Let’s meet Dylan Haynes from Lyrical Embrace, a Romantic Suspense, by Amber Daulton. Welcome to Romance Lives Forever. I’m Kayelle Allen, author and owner of this blog. Happy to have you here! Please tell us about your latest book.

Lyrical Embrace by Amber Daulton

Genre Romantic Suspense

Book heat level (based on movie ratings): PG13

Out-of-work violinist Erica Timberly decides enough is enough. She leaves her abusive boyfriend and flees the big city, but then her car breaks down in the middle of the night. Though wary of men, she accepts help from Dylan Haynes, a stranger driving by on the road, and soon recognizes him as the sexy former drummer of her favorite indie rock band. Maybe, just maybe, her run of bad luck is finally turning around.

Music teacher Dylan Haynes knows Erica is in trouble, and her black eye is only the first clue. The stubborn yet vulnerable woman needs a friend, but he’s determined to give her everything she deserves.

Will Erica listen to the music in her heart and trust Dylan, or will her past always threaten her future?

Stressing Dylan Haynes

Every hero has a story. He has a background, a history, and a past. This interview allows us to meet a hero and get to know him better, by focusing on how he handles being relaxed, as well as how he handles stress.

Please tell me about your hero.

Age: 25

Gender: Male

Birthplace: Willow Springs, Vermont

Profession: Music Teacher; Ex-Drummer for a rock band

Ethnicity: Caucasian

What does your hero look like? 

He’s about six feet tall with short, spiky brown hair and blue eyes. He keeps in good shape because he’s a volunteer firefighter, so he has to be quick when disaster strikes. He has a sexy red dragon tattoo on his left arm, and it twists around his biceps. Erica loves licking it!

Who is the significant other in his life? 

Erica Timberly is the perfect woman for him. She’s strong, beautiful, and stubborn, but vulnerable too. She’s an excellent violinist and loves music just as much as he does. After all the crap she’s gone through, she’s still trusting and kind. She loves with her whole heart, and Dylan is damn glad she picked him.

The Hero’s Relaxed Side

This hero is at a party. Considering his story, describe the party.

When Dylan lived in New York City, he went to wild parties all the time. Nowadays, back home in Vermont, he doesn’t live and breathe that crazy lifestyle anymore. If he and Erica went to the city for a concert or to go clubbing, he would probably run into some old drinking buddies or hangers-on from when he was performing with his band, Fortune’s Glory. Under pressure, he’d go to the party and see people drinking, snorting drugs in the living room, or having sex in backrooms.

How does the hero feel about being this particular party, and what body language is he displaying that gives it away?

He wouldn’t be happy about it and would feel embarrassed in front of Erica. He used to enjoy wild parties like that and wouldn’t want Erica’s good opinion of him to change. He’d stand around, all stiff, and probably wouldn’t talk a lot.

Is he more likely to mingle or remain aloof?

After a while, he’d try to mingle and make the best of a bad situation.

If he drinks, what is his drink of choice at this party?

He’d keep it simple—just beer. He had a drinking problem back in the day and wouldn’t want to get wasted on whiskey or vodka.

How much drink is his usual?

Just one or two bottles. He doesn’t drink everyday.

The hero figures out where the hiding places are and then goes there. Is it to hide, to avoid someone, or to go drag a friend back to the party?

Once he calmed down and started loosening up, he’d probably take Erica to a closet and make out with her. Even though he’s a reformed bad boy, he’s still a little naughty.

If someone picked a fight at this party, how is the hero going to handle it?

Dylan would try to stay out of it. If someone picked a fight with him and he couldn’t resolve it with words, he’d punch the hell out of the other guy.

Is the hero the one most likely to get tossed out of the party, or the one who does the tossing?

He’s pretty responsible and levelheaded, so he’d be doing the tossing.

Will he know when to leave, or stay late and make a nuisance of himself?

Dylan is a polite guy, so he’d hit the road at a decent hour.

The Hero’s Stressed Out Side

How does the hero handle it if the cops or some other authority figure pulls him aside when he was blameless in a situation?

Dylan would try to stay calm and explain the situation.

How does the hero react to hearing a scream?

He’d investigate. He’s a volunteer fireman and a certified EMT, so it’s his job to help people.

If he sees someone being assaulted, what is the FIRST thing that crosses his mind?

To help that person.

If he sees someone being assaulted, what is the FIRST thing he does?

He’d rush in and break up the fight or assault.

This hero attempts to rescue someone and realizes that he is in over his head. The odds are against him and there is no way out. He is going to get his butt handed to him. What does he do?

Dylan would keep fighting for as long and as hard as he could, even though he knew he would probably end up in the hospital.

The hero runs into the one person from his past he wanted to avoid. He can’t get out of the situation and must interact in some way. What does he do?

He would talk in short, choppy sentences and swipe his hand through his hair, a lot.

Someone younger than the hero is in charge of the situation, and they are handling it badly, perhaps bungling things. How does the hero deal with it?

He’d make suggestions but not take control of the situation because he wouldn’t want to embarrass the other guy. If lives were hanging in the balance, he would take over and do what had to be done, no matter what.

What lesson from his past gets him through a stressful situation?

He lived a wild, crazy hound dog life a few years earlier, but he grew sick of it. He didn’t like the person he was becoming, so he quit the band and moved back home. He’s changed a lot since then, and he’s proud of the person he is now. Thinking about that would help him relax him and focus on the situation at hand.

Where to buy Lyrical Embrace

Publisher https://bit.ly/2AIkSFk
Amazon https://amzn.to/2ChIhNT
Barnes and Noble https://bit.ly/2ChIhgR
IBooks https://apple.co/2M3T9mW
Kobo https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/lyrical-embrace
Google Play https://bit.ly/2DqXlsV

Amber Daulton’s Social Media

Amber Daulton is the author of the romantic-suspense series Arresting Onyx and several standalone novellas. Her books are published through The Wild Rose Press and Books to Go Now, and are available in ebook, print on demand, audio, and foreign language formats.
Amber lives in North Carolina with her husband and four demanding cats.
Blog http://amberdaultonauthor.blogspot.com/
Twitter https://twitter.com/AmberDaulton1
Facebook Author Page www.facebook.com/amber.daulton.author
Pinterest http://pinterest.com/amberdaulton5/
Goodreads www.goodreads.com/author/show/6624921.Amber_Daulton
Amazon Author Page http://amzn.to/14JoZff