Food for Love Guest Author Kasi Blake: Happily Ever After and a Banana Smoothie

Food for Love Guest Author Kasi Blake: Why she loves writing romance, how she got started, and a delicious recipe for a Banana Smoothie that's perfect for hot summer days! There's also a tasty excerpt from her romance, The Business Engagement.

The Six Reasons I Love Writing Romance AND a Tasty Recipe

by Kasi Blake

Happily Ever After: When I wrote books for Harlequin, I was told their readers expect a HEA ending every time. Now that I publish on my own, I could end it however I want, but I love a good happily-ever-after. Don’t you? Real life is dark and tragic enough without reading about it. When I read romance, I want to be swept away on a journey of love. I want to live in the heroine’s flesh and triumph over every bad thing that comes her way. Then, I want a happy ending.

Strong, Intelligent Heroines: I am so glad the days of wimpy women are gone (for the most part), and the heroine doesn’t need a man to make her life complete. My heroines have careers, and they are independent. Sure, they can still cry and feel bad, but they don’t feel sorry for themselves. Sometimes, they even save the hero from whatever mess he’s stumbled into. I don’t like romances anymore that have a heroine that needs rescuing all the time. She can find herself in trouble and need help sometimes. We can all use a helping hand from time to time, but I want her to be able to stand on her own two feet.

Bad Boy Alpha Heroes: I don’t know about you, but I love a good bad boy, at least in fiction. He can have a bad attitude to start off with. Maybe he thinks all women are gold-diggers, or he believes love is a concept made up by the greeting card companies. As long as he is redeemed by the end, I’m okay with it. I don’t want to read about a guy that kicks puppies. Hard no. But I love it when he has an edge. Maybe he’s tormented by past trauma. By the end of the book, I want to see him get in touch with his feelings, realize he’s wrong, and fully commit to his woman so he doesn’t lose her.

Exciting Settings: When I retire, I would love to travel the world. In the meantime, I enjoy researching places I’ve never been and using them as the backdrop for my books. I am currently working on a romance set on a Montana ranch. I’ve done a lot of books in cities like Boston and New York, but I would love to do a small-town one because that’s where I grew up. When I read, I love to read about new places that I haven’t researched yet, especially if the author is good at describing them.

Voracious Readers: Romance readers will devour an author’s entire body of work if they like how that author writes. This isn’t true in all genres, so I really appreciate my romance readers. My grandmother was the one that introduced me to Harlequin books when I was about thirteen. Every time I visited her, I would delve into her stockpile and read them all before it was time to go home. Back then, romances were very different. We used to laugh about how the couple would fight until the end of the book, and then all of a sudden, they’re in love. Eye roll. There also wasn’t any sex in those books. I mean, come on, the couple couldn’t stop bickering long enough to kiss, let alone sleep with each other.

For the Feels: I love a good romance!! Just between you and me, I like to eat some quality chocolates and recline on the sofa when no one is around to read my books. They say chocolate stimulates the same part of the brain as falling in love, so I do both at once. I used to read in the tub, but I dropped my book too many times.

Kasi's cat Bonkie (and friend)

So that’s it. I hope you enjoyed reading this and learning a little about me. To round things out, I’ll also tell you that I live on a farm and collect animals, especially strays. They seem to find me. I love the peace and quiet out here. It’s good for my soul and for my writing.

I also love to cook, but not in the Summer months. Too hot. So here is a recipe I LOVE to enjoy when it’s hot.

Banana Smoothie:  Put 1 cup of frozen bananas, 1 cup of almond milk, and 1 tablespoon of peanut butter in a blender. I use the Bullet. Love that thing because it’s so easy to clean and put away for tomorrow. Blend it up smooth and enjoy your banana smoothie. If you like it less thick, you can add a bit more milk. I sometimes do that. SO GOOD!

Thank you all for spending a minute with me, and thank you, J. Arlene. Happy reading.

One fake engagement can save two reputations, but only if they keep their hands to themselves.

When claustrophobic Anna gets trapped in an elevator with hunky Skylar, the last thing she expects is to exit an engaged woman. But Skylar insists tongues will stop wagging when people realize she is marrying him and not sleeping with her boss. Unfortunately, Skylar will take that position when his father retires in a few weeks.

Skylar’s father invites her to spend Thanksgiving weekend with his entire family in Vermont, and he won’t take no for an answer. She has no clue how she will get through four days under the same roof with the sexy, arrogant Skylar. Then she discovers they expect her to share a room with her fiancé. Now what?

With her job on the line, will she also be willing to risk her heart?

Excerpt:

            “I still don’t think it will work,” she said. “We don’t know anything about each other. How can we fake a relationship?”

            “They aren’t going to give us a pop quiz.”

            She folded her arms. “Why do we break up? Who gets to do the dumping?”

            He rolled his incredibly blue eyes and chuckled. “You can dump me if you want.”

            “Yeah, right. All the women will hate me, and everyone will feel sorry for you. I want to be the one that gets dumped.”

            “Whatever.”

            She paced back and forth, thinking hard. “Why would you dump me? It has to be a good reason that doesn’t make either of us look totally heartless.”

            “Agreed.”

            They both paced in silence, passing each other every few steps. The problem kept her mind off being stuck in an elevator, but her stomach was in knots for a different reason now. She couldn’t believe she was going along with his crazy plot. Facing those judgmental, back-stabbing liars filled her with dread.

            Another problem with the proposed charade hit her. “Wait a second.” They both stopped pacing and faced each other. “No one is going to believe we’re in love. Lack of chemistry. You can’t fake attraction.”

            His eyes slowly narrowed. “How do you know we don’t have chemistry? We haven’t given it a shot.”

            “What do you mean?”

            “In three years, we’ve barely looked at each other and haven’t exchanged more than ten words. Before we abort the mission, perhaps we should test it out.”

            The butterflies in her stomach grew into vultures. “T-test it how?”

            He lightly pinched her chin between his thumb and finger, lifting her face until their eyes met and held. His intent became obvious. Skylar Griffin was about to kiss her. Although she had fantasized about being in his arms at least a dozen times, she didn’t want to go through with it. Reality was never as good as fantasy. What if he was a bad kisser? Maybe he used too much tongue or opened his mouth too wide or slobbered.

            Silently, she began to count all the reasons not to fake an engagement. They didn’t know each other well enough to make it convincing; she didn’t want to spend time with him; he was the son of a senior partner; she’d lose her job if they got caught in the lie.

            He stared deep into her eyes, forcing her to do the same, and she was instantly lost in his beautiful baby blues. Her mind went blank. What had she been thinking about? She was sure it had been important, but she couldn’t remember a thing.

            Her eyes drifted shut as he lowered his head.

            His lips brushed over hers briefly, just enough to make her want more. A taste of sunshine and a warm ocean breeze swept through her. She could practically feel the sand between her toes. His hands slid beneath her hair to cup her head before kissing her again. The second kiss lasted longer. She melted against him as he grew bolder.

            With her arms flat beside her on the first kiss, each one following urged her to touch him. Her hands moved up to rest on his solid chest of their own accord. Passion ignited and she lost control. His lips teased hers without mercy. He deepened the kiss, taking her to new heights. His arms wrapped around her waist as she wound hers around his neck.

            The elevator moved.

Kasi Blake's romances are on Amazon and on Kindle Unlimited

Here is the link to The Business Engagement: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B093YD233K

Here is the pre-order page for The Baby Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Baby-Contract-Marriage-Convenience-Seduction-ebook/dp/B0B5FJSLXV

Kasi Blake's Web site:  http://www.kasiblake.com/

Follow Kasi on Bookbub    https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kasi-blake

Kasi Blake's writing desk