What a great surprise to learn that I didn’t have to wait until October to read my friend Caroline Warfield’s latest release. Music on the Waters hit my Kindle last night and I can’t wait to read it. Be sure to grab yourself a copy and congratulations, Caroline!
Music on the Waters By Caroline Warfield Available now for $0.99
Sir Alexander Bradshaw, solid Scots merchant, needs to acquire a wife, a sensible woman who can manage his unruly sons and sullen daughter. As Orkney’s long, dark winter approaches with no suitable candidates, an acquaintance suggests a music teacher might occupy his daughter. He embraces at the idea.
Ann Dunwood let herself be lured to Orkney by the opportunity to play The Kirkwall Organ. For the beauty of the instrument, she can endure the tedium of choirs and parishioners who wish only for the most banal of hymns; she’s done it before. She knows how to fade into the shadows and keep to her place.
When Alec comes upon her filling the cathedral with a Bach fugue he is enchanted by the magical creature at the keyboard. The object of his fascination sinks into a demure young woman when the music ends. Alec determines to get the magical creature back, and quickly discovers she can fill his life with the music it sorely needs. How long before their solos become a duet?
Traveler, would-be adventurer, former tech writer and library technology professional, Caroline Warfield has now retired to the urban wilds of Eastern Pennsylvania, and divides her time between writing and seeking adventures with her grandbuddy. In her newest series, Children of Empire, three cousins torn apart by lies find their way home from the far corners of the British Empire, finding love along the way.
She has works published by Soul Mate Publishing and also independently published works. In addition she has participated in five group anthologies, one not yet published.
For more about the series and all of Caroline’s books, look here:
It’s First Kiss Friday and we’re going to ring in the month of May with my dear friend Caroline Warfield. Caroline has a new book coming out in October and I’m excited to read an excerpt of what she has in store for us with Music on the Waters. Take it away Caroline!
Music on the Waters concerns a lonely widower and a brilliant musician he has hired to teach his daughter. Late one night the two of them have pulled a Beethoven duet from the music cabinet and have been attempting to play it.
Excerpt:
Halfway through, their playing became entangled, until Alec broke off laughing, bowing his head to the piano. Ann convulsed, as if his laughter infected her with madness. They laughed until tears ran.
“How could we—” she began, gasping for air.
“The arrogance of it!” he replied.
“Maybe with a year of practice,” she said, catching her breath.
“A year? Surely a month or two would suffice,” he asserted.
She beamed at him; he thought it the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. When she opened her mouth to reply, the luscious line of her lower lip drew him. He froze, unable to pull his gaze away.
She closed her mouth slowly, and he leaned forward longing to kiss, his common sense in full retreat.
When she licked her lower lip, he was lost. He closed the distance until their breaths mingled.
“Sir Alec?” she murmured before he touched his lips to hers.
“Alec,” he said against her mouth, moving his lips and touching hers with his tongue. She didn’t pull away. He moved back mere inches, enough to look for any sign of distress. Her wide, expectant eyes sent him back for more.
Just a taste, he thought.
When she opened for him, he was lost. He pushed the bench back from the piano and pulled her into his lap, one arm about her shoulders anchoring her to him, the other caressing her waist and hip.
She gripped his shoulders, holding on as if for life. Her untutored responses to his kisses sent a warning through him, but he ignored it. When the hand at her waist slipped up to cup one breast, she stiffened, and he pulled it away, lifting his head to look at her again. She whimpered and shivered in his arms, leaning her mouth toward his, but he pulled her against his shoulder.
He dropped his head to hers, reveling in the silken feel of her hair. “I should apologize.”
She pulled herself up. “No, I—”
She didn’t object when he pulled her back. “Don’t. You’re a beautiful woman and a brilliant musician. I refuse to regret kissing you.” They sat together for long moments, her head nestled against his shoulder and his arm around her waist, until he kissed her neck and set her back on the bench.
Music on the Waters By Caroline Warfield Preorder now for $0.99
Sir Alexander Bradshaw, solid Scots merchant, needs to acquire a wife, a sensible woman who can manage his unruly sons and sullen daughter. As Orkney’s long, dark winter approaches with no suitable candidates, an acquaintance suggests a music teacher might occupy his daughter. He embraces at the idea.
Ann Dunwood let herself be lured to Orkney by the opportunity to play The Kirkwall Organ. For the beauty of the instrument, she can endure the tedium of choirs and parishioners who wish only for the most banal of hymns; she’s done it before. She knows how to fade into the shadows and keep to her place.
When Alec comes upon her filling the cathedral with a Bach fugue he is enchanted by the magical creature at the keyboard. The object of his fascination sinks into a demure young woman when the music ends. Alec determines to get the magical creature back, and quickly discovers she can fill his life with the music it sorely needs. How long before their solos become a duet?
Traveler, would-be adventurer, former tech writer and library technology professional, Caroline Warfield has now retired to the urban wilds of Eastern Pennsylvania, and divides her time between writing and seeking adventures with her grandbuddy. In her newest series, Children of Empire, three cousins torn apart by lies find their way home from the far corners of the British Empire, finding love along the way.
She has works published by Soul Mate Publishing and also independently published works. In addition she has participated in five group anthologies, one not yet published.
For more about the series and all of Caroline’s books, look here:
Happy Valentine’s Day to all our wonderful readers!
I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of you for making Fire & Frost a bestselling box set. The Bluestocking Belles and I are thrilled with all the marvelous reviews we’ve been receiving and also for the set hitting several bestseller lists including, Amazon, Goodreads, and Smashwords.
You are the ones to make this happen. Thank you for supporting the Bluestocking Belles by purchasing a copy of Fire & Frost. Your purchase also supports our mutual charity, the Malala Fund. Our readers are the best!
♥ ¸.•*(¸.•*´♥`*•.¸)`*•.♥
Fire & Frost – Only $0.99
Curl up with the gift of a great book this Valentine’s Day. Fire & Frost will warm your heart!
In a winter so cold the Thames freezes over, five couples venture onto the ice in pursuit of love to warm their hearts.
Love unexpected, rekindled, brand new or rediscovered—even one that’s a whack on the side of the head—heats up the winter. After weeks of fog and cold all five stories converge on the ice at the 1814 Frost Fair when the ladies’ campaign to help the wounded and unemployed veterans of the Napoleonic wars culminates in a charity auction that shocks the high sticklers of the ton.
In their 2020 collection, join the Bluestocking Belles and their heroes and heroines as The Ladies’ Society For The Care of the Widows and Orphans of Fallen Heroes and the Children of Wounded Veterans pursues justice, charity, and soul searing romance.
Celebrate Valentine’s Day 2020 with five interconnected Regency romances.
Welcome to another First Kiss Friday. Today’s guest is my dear friend Caroline Warfield who is sharing an excerpt from her novella Lord Ethan’s Courage found in our box set Fire & Frost. Happy reading, my lovelies, and enjoy!
Unlike the heroes of the other stories in Fire & Frost, Ethan isn’t able to actually bid on Flora’s time and her basket in the ladies’ charity auction due to illness. He sends his brother as surrogate. He does, however, have a surprise for her.
Excerpt:
She took a step back, arms akimbo and flashed him stern frown. “Is that all you want to say? ‘Call on me?’ Where is your courage when I need it?”
He came closer to her. “I have no right to say more, but if you can be patient…”
Flo heaved a sigh of exasperation and closed the distance between them, grabbing his shoulders, and meeting his lips with her impatient ones. After a heartbeat he returned the kiss with an achingly tender one, using his damaged arm to pull her close while he feathered his graceful fingers across her cheek.
“Much better,” she sighed against his neck, “But know this. I can wait out my mourning and your illness, but do not ask me to be patient.” She spat each of the last words out one by one. “I am not a patient woman when I know what I want, Ethan Alcott, and I want you.”
He kissed her again, this time deeply, passionately, possessively. When she moaned and pulled him closer, he pulled back, tipping his forehead onto hers. “Your brother believes you deserve a Season. I agree. If you still want this in a year…”
“God save me from men and their honor,” she muttered into his cravat.
About the Story
When Flora Landrum’s family is thrown into mourning and her brother loses himself in his new duties as earl, she refuses to be shunted off to her sister’s household under the eye of her vile brother-in-law. If the new earl can take time from his problems to do charity work for returning veterans, so can Flora, even if she has to sneak behind his back to visit some unsavory neighborhoods.
Lord Ethan Alcott lost his desire to live after the horrors of the peninsular war. The courage that enabled him to lead men into battle and drove him to charge into the rioting in its aftermath to save innocents failed him when he woke up on a troopship, just one wounded man among many. He was content to sit among the most wretched in an alley waiting for death until the day an innocent young lady stormed bravely among them determined to alleviate what suffering she could. She ought not be there and honor bound him to find her family and tell them so.
Flora might be insulted by the interference, but she isn’t about to let him sink back into misery. Ethan has a new battle on his hands, one for his life.
Fire & Frost: A Bluestocking Belles Collection Only $0.99
In a winter so cold the Thames freezes over, five couples venture onto the ice in pursuit of love to warm their hearts.
Love unexpected, rekindled, or brand new—even one that’s a whack on the side of the head—heats up the frigid winter. After weeks of fog and cold, all five stories converge on the ice at the 1814 Frost Fair when the ladies’ campaign to help the wounded and unemployed veterans of the Napoleonic wars culminates in a charity auction that shocks the high sticklers of the ton.
In their 2020 collection, join the Bluestocking Belles and their heroes and heroines as The Ladies’ Society For The Care of the Widows and Orphans of Fallen Heroes and the Children of Wounded Veterans pursues justice, charity, and soul-searing romance.
Celebrate Valentine’s Day 2020 with five interconnected Regency romances.
Award winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.
If you’ve never read any of Caroline Warfield’s stories you are missing out. But today on First Kiss Friday she’ll be sharing the first kiss scene from her latest release Christmas Hope. Happy reading and enjoy, my lovelies! Take it away, Caroline.
At this point in Christmas Hope, Harry has known Rosemarie a little over a month. He met her when she rescued his grandmother’s Bible from the Somme. It is Christmas 1916 and life is very uncertain. This kiss is a promise.
Excerpt:
Harry pulled the Bible over. Most of the pages were warped from water damage, and some were stained from the mud, but it felt familiar all the same. It never failed to fill him with thoughts of home. I will take them there.
Foolish that. You don’t know what tomorrow will bring, or when this war will end.
Rosemarie returned, looking as flustered as she had when she found him at her door. “He’s asleep,” she said as if he didn’t know it.
“Rosemarie, may I stay tonight?” His gaze never left hers.
She put up both hands as if to defend herself and blushed.
Before she could speak, he rushed on. “I mean no disrespect. I will sleep on the floor by the stove. Soldiers are used to sleeping rough.”
Her body relaxed, and she blinked.
He continued, “I rented my own boat this time. I can leave, but it’s dark, and I—” He sighed. “I really want to spend Christmas here.”
She stepped closer then. “I want it, too,” she whispered.
Her face was inches from his. She reached up a hand to push back his hair. He leaned in to smell her scent, all roses and woman.
Before he could close the distance for a kiss, she put a hand on his chest. “You will sleep on the floor. By the stove,” she said tartly, one brow raised.
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, smiling.
He took her mouth gently. At her eager response, passion flared, and his kiss deepened before moving to her neck and the warm spot under her ear. The sound of her moan almost undid him.
An urge to ask her to marry him almost drove him to foolish declarations. Not now. Not yet. But perhaps someday. When all this is over, I will take her home. Let tomorrow bring what it brings. For now, this kiss will have to be enough.
He lifted her, carried her to her rocker, enfolded her in his arms, and began to kiss her in earnest.
Christmas Hope
By Caroline Warfield
After two years at the mercy of the Canadian Expeditionary force and the German war machine, Harry ran out of metaphors for death, synonyms for brown, and images of darkness. When he encounters color among the floating islands of Amiens and life in the form a widow and her little son, hope ensnares him. Through three more long years of war and its aftermath, the hope she brings keeps Harry alive.
Rosemarie Legrand’s husband left her a tiny son, no money, and a savaged reputation when he died. She struggles to simply feed the boy and has little to offer a lonely soldier, but Harry’s devotion lifts her up. The war demands all her strength and resilience, but the hope of peace and the promise of Harry’s love keep her going.
Award winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.
Welcome to another First Kiss Friday. Any day that I can welcome back my dear friend Caroline Warfield is always a good day. Dangerous Works is the story of Georgiana and Andrew who were in love long ago. Upon his return to Cambridge she coerces him into helping with her translations—ancient Greek poetry by women. At this point in the story they have been working together for some time. When he astonishes her by suggesting she publish her work, she eventually agrees, but only on condition they do it jointly, that he be her collaborator rather than her teacher. Happy reading and enjoy!
Excerpt:
“We. You said ‘we.’” Her generosity struck him like a cannon shot. Rush of desire at the sight of her radiant face would have buckled his knees had he been standing. He was grateful he wasn’t.
He reached up to draw her closer, unable to stop himself, and she bent her head to his hand. Lilac scent flooded over his defenses when she lowered her joyous face to his. He brushed her lips with his once and then again with feathery touch.
She drew away slightly. Her eyes, wary but welcoming, never left his. He watched for the slightest sign of rejection or denial while he rose from the chair and moved his head with exquisite slowness to touch her mouth again. She closed the distance and brushed his lips with hers. Her innocent response was all the permission he needed.
He slid one hand up her neck to cup her chin, tipping it toward himself. His thumb brushed her cheek, and his long fingers feathered the edges of her hair. He used the other hand to pull her close until their entire bodies touched, until he could feel her breasts pressed against him and the curve of her hip under his hand. It was as he remembered it, as he longed for it. His mouth moved over hers softly at first and then became more demanding. Her immediate surrender held no reservation. He deepened the kiss; she opened to him completely.
It rapidly became impossible to stand.
Dangerous Works
by Caroline Warfield
A little Greek is one thing; the art of love is another. Only one man has ever tried to teach Lady Georgiana Hayden both. She learned very young to keep her heart safe. She learned to keep loneliness at bay through work. If it takes a scandalous affair to teach her what she needs to complete her work, she will risk it. If the man in question chooses not to teach her, she will use any means at her disposal to change his mind. She is determined to give voice to the ancient women whose poetry has long been neglected.
Some scars cut deeper than others. Major Andrew Holden returns to Cambridge a battle-scarred hero. He dared to love Georgiana once and suffered swift retribution from her powerful family. The encounter cost him eleven years of his life. Determined to avoid her, he seeks work to heal his soul and make his scholarly father proud. The work she offers risks his career, his peace of mind, and (worst of all) his heart. Can he protect himself from a woman who almost destroyed him? Does he want to?
Even poetry is dangerous when you partner with the love of your life. In Regency, Cambridge, it can lead a lady quickly past improper to positively scandalous.
It is ***FREE*** with Kindle Unlimited or you can buy a copy at:
Traveler, would-be adventurer, former tech writer and library technology professional, Caroline Warfield has now retired to the urban wilds of Eastern Pennsylvania, and divides her time between writing and seeking adventures with her grandbuddy.
She has works published by Soul Mate Publishing and also independently published works. In addition she has participated in six group anthologies.
For more about the Dangerous Series and all of Caroline’s books, look here:
It’s always a pleasure when I can have Caroline Warfield on my First Kiss Friday blog. Today she has an excerpt from The Unexpected Wife. Take it away, Caroline!
The Unexpected Wife made it to the final list for the RONE award! In May I gave you their first kiss, and impulsive reaction to his return from a dangerous secret mission inside the forbidden city of Canton. This excerpt is the scene before he left. As to the kiss—it lurks in here.
Excerpt:
A rustle of cloth alerted her to Charles, who watched the conversation from the foot of the stairs. He dressed entirely in black, and he carried a Chinese robe in a green so dark it almost looked black thrown over his shoulder. He wore a bowl-shaped hat.
“He’s right, you know,” he said.
“About being above the law?” she demanded.
“About ruining your chances for a good marriage.”
She rolled her eyes. “You know how little I care about that.”
“I didn’t say dynastic marriage—I said good. You have seen what Temperance and Aaron have—or my uncle and aunt.” He wandered closer and leaned one elbow on the wall next to her. “Don’t you wish for it? You ought to, Zambak.”
The warmth in his eyes pulled her in, driving the breath from her body. Charles wants what they have for himself. This gentle man, locked in union to the hellish Julia, wants domestic peace above all else. For the space of a heartbeat, she longed for it as well, but knew it for the impossible desire it was. “I, Charles? I want to own my life, to not be a pawn in some political chess game. In the unlikely event a choice like the one you describe arises then, yes. I might take it. I have little hope that it will.”
His eyes lit with a fire that burned into her. “Sometimes life surprises us with unexpected gifts,” he said, studying her. His intensity burned deep into her heart and radiated through her. When he leaned closer, she realized he meant to kiss her. His desire didn’t frighten her; it filled her with wonder. Her own yearning to accept him, however, shot terror straight to her core.
Good God, Zambak. You’re lusting after a married man! She pulled away.
Stricken, his face flushed red, and he stood straighter. “Zambak, I—”
“What have you done to your face?” she asked. She didn’t know if he meant to apologize or express disappointment. She couldn’t bear either of them and was grateful when he let her turn the subject.
“Walnut juice.”
She felt her lips twitch into a smile. He always finds a way to amuse me. She loved that about him.
If their dilemma troubles you, it did their author as well. Charles is a good and honorable man, and his wife is, well, not. Given the chance, he will resolve his problems honorably.
About the Book: The Unexpected Wife Children of Empire Book 3
Crushed with grief after the death of his son, Charles Wheatly, Duke of Murnane, throws himself into the new Queen’s service in 1838. When the government sends him on an unofficial fact finding mission to the East India Company’s enclave in Canton, China, he anticipates intrigue, international tensions, and an outlet for his frustration. He isn’t entirely surprised when he also encounters a pair of troublesome young people that need his help. However, the appearance of his estranged wife throws the entire enterprise into conflict. He didn’t expect to face his troubled marriage in such an exotic locale, much less to encounter profound love at last in the person of a determined young woman. Tensions boil over, and his wife’s scheming—and the beginnings of the First Opium War—force him to act to rescue the one he loves and perhaps save himself in the process.
Zambak Hayden seethes with frustration. A woman her age has occupied the throne for over a year, yet the Duke of Sudbury’s line of succession still passes over her—his eldest—to land on a son with neither spine nor character. She follows her brother, the East India Company’s newest and least competent clerk, to protect him and to safeguard the family honor. If she also escapes the gossip and intrigues of London and the marriage mart, so much the better. She has no intention of being forced into some sort of dynastic marriage. She may just refuse to marry at all. When an old family friend arrives she assumes her father sent him. She isn’t about to bend to his dictates nor give up her quest. Her traitorous heart, however, can’t stop yearning for a man she can’t have.
Neither expects the epic historical drama that unfolds around them.
Traveler, would-be adventurer, former tech writer and library technology professional, Caroline Warfield has now retired to the urban wilds of Eastern Pennsylvania, and divides her time between writing and seeking adventures with her grandbuddy. In Children of Empire series three cousins torn apart by lies each find their way home from the far corners of the British Empire, finding love along the way.
She has works published by Soul Mate Publishing and also independently published works. In addition she has participated in six group anthologies.
For more about the series and all of Caroline’s books, look here:
It’s always a pleasure when I can welcome back my dear friend Caroline Warfield to another First Kiss Friday! The Unexpected Wife is a finalist for a RONE award this week. It seems like a good time to redo the first kiss in that wonderful book. If you’ve read it and like it, please vote for it today through Sunday at https://www.indtale.com/2019-rone-awards-week-three
Before this scene, Charles, the Duke of Murnane, has gone missing inside the city of Canton, forbidden to foreigners, for three days, while Zambak is confined to the American factory in the Western quarter, frightened for him. He can offer her no respectable future because his horrid wife stands in the way. How that issue resolves itself is honest, meaningful, and touching.
Excerpt:
One other thing took shape and came into focus so sharply she couldn’t turn away. She loved Charles Wheatly, heart and soul. A desperate laugh, half sob, half hysteria escaped her at the thought. She finally fulfilled her mother’s fondest wish and found a man she could respect and love—one that offered little hope of a respectable future. She had no idea what to do with the thought. As it turned out she had little time to consider it.
“Who is here?” Charles demanded. He stood outlined in the light from oil lamps in the corridor behind him. Caught between love and fury over the fear he caused, she flung herself from the chair.
“Thank God!” She didn’t know whether she would hug him or slap him until she threw herself into his arms and was being kissed senseless.
He pulled his lips from hers and kissed his way down her neck. “What is this foolishness?” he asked against a tender spot beneath her right ear. His gentle hands began to roam.
She captured his mouth again, invading before he could object. “Where have you been?” she asked between moans of pleasure, “Don’t ever frighten me like that again.”
He shifted and pulled her closer, kissed her more deeply. She felt one of his hands, warm against her skin, slip under her lose jacket.
Zambak melted against him, but reality intruded as the initial heat subsided. “You stink!” She pulled back a few inches, his arms still holding her, and wrinkled her nose.
“I slept behind a tannery last night, in an alley ridden with some dubious substances. I meant to clean up before reporting to you.”
She pulled away reluctantly, one hand clinging to his, and picked up a candle from his bedside to light it from one of the oil lamps in the hall. She looked him up and down with disgust, put the candle down, and began undoing the heavy robe. “Let’s get you undressed,” she said setting words to action.
“Lady Zambak Hayden how inappropriate—and how utterly delightful,” he said allowing her to have her way with him. The outer robe hit the floor and she kicked it to the corner. She began undoing the fasteners on his shirt, but he brushed her hands aside and pulled it over his head. “I’ve ordered a bath, will you help me with that too?”
Heat surged through her at the image he conjured. Her face burned momentarily, but the sight of the seeping bandage on his arm sent ice water through her. “My God, Charles, you’re hurt!”
“It probably needs to be looked at, but I wanted to clean up first.”
She unwound the filthy strip of cloth, cringing at the seeping wound running almost the length of his upper arm. “Cow slop! This can’t wait. You spent the night in filth.” She punched his shoulder then.
“Ow! What was that for?”
“Stupidity. This could fester and I’ll have to fear for you all over again.”
The Unexpected Wife Children of Empire Book 3
Crushed with grief after the death of his son, Charles Wheatly, Duke of Murnane, throws himself into the new Queen’s service in 1838. When the government sends him on an unofficial fact finding mission to the East India Company’s enclave in Canton, China, he anticipates intrigue, international tensions, and an outlet for his frustration. He isn’t entirely surprised when he also encounters a pair of troublesome young people that need his help. However, the appearance of his estranged wife throws the entire enterprise into conflict. He didn’t expect to face his troubled marriage in such an exotic locale, much less to encounter profound love at last in the person of a determined young woman. Tensions boil over, and his wife’s scheming—and the beginnings of the First Opium War—force him to act to rescue the one he loves and perhaps save himself in the process.
Zambak Hayden seethes with frustration. A woman her age has occupied the throne for over a year, yet the Duke of Sudbury’s line of succession still passes over her—his eldest—to land on a son with neither spine nor character. She follows her brother, the East India Company’s newest and least competent clerk, to protect him and to safeguard the family honor. If she also escapes the gossip and intrigues of London and the marriage mart, so much the better. She has no intention of being forced into some sort of dynastic marriage. She may just refuse to marry at all. When an old family friend arrives she assumes her father sent him. She isn’t about to bend to his dictates nor give up her quest. Her traitorous heart, however, can’t stop yearning for a man she can’t have.
Neither expects the epic historical drama that unfolds around them.
It is ***FREE*** with Kindle Unlimited or you can buy a copy at:
Traveler, would-be adventurer, former tech writer and library technology professional, Caroline Warfield has now retired to the urban wilds of Eastern Pennsylvania, and divides her time between writing and seeking adventures with her grandbuddy. In her newest series, Children of Empire, three cousins torn apart by lies find their way home from the far corners of the British Empire, finding love along the way.
She has works published by Soul Mate Publishing and also independently published works. In addition, she has participated in five group anthologies, one not yet published.
For more about the series and all of Caroline’s books, look here:
Welcome to another First Kiss Friday. Please help me welcome my dear friend Caroline Warfield who will give you an excerpt from her novella Candles in the Dark from the Bluestocking Belles’ box set, Valentines From Bath! Happy reading and enjoy.
Excerpt:
The bad leg—acquired at the Battle of Toulouse—doesn’t stop Doug Marsh from coming to the aid of Esther Hopkins when her employer at the Bath Assembly Rooms imposes himself on her. He has been afraid to court a woman so far above his station, but the woman herself has other ideas.
_________________
She turned to Doug with wide eyes, her hand fluttering down to her side. He reached out and cupped her cheek to sooth her. “He’s gone,” he whispered.
She nodded, a swift bob of her head, and he worried for a moment she might fall to pieces.
He kissed her brow and the spot next to her eye, murmuring reassuring nothings. Her hands slipped up to his shoulders, and she clutched him as if she feared he would go away.
Never, he thought. Never.
***
Esther snuggled into Doug’s shoulder, unable to get close enough, wishing she could crawl inside him. One arm came around her waist to hold her in place; he moved the hand that held her cheek to the back of her head, his thumb caressing her neck. He paused for a moment as if asking for the permission he must surely know he had, lowered his mouth to hers, and covered her lips with his. He moaned when she opened for him with no encouragement and deepened their kiss, pulling her with him to lean against the wall for support. All thought of what had happened fled, and she kissed him in earnest, intoxicated with his scent and the feel of his hands.
Long moments later, Doug pulled his mouth from hers, leaned back in for one swift kiss and then another, and finally, tipped his head to lean, head and shoulders, against the wall facing her, his arm still pulling her close.
He sighed deeply. “Battle madness,” he said.
“What?” she jerked up. He soothed her back.
“Men go a bit mad wanting release after battle,” he explained, staring into her eyes. “Apparently women do, too. We could call this battle madness.”
Her lips curved upward. “We could, Sergeant Marsh, except I have wanted you to do that for a very long time.”
Candles in the Dark in Valentines From Bath
Just $0.99!
Doug Marsh and his candles bring light to many, none more than Esther. They may light the Assembly Rooms even as his love lights her life.
Doug Marsh knew what the army expected of him. Invalided out, he struggles to run his uncle’s candle-works and look after those dependent on it. A contract with the Bath Assembly Rooms would go a long way toward succeeding at both of those things. The plight of a young woman is a distraction he doesn’t need.
Esther Hopkins, formerly ‘the Honorable’, has no time to mourn the life denied her by a single mistake. A woman alone with a new-born son to raise needs work, and she is determined to make it on her own. If only she could stop yearning for the sturdy arms and kind blue eyes of the man who rescued her from starvation and enlisted the entire Marsh Candle Works to her support. But Sergeant Marsh shows nothing but benevolent interest in her welfare. Why should he care for a fallen woman?
In the normal course of things Esther is far above Doug’s touch. Can he find the courage to court her and still take care of business at the same time?
Valentines From Bath: A Bluestocking Belles Collection
The Master of Ceremonies announces a great ball to be held on Valentine’s Day in the Upper Assembly Rooms of Bath. Ladies of the highest rank—and some who wish they were—scheme, prepare, and compete to make best use of the opportunity. Dukes, earls, tradesmen, and the occasional charlatan are alert to the possibilities as the event draws nigh.
But anything can happen in the magic of music and candlelight as couples dance, flirt, and open themselves to romantic possibilities. Problems and conflict may just fade away at a Valentine’s Day Ball.
25% of the proceeds benefit our mutual charity, the Malala Fund.
Caroline Warfield has been many things. Now retired to the urban wilds of Eastern Pennsylvania, she divides her time between writing and seeking adventures with her grandbuddy and the prince among men she married. Her new series sends the children of the heroes of her earlier books to seek their own happiness in the far-flung corners of the British Empire.
Welcome to another, First Kiss Friday! Today it’s my pleasure to welcome Caroline Warfield who will be sharing the first kiss scene in her novella, The Last Post, which is in the Bluestocking Belles’ 2018 box set, Follow Your Star Home. I just know you’re going to love this story. Happy reading and enjoy!
From “The Last Post,” one of the stories in Follow Your Star Home
Harry has come to search for her among the floating islands of Amiens with little hope. He is stunned to find her after days of searching.
Excerpt:
He stood bathed in the light of sunset, his eyes full of joy. “Rosemarie! Thank God. I was afraid some stranger—”
She cut off Harry’s words when she threw herself into his arms, stood on tiptoe, and covered his mouth with hers. His arms clamped around her, one hand slipped under her bottom, and he lifted her off the ground to deepen the kiss. When she pulled back to take a breath he let her slide to her feet but kept her in his arms. Still unable to speak, she ran her fingers over his face as if to verify he was her Harry. He kissed her fingers when they touched his lips.
“You’re here,” she breathed at last. “How?”
“I didn’t think you’d be here,” he said at the same time.
She pulled him in and shut the door, both of them talking at once. He hugged her again and kissed her thoroughly while her heart sang. Thank God, thank God, thank God.
When they moved to the rocker and he pulled her into his lap, they began to tell their separate stories of travel, confusion, and longing, with frequent interruptions for questions and repetition punctuated by kisses. Words gave way eventually, and kisses took their place.
Follow Your Star Home: A Bluestocking Belles Collection
Forged for lovers, the Viking star ring is said to bring lovers together, no matter how far, no matter how hard.
In nine stories, covering more than half the world and a thousand years, our heroes and heroines put the legend to the test. Watch the star work its magic, as prodigals return home in the season of good will, uncertain of their welcome.
About The Last Post
France 1919
The Great War is over, but how can they marry if he can’t find her?
Love for Rosemarie Legrand gave Harry the will to go on during the horror of trench warfare. Now, army orders trap him in a camp awaiting repatriation. A bout of the Spanish flu lays him even lower, but he is determined not to leave without her. He’ll desert if he has to.
Rosemarie waits for word on her cousin’s farm where she took refuge when war reached the outskirts of Amiens. She wrote to tell him. Has he forgotten her? When the slimmest of information arrives, she sets out to find him.
Traveler, would-be adventurer, former tech writer and library technology professional, Caroline Warfield has now retired to the urban wilds of Eastern Pennsylvania, and divides her time between writing and seeking adventures with her grandbuddy. In her newest series, Children of Empire, three cousins torn apart by lies find their way home from the far corners of the British Empire, finding love along the way.
She has works published by Soul Mate Publishing and also independently published works. In addition she has participated in five group anthologies, one not yet published.
