Once Upon A Valentine – Sylvia McDaniel

Thanks Cynthia for having me on your blog today and giving me the opportunity to tell your readers about  the new box set I’m in called Once Upon a Valentine. One hundred percent of earned royalties go directly to the American Society of Autism to help fund programs that support families with children on the spectrum. For only 99 cents you get twelve new stories and help a great cause.

            I’m thrilled to have a new book in the box set called CUPID STUPID. Now wait…I’m not saying that Cupid is stupid, but sometimes he makes people act a little crazy. And in the small town of Cupid, Texas not only is there a statue of the God of Love, but also a superstition. At midnight dance naked around the Cupid statue in the town square and you will find your true love.

After a night of drowning their sorrows in a bottle of wine, my heroine and her friends decide to test the superstition. Three upstanding women in the communitiy, dancing naked in the town square…leads to trouble and maybe even love.

Here is an excerpt from my story Cupid Stupid.

Squealing, they ran the final two blocks to the fountain. They arrived, huffing and puffing, and stopped to stare at the sculptured God of Love.

“Dancing around this statue is going to help us find the man of our dreams?” Kelsey questioned. “Whoever made up this shit is sitting back somewhere laughing at how many fools stripped off their clothes and danced in the moonlight.”

“In the middle of freaking winter,” Meghan added.

Part of Taylor agreed with Kelsey, but the other part, the more reckless and wild part, urged her on. “Come on, girls, we’re doing this. We’re going to prove this is either the biggest farce in town, or it’s going to work for my friends. Just not for me.”

“I hope this is worth it,” Meghan said as they all began to remove clothing, each one looking to make certain they weren’t the only one stripping.

“Will it look funny if I leave my boots on?” Kelsey asked.

“Naked. You have to be naked according to the superstition,” Taylor said, yanking off her footwear, the cold stones hard against her feet.

“As soon as the church bell strikes midnight, we’re going to dance around the statue for one minute. Then I’m putting my clothes on and walking home,” Meghan said, shivering in the buff. “You girls are going to be the death of me yet. If I come down sick–”

“We’ll have a hot looking guy deliver you a box of Kleenex and chicken soup.”

Kelsey started laughing. “Look, girls, I got a boob job while I was in college. Aren’t they nice?”

She held up her tits for all to see and Meghan turned away groaning. “What am I doing?”

“I’m not looking at your breasts,” Taylor said, giggling as she removed her bra. Maybe this wasn’t one of her smarter ideas. The cold had her own poor nipples shriveled to the size of a raisin.

“Hurry, midnight is almost here,” Meghan said, her words slurred from the alcohol. “Let’s do this and put our clothes back on before we catch pneumonia.”

“We better get some action from this,” Kelsey replied, jumping up and down on the sidewalk, nude.

“And not legal action,” Taylor said with a giggle.

After she finished undressing, she folded her jeans and sweater neatly and placed them on a bench. “Okay, I’m ready. Let’s do this.”

Passing the bottle of wine one more time, laughing and chuckling and hoping the alcohol would give them some much needed warmth, Taylor tried not to look down.

“We’re being so naughty,” Meghan said, giggling drunkenly. “Never again.”

“Oh, come on, next week we’re taking you skinny dipping at the lake,” Kelsey said.

“Not during the winter, we’re not,” Taylor replied.

The church bells started to chime. With a scream, they laughed and began to run and dance, giggling hysterically as the three of them ran around the God of love.

“Oh, Cupid statue find us our true love,” they chanted as they danced nude around the fountain in the town square, laughing at the absurdness of what they were doing.

“Nuts,” Meghan said. “All this is going to do is give us frostbite on our girly bits.”

Taylor thought she might be right, but what a way to go. It felt freeing and exhilarating and she couldn’t think of a single crazy thing that could top this outing.

Headlights turned onto the street and they glanced at each other, their eyes wide. Shrieking, their hands trying to cover their female parts, they ran but their clothes were too far away.

“Oh no,” Meghan said.

Red beacons flashed on top of the car. A shiver of fear raced down Taylor’s spine setting panic into motion.

“Run, girls,” Taylor yelled. “Run, it’s the sheriff. Everyone split up, he can’t arrest us all.”

Kelsey and Meghan ran in different directions, running down the intersecting streets, leaving their clothes and purses behind.

Taylor wasn’t departing without her boots. The footwear had set her back almost a month’s pay and she couldn’t leave them on a park bench. Grabbing her stuff, she tried to pick up her friends’ as well, but her arms were full.

Lights shined on her.

“Halt,” a man’s voice instructed. “Drop everything.”

Oh great, she was the one who would be going to jail for dancing in her birthday suit in the public square.

Proceeds go to Autism from February 14 to March 14! Available for .99 cent Preorder Now

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