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Friday, January 16, 2015

Guest Post with Author Jessica Peterson and Giveaway


Jessica Peterson began reading romance to escape the decidedly unromantic awkwardness of her teenage years. Having found solace in the likes of Rhett Butler and Mr. Darcy, it wasn’t long before she began creating tall, dark, and handsome heroes of her own.

A graduate of Duke University, Jessica worked at an investment bank before leaving to pursue her writerly dreams. She lives with her husband, the tall, dark, and handsome Mr. Peterson, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Find Jessica at:


As romance readers, I think it’s safe to say we all have a picture in our heads of THE dream guy. You know, the kind of guy who curls your toes and makes your stomach hurt he’s so hot/alpha/bad/good/wealthy/well dressed.

The type of guy you think you’d love to end up with. Maybe you like tall guys. Maybe it’s ambitious guys, or fratty guys, or guys with an appreciation for fine wine and five star travel. Maybe it’s football players (not gonna lie, I went through a Clay Matthews phase), or guys who wear glasses, smart guys, nice guys, biker guys, guys’ guys.

Whoever this guy is, he’s in your head, and you think you could be pretty happy with this dream babe. Who wouldn’t love a hot billionaire with a serious case of kink? (I also went through a Christian Gray phase, like the 3 billion other women on this planet.)

Enter real life. More often than not, we don’t end up with dream babe – and that can be a really, really good thing. Because what we think will make us happy is sometimes much different from what – and who! – actually does.

Maybe that billionaire is hot, but he doesn’t make you laugh, and he doesn’t eat carbs – total deal breaker. Maybe that biker dude is great in bed, but he’s not so great at remembering your birthday, and he isn’t the greatest conversationalist.

That dream babe doesn’t fill you up and turn you inside out the way a real guy – your guy – can.

Sophia, the heroine in my latest release, THE MILLIONAIRE ROGUE, faces such a dilemma. Raised on Debrett’s – the who’s who of the British aristocracy – Sophia believes her dream dude is a Marquess with ten thousand a year. She’s set her sights on the Marquess of Withington, as he’s got some pretty sweet sideburns, and an even sweeter castle.

But when she accidentally becomes embroiled in a dangerous plot with Thomas Hope, Sophia begins to question her marital ambitions. Thomas is a banker, a foreigner, an orphan; everything, in short, Sophia doesn’t think she wants.

Only they have a smashing time together – and can’t seem to keep their hands off one another. He may not have a title, or a castle, but Thomas makes Sophia laugh; makes her feel a thousand delicious, thrilling, terrifying things.

In the end, Sophia must choose between her “dream” babe, and the real man who makes her truly happy.

To win a copy of THE MILLIONAIRE ROGUE, tell me about the real men in your life – and how they are so much better than a dream babe!



In an age of stately decorum, the Hope Diamond was a source of delicious intrigue—and a font of unimaginable adventure…

Though not of noble birth, Thomas Hope has a skill in banking that’s made him one of the richest, most trusted men in London. Still, he keeps his dubious past hidden. So when an old acquaintance calls on Hope to help acquire the infamous French Blue Diamond, he’s desperate to be discreet. He never expects that his biggest concern shouldn’t be losing his reputation, but his heart…

Sophia Blaise is determined to make a brilliant match with this season’s most eligible, most titled bachelor, but her true passion has been ignited by the incredible stories she hears while secretly transcribing the memoirs of a notorious Madam. After a night of clandestine writing ends with Sophia caught up in a scandalous adventure of her own—with an alluring banker—she begins to question whether she’s suited to the proper life she’s always known…

Caught up in a thrilling exploit and unexpected romance, Sophia must make a choice between what her head knows is safe and what her heart desperately desires, before both slip from her grasp forever…

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N |
Check out the Hope Diamond Trilogy:
 



Sophia let out a breath. If Hope wasn’t holding her up with his weight, her knees would have definitely buckled. Good God, never did a man look so delicious in his looming as Mr. Thomas Hope.

“Sophia,” he repeated.

She ran her tongue along her bottom lip, suddenly alive with sensation.

The words came before she could stop them, a defense against his questions; a plea of desire.

“Do it again.”

Thomas paused. “I beg your pardon?”

“Kiss me. Like you did for the Princess. Do it again.”

His eyes searched hers, moving from one to the other. With every sense she implored him to action, tilting her chin so that her lips waited just beneath the soft curve of his own. The air between them tightened, pulling them slowly towards one another.

Sophia vaguely heard Thomas’s hat dropping to the ground beside her; and then his hand was cupping her face and his hair was falling into her eyes and his skin brushed against hers. He took her lips with his own, an urgent but luxuriously careful caress that drew a moan from the back of her throat.

He moved ardently over her now; no time, no need for introductions or assurances, just desire, sure and swift, beating between them.

Taking her bottom lip in his teeth, he opened her mouth to him, his tongue sliding along the slick insides of her lips. In her veins her blood pounded.
For the second time that night she surrendered to the ruin of Hope’s expert touch, his hands and his shoulders and dear God this kiss.
***
It was her curiosity that did it, the challenge that sparked in her eyes.

That, and her damnably luscious lips. While Miss Sophia Blaise wasn’t entirely guileless – she had, after all, helped him swindle the French Blue from Caroline’s grasp – the debutante-cum-actress hadn’t the slightest idea how alluring she could be.

Especially with that bottom lip caught between her teeth.

Then there was her sudden, impulsive request. Do it again. Kiss me.

Good Lord. What was a decent man to do but oblige the lady, and oblige her most thoroughly?

As for his fear that he’d forgotten how to kiss – it boded well, didn’t it, if Sophia asked for another?

Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew she was using the kiss as a weapon against him, a way of avoiding questions she quite clearly did not wish to answer. Her presence in La Reinette’s chamber was, to be fair, none of his business.

But when it came to Sophia, Hope did not feel like being fair. Fair was for business, for money, for duels. For cards and the races. For ledgers and war and the shops on Bond Street, the grocer, the steward. Fair was predictable and dull.

No. There was certainly nothing fair about Sophia; her egregious loveliness, her scent. There was nothing fair about the way she stoked his growing desire for her with every word she said, her unexpected bravado and the full, honest sound of her laughter.

He would find out what she was up to with La Reinette, come Hell or high water.

Just after he kissed Miss Blaise senseless. Yes. He would find out then.

This time he held nothing back. He kissed her with a passion that was at once foreign and intoxicating, driving deeper, softer, the more of her he possessed and discovered the more of her he wanted. He felt wild, his body and his heart pushing him forward, his hands cupping her face as he coaxed her lips apart with his tongue.

He’d forgotten just how lovely kissing could be.


Check out what's up for grabs.

Up For Grabs:
  • 1 copy of The Millionaire Rogue

To Enter: 
  • Tell me about the real men in your life – and how they are so much better than a dream babe!
  • US/CA shipping ONLY.
  • Please fill out the Rafflecopter form.

Good Luck! 

Special thanks to Jessica Peterson for sponsoring this giveaway.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

22 comments :

  1. No real man in my life right now...so I will live vicariously with my BBF in the current book I'm reading!

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  2. My hubby of 21 years has been a wonderful part of my life. He's always supportive and is there in the worst/best of times. I am blessed.
    My brother is a wonderful person too. He is the most compassionate person I know. He's the only guy I know who fixes his wife breakfast every morning :)

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    1. Sounds like you have some pretty sweet guys in your life - lucky you! "Being supportive" isn't the sexiest way to describe a guy, but in real life, that's the stuff that counts.

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  3. I've been with my hubby almost 33 years, married almost 26. I like tall (at least 6 feet, which is funny since I'm only 5'2"!), dark hair (although hubby's now is sprinkled with grey) and a killer smile (which he still has :) ). I love that he is always so helpful, but yet awkwardly shy. And smart...sometimes it does piss me off how smart he is but deep down I love it. He is an engineer and has a very quirky way about him, but he is mine...all mine! :)

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    1. Wow, Sue - congrats on being married 26 years! Having been married for only three myself, I recognize what an accomplishment that is. And yes, there is nothing better than knowing that he is ALL YOURS…the killer smile and adorable awkwardness doesn't hurt, either!

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  4. I do not have Twitter.

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  5. My dream guy has been with me for over 20 years. And although he's not very romantic, he does do things that make me realize what a gem he is. For instance, when we get a new vehicle, I am the one who gets to drive it while he gets the old vehicle (and never complains!), because I am the one who drives our "precious cargo" of 4 kids around.
    My other "men" are my 3 sons (ages 18, 13, and 9), and they keep me busy.
    Congrats on the new release--it sounds like a great read!

    Btw, tomorrow is his birthday--so, it's time for me to get to baking that cake! :)

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    1. It's the little things, isn't it, Sandra, that really count? Romance comes and goes - sometimes you really, really have to look for it - but thoughtfulness and selflessness are forever! Best of luck with the cake!

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  6. hehehehehe... I'm actually single after realizing that the real life guy was bad news! So, right now I'm sticking with fictional :) Thanks for shairng and congrats to Jessica on her newest release!

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    1. Hi Erin! Thanks for stopping by. And I get it about the real life guy being bad news…we've all been there. That's what fictional heroes are for - to fill the space until you find a better "real life" guy. Happy reading!

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  7. Congratulations on the new book.

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    1. Thanks, Kim! I'm very excited about this one - happy reading!

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  8. I can't wait to read this book. It sounds great!

    I ended up with an extremely tall (6'10") nerd with glasses, a full beard and a mustache. LOL But he's just right for me...even though I'm only 5'2". ;)

    Marcy Shuler

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  9. no romance with a 'real man' - just fictional, short term encounters

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  10. In just over a month it will be 23 years of marriage to my real life guy. (And, yes we had a bit of a whirlwind courtship - but sometimes you just know.) He's not perfect, but neither am I. The important thing is we both feel we got the best deal in our relationship and we are lucky to have each other. He's kind, caring and will bring me caffeine and chocolate first thing in the morning - maybe he is kinda perfect. ;-D

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  11. I don't have a real man currently in my life right now, but I am content with fictional ones!! :)

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  12. My husband has more patience than any hero and he needs it. He tolerates my book addiction and has agreed to a trip or two to romance conventions. He is a person of honor, a great father, and dogs love him. Me, I am the luckiest woman in the world to have him for the love of my life.

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    1. Forgot to mention, 42 years and counting.

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  13. husband is a geeky engineer, but he's real...and a good man
    Denise

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  14. My husband and I have been married for 43 years, and we've loved and supported each other through the good times and the bad.

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  15. No dream guy in the picture yet, so the fictional ones would have to do.

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