Spotlight & Giveaway: Holding Out by Serena Bell

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Serena Bell to HJ!

Hi Serena and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Holding Out!

 
Hi, Sara! Thank you so much for inviting me to stop by Harlequin Junkie today to celebrate the release of Holding Out! And hello, Sara’s readers! Big hugs! I’m so excited to spend some time with you today!
 

To start off, can you please tell us a little bit about this book?:

Holding Out is the fourth book in my Returning Home series. For those who’ve been waiting patiently, you can finally read Griff and Becca’s story. For those of you who are new to the series, you’re in for a treat, because this is a fun place to start. It’s a friends-to-lovers, virginity-pact story, with a bit of brother’s best friend thrown in to cause trouble.
 

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

1) “The first rule of Operation V-Card is, there is no Operation V-Card.”

2) “And it’s one and done. Just to keep things simple. And clean.”
“Well, yeah,” she repeated. “Don’t flatter yourself, Ambrose.”
That made him laugh. “Oh, honey. Just you wait.”

3) “Look, sweetheart. If you hire Griff Ambrose for a job, he’s going to do it right.”

What inspired this book?

• I’ve been inspired as I’ve written this whole series by the strength of those who serve in the armed forces and fight for freedom. We need to continue to honor them once they come home.
• The Friday night dinners in this book weren’t consciously inspired by a real-life experience, but I think my subconscious might have be working overtime! At one point, my husband and his best friend and I used to have Sushi Friday every Friday night. Occasionally my sister, who was then in medical school, would show up. One Sushi Friday, my sister was there, and she and my husband’s best friend spent most of the evening making funny, ridiculous sentences out of the magnet letters on our refrigerator. Not long after that, they started dating, and they are now married and the parents of my adorable niece and nephew.

How did you ‘get to know’ your main characters? Did they ever surprise you?

Becca and Griff both first appeared in Can’t Hold Back. As soon as Griff “walked” onto the page, I knew he was getting his own book. Becca took a little longer to grow on me, and in fact, originally I was going to give Griff a different heroine. But that story just wasn’t working. I kept writing and rewriting, and then I realized, Wait a second, Becca needs a book, too. What if she were Griff’s heroine? And right away, things started to fall into place. She’s a virgin! They could make a deal! And what a mess that would be, because Griff is her brother-in-law’s best friend! And they all hang out together, and that would be fun, and awkward! And there’s a cute baby! They surprised me on every page, in the best possible way.

What was your favorite scene to write?

The archery scene.

“You still offering that archery lesson?
“Hell, yeah. Walk with me. We’ll collect the arrows.”
Becca fell in beside Griff.
“When you approach the targets, you always need to make sure no one’s shooting. It’s easy right now because we’re the only ones here, but sometimes it gets a little more complicated.”
He tapped the target at the base of one of the bristling arrows. “You want to grab the arrow close to the target face, down low on the shaft,” he said.
She wasn’t someone who heard double entendres everywhere. Or at least she hadn’t been, before playing Taboo the other night with Griff. Something about him wrapped everything up in sex. Add to that the fact that he’d actually agreed to have sex with her—
Yeah. She was thinking about shafts. And grabbing them down low. She could feel her cheeks getting pink, and she cursed the fact that she blushed so damn easily.

What was the most difficult scene to write?

I had a tough time with the dark moment, when the hero and the heroine believe they can’t possibly work things out and walk away from each other. I wrote and rewrote that scene a million times before I found all the right pieces that make it smooth and believable.

Would you say this book showcases your writing style or is it a departure for you?

This book is a little more light-hearted than the other Returning Home books. Not that it doesn’t have its dark and emotional moments—it definitely does. But in tone it’s more like Do Over, Head Over Heels, and Sleepover than like, say, Hold On Tight, which is a little grittier. That said, when you grab a Serena Bell book, you’ll always get certain things! Plenty of steamy scenes, heroes who are strong but still vulnerable, heroines who are warm but still tough, and lots of family and friends. Plus laughter and tears!

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

Well, for sure I want people to fall in love with Becca and Griff the way I did while I was writing them! But I also love this group of characters in part because they’re committed to something important—making sure that when veterans come home from war, they’re not forgotten. A recent high-profile veteran suicide has prompted renewed bipartisan interest in veterans’ mental health—veterans are 1.5 times more likely than non-veterans to take their lives, according to VA data. That said, there are many real-life heroes who, like my fictional heroes, are doing their best to change those numbers.

In writing these books, I became aware of a number of these real-life heroes, some of whom work for wonderful support organizations such as Project Hero (formerly Ride2Recovery), where I donated some of my early earnings from Hold On Tight. I’d love to have readers become more aware of what they can do to support these organizations.

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

Right now I’m working on the first book in a new series, and I’m so, so excited about it. It takes place in the town of Tierney Bay, which is the town where Becca and Griff have dinner in Holding Out. It’s also the town where Turn Up the Heat takes place. I’m currently planning to re-release Turn Up the Heat in October, then release the first Tierney Bay book in January. In the meantime, I hope to re-release a couple of novellas and fun short stories this summer and fall to tide readers over!

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: One ebook copy of Hold On Tight (1st in the series), via Book Funnel
One ebook copy of Holding Out (new release), via Book Funnel

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Writing a book that takes place starting on Memorial Day weekend has made me super conscious that summer’s just around the corner! What are your plans? I’m going to RWA, the big national conference for romance authors, in July, and then traveling on the East coast—visiting family and checking out colleges with my daughter—in August. And looking forward to some local stand-up paddleboarding, which is my newest hobby.

 
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Excerpt from Holding Out:

The woman on the couch next to him smelled so good it was killing him. Some girly scent like vanilla. He didn’t think it was fair that women used food scents on their bodies. It made him think about licking them even when he knew better.
And he definitely knew better than to lick Becca, even if she did smell like a cupcake. The thought made him remember their winning streak in Taboo and he smiled.
His other problem was that she was just far enough away that they weren’t touching, but close enough that he could feel her warmth, which meant the skin all down the side of his arm was lit up with awareness. And not just his arm, if he was being honest. Pretty much his whole body.
He had no idea how this had happened. How watching The Princess Bride had somehow morphed into a sexual minefield.
He’d been on his way to get laid. He had a plan. Buy himself a drink. Survey the bar. Buy the prettiest girl there a drink, or two. Ask her about herself. Listen. Tell her how beautiful she was. Ask if she wanted to go somewhere else. And so on.
Instead he was watching Inigo Montoya cross swords with the six-fingered man and thinking about a little swordplay of his own.
He told himself that as soon as the credits rolled, he was going to jump to his feet and get the hell out of there.
But then the credits rolled, and he didn’t move. Becca got up, turned on a lamp, and sat down a little farther from him on the couch. It was theoretically a safe distance. It did stop the buzz that had been leaping between her skin and his, but now he could see her, and she was extra pretty in the low light.
And he still didn’t get up. Instead, he sought around for small talk.
“Hey. You still working at that salon place?”
“Yeah. Well, sort of. Julia’s Salon and Day Spa.”
“Sort of?” He raised an eyebrow.
“The building got bought and they raised the rent. The owner can’t afford to stay there, so she’s going to close that business and semi-retire to Bainbridge Island, open a smaller salon there. So—” She sighed. “I’ve got to find a new job.”
“Will you stay in Seattle?” Alia always talked about how much she wished Becca would move closer. She said she worried about her living and working on her own way up there—that Becca would forget to pay rent or get in some kind of trouble. The way Alia talked about Becca made her out to be, well, dumb was the wrong word, but maybe flaky, and since Griff knew Becca only a little, from family get-togethers over the last couple of years, he’d never questioned that impression. But now that he was paying attention, she seemed pretty damn competent. “How come you don’t live closer to Alia and Nate? In Portland or something?”
“We all needed a little space.”
“Oh, yeah, right.” He always forgot that there was a story there. Becca and Nate had dated before he and Alia got together.
“No, not that,” Becca said, reading his mind. “We’re all over that. Nate and I were never anything except a bad idea. But Alia was like my mom growing up, and I didn’t want her to feel like she had to keep taking care of me. For both our sakes, I wanted to be on my own for a while.”
“And that’s been good?”
“It’s been great,” Becca said. She pushed her beer mug away from her on the coffee table.
“So, what kind of job are you trying to get?”
She shrugged. “Just another reception desk job. There are plenty of salons, and there’s a lot of turnover. Me being in this position for two years was crazy long.”
That was a pretty long time—more evidence that whatever Becca was, she wasn’t flaky. She was dependable and responsible, loyal even. “Do you like it?”
She shrugged again. “It’s fine.”
“Just fine?”
“Yeah. I mean, it’s a good job for a high school grad, pays decently, consistent daytime hours, I get treated pretty well.” She hesitated.
“What?”
“It’s just—sometimes I feel like I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up, you know?”
“Yeah,” he said quietly. “I do. For me, it’s that I’m still here.”
“Still at R&R, you mean?”
He nodded. “I’ve tried to leave a couple times, but I always end up back in the same place.”
She tilted her head. “And that’s a bad thing?”
“Nah. Just—you look at guys like Jake, Nate, Hunter—they know what they’re doing. And I’m the odd jobs guy. Which—Look, I’m not complaining. Jake’s a great boss. But I hear you on the ‘what are you going to be when you grow up’ thing.”
“Maybe no one knows,” Becca said. “Maybe the trick is just to act like you know. That’s what I’m working on now.”
“Faking it?”
She laughed. “That sounds horrible, doesn’t it? I’m not faking it, but—I’ve sucked at the self-confidence thing until recently. Now I’m turning over a new leaf. Meet ‘New Becca.’ Just like the old Becca, but doesn’t take any shit from anyone, including the voice in her head saying, ‘You can’t do this.’”
Her body language changed as soon as she said, “Meet New Becca,” her shoulders straightening, her chest rising, even her chin coming up a notch. And her eyes met his, dead on.
Her eyes were very blue, and he had trouble looking away.
He liked New Becca. Possibly a little too much. And he didn’t think it was just because when she rolled her shoulders back like that, her breasts tipped up appealingly and he could see the shape of her nipples through her bra and T-shirt.
Although that didn’t hurt.
What he needed to say next was, “I’d better go. I gotta get up early tomorrow morning.”
What he said instead was, “Hey. What happened with the date you were supposed to be on tonight?”
She didn’t answer.
He held up his hands, palms out. “I’m sorry. It’s none of my business.” He looked around the room for a clock, failed to find one, bulled through anyway. “I’d better go. I gotta get up early tomorrow morning.”
There. He’d done it. Even though he still didn’t seem to be getting up on his feet.
“No, it’s okay. I—it’s just kind of embarrassing.” The pink was back in her cheeks.
“You don’t have to tell me.”
She reached for one of the throw cushions on the couch, wrapped her arms around it, and held it tight to her chest. “The guy didn’t like the fact that I didn’t have a lot of experience.”
He really needed to get up and leave. But once again, his mouth seemed to have disengaged from his brain, and it was saying something:
“How much is not a lot?”
Silence.
Right. Bad question for so many reasons. “You know what? You don’t have to answer that. It’s really none of my business.”
“No, um, it’s okay. I have lots of experience in lots of things but no experience in, um, one specific thing.”
His brain got tangled there for a second over “lots of experience in lots of things.” He wanted a detailed explanation of that. Then he caught up to the end of the sentence. “That one specific thing being . . . ?”
As soon as the prompt was out of his mouth, he regretted it. How did he think she was going to finish that sentence? Jesus, Ambrose, think before you talk.
“Intercourse,” Becca whispered.
The word occupied a lot of space in the dark, quiet living room.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

His friend’s little sister has just asked him for a BIG favor. The trouble is, once won’t be enough … for either of them.

The answer has to be no, of course. No way Griff Ambrose is going to help Becca Drake solve her inexperience issues. Not only is she his friend’s sister, but Griff doesn’t do commitment–not since the day he came home from war to find his house empty and his wife gone.

But he can’t get Becca’s request–or pretty much anything else about her–out of his head. What can it hurt, anyway? If it’s awkward afterwards, they can just avoid each other. Right?

Becca Drake has turned her life around, and she’s proud of how much butt she’s kicking. The shy girl with the self-esteem problem has been shown the door, and New Becca’s in the driver’s seat. There’s just one more demon she has to exorcise. Her lack of experience is messing up her romantic life. Guys who might be okay with giving her a test drive act like they’re being auditioned for marriage when they find out exactly what she’s never done.

Griff is the perfect candidate to do the deed: He’s her friend, he’s hot as heck, and neither of them wants anything serious.

Then Becca’s job goes belly up and she takes a temporary position at the veterans’ retreat where Griff works. Now she and Griff can’t stay out of each other’s way–and their entanglement keeps getting messier–and hotter. Worst of all, it’s getting harder and harder for Becca and Griff to lie to themselves about what they really want…

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Meet the Author:

USA Today bestselling author Serena Bell writes contemporary romance with heat, heart, and humor. A former journalist, Serena has always believed that everyone has an amazing story to tell if you listen carefully, and you can often find her scribbling in her tiny garret office, mainlining chocolate and bringing to life the tales in her head.

Serena’s books have earned many honors, including a RITA finalist spot, an RT Reviewers’ Choice Award, Apple Books Best Book of the Month, and Amazon Best Book of the Year for Romance.

When not writing, Serena loves to spend time with her college-sweetheart husband and two hilarious kiddos—all of whom are incredibly tolerant not just of Serena’s imaginary friends but also of how often she changes her hobbies and how passionately she embraces the new ones. These days, it’s stand-up paddle boarding, board-gaming, meditation, and long walks with good friends.
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