Excerpt: Under the Sun by Jude Ouvrard

You met Jude Ouvrard on Monday. Now read a snippet from her romance novel Under the Sun.

By the end of the afternoon, we had finished painting. To be honest, his help had made all the difference. He lent me a hand with the curtains and frames, too. Everything was finished by the time we took showers for our night out. I hadn’t expected to finish the painting in one day.

More than anything, I had enjoyed spending time with Jackson. He joked around and made me laugh. He’d been in good spirits all day, and he had done an incredible job on the walls he’d covered.

“I really appreciate what you did for me today. It was very nice and generous of you.”

“It was my pleasure, Tracey,” he said, stepping up to me.

My gaze danced between his eyes and lips. For the first time in years, I really wanted to be kissed. My heart fluttered in my chest, and from the way he looked at me, I wondered if he wanted it, too. Using both of his hands, Jackson cupped my face, and we simply stared at each other for a very long time.

“I really like you, Tracey. You're beautiful, but I won't kiss you now. When I do, I want it to be magical. Don't get me wrong, my sweet angel; I want it, too. More than you know.”

When he whispered, he was so close that the warmth of his breath lingered on my skin. I could feel the intensity of his words. He brushed his thumbs across the apples of my cheeks. I huffed when I realized that he wouldn't kiss me, which made him laugh. Jackson kissed my forehead. His lips felt so soft and warm. I knew that he meant well; that he wanted to wait for the right moment. My heart was falling in love with this man, and I couldn't help it — not that I wanted to.

Jackson dropped his hands from my face and left to shower at his place. I stood alone in my freshly-painted living room with my heart pounding against my ribs. Feeling giddy, I danced my way to the refrigerator and ate a little bit of everything before heading into the bathroom to take a shower.

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I had to find something to wear. We were going to be walking, so I had to be comfortable, but I didn't want to under-dress. Heels were not an option. My sneakers seemed to be appropriate and would go with the denim skirt and black V-neck T-shirt I’d selected. The outfit was cute and simple.

When I walked out the door, Jackson was sitting on the hood of his car, waiting for me with a beautiful bouquet of tulips. For the first time of my life, someone had brought me flowers. My eyes filled with tears, and my nerves felt like they were on fire. Jackson walked to me with the bouquet in one hand and his other hiding in the side pocket of his shorts. Looking at me through his pale lashes, his eyes simmered with desire, and he bit his bottom lip. My heart skipped a beat. I could picture him in a Ralph Lauren campaign; he was gorgeous and irresistible.

Once he reached me, he placed his free hand on my elbow and leaned in to kiss my cheek. My breath quickened; the closeness was making me lightheaded and giddy. I couldn’t think straight. He offered me the bouquet. “I got these for you. I hope you like them.”

Of course, I do.

“Thank you — thank you so much,” I murmured. “This is a first for me. I’ll never forget it.” I smelled them and closed my eyes, soaking up the emotion.

“If you don't want them to wither, you should put them in water,” he suggested. He spoke to me in a soft voice, and his hand still rested on my arm. I was impressed by his courteous manners.

“I’ll be right back.” I went inside to put the flowers in a vase. How sweet was he?

When I walked back outside, Jackson reached out and took hold of my hand. “You look beautiful.”

I giggled. “Thanks. You’re not so bad yourself.”

Summary:

Tracey Howard has put her life on hold for years to care for her grandmother. Now that her grandmother has passed away, Tracey decides to spend the summer at the beach and reflect on where she wants life to take her next. Jackson Phillips is her new neighbor, and he dazzles her from the first moment they meet. Will Jackson be able to show Tracey how to let go of old pain and embrace future happiness?

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Meet Jude Ouvrard

When I was in elementary school, I started learning a second language; English. I didn’t like the teacher and I had a hard time remembering everything she was saying. I could barely make the difference between "how are you" and "who are you". It was my least favorite class.

When I started high school, my parents enrolled me in a private school. During my first English class, I realised that I was behind everyone else and I hated it. After a few classes, the teacher noticed and decided to be the one who would make a difference in my apprenticeship. She offered me to be part of a program where I could buy books for a cheaper price and they would help me improve my English. I remember buying a few books about movies that had come out in that period. She also suggested that I start watching TV in English so I would get used to the sound and I did. I was a really big fan of Beverly Hills 90210 at the time so I started watching the English version. I can’t say that I was able to understand everything but slowly, words started making sense and I was able to understand. I also started watching The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and I loved it. That year, everything changed, I started loving learning English. I was buying magazines for teenagers and doing as much as I could to learn and I finally caught up to my classmates.

By the time I was done with high school, my grade had improved considerably. I was able to read in English perfectly. I could watch my TV shows and understand everything they were saying. Sometimes to achieve your goals, you have to change your habits and that’s what I did. started watching TV, listening to radio, and reading in English. Slowly, I was able to learn and understand the grammar and vocabulary. It took time but I did it.

****

I started writing stories when I was nine or ten years old. I was very creative and I always had storylines coming together in my mind. I used to write before bedtime and I would hide my notebooks in my wardrobe. I kept them a secret. My great-aunt was an author, Hélène Ouvrard. She wrote quite a few books in French. A few months before she passed away, I remember telling her that I wanted to be an author, like her. I was inspired by her talent for quite a while.

In my teen years, I was hanging out with my friends, snowboarding and doing other things and writing wasn’t a priority. I remember writing poems when I was around fourteen years old but that’s all I did for a couple of years.

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At seventeen years old, I had my own apartment in Montreal when I decided to write again. I was now writing on a computer, always in French. I spent many nights writing my first story. I was hooked again.

A few stories and a number of years later, I started reading novels in English. I found myself addicted to reading. I could read day and night and survive on only two hours of sleep. I read tons of romance and supernatural. I started participating in Facebook groups where other people would hang out and talk about books.

In 2009, I was in maternity leave and I decided to write my first story in English. It was a disaster, a lot harder than I thought. I never shared that story with anyone but I knew that it was the beginning of something I wanted to do. I never finished the story. I decided to continue my reading because I had heard that reading could help with my writing, so I concentrated on that for a few months.

In 2012, my son was now three years old and he started playing and drawing on his own. I had a little more time for myself so I began writing a new story. For this one, I had a pre-reader, a beta reader and every week, I would publish a chapter on a fanfiction website. I knew my English wasn’t perfect but I had a lot of followers and they didn’t seem to mind. According to the reviews, they liked my story. This story marked the beginning of my dream.

Months later, I heard that Renaissance Romance Publishing had an open call for a beach read anthology. I decided to submit my story. I had little hope that they would pick me but I took the chance. I started writing at the beginning of February 2013 and I gave up that same week. Why? Because I didn’t think I could do it, I didn’t want to waste my time and I didn’t believe in myself. For two weeks, I ignored everything about it until my friend, Tracey, forced me back into my writing. I had only one week left to write it, get it pre-read and edited. Well, I did it, and I sent it to the publisher. I didn’t expect anything before 6 weeks as they had mentioned on their website. Later that night, I received an email from them telling me they wanted to contact me via Skype the following Sunday. I was nervous, it was driving me crazy. I had to wait a few days before the call. When the time finally came, I kicked everyone out of the house and waited for the call that changed everything. They wanted my story; they wanted to work with me. I was astounded and overwhelmed. It was a new beginning for me.

Seven months later, I’m about to publish my second novella with Renaissance Romance Publishing, it’s called Wonderland. I’m also working on my first novel, Body, Ink, and Soul and I’m hoping to publish before the end of 2013.

I know my English is still not perfect, but I’m grateful that I had a teacher who believed in me. Without her, I probably wouldn’t have worked as hard as I did and I probably wouldn’t have been able to publish my first novella.

Never stop believing in yourself, have faith and work hard.

About the Author:

Jude was born and raised in a small village named Lacolle. She now lives in Montreal, Canada. She is the proud mother of a beautiful four year old son, and has spent the last twelve years with her partner, Cedric. French is her native language, but she prefers to write in her second language, English.
Besides working full time for a Title Insurance Company and being a mother, Jude has a passion for books, both reading and writing them.
She is currently working on a novel called Body, Ink, and Soul. Coming soon!

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