Deep Purple

Sheesh, you crumpets write fast. Huge, envious, admiring congrats to all of you who have new books coming out soon -- I won't have one until Fall 2008.

But there will be re-issue of Almost a Gentleman before that. Which was my first published romance novel, an erotic Regency about Phoebe, who's spent three years in successful male masquerade, and David, Earl of Linsley, who's the first man to make her want to be a woman again.

It'll be out December 4. It's already on Amazon, and I'm happy to be able to tell you that it'll cost half the price of the old, trade paperback edition. So I'm hoping that I might get some new readers -- up until now my stuff has been in trade (read bigger, more expensive) paperback only.

No male torsos on the cover, sorry to report, just some pretty people done in nice hot purple, the lettering in gold foil.

The prose is less purple but just as hot.

Here's the book's first undressing scene, in which Phoebe protests David's "lordly" behavior.

"Well [David replies], I am a lord, don't forget. I try to be a good, honest, and decent one, but the fact of the matter is that I own rather a lot of land. And I’m afraid that the habit of being lord over all that I survey is a hard one to break.

"Now go stand there by the fireplace." This time his slap on her rump carried a little more force with it. "You know the spot. It’s where the lamplight meets the light from the flames and makes you look so bewitching."

He loosened his legs from around her hips. Slowly, she backed away from him toward the warm pool of golden light. One walked backwards, she thought, after having made one's curtsies at court. In respect, in humility . . . but hardly with the slow, lustful, provocative movements she felt herself employing. Lord of all that you survey, are you, sir? Well, we shall have to see about that.

...The light flowed over her as she reached the spot he’d described.... Her skirt blew softly about her legs; she could feel warm currents of air from the fireplace even as her naked breasts lifted and tightened under his eyes.

His gaze traveled slowly downward. She raised her chin, preening for him, slowly arching her back as a cat might do. Peering at him through her eyelashes, she watched the corners of his mouth twitch.

...[and a little later] She hadn’t expected to flaunt her naked quim quite as readily as it seemed she was doing. Perhaps she’d taken encouragement from the sigh that had forced his mouth open as he stared at the triangle of chestnut curls on the plump mound rising below her belly. Oh yes, she’d enjoyed both the sigh and the intensity of his eyes upon her.

She rubbed her thighs together to try to control her excitement.

"Keep them parted," he growled. He winced immediately after, embarrassed at having revealed the extent of his impatient desire.

But she was beginning to feel rather impatient herself. Although this game of displaying herself for his pleasure was a most provocative one, perhaps it was time to move on. Well, she had only the corset and the shoes and stockings to remove now. Frowning, she tugged at the laces at her back.

"My lord."

"Ummm."

"There seems to be a knot that I can’t untie. Would you help me . . ."

"Well, hurry on over here, then."

But now he was becoming careless, too. For if he’d really wanted to continue with this game, she thought, he would have turned her around and concentrated upon the corset laces, instead of fumbling absently with them while he nuzzled her breasts.

It didn’t matter. There hadn’t been a knot. The corset fell to the floor at his first tug on the strings, as she took advantage of his momentary surprise to unknot his cravat.

He shook his head. "You’re headstrong, disobedient."

"I’ve been a man for three years," she told him. "It engenders habits that are hard to break."

Hope you liked it, and -- if it's new to you -- that you'd like to buy the new purple version.

Though if you'd prefer a free copy of the old version (with larger print and decorous cover), you can enter the contest on my website to try to win one (and read another excerpt as well).