Giving Thanks!

by Anne Holly

I wanted to wish all my American friends a happy Thanksgiving. I’m Canadian, so we’ve already had our Thanksgiving. Here, it falls in October, so it’s more of a harvest festival thing, and doesn’t celebrate any actual or legendary event. I like it that way – it’s further away from Christmas, the weather is still nice, and there are less guilty feelings about taking the turkey from the Native American neighbours, and promptly following that by taking everything else, as well. (No offense intended, there, just saying I always wondered if that would ruin my pie for me.)

So, then, how did a Canadian like me end up celebrating both Thanksgivings? Well, to add some complexity to my life, I married an American, making my son sorta-kinda “half-American” (is that even a term?), so I decided early on that I’d be dragging on the apron for that extra holiday every year. We’re vegetarians, so that means soy chicken breasts with the cranberry sauce, but I make a killer sage stuffing.

But why? Simply this – one cannot have too many nice, sit-down family dinners. Yes, they can get really obnoxious, I know, but when they work, they are lovely. Lots of food and a nice day to enjoy being together. And, the more you celebrate, the more chances we have per year to actually make the festivities. I, for one, am banking on my son growing up, getting married, and having to spend the Canadian Thanksgiving at his in-laws – well, I’m covered, because I can grab him in November. Or, he can cook, and I’ll go there to eat, which I like even better.

The long and the short of it is, eat, be with someone (or many someones) who matter, and be thankful for that, because there are a lot of people who don’t have food or loved ones. Those of us who do… well, we’re lucky as hell, even if it doesn’t always feel like it.

Now, Thanksgiving might not seem like a sexy season, or the most romantic time of year, but I included it in my five holiday sensual-romance series from Rebel Ink Press, and I hope I managed it. Charity is the story of a city girl without a family or a real home who finds both, as well as a heck of a lot of food, with a cowboy in the Montana wilds. In return, she helps him hold on to a family legacy that matters more to him than he understood.

I hope you enjoy this little excerpt:

“Sorry,” Joshua said softly, as her eyes opened the next morning.

“Hmmm?” she asked as she stretched. Her muscles bore a new soreness that hadn’t been there before. His sex had been rough, manful, and even she felt delicate in its wake.

He traced a small, blue mark on the inside of her arm with a fingertip, his touch now lighter than a feather on her ravaged body.

“I shouldn’t have...”

“Shhhh,” she said, pressing a kiss to his beloved lips. “I certainly didn’t mind,” she offered, smiling. “It was your turn to use me.” The gentle whisper of her voice took the bitterness out of the words and she put an arm behind his head to pull him into a hug.

“I should’ve treated you more gently,” he said, but the self-condemnation in his voice was easing. He bent over her and without meaning to, she knew their need was rising again, only this time like a soft breeze instead of a storm.

“I hate to ruin the mood,” she whispered into his neck, “but I really gotta pee.”

Laughing, he rolled back over on to the mattress and let her up.

“Good God, girl,” he groaned, his eyes pinned on her nude body padding towards the bathroom. “You’re good enough to eat – you better get back to this bed, pronto. I’ve got another need.”

Giggling at his compliments, Charity hurried to the washroom, “You better save some of that appetite for turkey,” she tossed over her shoulder as an afterthought.

“Oh, shit,” he groaned. “It’s Thanksgiving, isn’t it?”

She laughed as she closed the bathroom door, knowing he was contemplating lunch with a whole house filled with old biddies invited by Daisy and Kate which meant having to mind his manners when he least felt like it.

They’d have their morning in bed but she had some work to do. Whether Joshua liked it or not, Charity was going to help save him from himself.

For more info, please visit my Seasonal Tales page: http://annehollyholiday.webs.com/thanksgivingtales.htm

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Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I hope we’re all warm, filled and loved this holiday season and beyond.

- Anne Holly