What do pirates, princes, Puritans, and propaganda have in
common? Lacey Delahaye, forager and jelly maker, finds out in this romantic
suspense set in the western Caribbean.
Secret Cravings (2014)
Ebook (89,000 words); Print (270 p.)
Romance Adventure, M/F, 3 flames
Up until my thirties, I traveled
a great deal, living in many countries with amenities that many would consider
below standard. So it wasn't until I married and settled down in an old
farmhouse with an acre of land that I could indulge my fantasy growing my own
food. We planted apple, plum, peach, fig, hazelnut, and cherry trees;
gooseberries, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries; all kinds of
vegetables, including an ill-fated attempt to grow artichokes; and finally,
lots and lots of herbs. I built a formal herb garden and planted thyme, lovage,
rosemary, chives, tarragon, sage, and lemon balm. The one thing I couldn't get
to grow was mint. Yes, the gardeners among you will scoff, but it took me years
to get a plot to flourish. When it did, I had to do something or it would take
over the entire acre.
So I called upon my
sister-in-law, to whom Whirlwind Romance is dedicated. She
directed me to an old recipe for mint jelly. Once the mint invasion was under
control and I'd mastered the technique, I spent whole summers working up
recipes for herb jellies. It was great fun. Despite the fact that I'm not
really fond of jelly, they made excellent Christmas gifts.
As I started Whirlwind Romance, I
thought about what my heroine, Lacey Delahaye, would do for a living. She lives
alone in Florida, her one son grown. What could she do? I thought of the
innumerable ecosystems in Florida, from pine uplands, to coastal plains, to
palm hammocks—all of which are host to many wild fruits, most of which can be
made into jelly. Ah hah! She'd be a jelly maker.
For fun, I added the recipes to
each chapter. I hope you enjoy them as much as you do Lacey and Armand's love
story.
***
Excerpt Whirlwind
Romance: Slipping briskly into an intimacy
The full moon shone through the
window, illuminating Lacey’s nodding head. Armand touched her cheek. “Time for
bed.”
Stung, she shot back, “I’m taking
care of you, remember?”
He held up a hand. “Sorry! I’d
forgotten.” After a moment, he asked, his tone diffident, “Can you help me up?”
Lacey put an arm around his back
and together they limped to Crispin’s room. She took his pants and shirt off
and folded them neatly. As she turned to leave, he touched her arm. “Stay a
minute?”
How could she admit she had to get
out of there quickly or she wouldn’t be able to go at all? His handsome
face—the strong chin covered with stubble, the pearly teeth contrasting with
his tan skin, not to mention the long, graceful fingers he held out to her—all
conspired to lure her closer. Her heart led the way, propelling her to his
side. She sat down. “What is it?”
“Lacey…um.”
Her body tensed as desire fought to
get out and she fought just as hard to keep it in. I have to go. I have to…go. “What?”
His words came out in a rush.
“Lacey, the other day—the first night—when you rescued me. When we…we…”
Don’t
say it. Don’t say it. Christ.
“I…uh…want you to know I don’t do
that on a regular basis.”
His air of shy ambivalence gave her courage. “I see. You
don’t have sex on a regular basis?”
“No, no, it’s not that.” He
stopped, flustered. “Or, I mean…er…I don’t sleep with women indiscriminately.”
Should she let him off the hook? Nah. “But you do sleep with a lot of
women?”
“No! Lacey, you’re being difficult
on purpose. I meant, that I didn’t mean to…you know. It just happened. Forgive
me?”
“I—”
Armand interrupted her. “Not that
it wasn’t enjoyable.” He seemed distracted, running a finger down her arm.
“Wonderful. Fantastic. Too short.” He peered at her. “Lacey, you must know how
beautiful you are. You have the most perfect cheekbones I’ve ever seen.”
“Cheekbones?” What the hell is he talking about?
“I’m an amateur photographer. Those
cheekbones could belong to a supermodel. Perfectly sculpted. And your nose—” he
tapped the tip, “a little pixie nose—it even turns up slightly. Your long, fine
hair is the russet-gold of burnished copper pots I once saw piled high in a
shop on Martinique. Your eyes…” He closed his. “Your eyes are the blue-green of
a freshly mowed cricket field, of the emeralds that grow deep in the mountains,
of the lagoon near my home on a blustery day.” He touched her hand. “Then there’s
your body—as I remember it—a soft, comfortable, pillowy—”
“Hey!” Lacey shook her head to
break the spell. “I think you’ve said enough. Get some sleep.”
She tried to rise, but he slipped
his arms around her and drew her close. She wanted to struggle. She tried to
struggle. It was no use. The long kiss filled her with a warmth that matched a
fire on a cold night, a cup of cocoa, or a hot bath. As he pulled away, the
warmth turned to blazing passion. The power of it frightened her. I’ve got to go. She ran out of the room
before he could stop her.
***
Buy links:
Amazon
About M.S Spencer:
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Starting at the age of four, I have lived or traveled in
five continents. I’ve flown the length of the Colorado River to visit dams and
ridden a stallion under the nose of the Sphinx. I sailed across the Atlantic on
the Queen Mary, and watched the sunset color the Amazon in fiery reds and
purples.
After more than a
decade spent in academic pursuits (Middle East studies, Anthropology, Library
Science), I finally settled down to work and marriage. I’ve been a
librarian, speechwriter, editor, and non-profit
director. I’ve worked for the Senate, for the Department of the Interior, and
for both private and public libraries All of this has insinuated itself into my
work.
When I’m not writing, I love bird watching, kayaking,
swimming, and needlepoint. I have two
fabulous grown children and one perfect granddaughter, and currently divide my
time between the Gulf coast of Florida and a tiny village in Maine.
My first full-length book sold in 2009 and I haven’t slowed
since. I have published nine romantic suspense/mystery novels. Six—LosersKeepers, Triptych,
ArtfulDodging: The Torpedo Factory Murders, MaiTais and Mayhem: Murder at Mote Marine (a Sarasota Romance, Lapses of Memory, the Mason's Mark and WhirlwindRomance were published by Secret Cravings. The Penhallow Train Incident
will be released in June 2015.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/msspencerauthor
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