#GuestPost – “Anti-Valentine’s Day Party at Bangers Tavern” by Sadira Stone

A pivotal scene in Opposites Ignite revolves around an Anti-Valentine’s Day party at Bangers Tavern, where Rosie works as a server and Eddie works as barback. Since every other bar and restaurant in the area was offering some special deal for couples, the Bangers crew dreamed up events for singles and patrons who were sick of holiday extortion. Who needs an overpriced dinner for two when you can have cocktails and tater tots at Bangers?

The staff decorates the bar with paper hearts printed with snarky slogans like Love sux, You wish, I heart me, Bite me, and so on. Events include a shooting gallery where patrons can win drink tokens by nailing Cupid’s butt with Nerf darts, a Worst Date storytelling competition, a photo booth, and a fundraiser for a local domestic violence shelter. Customers dance to break-up anthems like Pink’s “So What?”, the J. Geil’s band’s “Love Stinks,” and Beyonce’s “Single Ladies.” 

Diego, the head chef, creates food specials just for this event: Love Bites—jalapeno poppers with bacon and an extra-spicy dipping sauce, plus tater tots smothered in cheesy artichoke dip and garnished with bacon folded into hearts. 

Bartenders Kiara and Eddie assemble an impressive list of drink specials: a Black Heart Cocktail made with fig vodka, a Bourbon Sour-on-Love, Dark ‘n’ Stormy, a rye-based Blue Valentine, and a vintage classic called the Suffering Bastard. (Recipe for the latter in the back of the book.)

Rosie, our tattoo-artist-in-training heroine, creates a window mural with a dozen cupids battling it out. “Trailing smoke, one spiraled down to earth like a WWI biplane. Another lay on the ground, feet in the air à la dead bug. Yet another snuck up on his rival, his spiky club poised for an attack.”

I had so much fun writing this scene, I almost want to host my own Anti-Valentine’s party! But that’s probably against the romance writer’s code, right? 

Blurb: 

A mismatch sparks the hottest flames.

Blue-haired, buxom, and bodacious, server Rosie needs her job at Bangers Tavern, where her work family adores her weirdness and supports her hunt for a tattoo apprenticeship. When too much New Year’s bubbly tumbles her into a sweet, shy coworker’s bed, she craves more. But guys like Eddie never stick with girls like her. 

Strait-laced, soft-spoken, and skinny, barback Eddie has a huge crush on his curvy, tattooed coworker. Their New Year’s surprise is a dream come true—until grandma walks in on them.  Eddie begs Rosie to fake-date him to appease his old-fashioned family. He’s already keeping secrets, so what’s the harm in one more? But the longer he pretends with Rosie, the deeper he falls.

Their boss lays down the law: No relationship drama at work, or you’re fired. Rosie’s everything Eddie ever wanted—but to keep her, he’ll have to drop a terrifying truth bomb on his loving but stifling family. And Rosie must trust her bruised heart with the guy who nearly crushed it.

Come back to Bangers Tavern for a steamy, laugh-out-loud, opposites-attract romance that ignites in all the worst ways—and the best! 

Buy links: 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08WLKB3S8

Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/u/m0wjvP 

Excerpt

But why did Dawn hang mistletoe from the bar’s ceiling if she didn’t want people to kiss? Eddie would wait until the boss was in her office, then find some excuse to linger beneath that clump of green, his eyebrows flicking up in a flirtatious question. You wanna?

Damn it, she did wanna. His crooked smile was so tempting. And his lips were so soft, his kisses so sweet—unlike the slobbery mauling she got from most guys she dated. Desire simmered under his cool surface, making her want to dive deeper.

New Year’s Eve served up the perfect excuse. When the bar staff toasted the new year, it was so easy to land in Eddie’s arms. So easy to keep dancing as their coworkers filed out, leaving them alone beneath the kitschy disco ball, its dizzy sparkle whirling them around and around. 

And now he slept beside her, sunlight glinting off his wavy brown hair, glossy lashes fanned across his cheekbones, dark scruff shadowing his razor-sharp jaw. So pretty, so vulnerable, so one hundred percent wrong for her. Clean-cut guys like Eddie never stuck around with girls like her. God knows she’d bashed her head against that brick wall enough times to learn her lesson.

Breath held, she gingerly removed his hand from her breast and wriggled toward the edge of the bed. Eddie sighed and squirmed into the space she’d vacated, nuzzling her pillow. No, she corrected herself, his pillow. Gotta get out of here.

Rising on unsteady legs, she turned back for a final look. Sleep melted his solemn daytime expression into peaceful sweetness. His bare shoulders rose on a shiver. As she bent to tuck the quilt around him, her boob brushed his arm. 

“Huh?” His eyes fluttered open. His brow rumpled, then smoothed as a bleary smile spread across his pillow-creased face. “Good morning,” he croaked and pushed up on his elbow. His gaze sharpened as it raked over her naked body. “Wow.”

“Yeah. Wow.” She waved a limp hand over the bed. “Last night was, uh—really something.” She shuffled backward, stifling the impulse to cover her bits. After all, he’d seen every inch of her. He’d sampled it all, too. Twice, if she recalled correctly. The details were still kind of blurry, but she remembered lots of giggling, Eddie’s silky hair tickling her inner thighs, the slap of flesh on flesh, and a climax so powerful she nearly blacked out.

Author Bio: 

Ever since her first kiss, Sadira’s been spinning steamy tales in her head. After leaving her teaching career in Germany, she finally tried her hand at writing one. Now she’s a happy citizen of Romancelandia, penning contemporary romance from her new home in Washington State, U.S.A. When not writing, which is seldom, she explores the Pacific Northwest with her charming husband, enjoys the local music scene, plays darts (pretty well), plays guitar (badly), and gobbles all the books. Visit Sadira at www.sadirastone.com.

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