Title Kissed by a Scoundrel
Author Anna St. Claire
Genre Historical Romance
Publisher Sassy Romances
Book Blurb
Their paths were never meant to cross...until tragedy struck.
Marriage is the one thing he avoids…
Lord Sebastian Soren, known as Slice to his friends, earned his nickname on the battlefield during his illustrious military service. Now a successful security expert, Sebastian is content traveling the world and indulging in carefree liaisons with charming widows. As the second son of a duke, he sees no need for the parson’s mousetrap called marriage. But when he agrees to protect his friend’s sister during her London Season, his life takes an unexpected turn.
Marriage is the one dream she lost…
Katie Latham has spent the past year mourning the tragic death of her fiancé during a robbery. Overwhelmed by guilt and grief, Katie becomes a recluse, fearful of the outside world. When her family finally persuades her to re-enter Society, she realizes she must conquer her fears. Who better to teach her self-defense than the man known as Slice?
From the moment their eyes meet across a glittering ballroom, Katie and Sebastian are drawn to each other. As danger threatens to destroy everything they hold dear, they discover the true depths of their feelings.
Excerpt
He watched as she made her way down the stairs of the ballroom…
So that’s Latham’s little sister.
Sebastian knew his friend had a sister, but no description he’d heard did her justice. Her thick, chocolate brown locks pulled back in a low chignon seemed to glitter under the shimmering lights of the chandeliers. He’d seen enough ladies of Society to notice the style of weaving crystals or even real gemstones into their hair. But in Miss Latham, the finest diamond paled in comparison to her piercing azure gaze that sparkled even from this distance.
Sebastian reached for a glass of champagne from the tray of a passing footman and took a deep gulp. He normally didn’t indulge in champagne, preferring his cognac, but he suddenly felt the need to fortify himself as he beheld the stunning beauty of Miss Kathleen Latham.
Her deep rose silk gown threaded with diamond crystals along the hem was a striking contrast to her luscious locks. Her slightly daring décolletage, though modest compared to most of the women present, drew him in like a moth… Lord! She was breathtaking. No wonder every man’s head was turned in her direction.
She’s the sister of your friend, you dolt!
Besides, he made it a rule, to avoid debutants…
***
She saw him across the glittering ballroom…
Her gaze swiveled around the ballroom, taking in glittering candles, giggling debutantes, and glasses clinking, and then she saw him.
There was no way to miss him. He was speaking to the Dowager Duchess of Clarence. The man towered over the elderly lady by almost two feet—he towered over everyone in the room. Broad shoulders tucked into a tailored black coat, muscular thighs straining against snug buff breeches, and thick and wavy dark brown hair that shone under the light of the chandeliers—but it was his sable dark eyes that took her breath away. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen in her life.
Guilt twisted in her chest. She should not be looking at other men, should she? She would have been a married woman by now if not for… She swallowed as she tried not to think about that night. She’d spent an entire year thinking about that night. For an entire year, she blamed herself for being foolish, silly, and naïve…
***
And then they danced…
Sebastian gazed down at the beauty in rose pink as he carefully twirled her across the dance floor. While the first few strains of the dance had passed in silence, he sensed no reticence on her part. To his surprise, she seemed much more relaxed than he imagined only minutes ago. If he wasn’t careful, he could get lost in those blue eyes. They were an aqua blue—the color of the water near the Isles of Scilly, his favorite place. Chocolate-brown hair pulled back in a loose chignon with crystals woven through the silky strands framed her lovely face. He’d known she was extraordinarily pretty when he saw her arrive with her family, but up close, her beauty put all other English roses to shame.
“T-thank you…” Katie began, with a wobbly smile. She licked her lips, an action he’d seen many experienced older women use as a tactic to gain his attention. But in Miss Latham’s case, it was done so innocently and without guile that he had the urge to claim that luscious pink mouth in a passionate kiss.
“Thank you,” she said again. “For saving me from what could have been an embarrassing disaster.”
“You are a strong young lady, and your cousin and friend were most solicitous…”
She shook her head. “You are being too kind. I fear I would have toppled to the floor and dragged my cousin down with me had you not rushed to my aid, something I can never thank you enough for doing.”
“Given my background in the military, I’m familiar with what happened to you.” Sebastian yearned to take away the pain and shame he saw reflected in her lovely eyes.
“I’m grateful for your intervention. This is the first—” She paused and took a deep breath. “The first time I’ve attended a Society function since…Lord Colborne.”
Sebastian realized how vulnerable she was and how trusting to someone who only an hour before had been a stranger. “It’s been my experience that when people witness tragic and shocking events, it takes time to heal. This is something I have seen many soldiers go through on the battlefield. Unfortunately, Society has no idea how to deal with the reverberations of it. And the triggers can be difficult to anticipate.”
“What you tell me does make sense, although I could never fathom what a soldier goes through in battle. You are incredibly astute in your application of your theory.”
“I thank you, Miss Latham. However, I am not the first who has recognized this reaction to a traumatic event.” He twirled her around the dance floor. Despite the fainting spell she’d had earlier, Miss Latham moved with the grace of a swan.
“Who is Slice? Thomas called you that.”
He grinned. “It’s a nickname I inherited during the war, but please don’t ask me to explain it because I’m afraid you will put me to the blush, as you ladies say.”
Her smile was impish, and he couldn’t help but draw her a little closer as they danced.
“Ah, but now you have piqued my curiosity, you must tell me what it means. Most nicknames have meaning.”
“I gained it in the military for my swordsmanship,” he replied, saying no more than that. The gruesome and shocking details of his experience in battle were not for the ears of a gently bred young lady, especially someone as sensitive as Miss Latham, who had witnessed the murder of her fiancé barely over a year ago. She looked like she had seen a ghost earlier when he’d offered his assistance. Lady Whiner’s pearl fiasco appeared to have triggered Miss Latham’s dizzy spell, but did it also trigger a memory?
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· B&N – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/kissed-by-a-scoundrel-anna-st-claire/1146054712?ean=2940186036289
Author Biography
Who knew I’d become an author? Not me. But when the opportunity knocked, I answered the door and welcomed it in. I approach life with as much positivity as I can—celebrating the hits and laughing at the misses. Nothing worthwhile is easy, and that includes everything in my life. But I have much to smile about—my lovely mother, a beautiful daughter, two precious granddaughters, my adorable dogs, and my sweet husband of over thirty years. He has always supported me—including uprooting to move to the other side of Charlotte, N.C. for a life change, just when we thought we were settled.
If settled means not going after my dreams, then I never want to be settled. I give my all to things I enjoy—and that includes writing. In 2021, I hit the USA Today Bestselling Author list, and recently, two of my books were named RONE Finalists!
I love to express myself to the point that my daughter avoids going to the movies with me because I’m that woman in the row in front of you who gleefully munches her popcorn and laughs at every hilarious scene. Loudly. Besides my family, I love chocolate, popcorn, laughter, and animals. I love animals so much that I frequently sprinkle them in my stories as secondary characters. They usually steal the show! British and American history have always interested me, so writing historical romances set in the U.K. and the US is where my passion is.
When I was barely three years old, my parents divorced, and my mom moved my sister and me from New York to South Carolina to live near her parents. Juggling a full-time job and full-time school, my mother became my first genuine hero—she never waved the white flag when things were tough. And things quickly got tough. My grandmother, who helped care for my sister and me while my mother worked, became ill with cancer, and didn’t survive the surgery, dying before I was seven. Losing Grandma devastated me. She read to me and taught me to read before I started first grade. I credit her for inspiring my love of reading, and I credit my mother for encouraging me to turn my ideas into stories.
When I was ten, my neighbor gave me her book club copy of Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind and it remains one of my favorite books. But it was Kathleen Woodiwiss’ Shanna and Ashes in the Wind, that hooked me on historical romance and sparked my dream of becoming a published author.
While I primarily write Regency Romance, I enjoy almost any period in American and British history.
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