It's Live...

Amazon
Barnes and Nobles
Smashwords

Superpowers

So I willingly run to the chains of memory, believing them to secure my happiness. Awake, I see my heart is bound and thoughts are tied; I'm locked out of peace and a freedom from you. At the close of beautiful things I always wonder how they can be gone when I've never let them go.

-Diary, 25/8/13, Sunday 11.12pm

Dear X-men,

You could use someone like me. You see, my mind resurrects the dead. I have the power to keep people alive, long after they are gone, long after their past selves have dissolved and disappeared in time. Friends, lovers, pets and places- If anyone desires immortality, come here to meet me, let me fall in love with you. You will not live forever, but certainly for as long as I do!

Perhaps we all have this power too (: Near, Far, Gone, Changed, Lost- Do not the ones we adore have a permanent residence in our thoughts? 

Missing the strangers and the friends </3 <3

Deceitfully Yours Teaser

Chapter One

Kylie

 

The lights are dim, soft jazz music drifts through the restaurant, and the wine is exquisite. My date gently caresses my hand on the tabletop with his fingertips as he gazes into my eyes. I smile innocently at him and pretend to be flustered. The setting screams romance and love, but this is far from that. This is my job, and he is my client, only he doesn’t know it. He’s part of my plan, the victim in my next ploy. As much as he thinks I should be concentrating on him, I can’t keep my gaze from wandering to the table a couple of feet to his right. The man at that table is my real mark tonight.

Jude Baxter is not an ordinary man. He calls attention to himself without even trying. His suit is over the top, like something a runway model would wear. The jet-black, silky material clings to his body and shows off the extraordinary contours of his physique. The gray shirt under his jacket hangs loose, and enough buttons are open to make a V shape on the bottom and display his crotch. I love a man with snuggly fitting pants. That’s a man who’s not afraid to show off his greatest asset, and I’m his rapt audience.

Jude shifts his gaze toward me without stopping his conversation with the man opposite him. He tilts his head slightly and lifts an eyebrow. I’ll get what I want from him in no time at all. He’s already made contact; now all I have to do is reel him in, then figure out how to get rid of the guy sitting across from me. I can’t even remember his name at this point, and it’s not necessary because I’ve caught the attention of the man who’s the real reason I’m here tonight.

“Would you like dessert, Kylie?”

“Huh?” I ask as I bring my attention back to my “date.”

“Dessert?” he repeats.

“No…no, thanks.” I glance back at the other table, and he’s now leaning back in his chair, making no effort to pretend he isn’t staring at me like I’m his next meal. His head is resting on his index finger and thumb, like he’s contemplating a business deal. How to get the blonde at table number three? He doesn’t realize I already have him, and there are no negotiations necessary.

He smiles at me, and I shiver. That smile surprises me. Not because of how good he looks when he smiles, but because I know that smile. I perfected that smile. It’s the smile of a predator, and all of a sudden I feel like the prey.

Another man walks up to his table and stops to speak to him, breaking the silent moment of electricity that buzzed between us. The moment his gaze strays from mine, my heart starts to pound. I recognize the new addition to his table. I’ve never forgotten a client, and I know which ones to avoid, and I need to avoid Raul. I decided a while ago to call them clients. It helped me deny what I was doing, made me feel less guilty.

“Excuse me, I need to go to the restroom,” I mutter as I gather my bag and rush to the back of the restaurant. The restroom is as posh and stuffy as the rest of this place. I drop down on the plush lounger and try to figure out how I’m going to get out of here without Raul seeing me.

Raul was my in to a bigger fish. I needed to get an in to a very important man’s apartment, and Raul was his chauffeur and butler. He had the kind of access I needed. So I seduced and talked him into letting me into his boss’s home. Once I was in, everything else was easy. Raul was passed out, and I was leaving the apartment with the files I needed in less than half an hour. After that night I cut all contact and haven’t seen him since.

“Shit,” I grumble as I get up and walk to the mirror. I take my time fluffing my blonde hair and touching up my makeup. After a few minutes of unnecessary grooming, I’m brave enough to venture out of the restroom and hopefully slip from the restaurant unnoticed. The hallway appears to be empty as I step out, but I realize I’m wrong when someone pulls my arm and drags me around the corner. The dark corridor leads to an emergency exit. My assailant slams my back against the wall, then presses his thick arm against my neck.

“Kylie.” Raul smiles at me like he’s searched for me for the past year and finally hit gold. “Still up to the same tricks?”

I shake my head, wrap my fingers around his forearm, and attempt to push him away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Raul.”

“You disappeared on me. You slipped something into my drink and—”

“No, I didn’t.

“Shut up, you lying bitch.” He presses his arm against my neck until I’m gasping for breath. “The last thing I remember is you stripping down to your underwear, then giving me that drink.” He shakes his head as though he can’t believe he got taken by me. “What’s your scheme?”

“I don’t have a scheme. You passed out drunk, so I left,”

He moves in until his body is pressed against mine. “You walk around like your pussy is gold. Dangling it in front of men’s faces but never letting anyone close enough to taste it. Does your date know you’re a dick tease?” He seethes at me, his eyes wild with rage. He digs his other hand into my thigh at the hem of my skirt, then yanks my leg around his waist, and grinds his erection against me. The pressure on my throat prevents me from screaming for help. I push and shove at him, but my one hundred twenty pound body is no match for his six foot, two hundred fifty pound frame.

“I woke up that morning to you gone and my boss hovering over me. You cost me my job. Maybe I’ll get payback between these sexy thighs.” He smiles at me as he inches his fingers higher.

“Please,” I strain to say.

“What’s that?” He puts his ear near my mouth and slightly loosens his hold on my neck.

“Please,” I beg.

He looks into my eyes and cocks his head to the side. “Please what? I almost don’t recognize you when you beg. What happened to the hardcore player who drugged me? You had to have a reason for doing that. What did you take?”

“I didn’t take anything. Did your boss find something missing?” I ask, knowing there’s no way he’d have known I took anything. I copied all the files and put everything back in its place. “Please, Raul.”

He chuckles then whispers into my ear, “Is this game not fun for you? Or maybe you’re begging me to fuck you.”

He grazes the shell of my ear with his tongue, and I whisper, “Fuck you.”

“No, you’re the one getting fucked this time.” He moves his hand off my thigh, and I can feel him fumbling with his belt. I close my eyes, but that only enhances the smell of alcohol on his breath and the cigarette smoke lingering on his clothes. I knew coming here tonight was a bad idea, but I couldn’t get out of it.

I haven’t actually slept with a man in three years, and this is not the way I imagined it happening again. My heart is pounding so fast I can hear it echoing in my ear. Moisture pools in my eyes as his arm presses harder into my neck. Just as the edges of reality blur, I hear my savior.

“Let her go, Raul,” he says. His voice is rich with a soft gravelly tone. It’s also intimidating and direct. I open my eyes and watch him stop beside Raul and raise both his eyebrows, challenging Raul to question his command.

Raul loosens the hold he has on my neck. “This is personal, Mr. Baxter. She drugged me and left me—”

“Why would I do that,” I snap, all of a sudden feeling a lot braver with someone else around. “You’re just a glorified chauffeur. What could I gain from drugging you?” His forearm presses back into my neck, and he growls at me.

“Raul.” With that one word Raul steps away but doesn’t stop glaring at me. I turn from him and finally get a look at the beautiful man from earlier. I knew he would look even better up close, but my God, he's unreal. His dark hair is short and straight, but he somehow mussed it up on top to give it volume. It would take me an hour to get my hair to look so good, but I bet he rolled out of bed looking that way.

His eyes are a dark, sinful chocolate, and a light dusting of five o'clock shadow covers his perfectly chiseled jaw. Under the beard is probably his only imperfection. A small scar runs from under the right side of his chin and ends under his lip. His beard is not thick enough to cover the scar, but it distracts attention from the jaggedly healed cut. If anything, the scar enhances his looks. It gives him a dangerous flare, and it matches the fierce look in his eyes.

“Go get the car, Raul,” he says without moving his eyes from me. Raul grumbles as he walks down the hallway and leaves us alone.

His gaze runs over my body like he’s taking in something he just made a bid on. “You’re a troublemaker,” he declares.

“No, Raul is a liar.”

“Maybe, but I doubt it. You look like the type of woman who makes men lose common sense.”

“You don’t know me.”

“You’re right.” He puts his hands in his pockets and a concerned look crosses his face. “Are you all right?”

I run a hand through my hair and stand up from my slumped position on the wall. “I’m fine. Thanks for that.”

He shrugs his shoulder and turns away from me. “Stay out of trouble,” he says before striding down the hallway.

This is not how I intended this night to go. Things got really crazy; now all I want to do is go home. I stop at the table, make a quick excuse, and escape a date that is no longer necessary.

Deceitfully Yours...Available August 29th on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, and Smashwords.

Textual Tension

The Swindle (Young) Women Want

The modern young woman has everything. They have great friends, good jobs and solid degrees. The girl you like is probably even at ease being deliciously single, sufficient unto herself. What can you give her? What sort of man fits into her life and makes her happy? 

The good news is that you needn't be a sex god with a gold credit card. Girls in their early twenties are struck by romantic fever, and you can masquerade as their drug if you have the right materials. 

My girlfriends and I will swear we want Dr. Stability-and-Security, but the next thing you know we're running off with Mr. Whatever-but-Whirlwind-Passion. It is all that love-pumped media we consume, and a big part of that is the things we read. They make us crave a variety of experiences, certain passions and intensities of feeling. Just what does it take to be the romantic hero to fulfill her life early twenties?

The following sources provide an accurate, near-comprehensive description: Tumblr, Gustave Flaubert, Jeanette Winterson, Alain De Botton, Nicole Krauss, Paulo Coelho, Jane Austen, Julian Barnes. 

The Great Literary Divide

Of course we get textually frustrated! Chances are, if you are a man you were not able to name ANY 5 books written by those authors. Yet these soulful paperback gems are the staple of many a young girl anywhere. Men read Liars Poker, Game of Thrones, Rich Dad Poor Dad..

Our thoughts and expectations inevitably expand along divergent paths

There is a great deal of overlap in our readings, but not where it counts. Yes we read news and Yes we read bestsellers. But when it comes to love and relationships, the sexes read different books. Or rather the men are NOT READING love-themed books at all. At the most, they've read 50 Shades of Grey, and even then I bet they didn't finish it.

If men do not fill their heads with books depicting what girls like, how are they supposed to know and become what we deeply and truly want?

Love Them Anyway, Do Not Settle

Yes, they'll get away with sweet small gestures and occasional expensive dinners. They might even make you very very happy. But why be happy, when both of you can be ecstatic? Imagine if they connected to us better by reading some of what we read and lived it out for us.

Understanding and fufilling you can only add to his competence as a person. Ask your guy friends to start reading your favourite books on love. There is no taboo or shyness-What is life but the constant reinvention of ourselves? Someday he might make a girl very very pleased.

So girls, Help your boyfriend! Help men fulfill your deepest emotional yearnings, the way only a girl can now...=P 

In turn, you could pick up a copy of whatever it is they read. (: Textual Tension, something to think about.

<ADV>



Presenting, Versatile Closet's first ever launch! It was an absolute honour working with Vanessa who has a taste for understated and very wearable clothes. The materials were particularly good! My favourite was the navy blue collared skater, absolutely smart casual.

Here are some of the preview pictures! stocks out for skater dress at  http://versatilecloset.livejournal.com

<End>

Ps: Girls, do you know anyone who actually read and could name at least 5 of the books? Keep him for yourself!

Next up on SweetHotJustice:  'I M NIKON DAY' PHOTOGRAPHY SHOWCASE 2013! Join my girlfriends and I at our recent stint at this knock-out event!









Have a great week girlies!

3rd of August

My brothers birthday, but I got the best present ;-) Light wind, but perfect waves.... and my brother actually took a few pics before the batteries died. Not a lot of action, but it shows a bit of the conditions.

 

mort de soif

How People Slowly Kill Themselves and Like It

i. I hate to think of myself as masochistic, but if I keep plucking at new scabs and old love wounds then what am I? Frantic nails scrape out those black hardened clots, desperate to unearth the dwelling place of tenderness. Tender is the feel of raw pink skin and the burn of a medium-rare heart. The skin and heart both harden to heal, leave them alone before they leave a scar.

ii. Yesterday I sat next to a girl on the train. The girl leaned into her phone, resigned, scrolling through picture after picture of pretty things, pretty travels and pretty girls. I watched her get sucked in, with each glimpse into perfect worlds awakening a silent dissatisfaction with her own. For what is Instagram but to remind us of the life we do not have? Sometimes we all like to torture ourselves.

How Easy It is to Fall in Love with Being

iii. The speed of life has increased 7-fold; it feels great to be back in school! New mornings with fresh faces and fresh schemes, packed nights with textbooks and black dreams. It is easy to feel alive when you're being whisked away on the fast lane. And so it begins, the eternal buzz of living intensively; this is Singapore after all.

iv. The great lovers of life are the readers. Fiction grew my soul. Words identify lurking feelings and single them out, giving them power. You will feel stronger, because you know how you feel. Non-fiction might be dry but good too: in understanding the world better, we might start to love it more, like when you start to notice the miracle of unrelated things coming together. It is truly all in the mind; I love fireworks and festivals but there is magic in the everyday if you start thinking in prose.

Cheryl came all the way from Southhampton to visit me at Nottingham! She is such a dependable best friend. We hopped onto a London bound train and started planning our journey (:



Went for tea with some law friends and an old tkg dancer friend, Steph Leong! Yayyyy










One night we went to an arcade at Camden with these two lovelies followed by mass VJ meetup at a bar (: Didn't take many pictures







On the third night I forced everyone to come with me to a roller disco! This was my dream after watching Howard and Raj do it in Big Bang Theory. People were decked out in ridiculous neon outfits. It was not as dancey as I thought it would be. It was like being in an ice-skating ring with dark lights and alcohol- we went slow, fell down loads and went round and round!









The next morning, Cheryl and I set out to fulfill Cheryl's childhood ambition to be a witch. Cheryl is a total Harry Potter maniac, the kind that memorizes spells and symbols etc! She mentioned it once to me a year ago how much she wanted to go to the Harry Potter studio tour. This trip, I surprised her with tickets :D Look at that smug cheeky face!













Butter Beer is really just root beer float (vanilla)







I became a little bored after the 5th hour walking around, just like how I only read 5 books of the series... FIVE HOURS of Harry Potter scenery is seriously quite enough right? sigh.. the rest of the gang were just hyped on a weird magic energy, bustling here and there ooh and ahhh and wahhhs. I loathed my crazy friends. There was a broom studio where you could sit on one and record your 'flights' around digital Hogwarts backdrops. That was my favourite!

Anyway here are some of the photos: can anyone recognise the sets? test yourself!





























Did you get them all?  :D

Shall end with this Zen pose of Cheryl. Hope you girls had a great week. More on shoots soon!
(: