25 Days of Christmas Stories: SANTA WORE LEATHERS by Vonnie Davis

There’s only one thing on Becca Sinclair’s Christmas list this holiday season – her very own column in the local paper. And if she can build a huge blog following, her wish just might come true.

Enter Dan “Wolf” Wolford aka the man-whore next door and the new star of Becca’s popular, post-divorce blog about men. A Navy SEAL turned commander of the Florida Marine Rescue Unit, Wolf’s the very definition of the word alpha – and with an endless rotation of women on his doorstep, this hunk on a Harley has Becca and her female followers all hot and bothered!

All Becca wants for Christmas is her newspaper column, right? But when she finds herself the target of Wolf’s irresistible attentions, her snarky comebacks become less and less convincing and, suddenly, she’s not so sure anymore…

Excerpt:

Wolf strode to Becca’s townhouse, rang the doorbell and waited.

Finally, her door opened, and he was greeted with a scowl.

“What?” She tugged the lapels of her short white silky robe together.

“I…ah…” His gaze snagged on all those ample curves showcased by the slinky material. I…ah…”

“You said that already.” She fisted a hand on her hip.

Einstein cannonballed around Becca with something red clamped in his jaws. He streaked across the grass, his strong muscles propelling him as he circled both of their yards.

“Get back in here!” Becca pointed into her house.

Einstein loped across the grass and shrubbery, ignoring his owner’s command.

Maybe if he acted the hero and returned the pet to its owner, he’d gain a few brownie points. “Stay here. I’ll get him.” Wolf took off after the dog. Seeing he was being chased only made Einstein run faster. Wolf followed him twice around the yard in front of Becca’s house. The dog leapt over a flowerbed and stopped, his head lowered, shaking his prize, his hind end elevated, wiggling in excitement.

“Give me that.” Wolf stepped to the right around the flowerbed. The dog trotted to the left. In a quick move, he sprinted to the left and the dog dashed to the right. “Think you’re smart, don’t you?” He could have sworn the dog smiled. Wolf leapt across the blooms, hoping to grab the smartass canine. Once he’d grabbed the collar, they rolled, and Einstein yelped. Wolf grimaced as he, too, rolled across a low-growing cactus and into the trunk of a palm tree. “Dammit.”

The dog whined and dropped the fabric to lick and bite at the prickly thorns in his groin.

“Easy now, Einstein.” Wolf cooed as he slipped his Swiss army knife from the front pocket of his jeans.

“What’s wrong? What’s going on? What are you doing with that knife?” Becca tugged on the hem of her short robe and glanced up and down the street as if she thought to run out into the yard.

“Stay where you are. He’ll be fine. He’s got some thorns in his hide.” Wolf removed the tweezers stored in a slot of the knife and began extracting the offending needles. “We can’t have an awesome fella like you in pain now, can we?” He worked as quickly as he could. “One more, big guy, and then you’ll be fine.” The dog licked him several times. “Yeah, I like you too. Let’s keep what I’m about to do just between us, shall we?” He ran his fingers over the affected groin area, keeping his attentions on the dog’s reactions. “Looks like we got them all.”

“What in blue blazes are you doing to that dog? Are you performing some kind of ‘beasty-wildy’ on him?” Mrs. Minelli, his neighbor, punctured the air with her cane, her white eyebrows arched in question.

He fought the urge to laugh. “No, Mrs. Minelli. I was taking out thorns.”

She cocked her head to the side, her cataract-clouded eyes widened. “In his penis?”

Review by Melissa Snark

SANTA WORE LEATHERS starts with the best first line I've ever read in a romance novel:  My new neighbor is a man-whore.

Vonnie Davis stories are always an absolute pleasure to read, but I struggle with writing a review because there is no way to actually make my words physically glow. It's a rough business when you know starting out that anything you say is going to fall short of being adequate praise.

Sooo...

SANTA WORE LEATHERS—I really really loved it a lot. The story is told in a smooth style with vibrant word usage that energizes the reader's imagination. The dialogue is snappy, especially the back and forth between the hero and heroine.  The sexual tension sizzles on the page and the romantic climax is emotionally wrenching.

Reporter/blogger Becca Sinclair starts off a bit prickly but becomes a wholly sympathetic character once it becomes clear her cynicism is the result of a broken heart. Fireman Wolf is the essence of hunky hero, but also has his own scars. Following the death of his parents, he gave up his military career in order to raise his younger siblings and made any number of sacrifices for them. His experiences have left him suspicious of reporters. Conflict in the story is derived entirely from the hero and heroine's trust issues. As befits the holiday, the romantic scenes are over the top and wonderfully extravagant but there were times when I wanted fewer showy gifts from the hero and more integrity.

Certain secondary characters simply stole the show. Becca's panty stealing dog, Einstein, provides one hilarious antic after another. You'll laugh until you cry. Einstein was far and away my favorite character, but neighbor Mrs. Minelli has some absolutely brilliant zingers. I absolutely adore a strong element of humor with my contemporary romance and the author just hits the ball out of the park.

SANTA WORE LEATHERS is a definite page turner. Highly recommended.

Available for purchase:

AMAZON

BARNES & NOBLE

Author Bio:

Vonnie Davis likens herself to a freshly baked French croissant—warm, wrinkly, flaky and best served with strong coffee. A retired technical writer, she now fills her days as a Fairy God Mother to her characters, giving them the happily-ever-after they deserve. She infuses her stories with humor because she loves the sound of laughter. She writes contemporary, historical and paranormal romance as well as romantic suspense.

Please visit Vonnie Davis at:

• Her blog
• Her website
• Or follow her on Facebook
• She tweets under @VonnieWrites if you care to follow her through the twitterverse.

Vonnie is giving away a copy of her Christmas eBook. To be eligible for the drawing, leave a comment telling the color of Becca's robe and also giving your email address so she can contact you should your name be drawn.