Purely Professional Blog Tour! (+$25 Amazon GC Giveaway!)

Title: Purely Professional

Author: Elia Winters

Series: N/A

Pages: 169

Date Published: January 13th, 2014

Publisher: Carina Press

Format: ebook

Genre: Erotic Fiction

Source: Goddess Fish Blog Tours
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Synopsis:

Columnist Bridget Hartwell agrees to write about BDSM to impress her new executive editor at Sultry, the "sex-positive magazine for sex-positive women." Unfortunately, it's a topic she knows absolutely nothing about…but if she ever wants that promotion, she'll need to learn the ropes, fast.

English professor Max Harlow is active in the Dom/sub scene, but only for casual play. He's never found his ideal partner: a woman who is his equal, but sexually submissive. When he's asked to explain the lifestyle to his cute but obviously inexperienced neighbor, Max is certain it's best to approach it academically—to keep things purely professional.

Until Bridget's first article is a huge hit, giving her the perfect excuse to delve deeper into the naturally submissive side of her sexuality. As their encounters intensify and each of her boundaries is skillfully pushed, Bridget must decide what this all means…for her identity, her career and, most importantly, her future with Max.

~Guest Post!~
New Books, Warm Socks, and Bubble Baths: Surviving Winter Elia-Style

Here in New England, January marks the turning point from “Ooh, winter!” to “Holy hell,  it’s COLD outside.” I really love winter, but I know many people don’t share my affection. I’m always amused when people act surprised about the cold, since it happens every year and persists for months, but I guess it’s a good conversation starter. I especially enjoy people’s descriptions of the cold: “like a cast-iron toilet on the shady side of an iceberg” is one of the best I’ve heard, along with the simple but evocative “snotsicle weather,” describing those temperatures where you inhale through your nose and your nostrils stick together on the inside.

Winter is a perfect time for indulgences, though. When the sun sets at four and it’s colder than Hoth outside, it’s time for simple pleasures. Here are some of mine.

•  Bubble Baths. This is every stereotype of Women Relaxing, right? I don’t care. Bubble baths are awesome. Steaming hot water, good-smelling bubbles, and a chunk of time to just do nothing but make bubble sculptures. Win.
• Peppermint Tea. I think peppermint is the king of basic grocery store teas when it comes to relaxing. Yes, I want to get into the dangerous world of custom looseleaf tea blends, but since I’m not there yet, I’m in love with straight-up peppermint. Personally, I like it with a touch of milk and sugar.
• Cheap Pink Moscato Champagne. I love champagne, especially the cheap stuff because it tends to be sweeter and I feel less guilty mixing it with orange juice if I’m in the mood for mimosas. Pink moscato champagne has all the sweetness and fizziness I enjoy, and it usually comes in under $10 a bottle. 
• Fuzzy socks. I might have a fuzzy sock problem. I have so many pairs of fuzzy socks that they explode out of my pajama drawer, where they have to live because they don’t fit in the sock drawer. Nothing says cozy like fuzzy socks after a long day of work.
• Flannel sheets. I don’t know how I made it to adulthood without owning flannel sheets, because they are The Best Thing Ever. It’s like being hugged by a friendly lumberjack all night long.
• Homemade bread. Although I love to bake, I don’t do it often enough because it takes so long. When the weather’s bad, though, there’s nothing like taking time to make some delicious homemade bread. The house smells fantastic during the entire process, and the general routine of “mix - knead - wait - knead - wait - bake” provides a meditative rhythm to the day. Plus, at the end, you have hot homemade bread just waiting for butter and jam. 
• Books. Of all my indulgences, this is the best. I love curling up in a blanket with a good book and getting lost in another world. Even better is if I’ve got my fuzzy socks and peppermint tea.

What are your indulgences, readers? Do you share any of mine, or do you have your own ways to pass the cold, dark days of winter?

~Try an Excerpt!~

“What about your fantasies?”

Bridget hesitated.

“What? What is it?” Catching her hesitation, Max looked up from the Scrabble board.

“It’s just...” She paused and took a swig of beer. “I’ve had a lot of crushes on men in positions of power. My volleyball coach back in high school, my internship coordinator in college, a few professors...” Realizing he was grinning, she blushed, remembering he was a professor. “Right. Anyway, I never acted on any of them.”

“And yet you complain that you date weak men.” He swirled the beer around in his bottle and held it up to the light, his gaze thoughtful and distant.

“Well, I don’t want some guy to boss me around.” To hide the discomfort she suddenly felt, Bridget looked down at the board. She played reach off the H in hinder and fumbled as she chose four new tiles.

“I think we both know that’s a lie.“ Max said smoothly, and he drank his beer. “I’ll bet you’re just afraid of what kind of woman you would be if you gave in to those urges.” He rubbed a tile between a thumb and forefinger, then set it back on his shelf. “I’ve been doing this a long time, Bridget. You responded today like a natural submissive. You liked more than just the sex. You liked all of it.”

She set down her beer and looked at him. “All right.” She tried not to sound defensive. “So what does that mean?”

“It doesn’t have to mean anything.” Max shrugged. “Maybe this afternoon, I just want to play some Scrabble with you and order a pizza. But when we’re done with all this experimenting, you’re going to have a lot to write about.”

~Meet Elia!~ 

Elia Winters has always been a New England girl, despite having spent much of her childhood in Florida. She holds a degree in English Literature and teaches at a small rural high school where she runs too many extracurricular activities. She balances her love of the outdoors with a  bottomless well of geekiness.

Elia dabbles in many genres, but erotic romance has been one of her favorites since she first began sneaking her mother’s romance novels. In high school, she kept her friends entertained with a steady stream of naughty stories and somehow never got caught passing them around. Her erotic fiction and poetry have been published online at Clean Sheets and Scarlet Letters under a different name. Elia currently lives in New England with her loving husband and their odd assortment of pets.

Elia’s virtual life is as busy as her real life. In addition to her website, http://eliawinters.com/, you can also find her on Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, Pinterest and Goodreads.

Elia will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour, and a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn host.

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