Hi guys! We have Elyse Springer popping in today with her new lesbian release Thaw, we have a short intro from Elyse, a great excerpt and a fantastic giveaway, so check out the post and leave a comment to enter the giveaway! <3 ~Pixie~

Thaw

(Seasons of Love 02)

Elyse Springer

Abigail is content with her quiet life as a librarian. But when she’s invited to a high-profile charity auction, she finds herself dancing with one of the most beautiful women she’s ever met. Abby’s sure she’ll never see her again, but then Gabrielle calls and asks her on a date. And soon after, another.

Supermodel Gabrielle Levesque has a reputation as the Ice Queen—cold and untouchable—except she warms up whenever she’s with Abby. Only Abby isn’t interested in the heat between them; she’s asexual, and she’s worried that admitting as much to Gabrielle might spell the end of their blooming romance.

They’re two different women from two very different worlds, but Abby knows she can love Gabrielle. Her passion for books, travel, and theater prove there’s more to the Ice Queen than meets the eye.  But they’ll have to overcome Abby’s fears—and Gabrielle’s own threatening secrets—in order to find their way to love.

Elyse Springer!

Hello and welcome to the blog tour for Thaw! This F/F romance is the second in my “Seasons of Love” quartet, but stands alone– though readers of Whiteout may recognize some familiar faces. Thaw features an asexual librarian from Brooklyn, who meets an ice-cold super model from Canada, and I hope you’ll read on to learn more about Abby and Gabrielle’s romance.

Of course, don’t forget to drop a comment on this post… one lucky winner will get a $10 Amazon gift card!

Excerpt!

The party was finally winding down, and the big clock on the wall said it was well past midnight. Time to turn into a pumpkin, Abby thought. She wriggled her toes in her shoes, wondering if she would ever get the feeling back in her feet.

Nathan was talking with some of the other actors across the room, and a few dancers still lingered on the floor, not quite ready to give up on the night and head home. Abby sighed, swallowed down a yawn, and dug her nails into her palms to avoid rubbing her eyes and smudging the makeup.

An arm wound around her own, startling her awake, and she looked over to see a flash of red before she was suddenly being turned. “Dance with me,” a woman’s voice said.

“Excuse me?” Abby tried to pull away, but the grip on her arm was firm. Then there was a soft body pressed against hers, and red. So much red, filling her vision.

The Ice Queen.

“Please, I’m begging you. Just for a moment.” The woman had an accent, barely noticeable beneath the clipped words. “I’ll pay you back for this. Just, I need you to dance with me. One song.”

Abby moved back far enough to study her abductor. It was the woman in the red dress, certainly, but she didn’t have the fierce radiance from before. Instead she seemed . . . tired. A little sad. Something in her eyes said that she might even be desperate, and Abby found herself swallowing her objections and nodding.

“Okay. Only for a few minutes though.”

The woman relaxed against her. “Thank you.”

They moved in silence for a while, bodies swaying to the music. The woman was warm, the smooth skin of her bare arms making Abby shiver when it brushed against her own. She tried to take in as much detail as possible: flawless skin a shade of brown that was clearly natural, not artificial, eyes so dark that they were almost black. Makeup highlighting features that were already stunning.

“You’re staring.” The woman shifted, and a hand brushed against the small of Abby’s back, touch light but sensual.

It was definitely a blushing night. “Sorry.”

“No need to apologize. I think staring is the least of the payments you can demand from me right now.”

“Will you tell me why you’re so desperate for a dance?” Abby asked.

The woman turned her wordlessly, so Abby could see across the room. It took her only a second to spot the man glowering at them from one of the tables. She glanced away quickly, rotating the rest of the way around until the man was out of sight again.

“My manager,” the woman said.

“He doesn’t look at you like he’s just your manager.”

The woman gave a sharp smile, but there was no humor in it. “And so you see why I was so desperate to escape for a few minutes.”

“Oh.” And what else could she say?

“What’s your name, little rabbit?” The woman pulled Abby closer, brushing their cheeks together and speaking low words against Abby’s ear. “What should I call my rescuer this evening?”

“A-Abby,” she stuttered. She could feel Gabrielle against her, around her, warm and soft, and it made her shiver. “I mean. Abigail.”

The woman gave her another tiny smile, but this time it reached her eyes. “Abigail.” With that faint accent, the word sounded like a caress instead of just a name. “Thank you again. I do owe you.”

“What’s yours?”

“My name?” The woman seemed almost surprised to be asked that, as though it wasn’t a question she heard often. Abby remembered what Tony had said. “They call her the Ice Queen.” This was someone who had a reputation. Someone Abby would know if she really belonged here tonight. “Please call me Gabrielle.”

Her accent became more pronounced when she said her name, French to Abby’s untrained ear.

“And, ah,” Gabrielle said, “there we go.” She shifted away ever so slightly, and the air that rushed between them felt cold after being surrounded by such tenderness. Gabrielle turned Abby again, in time for Abby to see the glaring man get up and stalk off in the direction of the restroom. “He’s had too much to drink tonight. It was only a matter of time.”

As they finished the rotation, Abby twisted her head to watch the man vanish from the room. She glanced back at Gabrielle, opened her mouth to ask a question, then closed it.

Gabrielle appeared more alive than she had before, eyes bright and features relaxing, as though every inch between her and her manager gave her more energy. “And now, mon lapin, I’m afraid I need to leave you. Thank you for the dance.”

“Wait!” Gabrielle had taken a step back, but paused when Abby spoke. “You’re leaving?”

“I have a chance to make my escape. I’ll have to be quick, and hope I can get to the car before he returns. Sometimes it is better to retreat from battle than to continue fighting, but I am sure I will have my victory in the end.” She looked Abby over, taking her in from head to toe, and tapped a manicured finger against her lips. Then she smiled, sharp and calculating. “I believe I owe you a proper thank-you. Give me your number.”

Abby blinked. “I don’t have a pen.”

“I’ll remember it.”

And that was one Abby had heard before. A brush-off, a polite method of extending the fiction a bit longer until Gabrielle could go on her way and forget that she had ever met Abby and danced with her.

“Abigail.” Gabrielle’s eyes bored into Abby’s own with an intensity that made Abby’s mouth dry. She brushed a hand along Abby’s jaw, cupping it and holding her gaze. “I will remember. I swear it.”

Abby rattled off the number before she could stop herself.

Gabrielle gave her a real smile now, one that made her eyes shine and thawed her, if only for a second. “Thank you.” She took Abby’s hand, placing a kiss on the back of it like a scene from an old black-and-white film. “And now I reallymust go. Good night, Abigail.”

She turned, a flare of red silk and long black hair, and swept out the door, leaving Abby alone on the dance floor.

“What the hell just happened?” Abby muttered to herself.

She glanced around, half expecting everyone to be staring at her, or to see the entire place had transformed while she’d been absorbed in Gabrielle’s words and in her arms. But no one was looking at her, and no one seemed to have noticed the famous model dancing with a nobody librarian.

No, not no one. The man, Gabrielle’s manager, had just walked back into the room. He was glaring at Abby from the doorway. Abby swallowed, quickly exited the dance floor, and put as much distance between herself and the man as she could.

Read more at: http://riptidepublishing.com/titles/thaw (just click the excerpt tab)

Seasons of love series

New York is the city that never sleeps: where everything can change in the blink of an eye, and where anything is possible—especially romance. In the bitter cold of winter or the impossible humidity of mid-summer, your own happily ever after might be right around the corner.

The people of New York come from all walks of life, and the relationships are just as diverse. So whether you’re a waiter or an aspiring actor, a banker or a model, falling in love can happen quicker than the seasons change.

Check out Seasons of Love! Seasons of Love

About Elyse

Elyse is an author and world-traveler, whose unique life experiences have helped to shape the stories that she wants to tell. She writes romances with LGBTQ+ characters and relationships, and believes that every person deserves a Happily Ever After. When she’s not staring futilely at her computer screen, El spends her time adding stamps to her passport, catching up on her terrifying TBR list, and learning to be a better adult.

She’s always happy to chat with other readers, and you can find her online at:

• Website: http://elspringer.com
• Twitter: @ElyseSpringer
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elysespringerwrites

Giveaway!

To celebrate the release of Thaw, one lucky winner will receive a $10 Riptide credit!

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Check out the other blogs on the tour!