This week, on the Romance Writers Weekly blog hop, we're asked, "What role does setting play in creating steamy summer chemistry?"
I think everything's hotter in the summer, don't you? I rely a lot on that when I'm writing a romance that's set in summer. In the book I'm working on now, Going Up the Country (which is a sequel to Going to the Chapel [see below]) my character Wyatt, relays this memory of one of his earliest encounters with his heroine, Arielle. I think being outside, being in the elements like this steams things up between the characters in a way that probably wouldn't happen in any other season.
My first night in Oberon, it rained like crazy. And crazy is definitely the operative word. I know Oberon has a reputation for being “different” and all, but thunder, lightning, hailstorms, and torrential downpours—that’s not the kind of weather you expect to encounter anywhere in coastal California. Not at that time of year. I was staying in a tent—or, at least, that was the plan—on the Browne family’s farm, just a short distance from the house.
The storm hit shortly after I’d turned in and, in a matter of minutes, my tent’s rain fly tore loose in the wind. As I climbed out of the tent to fix it, I was distracted by the sound of a screen door slamming. I glanced over at the house just in time to see Arielle come rushing out into the yard with a basket to take the laundry off the line.
I immediately headed in her direction, thinking I could maybe help her. But I hadn’t taken more than a few steps when something—some weird survival instinct, perhaps—kicked in and I froze. I’d told my brother earlier that I thought she looked like a goddess. And that was when she’d been dressed. I didn’t even have words for how she looked now.
I mean, okay. Sure, technically, she was still wearing clothes. She had on a nightgown—a perfectly respectable, white, T-shirt thingy that, under normal circumstances, would have kept her entirely decent. But, within seconds, the thin material was so wet you could see right through it. So, for all practical purposes, she was out there in the rain wearing, basically, fuck all.
I should have looked away at that point. I should have just turned myself around and gone back the way I’d come. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. I was frozen in place, mesmerized by the sight of her.
Which is why I was still there, watching, when she gave up the useless battle to save the clothes from getting wet. Shaking her head in disgust, she threw the last, sopping towel into the basket. Then she turned her face to the sky and began to laugh. And then to dance.
She twirled in circles with her arms over her head, splashing and stomping like a kid. Eyes closed, mouth open, she drank the rain down, and spit it back out again, like a fountain. She was breath-taking. Joyful and playful and unrestrained and I think, in another moment, I might have torn off my own clothes and run to join her.
I was saved from disaster when it started to hail. Arielle shrieked in surprise when the first stones hit her. But she was still laughing as she grabbed her basket and ran for the house. I retraced my steps in a daze. But, by then, the damage was done. The fly, as it were, had flown. The tent was flattened. The most logical thing would have been to run for the house myself. There had to be a couch, or something, I could sleep on. I’d have settled for a dry patch of carpet, at that point. But my clothes were wringing wet by then, and Arielle’s no dummy. The minute she saw me, she’d have known I’d been outside awhile. And she’d probably guess why. So, I changed course once again, and headed, instead, for the weird trailer camper where Derek and his bride-to-be were staying.
I think I may have inadvertently cock-blocked my brother that night, which had to have sucked. But, on the other hand, it was his fault I was there in the first place. So why should I be the only one to suffer?
Now, hop on over to Brenda Margriet's page to find out how she creates that summer chemistry. And don't forget to check out her Silverberry Seduction series.
🩷SILVERBERRY SEDUCTION SEASONED ROMANCE: THE COMPLETE SERIES BOOKS 1 TO 5🩷
Five steamy, slow burn, contemporary romances with main characters 35 to 55 years old. ONLY $9.99
🧡Friends-to-lovers ❤️ Found family 💚 Second chance 💙 Opposites attract 💜 Fake relationship
WHAT READERS ARE SAYING:
“Well done and heartfelt thanks, Ms Margriet! Keep 'em coming! I'll keep buying.”
“Brenda Margriet has a way with writing about the lives, loves and losses of the more mature relationships. Her stories have a certain quality that leaves you feeling loved and fulfilled.”
“Binge worthy!”
Https://books2read.com/SilverberrySeduction
In Waiting For The Big One, Gabby and Derek went from being friends to being lovers. Now, they're waiting for their "big day". But will it be the wedding of their dreams? Or a bride's worst nightmare?
A quick trip to Gabby's hometown turns into the wedding from hell when Gabby and Derek are plagued by hailstorms, lost reservations, voracious goats, angry bees and enough family drama to fill a barn.
Guess it's true what they say, "The course of true love never did run smooth." But can the happy couple hold it all together, or will their Big Day turn into a Big Mess?
