scene.”
Candace wanted nothing more than for the ground to open up and swallow her whole. She had never been so uncomfortable in her entire life. What made her think she could write erotica, she wondered frantically. For god’s sake, she had never even been able to have an orgasm during sex. And she certainly had never used a vibrator, or any kind of penis-like dildo to get herself off. Considering how naughty she felt when she used the stream of water from her hand-held shower head to bring herself to orgasm, she now had to face just how far over her head she was.
“Albert is a walking guru of sex toys. Thank god he’s willing to share his knowledge or I’d look like an idiot in more books than I’m willing to mention.”
Candace nodded mutely, knowing words were beyond her at this point. Not letting her run off, Charlie held fast to her hand. “We’ll talk to you again later Albert,” he said as he directed them to another booth.
At first glance, this one looked to be far tamer than Albert’s booth, with a simple display of hardcover books for sale. Candace breathed a sigh of relief.
Introducing her, Charlie said, “This is my friend Candy. Candy this is Steve Holt. He’s pretty much a hero around here.”
Laughing, Steve said, “Only second to you, buddy.” Turning to greet Candace, he said, “Welcome to the wild and wacky world of erotica. Unbuckle your seat belt and enjoy the ride.”
Candace laughed and gave silent thanks that everyone was working so hard to put her at ease. Of course, she knew that meant she was probably walking around with a panic-stricken look on her face.
And when she caught sight of the cover of Steve’s latest book, she almost gasped aloud. Depicted on the cover were two women in sixty-nine position along with the title, Sixty-Nine Kinds of Love.
Knowing she was trapped in a full-body flush, with Charlie’s hand tucked in hers, all she could think about was what it would feel like if his head was buried between her legs, his tongue lapping at her clitoris. No matter how hard she tried to clear the sexy vision from her mind, she just couldn’t.
Fortunately, the two men were busy catching up with each other, and hadn’t noticed her reaction to the sexy book cover.
“So, how’s the new book going Charlie?” Steve was asking him.
“Pretty good,” Charlie replied, running his free hand through his golden blond hair. “I’m having some trouble with my character’s motivations, but I’ll figure it out in time.”
Steve laughed and said to Candace, “I swear to God, this is the only author I know who wants to know what his characters ate for breakfast in high school. Most of us are content to be able to do a character sketch for their past couple of years.”
“Wow,” Candace said to Charlie. “You sound pretty thorough.”
The look Charlie gave her was so hot she felt seared to the bone. At least to her panties, which were beginning to feel distinctly moist between her legs.
“I am,” he said hoarsely and then blinked hard a couple of times.
Clearing his throat, Steve said, “Oh, I almost forgot. There’s a woman here from the Chronicle and she wants to interview you about Morning Dew .”
Candace gasped. “You wrote Morning Dew ? You’re Charlie Gibson?”
A faint flush stole across his face. “That’s me.”
Too stunned to keep the words from falling out of her mouth, she said, “You’re the reason I wanted to get into erotica.”
Realizing her sentence had come out all wrong, she tried to backpedal, saying, “What I meant is that I absolutely love your books. They move me more than anything else I’ve read.”
Charlie looked incredibly pleased. “Really?”
Cutting in, Steve said, “You’re not the first person who became a convert after reading his stuff. At least half of the people in the room did the very same thing.”
Suddenly, Candace felt incredibly foolish. “And here I am, taking up all of your time, when so many people