Valentine’s Day Blog Hop – flash fiction plus prizes!

Valentine’s Day only!

But, on a spinning globe, a day takes a long time. The HOP will begin when the sun rises on Valentine’s Day in New Zealand (noon on February 13 U.S. EST) and end at midnight on Valentine’s Day in Hawaii (or 5 AM February 15 U.S. EST).

Every stop will have a bit of original fiction involving the characters of one–or some–of the author’s books. Comment to be entered to win a gift card—and most stops will offer a prize for that site only. Hop to the next author and repeat! There will be fifteen authors participating. Begin on my blog and find the link to the next blog at the bottom of this post.

Thank you, Caroline Warfield, for participating in the hop. I hope you enjoyed their bit of flash fiction. Here is a section from A Wicked Earl’s Widow for you to enjoy. Read on to find out how to enter our giveaway!

“The Marquess of Landonshire has arrived, my lady.”

Eliza paled at the butler’s announcement. Her in-laws knew as well as 
she did that her father had not come to see his newborn granddaughter. 
With shaking fingers, she pulled the blanket securely around Althea 
and clasped the sleeping infant to her chest.

“Show him in, Bramer.” Lord Falsbury poured another glass of brandy 
and studied the mother and child, his dark eyes serious. “I believe 
this is his first visit since the wedding, is it not?”

Eliza nodded, her stomach in a tumble. She tried to keep her voice 
steady as she answered her father-in-law. “He sent his condolences and 
apologies for not attending the funeral. It seemed my mother was in 
poor health, and he did not want to leave her.”

Lady Falsbury frowned, her intense blue eyes seeing through Eliza’s 
bravado. “You realize you are under our protection? The death of our 
son does not change the fact that you are part of this family. And the 
thought of not seeing my granddaughter every day…”

“My dear, no need to worry about that. Eliza has already decided to 
stay with us. But when he wrote after the child was born and said he’d 
like to meet his first grandchild, I could not refuse him.” Falsbury 
ran a hand through his dark, graying hair.

The gesture reminded her of Carson and tears stung her eyes. She gazed 
down at the babe who would never know her father. He’d been the first 
man to be kind to Eliza, the first man to make her laugh, the first 
man to show her what love could be like.

“Of course not. I’m happy for Althea to know her grandfather.” She 
turned to Lady Falsbury. “There is nowhere I’d rather raise my 
daughter, ma’am. I’ll stay as long as you’ll have me.”

Eliza was amazed at the calm in her voice. Inside , she was terrified. 
What did her father want now? More money? He couldn’t possibly have 
another marriage in mind. How many times could a man bargain off his 
daughter?

About A Wicked Earl’s Widow – Eliza is forced into marriage with no idea her life will change for the better. Married less than a year, her unwilling rake of a husband is surprisingly kind to her—until his sudden death. The widowed Countess of Sunderland remains under her in-laws’ protection to raise her newborn daughter. But her abusive father is on the brink of financial ruin and has plans for another wedding.
Nathaniel, Viscount of Pendleton, gains his title at the age of 12. His kindly but shrewd estate manager becomes father and mentor, instilling in the boy an astute sense of responsibility and compassion for his tenants. Fifteen years later, his family urges him to visit London and seek a wife. The ideal doesn’t appeal to him, but his sense of duty tells him it is the next logical step.
Lord Pendleton stumbles upon Eliza on the road, defending an elderly woman against ruffians. After rescuing the exquisite damsel in distress, he finds himself smitten. But Nate soon realizes he must discover the dark secrets of her past to truly save the woman he loves.
A sweet Regency.

Buy Now

To enter the hop’s giveaway, leave a comment below with your name. One random commenter from all of the participating posts will be awarded a gift card. Make sure you hop to all the author’s sites to enter. Comments must be left before Mon, 15 Feb 2021 5 a.m. EST/ 4 a.m. CST.

Here’s the link to the next blog: A.S. Fenichel. Good luck!

This Post Has 64 Comments

  2. I love your stories and this one sounds perfect. Eliza is like many who were forced to wed for money or position and in this case her father is cruel. I love that she will find a man to love her!

    Reply

  12. I am always looking for new authors to read. I get introduced to them with this kind of hop. Thanks for having it.

    Reply

  18. Happy Valentine’s Day to you and yours, Aubrey:) Loved the excerpt, sounds like a story I would enjoy reading!! Thank you so much for the chance! xo

    Reply

  23. Loved the excerpt Aubrey, it sounds intriguing. I look forward to reading the book. Thanks for the opportunity. Happy Valentine’s Day ❤️

    Reply

  29. I’m so glad I wasn’t born to these times, I never could have dealt with marry because my parent insisted on it. Happy Valentine’s Day

    Reply

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