BACK to the BEACH

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, ROXANNE ST. CLAIRE,  brings readers back to the sun-drenched beaches of Barefoot Bay, where love is always in the air! In the brand new Billionaires of Barefoot Bay trilogy, meet a trio of sexy heroes and the most unlikely ladies who steal their hearts!

SECRETS ON THE SAND

Barefoot Bay Billionaires #1

Zeke Nicholas has turned his mathematical genius skills into a mountain of money. But Zeke sits on that mountain all alone, longing for the one thing money cannot buy: a lifelong partner and true love. Enter Mandy Mitchell...the maid at his thousand-dollar-a-night resort.

The minute they meet, Mandy knows he’s exactly the kind of trouble she should avoid...but Zeke does have one thing Mandy needs to gain the independence she craves. Will he give it to her? One look at Mandy, and Zeke turns his relentless ability to get what he wants into a full-on seduction and he’s ready to give her anything. But can Mandy face down the secrets of her past to find a fairy-tale future with Zeke?

Read a little, Buy the books

SEDUCTION ON THE SAND

Barefoot Bay Billionaires #2

Like everything in his life, becoming a billionaire was easy for Elliott Becker. He bought some land in Massachusetts and discovered he sat on two billion dollars worth of rare Goshen stone. Lucky, charming, and blessed with every gift from every god, Elliott expects his simple purchase of property in Barefoot Bay will go the way everything does for him in life...easy. Until he meets the woman who currently owns that land and suddenly everything is...hard.

Frankie Cardinale’s fondest memories took place on the tiny goat farm owned and run by her “Nonno” in the heart of Barefoot Bay. As a child, the farm and its precious residents were a refuge for her after her parents died and her grandfather taught her all about “the sweet life” of raising goats. While she held her Nonno in her arms on his deathbed, she promised his land would never leave their family and that she would continue his legacy. Nothing -- not even a sexy, playful, intoxicating billionaire who always gets his way -- will convince her to break that promise.

Except Elliott Becker is a man who always gets what he wants even if that means a little seduction and double-crossing of a humble goatherd. But will his lucky streak hold long enough to keep him from making the biggest mistake of his life? Because it doesn't take long for Elliott to realize that all the money in the world can’t buy him what he really wants the most...her love.

SCANDAL ON THE SAND

Barefoot Bay Billionaires #3

Coming This Weekend

Nathaniel Ivory is known in the tabloids as “Naughty Nate,” and this son of a huge, wealthy family that’s often referred to as “American Royalty” has done everything he can to earn that nickname.  Nate’s penchant for trouble has kept him from fully earning a respectable spot in the many family businesses.  He’s forever destined to be the black sheep whose scandals need to be swept under the rug.  But Nate is determined to change all that through his new position as the manager of the minor league baseball stadium and team that he and his friends are launching in Barefoot Bay.  All he has to do is avoid even a hint of scandal.

But then he meets Liza Lemanski, an arresting and irresistible woman who makes some claims about his past that rock him to the core.  Liza maintains that Nate has a son who is a result of a fling he had with her best friend, who died in an accident.  Liza plans to adopt  the child, but wants to eliminate any chance Nate will claim paternity rights.  No problem...he doesn’t even believe he has a son, and thinks the whole thing is probably a scam.  Until he sees until he sees four year old Dylan and recognizes every Ivory gene in the child. 

All he has to do is give up his child to save himself from yet another scandal, but suddenly Nate is looking at life differently.  As he and Liza dig to find out the truth about Dylan's father and mother, their attraction turns to fire and, without a doubt, someone is going to get burned.

AT THE BEACH AGAIN

ANGI: How often are you "barefoot in the sand"?

ROCKI:   Often! I live less than a mile from the beach and I go as often as I can.  I’m on the east coast, unlike the fictional island of Barefoot Bay, so I get dreamy sunrises instead of romantic sunsets.  My best days start off with a walk on the sand -- it gets me going for a great writing day!

ANGI: What’s your favorite cartoon character?

ROCKI:   I’m a huge SpongeBob fan.  I love his enthusiasm, optimism, innocence, and loyalty.  I don’t watch as much as I did when I had little ones, and I miss him!

ANGI: Has any movie influenced you lately?

ROCKI:   I don’t know if anything has “influenced” me, but . . .

ANGI: Is there a special song for you and your special hero?

ROCKI:  My husband? Hmmm.  Yes, we have special songs -- our favorite is “Someday, Somewhere” from West Side Story.  We’re always dreaming about the “next thing” and it’s important to remember that “someday” is today.

ANGI: Where's your favorite place to visit?

ROCKI:   Anywhere my family is! My siblings are mostly on the west coast, so anytime we have a wedding or reunion, I’m happily off to California to be with the people I love most in the whole world.   

ANGI: What's your favorite time of day?

ROCKI:   I’m fortunate to live on a wide waterway and in a great climate, so my very favorite time of day early morning when I slip out and take a long kayak ride to watch the sun come up.  I see dolphins and manatees (and gators, if I’m not careful!) and absolutely love the still water first thing in the morning. 

ANGI: What's your favorite part of a romance story?

ROCKI:   The first meet! Of course, I love a great first kiss, the dark moment, and a super-satisfying HEA, but there is nothing like that toe-curling, breath-taking, shiver-inducing moment when two people meet and electricity arcs! I love when an author nails that scene because I know I’m in for a great ride!

ANGI: What's your favorite and least favorite thing about the beach?

ROCKI:   Favorite: the constant motion of the surf -- it NEVER stops.  Least favorite: sand on the skin after applying sunscreen.  I always feel like a human emery board when I’m leaving the beach.

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: Can you share a little about the 1992 Hurricane that inspired the opening scene of BAREFOOT IN THE SAND?

ROCKI’s GOTTA ANSWER:   

Barefoot in the Sand opens during a powerful hurricane that forces the heroine and her daughter to hole up in a bathtub under a mattress and pray to survive.  I’ve been there.  On August 24, 1992, one of the worst hurricanes in the history of this country slammed into Dade County, Florida, and changed hundreds of thousands of lives, including mine.

 

Exactly one month pregnant with a baby that had taken four years and a quadrillion deals with God to conceive, I decided to spend the night at my sister’s house when Hurricane Andrew approached Miami.  It wasn’t too bad just eight miles north, and we headed home the next day hopeful our house had survived.  But when we arrived at what we thought was our street -- all the trees were uprooted or stripped bare and not a single street sign survived -- all we could do was stare. 

The house was there, but not much else.  Inside, all the ceilings had collapsed, leaving snow drifts of insulation.   Everything was caked in mud, drywall, and broken glass. Every remaining wall was green from the chlorophyll in the leaves that had blown around during what had to have been mini-tornadoes in the house.

I almost lost it right then and there because EVERYTHING was destroyed.  But my husband was the one who reminded me that the storm had not taken the only thing that mattered: that baby we had longed to have!

And that, of course, was the lesson of Hurricane Andrew.  When Mother Nature has a temper tantrum and breaks all your stuff, the only thing that really matters are the people that are left. 

When I needed the catalyst to set BAREFOOT IN THE SAND and start the Barefoot Bay series, I could draw on the lessons I learned from surviving and rebuilding after a hurricane.

Oh, “the baby” turns 21 this April.  And, no, we didn’t name him Andrew.

  

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PREVIOUS RELEASES by ROXANNE:

Check out the website for a complete backlist. Especially the other BAREFOOT BAY series:

The four books of the original Barefoot Bay series tell the stories of four lifelong friends who come together on the shores of the fictional island of Mimosa Key to build and run a small upscale resort. Each book in the quartet stands entirely alone, but the characters of Barefoot Bay series appear in all the books. The novels take place over a period of two years, starting with the hurricane that destroys Barefoot Bay and ending with a successful launch of a dreamy resort called Casa Blanca Resort & Spa.

ROXANNE is giving away a signed copy of  BAREFOOT BY THE SEA to a North America Reader. You must leave your email address in the comments.

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NEXT UP ON GLIAS: I'll be back tomorrow with Pamela Hearon.  ~Angi Morgan

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ROXANNE WANTS TO KNOW: What is the most beautiful beach you’ve ever visited?  (Mine would be Venus Point Beach in Tahiti.  I had the chance to visit Tahiti many years ago and will never forget the stunning pink and black sands and crystal clear water.  A dream beach, for sure!  But then, I’m also pretty happy with my little slice of the Atlantic Ocean known as “Satellite Beach” -- not a exotic but still great!)