#BookBlitz Sweet as Sin (Bad Habit #1) by J.T. Geissinger

Twentysomething Kat Reid is loving life as an in-demand Hollywood makeup artist. She has absolutely no interest in rock ’n’ roll, but in order to pay the mortgage, she agrees to work on the set of a rock video for the world-famous rockers known as Bad Habit…which brings her face-to-face with Nico Nyx, lead singer of Bad Habit and Adonis in the flesh.

However, the fiercely independent Kat isn’t impressed by the hard-living, womanizing rock star. But when Nico’s model girlfriend shows up to the set drunk and Kat is tapped to replace her as the video’s sexy bride, her combustible chemistry with Nico suddenly threatens to consume the set. Nico feels it, too—and becomes determined to win Kat over, body and soul. Yet behind his rock god swagger, Nico hides a dark secret. Can he rock Kat’s world forever, or will he just break her heart?

What inspired your new Bad Habit series? What is it about?

I was a serious Van Halen fangirl when I was a teenager, and my best friend was a die-hard Zeppelin fan. We went to a million rock concerts together. Growing up in LA, one of the things to do on weekends was to go into Hollywood and hang out at all the famous rock clubs on Sunset strip, so I have tons of memories and experiences from that time. After I finished my paranormal Night Prowler series, I wanted to make a change to contemporary, and thought stories about a rock band would be a blast to write.

Please tell us more about members of the band?

Nico is the passionate, extroverted lead singer. He’s the hero of the first book in the series, Sweet As Sin. A.J. Edwards is the surly, tatted badboy drummer with a past even more screwed up than Nico’s. (If you read Sweet As Sin, you’ll know that’s pretty bad!) Then there’s Brody Scott, aka “Scotty,” the lead guitarist, who’s a bit of a fashion plate. Ethan and Chris are the keyboardist and bassist, respectively, but I don’t know too much about them yet because they haven’t told me.

What qualities does Nico have that make him a swoonworthy hero?

Nico is your typical alpha male, with a twist. He’s passionate and possessive, but not douchey, like so many alpha bad boys can be. He has a dirty mouth and loves to use it, but he’s very much into doing anything that will make Kat feel happy and protected. He loves to spoil her, and lets down his guard almost from the first moment they meet. He’s not one of those guys who sleeps with other girls to make Kat jealous, or acts wishy-washy about commitment. He’s all in, one hundred percent, from the get-go. He’s very intense, but he knows exactly what he wants, and will do anything to get it. And keep it.

What makes Nico and Kat perfect for each other?

They’re two damaged souls who are straight talking, no-bullshit kind of people. All the things that have happened to them in their pasts make them both very protective of and loyal to those they love. Both of them are mature beyond their years, both are sensitive and soulful, and both are willing to risk everything for love. They’re irresistible to one another.

What’s the most romantic thing Nico does for Kat?

Nico is a die-hard romantic, so he does a lot of over-the-top romantic things for Kat in the book. One of the most romantic is the mariachi band he flew in from Mexico to surprise Kat for her birthday. (They heard some mariachi music at a restaurant on their first date, and watched a movie together that had a mariachi song she loved, both of which he remembered.) She has a terrible story about why she hates her birthday, and Nico wanted to make her some better birthday memories. What comes along with the mariachis is a great surprise, and very Nico.

What’s your favourite scene in the book?

There’s too many to pick just one. But I love the scene when Nico first visits Kat at her house, and she asks him why he’s into her. Here’s a snippet:

“Can I ask you a serious question?”

He nodded.

I had to gather my courage for a second before I could ask him what was on my mind.

“Why me?”

I promise I wasn’t fishing for a compliment this time. I was just confused. This man could have any woman he wanted. Literally—any one. I thought I was better than average looking, but I certainly wasn’t a stunner. Especially in a town like L.A. where beautiful women practically grew on trees. I could be funny on occasion, and I’d been told by past boyfriends I had a quirky, adorable charm.

But I wasn’t on Nico’s level. I was boxing out of my class. If he was Mike Tyson, I was the guy who emptied the spit bucket. I just needed to understand.

“Could be those freckles. First girl I ever loved had freckles. I was six.” Nico regarded me very seriously, but I sensed the humor behind his tone. “Or it could be those Cleopatra eyes. Or that killer body. You got a woman’s body, classic hourglass curves made for a man’s hands.”

I blushed again, looking down.

Nico’s voice grew quiet. “Or it could be that when you look at me, I feel like I could fuckin’ fly.”

I looked up at him. Now he was deadly serious, staring at me with something like wonder.

“I don’t have a lot of real in my life, Kat. You’re real. Knew it when you stood up to me when I got mad at Avery. Protectin’ a girl you didn’t even know, puttin’ yourself out there for someone else. And not backin’ down an inch. I liked that. Liked it too that you didn’t let me push you around or intimidate you. You’d be surprised how old that shit gets, people bowin’ and scrapin’, thinkin’ they’re gonna get somethin’ outta you if they kiss your ass just right. And then you demanded I explain what the deal was with me and Avery before you’d even consider talkin’ to me about there bein’ anything between us. Which I loved, by the way. Shows you got class. And self-respect. To top it all off, you got two girlfriends who obviously love you and have your back, which means you’re a good friend. Which means you’re trustworthy. Which means fuckin’ everything to me.”

I let it all sink in, just breathing. I wasn’t sure if I trusted myself to speak.

“So that’s why I got you the necklace. That’s what we’re gonna have: trust. It’s important to me, and it’s important to you. All this other stuff . . . ” He squeezed me into a tight embrace, nuzzled his face into my neck, and inhaled deeply. “Is just a bonus.”

“Other stuff?” I sounded like Minnie Mouse I was so breathless.

He chuckled. “The way my dick gets hard just lookin’ at you. The way you get wet when I touch you.”

Oh, God. We were back to the dirty talk. And we were in my house. Alone.

Can you give us a sneak peek at the next book in the series?

The next book will star A.J. and Chloe, two characters that are introduced in Sweet As Sin. A.J. is the drummer for the band, and Chloe is one of Kat’s best friends. And the two of them can’t stand each other. But A.J. has some very good reasons why he wants to keep Chloe away. Honestly their book, Make Me Sin, is my favorite book I’ve ever written. It’s a pretty devastating read. I’ve never cried so much writing anything in my life! I can’t wait to hear what readers think of it.

“Here’s the thing, Nico—”

“Don’t overthink it, Kat. You wanna see me or not?”

My pulse was all over the place. I sat up, then regretted that move as the room began to

wobble. “I do.”

“What’s the address?”

“I wasn’t done talking.”

He cursed. I ignored it. “I do want to see you, but I just want to lay a few ground rules

before we start this whole . . . whatever this whole thing is.”

I waited for him to respond. He sounded like he was listening hard, and he didn’t answer,

so I plunged ahead. “I don’t want to just . . . um . . . ”

“You got a three-date rule, sweetheart?”

I was relieved that he sounded amused. Thank God he had a sense of humor.

“Because I can respect that. But you should realize that when you see me today, it’ll be

the third date. So the next time you see me, all bets are off.” His voice dropped. “And I wanna

see you again tomorrow.”

“We haven’t even had one date yet!”

“The shoot, then the restaurant. That’s two.”

His idea of what comprised a date was seriously impaired.

“Those don’t count as dates! We were working on the shoot, and you were only at the

restaurant for like five seconds. If I see you today, this will be our first date.”

I didn’t mention that he’d gotten the details of the three-date rule wrong. It was sex on the

third date, not after. I was trying to buy myself as much time as possible, because he was moving

at the speed of a rocket.

“Okay. I’ll give you the shoot. But the restaurant should count. Being with someone at a

restaurant is textbook definition of a date. No matter how long it lasted.”

I could not believe we were actually having this conversation. I sighed.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Now give me the fuckin’ address, Kat, before I wear a hole in the

damn rug.”

He was pacing?

“What part of town are you coming from? Because I need, like, a half hour to get cleaned

up.”

Nico’s response was a growl. I gave him the address.

“You’re in luck. I’m comin’ from the Hollywood Hills. It’ll take me at least forty-five

minutes to get to Venice in traffic.” He paused. “Or I could take the bike. That’ll get me there in

thirty.”

Was he screwing with me right now?

“You still there, Kat?”

“I’m still here.”

“I’m gonna be there in thirty minutes. You gonna be ready for me?”

Oh, the dark promise in that tone. I felt like I was standing at the edge of a cliff, looking

down. I already knew I was going to fall. The only question now was, how far?

And how hard?

And would the fall break me?

“I’ll be ready,” I whispered.

Nico’s voice was almost a purr. “Darlin’, that’s exactly what I’ve been waitin’ to hear.”

Before I could say another word, Nico hung up.

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