Spotlight & Giveaway: The SEAL Who Kissed Me by Paige Tyler

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Paige Tyler to HJ!

Hi Paige and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, The SEAL Who Kissed Me!

 
Thanks for having me! I’m thrilled to be back! I always enjoy talking about my books, most especially with the HJ. You guys are the absolute best!
 

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

Kira Babin has spent the past ten years of her life as a Russian spy, using those resources to hunt down the man who’d killed her parents and kidnapped Mikhail, her younger brother. But when it seemed like her brother was dead and that she’d never get close to the man responsible for destroying her life, Kira defected, ending up in San Diego with a chance to start over. There was even a new man in her life, a hunky Navy SEAL who makes her think about a future she’d never imagined.

But then the untouchable Russian oligarch who killed her family is no longer protected by the government. Now Kira just needs to find him.

Petty Officer Colt Hughes of SEAL Team 5 is an adrenaline junkie. The things he does for fun makes some of his SEAL missions look tame. Then he meets Kira and starts thinking he’s found the perfect woman. Beautiful, sexy, maybe even a little dangerous. But then she simply disappears without a trace, and he assumes he’ll never see her again.

When Kira pops up in the middle of a dangerous firefight, Colt’s life takes a dramatic turn toward the complicated, especially when it comes out that she’s hunting the same bad guy his SEAL Team is after.

Being forced together on an international manhunt seems like an interesting way to get to know her better, but when they realize Mikhail is still alive, Colt has to wonder if there’s any room in Kira’s life for anything but revenge. Because the things this bad guy did to her brother aren’t something anyone would forgive.

Kira is falling for Colt like a rock, but how can it possibly work between them when she’s dedicated most of her life to tracking down and killing the man who murdered her family? And how could a Navy SEAL like Colt, who’s one of the good guys, ever want someone like her in his life?
 

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

Kira likes Navy SEAL Colt Hughes—a lot—but this excerpt helps to explain the doubts she has about getting into a relationship with him. Bottom line, this situation is complicated.

Even if she found her brother and somehow dealt with Yukos—something that seemed damn near impossible—there was no way she could expect to live a normal life with someone like Colt. He was a Navy SEAL, best of the best, top secret security clearance, and all that. He would never be allowed to have a relationship with a former Russian spy. It was too much of a security risk.

And yet, she allowed herself to think about it all the same.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• 1. This story takes the readers on a whirlwind tour starting in Mardin Turkey, then to St. Moritz Switzerland, Milan Italy, Toronto Canada, Kherson Ukraine, and finishing in San Diego California. So, pull up Google Maps and hold on for the ride!
• 2. The squirrel suit Colt wears in the story to do something super dangerous is a real thing. People wear these outfits when they jump off buildings and cliffs so they can glide for long distances. We watched a lot of videos when we were doing research for the book, and I can promise you will never ever catch me in one of these things!
• 3. As an Easter Egg for fans, the fictional private mental health facility north of San Diego in the story is also mentioned in the first SEALs of Coronado book, SEAL for her Protection.
• 4. The Arora Jaguar motorcycle Kira rides in the book is one of the few motorcycles manufactured in Turkey…and it looks cool!
• 5. We got the idea for the “chocolate flavored corn flakes with extra sugar added” in the story from a Goggle search of Turkish breakfast food. They sound yummy, even if they are loaded with all that extra sugar. Or maybe they sound yummy because they’re loaded with all that extra sugar!

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

Colt and Kira first met in the book SEAL with a Secret. They immediately rubbed each other the wrong way, and obviously didn’t like each other at all. I personally think Colt was attracted to Kira simply because she dismissed him as irritating and cocky, which hurt his ego more than he was willing to admit. He denies that, of course, insisting that she was into him from the moment they met, but was too stubborn to admit it.

Kira is drawn to Colt because he’s a man willing to let her be who she is, complete with all the ragged edges and cart loads of emotional baggage.

Of course, the fact that both of them are devastatingly attractive, super fit, and live for adrenaline and excitement has absolutely nothing to do with it.

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

This one didn’t make me blush, but it’s pretty sexy and defines Colt and Kira as characters.

Gasping as her bare feet touched the cold tile floor, Kira hurried over to hang the towel on a hook beside the mirror. Stripping off her shorts and tee, she hung them up too, then grabbed the shower head off the wall so she could get the hot water going. But before she could turn it on, a sound from the doorway made her spin around even as she berated herself for leaving her weapon back in the bedroom.

Colt stood there with a towel wrapped around his trim hips, leaving his muscular chest and abs exposed in the light of the bathroom’s single dim bulb. He froze solid at the sight of her, and Kira realized that the way she was standing with her body twisted halfway around, he could see damn near everything. She wasn’t exactly the shy type, so she didn’t actually care that he was getting an eyeful—going through a year of Russian covert operative training had rid her of that issue—but still, there were societal norms she probably should be following.

Quickly reaching out with one hand, she grabbed the towel off the hook near the mirror and wrapped it around her body before turning to look at Colt.

“I’m sorry,” he said, taking a step back as he shook his head like he was clearing out cobwebs. “I didn’t realize anyone was in here.”

Kira let her gaze linger on Colt’s bare, scrumptious-looking chest and abs for a few more moments. He’d gotten his looks in, so there was no reason she shouldn’t do the same. “No problem. I’ll just be a few minutes. I promise not to use all the hot water.”

“Take your time,” he said before turning to leave, closing the door behind him.

Unwrapping the towel, Kira hung it up again, then turned on the hot water. Then again, after the display of manly perfection she’d been treated to, maybe a cold shower might be more appropriate.

Readers should read this book….

• Because it delivers thrills and excitement, as Kira and Colt travel the globe along with his SEAL Team dealing with bad, bad people in a bad, bad world.
• Because you’ll be tense and anxious right up to the end, wondering what’s going to happen to Kira’s brother, and how Kira, Colt and his Team will ever get out of this alive.
• Because you’ll laugh as Colt and his fellow SEALs rib and joke with each other, usually when their lives are in danger.
• Because you’ll fall in love with Colt and Kira as they fall in love with each other, even if you spend the whole time wondering how they’re going to not screw everything up.

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

We’re working on the 16th book in the SWAT: Special Wolf Alpha Team Series for release in 2024. We’re also outlining the 17th SWAT book (the series finale) and the 13th book in the SEALs of Coronado Series, both of which will set up our brand-new SWAT/SEALs of Coronado cross-over series!
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: We’re giving away the first three books in the SEALs of Coronado Series (SEAL for Her Protection, Strong Silent SEAL, and Texas SEAL) in EBOOK to U.S. and International Readers!

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Colt is something of an adrenaline junkie. He spends his vacation time jumping out of planes for fun, along with diving off cliffs, bridges, and tall buildings. What’s the wildes thing you’ve ever done in the name of fun?

Full disclosure: We once swam in a cage with sharks while in Hawaii. The sharks were definitely cute, but the water was so cold I turned blue!
 
 
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Excerpt from The SEAL Who Kissed Me:

In this scene, Colt and Kira are undercover in St. Moritz as newlyweds. The mission is going well, but now they have to head up to the room for the night. Oh no! It’s the dreaded There’s-Only-One-Bed trope! How will Colt handle the danger?

As they left the restaurant a little while later, hand-in-hand, Colt told himself the gesture was about keeping their cover as newlyweds, but truthfully, he decided he liked having Kira on his arm. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye to see that she seemed comfortable with holding hands, too.

Then he caught sight of Lennox and Darwin looking their way, both of them grinning at the show he and Kira were putting on. No doubt, his Teammates could tell how much he was enjoying this mission because it meant he got to spend time with her.

Colt tensed a little once they got back to their room. It shouldn’t be a big deal, but seriously, he was about to sleep with Kira. In the same bed at least.

Kira grabbed her small overnight bag and disappeared into the bathroom, the shower turning on a few seconds later. Colt’s mind immediately flashed to the image of her naked, hot soapy water running down her lithe perfect body.

Groaning at the effect that image had on his body, Colt cursed. He needed a distraction. He should give Shaw a call and let him know about Lennox’s encounter with Hoffmann.

“Kira thinks we can use this to our advantage,” Colt said into the phone after bringing the CIA agent up to speed. “Though I’m a little worried about putting Lennox in Hoffmann’s sights like that.”

“I understand your concern,” Shaw said, his tone suggesting that while he might understand them, he didn’t really care about them. “But if this random chance meeting gives us an inside track to Hoffmann, we’d be foolish not to use it.”

He and Shaw finished their conversation just as Kira turned off the shower. After thumbing off his phone and plugging it in to charge, Colt found himself once again thinking about Kira, and what the sounds coming from behind the door might imply she was doing. The mere thought of her rubbing lotion onto the skin of her long lean legs made him groan.

“Everything okay?” Kira asked, choosing that moment to walk out of the bathroom, dressed in a pair of loose running shorts and a baggy T-shirt. Colt tried his best not to stare, but it was difficult. Even in clothes as casual as those, she was exceptionally beautiful.

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” he said. “I just got off the phone with Shaw. He agrees with you that Lennox might be our best chance to get at Hoffmann. I’m a little concerned about Lennox getting hurt, though.”

“We won’t let that happen,” Kira promised.

Heading over to the bed, she yanked back the blankets to crawl in. The view of her bending over was tantalizing, and Colt quickly darted into the bathroom before he did something stupid like groan out loud again.

He brushed his teeth quickly before jumping in the shower. Even though he kept the water as cold as he could take, it didn’t do much good. He was still aroused as hell.

When he finally came out of the bathroom a little while later, it was to find the lights off and Kira already cuddled under the blankets asleep. Colt slipped into the bed, careful not to disturb her. But trying to sleep while inches away from the most perfect woman he’d ever met was damn near impossible.

Man, it was going to be a long night.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

A woman out for revenge.

Former Russian spy, Kira Babin, has covertly spent the last ten years looking for her younger brother Mikhail––and hunting the man who kidnapped him. When she recently got her chance to defect to the United States, she took it. Away from her Russian handlers, she can search on her own. The last thing she needs is unwanted attention. But when she finally gets a lead, she ends up in the same alleyway, the same gunfight, as the sexy SEAL who fills her dreams and makes her heart beat a little faster––the one she’s been avoiding. It’s not that she doesn’t want Colt––she does. He’s the most amazing man she’s ever met. But if he knows the real her, he’ll walk away, and that’s something even this hardened spy couldn’t survive.

A man who can change her mind.

Petty Officer Colt Hughes never expected his latest mission to land him beside the beautiful blonde he’s been trying to get close to for months. Last he knew she ghosted him. So why was the sexy ex-spy now engaging terrorists in dark alleys? Since Kira saved his and his Teammates’ proverbial bacon, he intends to find out. But when the man who killed her parents and abducted her brother turns out to be a person of interest to the CIA, suddenly SEAL Team 5 is helping Kira with an international manhunt. Posing as newlyweds suits Colt just fine because that means alone time with Kira, but the more he gets to know her, the more he sees beyond her beauty to the incredible woman inside. He’s falling hard and fast––if only she’d trust him.

Kira never expected help from Colt, much less from a SEAL Team. But when she has to choose between trust or revenge, life or death, love, or heartache…will she listen to her heart or her head?
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Meet the Author:

Paige Tyler is a New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of sexy, romantic suspense and paranormal romance. She and her very own military hero (also known as her husband) live on the beautiful Florida coast with their adorable fur baby (also known as their dog). Paige graduated with a degree in education, but decided to pursue her passion and write books about hunky alpha males and the kick-butt heroines who fall in love with them.
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