Illustrious Illusions: Guest Post & Giveaway ~*~ Loving You is Easy by Wendy S. Marcus

To all who celebrate, Merry Christmas!! To those who don’t celebrate Christmas, Happy Holidays!! And a great big thank you to Illustrious Illusions for hosting today’s blog post promoting my Loveswept Contemporary Romance, Loving You Is Easy.

Since today is Christmas it seems like the perfect time to talk about the gifts exchanged by Brooke and Shane, the heroine and hero in Loving You Is Easy. First I’ll tell you a little bit about them.

Brooke is a 24-year-old junior high school math teacher from a wealthy, upper class family. Shane is a 25-year-old blue collar bad boy turned soldier in the U.S. army, serving his fourth tour of active combat duty in Afghanistan. The two met as part of a “Support Our Troops” initiative that matched U.S. soldiers serving overseas with pen pals from back home.

Now you’ll have to read Loving You Is Easy to find out what happens after Shane returns home wounded (without telling Brooke) and after one of the sexy pictures she gave to him winds up on Facebook where her students and their parents and her principal see it.

As of December 2014, they are spending their first holiday season as husband and wife. Since Brooke is Jewish and celebrates Chanukah, I’ll start with the small gifts Shane gave Brooke on each of the eight nights of Chanukah.

Night one: A jelly donut.

Once again Shane decided to go with something traditional from Brooke’s childhood. Apparently Chanukah was one of the rare times Brooke’s mother lifted her ban on sweets in their house and only because jelly donuts are a Chanukah tradition. (Of course he got one for himself, too, so she wouldn’t have to eat alone.)

Night two: A bright blue beta fish.

Shane really wants a dog. Brooke’s never had a pet and doesn’t seem all that receptive to getting one. So he’s starting her off with a nice easy beta fish.

Night three: A bottle of the perfumed lotion she likes.

And since he insisted on giving her a full body massage with it after she ripped off the wrapping, they both enjoyed this gift…immensely.

Night four: A New York Rangers winter hat with a big pom pom.

As a longtime New Jersey Devils fan this was a tough purchase. But men in love must learn the art of compromise. And she really appreciated the gesture so this was a big win!

Night five: Five dark chocolate dipped strawberries – Brooke’s favorite indulgence.

These made her very happy. And after sharing them, Brooke proceeded to make Shane very happy!

Night six: A new negligee

And when she tried it on this one turned out to be a present for both of them!

Night seven: A beautiful silver locket and necklace

Although Brooke had urged him to keep his presents small and inexpensive, he couldn’t help but to splurge on this one. And he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to tuck a sexy selfie of his own inside.

Night eight: Shane presented Brooke with his brand new tattoo, a red heart, just to the right of his heart. Inside the heart was written: Brooke forever, because just like the permanent ink that decorated his skin, his love for her would last forever.

Brooke loved each one of her presents and Shane deemed Chanukah a success. The only bad part was then he had to wait for Christmas to get his gifts. Although Shane would never admit it out loud, he’s a snooper. But despite searching their entire apartment – several times – he could not find where Brooke had stashed his gifts. Perhaps he shouldn’t have shared that part of himself in one of the letters they’d exchanged while he was overseas.

On Christmas morning the family gathered at his parents’ house to open presents. Shane noted Brooke had nothing with her but the coconut macaroons she’d agreed to make and a small purse. But as they sat in front of the beautifully decorated tree she gave him the best present ever! A one-year-old (give or take a few months) black Labrador Retriever from the local pet shelter along with a New Jersey Devils collar and matching leash, food and water bowls, chew toys and a bed. And Shane could not be happier – at least that’s what he’d thought until his wife of not quite one year leaned in and whispered the words that made him even happier, “I’m pregnant.”

So that’s how Brooke and Shane made out this holiday season. How’d you do? What was your favorite gift this year?

Blurb

She’s a survivor of the front lines of politics. He’s a wounded soldier returning home from the battlefield. Can they place their trust in the power of love?

Nobody plays the role of perfect politician’s daughter better than quiet, respectable math teacher Brooke Ellstein. But she won’t be caught swimming with the sharks again, not after the son of a wealthy donor sinks his teeth into her and gets away with it. Still, political connections have their perks, such as heading up the governor’s “Support Our Troops” pen-pal initiative—and getting first dibs on the smoking-hot sergeant whose picture shakes her right down to her goody-two-shoes.

When corresponding with sweet, classy Brooke, Shane Develen instinctively hides his commando tattoos and blue-collar roots—and he can tell that she’s hiding something, too. But Shane knows he’s gained her trust when Brooke gives him a blisteringly sexy photo. Then he’s injured in an ambush and a fellow soldier posts the snapshot online. Overnight, Brooke’s reputation turns to ashes. Even though he’s totally wrong for her, Shane shows up on Brooke’s doorstep, determined to set things right—and discovers that right or wrong has nothing on the chemistry they share.

Link to Follow Tour: http://www.tastybooktours.com/2014/09/loving-you-is-easy-by-wendy-s-marcus_27.html

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22747255-loving-you-is-easy?from_search=true

Buy Links

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Author Info

Wendy S. Marcus is an award-winning author of contemporary romance. A nurse by trade, Wendy holds a Master of Science in Health Care Administration, a degree that does her absolutely no good as she now spends her days, nights, and weekends mucking around in her characters’ lives creating conflict, emotion, and, of course, a happily ever after. Wendy lives in the beautiful Hudson Valley region of New York. When she’s not writing, she enjoys spending time with her family, which includes her dog Buddy, and blogging/e-mailing/tweeting/facebooking with her online friends.