His management style might not be HR approved, but he was the boss and she was his
personal assistant.
I'm so happy to be able to have Kathryn Blake as my guest today. Not only is Kathryn a great write, she is also spends great deal of time helping and encouraging other writers. Her are a few questions to help everyone get to know more about Katheryn and her latest book.
How many books have you written and are they all spanking fiction?
"Lessons in Love" is my eighth novel, but only my sixth spanking romance. My two other books are paranormal romances that have a bit of spanking in them, but aren't spanking romances by definition. So, all my books at least mention spanking and have dominant heroes struggling to protect independent heroines.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
My heroine has a lot of issues, including a huge helping of self-doubt, but the hero gets her to see herself the way he sees her. She's not entirely convinced he's not nearsighted, but she does finally accept that he loves her and he isn't trying to change her into something she's not. So, despite all her problems, she is worthy of being loved.
As a child, what did you wish to become when you grew up?
My aspirations changed as I grew up. At one point early on I thought I wanted to become a doctor or vet, but I can't stand to see anyone in pain, especially not children or animals, so that bubble burst. Ballet always interested me, but I've got two left feet, so didn't get very far with that one, either. I loved to act, so I was a bit of a drama queen. In college, I majored in drama, but I identified too closely with my characters, so I gave up that dream to identify with my characters through writing.
Short Blurb:
Pam Weston didn't have many choices as far as employment went. Her prison sentence saw to that. With limited secretarial skills, and an even more limited budget, she never considered herself executive material. So, when she was ordered to report to the CEO of her company as his new personal assistant, she fully expected to be checking out the "Help Wanted" section of the paper before the day was over.
Robert Peterson knew his management style was not HR approved, but he believed in using the stick as well as the carrot. Employing the tenets of domestic discipline, he helped mold his personal assistants into confident women who recognized their own self-worth. Even so, his unorthodox methods were only one of the reasons many considered the position of his assistant to be a revolving door. To Rob's mind, Pamela Weston was perfect for his purposes, though given her past, he expected convincing her to agree to his program would be a challenge.
Excerpt:
When Pam's temper tantrum results in her breaking glass in the bathroom and cutting her palms, Rob removes the glass and tends to her wounds, then orders her to take a seat in her bedroom.
Torn by a sense of guilt she shook her head as she rose. "I'll clean up the mess."
"No, you won't, Mrs. Andrews will. And, your first punishment will be to watch and do nothing while someone else is obliged to tidy up after you. Now, go take a seat on the padded bench." When she hesitated, he added, "I strongly suggest you not challenge me on this, Pam. The only reason you're not spread stomach down over my knees at this moment is because this mess needs attention, and I don't want to upset Mrs. Andrews any more than is necessary."
Nodding, Pam rose to hand him the towel, but he shook his head. "Keep it. You'll most likely need it later," he advised her, whipping out his cell phone.
"Mrs. Andrews? I realize you're about to go home, but we've had an accident. Could I ask you to stay a little longer and assist with the cleanup? Thank you. Pam's room. We have some shattered glass and blood…. No. No, everyone is fine. Just a few small cuts I've bandaged, so all we need is some jars replaced and the broken glass seen to before anyone else gets hurt. I hate to ask, but…. Thank you. I appreciate it."
He flipped his phone shut and stepped back into the bedroom. "When Mrs. Andrews arrives, I'll get some tablets for your discomfort. No doubt your hands are throbbing."
"They're okay," she murmured lifting her hands.
"No. Hold them palms up, fingers open and relaxed on the towel, so I can check for seepage."
"You seem extremely knowledgeable. Do you do a lot of bandaging?" she asked, her heart rate slowing in response to his calm assertiveness.
"No, but I did take a Red Cross first aid class several years ago. What about you?" At her puzzled look, he added, "You do this sort of thing often?" He nodded toward her bandaged hands.
She leaned back against the bed's low footboard. "I used to do it all the time but haven't felt the need for a few years."
He sat down next to her. "It's clear I need to impress upon you that I will fulfill all your needs for pain." Pam didn't respond. She knew he'd make her pay one way or another for her rashness. However, cutting herself helped ease her inner turmoil.
"So, what set you off, if I may ask?" When she gave a nod toward the closet, he frowned. "Your clothes?"
"Among other things."
He considered her words for a moment. "I see. You were upset we moved your belongings without discussing it with you first."
"Wouldn't you be?" she asked, but his answer was forestalled by Mrs. Andrews' arrival with mop, broom, pail and cleaning supplies.
Buy Links:
Blushing Books
Amazon-USA
Barnes & Noble
Bio:
Lessons in Love is Kathryn R. Blake's sixth novel with Blushing Books, and fifth spanking romance where Domestic Discipline is primary to the plot. Although Kathryn is relatively new to the spanking romance market, she is not new to stories where the hero spanks the heroine. In fact, most of her novels have some sort of spanking in them. However, even in Kathryn's novels where the hero firmly believes in using spanking as a deterrent, he has no desire to cause the heroine injury and takes no delight in hurting the woman of his heart. In fact, sometimes he finds it extremely difficult to follow through on his threats or promises.
To date, all of her heroes are dominant, alpha males who are extremely protective of the women they love. However, part of that protectiveness includes the need for a certain amount of control. They do not suffer defiance or disobedience lightly. Even so, these men aren't infallible, and they do make mistakes, but love and respect will always triumph in the end.
Kathryn has been a member of RWA since the early 1980s and has joined several local and special interest chapters. Besides writing, Kathryn enjoys traveling, reading, attending the theatre, and is a passionate lover of animals, so much so that in 2015 a stray cat adopted her. The stray now sleeps in Kathryn's bed. She has also recently taken up the expensive hobby of making and selling jewelry.
Her personal website, www.kathrynrblake.com, is filled with photos and links to information about her many interests as well as peppered with quizzes, contests, games and lots of other fun things to do and she loves to hear from her readers, so she has an e-mail link at the bottom of every page.
Social Links:
Thanks for sharing with us today Kathryn. I'm looking forward to reading more of your books.
