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| Her Wild Protector |
If you've never watched someone do Tai Chi, grab the next opportunity
and check it out. It's a beautiful, graceful martial art form that Merriam-Webster
defines as "an ancient Chinese discipline of meditative movements practiced
as a system of exercises." In my story Her Wild Protector, Tara says it looks like yoga on barbiturates. She's kind of
a smart ass!
Tai Chi can be done by just about anyone and while it looks like
nothing much is going on, it takes a fair amount of energy to perform. There are
many benefits to moving through the forms, such as improving posture and increasing
flexibility. There are plenty of good articles on the subject and here's the link
for a gorgeous video on YouTube, showing a gold medal champion do The 24 Form: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejB-jBtZqqU
I decided to have my hero, Marshall, practice Tai Chi for several
reasons. It relieves stress because it's good exercise and it requires discipline
to practice regularly. Tai Chi is also sexy, in my opinion. It takes control and
slow, steady movements. I imagine all that power and energy used for...you know,
other purposes. Of course, I had to find a few more videos of good-looking guys
doing Tai Chi. *sigh* Research is rough sometimes.
In this one, a home-made clip, not only does the man show nice
form (to me, anyway), the snow, trees in the background and the hint of sun make
a nice video.
Last but not least, check out the trailer for Tai-Chi Master
with (yum) Jet Li. Though a lot of this movie is fighting, you can see a few seconds
of group Tai Chi being done. It's mesmerizing!
Excerpt
Enjoy this excerpt from Her Wild Protector. It's now out as part
of the Paranormal and Urban Fantasy Box set from HarlequinE, at a great price! The
buy links are below. Thank you for reading.
Once in bed, Tara
tossed and turned for twenty minutes. Due to her heightened senses, she could still
faintly smell Marshall 's
scent on her skin even after a shower. The memory of the hard muscles of his chest
pressed against her infused her body with heat. Knowing he was in the next room
and they were separated by only a bit of drywall added to her discomfort. She wondered
what he wore in bed. With a heavy sigh, she willed her mind to think of something
else. Like the fact that a dangerous man wanted to kill her. Her heart sped up and
she admonished herself. Think of something
boring, like those audit reports. Focusing on that dreary line of thought, she
eventually drifted off to sleep.
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| Urban Fantasy Boxed Set |
***
The sound of a shutter flapping woke
Tara , and after an initial moment of confusion,
she remembered where she was. From her cozy spot in bed she could look out the window
and see palm trees swaying in the breeze. A strong wind had arisen. She pulled on
some clothes and followed a delicious aroma to the kitchen where a still-warm pot
of coffee awaited. She poured a cup and went to the back porch.
"You're welcome to join me,"
he called.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to
interrupt. What are you doing?"
"This is tai chi, a Chinese martial
art." He continued the slow, graceful movements.
"That's a martial art? It looks
more like yoga on barbiturates."
"It's really a meditative exercise
using circular stretching movements and balancing positions, if you want the technical
definition, but it is considered a form of martial art. Come here, I'll show you
a few movements."
"Uh, no, I'm not very coordinated.
Remember? I tripped and hit my head, that's why I'm here."
"This will help with your coordination."
"There's too much wind. I'm smaller
than you, I'll blow over. Is a storm coming up?"
"Yes, there is one headed our
way, which is why it's a good idea for us to be calm and centered. That's what tai
chi does. We'll only perform the positions that keep both feet on the ground. Come
on, you'll enjoy it. Trust me."
Following his lead, Tara put her body in the first position he showed her. He
adjusted her posture slightly, setting off little sparks where his fingers touched
her skin. They shifted to the next position and Tara
was surprised at the amount of energy it took to hold each one. He then had her
combine several positions and they flowed through them slowly together.
"You're a quick learner,"
he said. They were now up to eight forms. "So why is a good-looking, smart
woman like you all alone?" he asked as they glided along. The movements were
so slow and precise she had to concentrate fully on what she was doing.
"Maybe I enjoy being alone,"
she said.
"Maybe. I think you've been through
a bad experience with a man and now you're stuck and having a hard time moving on
to the next stage."
"You've been poking around in
my business, I see." Ordinarily, this comment would have pissed her off enough
to start an argument. Moving her body in this graceful manner produced a feeling
of calmness, however, and she continued with the exercise.
Buy This Book
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About the Author
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| Naomi Bellina |
Naomi lives in beautiful sunny Florida with the love of her life and a magical
calico cat. She writes for various fiction and non-fiction markets, but finds she
is drawn to romance because her characters insist on canoodling and falling madly
in love. So she lets them. Occasionally, however, they go to dark and strange places.
She lets them do this also. Most of her stories will surprise readers with unexpected
twists and turns, because isn't that what makes life exciting?
Her interests include dancing, hula-hooping, drumming, and creating
healthy meals. She takes the opportunity to play, have fun, and indulge in the pursuit
of passion whenever possible. She hopes you enjoy her stories and would love to
hear from you.
Author Social Media
Website http://www.naomibellina.com/
Thanks so much for having me here today, Kayelle!
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure! I've known you a long time through MFRW and you've been here before. I love it when a friend comes back to share a new book.
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