Sealed With a Kiss: Elise Rome and Giveaway

Elise Rome has never forgiven Margaret Mitchell for making her fall in love with Scarlett and Rhett in Gone with the Wind and then not giving them a happy ending. She likes to think that she makes up for the injustice done to them with each romance novel she writes. When she isn't telling stories about sexy, headstrong heroes and intelligent, independent heroines, Elise stays busy chasing after her two young daughters, semi-attempting to do housework, and hiking in the beautiful foothills of Colorado.

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Happy early Valentine’s Day! I’m so thrilled to have been invited to be a part of the Sealed with a Kiss event (thank you, Dani and Rita!), and am also excited to share with you the love letters from the hero and heroine of my upcoming novella, THE SINNING HOUR (which will, incidentally, first be published on Valentine’s Day).

Although the story of THE SINNING HOUR novella takes place after the heroine leaves the hero’s employ, the following love letters—or lust letters, as the case may be—were written during the time she served him as maid.

Simon Astley and Miranda Post are from two different worlds, although they both live in 1851 London. Distantly related to the aristocracy, Simon has made a name and career for himself as not merely a portraitist, but a nude portraitist. In an era when the comparative moral freedom of the Regency has waned, Simon’s work is highly esteemed among some; most, however, view him with the sober, disdainful eye of the overly righteous. Simon, of course, does as he pleases and, as long as he is being paid for his work, cares not what anyone else thinks. Until, that is, Miranda Post comes along…

Though born of the middle class, Miranda is forced by circumstances to find work as a maid in Simon’s small household. She knows her role and duties well and, unlike Simon, safeguards her reputation carefully. He is her employer, she is his maid. She knows there can never be anything between them. And yet…

Miranda’s Letter to Simon

Written in her head as she worked
Two weeks before he fires her

Dear Mr. Astley,

Please, I beg of you, please stop staring at me.

I wish on my very first day you had never paid me the compliment on what you declared to be the perfect symmetry of my features. Now when you look at me, I cannot decide whether you do it as an assessment of another potential subject or because you are drawn to me. And if it is an assessment of me as a potential subject, does that mean that you picture me naked as the ladies in your studio?

I cannot bear for you to think of me that way, to compare me—whether unfavorably or otherwise—to them. Not when you are unlike any man I have ever known.

My father calls me wicked because I work for you, because I am in the same house of a nude portraitist. But he would call me even worse if he knew how much I envied those women, not because of their interactions with you, but because they are of your station. Whether you ever choose one as your lover or not doesn’t matter. They can dream of you, and know that there is a possibility that one day their dreams might come true.

I envy them—because I cannot even dream. And it is cruel of you to look at me so and make me wonder what could be. It is cruel of you to pay me more attention that you should and smile at me as though we share secrets, when the greatest secret I hold from you is this:

Even though I know I cannot dream, I do.

Ended with a sigh and a rather ferocious dusting of a vase

I hope you enjoyed Miranda’s letter to Simon! I personally think this part of Miranda and Simon’s relationship about unrequited love deserves a love song of its own. Do you have any favorite love songs?

Check out Miranda and Simon's love story in THE SINNING HOUR-Out February 14th!

A man accustomed to having whatever he wishes…

A year ago, the last thing portraitist Simon Astley expected was to become fascinated with his new housemaid. Although Miranda Post was no great beauty, he found his attraction for her continuing to grow until—rather than giving in to his wicked inclinations—he sent her away. No man could have regretted this momentary indulgence of conscience more.

A woman whose wishes have never come true…

Now a maid at London’s most exclusive gaming hell, Miranda has no time for either bitterness or the soothing of her bruised heart. She works hard and struggles to care for her dependent father, forbidding herself to dwell on either her dreams of the future or her memories of Simon.

At night all they need is one another…

Yet both her dreams and memories collide when Simon is commissioned to paint the portraits of the hell’s owners. Determined to right his mistakes, he offers to pay Miranda for the pleasure of painting her, too—but only in the privacy of his studio. She agrees to take his coin, even while knowing that every moment in his presence once again decimates her defenses…and threatens her heart.

**Giveaway**

Elise will be giving away a digital copy of The Sinning Hour to 1 lucky person. Make sure to leave a comment answering Elise's question and make sure to fill out the Rafflecopter form for your chance to win.

Don't forget to head over to Not Another Romance Blog to check out Simon's letter to Miranda.

**Don't forget to enter the Big Grand Prize Giveaway. Enter here.**

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