For me, the best romance novels aren’t just about sex…Did I just write that? LOL. But yeah. Erotic romance lover I certainly am, but without a good story, it gets boring quick. So, I don’t skimp on the storyline. I want hero and heroine to have a frickin’ life outside of the bedroom. That life is often well populated by ta da, the side characters.
The cousin, the assistant, the friends and coworkers, these people can do as much to make a story great as the hero and heroine.
In this unedited snippet, which picks up where last week’s blog leaves off, I give you some of the behind the scenes action with Sinna and her team. They’re the dream team that supports our hero’s K-pop group 501K, helping propel them into another league while stealthily pushing our hero and heroine together, of course. ‘Cuz, we do need those love scenes…*winks* Let me know what you think!
And as always, I thank you so so much for reading me. Your support is everything. So basically, you are everything. Peace!
XOXO,
SS
Oh, the picture is of Chinese actor Xu Kai. Shout out to young, pretty boys everywhere with big hands. I tried to get into The Legends, but Chinese dramas got the game messed up! 55 episodes? I need to write people. Who has that kinda time?
…
“Will you really give us a chance to get to know one another?”
She nodded. Why not? If nothing else it would round out her Korean adventure. But even as she had that flip thought, low in her belly there was a warm flutter. Her body knew that a relationship with Tan would be more than just an adventure.
“I’m warning you. I will probably move too fast, but just tell me to slow down, and I will, okay?”
She nodded. “I’m not the type to be bullied, Tan.”
“No,” he said proudly. “You are not.”
The others saw the change immediately, which Sinna found curious. She’d often wondered if she acted different not having had a man in her life for so long. Perhaps she acted differently now that she had one. She’d prepared herself for some teasing, but no one said a word. Not even Saint.
She elbowed her cousin, who’d listened with wide eyes and a gaping mouth when she relayed her conversation with Tan. “Nothing out of you? No, ‘the droughts over,’ or, ‘finally! It’s about damn time. I thought your shit was gonna grow back together.’”
He just blinked at her.
“Not even a ‘you fell awful quick for someone you refused outright?’”
Saint just smiled and hugged her. It was a rare show of affection, but Sinna felt tears well. She blinked them away, untangled herself from her cousin with a muttered, “hmmmph,” and got back to work.
Chapter six
Both industry experts and fans credited 501K’s new look with a sudden explosion in popularity. It helped that K-pop was increasingly popular internationally, but according to the media, their spark had been rekindled by beauty and style. Their videos got more views, their live streams had millions more viewers and comments, and attendance at their fan meetings tripled or more, as did the throngs of fans waiting for them at airports and everywhere else.
In addition to being more stylish, they were also more performance oriented. For instance, when Sinna told her team that some brands wanted to partner on live streams Saint suggested they sing covers to increase viewership. “I don’t know why y’all haven’t been doing that,” he told the group. “You’re singers. For the first one Bik and Tan should cover Jodeci’s Lately. Have Hua play it on the piano, Cong can back him up on the drums, we’ll find something for Hyuk to do. You give your English-speaking fans a treat, meet our American brand partner where they play prominently, and shine some light on a classic R&B joint. It’s a win-win-win.”
So, they did, and the result was explosive. A video of the live stream got more than 20M views in two days, and Sinna was able to secure clothes and accessories from the brand for the duration of the tour.
“I didn’t know they could blow like that,” Saint laughed in the aftermath. “I just like that song, but they tore it up!” His social media following was growing wildly too because at the beginning of the stream, Bik mentioned that covering the song was his idea.
Thanks to their increased popularity, all of 501K’s devoted, day one fans had to contend with a fast-rising crop of new ones, and interest in their upcoming tour was crazy hot. Mr. Big Wig told Sinna personally they had to add more dates to the tour to keep up with the insane demand for tickets. She was pleased when he was first to suggest that they renegotiate the terms of their contract. It meant he acknowledged her part in global fans clamoring for a chance to see 501K.
Whether it was the group’s intensely charismatic and sexy new visual appeal – or the world’s sudden interest in her, Saint and her crew – she documented everything in her social media as well as in her company’s content marketing efforts.
There were so many appearances, Sinna and her team worked damn near around the clock.
“I feel like a fucking idol,” Saint yawned and fell asleep between one word and the next sitting on the couch, phone in hand and an open shopping bag at his feet.
“Just a few minutes,” Jon muttered and sat down beside him.
Cressida followed, and less than a minute later, the three were snoring lightly, looking wilted.
Sinna shook her head and snapped a picture for the ‘Gram. “Hard at work,” she captioned it. #whenmyteamworkstoohardhelpingidolslookgood.
With some logistical maneuvering worthy of NASA, she was able to find time for a flying visit home to check on things. Granny had everything clicking, so she: hugged her relatives, congratulated her home team for holding it down like G’s in her absence, passed out an arm load of gifts, answered every question, evaluated every outfit, talked to every client who wanted an audience, thanked everyone and got back on the plane to meet the group in Japan where they had a rash of appearances. She slept the entire ride.
She burst out laughing when she found Tan in a baseball cap at the bottom of the escalator from baggage claim holding a handwritten sign that read “Sinna-ssi” with hearts above the I’s.
“What are you doing?” she whispered. “It’s too dangerous for you to be in the airport. What if they recognize you?”
“The sign works well. People assume I am a driver and leave me alone.”
“Well, put this on.” She gave him the leopard print face mask and slipped on large shades. One of her seamstresses had run up a prototype for her at home.
“Chic.”
She lowered her glasses and winked. “Always, baby.”
Sherrod Story - Here lies your book boyfriend...naked. 