Welcome Stevie MacFarlane! We haven't had the pleasure of chatting privately before. So first, of course, the obvious question. How did you become a writer?
Stevie: I think I’ve always been a writer, just not very structured. In 1991 I wrote Changing Her Mind, partly to challenge myself that I could actually write a novel and as a way to deal with the tremendous amount of stress I was under. My husband was very ill and I was devastated. Writing helped me escape into another world.
Kallista: I think many of us turn to writing as an escape. If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
Stevie: I’ve had a couple of authors show me extraordinary kindness, Mary Quast and Maggie Ryan. They are terrific women and I’m lucky to have found them. They were there for me when I needed them.
Kallista: We're glad they encouraged you, since without them we might never have been able to find out just what The Trouble With Abby is! Tell us a little about your new book.
Stevie: Abigail Steven's life changed the moment she woke up in Connor McCabe's bed. The former Navy Seal has his own code of conduct, and is hell-bent on teaching Abby a thing or two about proper behavior, for her own good, of course. Abby thinks the bossy, overgrown G.I Joe is gorgeous. He made her heart flutter and her knees weak, but she is perfectly capable of taking care of herself. After all, she has a black belt for cripes sake.
Connor disagrees and has no problem pulling her over his knee for a little convincing. Adjusting a naughty female attitude is right up his alley. When trouble comes to The O'Malley family, Abby and Connor suddenly find themselves up to their necks in danger. The women need a hero, but who will it be?
Thank you, Stevie for treating us to this nice long look at The Trouble With Abby:
Pulling a black lace nightgown from one rack, she held it up to her body.
“What do you think? Is this worth $3,000?” she asked.
“Maybe on you,” he answered with a grin, “but for the average customer, no, I don’t think so.”
“Me neither,” she sighed in disgust as she pulled large handfuls of hangers from the rack and carried the garments to the counter. “I must have been out of my mind when I priced these things.”
“It’s alright, babe. You were probably tired. Mistakes happen,” he said, leaning against the wall, watching her.
“I can’t afford these kinds of mistakes,” she snapped. “All it would take is for one customer to come in here and see prices like that and I could be ruined. My store would be a failure if word got around that I was way over-priced. I have to stay competitive if I’m going to make it.”
He watched her hands shaking as she snipped all the tags off. “Abby, you need to take it easy. I know you’re stressed,” he continued, walking behind the counter and putting his big hands on her shoulders, massaging gently. “Relax.”
“Really? You think I should just relax when my whole future is riding on this? When I’ve sunk every dime of my money into this place and a huge amount of small business loans besides?” she said, spinning to glare at him. “I’ll be bankrupt if this place doesn’t turn a profit,” she shouted, pushing away from him. “I could end up homeless, out on the street,” she continued.
“Now you’re really on a roll,” Connor replied, trying to hide his grin. “Don’t you think you’re exaggerating, just a little?”
“No! And now some psycho is threatening the people I care about most. You’re supposed to be good at this stuff, covert operations and all that. Why don’t you go find this guy and just…shoot him or something? You’ve got a big gun,” she pointed out.
“Bloodthirsty little thing aren’t you?” Connor said, smiling as he scooped her up into his arms and began walking toward the dressing rooms.
“What are you doing?” she screeched. “I don’t have time for a quickie!”
“We are going to have a little talk, you and I,” he informed her, pushing open the door of the largest room with the toe of his boot. Three of the walls were mirrored and a matched pair of floral loveseats provided comfortable seating. Putting her on her feet, he sat and spread his knees, pulling her between them. “First of all, I can’t just go and shoot someone and I wouldn’t even if I could. Would I like to beat the piss out of him for what he’s done? You bet I would,” he growled.
Abby was eye-level and he was sure she saw the truth of that in his eyes when she backed up a step. Snagging the waist of her jeans, he hauled her back.
“Second, I want your store to be a success, I really do, but no more talk about your life being over if it isn’t,” he ordered. “You do have a future, with me, and you damn well know it. I want you to stop acting like what we have, our relationship, means nothing. Do you hear me?” he said sternly, popping the snap at her waist and sliding her jeans down to mid-thigh. Gripping the cheeks of her ass, he gave them a little squeeze.
“Well, it can’t mean much,” she sassed, struggling to pull her pants back up.
“Oh, and why would you say that?” he asked, surprised.
“I don’t see anything on this finger,” she snapped, wiggling the ring finger of her left hand in his face.
“Do you love me?” he asked clearly.
“When I don’t hate you,” she drawled sweetly.
Connor released her butt and ran his hand through his short hair, sighing.
Spinning, Abby took two steps, preparing to run, but her pants caught her up and she started to tumble to the floor. In a flash, he hooked his strong arm under her belly and pulled her over his knees. He stripped her jeans and panties off her kicking legs and slapped her bottom crisply.
“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m the old-fashioned type,” he informed her, swatting her again and enjoying the sight of his pink hand print.
“Oh, I’ve noticed,” she squealed, “a real Neanderthal.”
“As a rule, I’m not particularly fond of bossy, pushy women,” he continued, spanking her rapidly with five more smacks.
“No kidding?” Abby gasped.
“Yes, it’s true,” he sighed, grinning at her in the mirror and watching as she nervously bit her lip. “A man likes to do things in his own way, on his own timetable. He doesn’t like to be rushed making big decisions and marriage is about the biggest in my book,” he said, letting his hand fall another three times.
“I understand,” she cried, hissing as he rubbed her bottom.
“No, I don’t think you do, baby. I don’t believe in divorce and that means you’ll be stuck with me and I with you for all eternity. I want us both to go into it with our eyes wide open. In other words, marriage shouldn’t be lust-inspired,” he continued, spanking her five more times.
Buy Links:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Q0JX3PY
Blushing:http://www.blushingbooks.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=3105
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-trouble-with-abby-blushing-books/1120809322?ean=2940150643956
Author Bio:
Stevie MacFarlane lives in rural upstate New York with her family. When not cooking for her large family she can be found curled up with a good book or writing her heart out. She currently has eleven books published and you can find them on Blushing Books, Amazon, Barnes & Nobel as well as other popular sites. You can connect with Stevie in the following ways and she loves her hear from readers.
Website: http://www.steviemacfarlane.com
Blog: http://steviemacfarlane.weebly.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stevie.macfarlane.7
Email: www.steviemacfarlane@aol.com
Twitter: @StevieMac1175
Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/1ux9Qoq
