An Affair with a Notorious Heiress
Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James Book 4
The son of a duke and an infamous mother, Alistair Mabry, Marquess of Rexton, fought his way to respectability. Now, the most eligible bachelor in London, marriage-shy Rexton will take only a wife with an impeccable reputation, good breeding, and a penchant for staying out of the gossip sheets. But when he strikes a deal to be seen “courting” a sweet young debutante whose notorious older sister has blemished her chances for marriage, Rexton is unexpectedly drawn to the highly inappropriate, calamitous Tillie, Lady Landsdowne herself.
The son of a duke and an infamous mother, Alistair Mabry, Marquess of Rexton, fought his way to respectability. Now, the most eligible bachelor in London, marriage-shy Rexton will take only a wife with an impeccable reputation, good breeding, and a penchant for staying out of the gossip sheets. But when he strikes a deal to be seen “courting” a sweet young debutante whose notorious older sister has blemished her chances for marriage, Rexton is unexpectedly drawn to the highly inappropriate, calamitous Tillie, Lady Landsdowne herself.
After a scandalous incident
that sent shockwaves throughout society and disgraced her, Tillie refuses to
cower in the face of the ton. Instead, she will hold her head high as she
serves as chaperone for her younger sister, but Tillie is convinced Rexton’s
courtship is shrouded with secrets—ones she vows to uncover. However, doing so
requires getting dangerously close to the devilishly handsome and forbidden
marquess…
Hearing the rapid patter of
heels, he turned, completely unprepared for the hard kick his gut took at the
sight of the woman striding toward him with such regal and uncompromising
bearing. She held herself rigid and tall, with dignity and a daring that issued
a challenge: mock me, mess with me, at your own peril. Nothing about her
appeared youthful, yet he doubted she’d yet seen a quarter of a century.
She stopped in front of him,
her blue eyes—shrewd, calculating, suspicious—slowly raking over him, taking his
measure. Much to his annoyance, he found himself straightening his spine a tad,
when he’d thought it was as straight as a poker. With hair as black as
midnight, she in no way resembled her sister. This woman was no innocent. She
didn’t harbor dreams of love and romance. Poetry interested her not in the
least. Pixie dust wasn’t sprinkled about her. She was all strength and vinegar.
She wouldn’t break in his bed. He’d wager if anyone were vulnerable there, it
would be he. She communicated quite effectively with her narrowed gaze that she
would give no quarter.
“Good afternoon, Lord Rexton. I’m
Lady Landsdowne. I don’t believe we’ve ever been properly introduced.”
No, they hadn’t. He couldn’t
recall ever laying eyes on her. By the time he was occasionally making the
social rounds she was persona non grata. “It’s a pleasure.”
Her smile, small and tight,
indicated she knew he was lying. The décolletage of her burgundy frock was low
enough to modestly hint at the swell of her bosom, only enough pale skin revealed
to make a man’s mouth water and his imagination to take flight, but the rest of
her was covered as primly as a schoolmistress.
“It seems Gina slept in. She’s
preparing herself now. I’m afraid she might be a while. I’d offer to have the
maid bring in tea but you strike me as being a whisky man.” She walked over to
a table sporting several decanters and winged a finely arched raven-black
eyebrow at him over her shoulder.
He didn’t usually indulge this
early in the day, but he’d welcome the heat of whisky at his throat to distract
him from the other heated areas of his body. “Yes, please.”
To his surprise, she poured whisky
into two glasses. She handed him one, took the other, raised it slightly. “Cheers.”
She took a sip and licked her
lips in a manner that caused his gut to tighten, before walking over to the
settee where she gracefully lowered herself onto a cushion. “Please make
yourself comfortable.”
He selected the chair nearest to
her, studied her, and couldn’t help thinking how quickly Landsdowne must have
fallen for her. She was poised, graceful, and beautiful. The man would have
preened with her on his arm. That she then betrayed him and her vows was beyond
the pale. Little wonder people looked at her and expected the same of her
sister. This woman commanded the room; she could not be without influence, and
her sister was her vulnerable pupil. What lessons she must have taught her. And
that tutoring was going to make his task all the more challenging.
Meet Lorraine
Lorraine
Heath always dreamed of being a writer. After graduating from the University of
Texas, she wrote training manuals and computer code, but something was always
missing. When she read a romance novel, she became not only hooked on the
genre, but quickly realized what her writing lacked: rebels, scoundrels, and
rogues. She's been writing about them ever since, for both adult and young
adult readers. Her work has been recognized with numerous industry awards
including the RWA's RITA®. Her novels have appeared on the USA Today
and New York Times bestseller lists.
facebook: LorraineHeathBooks
twitter: @Lorraine_Heath
Let's get to know Lorraine better...
E.E.: What’s your favorite fairy tale?
Lorraine: It would have to be Beauty and the Beast. I’ve
written a couple of stories that fall into that category. One of the things I
really like about the timeless tale is that it serves as a reminder that what
is truly important is what is inside of each of us: our hearts, our souls, our
character.
E.E.: What sound or noise do you love?
Lorraine: I love rain. I’d be happy if every day were a
rainy day. As a matter of fact, the CD I play while I write is a thunderstorm
CD. I like to listen to it late at night while it’s dark. That’s when I write
my most emotional or intense scenes.
E.E.: What was the first story you remember
writing?
Lorraine: When I was 7, I wrote a story about a fisherman
who caught a mermaid. I wrote it one summer on a red Big Chief tablet. I
remember sitting in a rocking chair while writing it.
E.E.: What’s your favorite movie of all time?
Lorraine: Casablanca. Although it didn’t have a HEA, Rick
was certainly a romantic hero and served as a basis for some of mine. He’s
cynical, comes across as hard-hearted but in the end, he does the right thing.
E.E.: Who’s your favorite villain?
Lorraine: Hans Gruber, played by Alan Rickman, in Die
Hard. It was the first time I’d ever seen Alan Rickman and I fell in love with
him. Whether he plays the villain or a love interest or anything, he always had
such a command of the role.
I’d like to add another villain to my list:
Loki. I just can’t help but feel he is redeemable and would very much like to
be the one to redeem him.
E.E.: Is writing or story-telling easier for you now?
Lorraine: Absolutely not. As a matter of fact, I think it
gets more difficult. I tend to compare what I’m writing against what I’ve
previously written. If a story received glowing reviews then I fear the story
I’m writing will fall short or that it will be the one to prove I’m a fake.
I’ll also be writing something and think, “Have I written that before? Did I
already write that in a story?” I want to give readers something fresh and new
but the more stories I’ve written, the more challenging it becomes.
E.E.: What could we find in your heroine's purse?
Lorraine: A pistol. Her family is in the firearms
business, and she can defend herself.
Scandalous
Gentlemen of St. James series (Falling into Bed with a Duke and Once More, My
Darling Rogue).
Just enter the Rafflecopter and be sure to leave a comment.
Do you have a favorite notorious gentleman? Villain or hero, from a movie or a book. Do tell
