Synopsis                   (Published January 2002, Zebra)

Features the novella SEX & THE SINGLE CHOCOHOLIC

Candace Rowley, plain Jane owner of a small chocolate shop, needs to win a featured spot for her "Passion Truffles" in an upcoming movie.  Transforming herself into a sexy playgirl to promote her product quickly attracts the bachelor son of her company's biggest rival.  But does he want her heart, or her candy business?

Behind the Scenes Dish

This novella was an enormous boost for me early on. Not only did it put me in a chocolate-themed anthology headlined by industry powerhouse Janet Dailey, but it became my first USA TODAY bestseller. I remember landing this project while in the throes of another deadline. Trying to get it all done was driving me to near Mariah Carey GLITTER-era madness, and the only thing that got me through the rain was frequent talk-me-off-the-ledge phone consults with Stephanie Bond, one of my dearest friends and perhaps THE smartest and most organized girl in the universe. We met at a writer's conference in Atlanta, both of us the youngest in the room and unpublished dreamers at the time. I had just been treated like a mess on the side of the road by an editor and was contemplating forty-two tequila shots in one sitting. Steph reached out, informing me that she had recently received a rejection letter from the same woman and that the correspondence basically advised her to stop writing altogether. Needless to say, we were instant war buddies. As for that vile editor? The bitch got fired!