Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Excerpt Tour - - Vivienne Lorret's This Earl is on Fire







USA Today bestselling author, VIVIENNE LORRET loves romance novels, her pink laptop, her husband, and her two sons (not necessarily in that order … but there are days). Transforming copious amounts of tea into words, she is an Avon Impulse author of works including: Tempting Mr. Weatherstone, The Wallflower Wedding Series, The Rakes of Fallow Hall Series, The Duke’s Christmas Wish, and the Season’s Original Series.




Author Links:  Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads 

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27776547-this-earl-is-on-fire

Goodreads Series Link: https://www.goodreads.com/series/157217-season-s-original



This Earl is on Fire
Season's Original #2
By: Vivienne Lorret
Releasing August 2nd, 2016
Avon Impulse

The sheltered daughter of a country baron, Miss Adeline Pimm comes to London looking for adventure… and finds it in the form of a bloody, unconscious man slumped in the doorway of her family's rented townhouse. Though his identity is a mystery, Adeline is inexplicably drawn to the handsome, injured man and vows to nurse him back to health.

Liam Cavanaugh, the scandalous Earl of Wolford, is startled when he awakens in an unfamiliar bed, wrapped in bandages that hinder his eyesight, with no memory of why he was beaten half to death. Although he can't see the witty young woman who tends to his wounds, her alluring voice--and a single stolen kiss from her soft lips--help soothe his pain. But when he is fully healed, Liam is not ready to let go of the one woman who stirs his deepest longings.

Liam will do whatever it takes to see Adeline again, even if it means giving up his rakish ways. But his disreputable past is not so easily forgotten and his secrets are far more dangerous than he-or Adeline-ever imagined. 

Buy Links:    Amazon | B & N | iTunes | Kobo | GooglePlay

Rafflecopter Giveaway (Three Print Copies of THE DEBUTANTE IS MINE)






Excerpt #1

Liam Cavanaugh grinned at the corrugated lines marking his cousin’s lifted brows. It wasn’t often that Northcliff Bromley, the Duke of Vale and renowned genius, showed astonishment.
Bending his dark head, Vale peered closer at the marble heads within the crates. “Remarkable. Even seeing them side by side, I hardly notice a difference. The fellows will be fascinated when you present this to the Royal Society at month’s end.”
“It was pure luck that I had the original as well.” Liam shrugged as if he’d merely stumbled upon the differences between a genuine article and an imposter.
Vale turned, and his obsidian eyes sharpened on Liam. “No need to play the simpleton with me. You forget that I know your secret.”
Liam cast a hasty glance around the sconce-lit, cluttered ballroom of Wolford House, ensuring they were alone. Fortunately, the vast space was empty aside from the two of them and a dozen or more large crates filled with artifacts. “By definition, a secret is that of which we do not speak. So lower your voice, if you please.”
No one needed to know that he actually studied each piece of his collection in detail—enough that he’d learned how to spot a forgery in an instant.
“Afraid the servants will tell the ton your collection isn’t merely a frivolous venture? Or that your housekeeper’s complaints of dusty urns and statues crowding each room would suddenly fall silent?” Vale flashed a smile that bracketed his mouth with deep creases.
Liam pretended to consider his answer, pursing his lips. “It would be cruel of me to render Mrs. Brasher mute when she finds such enjoyment in haranguing me.”
“She may have a point,” Vale said, skirting in between two crates when a wayward nail snagged his coat, issuing a sharp rip of rending fabric. He stopped to examine the hole and shook his head. “Your collection has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few months. So much so that you were forced to purchase another property to house it all.”
“The curse of immense wealth and boredom, I’m afraid.”
His cousin’s quick glower revealed that he was not amused by Liam’s insouciant guise. Then, as if to punish him for it, he issued the foulest epithet known to man. “You should marry.”
Not wanting to reveal the discomfort slowly clawing up his spine, Liam chuckled. “As a cure for boredom?”
Vale said nothing. He merely crossed his arms over his chest and waited.
It was a standoff now. They were nearly equal in regard to observation skills, but apparently Vale thought he had the upper hand.
Liam knew differently. He crossed his arms as well and smirked.
If anyone were to peer into the room at this moment, they might wonder if they were staring at matching wax figures. The two of them looked enough alike in build and coloring to be brothers, but with subtle differences. Vale’s features were blunter, while Liam’s were angular. And Vale’s dark eyes were full of intellect, while Liam’s green eyes tended to reveal the streak of mischief within.
“Marriage would do you good,” Vale said.
Liam disagreed. “You’re starting to sound like Thayne, always hinting of ways to improve my social standing.”
The Marquess of Thayne was determined to reform Liam into the ton’s favorite pet—the Season’s Original. In fact, Thayne had been so confident in success that he’d wagered on the outcome. What a fool.
“I never hint,” Vale said.
Liam offered his cousin a nod. “True. You are a forthright, scientific gentleman, and I appreciate that about you. Therefore, I will give you the courtesy of answering in kind: No. I should not marry. I like my life just as it is.” He lifted his hands in a gesture to encompass his collection within this room. “Besides, I could never respect a woman who would have me.”
Vale scoffed. “Respect?”
“Very well. I could never trust a woman who desired to marry me. Not with my reputation. Such a woman would either be mad or conniving, and I want neither for a wife.”
He’d nearly succumbed once, falling for the worst of all deceptions. After that narrow escape, he’d vowed never to be tricked again.
“Come now. There are many who care nothing for your reputation.”
That statement only served to cement his belief. If his despoiled reputation were the only thing keeping him far afield of the ton’s conniving matchmakers, then he would make the most of it. And the perfect place to add the crème de la crème to his list of scandalous exploits would be at Lady Forester’s masquerade tonight.
After all, he had a carefully crafted reputation of unrepentant debauchery to uphold.
Liam squared his shoulders and walked with his cousin to the door. “If the Fates have it in mind to see me married before I turn sixty, then they will have to knock me over the head and drag me to the altar.”

Excerpt #2
The moment Adeline Pimm saw the body slumped against the doorway, she knew that London was a city full of adventure. Oh . . . and, of course, danger.
A series of indrawn breaths followed.
Father’s gasp was more of a wordless exclamation as the man beneath the narrow portico of their rented townhouse tipped over the threshold and crumbled into his arms. Mother’s accompanied a jolt of her limbs, an ever-preparedness to manage any given situation. While Adeline’s stalled in her throat. Tiny grains of gooseflesh rose on her arms. Her skin tingled. And some strange force clutched her heart.
Her own response made little sense to her. After having been shielded from . . . well . . . everything for her entire life, a more understandable reaction might have been to faint, perhaps. Yet instead, she felt compelled to rush across the foyer to offer aid.
Her body answered this urge. Automatically she took a step forward. Unfortunately, so did her mother, effectively blocking her path.
Hildebrand Pimm—Bunny to all those who knew her—clapped a hand over her daughter’s eyes. “Adeline, hasten to your room. This sight is too troubling for your eyes.”
Not just any young woman’s eyes, Adeline noted, but hers and hers alone.
Excerpt 3:
“Your swelling has diminished completely,” she said, feeling a strange fluttering in the pit of her stomach. Then she gripped the key tightly as if it were her life’s purpose. “Your flesh is somewhat bruised, however, and purplish in places. When you arrived, we weren’t even able to see that you had eyes.”
“And now that you are able?” There was an edge of mockery to his tone and—yes—to his lips too. Now there were appealing fissures on both sides of his mouth.
“Are you seeking a compliment? I had not taken you for a vain peacock,” she chided, feeling comfortable enough to tease him in return. Yet, that quickly altered when he reached up and closed his hand over hers.
He tugged her closer. “Your expression reveals little. And there are no mirrors nearby to show me whether I am merely bruised or disfigured. That pretty blush upon your cheeks could be because you are here in your nightdress and shy about it, not necessarily because you think I am handsome.”
Were all the gentlemen in London this bold? She held her breath, trying not to move and wanting to absorb every sensation caused by her hand in his grasp. Her skin rejoiced, sending shivers of warmth through her like sparks from flint and steel. His thumb swept back and forth over the mound of her thumb. Then his fingers curled casually as if touches such as these were commonplace. At least, for him...
           “I like the look of you,” she confessed, holding his gaze. A man who’d suffered such a beating deserved that, at least.

Excerpt 4:
“However, perhaps if my pillow were fluffed.”
She looked at him as if he were teasing her, but played along nonetheless, chafing her hands together. “I must have an innate talent for pillow fluffing.”
If one could possess a talent for such a thing, she certainly did not. Not that he would tell her. Because if he did, he already knew the result. She would leave his side, and he would lose the relief—or whatever this was—he found in her presence. And he had never been one to deny himself necessary comforts.
Then, as she had done before, she leaned over him. Her hands went to either side of his face, pressing into the pillow, the inviting plumpness of her breasts resting on his chest. Enjoying the moment, he closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath that hinted at pear blossoms.
She went still. “Why are your hands at my waist?”
Were they? He squeezed his hands and found that, yes, they most definitely were. He also discovered that the satin gown was warm from the heat of her body and fine enough that there was little barrier between his hands and the slender curve of her waist and the slight flare of her hips.
“I’m merely aiding in your efforts by offering stability,” he said, by way of an excuse. Of course, he hadn’t intended to touch her—gentleman’s daughter and all that. Given his pleasure-seeking nature, however, he wasn’t entirely surprised by his wayward hands. Perhaps he should think about removing them before he found them cupped around her breasts. Inadvertently, of course.
“Afraid that I will crush you?” she said with a laugh against his lips. “Well, do not worry, because I have finished. Your pillow is sufficiently plump.”
More than. And lumpy as well, but he did not mind in the least. Especially when he felt her lips against his cheek.
“Thank you, Wolford. I had a delightful evening.”
In the next instant, he didn’t know what came over him. Suddenly, he found his hand at her nape, pulling her mouth to his.


9 comments:

  1. Thanks for the excerpts and the giveaway chance. Sounds like a wonderful series.
    Carol L
    Lucky4750 (at) aol (dot) com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think so too, Carol. I've bought both books and am looking forward to reading them! :)

      Delete
  2. I have been excited to read this book as I have heard some really great things about it. Congratulations on another hit, Vivienne.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've heard a lot of great things about it too, Connie. I'm looking forward to reading it! :)

      Delete
  3. Thank you so much for featuring THIS EARL IS ON FIRE!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're welcome! I appreciate the opportunity to share this excerpt with the Dish readers!

      Delete
  4. I enjoyed the excerpt - thanks for letting me know about another new-to-me author!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Always happy to add to your growing to-be-read list, catslady! ;-)

      Delete
  5. Love the excerpt, I've always enjoyed Vivienne Lorret's books, this one doesn't look like it'll be any different :D

    ReplyDelete