Today I welcome Diane Escalera to my personal rose garden. Diane is a fellow Lyrical Press author and her book DANGEROUS DESIRE is on sale at Lyrical Press for 30 percent off as part of the Christmas Bash. Diane agreed to give you a little taste of DANGEROUS DESIRE as well as a little background in how she chooses the names of her characters. Welcome Diane!

BREATHE: Do you feel your character names are influenced by the theme of your story? Why or why not?

DIANE: For me, character traits are what influence the name. Is the hero a bad boy? Is the heroine sweet and soft-spoken? Maybe he’s a good guy and she’s the wild child. I try to come up with names that fit the image I have in mind, something that captures the spirit
of the character.

BREATHE: If you wrote in another genre, would it affect the names you picked for your characters? Why do you think this is?

DIANE: I think it would. For instance, modern names in a historical romance would sound unrealistic.

BREATHE: What is your favorite character name—either your own or somebody else’s? Why do you like this name?

DIANE: I really love the name of my current hero, Cruz. I think it’s strong, sexy and edgy, just like him! I wanted something exotic, a name that wasn’t played out. Cruz suited this man to a T.

BREATHE: Do you feel a character’s name affects the way you write him or her?

DIANE: Most definitely! Once again, I believe the character’s personality influences their name.

BREATHE: Are there any names you absolutely will not use for a character?

DIANE: Not really. In fiction, anything is possible!

Happy Holidays! And thank you, Michelle, for this awesome opportunity.

Please visit DianeEscalera.com to learn more about my sexy tales. I love to interact with readers! “Like” my fan page on Facebook.com/DianeEscaleraOfficial. Follow me on Twitter.com/DianeEscalera.

Excerpt from Dangerous Desire:

In full view, Cruz stripped off his sweaty black tee and Sienna nearly had a heart attack. Jesus Christ. The men at her gym would’ve despised him. Her eyes slowly drank him in. Good God. He had the sexiest bod she’d ever seen. Taut and tan, his muscles were chiseled in a way that gave his dimensions beautiful symmetry. Tori would’ve been impressed. She’d always preached about the importance of muscle balance. Some men took it to the extreme. Not Cruz. He sported a tapered waist with shredded abs, V-shaped torso, and arms that made her drool because, if she had to pick a favorite body part, arms were it.

He used the dirty shirt to dry sweat off his gorgeous frame. Her eyes followed his movements, stopping at the bulldog tattoo etched on his sculpted pec, with the word Marines below. He’d been in the service, a kickass Marine. How hot!

He busted her checking him out.

She yanked her eyes away. Jeez. Her face probably looked as red as it felt.

Holding up a fresh shirt, he shook it out a few times. The sound of fabric caught her attention. Her gaze slid that way again. Okay. Sound had nothing to do with it. She just had to look one more time. He pulled the shirt over his head. Terrific. Now he wore a white muscle shirt tailor-made for his ripped physique. The thing should’ve been outlawed.

Wearing a sly smirk, he combed his fingers through his short, spiky hair. Running down the inside of his arm below his rock-hard biceps, he had another tattoo, this one with five small Chinese symbols. What a unique spot for a tattoo, and unbelievably sexy, like everything else about him. Even his name sounded hot.

He climbed into the driver’s seat and snapped his door shut. He didn’t look at her, but then, he didn’t have to. She knew he knew what kind of effect that little display had on her. Oh yeah. He had it written all over that smug face. He might be a soaking-wet dream she didn’t mind entertaining on a nightly basis, but she didn’t have to be so obvious.

Sienna grabbed her seatbelt and tried to latch it.

“Damn,” Cruz mumbled, as he watched her struggle with the belt. He turned on the ignition and flipped the air conditioning to the highest setting.

She looked at his face instead of his sinewy arm. It took willpower, because those arms really did it for her. “Is there a trick?” The mechanism wouldn’t click into place.

“I keep forgetting to get that thing checked,” he said. “Don’t usually carry passengers except for Roman.” He looked back at his dog and grinned. Roman sat on the bench seat patiently waiting to go bye-bye.

“It doesn’t work at all?” She preferred to wear a seatbelt, and not just because of the law. South Florida had some loony drivers.

“It just takes a little maneuvering,” he replied. “Let me give it a try.” He turned all that magnificence toward her and reached across her chest.

Holy crap, he was totally in her face, his delicious body stretched across her lap.

She held her breath and pressed her back into the seat, felt his weight, smelled his soap and baby shampoo. Her every cell fell under his spell. She tried to find her voice. “Any luck?” she squeaked out.

They were eye-to-eye, his mouth so close that if she puckered her lips, that would be it. His gaze traveled downward. He tilted his head like he wanted to kiss her. Uh-oh.

She hadn’t made out in years. She probably sucked at it by now. A magnetic intensity pulled her to him, and she had a feeling she’d relearn pretty quickly. Her body buzzed with sexual urgency. Not once in her life had she felt this consumed, this desperate to feel a man’s lips on hers.