Join the Summer Fun Web Hunt 2018!

Good day!!

Are you ready to win a Kindle Fire HD 8, Amazon cards and books!

I’m one of the sponsors of the Night Owl Romance Summer Fun Scavenger Hunt.

During this event I’m going to help you find some great new books. Make sure to check my featured title out along the way.

Enter Now at:  https://www.nightowlreviews.com/v5/Blog/Articles/Summer-Fun-2018

Event Dates: June 14 – July 5

#amreading #amwriting

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When a Marquis Chooses a Bride Book Blast!

In less than 24 hours, When a Marquis Chooses a Bride releases!!

To celebrate, Goddess Fish is having a book blast! Stop by the fabulous sites hosting me for reviews and chances to win books!! All the links should be working by this afternoon.

Goddess Fish Book Blast 8/30/2016 1: Where the Story Comes First  2: 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, & Sissy, Too!  3: Am Kinda Busy Reading REVIEW  4: Books That Believe in Happily Ever After  5: BooksChatter  6: Hope. Dreams. Life… Lovel  7: Liz Gavin’s BlogREVIEW 8: Long and Short Reviews 9: Romance Novel Giveaways 10: Rusticating in the Tropics 11: T’s Stuff 12: The Avid Reader 13: The Pen and Muse Book Reviews 14: The Silver Dagger Scriptorium 15: Fabulous and Brunette 16: Oportet Publishing 17: Buried Under Romance REVIEW 18: CBY Book Club 19: Christine Young 20: Doing Some Reading 21: EskieMama Reads 22: Full Moon Dreaming REVIEW 23: Harlie’s Books 24: Lampshade Reader 25: LibriAmoriMiei REVIEW 26: Lynn Crandall 27: Mixed Book Bag 28: Nickie’s Views and Interviews 29: Notes From a Romantic’s Heart REVIEW 30: Two Ends of the Pen REVIEW 31: Readeropolis 32: Reviews by Crystal 33: Sapphyria’s Book Reviews 34: StarAngels Reviews 35: Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin’ 36: The Snarkology 37: Underneath the Covers 38: Wendi zwaduk – romance to make your heart race 39: Dina Rae’s Write Stuff 40: Jen’s Reading Obsession 41: Books,Dreams,Life 42: Up ‘Til Dawn Book Blog

 

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Three Weeks to Wed Blog Tour

First lets congratulate Emm who won a copy of Three Weeks to Wed!

For a chance to win one of five signed ARCs please follow the Three Weeks to Wed blog tour! here are today’s links!

Manic Readers http://bit.ly/1UD4QSn

Fresh Fiction http://bit.ly/1Rr2L9k

Deal Sharing Aunt http://bit.ly/1VTVosR

RomCom http://goo.gl/s3z5vL

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Release Day!!

 

I’m so excited!! Three Weeks to Wed releases today!! To celebrate I’m giving away a copy of the book. Winner’s choice of paperback or ebook!! To enter, just tell me you want the book!

In the first book of her dazzling new series, bestselling author Ella Quinn introduces the soon-to-be Earl and Countess of Worthington—lovers who have more in common than they yet know. The future promises to be far from boring…

Lady Grace Carpenter is ready to seize the day—or rather, the night—with the most compelling man she’s ever known. Marriage would mean losing guardianship of her beloved siblings, and surely no sane gentleman will take on seven children not his own. But if she can have one anonymous tryst with Mattheus, Earl of Worthington, Grace will be content to live out the rest of her life as a spinster.

Matt had almost given up hope of finding a wife who could engage his mind as well as his body. And now this sensual, intelligent woman is offering herself to him. What could be more perfect? Except that after one wanton night, the mysterious Grace refuses to have anything to do with him. Amid the distractions of the Season he must convince her, one delicious encounter at a time, that no obstacle—or family—is too much for a man who’s discovered his heart’s desire…

Amazon http://amzn.to/1J7gQ2M

Apple http://apple.co/1OpLwDi

BAM http://bit.ly/1Mmkzkt

B&N http://bit.ly/1NyUZcm

Google http://bit.ly/1Ltl1HP

Kobo http://bit.ly/1UP4iZR

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New Release!!

Three Weeks to Wed releases on Tuesday and the blog tour has started with a bang!! The wonderful Mary Gramlich is giving away five, count them five!! copies of Three Weeks to Wed!! Visit her page and enter! http://bit.ly/1XWhadS

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Guest Author Sandra Masters!P

Please welcome historical author Sandra Masters to the blog. Sandra is here today to tell us about her latest release, My Divinely Decadent Duke!! She will also give away one copy of the book to one of you who leaves a comment saying you want it.

We begin with the cover.

Next the blurb.

Orphaned and abandoned by family, Lady Cassandra Montgomery yearns for love. Beautiful and innocent, she attracts the attention of a renowned rake, the Duke of Althorn. When her security is threatened, she offers him a proposal for an arranged marriage in exchange for his guarantee of safety for her and her ward. After her first taste of desire in his arms, she finds the sexual attraction irresistible. Finding herself in a family way, she leaves his home, unsure of his love.

The Duke is at first enraged by the brazen behavior, yet he sees Cassandra as a captivating caregiver for his mother and impossible to resist. He agrees. The arrangement becomes inconvenient because love and sex enter the equation.

Will she believe her husband truly loves her and return to his waiting arms?

Will the Duke admit his love and use his rakish skills to woo Cassandra back to his bed?

 

 

Now an excerpt.

“What about love and passion?” Cassandra wondered until she realized she spoke the words aloud. Enough. Everything but the one thing I want. And you think you are not cruel, Gordon?

“They shall take care of themselves with time. I will not force myself on you…unless you wish it of me. I would like the opportunity to demonstrate to you I am a good man you may wish to know better, Cassandra. Goodness knows you’ve seen many sides of me.”

She found it easy to believe because she wanted to. Somehow the arranged marriage did not sound as insane as before. At least she wouldn’t have to marry Ashcombe, a perfect stranger. Her choices were an older, gentle man, or the younger scandalous rake she loved.

Her mind spun.

Her world twirled.

She swayed.

He held her steady in his arms.

Her heart broke.

And then he did a terrible thing.

He kissed her with tender gentleness and coaxed open her lips. Their mouths melded together. Her body molded to his and it was perfect. She heard heart beats, pulse beats, thunderous beats. To be so close to him, so near, so in need—it was so unfair. She rested her head on his broad chest and made her decision.

“You are an innocent and a temptation I cannot afford, but I want you,” Gordon murmured.

Was it better to be miserable with him than without him?

When God wants to punish you, he grants you your dreams.

 

Buy link. Amazon

 

About Sandra.

Retired executive, Sandra Masters, rose from a humble beginning in Newark, NJ, a short stay at a convent in Morristown, NJ, to the board rooms of NYC, and a fantastic career for a broadcasting company in Carlsbad, California, to the rural foothills of the Sierras of Yosemite National Park, she has always traveled with pen and notebook. It’s been the journey of ten thousand miles. She left her corporate world behind and never looked back.

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Guest Author Liza O’Connor!

While I’m off celebrating my thirty-second wedding anniversary, Liza O’Connor is going to tell you about her latest book, and she has a contest!

During Queen Victoria’s era, the royalty gene pool was a closed loop, so it was not uncommon for cousins to marry first cousins.

 

In Book 6, I create a cousin, Lady Haughton, for the Queen. Lady Haughton is what you would call a lesser royalty. There is no chance whatsoever that she would ever be offered the crown. So she prefers to go by the title of ‘Lady’. I have no idea if she has a fancier title. The real female first cousins of Victoria that I could find all had titles such as Princess and Empress. (There were at least ten of them) But none of these women would do, so I created a lesser cousin.

My Lady Haughton is unfortunately plagued by relatives who are frankly an embarrassment to all society. So her name has been erased from all social lists. For all practical purposes, she has been royally forgotten. Except by the Queen.

She and Queen Victoria look very much alike. Thus, Lady Haughton rarely leaves her home, least her cousin be embarrassed when people see her and think the Queen is not wearing black, or worse yet, she is laughing. (True Fact: The Queen loved to laugh, but she rarely did so in public.)

Instead, Lady Haughton lived a quiet, wealthy, solitaire life, until the ghosts came a banging.

She hires Xavier & Vic to remove the ghosts. Not believing in such silliness, their suspicion lands on a nephew she has bequeathed all her wealth to when she dies. She has a great deal of nephew and nieces, but the only one she loves is Leslie.

I must say, when ‘not quite royalty’ goes bad, they go very bad.

 

When the pot has too many cooks a feast can be ruined, and that’s exactly what happens with Xavier and Vic’s new cases. Each proves more complicated than initially thought with criminals dropping out of the sky, wreaking havoc upon Xavier, Vic, and their excellent employees. By the end, Vic threatens to open a school that teaches criminals how to stay out of each other’s way.

Worse yet, a treasured member of the staff is shot in the heart while attempting to save Vic and the Queen’s cousin.

Here’s a bit about Leslie, the lady’s nice nephew:

Gregory closed his eyes as if willing sufficient patience to deal with Vic. “Victor, I have no issues with you saving people. However, doing so does not preclude using proper etiquette. When bringing guests home, you must never open the front door and bellow for your butler.”

“What would you have me do? I’m not upset that you don’t spend your day standing at the door so it opens when I approach it. You were clearly busy doing something of greater importance, so I unlocked the door and entered. However, I was certain you would not approve if I settled Leslie in without letting you know, so I called, not bellowed, your name.”

“You should have knocked on the door and waited,” he scolded.

Vic stepped closer, determined to win this argument. “Well, the problem I have with your solution is that someone is trying very hard to kill Leslie. His body has more bullet wounds, garrotes and knife scars than Xavier’s. I was not about to let him die on my doorstep while I practiced proper etiquette.”

The Darkest Days

Book 6

Free with Amazon Kindle Unlimited

Need to catch up?

Book 1

The Troublesome Apprentice

Book 2

The Missing Partner

Book 2.5

A Right to Love

Book 3

The Mesmerist

Book 4

Well Kept Secrets

Book 5

Pack of Trouble

 

All Xavier & Vic books are Free with Amazon Unlimited

 

Liza O’Connor was raised badly by feral cats, left the South/Midwest and wandered off to find nicer people on the east coast. There she worked for the meanest man on Wall Street, while her psychotic husband tried to kill her three times. (So much for finding nicer people.) Then one day she declared enough, got a better job, divorced her husband, and fell in love with her new life where people behaved nicely. But all those bad behaviors has given her lots of fodder for her humorous books. Please buy these books, because otherwise, she’ll become grumpy and write troubled novels instead. They will likely traumatize you.

You have been warned.

Mostly humorous books by Liza:

Ghost Lover—Two British brothers fall in love with the same young woman. Ancestral ghost is called in to fix the situation. And there’s a ghost cat that roams about the book as well. (Humorous Contemporary Romance)

Saving Casey— Cass wakes up in the body of a troubled teen who has burned every bridge imaginable. Her only choice is to turn this life around, but that’s much harder than she ever imagined.

Untamed & Unabashed—The youngest of the Bennet sisters, Lydia, tells her story. A faithful spinoff from Pride & Prejudice.

A Long Road to Love Series: (Humorous Contemporary odd Romance)

Worst Week Ever — Laugh out loud week of disasters of Epic proportions.

Oh Stupid Heart — The heart wants what it wants, even if it’s impossible.

Coming to Reason — There is a breaking point when even a saint comes to reason.

Climbing out of Hell — The reconstruction of a terrible man into a great one.

The Hardest Love — Is to love oneself. Sam’s story.

The Adventures of Xavier & Vic Sleuth series: (Late Victorian/Mystery/Romance)

The Troublesome Apprentice — The greatest sleuth in Victorian England hires a young man who turns out to be a young woman.

The Missing Partner — Opps! The greatest sleuth in Victorian England goes missing, leaving Vic to rescue him, a suffragette, and about 100 servants. Not to mention an eviscerating cat. Yes, let’s not mention the cat.

A Right to Love — A romantic detour for Jacko. Want to see how amply rewarded Jacko was when he & Vic save an old woman from Bedlam?

The Mesmerist — The Mesmerist can control people from afar and make them murder for her. Worse yet, Xavier Thorn has fallen under her spell.

Well Kept Secrets — The problems with secrets is that they always come to light, no matter how you wish to silence them.

Pack of Trouble — Changes are a part of life, but these changes almost kill Vic.

The Darkest Days — Muddled cases make Vic very grumpy.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT

LIZA O’CONNOR

Investigate these sites:

Liza’s Blog and Website   Facebook   Twitter

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Guest Author Diana Cosby!!

I’m so thrilled to welcome fellow Rom-vet and Kensington author Diana Cosby back to the blog!! Diana is here today with her latest release, An Oath Sworn!! Diana will also give away a copy of her book to one of you. All you have to do is tell her you want it!

First the lovely cover.

Next the blurb.

Bound by honor to save a country they love …

The bastard daughter of the French king, Marie Alesia Serouge has just one chance at freedom when she escapes her captor in the Scottish highlands. A mere pawn in a scheme to destroy relations between France and Scotland, Marie must reach her father and reveal the Englishmen’s treacherous plot. But she can’t abandon the wounded warrior she stumbles upon—and she can’t deny that his fierce masculinity, Scottish or not, stirs something wild inside her.

Colyne MacKerran is on a mission for his king, and he’s well aware that spies are lying in wait for him everywhere. Wounded en route, he escapes his attackers and is aided by an alluring Frenchwoman…whose explanation for her presence in the Highlands rings false. Even if she saved his life, he cannot trust her with his secrets. But he won’t leave her to the mercy of brigands, either—and as they race for the coast, he can’t help but wonder if her kiss is as passionate as she is. With nothing in common but their honor, Colyne and Marie face a dangerous journey to safety through the untamed Scottish landscape—and their own reckless hearts…
And finally, the excerpt.

“Who is he?” Colyne MacKerran asked. He far from understood the importance of the question he asked.  “What does it matter who it is or the reason his men are searching for me?” Colyne shot her a wry grin.  “If I am going to risk my life escorting you, I need to know what I am up against.” Hope stumbled through Lady Marie Alesia Serouge.  “You will escort me? But—” The Scot held up his hand, any trace of humor gone.  “To my friend’s home as I offered before.  Nay more.  Once you are in safe hands, I must go.  I have my own business to attend to.” Colyne’s reaction to the knights who’d ridden by flickered in her mind. Uneasy, she cleared her throat.  “You believed the men were after you?” His expression grew shuttered. Marie tensed.  Was this Scot a threat?  She didn’t want to believe she’d miscalculated to such a degree.  But if she was wrong . . . Long seconds passed as he stared at her, his deep gaze assessing.  “Aye, they are.” “Why?” she asked. A grim smile touched his mouth.  “Well now, lass, I have my own reasons.   Ones I will nae be sharing.  And,” he paused, “you will have to trust me as well.”
Continue reading
Buy links.  Kindle ~  iTunes ~  NOOK ~  KOBO  ~ Google Play ~  Amazon.com (Canada) ~ Amazon (UK) ~  Amazon.fr (France) ~ Amazon.it (Italy) ~ Amazon.de Kindle (Germany) ~ Amazon.es (Spain) ~ Amazon.co.ja (Japan) ~ Amazoncom.au. (Australia)

 

About Diana.

A retired Navy Chief, Diana Cosby is an international bestselling author of Scottish medieval romantic suspense. Books in her award-winning MacGruder Brothers series are translated in five languages.  Diana has spoken at the Library of Congress, Lady Jane’s Salon in NYC, and appeared in Woman’s Day, on USA Today’s romance blog, “Happy Ever After,” MSN.com, Atlantic County Women Magazine, and Texoma Living Magazine.

After her career in the Navy, Diana dove into her passion – writing romance novels. With 34 moves behind her, she was anxious to create characters who reflected the amazing cultures and people she’s met throughout the world. With all three books of The Oath Trilogy, An Oath Taken, An Oath Broken, and An Oath Sworn, making bestseller lists in the U.S., Canada, and/or the United Kingdom, as well as the release of the e Box Set of the MacGruder Brothers series, she is now preparing for the release of the first book in the Forbidden Series, Forbidden Legacy, in August 2016!

Diana looks forward to the years of writing ahead and meeting the amazing people who will share this journey.

www.dianacosby.com

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Sunday News!!

Happy Sunday! We have lots of winners this week, so lets start with them.

Congratulations goes to Sharon Extine for winning a copy of Jenna Jaxon’s book, Angie Garn for winning a copy of my book, and Connie Fischer for winning Shannon Donnelly’s book!!

I hope you have a wonderful time reading!!

 

 

I wish I could tell you that things are slowing down for me, but I still have to finish book 3 in The Worthingtons. My title for this one is It Started with a Kiss. We’ll see if it survives my editor.

In fun news, I received my first box of ARCs for Three Weeks to Wed.

Hubby had to carry them from the mailroom to our dinghy. I can tell you that the box was not light. In any event, to celebrate I’m giving away a copy to one of you. The rules are the same, just tell me you want the book. Bear in mind that this is not the final copy, so there will be errors. On the other hand, you can laugh at my spelling and punctuation mistakes.

Also, the box set is available for pre-order. It’s only .99 and I am using this opportunity to publish A Promise of Love, the first book in The Trevors.  My new novella series based on the children of the Duke of Somerset who was introduced to you in Miss Featherton’s Christmas Prince. He has not improved, but I hope you will have fun reading about how his children escape him and find love and happiness.

I don’t have a blurb yet, but here is an excerpt.

April 1817, London

Lord Francis (Frank) Trevor glanced around the brilliantly lit ballroom wondering what the devil he was doing there. As the second son of the Duke of Somerset, one might suppose he would be used to the ton. And one would be mistaken. Other than the brief period of time he’d spent on the town during a university holiday, he had been acting as his father’s factor. A job that should belong to his eldest brother Damon, Marquis of Hawksworth. His father’s heir.

Frank hadn’t even had a holiday from running the dukedom’s estates. However, as soon as the Father had departed for Scotland with a few of his cronies, Mama had decided Frank could benefit from a touch of Town bronze. How the hell that was supposed to help him when he dealt mainly with crops and animals, he had no idea. He was trapped in a life he did not want and had no hope of employment outside of slaving for his father. If he even attempted to find another position, the duke would ensure he never got it. And after Damon’s marriage to Meg Featherton at Christmas, the duke had made very clear that in the future he would be making any necessary matches for his children.

Ergo, being here was a waste of time and money, though, thankfully, not his own.

A glass of wine was pressed into his hand. “Frank, you are supposed to be having fun.” His brother, Damon had a lazy smile on his face. “Not looking as if you’re facing a hanging.”

Frank took a long pull on the wine. “I’m having trouble knowing where to start. How did you manage to talk father into this visit?”

“Ah, well.” Rather than answering his question, his brother scanned the crowd. “Your mother decided it was time you were introduced to some of the ladies.”

As if he would really be allowed to choose his own bride. “Did she happen to send you a list of ladies who father would approve?”

“Ah, no.”

Damon raised his hand, and they were almost immediately joined by Meg, his wife of four months, and the young lady she had in tow. A beautiful lady with enough curves to entice a monk. Just what he needed. Even though he was immediately smitten with her, she was not for him. He had nothing to offer a woman looking for a husband, and he had his father to contend with.

“My love,” Damon continued, “we forgot that Frank doesn’t really know anyone one.”

“Aren’t you fortunate that I have a remedy?” Meg gave Frank an innocent grin.

She was up to something. The former Miss Margaret Featherton was the only female that had ever bested his father. “Miss MacGowan, may I introduce you to my brother-in-law Lord Francis Trevor. Frank, Miss MacGowan. She has been traveling the Continent, and, like you, does not know many people here.”

The woman smiled politely, but there was a hard glitter in her eyes as she held out her hand. “A pleasure to meet you.”

The moment their hands touched Frank caught his breath. He took another look into her eyes and could now see they were the color of a Scottish lake, and not nearly as cold as they had been a moment ago. A hint of lavender and lemon wove its magic, capturing his senses, and his hand warmed where her long slim fingers rested in his palm. Her thick, auburn hair was arranged on top of her head, with tendrils curling down to fame her oval face. He imagined running his fingers through her silky tresses. He didn’t know how long he just stood there, but someone coughed, and he remembered he had to bow and say something.

“It is a pleasure, Miss MacGowan.” He was surprised he could speak at all, nonetheless in a normal voice.

For a moment she stared at him, as if she was feeling the same strange sensations that had attacked him. Then she grinned ruefully, a look of consternation on her lovely face. “Dear me, you would think I’d know this by now.” She lowered her voice to a whisper, as if speaking to herself. “What do I call you?” After a moment, her brow cleared. “Oh, yes. Lord Francis.”

“I actually prefer Lord Frank.” Then, lost as he was by her flaming hair and flawless milky skin, he said the first thing that came into his head, “You do not sound Scottish.”

She laughed. A lilting sound that made him want to laugh as well. “That is because I am not. I have Scottish antecedents on my father’s side, English on my mother’s side, and a great deal of Dutch mixed in.” Her tone became defensive and challenging at the same time. “I, sir, am an American.”

American? Frank stilled for a moment. The only American woman he had heard of was . . . “From New York?” Holding her chin high Miss MacGowan nodded. “The one who was in Paris last autumn?”

“Exactly.” Her tone was as sour as a lemon. “The American heiress.” She leaned in confidingly. “You had better watch yourself, I might bite.”

Buy links: Amazon ~ B&N ~ iBooks  ~ Kobo

 

 

Generally, I close the blog down for Christmas, but in the middle of next week I have two guest authors visiting me, one between Christmas and New Year, and Collette Cameron has a lovely post she has asked me to run on New Years. Don’t forget to stop by.

On to boat news. We’ve been cruising the BVI. We left yesterday to go back to St. Thomas. For the next two days I’ll be removing everything from our house here. Yes, it finally closed!! Then we’re back to the BVI for Christmas and on to St. Martin for our anniversary and New Year.

We’ve decided to sail as far south as St. Lucia before working our way back up the island to the States. Europe has been put off for a year as we need to get things for the boat before we make the crossing. I generally pick up what I think are interesting items in each island I go to. Last year it was handmade jewelry and spices. I’ll probably do that again. I give these away at conference and contests. Since I’ll be back in the States for the summer, I’d love to meet with some of you.

Have a Merry Christmas. I may be on my way to St. Martin next Sunday, if so, I’ll be back after the New Year.

May peace and love be with you.

Ella

 

 

 

 

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Guest Author Shannon Donnelly

Please welcome Shannon Donnelly back to the blog!! Shannon is here today with her latest release, Lady Chance, Book 2 in the Regency Ladies in Distress series

She’ll also give a copy of the book to one of you who tells her you want it.

We begin with the lovely cover.

Now the blurb

Can an English lady find love and common ground with a French soldier?

In Paris of 1814, as a Bourbon king again takes the throne, the Black Cabinet—a shadowy group of agents employed by the British—is sent to unmask dangerous men and stop assassinations. When Diana, Lady Chauncey—known as Lady Chance—is recruited by her cousin to use her skill at cards to help him delve into these plots, she meets up with a man she thought dead.

Diana finds herself swept into adventure and intrigue, and once again into the arms of the French officer she tangled with ten years ago. But she is no longer an impulsive girl, and he may not be the man she once thought was honorable and good.

After the recent defeat of his country, Giles Taliaris wants nothing more than a return to his family’s vineyards in Burgundy. But his younger brother seems involved in dangerous plots to return France to a republic. To get his family through these troubles, Giles can only tread warily. When he again meets meet the English girl he once knew and thought lost to him, he finds himself torn between duty and desire. Can he find his way through this tangle—and if he does, how can he convince his Diana to give up everything for him?

An excerpt

She turned her steps toward the river and let her stride lengthen. The Seine flowed through Paris in civilized curves. It struck her as a tidy body of water with arching, stone bridges crossing it like stitches. It lacked the size and depth of the Thames—no tall sailing ships lined the shore. No warehouses or docks stood along its edges. The small islands that lay like oblong scones in the river had been built upon for centuries with their stone houses and cathedrals. Notre-Dame’s square towers rose into the sky, dark from soot. Its bells would ring soon for morning mass of some kind. Another place she ought to visit, but not with the feel of cards still stiff in her hands and champagne light in her head. Besides, what would a good Anglican do in a Catholic church other than make herself an awkward tourist?

Her walk did nothing to settle her. However, she became aware of other steps behind her. At the next corner, she turned sharp and waited to see who followed.

Taliaris stepped from a swirl of morning mist like some phantom soldier after a battle. Unfair that he should look not an ounce fatigued by a long night. He stopped in front of her. The impulse danced inside her to swing up her umbrella and poke him in the chest with its tip and tell him to go to blazes. But Jules had said she must patch things.

Cocking her head to one side, she said, “We always seem to meet at the most inopportune moments.”

“I would not bother you, but you have no maid with you, no servant. No one in fact. Paris keeps uneasy company these days.”

“But the city is so very well guarded just now, and I can manage.” Diana waved her umbrella as she might a saber. “I have been doing so for any number of years.”

“Managing to get and lose a husband?” Giles asked, his voice a low growl.

He frowned at himself. He had told himself he would not pry. Yet, as soon as he had glimpsed her in the Jardin des Tuileries like some queen from the past, so certain of herself—seemingly unknowing that even queens could die—he had decided he must follow. Too many soldiers would think any woman on her own was no better than she should be, and he did not trust the manners of either the Prussians or the Russian.

Eyeing Diana and her umbrella—not much of a weapon that—he tucked her empty hand into the crook of his arm. She made no move to object. He started to walk her back the way she had come.

She glanced at him. “You make poor Chauncey sound no more than a glove I dropped. I assure you, it—”

“Was a love match? A passion that left you broken hearted?”

“Now you sound a cynic—and, well, no, it did not—” She broke off her words and bit her lower lip. The dawn bathed her in a pink glow. She looked the goddess now for whom she had been named, lush and proud. The years fell away. Giles could feel his mood softening. “He what, ma chère?”

She made a face and looked down to where she swung her black umbrella in step with her stride. “I hate complainers, so I do not intend to become one. And I ought to apologize. Another thing I hate. But I was in the wrong to strike you. I want to make amends.”

“Now you do not sound like a Frenchwoman. You sound too English. You look it as well, with your little bonnet and your long stride.”

“You, sir, are mocking me. No, do not waste your breath with a protest. You are. I can hear it in your tone. But tell me one thing and then I promise to leave the past be. Did you at least think of me over the years? Imagined me in Surrey, at Edgcot Place, sitting by a window, pining—”

“Never that,” he lied.

“Yes, pining. Probably sighing, too, and…and knitting, or stitching. They are the sorts of things men somehow think women are born knowing.”

“A huntress with domestic skills? You malign my imagination. No, I had you slaying hearts in ballrooms and—”

“Ah, so you did think of me,” Diana said, turning to face him, her eyes bright.

He pressed his lips tight. This was why one should not ask questions. The past was the past and should be left there. He lifted a shoulder and gave her as much of the truth as he could afford. “Do you think you did not leave your mark? I am certain many a man remembers you, much to his dismay.”

“Dismay? Nothing more?”

“Come now. We met by chance years ago. I managed to be of service to you and your aunt, and that knave with you.”

“Paxten Marset. He is now my aunt’s husband and utterly respectable, I shall have you know.”

“My felicitations to your aunt. I suppose I must give them late to you as well for the marriage you had.”

“Oh, no, not for that. I ought to have listened to my mother. I could have done far better than poor Chauncey in my earlier seasons. Why there was one year I had three proposals.”

“Three?”

His sharp question stopped Diana.

She widened her eyes and put a hand to her mouth as if she had let the words slip. She hadn’t. She wanted him to know she had once been quite the prize. The umbrella swung between them, dangling from her fingers. She pulled her hand down and jabbed the umbrella point forward, swinging it to indicate the path back into the formal gardens. “Perhaps we should save those stories for another time. We ought to manage some courtesy to each other this late in the day. Or is it early? Ah, I know. Let us start again.”

She pulled away from him. With both hands braced on the handle of the umbrella, she offered a smile and bobbed a curtsy. “Enchante. I am Diana, Lady Chauncey—Lady Chance to almost all. But I give you leave to call me Diana, for I feel we must be good friends.” She held out her gloved hand.

He looked at it. Lifting his stare to her face, he frowned. “This is absurd.”

“No, no. It is a new day. Let us not spoil it with an argument before breakfast.”

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About Shannon.

Shannon Donnelly’s writing has won numerous awards, including a nomination for Romance Writer’s of America’s RITA award, the Grand Prize in the “Minute Maid Sensational Romance Writer” contest, judged by Nora Roberts, and others. Her writing has repeatedly earned 4½ Star Top Pick reviews from Romantic Times magazine, as well as praise from Booklist and other reviewers, who note: “simply superb”…”wonderfully uplifting”….and “beautifully written.”

In addition to her Regency romances, she is the author of the Mackenzie Solomon, Demon/Warders Urban Fantasy series, Burn Baby Burn and Riding in on a Burning Tire, and the SF/Paranormal, Edge Walkers. Her work has been on the top seller list of Amazon.com and includes the Historical romances, The Cardros Ruby and Paths of Desire.

She is the author of several young adult horror stories, and has also written computer games and offers editing and writing workshops. She lives in New Mexico with two horses, two donkeys, two dogs, and the one love of her life. Shannon can be found online at shannondonnelly.com, facebook.com/sdwriter, and twitter/sdwriter.

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