HelenKay Dimon and Jill Shalvis chat about their love of alpha heroes

Author friends Jill Shalvis, whose One in a Million is out now, and HelenKay Dimon, whose Playing Dirty just came out, talk every day about heroes and television shows and a bunch of stuff we probably can't print here. Today, we get a peek into their ongoing love for alpha heroes and some debate about how alpha they can be.

HelenKay: Are you ready to talk about our joint love for alpha heroes. The more alpha the better, I say!

Jill: I love an alpha, but I have harder limits than you do. I'm not crazy about the a$$hat alphas.

HelenKay: But a$$hats can be redeemed!

Jill: Seriously, you need help.

HelenKay: Well, the fictional ones can. The real-life ones … ugh. So, what do you like about alphas?

Jill: I like confidence and smart and a sharp sense of humor. And maybe I need some help too since I also can excuse the occasional bullheaded stubbornness if it turns out he's right. : ) And speaking of occasional bullheaded stubbornness, both my retired Navy SEAL Tanner Riggs from One in a Million and your undercover agent Ford Decker from Playing Dirty, are the kings, wouldn't you say?

HelenKay: I think Tanner and Ford would say they are determined, which clearly is romance alpha code for being a teeny bit controlling with a tendency to overdo the stubbornness. I have to admit those characteristics work for me in a hero. I like the self-confidence, along with a bit of swagger. Guys who know what they want and can tell the difference between a wrench and a screwdriver. Maybe I have a type. Is it a good-with-their-hands thing (ahem)?

Jill: It's a thing and it's The Thing. And Tanner and Ford are most definitely good with their hands. A few times. : )

HelenKay: Speaking of hands … I have a "thing" for them. While I can appreciate broad shoulders and a trim waist, and I'm all about the Tall, Dark and Lethal look (I had to stop here for a second to look at photos on Tumblr, but I'm back), I love a guy with good hands. Strong, long fingers, maybe slightly tanned. Am I alone here?

Jill: All of that's important in a romance novel, no doubt. So important that I also just spent a half hour on Tumblr making sure … But I have something even more important for my heroes. The smile. Or rather smiles. Because there should be a lot of different smiles in a hero's wheel house. Naughty. Mischievous. Wicked. Bad boy… and also contagious. And warm. And maybe another one that's just for the heroine alone, one that makes quiver just a little bit. Ya know?

HelenKay: Oh, those smiles, especially the naughty ones. Those privates ones meant only for her … sigh. I really like it when the guy has a serious job. He's not playing around. He needs to be focused but then when he's with the heroine that other side of him shows through. He's lighter and smiles and laughs and teases and flirts. In Playing Dirty, Ford is former CIA and now works for the Alliance, a joint U.S./U.K. undercover operation. He chases bad guys all over the world and is constantly in danger. He's lethal. But when he's with Shay he smiles and enjoys a normal life (or his version of normal). I find that contrast compelling. And speaking of lethal, does that alpha-guy-on-the-edge type appeal to you?

Jill: Oh how I loved your Ford. As you already know, I couldn't get enough of him. He was most definitely the definition of lethal, and yes, absolutely yes, an alpha-guy-on-the-edge appeals to me. Always. All of your guys in this series are deliciously alpha-on-the-edge. My favorite kind of read. I like to write them that way too but in my books, which aren't necessarily suspense, it's a different kind of edge. It's more of a I'm-being-slowly-driven-crazy-by-the-heroine kind of edge and all the bafflement of an alpha who has no idea that he's already fallen and fallen hard. That's my favorite kind of gig, and I took great joy in making Tanner fall hard and fast, and often on his face. Metaphorically. Not physically. Because physically, Tanner is pretty damn good on his feet … which, by and by, is another thing I love about alphas … you do realize I could go on like this all day, right?

HelenKay: I could pretty much talk about heroes, look at photos of heroes and read about heroes all day. How do we get someone to pay us for those things? We need to work on that. But you reminded me of one more thing I love about alphas, it's that Band of Brothers feeling. When these guys fall for the right woman, I swoon. But there are those other scenes I look for in a book. The ones where guys are hanging out with other guys. There is something about the way guys interact and joke with each other than totally makes me smile. You are an expert at that. I love the way your guys talk to each other. It sounds so authentic, which is interesting since you live in a house full of women (except for Alpha Man).

Jill: How did I forget to mention this? The bromance! One of my very FAVORITE things in the whole world. A good bromance ranks right up there with cookies, naps and some other things I shouldn't mention. : ) I always have a good bromance going in my books, not that any guy in their right mind would admit to being a part of bromance and especially not one of my guys. We'll just keep it our little secret. And speaking of that, you're no slouch in the bromance department yourself, HelenKay. Especially with this series …

HelenKay: Now I want a cookie … But, yes, the bromance! I'm trying to imagine our heroes, or any alpha, admitting to being in one. That makes me smile. For my guys in Playing Dirty and the whole series, their loyalty to each other could actually mean the difference between life and death. They train together, make fun of each other, give each other a hard time, but they are there to back each other up. Each would step into danger for the other. And how sexy is that? I think that's why readers love military heroes and first responders, any guy who with that protective/rescuer streak. Those characteristic adds to their larger-than-life feel but also humanizes them.

Jill: Now I want to go read about an alpha hero.

HelenKay: Me, too! But maybe a few minutes on tumblr looking at photos of alphas first. You know, for research. Anyone want to join us?

Find out more about HelenKay's and Jill's books at helenkaydimon.com and jillshalvis.com.