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Hi everyone.
Today we have the fabulous Lee
Christine joining us. Lee writes romantic suspense and her story ‘In Safe Arms’
was a finalist in this year’s Australian Romance Readers Association’s Favourite
Romantic Suspense category.
She’s here to give us a little peek at
her latest book – A Dangerous Arrangement.
Welcome Lee. J
Thank you so much Nicole for having me
on your blog today!
Churches, ancient ruins, monuments,
pasta, gelato, Campari, Venice, Vatican City, high fashion, opera, Pavarotti, architecture,
the Amalfi Coast…
You guessed it.
I-t-a-l-y!
One of my favourite countries in the
world to visit and the setting for my latest romantic suspense, ‘A Dangerous
Arrangement’.
Five years ago, a holiday in Italy
inspired me to write a novel set in this unique and wonderful country. After
travelling throughout Europe, my husband and I decided to ‘wind down’ towards
the end of our trip. We boarded a magnificent cruise ship in Venice and for the
next sixteen days visited Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro and Sicily as well as
circumnavigating Italy.
The security on the ship was amazing,
and as I write romantic suspense, I began thinking how a villain might breach
that security. All from the comfort of my sunbed, of course. Also on board was
an accomplished, primarily Russian, string quartet and the seeds of a story began
to form in my mind, a kind of ‘cat and mouse’ chase beginning in Venice and continuing
along the Italian Riviera.
A crime, a naval architect, a musician
and a super yacht, an American heroine, an Australian hero, a love story that
takes place in a truly international setting.
Blurb
When
violinist Marina Wentworth arrives in Venice en route to a cruise ship for a
short working holiday, the last thing she expects is to be confronted by a
handsome stranger demanding answers. After going to great lengths to keep her
real reasons for the trip a secret, Marina refuses to let her immediate
attraction to Dean Logan derail her plans.
Desperate to recover his latest super yacht
designs, Dean doesn’t want to believe the lovely violinist is involved in the
devastating cyber-attack that threatens to destroy his yacht building empire.
However his growing feelings for Marina fail to extinguish the nagging
suspicion that she is hiding something.
Set against the backdrop of Italy’s Amalfi Coast,
Dean and Marina must navigate the dangerous waters of secrecy, attraction, and
the fusion of two very different worlds. Will their lives remain discordant, or
will they take the chance at true harmony?
Here’s
a snippet of A Dangerous Arrangement
Ten minutes
later the tender was in the water, and Dean was adjusting the ties on her lifejacket.
It reminded Marina of the day in Sicily, when she’d worn the bike helmet,
though on this occasion his hands lingered a little longer as he adjusted the
strap.
‘What became
of the Harley?’ She raised her arm so he could adjust the side ties.
‘It’s on
board, with some jet skis and other fun stuff. It’s a nice bike. I don’t feel
like parting with it at the moment.’
Marina
looked at the silver painted speed boat tied up to the back of the yacht. ‘You
certainly love your big boys’ toys.’
He straightened
and gave her a lopsided grin. ‘Some people might say I’m overcompensating for
other deficiencies.’
She blushed,
and it took every ounce of her self-control not to look at his crotch. ‘I
didn’t say that.’
But she’d
known where a comment like that would lead, and she’d gone ahead and said it
anyway.
‘You’re
welcome to find out for yourself.’
‘Dean!’
He laughed,
and eventually she smiled and looked away. Her darn mouth was at the mercy of
her subconscious.
Time to
change the subject.
‘The
tender’s different to the ones on the cruise ship.’
‘Comparing
this to a ship’s tender is like comparing a racing car to a people mover.’ He
pointed to the tender. ‘This baby is made of carbon fibre and fibreglass. It’s
capable of 45 knots. It’s racing boat engineering.’
She laughed,
revelling in their new camaraderie. ‘Well, excuse me for not being up on my
tenders.’
His
reassurance there was nothing between him and the heiress had already brought
them closer. Even more so, their willingness to learn something from each
other.
He smiled,
looking so boyish in his tee-shirt and boardies it was hard to believe he owned
a multi-million dollar company.
‘Okay, I
think we’re good.’ He glanced over his shoulder. ‘Alain, we’re off.’
Alain
emerged from somewhere behind them and began untying the bow line that attached
them to the yacht.
Then Dean
clambered on board with the same ease he’d displayed on the gondola. And just
as he had in Venice, he reached out to her. This time, she took his hand
without question, and as she stepped across the small gap, confident in her
lifejacket, he wrapped a muscular arm around her waist and lifted her into the
boat.
‘Welcome
aboard.’
He held her
a little longer, a little closer than necessary, his warm, hard body pressed
against hers until Marina silently cursed the barrier of the lifejacket.
Then his arm
loosened, and he pointed to a seat close to the front. ‘Take that one.’
As she sank
into the soft, white leather, Alain tossed the rope to Dean and the tender
began drifting away from the yacht.
Dean looked
at her as the first mate disappeared inside. ‘Ready?’
She nodded,
heart hammering with excitement as he turned the ignition switch and the
luxurious boat roared to life.
He raised
his voice above the roar of the three outboard motors, positioned the throttles
and trimmed the tender. ‘I’ve designed this to deflect spray while we’re
underway. You won’t even get wet, especially when it’s calm like today.’
‘Getting wet
isn’t an issue. It’s sinking that worries me.’
He winked
then covered his eyes with the trendy Ray Bans she recognised from Venice.
‘When you’re with me darlin’, that’s never gonna happen.’
If you would like to find out a little bit more about Lee
here’s her website –
And if you love romantic suspense check out Lee’s ‘In Safe’
series.
As always thanks for stopping by.
Nicóle xx
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