Tag Archives: #ReadARegency

$2.99 Sale, Sale, Sale!

26 Monday Sep 2022

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Everyone loves a sale, right? As I sit in the middle of my apartment at the moment contemplating how in the world we’re going to get all this luggage and boxes into my daughters car, I know that the end result will be a vacation that has been long awaited.

Where am I going, you may ask… Well… I’ll be spending the next week at the lovely Westgate Hotel in San Diego attending the Historical Romance Retreat. In honor of the readers who will be attending, I’ve got all of my eBooks on sale right now for only $2.99! You read that right, my lovelies! Only $2.99 and that’s a deal for some of my longer novels. Grab yours now while my sale lasts. And if you’ll be attending HRR22, I look forward to hanging out with you. See you there!

First Kiss Friday with Jude Knight

24 Friday Jun 2022

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Welcome to another First Kiss Friday! Today’s guest is my dear friend Jude Knight. This excerpt is from Farewell to Kindness, the first novel in the series The Golden Redepennings. Farewell to Kindness is on special until the end of June, price reduced to 99c. In the excerpt, Rede, the Earl of Chirbury, has taken Anne and her family into his house after the roof of her cottage collapsed. They have encountered one another late at night, and he is showing Anne how to drink brandy. Happy reading and enjoy!

Excerpt:

“No. Wait,” Rede said. “Swirl, sniff, and then sip. Here, let me show you.” He leaned forward and cupped his hand around the glass over hers.

“Swirl.” He moved her hand gently in a small, tight circle.

“Sniff.” He held the glass several inches from her nose and again swirled it slightly, then shifted it closer.

“Now sip. Just a small amount, slowly. Let it slide over your tongue.”

Anne followed his directions, not taking her eyes off Rede. This time, the brandy seemed a lot smoother. The flavour filled her mouth, the fiery liquid warmed her throat.

Rede had not removed his hands, and now he leaned forward still further, his eyes holding her motionless.

He came closer and closer, slowly. He would stop if she protested. She should protest. She would not.

The first brush of his lips on hers was brief, and light as a feather. He drew back enough to look into her eyes, then leaned in again. This time, his lips landed and stayed, moulding to the shape of her mouth. After a moment, he began to move, cruising along her upper lip with tiny pecks and then along the lower. He settled again, this time his mouth slightly open. Was that his tongue, sliding along her lips? How odd. How… pleasant.

She opened her own lips, and was rewarded with a hum of approval before he dipped his tongue into her mouth. Tentatively she touched his tongue with her own, which sent a tingle down through her breasts to her belly.

He hummed again, this time almost a moan.

So he liked that, did he? She began to copy, doing to him what he was doing to her. At some level, she was conscious that he had removed the brandy glass from her hands and set it to one side. With that out of the way, he came to his knees before her chair, and she found herself widening her legs so that he could press up against her. 

She was aflame with sensation, barely aware of all the ways he was touching her; his hand on the curve of her waist, pulling her into his body; his lips, teeth and tongue teasing and tasting. His other hand had somehow found its way inside her robe, and was lightly stroking its way up her breast, ever closer and closer to the nipple, which had pebbled so hard it was almost painful.

She moaned, asking for something, but what she did not know.

Rede seemed to understand. His lips left her mouth, and skimmed their way down her throat, pausing for a moment to nibble and lick at the nape of her neck, then continuing downwards. He must have nudged the robe and her nightgown aside, because all of a sudden his tongue was laving one nipple while his clever fingers gently rolled and squeezed the other.

Then he began to suck.

“Rede!” She pressed closer, desperate for the feelings to stop, to continue, to go away, to go further. She didn’t know, but Rede did. “Rede?” she said again, a question this time.

“I have you, Anne,” he soothed, and bent back to his task, changing to give his intimate attentions to her other breast.

Meanwhile, his hands slipped lower, one now cupping her buttocks and the other—surely he didn’t mean to touch her there? 

He did. His fingers stroked her most private place through the fine lawn of the nightgown, sending the biggest shockwave of sensation yet cascading through her body. 

“Ah, Anne,” he whispered, his voice husky, “you are wet for me.” His voice was warm with approval. He bent to lave her nipple once more, before straightening, grasping her buttocks in both hands and pulling her hard up against him. 

The length of the male part Hannah had described now rubbed where his fingers had been a moment before. It was bigger than she expected. 

“See how hard you make me?” he murmured. He kissed her again. She squirmed, unable to resist rubbing against him. The same amazing shock drowned her still deeper in sensation, and she moaned again.

“I have dreamed of this,” Rede said. “I’ve dreamed of holding you like this, kissing you like this. Of spreading you beneath me and bringing you to pleasure such as you’ve never known. Oh, Anne,” he groaned as he kissed her again, and that same questing hand began to inch her nightgown up her thigh.

At that moment, a door opened at the far end of the gallery. Anne looked around Rede’s shoulder. Susan was there, holding a candle.

“Oh!” Susan said. “I beg your pardon. I heard a noise. Please, just carry on. I am going back to bed now.” The last said as she shut the door.

Rede sat back on his heels, his expression wry. “I suppose you do not wish to take her advice?” 

Anne, recalled to herself, was blushing furiously again. Honestly, she blushed more in Rede’s presence than she could remember doing for years.

“I think I had better go to bed now,” she told him. “Alone,” she added, so that there should be no doubt, and blushed even deeper.

Silent, he stood and offered her a hand to her feet, then gave her the candleholder. He followed her out into the hall, but said nothing till they turned the corner after Ruth’s room.

“I am sorry, Anne,” he told her. “When I kissed you… I stopped thinking. I should not have kissed you in a place we could be interrupted. I would not embarrass you for the world. I won’t say I am sorry I kissed you, though. It was everything I dreamed and more.”

“What Susan must think!” Anne said.

“Do not worry about Susan. She will not betray us. Next time…”

She spun back to face him. “There will be no next time, Rede. I have to think of Kitty, and Ruth and Daisy too. It would take very little to make a scandal, and a scandal could destroy them. I cannot do this.”

He nodded. “I know, I know. I do not mean to threaten your reputation or endanger your family. I promise.”

“How can you understand? You are a man. And a peer.”

“I am. But nonetheless, I understand. I will not harm you, Anne. Tonight… I have thought of you for so long. When I kissed you, I lost control. I will not steal another kiss, I promise. Not until I can find a way for us to safely be together without risk to your reputation.”

“There is no way.”

He denied that with a shake of his head. “I will find a way. What we have together, it is extraordinary, Anne.”

It was her turn to shake her head. “It does not matter. Kitty matters. Daisy matters.”

She turned back to finish the walk to her room, and he continued to follow her.

She refused to look at him until they reached her door, then he caught her hand and held it for a moment to his heart. “See how it beats? It beats for you. Go to bed now, and know that I am three rooms away, lying in my bed, remembering how you taste, dreaming of tasting you again.”

“I cannot do this.” She could. She could take his hand and pull him into her room, and no-one would be the wiser. 

What nonsense. She shook her head again. Early in the morning as it was, the servants would soon be up and about. Or one of the other members of the house party might wander the halls as she had herself. She had to think of her family. 

“You mustn’t be afraid, Anne.”

How could she tell him that it was not him that she feared? It was herself. 

As if he could hear her most wanton thoughts, he took her hand again; but then he pressed her glass into it. “Here. Finish your brandy. It will help you sleep. Goodnight, Anne. Lock your door.”

He waited until she was inside and closing the door, watching him through the diminishing opening. He was turning away when she spoke, in barely a whisper. “Rede. I am not sorry, either.”

She closed the door before he could reply, and went to bed. She should be horrified at what had happened, at what had nearly happened. But she found herself smiling. At least she had the answer to whether or not this inconvenient desire was one-sided.

He thought he had buried his heart with his children. He was wrong.

Hidden from the earl who hunts them, Anne and her sisters have been accepted into the heart of a tiny rural village. Until another earl comes visiting.

Rede lives to avenge the deaths of his wife and children. After three long years of searching, he is closing in on the ruthless villains who gave the orders, and he does not hope to survive the final encounter. Until he meets Anne. 

As their inconvenient attraction grows, a series of near fatal attacks draws them together and drives them apart. When their desperate enemies combine forces, Anne and Rede must trust one another to survive.

Farewell to Kindness is Book 1 in the series The Golden Redepennings. Read more about the series at: http://judeknightauthor.com/the-golden-redepennings/

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/farewell-to-kindness

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/farewell-to-kindness/id974225678

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1121346576

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/522691

Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Farewell-Kindness-Golden-Redepennings-Book-ebook/dp/B00TXRW4KA/

About Jude Knight

Jude Knight’s writing goal is to transport readers to another time, another place, where they can enjoy adventure and romance, thrill to trials and challenges, uncover secrets and solve mysteries, delight in a happy ending, and return from their virtual holiday refreshed and ready for anything.

Website and blog: http://judeknightauthor.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JudeKnightAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JudeKnightBooks

Pinterest: https://nz.pinterest.com/jknight1033/

Email: jude@judeknightauthor.com

Happy Release Day, Desperate Daughters!

17 Tuesday May 2022

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It’s always a good day when you send a new book baby out into the world. Today, the Bluestocking Belles and our guest authors celebrate the release of our Desperate Daughters boxset. With over 770 pages of reading, we know you’re going to have a book hangover come the morning. Don’t forget about our contest that is still active. There’s more information below. We hope you enjoy our characters and their journey to finding love. Happy reading, my lovelies!

Desperate Daughters: A Bluestocking Belles & Friends Collection
On sale still for only $0.99!

Love Against the Odds

The Earl of Seahaven desperately wanted a son and heir but died leaving nine daughters and a fifth wife. Cruelly turned out by the new earl, they live hand-to-mouth in a small cottage.

The young dowager Countess’s one regret is that she cannot give Seahaven’s dear girls a chance at happiness.

When a cousin offers the use of her townhouse in York during the season, the Countess rallies her stepdaughters.

They will pool their resources so that the youngest marriageable daughters might make successful matches, thereby saving them all.

So start their adventures in York, amid a whirl of balls, lectures, and alfresco picnics. Is it possible each of them might find love by the time the York horse races bring the Season to a close?

A Countess to Remember
By Sherry Ewing

My contribution to the set! I just know you’re going to love Richard and Patience!

Blurb:

Sometimes love finds you when you least expect it…

Patience, Dowager Countess of Seahaven cares for a bevy of stepdaughters and a Season for each to find husbands seems out of reach. With her own young daughter to care for, there’s been no chance for romance for herself. She’s been so busy worrying about putting food on the table, that finding love is the last of her concerns.

Richard, Viscount Cranfield is in York to see to his sister’s Season. He has no desire to find a wife despite his parents prodding him to do so. A chance encounter with a countess leaves him wondering what spell she has cast around him.

Will Patience and Richard find enough time to allow love to fill their hearts?

Desperate Daughters: A Bluestocking Belles Collection with Friends

Buy Links:

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3qG6WGs

Apple Books: https://apple.co/3HoEVcm

Barnes & Noble: https://bit.ly/2YOhqIm

Google Play: https://bit.ly/3Cr5GLm

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3qL5GlH

Books2Read: https://books2read.com/u/bMwL17

International Links:

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3ng3cth

BR: https://amzn.to/3qUFBkf

CA: https://amzn.to/3Fmf0Ab

DE: https://amzn.to/3ccXYrJ

ES: https://amzn.to/3wQPO1H

FR: https://amzn.to/30sHrgY

IN: https://amzn.to/3261J0v

IT: https://amzn.to/3Chmqmv

JP: https://amzn.to/3ozIpA6

MX: https://amzn.to/3FknEzq

NL: https://amzn.to/3qBPF1f

UK: https://amzn.to/30z5vz5

Thalia: https://bit.ly/30q8dqI

Vivlio: https://bit.ly/3qGqxqc

Help spread the word about Desperate Daughters.

Help to share Desperate Daughters and be in the Draw

Share our contest page and our Bachelor and other memes to any of your social media accounts. Each share gets you an entry into one of the weekly draws and the Grand Prize draw.

Learn more on our website here: https://bluestockingbelles.net/belles-joint-projects/desperate-daughters/giveaway/

An excerpt from A Countess To Remember:

The unseen woman was still in the carriage, as if she was still preparing to collect whatever had been left behind. A small dainty shoe poked out onto the edge of the step and Richard heard her heavy sigh that she made no attempt to mask.

Richard stepped forward, offering his hand. “May I be of assistance, my lady?”

“You are most kind,” the lady inside said. She put her hand in his and Richard swore he felt a tingling sensation rush up his arm.

“Where are my manners?” Lady Barbara exclaimed. “May I introduce my stepmother, Patience, Lady Seahaven. Patience, this is Lord Cranfield and his sister Lady Josephine.”

Richard was prepared for a matronly woman to reveal herself as she alit from the carriage. But when she lifted her head once upon solid ground to acknowledge their introductions, he was unprepared for the young beauty he faced. Blue-grey eyes that could rival the sky above met his. Wisps of strawberry blonde hair had escaped her bonnet while her porcelain skin was set in a lovely round face. But when her small bow mouth turned up into an enchanting smile, Richard became lost.

“Lord Cranfield,” her voice reached into his soul. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Richard bowed, completely bewildered in the spell she had captured him in with just one glance. At a loss for words, he could only stare at the woman before him, even while he continued to hold her hand in his. What had she done to him?

First Kiss Friday with Cerise DeLand

13 Friday May 2022

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Thanks for joining me today on my First Kiss Friday blog! Today’s guest is fellow Bluestocking Belle Cerise DeLand who is celebrating a new release. We hope you enjoy this first kiss scene from Lady, Behave. Happy reading, my lovelies!

Excerpt:

Sitting beside him, Addy held his hand, no matter propriety. He needed her. She knew enough of his malady to sit for many minutes without a word between them. He recovered himself, but slowly. And when a footman approached with a tray of wine or whiskey on offer, Gyles would have taken one.

“Do not,” she admonished. 

He stared at her. “No?”

“Spirits will only aggravate your condition.”

He looked away, but grimaced at the bright light of candles in a nearby sconce.

“Close your eyes. Turn toward me.” She stroked his hand and wrapped her fingers around his wrist and counted. “There. Your heart beat slows. You will be well. Give this a few minutes.”

He did as she bade him and in his time, he opened his eyes to consider her with quiet appreciation shining there. “You know my condition.”

“Bold sounds. Bright lights. Alcohol. Late nights. Exertion. They all contribute to your headaches. How long have you suffered them?”

He exhaled. “Since I was imprisoned by the French when I was young.”

“I see.” She squeezed his hand in sympathy. About that, she would learn more but not tonight. He had to recover first before he relived the cause of his distress. “You should not be at balls, sir. But home where you can be quiet and untroubled.”

“But if I did not attend here tonight, I would not have found you again.”

She bobbed her head to and fro. “We might have met in more sedate gatherings.”

“Perhaps. I would have chanced missing you.”

She had never been so sweetly entranced by a man who confessed to his liking for her in so unique a manner. “My sisters and I are in Brighton specifically to enjoy the Season. We will be…” she said as she circled a hand in the air, “everywhere.”

“Addy, How may I press my advantage?”

“You made an impression on me yesterday, Gyles. I will not soon forget you.”

He grasped her hand tightly. “Don’t forget me at all.”

“I won’t. How could I? You like my syrup.” She had to tease him and make him smile.

“I do. Among other things.”

She nodded, compassion in her heart for so afflicted a darling man. “Perhaps my dancing, too?”

“Indeed,” he said. “I’d like to kiss you for it.”

She gave a shocked little laugh. Since Grandpapa died and she knew she’d have to find a husband soon, she’d taken to kissing any man who appealed. Alas, she’d found none. But now, she was not only complimented but tempted to kiss this man. “Not here.”

“No. But somewhere and soon. With my thanks for the syrup, the dance and the laughter.”

Oh, my. Was he much too chivalrous? Was he a rake of no morals? A man who complimented women? Women like her? Young and naive. For all her good looks, for all her pride in them and understanding of them as a tool to attract men, she was still untried, uninformed of much of the physicality of mating. She could be all too easily influenced by a practiced man’s charms. Of that she had always been on guard. 

“A kiss for relief from a headache? Oh, surely that would be—”

“Bliss,” he vowed. “I will try for it tomorrow.”

“When you come for tea?”

“I come for you, Addy.”

He lifted her hand and pressed his firm lips to her glove in a stunning kiss. Had he blessed her bare skin with his mouth, she would have taken him to an alcove in the hall and tasted the flavor of his desire and called herself barely satisfied.

“Tomorrow then,” she whispered and longed to taste his lips on hers.

Lady, Behave
Naughty Ladies, Book 2
By Cerise DeLand

She was a Diamond with a few very tiny flaws—and the desire to be good.

He was a rogue with the sense to reform—and to help her to be bad.

Adelaide Devereaux flabbergasts most men she meets. She’s a Diamond, petite, mild-mannered—the perfect picture of a demure lady. She has one ambition—to kiss every man she likes until she finds one whose lips make her hear church bells chime. 

In Brighton, she meets confirmed bachelor Gyles, Marquess of Heath, who is felled by her charm. Though he vows to kiss her until she’s felt the earth turn on its axis, he cannot claim her unless he fixes his parents’ refusal to accept her. They’re too high in the instep to accept a wayward Irish lass who’s the granddaughter of a notorious rascal.

Pride might stall their romance, and lust might motivate a scoundrel to try to carry Addy away, but when love is the only passion that matters, do not all objections fall before its power?

Note: This series is part of Dragonblade’s Flame line, so this is a sexy, steamy, and scorching-hot read with multiple sex scenes. Be advised.

Amazon – https://amazon.com/Lady-Behave-Naughty-Ladies-Book-ebook/dp/B09WXVNCTR

Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60543686-lady-behave

Books2Read – https://books2read.com/u/4DPXAr

Affiliate link – https://amzn.to/3qVM4uo

About the author:

Cerise DeLand loves to write about dashing heroes and the sassy women they adore. 

But I bet you knew that! 

Did you know that she’s known for her poetic elegance and accuracy of detail? 

That she’s an award-winning author of more than 40 novels and was first published in 1991 by Kensington, then Pocket Books, later by St. Martin’s Press and independent presses? 

That her books have been monthly selections of the Doubleday Book Club and the Mystery Guild? Right. And she’s won awards. Lots of them. Need details? Write to her. She’ll send you the list!

To research, she’s dived into the oldest texts and dustiest library shelves. She also travels abroad taking good walking shoes, trusty notebooks and pens, plus camera! She visits chateaux and country homes she loves to people with her own imaginary characters. 

And at home every day? She cooks. Never dusts. (That can be a problem.) She goes swimming or pumps iron once a week and tries (desperately) to grow vegetables in her arid backyard in south Texas! 

Do visit her website, http://cerisedeland.com and blog http://cerisedeland.blogspot.com. 

Also visit her YOUTube Channel for her videos of her research travels here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCba82P_Q1kUrJUVVW0CwJmw/

First Kiss Friday with Sherry Ewing & a contest!

06 Friday May 2022

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Welcome to my First Kiss Friday blog. Today I’m featuring my novella A Countess To Remember that is my contribution in the Bluestocking Belles’ box set Desperate Daughters. We’re also running a contest so be sure to read to the end to learn more. I hope you enjoy this first kiss scene between Richard and Patience. Happy reading and good luck in the contest, my lovelies!

Excerpt:

Their eyes met across the room, and he gave her the briefest of nods before walking through the open doorway and out onto a terrace. It was a silent invitation and one she wanted to accept. Patience knew she shouldn’t follow him, but all common sense seemed to leave where Richard was concerned. Besides, no harm could be done to meet him outside for only a few moments. Who would miss her?

Trying to keep her pace casual was harder than she thought. She skirted the outside of the dance floor making her way through the crush of people who watched on the sidelines or carried on their own conversations. She saw her girls being watched over by Barbara and she was again grateful that they were being looked after. With no further thoughts except her own personal agenda, she strode through the balcony doors and peered into the shadows to see Richard waiting for her. He held out his hand for her to take and she had a moment of hesitation, as prudence seemed the better course of action.

“Do you trust me?” His hushed baritone voice caused her to shiver in the moonlight and this had nothing to do with being cold.

“Richard… I—”

“Patience… I am asking for you to trust me,” he calmly said. “Do you?”

“Yes,” she answered him and she could barely make out his smile.

“Then come with me,” he said before whisking her away into the night.

He seemed to know where he was going as he went down several steps and onto a garden path. She gazed back over her shoulder wondering where he was taking her.

“My girls—” she began before he interrupted her.

“We won’t be gone long or go that far.”

“Promise?” she whispered into the night.

“Yes. I promise. You are perfectly safe with me, my dear,” he exclaimed and, true to his word, he halted near a gazebo awash in the moonlit sky. A romantic setting that caused Patience’s heart to race.

“This is a lovely place, Richard, but—”

He turned her into his arms, and Patience couldn’t object, not when she had been envisioning this in her dreams for the past several days. “I know this is sudden, Patience, but I’ve been dying to do this ever since we met,” he said brushing a lock of her hair behind her ear before cupping her cheek.

She leaned into the palm of his hand. “What have you been wanting to do?” she asked hoping he wouldn’t find her undesirable but also praying he would kiss her no matter that they had just met.

“This…”

She held her breath while his mouth slowly descended upon her own. At first, gentle, exploring to see just how much she might allow. A nip at her lower lip to tease her caused her gasp of surprise giving him the opening he had apparently been waiting for. His tongue dipped in to take hungry possession of her mouth, and she was more than willing to learn this new dance together.

She wasn’t new to the intimacies between a couple but Richard’s kiss flared into a burning flame in the pit of her stomach. Henry had never bothered with such affections, and yet, with Richard, she wanted to explore every aspect of what he could bring her. Did this make her one of those wanton women?

He deepened their kiss, and Patience wound her arms around his neck to play with the edges of his hair at his collar. His groan would have caused her to smile if she had been able to perform such a task. He brought her tight against his chest, and she could not mistake his arousal. She should have been shocked but this only made her want more of this man than he could obviously give her standing in a garden.

Whether he could read her thoughts or he just realized how entirely inappropriate their situation could become if they were found, he ended their kiss, leaving her wanting to return to his arms. He placed both hands on her cheeks, running his thumbs over them before giving her another quick kiss.

“Better than I could have ever imagined,” he murmured before he bent down to place his forehead to her own.

Desperate Daughters: A Bluestocking Belles and Friends Collection
Release Date: May 17, 2022
Preorder Sale for only $0.99!

Love Against the Odds

The Earl of Seahaven desperately wanted a son and heir but died leaving nine daughters and a fifth wife. Cruelly turned out by the new earl, they live hand-to-mouth in a small cottage.

The young dowager Countess’s one regret is that she cannot give Seahaven’s dear girls a chance at happiness.

When a cousin offers the use of her townhouse in York during the season, the Countess rallies her stepdaughters.

They will pool their resources so that the youngest marriageable daughters might make successful matches, thereby saving them all.

So start their adventures in York, amid a whirl of balls, lectures, and alfresco picnics. Is it possible each of them might find love by the time the York horse races bring the Season to a close?

Buy Links can be found on our website at: https://bluestockingbelles.net/belles-joint-projects/desperate-daughters/

Help to share Desperate Daughters and be in the Draw!

Help spread the word about Desperate Daughters.

Share our contest page and our Bachelor and other memes to any of your social media accounts. Each share gets you an entry into one of the weekly draws and the Grand Prize draw.

Congratulations to Catherine Maguire, winner of our week 1 draw.

Enter the Week Two draw here:http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/bb92b0a65/?

Find memes here: https://bluestockingbelles.net/belles-joint-projects/desperate-daughters/sharing/

Weekly prize

Every entry goes into the draw to win:

We’ll draw a winner each week for four weeks.

Grand prize

Every entry also goes in the draw to win:

  • $100 gift card
  • a made-to-order story. The winner gives Jude Knight some ingredients for a story (one character, a plot trope, and an object). Jude writes the story and the winner gets an ecopy at least three months before it is published anywhere else, and their name in the dedication at publication.

First Kiss Friday with Alina K. Field

29 Friday Apr 2022

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Welcome to my First Kiss Friday blog.

I’ve been featuring authors from the upcoming Desperate Daughters, a Bluestocking Belles with Friends Collection, available for preorder for only $0.99. Today let’s welcome one of the Bluestocking Belles’ guest authors, Alina K. Field, who’s sharing an excerpt from her novella, Lady Twisden’s Picture Perfect Match.  Enjoy!

The hero, Augustus Kellborn, has just handed Honoria Twisden his sketch of her:

Excerpt:

Her breath caught. The subject was a lady, shown in three-quarter view, her attention directed away, Tendrils of hair dangled at her neck and over her cheek. “It’s meant to be me.”

“Yes.”

“She’s too… That is how you see me? Well, the work is very precise, but to say that this is me…” She stood and he rose with her. “This lady is pretty.”

“Yes. That is how I see you. You’re pretty, Honoria.” He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and the heat rising in her cheeks rolled downward. “Shall I list your attributes? You have a straight little nose, full lips, hair the color of dark honey with the sun streaming through it, and rosy cheeks that seem to grow pinker when I’m around. A man notices a thing like that. And your eyes shine with intelligence and good humor. Yes. You are very pretty.”

Speechless, she forced her mouth closed. Pinned under Augustus’s dark gaze, she grew even warmer.

His big hand cradled her cheek, surprisingly gentle. “And I like your painting of the Minster. In fact, I should like to take it home with me to Whitlaw Grange and hang it over the mantel in my study. I should very much like to have you at Whitlaw Grange as well.”

“My painting?” Over his mantel? She wasn’t sure she wanted to part with it.

“Yes. And you must come as well. You can make sure it’s correctly displayed.”

“You want me to visit you? If you have ruins, perhaps I could paint… What? What are you doing?”

Augustus had dropped to one knee, sliding his hand down her arm to grasp her hand. Sancho bestirred himself and stretched.

“I don’t want you to come for a visit, Honoria. I want you to come as my bride. Will you marry me? Will you make me the happiest of men?”

Marry? Marry Augustus Kellborn?

His dark gaze pulled at her like a magnet, the desire in his eyes matching the heat rising in her. Her head dipped. Just a few inches more and…

She straightened and tried to get hold of herself. “We’ve had but one outing together.”

“And one dinner and luncheon. And don’t forget we attended church together.”

“You rescued me, and now you are being chivalrous. You’re acting in haste, and there is no need.”

His eyes twinkled. “I’m chivalrous? I rather like that.”

“You’re smiling now. That is better. Now, please, get up.”

He complied, still holding her hand. “You haven’t answered my question, Honoria. Will you marry me?”

Heart hammering, she stared up into his dark, intent gaze. “Augustus, you must agree this is precipitate. You cannot mean… you’ll meet a bevy of young women looking to marry.”

“It’s you I want.”

“But… but.” He’d shown no interest beyond what was polite and appropriate for a house guest. “Until now, I had no notion… no hint of any interest on your part.”

“I escorted you on your outing. I sat next to you at church. I would have snared your hand for a private stroll away from the picnickers today if you’d gone along with us. When I saw that Ripton had disappeared, I had a suspicion he’d be coming back here, so I returned in all haste only to find you rescuing yourself. And now, I want to make my intentions clear.”

“Clear?”

He nodded. “Yes.”

Did he feel the same wicked heat rising as she did? There was humor in his dark eyes, not lust.

She shook her head. “I don’t think you can be serious, Major Kellborn. Offering marriage when you haven’t so much as tried to kiss—”

“Kiss you? Why so I haven’t.” He leaned close and brought his lips a hair’s breadth from hers. “May I, my lady?”

Her heart threatened to melt into a puddle. He was letting her decide.

A spurt of madness lifted her heels, tipping her forward.

Her lips touched his in a featherlight connection. He angled his head and brushed a kiss over the corner of her mouth, over her cheek, and jaw, and down to her neck where his touch sent a ripple of need through her. Such softness, such tenderness, from such a hard man—it was a marvel, one that sent her hand sliding around his waist, and her other groping for his shoulder. She raked through the dark curls of hair at his collar and when he brought his lips back to hers, sighed and gave herself up entirely.

About Lady Twisden’s Picture Perfect Match:

After years of putting up with her late husband’s rowdy friends, Honoria, Lady Twisden, has escaped to York where she can paint (even if badly), investigate antiquities, and enjoy freedom.

Then her stepson appears with a long-lost relation in tow.

Promised York’s marriage mart and the hospitality of his cousin’s doddering stepmother, Major August Kellborn is shocked to find that his fetching hostess is the one woman who stirs his heart.

Where to find it: Lady Twisden’s Picture Perfect Match is one of nine novellas included in the Bluestocking Belles & Friends collection, Desperate Daughters, to be released on May 17, 2022.

About Desperate Daughters: Love against the Odds

The Earl of Seahaven desperately wanted a son and heir but died leaving nine daughters and a fifth wife. Cruelly turned out by the new earl, they live hand-to-mouth in a small cottage. The young dowager Countess’s one regret is that she cannot give Seahaven’s dear girls a chance at happiness. When a cousin offers the use of her townhouse in York during the season, the Countess rallies her stepdaughters. They will pool their resources so that the youngest marriageable daughters might make successful matches, thereby saving them all. So they start their adventures in York, amid a whirl of balls, lectures, and al fresco picnics. Is it possible each of them might find love by the time the York horse races bring the season to a close?

Available for Pre-order: https://books2read.com/u/bMwL17 for $0.99. The price goes up after the book’s May 17, 2022, launch day.

About the Author:

USA Today bestselling author Alina K. Field earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English and German literature but prefers the happier world of romance fiction. Her roots are in the Midwestern U.S., but after six very, very, very cold years in Chicago, she moved to Southern California where she shares a midcentury home with a gold-eyed terrier and only occasionally misses snow.

Website: https://alinakfield.com/

Amazon Author Page https://www.amazon.com/Alina-K.-Field/e/B00DZHWOKY

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First Kiss Friday with Caroline Warfield.

22 Friday Apr 2022

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Today on my First Kiss Friday blog, I have the fabulous Caroline Warfield who will be sharing the first kiss scene from her novella in our Desperate Daughters box set. Caroline’s novella, Lady Dorothea’s Curate, is the first of nine stories and sets the tone of the entire anthology. We just know you’re going to love her characters, along with all the other hero’s and heroine’s that take York by storm! Read on and happy reading, my lovelies!

Ben and Doro have just been introduced as Lady Dorothea Bigglesworth and The Honorable Eustace Clarke at a ball. It is hard to say which of them was the most shocked, for it isn’t who they thought they were in Harrogate. He does the sensible thing. He asks for a dance and then whispers in her ear that they need someplace private.

Excerpt:

Hired assembly rooms have no garden but they do, apparently, have a terrace overlooking the square below. Or so Doro—Lady Dorothea—told him when he demanded to know. She seemed to know the place well. Can this night get any stranger? Ben doubted it.

Halfway across the room, she let go of his arm, and he had to skip to catch up with her as she reached the door. He grabbed her hand, half fearing she meant to bolt.

The terrace wasn’t large, but neither was it crowded. A few people mingled near the railing. A couple engaged in intimate familiarity in the corner to the far left of the glass doors, shadowed rather less than they obviously hoped by the gloom.

When Doro stopped in the middle, Ben, who still had her by the hand, dragged her to the similarly darkened corner to the right. It provided inadequate privacy, but it would have to do.

One hard yank on her arm swung Doro into the corner, around his front, to a hard stop against his chest. His other arm anchored her fast against his body and his mouth came down on hers. No tender salute this. Passion driven by anger and frustrated desire drove him. He plundered. He invaded. He…

He felt like a cad, but he didn’t care. Besides, she kissed him back, clinging to his shoulders like she might drown if she let go. When the need to breathe forced him to pull back a fraction of an inch, Doro closed the distance and kissed him again. That’s when he realized she was crying.

“Enough.” He held both her arms and set her a bit away. Not so far that she could run off. Just enough to reassemble his scattered wits. “Do you want to explain to me what happened here?”

“You kissed me. Rather thoroughly.”

Shame over her tears warred with delight at her passionate response. “Not that! Who are you, and what game are you playing?” he demanded gently wiping the tears from her cheeks.

“Lower your voice.” She hissed at him in the gloom. “I’ll answer your questions, but keep your voice down.” Apparently satisfied that he wasn’t going to shout her deception to the rooftops, she went on. “I am Doro Bigglesworth, Lady Dorothea Bigglesworth. In Harrogate the title didn’t seem to matter.”

“This isn’t Harrogate; it is York. Why the deception?”

She snorted. No ladylike cringing for his Doro. “You know what society thinks of those of us who are forced to work for a living. I didn’t lie to you about our situation. We needed my wages at the Hampton. My father was indeed the Earl of Seahaven, but when he died, we were left with nothing; Patience struggles to support the children. All of us had to scramble to help. If word got out here, it would ruin everything, destroy my sisters’ chances.”

“So, you’re deceiving all of York instead, so the Seahaven Diamonds can latch on to some wealthy fool and enrich all of you. Are the rumors about their dowries lies, too?”

“No! We pooled all we had, the money meant for the ten of us, and concentrated it on them.” She poked him with one very sharp finger. Hard. Several times. “That is precisely what people will think if you spread gossip, and it won’t be true. Not true at all.”

He grabbed her hand to stop her from jabbing him. “I saw you supervising supper like one of the servants. One minute you’re in an apron. The next you float across the dance floor in a gown designed to send a man’s imagination where it has no business going. It’s dishonest. It’s—”

“What about you—the Honorable Eustace Clarke. Who precisely is he? You haven’t been exactly forthcoming. Sunday, you wandered the Shambles in a shabby coat and clerical collar. Tonight, my stepmother introduces you looking like the answer to a maiden’s dreams. Exactly how honorable is that? You never mentioned your brother the viscount in Harrogate either.” She had a point.

Desperate Daughters: A Bluestocking Belles with Friends Collection
Release Date: May 17, 2022
Special Preorder price of only $0.99 until release week

Love Against the Odds

The Earl of Seahaven desperately wanted a son and heir but died leaving nine daughters and a fifth wife. Cruelly turned out by the new earl, they live hand-to-mouth in a small cottage.

The young dowager Countess’s one regret is that she cannot give Seahaven’s dear girls a chance at happiness.

When a cousin offers the use of her townhouse in York during the season, the Countess rallies her stepdaughters.

They will pool their resources so that the youngest marriageable daughters might make successful matches, thereby saving them all.

So start their adventures in York, amid a whirl of balls, lectures, and alfresco picnics. Is it possible each of them might find love by the time the York horse races bring the Season to a close?

Buy Links:

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About the Author:

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: https://www.carolinewarfield.com/bookshelf/

First Kiss Friday with Jude Knight

08 Friday Apr 2022

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Welcome to my First Kiss Friday blog. You probably have seen on various social media, that the Bluestocking Belles and their guest authors have a new box set coming out next month entitled Desperate Daughters. On sale for only $0.99 during preorder, Desperate Daughters releases on May 17th. Let’s welcome Belle Jude Knight as she shares an excerpt from her novella, Lord Cuckoo Comes Home. Happy reading and enjoy, my lovelies!

They come close to kissing on the page. Very close. but they were interrupted by the horse and a monkey.

Excerpt:

Chloe turned her head to examine his face. His eyes were firmly fixed on the road ahead, but he must have felt the weight of her regard, for he shot her a look and an anxious smile. “Did you know I was courting you? Lord Tavistock said you did not, and that I should tell you.”

“I was not sure,” Chloe admitted. I hoped so. The words occurred, but she kept them in.

Lord Dom grimaced. “I am not very good at it, it seems. I have never done this before. And then I met you.”

He turned his face to her, and must have checked the horses, for they slowed to a walk. “You probably think this is all too fast. I am afraid I am rushing my fences and will take a fall. But I am more afraid that—if I hold back and say nothing—someone else will win your regard in my place.” His laugh was a nervous expulsion of air. “Do you think… Could you tell me if I have a chance, Miss Tavistock? Maybe give me a hint about how to get better at this courting business?”

“I don’t know,” Chloe replied. When his face fell, she hastened to add, “I have never been courted before, Lord Dom. I never thought anyone would wish to marry me, but Martin insisted on this season in York.” She wanted to bounce in her seat and repeat the word ‘Yes’ over and over in fast succession. She resisted, and tested him with the question that had stymied the other two. “Can you perhaps tell me why you wish to marry me?”

“I think I can,” Lord Dom said slowly. He looked along the road ahead as he spoke. “I was attracted before we met, when I saw you across the room at the meeting. That was to be my last engagement in Yorkshire. Then you impressed me with your courage, your sense of humor, and your quick thinking, and I wanted to stay to get to know you better.”

He shot her another of those anxious glances. “But the moment of attraction came first. I don’t know if I can explain it better than to say it felt like recognition. Something in me saw you and said ‘that’s her’.” Another of those short barks of laughter. “It sounds mad, does it not? I am glad I listened, though, for every meeting has confirmed my first impression. You are the woman I can picture spending the rest of my life with.”

He looked so apprehensive that Chloe blurted what she was thinking. “It was the same with me, Dom.”

He dropped the reins to turn to her and take both of her hands. “Chloe! May I call you Chloe?” The horses, his soft control suddenly absent, tossed their heads and quickened their pace. Dom had to grab for the reins again to exert his will on them.

His soft laugh was exultant. “I lose all my senses when I am with you.”

Chloe, coming to her own senses just in time to grab at Rosario’s harness as the monkey started a flying leap for a passing tree, knew exactly what he meant.

“We turn here,” Dom told her, suiting action to word and setting the horses between two ornate gateposts. “We can talk more on the way home, Chloe. My darling.”

“Lord Cuckoo Comes Home” in Desperate Daughters

Dom Finchley only came to York as a favor to his half-brother, who asked him to attend a meeting there. After a devastating break with the Finchley family followed by ten years at war, he is keen to get the favor done and then leave to build the home he’s never had. A place to call his own.

Then he meets Chloe.

Chloe Tavistock is past the age for the marriage market, and unfashionable in her shape, her opinions, and her enthusiasms. She is not going to find a husband in York, whatever her fond brother might think.

And then she meets Dom.

Two people who have never fitted in just might be a perfect fit.

Buy link

https://books2read.com/u/bMwL17

Meet Jude

Jude always wanted to be a novelist. She started in her teens, but life kept getting in the way. Years passed, and with them dozens of unfinished manuscripts. The fear grew. What if she tried, failed, and lost the dream forever? The years since 2014 have brought 11 novels, 13 novella, 4 volumes of short stories, 3 awards, and hundreds of positive reviews. The dream is alive.

Website and blog: http://judeknightauthor.com/

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First Kiss Friday with Meara Platt

18 Friday Feb 2022

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Thanks for stopping by my First Kiss Friday blog. Today’s guest is my friend Meara Platt who has an excerpt from Lyon in the Rough. We hope you enjoy this first kiss scene. Happy reading, my lovelies!

Excerpt:

The vast expanse of sea shimmered before them as the sun fell across it.

But it paled to Beatrix’s splendor.

Perhaps this is why poets went on about women sparkling like diamonds. Beatrix was a vision of loveliness. Her gown, a soft, dove gray, picked up the soft gray of her eyes and accentuated the blue in them as well.

She stole his breath away every time he looked at her.

Even now, his heart was beating faster, as it would with the thrill of a first encounter. He had been in close quarters with Beatrix for over a week now and that heady feeling had not faded.

It galled him that Bessie had recognized she was a perfect match for him.

He had not met Beatrix until that morning at the Lyon’s Den. It seemed a lifetime ago. And yet, he felt as though he had always known her.

Perhaps his heart had known her and simply been waiting for her to appear.

Anam charaid.

The love of his soul.

This was going to be a problem if her father had truly promised her to that dunce, Greenock.

Lucas had no intention of giving Beatrix up.

If she wanted him, then he was ready to move heaven and earth to have her.

Why should he not put himself forward and offer for Beatrix’s hand in marriage? He had excellent connections. He was a Lyon of Mar and had the birthmark on his buttocks to prove it. Indeed, the red splotch in the shape of a lion was the mark of every Lyon. He and his brothers all carried it.

But he knew a birthmark to prove his lineage would not overcome the biggest hurdle to gaining her father’s approval. The problem remained, he was not a peer nor was he ever likely to become one by inheriting the dukedom of Mar. It would require the death of his two elder brothers and any sons they might sire. Cheyne already had a son, a newborn babe hardly a few months old.

Lucas did not wish for any bad fate to befall them. No, he wished only good health and happiness for all of his family.

Beatrix inhaled lightly and squeezed his hand, distracting him from his thoughts. “Look, Lucas! There is something moving in the water.”

She began to hop excitedly beside him. “Is it a whale? Oh, there! I think it is an entire family of whales.”

He chuckled and kept tight hold of her hand. “Aye, lass. Aren’t they a magnificent sight?”

She turned to face him. “Everything is magnificent about this moment. Do you feel it, Lucas? This contentment. This sheer perfection.”

“Aye, lass. I do.”

When would they ever have such a day again?

A cooling breeze rippled off the water to swirl around them as they stood on the heights.

The sun shone down upon them and glistened across the waves. The sea was bluer than Lucas had ever seen it, and clear enough to provide an unimpeded view of the pod of whales gliding beneath its surface.

Beatrix had her mouth slightly open as she stared in utter fascination.

He mostly kept his gaze on her.

Anam charaid.

Yes, she was that.

As they watched, one of the larger leviathans surfaced and blew a spume of water out of its spout.

Beatrix squealed in delight. “Do you think he noticed us and decided to put on a show?”

“Perhaps, lass.” Why should not all creatures be enchanted with this girl? She was the loveliest part of this day.

Poseidon wagged his little rump and barked at the whales, unable to contain his excitement. Lucas kept firm hold of his tether, tugging him back each time he skittered to the edge to announce his dominion over these creatures who were a thousand times his size.

Beatrix turned once more to look up at him, happiness shining in her eyes. “Lucas, thank you for sharing this with me. I have never seen anything so beautiful.” 

“Lass,” he said in a raw whisper, wanting so badly to draw her up against his body and crush his lips to hers. She was the beauty in this moment. The sun, the wind, the azure water and majestic gray whales all paled next her. “It is my pleasure.”

He tucked a finger under her chin to hold her gaze to his.

She closed her eyes. “I am making a wish.”

“What are ye wishing for?”

“I dare not say.”

“Why? Is it too sinful?” He only meant to tease her, for he could not imagine this girl as anything other than innocent.

“It is, Lucas. Well, perhaps not sinful by your standards, but not anything I ought to be wishing to do.”

Her eyes fluttered open as she spoke, the blue in them seeming to melt into the blue of the sky. Her lips were the pink of the windblown flowers that grew in abundance on this outcropping. “What is it ye wish, Beatrix?”

He knew what he would wish for in this idyllic moment, in this perfect slice of a day. In the heat of the sun shining down on them and the roar of the waves pounding against the shore.

She took a deep breath. “It will not come true if I tell you. Perhaps it is for the best that it doesn’t.” She inhaled again and then let her breath out slowly. “I wished that you would kiss me on this perfect spot amid this perfect day. Would you consider it, Lucas?”

He gave a raw laugh. “Blessed saints, Beatrix. It is a terrible idea.”

Her cheeks turned a bright pink. “Oh, I see. Of course. This is why I should not have told you. Because…what you must think of me…that is, I just assumed…because men…I am so sorry.”

“Dinna be sorry, lass. It is a terrible idea because it is one that has been preying on my mind throughout this journey. Ye’re an angel. I have ached to put my lips to yours from the moment I met ye. How can ye not know it?” He drew her up against him, for this burning need to kiss her had grown unbearable. “I canno’ promise ye anything beyond this kiss.”

She nodded. “I am not asking for anything more.”

In truth, he would give her anything she wished because he was already lost to her. He was so far gone in love with this lass, he would give up everything without need for her to request it. “Verra well. One kiss. Is it yer first?”

She nodded.

“Och, then it must be special. Close yer eyes, Beatrix.”

She held her breath and shut her eyes.

He stifled his laughter, not merely for her obvious innocence but also for the way his heart was responding. Puffed with pride. Touched to the core. He had yet to kiss her and he already knew her lips would taste of heaven. “Breathe, lass. It is permitted.”

She released her breath with a light groan. “Oh, Lucas. I have no idea what I am supposed to do.”

“Ye’ll be just fine. Let me do the work. Ye need only follow my lead.” He brought his mouth down on hers and pressed lightly upon her lips, careful to keep the kiss gentle despite the savage heat coursing through him.

He did not want to scare her off with his ravenous longing.

Give me strength.

Liquid fire coursed through his veins, but he held the flames in check. This was her first time with a man and he dared not overwhelm her.

Nor did he intend to be tepid, for he could never be indifferent to this girl who turned his body molten.

He slowly began to deepen the kiss.

Och, he had to stop thinking each step and just go with what felt right. But she meant so much to him, he wanted their first time to be perfect.

Fool, it will no’ be if ye measure every step.

He set aside his thoughts and simply allowed the heat building up inside of him to flow naturally through his body.

Lord, it came at him like a wall of flames.

He lifted her up against him, drawing her tight to him so that her feet were off the ground and the length of their bodies were seared to each other. He felt the plumpness of her bosom against his hard chest and ached to explore her lovely mounds with his hands and lips.

Not this first time.

Some restraint was required or he would scare her off.

His tongue teased along the seam of her lips to draw them open. He delved in when she responded, tasting the sweet velvet of her mouth.

She moaned and slipped her arms around his neck, leaning into him so that there was no space between their bodies, not a particle of distance between them as their legs entwined and arms held each other in a desperate clench.

He felt the wild beat of her heart.

Blessed saints, she was made for him.

He could tell by the sweet heat of her skin that she was aroused by him.

Was it any different for him?

He poured all of his heart and longing into their first kiss, for it represented so much more than the wild press of two mouths or the hot touch of two bodies.

His was stripped raw, no barriers remaining.

He loved this girl.

She was his heart and the light in his soul.

Mo anam.

My soul.

She had to be his, even if her father had betrothed her to Greenock.

He could not bear to think of it.

“Beatrix,” he whispered, feeling her body shudder with a desire they both felt. “Lass, we canno’ go further.”

“I know. Oh, Lucas,” she said breathlessly, “I am trying so hard to hold back my feelings.” She still had her arms around his neck while the length of her body remained pressed to his, the softness of her breasts such sweet perfection against his chest.

He kissed her again.

His body was on fire and the flames consumed them both.

Lyon In The Rough
By Meara Platt

Lucas Lyon is leaving London to head back to his home in Edinburgh when his meddlesome aunt, Bessie Dove-Lyon, decides he also needs to deliver the lovely Lady Beatrix MacGlory to her father. Along for the ride are Beatrix’s overly perfumed aunt and her aunt’s little pug, Poseidon, who is about the size of a hedgehog but thinks he is a lion. Lucas is not happy about this arrangement, until he finds himself falling in love with Beatrix. However, she is returning to Edinburgh for an arranged betrothal to another man. Since when has that stopped a Lyon from claiming what he wants? If you love Scottish heroes, road trip romances, or simply enjoy laughter, you’ll have fun with Lucas and Beatrix as they fall in love in Lyon In The Rough.

Lyon in the Rough Link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09LRF418F

Author Bio: 

Meara Platt is a USA Today bestselling, award winning author, and an Amazon UK All Star. Her Regency romances are infused with humor and heart, and her fantasy/paranormal stories add just enough darkness to keep her readers intrigued. For Meara, romance is a journey of enchantment, so whether you are looking for funny, uplifting escapes in her Farthingale series or Book of Love series, or wish to be transported into edgier Fae/dragon realms as in her Dark Gardens series, or something in between, take the journey and enjoy!

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First Kiss Friday with Sherry Ewing

11 Friday Feb 2022

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Welcome to my First Kiss Friday blog. I’m still celebrating the release of Before I Found You: A de Courtenay Novella (Book Three). I can’t being to tell you how much I just adore this cover (thank you Period Images!). I had a great time writing this novella that was originally in the Bluestocking Belles’ box set Storm & Shelter. It took a certain hero for Miss Miranda de Courtenay to finally find what matters most in life and that certainly wasn’t a title. Please enjoy this first kiss scene between Miranda & Jasper. Happy reading, my lovelies!

Excerpt:

She at last remembered herself and backed up a step. He, in turn, stepped forward and continued to do so until they were out of sight of the front of the manor. It wasn’t until she felt the brick wall upon her back that she realized she had nowhere else to turn.

“I had to see you one last time,” she murmured in a breathy whisper. She leaned her head back just so she could once more stare into his eyes.

“I’m certain our paths will cross often, Miranda, at least when I’m on shore,” he said, coming so close she could feel the very heat of him radiating from his body. She almost moaned but as she placed her hands upon his muscular chest, instead a gasp escaped her. Her action was meant to halt him from coming any closer but it had the opposite effect when he pulled her into his arms.

“I don’t see how that will be possible,” she managed to say, while attempting to hold him off. Her pulse quickened and every fiber of her being craved to be held in his arms forever more. She must remember her goal, and Jasper could never fit into her plans.

“Anything is possible, Miranda. We just need to have a little patience. Time will eventually be on our side. I won’t always be at sea.” He ran a finger down her cheek, causing her to shiver in pleasure.

“It’s not about time, Jasper, because all the time in the world won’t change anything.”

He bent forward until his forehead touched her own. “I know we have only just met but, for whatever the reason, I feel drawn to you. Was I mistaken that you feel the same way?”

Her breath caught in her throat to hear his words. “No,” she said honestly. “You weren’t mistaken.”

He cupped her face so she had no choice than to give him her undivided attention. “Then, hopefully, you’ll forgive me if I do something I’ve been craving to do since last night.”

She gulped. Oh no… please don’t let him kiss me. “What’s that?” she asked instead, even though she knew what was coming.

“This…”

His lips gently slid across her own as if testing to see if she would accept the gift of his kiss. She should have pulled away but how could she deny what she herself wanted just as badly? She tilted her head to give him full access to her mouth and, when his tongue slipped inside, Miranda was completely lost. Shivers of delight swept across her entire body until she found herself wrapped in Jasper’s arms. Her hands made their way up into his hair and her fingers tangled into the soft length. He deepened their kiss without any protest from Miranda until she thought her feet would never again touch the ground.

How long their mouths danced with one another, she could not say. For one brief instant, Miranda never wanted the kiss to end. She never wanted to leave Jasper’s arms or his life. But when a soft moan escaped from her lips, the reality of what this man did to her finally penetrated her numb mind. She broke off their kiss and yet their mouths lingered near as their breaths mingled together. She may want him, but he could never offer her the life of her dreams.

Before I Found You: A De Courtenay Novella (Book Three)
By Sherry Ewing

A quest for a title. An encounter with a stranger. Will she choose love?

Miss Miranda de Courtenay has only one goal in life: to find a rich husband who can change her status from Missto My Lady. But when a handsome stranger crosses her path at a Valentine’s Day ball, her obsession with titles dims. Might love be enough?

Captain Jasper Rousseau has no plans to become infatuated during a chance encounter at a ball. He has a new ship to run, passengers to book, and cargo to deliver. But one look into a young lady’s beautiful hazel eyes, and he becomes lost. Does love at first sight really exist?

Their paths continue to cross until they are both stranded in Fenwick on Sea. Their growing connection is hard to dismiss, despite Miranda’s childish quest for a title at all cost. But what if the cost includes love?

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