Blog Tour: Once Ghosted, Twice Shy by Alyssa Cole

Alyssa Cole returns with a fun, sexy romance novella in the Reluctant Royals series!

While her boss the prince was busy wooing his betrothed, Likotsi had her own love affair after swiping right on a dating app. But her romance had ended in heartbreak, and now, back in NYC again, she’s determined to rediscover her joy—so of course she runs into the woman who broke her heart.

When Likotsi and Fabiola meet again on a stalled subway train months later, Fab asks for just one cup of tea. Likotsi, hoping to know why she was unceremoniously dumped, agrees. Tea and food soon leads to them exploring the city together, and their past, with Fab slowly revealing why she let Likotsi go, and both of them wondering if they can turn this second chance into a happily ever after.

About the Book

Once Ghosted, Twice Shy
by Alyssa Cole
Series
Reluctant Royals
Genre
Adult
Contemporary Romance
Publisher
Avon Impulse
Publication Date
January 8, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
Amazon  |  Avon Romance  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Google Play  |  iBooks

Blog Tour: The New Year Boyfriend by Zoey Gong (Review, Excerpt, Giveaway)

At 27, Winnie is on the verge of becoming an old maid. And she’s just fine with that. In medical school and studying for admission to an exclusive training program, Winnie just needs a few more years to get her life in order before she can even think about getting married.

But her mother has other plans.

Winnie’s mother orders her to return home for Chinese New Year to meet a young man she is sure Winnie will agree to marry if she only meets him. But Winnie won’t let anything—even her overbearing mother—stand in the way of her own goals and dreams. So she does the one thing she is sure will get her mother off her back—she hires a New Year boyfriend.

Kai’s life is a wreck. Working two jobs to help pay for his mother’s cancer treatments, Kai has no time for family, fun, or love. But when he sees a job advertisement for posing as a New Year boyfriend, he can’t pass up the opportunity for some quick and easy cash.

It was supposed to be strictly a business arrangement. But as Winnie and Kai’s worlds come crashing down around them, their fake relationship might be the only real thing they have left.

About the Book

The New Year Boyfriend
by Zoey Gong
Series
n/a; standalone
Genre
Adult
Contemporary Romance
Publisher
Red Empress Publishing
Publication Date
November 20, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!  JUST $0.99 THROUGH NOVEMBER 25TH!
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Book Review: Sealed With a Kiss by Ariana Nash (Pure Textuality PR)

Sealed With a Kiss

Author: Ariana Nash

Series: Silk and Steel, book 0.5

Publisher: Crazy Ace Publishing (November 6, 2018)

42 pages

Goodreads     |     Amazon

Summary

"You can have all of me for one night only. Say no, and I'll leave, but say yes and I'll give you a night you'll remember forever." 

As one of the few remaining elven assassins, Eroan Ilanea doesn't have much time for pleasure. Until a messenger arrives from a nearby village and suddenly pleasure is all he can think about. The kind of pleasure he's never surrendered to before. The messenger is a tease, a vision of elicit delights, and he'll be gone in the morning. 

This night, Eroan just might say yes... 

Sealed with a Kiss is a short, sexy, m/m story that takes place several years before events in the novel Silk & Steel (to be published in 2019). 

Check out my review of 

Sealed With a Kiss 

over on the Pure Textuality PR blog!

Book Review: Calendar Girl by Georgia Beers (Pure Textuality PR)

Did you know I'm a reviewer over on Pure Textuality PR's blog now? It's true! I'll post a little note here when reviews go live on Pure Textuality's blog so you can be sure to pop over there and check them out.

Check out my review of Calendar Girl
over on the Pure Textuality PR blog!

Calendar Girl

Author: Georgia Beers
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books (November 13, 2018)
233 pages
Goodreads     |     Amazon

Summary
For Addison Fairchild, success is a guarantee. Groomed since childhood to run a division of Fairchild Enterprises, she takes her birthright seriously. Maybe a little too seriously if you ask her friends. But work is so much easier than the rest of her life. Her employees hate her, her best friend is worried about her, and her last date was hide-in-the-restroom awkward. If all that wasn't bad enough, she's stuck with a new cheerful-happy-annoyingly-morning-person assistant just when the head of FE is about to choose a successor―a job Addison wants so badly, she can taste it. 

For Katie Cooper, money has never been important. That is, until her father gets dementia and needs full-time care. As the bills start to pile up, Katie takes a second job as a temporary personal assistant. Two minutes and one spilled cup of coffee later, she's sure she's not ready for Addison Fairchild―her hard head, her know-it-all attitude, or her gorgeous face. 

Forced to work together, Addison and Kate discover that opposites really do attract.

Blog Tour: Hot Winter Nights by Jill Shalvis

Who needs mistletoe?

Most people wouldn’t think of a bad Santa case as the perfect Christmas gift. Then again, Molly Malone, office manager at Hunt Investigations, isn’t most people, and she could really use a distraction from the fantasies she’s been having since spending the night with her very secret crush, Lucas Knight. Nothing happened, not that Lucas knows that—but Molly just wants to enjoy being a little naughty for once . . .

Whiskey and pain meds for almost-healed bullet wounds don’t mix. Lucas needs to remember that next time he’s shot on the job, which may be sooner rather than later if Molly’s brother, Joe, finds out about them. Lucas can’t believe he’s drawing a blank on his (supposedly) passionate tryst with Molly, who’s the hottest, smartest, strongest woman he’s ever known. Strong enough to kick his butt if she discovers he’s been assigned to babysit her on her first case. And hot enough to melt his cold heart this Christmas.

About the Book

Hot Winter Nights
by Jill Shalvis
SeriesThe Heartbreaker Bay Series
GenreAdult
Contemporary Romance
PublisherAvon Books
Publication DateSeptember 25, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
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Blog Tour: For The Duke's Eyes Only by Lenora Bell (Review, Teaser, Giveaway, Author Q&A)

If adventure has a name…it must be Lady India Rochester. The intrepid archaeologist possesses a sharp blade and an even sharper knack for uncovering history’s forgotten women. Unfortunately, she has one annoying weakness: the dangerously handsome Duke of Ravenwood. Former best friend. Current enemy. And the man who dared to break her heart.

Daniel Bonds, the Duke of Ravenwood, is a thrill-seeking antiquities hunter who only plays by one rule: Never fall in love. He’s in it for the fortune and glory. At least that’s what he wants the world to think. He’s sworn to hide his tangled web of secrets, especially from the one woman he cares about and will protect at any cost.

But when a priceless relic is stolen from the British Museum, the rivals must align forces. Racing to recover the stolen antiquity and avert an international disaster? All in a day’s work. Avoiding their buried feelings? More and more impossible. For love is about to become the greatest treasure of all. The grand adventure begins…now!

About the Book

For the Duke’s Eyes Only by Lenora Bell
Series School For Dukes (Each book is a standalone story.)
Genre Adult Historical Romance
Publisher Avon Books
Publication Date September 18, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
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Blog Tour: Shameless by Cherrie Lynn (Review, Excerpt, Giveaway)

It’s a vacation Meredith Taylor will never forget. A sunny beach, good friends and good times. But when she overhears a couple having a passionate interlude on the balcony above her one night, she can’t get the man’s sultry voice out of her mind. Especially when she figures out exactly who that man is…

Cameron Moore always had an eye on his best friend’s little sister but considered her strictly off limits, choosing to satisfy his lust elsewhere. Now Meri seems to want to annihilate every wall Cam’s put up against her. The beach is hot, the drinks are cold, Meredith is irresistible, and something has to give. Will it only be the walls between them, or their hearts as well?

About the Book

Shameless

by Cherrie Lynn

Series

n/a; standalone

Genre

Adult

Contemporary Romance

Publisher

Entangled Amara

Publication Date

September 10, 2018

Purchase Your Copy Today!

Amazon  |  Entangled Publishing  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Kobo  |  iBooks

Blog Tour: Until We're More by Cindi Madsen (Review, Giveaway, Excerpt)

Chelsea is smart, funny, gorgeous, and the best friend I’ve ever had. Ever since she left, I’ve been a wreck. I’ve been focused on keeping my family’s MMA gym afloat while I train and coach fighters, anything to not miss her more. But now she’s finally back, along with her grumpy, possessive cat, and things are weird between us.

By weird, I mean I can’t stop thinking about her in that way. She’s in the room next door, and it takes all my control not to storm in there, sweep her up, and bring her back to my bed. Even stranger, I’m pretty sure she’d be into it.

And this time, I’m not going to stop fighting until we’re more.

Each book in the Fighting for Her series is STANDALONE:
* Until You’re Mine
* Until We’re More

About the Book

Until We’re More 
by Cindi Madsen
Series
Fighting For Her Series
Genre
New Adult
Contemporary Romance
Publisher
Entangled Embrace
Publication Date
August 27, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
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Blog Tour: The Governess Game by Tessa Dare (Review, Excerpt, Teaser, Giveaway)

He’s been a bad, bad rake—and it takes a governess to teach him a lesson.

The accidental governess.

After her livelihood slips through her fingers, Alexandra Mountbatten takes on an impossible post: transforming a pair of wild orphans into proper young ladies. However, the girls don’t need discipline. They need a loving home. Try telling that to their guardian, Chase Reynaud: duke’s heir in the streets and devil in the sheets. The ladies of London have tried—and failed—to make him settle down. Somehow, Alexandra must reach his heart . . . without risking her own.

The infamous rake.

Like any self-respecting libertine, Chase lives by one rule: no attachments. When a stubborn little governess tries to reform him, he decides to give her an education—in pleasure. That should prove he can’t be tamed. But Alexandra is more than he bargained for: clever, perceptive, passionate. She refuses to see him as a lost cause. Soon the walls around Chase’s heart are crumbling . . . and he’s in danger of falling, hard.

About the Book

The Governess Gameby Tessa Dare
SeriesThe Girl Meets Duke Series
GenreAdult
Historical Romance
PublisherAvon Books
Publication DateAugust 28, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
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Blog Tour: A Duke By Default by Alyssa Cole (Excerpt, Review, Giveaway)

Award-winning author Alyssa Cole’s Reluctant Royals series continues with a woman on a quest to be the heroine of her own story and the duke in shining armor she rescues along the way…

New York City socialite and perpetual hot mess Portia Hobbs is tired of disappointing her family, friends, and—most importantly—herself. An apprenticeship with a struggling swordmaker in Scotland is a chance to use her expertise and discover what she’s capable of. Turns out she excels at aggravating her gruff silver fox boss…when she’s not having inappropriate fantasies about his sexy Scottish burr.

Tavish McKenzie doesn’t need a rich, spoiled American telling him how to run his armory…even if she is infuriatingly good at it. Tav tries to rebuff his apprentice—and his attraction to her—but when Portia accidentally discovers that he’s the secret son of a duke, rough-around-the-edges Tav becomes her newest makeover project.  

Forging metal into weapons and armor is one thing, but when desire burns out of control and the media spotlight gets too hot to bear, can a commoner turned duke and his posh apprentice find lasting love?

About The Book

A Duke By Defaultby Alyssa Cole
SeriesReluctant Royals
GenreAdult
Contemporary Romance
PublisherAvon Books
Publication DateJuly 31, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
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Blog Tour: Born to Be Wilde by Eloisa James (Review, Excerpt, Giveaway)

The richest bachelor in England plays matchmaker…for an heiress he wants for himself! 

For beautiful, witty Lavinia Gray, there’s only one thing worse than having to ask the appalling Parth Sterling to marry her: being turned down by him.

Now the richest bachelor in England, Parth is not about to marry a woman as reckless and fashion-obsessed as Lavinia; he’s chosen a far more suitable bride.

But when he learns of Lavinia’s desperate circumstances, he offers to find her a husband. Even better, he’ll find her a prince.

As usual, there’s no problem Parth can’t fix. But the more time he spends with the beguiling Lavinia, the more he finds himself wondering…

Why does the woman who’s completely wrong feel so right in his arms?

About The Book

Born to Be Wildeby Eloisa James
SeriesThe Wildes of Lindow Castle Series
GenreAdult
Historical Romance
PublisherAvon Books
Publication DateJuly 31, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
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Blog Tour: The Highlander's Promise by Lynsay Sands (Excerpt, Teaser, Giveaway)

In a spellbinding new Highlands story from New York Times bestselling author Lynsay Sands, the laird of the Buchanans finds the one woman who is his equal in passion and courage.

Aulay Buchanan has retreated to his clan’s hunting lodge for a few days of relaxation. But the raven-haired beauty he pulls from the ocean puts an end to any chance of rest. Though he christens her Jetta, she knows nothing of her real identity, save that someone is trying to kill her. As she recovers, it will not be easy for Aulay to protect her and keep her honor intact when she mistakenly believes they are man and wife…

Jetta sees beyond Aulay’s scars to the brave, loyal warrior she’s proud to call her own. But as the attempts on her life grow more brazen, Jetta realizes that not all is as she believes. And if Aulay is not her husband, can she trust the desire flaring in his eyes, or his promise to defend her with his life?

About the Book

The Highlander’s Promiseby Lynsay Sands
SeriesThe Highlander Series
GenreAdult
Historical Romance
PublisherAvon Books
Publication DateJune 26, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
Amazon | Avon Romance | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | iBooks

Blog Tour: Wicked and the Wallflower by Sarah MacLean (Excerpt, Review, Giveaway)

When a man known only as Devil finds his way into her bedchamber and offers her his help in landing a duke, Lady Felicity Faircloth agrees. She might be a spinster, but she’s seen love in action and is willing to do whatever it takes to ensure that her future husband will love her beyond reason—even if it means she must make a deal with a man more dangerous than she could imagine.

Bastard son of a duke, and king of London’s darkest corners, Devil has made a lifetime of wielding power and seizing opportunity, and Felicity Faircloth is everything he needs to exact a perfect revenge. All he has to do is turn the plain little mouse into an irresistible temptress, set his trap, and destroy his enemy. If the girl is ruined in the process, so be it.  

Except there’s nothing plain about Felicity Faircloth, and soon it’s Devil who is trapped…along with his heart.

About the Book

Wicked and the Wallflowerby Sarah MacLean
SeriesThe Bareknuckle Bastards Series
GenreAdult
Historical Romance
PublisherAvon Books
Publication DateJune 19, 2018
Purchase Your Copy Today!
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Blog Tour: Disturbing His Peace by Tessa Bailey (Review, Teaser, Giveaway)

Danika Silva can’t stand Lt. Greer Burns. Her roommate’s older brother may be sexy as hell, but he’s also a cold, unfeeling robot. She just wants to graduate and forget about her scowling superior. But when a dangerous mistake lands Danika on probation—under Greer’s watch—she’s forced to interact with the big, hulking jerk. Call him daily to check in? Done. Ride shotgun in his cruiser every night? Done. Try not to climb into his giant, muscular lap and kiss him? Umm…

Greer doesn’t let anything—or anyone—distract him from the job. Except lately, all he can think about is Danika. He’s wanted the beautiful, cocky recruit since the moment he saw her. But she’s reckless and unpredictable, and Greer is painfully aware of what can happen when an officer doesn’t follow the rules. Probation seemed like a good idea, but now Danika’s scent is in his car and he’s replayed her voicemails twenty times. Christ, he’s a goner.

Danika’s melting Greer’s stone-cold exterior one ride-along at a time. Being together could have serious consequences… but breaking a few rules never hurt anybody, right?

About the Book

Disturbing His Peace
by Tessa Bailey
Series
The Academy Series
Genre
Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher
Avon Books
Publication Date
April 24, 2018
Amazon | Avon Romance | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | iBooks

My Review

I don't normally like books written in the first person present tense. In fact, they're usually an automatic DNF for me. I might have to change my mind on that after reading Disturbing His Peace. Told in the first person present tense, this book switches between being told from Danika and Greer's points of view. The first person present tense works really well for the story, because Tessa Bailey does it SO WELL that it's like you're inside each of their heads. Their dirty, filthy, smutty heads. *delicious shiver*

Danika is a first generation American whose parents emigrated from Colombia, and she has a very strong family focus. Greer is basically her polar opposite when it comes to family, having little to no personal relationship with his father and loving his brother but unsure how to actually connect with him. I love how sassy and ballsy Danika is. Who doesn't love a bad-ass lady cop? Especially when she also has a heart of gold and bends over backwards to do everything for her family. Greer is also pretty amazing, and I love how huge and uptight he is. Plus that super tight leash he has on his passion for Danika is super sexy. Rawr!

HOLY HANNAH, the heat in this book. I'm pretty sure my face was flaming while reading several parts. Disturbing His Peace has heavy dom/sub themes, and I really appreciate the way Danika and Greer discover and explore their developing interest in these roles together. Greer always checks that what he's doing is OK with and enjoyable for Danika, for example asking if it's OK before spanking her during foreplay, which depicts a healthy and safe dom/sub relationship and does NOT normalize abuse. *loud round of applause* Hooray for kinky consensual sex play!

This is the third book in The Academy series, and while it can be read as a stand-alone there ARE spoilers for plot points in the first two books. Dani's roommates are the male leads in the first two books, and there are mentions of what I assume are some major plot points from them in Disturbing His Peace. If that's something that's going to ruin it for you if you decide to go back and read the earlier books, then read Disorderly Conduct (The Academy #1) and Indecent Exposure (The Academy #2) before reading Disturbing His Peace.

Tour Wide Giveaway

To celebrate the release of DISTURBING HIS PEACE by Tessa Bailey, we’re giving away one paperback set of The Academy series!

GIVEAWAY TERMS & CONDITIONS:  Open to US shipping addresses only. One winners will receive a paperback set of The Academy series by Tessa Bailey. This giveaway is administered by Pure Textuality PR on behalf of Avon Romance.  Giveaway ends 5/4/2018 @ 11:59pm EST. Avon Romance will send the winning copies out to the winner directly. Limit one entry per reader and mailing address.  Duplicates will be deleted.  CLICK HERE TO ENTER!

About Tessa Bailey

Tessa Bailey is originally from Carlsbad, California. The day after high school graduation, she packed her yearbook, ripped jeans, and laptop, and drove cross-country to New York City in under four days. Her most valuable life experiences were learned thereafter while waitressing at K-Dees, a Manhattan pub owned by her uncle. Inside those four walls, she met her husband, best friend, and discovered the magic of classic rock, managing to put herself through Kingsborough Community College and the English program at Pace University at the same time. Several stunted attempts to enter the work force as a journalist followed, but romance writing continued to demand her attention. She now lives in Long Island, New York with her husband and daughter. Although she is severely sleep-deprived, she is incredibly happy to be living her dream of writing about people falling in love.

Author Links

    

This promotion is brought to you by Pure Textuality PR.

Blog Tour: A Match Made in Bed (Spinster Heiresses #2) by Cathy Maxwell (Review, Excerpt, Teaser, Tour Wide Giveaway)

Once upon a time there were three young ladies who, despite their fortunes, had been on the marriage mart a bit too long. They were known as “the Spinster Heiresses” . . .

Miss Cassandra Holwell is too tall, too bookish, and too smart—but she does have money and a father who wants a grand title for her. Cassandra hasn’t felt a desire to marry until she meets the sinfully handsome Duke of Camberly, who captures her imagination . . . until Soren York, Earl of Dewsberry and her family’s sworn enemy, steps in the way.

The Holwells ruined Soren’s family, and he’s lived on the knife’s edge trying to resurrect their fortunes . . . until he considers marrying the Holwell Heiress. Not only would her dowry give him the funds he needs, he has secretly had an eye on the independent-minded bluestocking since they both first realized the differences between men and women.

She likes to read; he has no patience for books. She knows little of sex; he is a man of the world and willing to school her. Her family destroyed his; his offer of marriage may be her only salvation.

Now Cassandra and Soren must learn to love each other for who they are, not what they are—and the lessons are becoming an exercise in absolute pleasure.

About the Book

A Match Made in Bed
by Cathy Maxwell
Series
The Spinster Heiresses Series
Genre
Adult Historical Romance
Publisher
Avon Books
Publication Date
April 17, 2018
Get Your Copy Today!Amazon | Avon Romance | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | iBooks
 

Tour Wide Giveaway

To celebrate the release of A MATCH MADE IN BED by Cathy Maxwell, we’re giving away for two paperback copies of IF EVER I SHOULD LOVE YOU!

GIVEAWAY TERMS & CONDITIONS:  Open to US shipping addresses only. Two winners will each receive a paperback copy of If Ever I Should Love You by Cathy Maxwell. This giveaway is administered by Pure Textuality PR on behalf of Avon Romance.  Giveaway ends 4/27/2018 @ 11:59pm EST. Avon Romance will send the winning copies out to the winner directly. Limit one entry per reader and mailing address.  Duplicates will be deleted.  CLICK HERE TO ENTER!

 

My Review

I really loved the first half of the this book but then, a little over halfway through, Soren and Cass both suddenly started irritating the heck out of me. All of a sudden he was being an inconsiderate, insensitive jerk, and she was being a spoiled, entitled, whiny brat. What. On. Earth. It was so bad I put the book down several times to read something else, then would pick it back up again and read a bit more before putting it down again, annoyed. Thankfully, I kept picking it back up because the last 30% of the book was even better than the first half. It's like they both clicked back from being annoying buttholes to characters I sympathized with and was rooting for. (Someone else who's read this, tell me if this little blip was just me and something to do with my mood, or if the book actually took a turn for the worse for a few chapters.)

The first half of this book is so fun to read as Cassandra and Soren spar. They're both such strong, independent characters, and I do love a witty nerd-girl. Some of the hijinks they get up to at the Duke of Camberly's house party are downright hilarious and had my laughing out loud. The mood shifts dramatically in the last third of the book, settling down and becoming very loving and homey. I love the developing relationships between Soren, Cass, and Logan, as well as Cass's ability to realize some hard truths about herself and find a new dream. Logan is adorable and I hope somewhere down the road Cathy Maxwell does a spin-off series with him as a male lead.

This is the second book in the Spinster Heiresses series, but can be read as a stand alone. I'm actually stalled out halfway through the first book, If Ever I Should Love You, and can assure you that A Match Made in Bed can be read with no spoilers for the first book, and without any pieces missing from the story of the second book. It does end with some hints and leads into the third book, which is about the third woman in their little spinster trio, Willa, titled The Duke That I Marry.   
      

Excerpt

He’s here. I know he is,” Cassandra whispered in the ear of her friend Willa, lest she be overheard by either Lady Bainhurst sitting on the settee with them or the very handsome, highly desirable Duke of Camberly. He stood by Lady Bainhurst but Cassandra felt he gave her and Willa most of his attention.

“Who? Dewsberry?” Willa managed around the smile spread across her face for the duke’s benefit. She was far more interested in him than Cassandra’s sudden premonition that Soren York was close at hand.

Willa was as petite as Cassandra was tall and perfectly formed in every way. Her hair was raven black, and the two were dear friends—well, except when it came to their competition to earn the attention of the Duke of Camberly.

They’d even made a flirting game of it, attaching points for different actions of courtship—a point for an introduction, three points for each dance, five points if he called upon them. When a woman had been on the Marriage Mart as long as they had, she needed a bit of competition to sharpen her skills . . . not that either of them required the edge of a game when it came to Camberly.

He was young and amazingly handsome. He had broad shoulders, a lean jaw, and dark hair that emphasized the jewel blue of his eyes. What woman wouldn’t want to become his duchess?

Cassandra was actually ahead in the game by one point. She’d been wondering how many points being invited to this weekend would earn her when Willa had made her appearance in the reception room. They had not known the other was coming.

And now here was Camberly, ignoring his other guests and spending his time focusing on both of them.

Everyone knew he needed to marry money. She and Willa were the only two marriageable women invited to the dowager’s house party as far as Cassandra could see. Did this mean the duke intended to decide between the two of them? Perhaps even this very week?

The thought made her giddy. She wanted Camberly. He was “the one.” The very embodiment of all her romantic dreams. No other could match him. And she was not going to let Soren York ruin this country party and her one chance for marital happiness with his presence.

Willa proved what a good friend she was by momentarily turning her attention from hanging on to the duke’s every word to murmur, “I don’t see Dewsberry.”

“He’s here,” Cassandra insisted. She sat up straighter so that she could unobtrusively gain a better look around the room.

There had been someone lurking in the hall leading to the dining room. That was when she’d first experienced the suspicion that things weren’t completely right. However, she’d been so distracted with Willa’s presence and what it meant to her chances with the duke, she’d not been interested in concentrating on her inner sense.

Then again, the duke had come from that direction, making an appearance that had surprised everyone in the room by his lack of  fanfare. Still . . . Soren was here.

The tingling of the hairs at the nape of her neck had never failed her, especially since she’d been exercising it more than she wished for the past month. Soren seemed to be everywhere she went in spite of her best efforts to avoid him because she knew what he wanted—marriage.

Dewsberry might be an old and respected title but the earldom was done up. Ruined by generations of poor decisions and unwise gambling. Soren was hunting her because of the money she would inherit upon marriage and because her father’s lands abutted his. He was that obvious. However, she thought herself safe here. Why would Camberly, who also needed a rich wife, invite a competitor?

Unless the duke thought to hand off whichever heiress he didn’t want to Dewsberry?

The walls in the room seemed to close in around her.

She would not marry Dewsberry. She couldn’t. Her father would never  allow  it.  The Yorks were his enemies. They looked down on the Holwells, and neither she nor her father would subject themselves to their high-handed treatment.

But also, Soren had betrayed her. She could recall perfectly the pain of what he’d done to her. It had been close to eleven years ago, and the hurt, the disappointment was still surprisingly raw.
 

About Cathy Maxwell

CATHY MAXWELL spends hours in front of her computer pondering the question, “Why do people fall in love?” It remains for her the great mystery of life and the secret to happiness. Fans can contact Cathy at www.cathymaxwell.com; Twitter: @maxwellcathy

Author Links

    

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