his life. He always thought that one day when he had money, he’d buy a nice, big house and that would be a home. But he learns that it’s the people in your life who make a house a home.

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

My next release will be Game On, which is (*sob*) the last book in my Aces Hockey series. I’m editing it right now, as well as working on the first book of my new series, Wynn Hockey. We are leaving Chicago for hockey on the west coast, where two rough and tough teams owned by the same hockey family dynasty compete on and off the ice.
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: eBook copy of BIG STICK (An Aces Hockey Novel) by Kelly Jamieson (Gifted via Amazon)

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Would you rather be alone for the rest of your life or always be surrounded by annoying people?

 
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Excerpt from Big Stick::

Nick watched the game on TV, now into the third period. “Wow, Luciano is on a tear tonight. He’s banging anything that moves.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he realized how they sounded. He turned and met Jodie’s eyes. She was grinning. “Really.”
He couldn’t stop his own smile. “That sounded bad, huh?”
“It sounded hilarious.”
Now that his mind was in the gutter, of course he was thinking about banging Jodie. Jesus. He rubbed a hand across his forehead and turned back to the game, trying to distract himself from the heat pooling in his groin.
Winnipeg scored a goal, tying up the game, and he nodded. “See? Can’t count them out.”
“I missed it. This game moves so fast.”
“That’s why it’s the best sport in the world. You can watch the replay, though.”
“I took skating lessons when I was a kid,” Jodie said musingly, sliding deeper down into the couch cushions. “I was never that good. It’s amazing how you all can do what you do on those sharp blades.”
“We’re good.”
“And modest.”
He smiled, but kept his focus on the TV. “Just being honest.”
Denver skated in on the Winnipeg net with the puck, and the tender made a huge save. “Wow. Nice save. Barnett makes it look so easy, he just goes down on his knees and swallows it up.”
The air vibrated, and he glanced at Jodie to see her trying hard not to laugh. “You dirty birdie.”
Now she laughed out loud. “Come on! You’re doing that on purpose.”
“No, I’m not.” Looking into her dancing eyes, he felt a sharp tug of lust . . . attraction . . . and he bent his head to kiss her.
“Mmm.” She kissed him back, her mouth soft and warm. His dick lengthened and thickened, arousal buzzing inside him. He wanted her again.
“He scores!”
The announcer’s shout had them drawing apart to look at the TV. “Winnipeg,” he said with satisfaction. “Up by one now.”
“I’m supposed to bow down to your superior knowledge?”
He smirked. “Yeah.”
Her smile beamed, then dimmed a bit with what appeared to be uncertainty. She turned away to watch the game again.
“There goes Jenson.” He gestured.
“The goalie? He’s leaving?”
“Yeah. They can put another player on.”
“That seems incredibly risky.”
“Well, with an extra player they should be able to control the puck, and they’re losing right now anyway, so why not?”
“I guess.”
Colorado dominated the play in the offensive zone, yeah, controlling the puck, getting a few good looks at the Winnipeg net. Beside him, Jodie’s cries of “Oh!” and “Whew!” amused him. “You cheering for Winnipeg?”
She shot him a sheepish glance. “I have no idea. You said they would win.”
“They are winning.” Then one of the Winnipeg players got the puck and shot it down the ice . . . right into the Colorado empty net.
“Yeah!” Jodie pumped a fist into the air. “Okay, you were right. But so was I.”
“How so?”
“That empty net was dangerous.”
She was dangerous . . . making him smile this much. He felt . . . happy. It was a weird feeling. Okay, he’d been happy . . . winning games, scoring goals, laughing with the guys . . . even working on his house or refinishing furniture he felt a sense of contentment and satisfaction . . . but this was different. A sort of fizzing, bubbling feeling. Okay, that made it sound like he had food poisoning. He sighed.
“What?”
He glanced at her. “Nothing.”
“Okay. Well, the game’s over. You said you wanted a massage. Lay down.”
“Huh?”
She motioned to the couch. “Lay down. On your front. I’ll massage your back. I’m not a trained massage therapist like you’re probably used to, but it might feel good.”
Oh hell yeah, he was certain it would feel good, probably better than any massage Tony had ever given him. “Maybe it’s my front that hurts.”
She arched an eyebrow, lips lifting in wicked little smile. “Nice try. You said your back was sore.”
“Damn.” He turned and stretched out on the sectional, stacking his hands beneath his chin.
“Don’t worry.” She settled her hands on his back and smoothed them down over his T-shirt. “I may get around to your front, if my hands don’t get too tired.”
He groaned. “Let’s hope they don’t.”
“Well, if they do . . .” She dug her thumbs into his paraspinal muscles, and he let out another moan. “I can always use my mouth.”
“Fuck,” he muttered, banging his forehead on his hands. “Now my front really hurts.”

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

Big move . . . Jodie’s motto is “Don’t wait for the perfect moment—take the moment and make it perfect.” And that’s just what she decides to do when she moves to Chicago with her two-year-old daughter. Now all Jodie needs is a place to live, and her best friend’s boyfriend has just the answer.

Big stick . . . Nick Balachov has zero interest in socializing, partying, or flirting right now. It’s not that he doesn’t like women. He loves them. It’s just that hockey, casual hookups, and hanging out at home are enough for him these days. Now Nick has a big problem—because the woman living in his empty coach house is a major distraction.

Big deal? The more Nick tries to keep his distance, the more Jodie needs him—around the house, that is. First he helps with the snowstorm, then the power outage. Nick even finds himself trying to impress her little girl. What the hell is wrong with him? Jodie represents everything Nick doesn’t want. But maybe she’s just what he needs. .  
 

Meet the Author:

Kelly Jamieson is a USA Today best-selling author of over fifty romance novels and novellas. Her writing has been described as “emotionally complex”, “sweet and satisfying” and “blisteringly sexy”. She likes her coffee black, her wine white (mostly!) and her heels high! She also enjoys cheering on her Winnipeg Jets during hockey season.

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