Showing results by author "Hildred Billings" in All Categories

Dani wants a stepmom. More specifically, she wants her mom Emma to get married! Enter city girl Tamryn, who is on assignment on behalf of her law firm. From the moment Emma sees her in a coffee shop, she’s infatuated—and from the moment Dani sees her mom’s eyes wander? Nothing will stop one little girl from bringing Emma and Tamryn together!

Tallulah is currently one of Hollywood’s biggest ingenues, and there’s nothing she loves more than partying in Hellfire, the only place she’s allowed to be the big, domineering queen of seduction instead of the sweet girl-next-door America wants her to be. There’s nobody in the circle of regulars who doesn’t know her, let alone hasn’t seen her biggest assets to come straight from the plastic surgeon’s. Too bad her bodyguard would rather be anywhere else.

The sixth story in the Sins of Mercy series. In the grandest of miracles, Mercy is developing a social life. Thanks to her new friend, Mercy spends an evening out enjoying the company of energetic strangers who flirt with her, share their knowledge, and make her feel a little less alone. Yet Mercy shows she’s still on her way to healing when she’s unable to indulge in the same revelries as everyone else. Luckily there is yet another new friend waiting at home: Excess, the jolly goddess of many kitchen talents.

For the first time in months, Mercy enjoys a day all to herself. After spoiling herself silly without a care in the world, she takes a wrong turn around the wrong alley and encounters Envy, a goddess who wants Mercy to hold a grudge. A plethora of bad memories awaits Mercy before she can continue on her healing journey, and nothing holds a candle to the very real issues in her place of work.

Hollywood B-list actress Fleur Rosé desperately needs a break from her hectic schedule. When she sees her chance to make a break for it, she drives as far as Paradise Valley, with the media (and her manager) hot on her heels. Cue Jalen Stonehill, stage right. One of the county’s busiest plumbers happens to be in the right place at the right time when she crosses Fleur’s path.

Born into an elite family, Jun has spent her life cultivating the professional qualities needed to claim her inheritance, the Nippon Royal Hotel empire. Just when she thinks her dream is about to come true, however, Jun's uncle ships her from her homeland of Hokkaido to the city of Nagoya to become the new local general manager.

Welcome to Paradise Valley, where the locals thrive on the rural landscape, the quirky Oregonian living, and the history of the lesbian commune that founded it. Mixing small town attitudes with lesbian dating? Sounds like another day in Paradise. Firefighter Krys Madison is used to the single life. Although a womanizer, she’s been experiencing a dry spell for the past...year. By choice. Kinda. She doesn’t realize what’s missing until she discovers a litter of kittens after a barn fire. The only one who can help is rural veterinarian Siobhan O’Connor.

Life has not been kind to Mercy: her girlfriend is gone, she's unappreciated in her corporate job, and depression has always haunted her. That's how she came to stand on the bridge where she meets Acedia, the deity who oversees the Seven Sinners, bringers of peace and carnal healing. Now Mercy must embark on a journey to reclaim the sinful delights in life, beginning with Lust, the crimson-colored deity who hopes to reawaken more than just a woman's heart.

Welcome to Hellfire, where there are only three rules. Consent is a must. Safety is paramount. No judgment of anyone or whatever the desire. Other than that? Prepare to give your soul to the Devil, because you’re in her playground now. Married couple Jeanette and Roxy are in Hellfire to party, but paradise shakes wherever they step. For the past several months, the “happy” couple have been arguing more and more about the path of their relationship.

Welcome to Hellfire, where there are only three rules. Consent is a must. Safety is paramount. No judgment of anyone or whatever the desire. Other than that? Prepare to give your soul to the Devil, because you’re in her playground now. Danica has suffered enough bad luck to last her the rest of her life. The only highlight is using up the last month of her short-lived Hellfire membership to blow off some steam in LA’s most exclusive adult club. Too bad she bumps into the woman who has absolutely wrecked her chances at stardom.

One year after being hospitalized for a life-changing illness, Vivian is finally ready to get back into dating. Things are definitely looking up when a beautiful woman named Shari asks her out for drinks - and possibly more. Too bad the night turns whisky-sour when Shari not only rejects Vivian, but confirms her most self-conscious fears! Enter Kat the bartender, who has seen this train wreck of a date with her own observant eyes. It's not the first time Shari has destroyed a woman's self-confidence in one night, but it is the first time Kat has decided to personally cheer up a victim.

City girl Mikaiya "Mik" Marcott returns to her hometown to help her ailing grandmother. But who does she see first when she's barely reached the city limits? Ariana Mura, the girl whose heart she broke 10 years ago. Only Ari isn't a "girl" anymore. She's a grown woman who doesn't take crud from anyone. The lanky Ariana with a flower crown in her long hair is now the big and tough Ari, Paradise Valley's strongest EMT and all-around "native gal" the other townsfolk are prepared to defend.

Ten years ago, Jess Mills had her life changed when she crossed paths with Shannon Parker, the most beautiful girl at their small liberal arts college. But what Jess assumed to be nothing more than a crush on a straight girl turned into the night of her dreams senior year. Then? Nothing. Shannon was gone before graduation. But Jess's love for astrology and divination is about to come in handy now that Shannon is determined to face her feelings and understand the whim of the universe.

The fifth story in the Sins of Mercy series. Worn down by harassment at work, Mercy makes a new friend who informs her she needs to get “angry” again - to feel the rage of a woman scorned who won’t take bull from anyone and knows how to get what she wants. But how is Mercy to ever feel the sweet release of rage again? As fate would have it, a goddess is waiting for her. Wrath, the deity of righteous anger, wants to whip Mercy back into hating shape.

Since her visit from the first of the Seven Sinners, Mercy Devereux has been living a life of sin. At first, she enjoyed the renewed desires, but now they're starting to control her existence! How is Mercy supposed to live a life of insatiable sin without trading one addiction for another? The answer comes in the form of Avarice, the greedy goddess Mercy catches ransacking her house one night.

My name is Chiharu Morita. Of course, that is the name on this blog, so that is who I am. The Chiharu you know is only a shadow. Yes, I was in a group called Butterfly Tops. Now, I am a composer. The person responsible for some of the pop songs you hear on the radio. Those aren't the reasons you know me, though. You know me because of Yumi. The woman who comes into your living room every night on dramas, music shows, and radio request lines. The most famous woman in the country.

High in the mountains of central Japan, there's a town that makes it official business to invite in a host of spirits every summer. Helen's twin sister has drowned. After 60 years of relying on each other, Helen must now learn to not only work through her grief, but to embrace a life without the only person who ever mattered.

If anybody deserves a break, it’s Hesper Chess, the only registered CPA within 15 miles of Paradise Valley. Once tax season is over, she dreams of nothing but mai tais and sandy beaches. Too bad she knows a lot about personal finance, and can’t bring herself to spend the money! But before she can rest on her laurels, she hears a cry from one of the town’s many business owners. Florist Meadow Hobfield is being audited. She needs help. A lot of it. These two townspeople who have never shared many conversations are now about to spend a lot of time together.

Heaven’s Cafe is the social epicenter of Paradise Valley, but Heaven Mossberg doesn’t have much of a social life to show for it. Between the demanding small business life and dealing with her ex-husband’s pleas to get back together, there isn’t a lot of time for one 30-year-old to kick back and chill.

In the final installment of A Year in Paradise, we fly through town and catch up with every couple to grace the series so far. But while Christmas shopping and holiday parties light up the windows, one lonely resident comes to the unfortunate conclusion that Paradise Valley might not be for her.