Cooking The Books – Natalie Charles

My guest this week is Harlequin Romantic Suspense author Natalie Charles. I’m pretty envious of Natalie actually, because in 2011 she won that holy grail of category publishing, the Harlequin New Voices competition. So she only beat like a bazillion other hopefuls. No mean feat. Natalie’s debut release, The Seven-Day Target is out now and she’s generously giving away a copy to one lucky commenter. Welcome, Natalie!

Thank you so much for having me here today!

Opinions will always vary as to what makes a man attractive. Some readers like cowboys, others like billionaires, and if you’re anything like me, you have a soft spot for rugged men in law enforcement. But it takes more than a uniform and a sense of authority to make me weak in the knees. Give me a man who knows his way around the kitchen, and I’m practically drooling before he takes out the first pan. There’s something downright sexy about a man who can cook.

In my debut for Harlequin Romantic Suspense, The Seven-Day Target, my heroine, Libby Andrews, is a prosecutor who craves control over all aspects of her life—food included. She has experimented with everything from veganism to a gluten-free lifestyle, and when the book opens, she’s trying to relax a little more. Her ex-fiance, FBI agent Nick Foster, has always considered Libby’s diets weird, to say the least. He’s a no-nonsense man who loves burgers, fries, and strong coffee, but taking care of Libby is paramount:

Nick eyed her drawn skin and gaunt cheekbones. Her fingers had assumed the knobbiness that he knew came from working too many late nights and skipping too many meals. He’d be a lousy host if he didn’t at least make an effort to get her to eat. Figuring out how to prepare soybean patties smothered in soy paste and truffle oil and resting on a bed of tempeh was preferable to watching her go hungry.

When Libby’s life is put in jeopardy, Nick vows to protect her, no matter how awkward their personal history. Both of them are hurting from the past and scared about the future, and so when Nick wakes after that first night guarding her, he surprises Libby with some old-fashioned comfort food: coffee, bacon, and pancakes.

I imagine Nick serving Libby a heaping stack of warm, fluffy pancakes with butter and pure maple syrup. He may even load them with blueberries or slice some strawberries on the side…you know, to make Libby feel less guilty about the indulgence. Simple and delicious — even Libby can’t pass up such a sweet gesture 🙂

 Nick Foster’s Pancakes

 1 ½ C. all-purpose flour

3 ½ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 Tb. white sugar

1 ¼ C. milk

1 egg

3 Tb. butter, melted

Sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Forming a well in the center, add the milk, egg and melted butter and mix until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle over medium heat. Spoon batter onto the griddle and heat both sides until lightly browned.

Enjoy!

Bio:

Natalie Charles is living her dream as a writer for Harlequin Romantic Suspense after winning Mills & Boon’s 2011 New Voices Competition. By day, she is a practicing attorney whose writing is more effective for treating insomnia than most sleeping pills. This may explain why her after hours writing involves the incomparable combination of romance and suspense—the literary equivalent of chocolate and peanut butter. The happy sufferer of a life-long addiction to mystery novels, Natalie has, sadly, yet to out-sleuth a detective. She lives in New England with a husband who makes her believe in Happily Ever After and a daughter who makes her believe in miracles.

Natalie loves hearing from readers! You can contact her through her website, http://www.nataliecharles.net.

You can connect with Natalie around the web:

Website           Facebook                    Twitter    Goodreads

Book Title: The Seven-Day Target
Publisher: Harlequin Romantic Suspense
Author: Natalie Charles
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Kindle link: http://tinyurl.com/b4pvmxm
B&N link: http://tinyurl.com/a6fldku
Smashwords link:
Author’s website OR blog URL: http://www.nataliecharles.net

Brief summary:

He never meant to speak to her again. Back in Arbor Falls for a funeral, Special Agent Nick Foster has moved on. He has no plans to stay in his tiny hometown-or to reunite with the beautiful Libby Andrews. His onetime fiancée broke his heart, and what’s past should stay buried.

Libby doesn’t want his help. Her childhood sweetheart can never know the real reason she ended their engagement three years before. But when a serial killer targets her, she must team up with the rugged agent for her own safety. Something in her past has put her in danger, and the passion they’ve reignited puts their future in deadly jeopardy.

Excerpt:

Nick took another step. “You can’t tell me you don’t feel it, Libby.”

“Feel what?”

“The heat that always burned between us. The attraction we’ve always felt for each other, even when we were pretending we didn’t.”

She rolled her eyes. “That’s ridiculous. I thought I made it clear how I felt for you.”

“You can’t hide it.” He straightened. “I see it written across your body.”

He advanced, moving with deliberate footsteps and a gaze that made her heart thunder. She instinctively retreated but stopped as her back pressed against the wall. This elicited a rakish smile and a chuckle from the back of his throat.

“We’re through,” she stammered as he came still closer, bracing himself against the wall with one hand. Blocking her escape.

“Through?” His warm breath fell on her cheeks as he leaned down. “You really think so?”

Now his lips grazed her ear, sending a shiver straight through her center. She felt his light breath on her skin, felt the animal heat of his strong arm as it fenced her in. Nick curved his body to bring his free hand to rest lightly on her hip.

“Yes. It’s over,” she said. “I feel nothing for you.” Her voice came out no more than a whisper, thick with desire.

Another chuckle, this one from deep within his chest. She stood helplessly still as he began to tease her shirt upward, exposing the sensitive skin on her belly. “So, I suppose this doesn’t do anything for you, then?” He trailed his fingertips along her waistline, eliciting a soft moan.

“No,” she gasped. “I don’t feel a thing.” Her skin was on fire, and an ache began at the juncture of her thighs.

He frowned playfully. “That’s surprising. I could have sworn I felt a reaction.”

“Nothing.”

As she spoke, he brought his hand fully under her shirt and round her bare back, pressing her closer to him. She felt the length of his hardness against her heat and sighed, allowing her head to fall back against the wall. His hot mouth was still beside her ear, but he brought his lips to the base of her throat as she arched her body toward him.

“Nothing at all?” He spoke the words against her throat, and she trembled as a current of fire and ice coursed through her.

She moaned. “Nothing.”

“This is troubling.”

For your chance to win, please leave a comment. If the lucky winner is in the US, she’ll receive a signed print copy. Outside US will be an e-copy.