My Favorite Bad Boys

Bad boys! Whew! I'm turning the fan on HIGH and reaching for a cool glass of iced caffè mocha. We know they’re wrong, wrong, wrong for us but still there’s something irresistible about the them. Why???

I think one of my first boy crushes in seventh or eighth grade was a bad boy. He had streaked blond hair that was a little longer than most of the boys in school, dark, smoldering eyes, wore jeans (which was not allowed back then in my school) and had that don’t-mess-with-me look. I didn’t know his name and never talked to him. He didn't know I existed. SIGH—I was way too shy.

Is it the nonconforming, defiant or tough-guy attitude? A certain swagger, look, boldness, confidence(conceit)? Or a sign of strength, testosterone overload? Or maybe deep down women thing they can save/rescue/redeem them?

Evolutionary psychologist say it's instinct that we're attracted to the alpha male's strength for reproductive reasons. Whatever.

Who are some of your favorite Bad Boys? Here are a few of mine. I'll also share my bad boy Dante Akanto from my novel DAMNED AND DEFIANT, coming soon from Ellora's Cave and a short excerpt at the end.

TV and Movies:

John Bender (Judd Nelson) Breakfast Club          

Wade “Cry-Baby” Walker (Johnny Depp) Cry-Baby

Dallas (Matt Dillon) The Outsidders
Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) Fight Club
Frank Abbagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio) Catch Me if You Can
Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) The Twilight Saga

Spike (James Marsters) Buffy the Vampire Slayer  

Ren McCormack (Kevin Bacon) Footloose
Danny Zuko (John Travolta) Grease
Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli (Henry Winkler) Happy Days
Logan, Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) X-men

Jim Stark (James Dean) Rebel Without a Cause

 

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One of my favorite Bad Boys in my novels is Dante, a demon from my Demons in Exile series. I just sent in the edits for Damned and Defiant, the third book in the series. And by the title, I think you can tell there’s a bad boy in it. Thanks to a few readers who emailed and asked if Dante would find love, I ended up turning my series arc around and giving Dante Akanto his story. I was trying to find an image for Dante. I think this one could work. What do you think?     

Redemption stories have strong themes and this one has a number of unique twists I think the readers will enjoy.

Dante is a tortured hero, immortal with a mission to keep his alternative world from destruction. But what happens to his world and his life when he makes the biggest mistake of his immortal life and falls in love with a mortal woman? Or is it a mistake?

Here’s a short excerpt. (A bad immortal with a conscience.) Release date is TBA.

From DAMNED AND DEFIANT:

… the chi energy rushed into him. Control, control. He had to slow down or he’d drain her.

When he felt her energy weaken, he pulled away and stood. The woman lay there, in a deep, trance-like sleep, her eyes open but dazed. As he watched her, something inside him stirred. His collection was complete. He should leave her here, now. After all, he’d picked her up along the highway. Why not leave her where he found her? When she awoke, she wouldn’t remember their encounter.

Dropping down onto the sand beside her, he brushed her hair back. He’d been hanging around Sakari too long. No wonder that Drone chose to become a mortal. She got too personal with her Kithra and it always got her into trouble.

Dante got to his feet, got dressed and collected his belongings, stowing them away on his bike. Glancing back to the woman, he saw her curl up on her side and shiver as if the desert night air had chilled her. She was coming out of the trance. He needed to leave. He could cover her with a blanket. The night was cool and she was naked. After covering her, he stood over her and watched her sleep. She snuggled deeper under the covering and sighed. His cock twitched, then hardened. It took all his willpower not to lie next to her and pull her into his arms. Not for another collection of chi, but to feel her body close. Fuck. He kicked a stone into the fire and sparks rose into the sky.

He couldn’t leave her. He didn’t know why but he just couldn’t do it. There was no way he was going to let Sakari or any of the Drones find out about this. After he helped her dress, he folded up the blanket and got her back onto his bike. She was awake, but still in a semi-trance. He extinguished the fire, buried the ashes so there was no sign that anyone had ever been there and drove his bike back toward the highway. He found a budget motel and pulled into the parking lot.

“Here’s your stop,” Dante said in a friendly manner. As she climbed off the bike, he slipped some cash into her jeans pocket.

She looked at him a little confused. “My stop? I can’t afford to stay here.”

“Sure you can. You said you found some money at the last rest area you were at. You have it in your pocket.”

Fishing in her jeans, she held up the bills. “Wow. Oh, yeah. I guess I forgot.” She laughed. “I should save this money though. I abandoned my car shortly after I left Texas. It died. But I have a sleeping bag. I’ve been camping out.”

“No, you need a bed and a safe place to sleep for the night.” Dante used his telepathic influence again. He wanted to make sure she’d have a safe place to recover. By morning she’d regain her strength and her mind, although she’d have forgotten all about their encounter, all about him.

“It would be nice to sleep in a real bed and use a shower, not wash up in a rest area. Will you stay too?” she asked.

He gripped the handles on his bike and dared to glance at her lush mouth. Her lips were pressed in a sexy pout. If he kissed her, he knew he wouldn’t have the power to leave. “Can’t.”

She sighed. “Thanks for the lift.” She waved goodbye and strode toward the motel. By morning he knew she’d forget about their sexual encounter in the desert.

Dante turned his bike around and rode back onto the highway.