Rochelle Bradley Author

Blood & Tears Tattoos tops the charts as number one. It was my first attempt at writing a novel. In the fall of 2008, since both my children were now in school, I decided to get the stories out of my head. All of my ideas sprout from "epic" dreams but that is another blog topic. I typed and typed. I had no format to follow only a basic outline I scratched out first. This 80K word manuscript would have been completed in six weeks but hurricane Ike (yes, we had a hurricane in OHIO!) extended that to eight weeks. My home lost power for nine days. It was a successful endeavor. I feel I created realistic characters worth falling in love with. Natalie Goode is the heroine who overcomes adversity with a positive attitude, strong work ethic and great friends. Did I mention she visits 6 years in the future? Here is one comment from the Authonomy page: Dear Rochelle, I love your idea of going 6 years into the future & tried to picture myself doing this - what ...

Liz arrived at Sinfully Sweet early and found the door unlocked and went in. The smells swirling around were wonderful. Martha greeted her and pulled out a batch of Chocolate Chocolate-chip Muffins.   They talked some about Martha’s needs and the best sellers in the store then they touched on Jennifer’s boyfriend of the week.   Liz went to the office and started to sort a mound of paper work. Martha peeked into the office. “So what do you think of the boy?” Liz ignored her for a moment and then looked up. “What do you think of Ian?” “Oh, he is fairly young, isn’t he?” she said with a noncommittal grin. “What’s this I hear about him sneaking in here and getting some food?” “It was just a few crumbled muffins,” Martha laughed . “He’s a sweet young man. He’s a looker too. I thought you two would have a lot in common.” Martha washed her hands at the sink and then sat at the table outside of the office and checked her watch. There was a bell and Martha got up to ge...

James was admiring the waitress at the table behind her so he did not notice the sudden color. She tried not to look at the man again but could not help but watch him on the way out. Liz realized that the man looked like Ian, cleaned up and dressed up. He held the door open and looked back at her and winked again. She gaped, it was Ian. Color sprang to her cheeks again and she tried to stifle a grin. The rest of the day she tried to get the handsome, confident, mature image of Ian out of her head but it tugged at her thoughts. Why was he dressed like that if he worked at a casual clothing store? Maybe he had a job interview.   The day passed slowly; near closing she thought about home and wondered if Ian would be inside it again. She did not see how it could be possible now that everything was locked. That night she went into the kitchen and set the coffee maker for 5 a.m. She turned on the lights and walked through the rooms. Ian was not there. She did not know if she ...

   Wednesday at the candy store was ordinary. There had been no dueling suitors calling or visiting. Liz walked into the kitchen that night around nine thirty and set the coffee maker. She felt a presence and turned. Ian was leaning against the doorjamb. “I’m proud of you. You remembered to lock the door and you even locked the deadbolt. Very impressive,” he said with a smirk. “Yet you’re in here again,” she could not help but smile. “Your windows were unlocked,” he said sheepishly. Liz imagined him prowling around checking all her windows; she hoped her neighbors did not see him. He informed her, “They’re all locked now.” “Thanks,” she said with a laugh. “Tomorrow night are you going to come in through the chimney?” They chuckled and she opened the refrigerator and scanned the barren shelves. She felt bad that she did not have anything to offer him. “I have water or wine,” she said remembering she had a bottle. “Wine? Aren’t you saving that for a special occ...

Tuesday morning things were back on schedule and Liz nearly forgot about Emma’s mishap until Emma came in for her shift.   Jennifer got to her first and chewed her out.   Later Jennifer approached Liz in her office and apologized for her sister’s actions and claimed that Emma only invited James. Knowing Emma, Jennifer surmised that she was excited about the planned date and told others about it and subsequently seemed to invite Ian. Liz actually chuckled, this was entirely plausible. Emma knocked on her door around eleven thirty and personally apologized for messing up her date and putting her in an awkward situation. She smiled and revealed that James Riley was there to reschedule his date with her.   Liz pushed away from the desk and the pile of paperwork she needed to work on and put on her store face. James was talking to Jennifer but smiled brightly when he saw her. She met James with a hand shake which he was reluctant to let go. He wanted to take her to...

  Saturday was a busy day for the small chocolate boutique Sinfully Sweet and owner Liz Fairholm was happy. It was a family weekend in town and there were live bands and artists in the streets. All the shops stayed open until nine or later to accommodate the customers and to capitalize on the extra business. She sold more Divine Peanut Butter Brownies in one night than the whole month. It was a good thing she had plenty of samples and extras made, individually wrapped for the night. The delicacy was a big hit with men and women alike; who could blame them for loving the tasty dessert? The round brownie with a peanut butter candy on the top, similar to the insides of buckeye or peanut butter cup candies, was rich and tantalizingly sweet. It looked as good as it tasted. It was only one of the many new favorites introduced to the small town in the year since Sinfully Sweet arrived . A successful business owner at twenty nine years of age, Liz knew how to appeal to her custome...