One Sexy English Rose #MySexySaturday #MSS124

My Sexy Saturday bannerThis week’s theme for My Sexy Saturday is One Sexy Girl.

Today’s snippet is from my steamy Victorian romance, How To Woo… A Reluctant Bride.

How To Woo... A Reluctant BrideBlurb:

A marriage of convience, nothing more…until darkly handsome Evan Channing and demure Lydia Blatchford meet. The rules are simple for an arrangement such as theirs. There should be no misunderstanding, no illusions of anything more. But the rules are about to change…

Lydia wants the kind of love and romance she reads about in books. Fortunately, she hasn’t specified which book, and Evan has a copy of Richard Burton’s new translation of the Kama Sutra, with its ancient wisdom on love and courtship. He sets out to win his high-born bride, blending seductive heat with exotic lessons in love-making.

Lydia is prepared to tolerate this man she’s been sold to, but his scorching kisses send her pulses racing. Can an arranged marriage lead to love?

Excerpt:

She wasn’t quite the perfect English rose but she’d do.

Evan Channing stood next to the fireplace in Lord Blatchford’s parlor and studied his fiancée as she sat on the settee talking to his mother. Lydia Blatchford wore blue tonight, bringing out the color of her pale eyes. She looked beautiful, yet untouchable, in her fashionable silk gown. The low-cut bodice revealed the smooth white skin of her shoulders and a hint of cleavage. The lines of the gown showed off her firm breasts and small waist, and the bustle emphasized her rounded hips.

When she looked up, he smiled at his intended across the room. Her lips curved slightly in answer and a blush stole up her face, adding color to her porcelain complexion before she turned away. Tonight her dark blonde hair had been curled into a fashionable upswept hairstyle, softening her appearance. When he’d met her before, her long mane had been pulled back into a bun. He wasn’t sure the curls suited her, but of course, he’d prefer to see her hair down, spread around her on his bed. His pulse raced at the thought she’d soon be his.

He could hardly wait to peel off her layers of clothing, revealing the woman underneath, her smooth skin and generous curves. Taller and larger boned than most women, she’d fit perfectly against his own lanky frame. Perhaps he’d find an opportunity to steal a kiss tonight. Surely that was allowed to an engaged couple.

“Stop staring.”

Evan started and turned to see Lydia’s brother Harry standing beside him. “Sorry.”

Harry raised a blond eyebrow. “You should be. If you weren’t already betrothed to my sister I’d have to call you out for the way you were undressing her with your eyes.”

Buy links: Amazon, All Romance eBooks, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble/Nook, Kobo and Smashwords.

Romance Super Bundle II: Second Chances

Also available as part of Romance Super Bundle II: Second Chances, on sale for 99 cents. Available now at All Romance eBooks, Amazon, BN/Nook, iBooks, Kobo and Smashwords.

Lyndi

Click on the names in the Linky List below for more My Sexy Saturday!

Welcome Beverley Bateman, Exquisite Christmas + Quick Bread #HolidayRecipe @kelownawriter

Please welcome Beverley Bateman, one of the 21 authors of the Exquisite Christmas anthology, who has a recipe for Christmas Quick Bread to share with us. It looks delicious.

Exquisite Christmas AdExquisite Christmas: 21 Romance Authors Share Stories and Recipes

I am so proud to be part of the wonderful anthology. Rose Anderson, a great author, suggested it to one of my groups. She handled everything for us. The authors wrote a holiday story, sometimes two stories along with a recipe. They’ve all been edited and Rose did our beautiful cover, which I love.

I also love the stories in the book. Each is so different. They’re romantic and positive. And trust me, the recipes are yummy. I’ve read all of them and tried several. This book would make a great Christmas gift.

Get one or yourself and maybe a couple for gifts. Here are the buy links.

E-book available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and coming soon to iBooks and other retailers. Print anthology available at Amazon.

Beverley BatemanI’m a Canadian author and live in the Okanagan valley in British Columbia. I write romantic suspense. For the anthology I wrote two stories. Christmas Traditions is about a young couple who move to a small town just before Christmas. She left family, friends and their Christmas traditions behind and is feeling lonely. I included a recipe for my rum balls.

The second story is The Christmas Risk. A small town doctor in Montana is doing Christmas Eve home visits and gets caught in a blizzard. With the possibility she might not make it home she realizes the important things in her life.

Christmas Quick Bread

Christmas Quick Bread

Here’s my recipe for Christmas Quick Bread

Ingredients:
2 ½ cups flour
¾ cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1/4 cup salad oil
1 egg
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup maraschino cherries (cut in quarters)
1/3 cup blanched slivered almonds
Additional almonds and cherries for topping.

Directions:
You will need a large mixing bowl, small mixing bowl, a 9”x5” loaf pan, and a cooling rack.

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Grease and flour loaf pan.
3. Blend dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
4. Combine milk, oil, and egg in a small bowl. Beat slightly.
5. Add milk mixture to dry ingredients. Stir until moistened.
6. Stir in pineapple, cherries, and almonds.
7. Pour batter in a greased 9” x 5” x 3” loaf pan.
8. Let rest for 20 minutes.
9. Bake 65-70 minutes. When golden and sounds hollow when rapped on the bottom, turn out on cooling rack.
10. To decorate top, pierce a cherry with an almond and press into cake. Continue with the remaining cherries and almonds.
Makes 12-14 1/2-inch slices.

Find Beverley at:
Website – http://www.beverleybateman.com
Blog – http://beverleybateman.blogspot.ca/
Twitter @kelownawriter
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/beverley.bateman.18?fref=ts
Facebook Authorpage – http://www.facebook.com/AuthorBeverleyBateman?ref=hl
Pinterest http://pinterest.com/okwriter
Amazon author page http://www.amazon.com/Beverley-Bateman/e/B008M01F5E
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7052567.Beverley_Bateman

Happy Holidays and enjoy the book.

Beverley