Book & Author Details:
Once
in a Blue Moon by Amie Stuart
Publication date: May 19th 2015
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publication date: May 19th 2015
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Synopsis:
At eighteen, Bettina Blanchard’s goal in life had been to shake the dust of Bluebonnet, Texas off her heels, and with her baby sister now safely in college, that dream is within her grasp. But underneath Bad Betti’s tough exterior beats the heart of a woman with hopes and dreams, and she’s loved Ty almost as long as he loved his ex-wife.
When fate drops Ty in her lap, one night of passion leaves them dealing with a pregnancy and a marriage both have reservations about. Can a girl from the wrong side of the tracks and Bluebonnet’s favorite son find common ground outside the bedroom? Despite the interfering in-laws, a jealous baby sister and a holiday no one wants to remember, Betti and Ty discover that even though their happily ever after doesn’t come easy, anything worth having is worth working for.
Purchase:
If her car had been in the
driveway, he would have stopped and let her know about Rhea’s threats. At
least, that was the excuse he told himself. He sat parked at the curb, tapping
his steering wheel and debating on whether to leave a note or not.
In hindsight, he could see his
ex-wife’s abuse, her manipulation, the petty jealousies, her rages and tears
went back even longer than the twelve years they’d been married—all the way to
high school. The violence had started later. He’d never laid a hand on her, so
her ability to casually inflict pain on him had left him stunned and confused.
But then, so had her lack of interest in working things out.
What would his life have been
like if he and Bettina had dated in high school? Or if he’d dated anyone other than Rhea, for that matter.
He smiled, remembering how he’d occasionally catch Bettina mooning after him.
He’d never said anything but always found it flattering, even if she had run
with a rough crowd.
Put
it in perspective. He shook it off. Rhea didn’t
deserve that much time. He hated not fighting back, but refused to stoop to her
level and make a scene.
A part of him wanted to take
Zack’s advice and call Bettina up, but the rest of him just didn’t feel ready
for all that. Dating and flowers and...he’d learned he wasn’t a very good judge
of character. But here he sat, outside her house like a lovesick fool. And his
momma would probably know about it before he got home. He snorted and reached
for the ignition only to stop and lean on the steering wheel, not quite ready
to leave.
Funny how he could sit here so
many years later and remember walking Bettina home from that dance in the sixth
grade. To the very same house with the same cracked cement walkway. Funny how
life could change but stay the same.
He chuckled again. Funny he’d
never considered whether he was a breast man or not before. But he could
remember, even in the sixth grade, Bettina had been chesty. His skin prickled
as the temperature in the truck went up about ten degrees and the crotch of his
jeans tightened. She still had big breasts with tight pink nipples and wasn’t
at all bashful about ‘em either. He groaned and adjusted his jeans.
And all that soft curly hair. And
pouty lips. And those eyes. Those big green eyes that laughed and said, "I
dare you."
Maybe it wasn’t her chest size
but everything about her. There was something powerful about her that had
turned him on that night. Sex with her had been like some forbidden treat. A
guilty pleasure—like his sweet tooth. Just the thought of her naked and riding
him again, the memory of their quickie in the chair, her kisses, her teasing
made him hard all over again. He suddenly realized how hot he was, how his
shirt stuck to his back. Hell, the temperature had to be 104 today, and here he
sat in a tin can with a raging hard-on.
If he weren’t wearing his best
jeans, he’d cut her grass. At the least manual labor would take care of his
erection—though so would jacking off.
If the neighbors wouldn’t see him
doing her yard work, though honestly, it didn’t look like anyone was home.
If his mom heard he’d cut Bad
Betti Blanchard’s grass, she’d really light into him. Momma had settled down
some, but she still had her moments. And she already thought he was half off
his rocker anyway.
Fuck
it.
He climbed out of his truck,
quietly closing the door. Like anyone was gonna hear him.
He couldn’t remember who lived to
Bettina’s right, but to her left was Old Lady Lindsay. She was ninety, if she
was a day, smoked like a freight train and drove her gigantic ancient
Oldsmobile to the Senior Recreation Center every afternoon for bingo. And had
since he was in high school.
Ty casually looked around again. Not a
soul. He unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it in his front seat, thankful he’d
worn an undershirt. Then went to find Bettina’s lawnmower.
AUTHOR
BIO:
Amie
Stuart is the last of a dying breed, a native Texan, and still makes her
home there, where cowboys and music (her other two loves)
abound. Growing up, she wanted to be a lawyer and a psychologist. No
doubt the shrinks would have a field day with her head, but she's seen the
error of her ways and considers all those other jobs 'research' for
the writing gig.
She's a multiple contest finalist as well as a trained contest judge and is affectionately know as The Terminator by her critique partners. She's written as CELIA STUART for Black Lace Books, & Liquid Silver Books, and as AMIE STUART for Kensington Aphrodisia, she has a short story (PEACHES 'N CREAM) in Zane's CARMEL FLAVA 2, and launched Cobblestone Press's short erotica line,Wicked in 2007.
She's a multiple contest finalist as well as a trained contest judge and is affectionately know as The Terminator by her critique partners. She's written as CELIA STUART for Black Lace Books, & Liquid Silver Books, and as AMIE STUART for Kensington Aphrodisia, she has a short story (PEACHES 'N CREAM) in Zane's CARMEL FLAVA 2, and launched Cobblestone Press's short erotica line,Wicked in 2007.
1. Where did you come up with the idea of a
fictional town named Bluebonnnet?
Besides the fact that I’m a native Texan
and the bluebonnet is our state flower, I liked the idea of creating my own
town. However, I didn’t ever want my fictional town confused with a real one
sooo I went hunting for a good name for my town. There’s a database
somewhere—it’s been a while—that allows you to search for city/town names by
state. Lucky for me, there isn’t really a Bluebonnet, Texas—but don’t tell my
characters.
2. Is Betti a plus-sized woman?
Yes, Betti is a plus-sized woman. When I
was writing the first book in the series, I watched Ty’s marriage break up (as
a secondary plotline). It broke my heart. I love Ty and yes, I wanted to fix
him. As an author, I can do that. I wanted him to have someone who a) loved him
as much as he loved Rhea and b) someone who was the exact opposite of him. I
also wanted to write a story about a plus-sized women where HER SIZE was NOT an
issue.
3. Are all your books about plus-sized women?
No! I write a wide variety of characters
from a wide variety of backgrounds!
4. How did you come up with the title?
Actually, the original title was Cowboys
Don’t Cry. I was searching for an agent, many moons ago, and decided to go with
something that wasn’t quite so … depressing. Once in a Blue Moon just struck me
and it fit—plus Blue Moon is the name of Betti’s salon. :D
5. Alpha, Beta, Gamma males….as a reader and
as a writer, what’s your preference and why?
To be honest, I don’t think we consciously
choose to write certain characters in certain ways. At least, I don’t think I
do. As a writer, I’m definitely more drawn to Beta and Gamma males. Maybe it’s
because I come from a line of Alpha women?!?!? LOL Ty is definitely more Beta
but that doesn’t mean he’s weak—though some might think so, given what he’s
been through as well as what he goes through. I’ll be honest, as a reader,
flawed and even broken male characters (who triumph over adversity) are my
reading crack :D (Karin Slaughter’s Will Trent comes to mind as one of my
all-time faves—he had a horrible childhood and is dyslexic but triumphed over
all of that).
6.
What’s
next? Will there be more Bluebonnet books?
Right now I’m hard at work editing…the next Bluebonnet book. It’s actually a
novella and I’ve been calling it Bluebonnet 2.5. It’ll be released in June and
is Zander Boudreauxes story (that’s Ty’s older brother). I’m also working on a
Bluebonnet spinoff that’ll be released in August!
I love music so much that it’s probably my third favorite
thing after my kids and books! And I have a special soft spot for
singer-songwriters like Sheryl Crow and Patti Griffin (if you haven’t heard her
duet with Dierkes Bently, I highly recommend). As you read through ONCE IN A
BLUE MOON, you’ll notice the chapter titles. Some of those are taken from
Betti’s rules but some are actual songs.
Funny enough, I listened to a LOT of Stevie Ray Vaughn while writing
this book! I say funny because, normally, I can’t listen to music with lyrics
when I write. I guess I listened so much that it stopped intruding!
So who’s your favorite go-to, house cleaning, seat-dancing
in the car till you embarrass your children band, singer or song(s)????
And here’s the playlist for the curious:
Satisfaction – The
Rolling Stones
Same Old Song and
Dance – Aerosmith
Love Struck Baby –
Stevie Ray Vaughn
Crossfire – Stevie Ray
Vaughn
Crazy – Patsy Cline
Gimme a Bullet – ACDC
Where is the Love –
The Blackeyed Peas
There Goes the
Neighborhood – Sheryl Crow
Remedy – The Black
Crowes
Killing Time – Clint
Black
Do You Want Fries With
That? – Tim McGraw
Good Enough – Sarah
McLachlan
Knockin' On Heaven's
Door – Guns 'n Roses
Pride and Joy – Stevie
Ray Vaughn
Mad Mission – Patty
Griffin
Living With Ghosts –
Patty Griffin
Tightrope – Stevie Ray
Vaughn
Without You – Motley
Crue
Not Alone – I'm going
with Patty Griffin
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