Recipe for Romance - Spice it Up by Sage Marlowe

Good morning! Welcome to the Weird, the Wild, & the Wicked. Today my good friend and erotic romance author Sage Marlowe has taken over Recipe for Romance to give you ideas of how to make your own love life a little more romantic. Just in time for Saturday night, yes?

A lot of romance books focus on the beginning of a relationship, or rather, the path that leads two (or more) people to finding their significant others, the people they want to spend the next stage of their lives with. In that exciting phase, romance comes fairly easily: everything is new and exciting, and the simple suggestion to stay in on a rainy afternoon and snuggle up on the sofa in front of the TV qualifies as a big romantic gesture.
 
But what happens next? Reality replaces romance, jobs and bills become more important than kissing and touching. If you have children, you’ll be discussing education rather than excitement and before you know it, the only reason for you to really, really want to go to bed right now is to—sleep. If you nodded just now, then face it, everyday life has made romance (and quite possibly your sex-life) a bit bland.
 
Here’s the good news: It doesn’t have to be that way. You don’t need to do much to spice up your romance, just use your imagination—or, if you’re too tired to be creative, you can borrow my Recipe for Romance. This recipe can be used for both purely romantic and erotic purposes.

RECIPE FOR ROMANCE
A child-free setting and some time
Your partner(s)
A romance novel / novella of your choice (preferably one you’ve read as that will shorten preparation time considerably and allow you to choose the appropriate setting)
Any additional ingredients mentioned in the book / scene of your choice (For instance, my men have used pretty much anything from each other’s bodies to chocolate mousse to handcuffs and unusual toys)
Choose a favorite scene / setting from the book.

If additional ingredients / tools are required, use or apply them as suggested in the story but do feel free to add your own alterations any time you feel like it. If you find it difficult to get in the mood, you might want to start out with some role play and act out the scene.
 
This recipe can be served as spicy as you like it. Preparation time and heat level depend on the book you choose. Recommendations for spicy scenes and ingredients can be found in all of Sage’s books, but if you like showers and chocolate mousse with your romance, you will find some suggestions in:

FANTASY FOR SALE

What's the price of reality when a fantasy is for sale?

Cam is young, sinfully sexy and willing to play without limits, a combination which makes him a fantasy turned to flesh for men and women alike - and he's for sale.

Nate is curious when it comes to carnal delights but hasn't found the right man to explore his desires with.

When a friend buys Nate a few hours of pleasure with Cam, it's not much of a surprise that Nate ends up intrigued. He keeps coming back for more and the attraction between them appears to be mutual but while Nate finds himself falling for the sexy hooker, Cam makes no secret of the fact that for him, sex is just a job.

Determined to win him over, Nathan tries to show him that sex is about more than physical satisfaction but Cam's walls seem impenetrable until a dramatic event forces him to reveal some of his secrets and Nate begins to understand that Cam pays more than just the price for the reality behind the fantasy.

Mix and serve immediately. Feeds the souls of two or more. :)

EXCERPT of Fantasy for Sale (NSFW)

“You know what?” she told Cam slowly, tauntingly. “How about you stay a little longer and take care of Nathan?” Cam raised an eyebrow but didn’t answer.

I didn’t possess such control. “Cyn, no!” I cut in. “Seriously, I—”

“Shut up, Nate! It’s my treat.” She hadn’t taken her eyes off Cam. “Would you, hon? I feel kind of bad, you know? I had so much fun last night and the poor darling hasn’t got laid in weeks. Would you make him happy for me?”

Cam did another of those looking-from-one-to-the-other-and-back routines, then he shrugged and smiled. “Sure. What do you want me to do?”

“Anything he wants.” She fumbled briefly in her purse and slipped a bundle of notes into Cam’s hand. “That should cover it.” Winking at me, she turned to leave but stopped at the door. “Oh, and Cam? Make him scream.” Vixen grin firmly in place, she spun around and left us alone. Me. Him. Alone. Me alone with him.

I developed a very serious interest in the layout of the bathroom tiles. Had that light grey pattern really been in them all along? And why had no one realised that the pattern on one of them was facing the wrong way and… I became aware of Cam coming closer, but I just couldn’t make myself look up from the floor. Cam chuckled softly and tucked a finger under my chin, gently forcing my face up to make me meet his eyes.

“You okay?” His voice was low and intimate, teasing my ears just like the sight of his smiling mouth teased my libido.

“Yeah, I just, uh, I guess I’m just more than a bit surprised.” I gave a shaky laugh. “Trust Cynthia to come up with stupid ideas.”

“I don’t think it’s a stupid idea.” Cam sounded perfectly calm, which only served to make me even more nervous. I shuddered under his inquisitive look.

“But…you just spent the night with her and now you…you would…with me. And she… Oh, fuck,” I groaned. “This is weird.”

Cam’s gaze locked with mine. “There’s nothing weird about it, Nathan. It’s only sex, no strings attached. She wants you to enjoy it, so don’t spoil it by thinking too much.”

“But I-I’ve never…” I stammered, helpless under Cam’s stare and increasingly incoherent.

“There’s a first time for everything,” Cam rasped, leaning in a little closer. “Don’t think. Feel.”

He lowered his head and brushed his lips over my mouth in a first tender touch. Thoughts ran havoc in my mind, not all of them logical. He was a whore. Whores didn’t kiss—did they? This one definitely did. He hesitated for a few heartbeats then came back for more, the caress longer and more intense this time. I moaned as his wet tongue parted my lips ever so gently and the pressure of his mouth against mine increased. What was I doing? I couldn’t…shouldn’t… But why did it feel so natural to open up to Cam, and why did I have this need to lean into him when he put his arms around me and pulled me close?

He was half-naked, and his skin was still moist from the shower. He smelled so fucking good, clean, just a bit musky and the feel of his solid body where it touched mine made my nerve endings tingle with pleasure. Our kiss, his kiss, deepened, a slow, tentative tangling of tongues, as he licked and explored my mouth. He was in control and I liked it. I liked how he played and rambled like an eager puppy and yet unerringly discovered all the caresses I enjoyed. Cam was a good kisser and his height forced me to tilt my head up, causing an unfamiliar angle that only added to my growing arousal. And he wasn’t left unaffected either. He pushed his groin against mine, pressed the hard ridge there to my own throbbing erection. I thought the friction alone would bring me off, but then he started nibbling and licking from my ear, along my neck to my collarbone and I was busy shuddering and jolting under his talented tongue.

What are your favorite romance novel scenes? Aspiring cooks want to know! :)

Sage Marlowe is a multipublished author of M/M romance novels and novellas, and loves exploring the flavors of gay erotic fiction.

A willing slave to all the fascinating guys who keep queuing up and want their stories told, Sage can almost always be found cooking up the next hot story or new ways of rubbing sexy male bodies together to make sparks fly.