This is another gal I had the pleasure of meeting at the Coastal Magic Convention. Yes, I did fangirl out on her at first, but we then ended up talking for hours, and I consider her a good friend. I love her dearly, so please help me welcome my friend, Taylor Law!
The Best Friends Ever!
I was asked to talk about my most memorable birthday experience. I have to say that I'm very blessed. I have numerous birthday memories, most of them amazing. I've always loved celebrating my birthday, not because of a new year passing, or because of age, but because it was a time to remember. I remembered that I was still alive, I was still striving to make myself better; and it was a time to celebrate all of the good in my life, with all of the wonderful people who are there for me. My thirty-fifth birthday was by far my favorite, though. It wasn't because it was perfect, quite the opposite actually. We went to visit with a few friends of mine, who were DJs working at a pub. We planned to dance the night away. It was last minute, but a group of my closest friends came anyway.For those of you that don't know, I live in the lovely Sunshine State, which is an oxymoron if I've ever heard one. This pub had a huge deck outside on the water, and that is where my DJ friends spun top forty hits, every Friday night. I think you can guess where this is going. It started raining. |
| One way to keep dry. |
It didn't take long for the place to empty out and for my small group of friends and family to be the only people left. My DJ friends kept going though, they kept playing awesome tunes, in the rain, for my birthday. . .
 |
| Line dancing. |
. . . and we kept dancing. None of my friends left, and all of them danced in the rain with me. What is it they say? "Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass; it's about learning to dance in the rain." ~ Vivian Greene We did. We danced, and laughed, and had a fabulous time.
 |
| Yes, they made me wear a tiara and huge beads. They are those kind of friends. |
It was one of the most memorable nights of my life. Not because it was my birthday and it was fun, although it definitely was that, but because I was reminded again how truly blessed I am. I was reminded what friendship is all about, and that I have the best friends ever!
For a prize, I'm offering up a copy of My Lord's Judgment and a $20.00 gift card to either Amazon or Barnes & Noble, reader's choice. You just need to enter, using the Rafflecopter below, to win.
My Lord's Judgment Blurb:
Samael is a centuries old archangel. Falsely accused of misusing his powers, he was banished to earth with no clothes, no money, nothing except a dagger to his name. Brandon was betrayed by his boyfriend and is running from thugs who are going to kill him, if he doesn't pay them twenty thousand dollars. He has no way to get that kind of money, and doesn't know what to do. When Samael crashes to earth, nearly landing in Brandon's lap, things get complicated fast, flipping Brandon's life into a chaos that he has never known. Danger and intrigue lurk around every corner, and nothing is what it seems.
Excerpt:
Brandon was slammed up against the alley wall so hard his head bounced, and floaters danced across his vision. Before he could get his bearings, a fist landed a disabling blow in his abdomen, bending him in half. His breath left him in a whoosh. Almost immediately, he was face to face with the muzzle of a handgun.
“I told you, you had a week,” Carlos spat at him. “Time was up yesterday. So where is my money, hmm?” The hot, rancid breath coming from the thug almost caused him to lose his dinner. The thrashing he was getting wasn’t helping either.
Panting, he tried to respond, but had to swallow down bile before he could get the words out. “H..he won’t give me the m..money. I…I tried, but he just laughed in my face.”
“That’s not my problem, now is it!? You borrowed the money for your boyfriend,” the man sneered. “Now you have to pay it back!”
“B..but, I don’t have that kind of money!” Why the hell he’d gotten himself into this situation, he didn’t know. He knew the “how” of it though. Trust.
Bran gave trust too damn easily. He had met a guy, but not just anyone…oh no! A damn DJ. DJ Jammin’, the hottest disc jockey in downtown L.A. Chris was his real name. The ass had picked him up after hours and they’d been inseparable for months. He never thought of the fact that, as a DJ, Chris had his pick of fans to choose from on any given night. Or that he was using that benefit as often as he could, even while they were ‘together.’ But he just had that realization smashed into his face.
Two weeks ago, he’d gotten a collect call; Chris was in jail for drugs. Apparently, he had enough on him that they thought he was a pusher. Looking back now, it was probably true.
Hindsight, baby. What a bitch!
Bail was twenty thousand big ones, and DJ Fuck-face couldn’t get a Bail Bondsman to take him on. No co-signer or some such bullshit. The Dick had promised that he had the money, just couldn’t get to it. So, Brandon did as asked and contacted Master C. Now he was stuck owing big to the most ruthless gang leader around. If it was illegal, the C-gang did it, and Master C didn’t know what the word mercy meant. He was totally screwed!
A fist to his face brought him back to the situation at hand. Thugs. Guns. Eating his own teeth. Right. Fuck!
He spit blood from his mouth. “What do you want me to do?”
Carlos leered at him. “Well, Master C said you have twenty-four hours.” The nasty piece of shit started undoing his pants. “But I don’t think you would mind making it worth my while to leave you still standing, now would you.” The other gang members were snickering and the one with the gun pushed down on his shoulders.
Ewe! Awe, hell no!
Right before his knees touched the ground, the sky lit up like the fourth of July. A light came out of nowhere, so bright it blinded him. He heard the thugs yelling, and he could have sworn the world exploded. The sound of a bomb going off split the night, and a shock wave knocked him on his ass.
He was still alive though. The pain let him know that at least.
Blinking, trying to focus through the white blur and dots that clouded his vision, he thought he saw Master C’s crew falling all over themselves, trying to get away.
Fuck it. If he was going to die, he was going to see it coming. Bran squeezed his eyes shut and waited a few seconds before opening them. Better.
Looking around, he saw that the dumpster at the end of the alley had one side torn off, and cardboard and papers that had been inside, now littered the ground. Not knowing what was happening, but pretty sure the apocalypse was not set for today, he got to his feet, ready to bolt.
Before he made it three strides, he heard a loud moan and froze. Bran listened but refused to turn around. He was just about to leave when he heard it again. Shit! He fought himself for a minute, part of him wanting to run for his life and the other too curious not to check it out. He was an idiot, and he knew it.
Slowly, Brandon turned around and walked toward the mangled dumpster, stepping over miscellaneous junk. When he was close enough to the edge, he followed along the side until he reached the wall that was missing, and looked in.
Holy shit, it’s Thor!
“I told you, you had a week,” Carlos spat at him. “Time was up yesterday. So where is my money, hmm?” The hot, rancid breath coming from the thug almost caused him to lose his dinner. The thrashing he was getting wasn’t helping either.
Panting, he tried to respond, but had to swallow down bile before he could get the words out. “H..he won’t give me the m..money. I…I tried, but he just laughed in my face.”
“That’s not my problem, now is it!? You borrowed the money for your boyfriend,” the man sneered. “Now you have to pay it back!”
“B..but, I don’t have that kind of money!” Why the hell he’d gotten himself into this situation, he didn’t know. He knew the “how” of it though. Trust.
Bran gave trust too damn easily. He had met a guy, but not just anyone…oh no! A damn DJ. DJ Jammin’, the hottest disc jockey in downtown L.A. Chris was his real name. The ass had picked him up after hours and they’d been inseparable for months. He never thought of the fact that, as a DJ, Chris had his pick of fans to choose from on any given night. Or that he was using that benefit as often as he could, even while they were ‘together.’ But he just had that realization smashed into his face.
Two weeks ago, he’d gotten a collect call; Chris was in jail for drugs. Apparently, he had enough on him that they thought he was a pusher. Looking back now, it was probably true.
Hindsight, baby. What a bitch!
Bail was twenty thousand big ones, and DJ Fuck-face couldn’t get a Bail Bondsman to take him on. No co-signer or some such bullshit. The Dick had promised that he had the money, just couldn’t get to it. So, Brandon did as asked and contacted Master C. Now he was stuck owing big to the most ruthless gang leader around. If it was illegal, the C-gang did it, and Master C didn’t know what the word mercy meant. He was totally screwed!
A fist to his face brought him back to the situation at hand. Thugs. Guns. Eating his own teeth. Right. Fuck!
He spit blood from his mouth. “What do you want me to do?”
Carlos leered at him. “Well, Master C said you have twenty-four hours.” The nasty piece of shit started undoing his pants. “But I don’t think you would mind making it worth my while to leave you still standing, now would you.” The other gang members were snickering and the one with the gun pushed down on his shoulders.
Ewe! Awe, hell no!
Right before his knees touched the ground, the sky lit up like the fourth of July. A light came out of nowhere, so bright it blinded him. He heard the thugs yelling, and he could have sworn the world exploded. The sound of a bomb going off split the night, and a shock wave knocked him on his ass.
He was still alive though. The pain let him know that at least.
Blinking, trying to focus through the white blur and dots that clouded his vision, he thought he saw Master C’s crew falling all over themselves, trying to get away.
Fuck it. If he was going to die, he was going to see it coming. Bran squeezed his eyes shut and waited a few seconds before opening them. Better.
Looking around, he saw that the dumpster at the end of the alley had one side torn off, and cardboard and papers that had been inside, now littered the ground. Not knowing what was happening, but pretty sure the apocalypse was not set for today, he got to his feet, ready to bolt.
Before he made it three strides, he heard a loud moan and froze. Bran listened but refused to turn around. He was just about to leave when he heard it again. Shit! He fought himself for a minute, part of him wanting to run for his life and the other too curious not to check it out. He was an idiot, and he knew it.
Slowly, Brandon turned around and walked toward the mangled dumpster, stepping over miscellaneous junk. When he was close enough to the edge, he followed along the side until he reached the wall that was missing, and looked in.
Holy shit, it’s Thor!
Author Bio:
Taylor Law is a northern born, southern girl, with a free spirit. If it's romance, she loves it. Taylor has lived in the southern United States most of her life, along with her huge family. She started writing at a very young age; her first poem at six, her first song at seven, and stories followed directly after. She hasn’t stopped since. A romantic clear to her soul, Taylor continues to believe the elusive ‘Happily Ever After.’ On any given day, you can usually catch her with a book in her hand, or creating something. You can find out more about Taylor Law at www.taylorlawbooks.com
I really enjoyed reading your birthday tale, Taylor - friends like that are priceless (though it says much about you that you have them!). I also enjoyed the excerpt very much. Thanks for sharing. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Joy. That was sweet of you to say. I'm glad you enjoyed it.
DeleteEmily!! You are the sweetest. :D I will always remember my first squealing fangirl. I swear, it made my year. *big smooches*
ReplyDeleteI love m/m with angels, so this sounds wonderful!
ReplyDeleteTrix, vitajex(at)Aol(dot)com
Thank you! If you read it, let me know what you think. :)
DeleteI read and love My Lord's Judgment when it was part of the Love is Always Write event on Goodread's M/M Romance group. So I was wondering if it had changed any from the original version?
ReplyDeleteThanks! aegger.echo @ yahoo .com
I'm a little late I think to enter this contest. I liked My Lord's Judgment and am looking forward to reading more of your books.
ReplyDeletedemetra21@yahoo.com