Hello! I’m so glad you’re here. I’m a Regency Romance author, dog lover, French fry connoisseur, and explorer of new and interesting teas. I recently lost my beloved corgi after almost 14 years together and am now exploring becoming a foster dog mom.
I’m happy I can help. This year I revitalized my garden, you can follow my progress on Instagram. I’m a sporadic and forgetful gardener. Watering? Oops. Weeding? Ugh. But I do like my veggies and growing them is cheaper than purchasing them.
But let’s talk books!
I’m a Regency Romance author with a taste for a hint of intrigue and mystery. I have several series planned and can’t wait to share them with you! As happens with most things in my life, once I start a story the secondary characters demanded attention. So in addition to the main Legacy stories (4 families, 4-5 siblings each) I also have shorter stories of those side characters.
I have a weekly newsletter I’d love for you to join. I talk gardens, dogs, vacations, and of course writing! There’re excerpts, cover reveals, and fun research tidbits that I found while falling down a research-rabbit holes and that don’t fit in the story.
Feel free to follow me on Goodreads but I warn you: I update more sporadically than I remember to weed my garden! But if you’re interested in the Regency books I’m reading or my secret love of narrative nonfiction, with a splash of work-related book club selections, I’m there!
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Title The Lady’s Marquess
Author C.K. Mackenzie
Genre Regency Romance
Publisher Emelia Publishers, LLC (Indie)
Book Blurb
She's his best friend's sister. When they find themselves on the same ship traveling from England to Canada suddenly she isn't as off limits as he thought.
Esme Conrad expected only one thing on her journey from England to Canada--to discover the vandal destroying her shipping company's cargo. Maybe she expected a tediously long trip as the prim and proper maiden she planned to show the other passengers, but she could handle that. What she didn't expect was her brother’s best friend to sail with her, threatening the role she played.
That she could handle. Probably. She definitely didn't expect a murderer.
Major Landon Carhart, the Marquess of Strachan joined His Majesty's Army to mitigate the scandal surrounding his family, but duty was duty. A spy sailed to French Canada, attempting to stir up support for Napoleon and stopping the man was his only goal. Until he spotted Esme Conrad on deck.
Duty suddenly took a back seat.
She might be his best friend’s sister, but in the middle of the Atlantic, there’s no one stopping them. Their first kiss surprises her and she craves more. Can they overcome the secrets they carry and the lies they’ve told each other, to trust and allow love a chance? Or will their duties keep them apart?
Excerpt
Drawn to her as always, Landon leaned in. He’d managed to resist the temptation all these years by keeping people between them. Grayson, Marsters, the dogs, the horses—anyone who might be available to mitigate his desire for Esme Conrad.
Now, no one stood between them.
His lips pressed against hers before he could remind himself of all the reasons it was a terrible idea. Or not. The moment he kissed her, all Landon wanted was more. Nearly ten years of wanting her and keeping his distance vanished in the Atlantic breeze.
“Esme.” He whispered her name like a prayer.
“Don’t you dare apologize,” she snapped.
Landon laughed. He was still standing too close, still wanting too much. Desire tightened through him, hardening his cock. He gulped the cold air, but it didn’t ease the need simmering through him. “I wouldn’t dare.” He took her hands, holding them between his. “And I’m not sorry.”
“Good.” She peered up at him curiously. “You aren’t?”
“No. I’m going to kiss you again.” He didn’t let her respond, just pressed his lips against hers, feeling her cool, hesitant mouth move against his.
Despite the cold night, warmth curled around him as he pulled her closer. Her hands flattened against his chest, and she stood on her toes—and still she wasn’t close enough. Pressing her against the railing, he deepened the kiss. He should’ve known one kiss was never going to be enough.
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Title The Lady’s Pirate
Author C.K. Mackenzie
Genre Regency Romance
Book Blurb
She wasn't fanciful enough to believe the storm brought him to her...
Adelaida Machado loved two things. Creating unimaginable chocolate creations to tempt the senses and walking the beach along her family's villa. The first sustained her during the French Invasion. The second brought her Grayson Conrad. She could've done without either.
Though she’d have rather done without Grayson, perhaps he's just the man she needs...
Grayson Conrad agreed to deliver food and medical supplies to a Portuguese contact in exchange for French troop movements. Running a blockade? Easy. Just the sort of adventure he craved. He hadn't counted on the storm that destroyed his ship or the beautiful widow who rescued him from the rocky shoreline.
He's captivated by her compassion and strength in the face of French occupation...shame he lied about his identity.
Sparks ignite as she helps him heal until she discovers he's English. Now he’s an even greater risk to everyone she loves. Adelaida can't turn him into the colonel who seized her home. Instead, she vows to keep her distance from Grayson. Which might be the hardest choice she's ever made. And the most easily broken. He earns her trust with his promises of hope—he’ll help her family escape no matter what.
He seduces her with his kisses until she realizes that she'll do everything in her power to help him. Even at the risk to her own heart.
When a traitor in her village brings down the wrath of the French army, Adelaida has two choices--give up Grayson or sacrifice everything she holds dear.
Excerpt
“Are you going to kiss me?” Where that boldness came from, Adi didn’t know, but she embraced it.
He laughed and leaned in. “As much and as often as you wish.”
Adi refused to answer that—she hadn’t an answer. Her skin tingled with every brush of his fingers, and she craved more. Heat pooled between her legs. She wanted Paulo’s touch there, too.
His mouth pressed softly against hers, and Adi instantly knew she didn’t want him to stop. Ever. His mouth was firm, warm, sure.
Perfect.
Hesitant, tentative, she kissed him back. Felt his beard along her skin and shuddered. Her hands no longer curled into the skirts she hadn’t realized she was gripping, but now gripped his shirt. Pulling him closer. Or holding tight as the maelstrom of that kiss raced through her like a beautiful storm.
He smiled against her lips, his hands cupping her face. Heart racing, breathing heavy, she pulled back and watched his eyes blink open. Adi wanted to see them clearly in sunlight as they watched her.
“Adelaida?
“Kiss me again.”
Adi didn’t know where that command came from. All she knew was she wanted more. More of his kiss, more of that wonderful rush of need. That ache of wanting.
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Title The Lady’s Rogue
Author C.K. Mackenzie
Genre Regency Romance
Book Blurb
He’s no prince charming. She’s no damsel in distress.
Yara Conrad might not have been accepted into the Royal Veterinary School, but she knew her worth. Undeterred from living the life she wanted, she picked up her faithful dog, convinced her mother to chaperon her, and headed to Brighton. It wasn’t for the waters, rather a clandestine mission for the Crown. She hadn’t expected a handsome stranger to stop the fake kidnapping she orchestrated.
Scandal had finally caught up with Alexander von Stein. Furious with the whole situation, but mostly himself, he escaped to Brighton. Scandal he could handle, his own grief, not so much. When a gang of kidnappers threaten a young lady, alone in an alleyway, he intervenes—he could use a good brawl.
Yara didn’t need saving. And Alec certainly isn’t looking for an attachment. He’s searching for redemption. Except Yara isn’t at all what he expects. The longer he spends with her, the more Alec realizes perhaps life isn’t all about running blockades and spending his profits. After all, fate has a way of interfering just when he least expects it.
Until Yara’s simple courier assignment isn’t so simple and they’re both in danger. Evade the man trying to murder her? Easy. Stop her heart from falling for Alec? It's already a losing battle.
Excerpt
He cupped her cheeks, cool and soft beneath his rough hands. She deserved softness, not the calloused hands of a sailor, a fighter, a rogue. His fingers tangled in her hair, thumbs brushing her cheeks, and all he saw was her.
“Are you going to kiss me?” The words floated on a quiet breath between them.
“Do you want me to?” Please say yes.
“Desperately.”
As much as he wanted a soft kiss, a gentle one, something indulgent and new, that didn’t happen. The moment his lips touched hers, Alec drowned in her taste. She sighed against his lips, her fingers wrapping around his wrists.
She tentatively opened to his mouth, and the desire that simmered far too close to the surface burst forward. Her touch jolted him, desire burning through his veins like wildfire. Out of control and utterly unrestrained. He deepened the kiss, taking all she offered, his body aching for more.
He walked her backward, toward the boulder. One hand slipped down her waist, drawing her closer. She weighed barely anything, and he easily lifted her against him, carrying her those final few steps.
He set her atop the rock and stared. Simply stared. Her breathing came hard and fast and her cheeks flushed a lovely shade, her eyes dark as they met his. She licked her lips, and he kissed her again, pressing her onto the blanket, her body shifting until it fit against his.
“Alec.” She pushed against his chest.
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Title The Lady’s Risk
Author C.K. Mackenzie
Genre Regency Romance
Book Blurb
She escaped a doomed betrothal only to find herself unwittingly married to her handsome protector.
Layla Braithwaite didn’t belong anywhere. Born to a British merchant and an Egyptian widow, she lived most her life in the shadows, hidden away. When her mother dies, she finally escapes the family that only saw her as their servant. Little did she know that searching for a way out of Damietta, and an unwanted marriage, would lead her straight into the arms of a British sailor.Philip Conrad sailed for Damietta to reestablish trade between England and Egypt. Sure, he’d been seeking adventure, but he hadn’t expected a woman to sneak aboard his ship—nor did he expect the pull of attraction. Never one to turn his back on a person in need, he agrees to help her escape the country. But when the man who’s intent on marrying her discovers them together, Philip does the only thing possible.
He marries her himself.
It was not how he intended his stay in Egypt to begin. Layla hadn’t wanted marriage at all, but she isn’t foolish enough to object. When her father’s old business partners reveal their suspicions that her parents were murdered, Layla is determined to find those responsible. The problem? She has no idea how. Luckily, her new husband agrees to walk into this new danger with her.
From a marriage of convenience with a runaway bride to partners in crime.
With each secret they uncover about her family, Layla and Philip grow closer. But will it be enough to last a lifetime? Or will the weight of those secrets bury their marriage before it truly begins?
Excerpt
Her fingers tightened around his wrists, and she slowly blinked, as if wrestling with her own control.
“Will you kiss me?” Her voice came out husky and low, winding around him and pulling him closer.
“If you want.” His own tone was strangled, but he held himself still.
“Yes, please.”
Her lips were cool against his, soft. Philip held himself in check, moving his lips gently over hers until she kissed him back. Hesitant, her hands sliding up his arms until they gripped his shoulders, she returned his kiss.
Hunger clawed through him. Her taste saturated his senses. He’d backed them up until she hit the table, and still he wanted more. Wanted all. Breathing heavily, he pulled back.
“That was very nice,” she whispered, her words a warm caress over his skin. “It was my first kiss.”
A possessive groan escaped him, and Philip dropped his hands. He instantly missed the feel of her skin beneath his touch. She was a temptation he knew he couldn’t resist. “It won’t be your last.”
“Good.” She nodded decisively. “I look forward to additional kisses.” Her lips curled into a seductive smile that slammed through him. “And more than that.”
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Title The Lady’s Courtship
Author C.K. Mackenzie
Genre Regency Romance
Book Blurb
Betrayed by her childhood love, she vowed never again.
Three years ago, Savannah Shaw was happily in love with her childhood sweetheart. Until he abandoned her, leaving her a broken sobbing mess. She is nothing if not resilient and spends the next years helping London’s less fortunate women as a midwife. Never again will she permit anyone close enough to crush her heart and soul. Especially not her former lover.
Three days ago, she witnessed a murder.
Tristan Conrad spent his life living up to his family’s name and his older siblings’ exploits. He wanted to forge his own path, experience all the adventure, espionage, and voyages around the world he could. Instead, he ended up hurting the only woman he’s ever loved and missing the one thing that inspired him. Maybe he should have expected his return to London to be met with that slap.
She doesn’t want his help, but her options are limited.
Someone is murdering London’s poor women, and she intends to stop them. Asking Tristan for protection isn’t the hardest thing she’s ever done. That was watching him leave. This is a close second.Burying memories of their past, she won’t make the same mistake twice. The problem is, they work well together. Too well, though Savannah reminds herself while she might forgive him, she can never forget the pain of his abandonment. When she finds herself the target of the murderer, Tristan will do everything in his power to protect her.
But will it be enough to win her over again?
Excerpt
Savannah pulled him against her, eyes unreadable as they locked with his. Then she was kissing him or he was kissing her and nothing else mattered. Only the feel of her lips pressed against his, the slow sweep of her tongue, the almost imperceptible sigh. Tristan braced his hands on the wall, pressed close against her.
He knew she kissed him so as the two men walking past didn’t stop. Knew she’d done it for concealment as much as misdirection. He knew all that and did not care.
Cupping the back of her neck, he kissed her harder, the memory of their last kiss pale compared to this one. It burned through him, a wildfire that he could never tame. He’d once thought he wanted to, but now all he cared about was letting it engulf him.
He cursed his gloves, that barrier between his fingers and her skin, but didn’t want to take the time and remove them. Didn’t want to pull away, stop this burning passion between them.
“Tristan.” The word, as soft as a caress, pulled him back into the present.
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