I love Country and Western music OK, I know it's not everyone's cup of tea, but I really like it. Remember the old one 'I didn't know God made honkatonk angels'? Who sang that, anyone remember? Anyway, do you know where the term honkatonk comes from? I don't either - but here's a snippet I gleaned form Michael Quinion's *'Worldwide Words'. Unfortunately, it's unlikely to be true!
Every child of the range can tell what honkatonk means and where it came from. Away, away back in the very early days, so the story goes, a party of cow punchers rode out from camp at sundown in search of recreation after a day of toil. They headed for a place of amusement, but lost the trail. From far out in the distance there finally came to their ears a "honk-a-tonk-a-tonk-a-tonk-a," which they mistook for the bass viol. They turned toward the sound, to find alas! a flock of wild geese. So honkatonk was named.
[Evening Gazette (Reno, Nevada), 3 Feb. 1900.]
This article is reproduced with permission from: *World Wide Words - copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2010. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org/
It's my great pleasure to welcome Rebecca Savage multipublished author of contemporary romantic suspense, and best selling author of the year, 2009. (And I was fascinated to find when I read her biography at the end of this post, we share a common love of the Western writer, Louis L'Amour!)
HL: Hi Rebecca, It's great to have you here, first of all, tell us a bit about yourself and your writing. For instance, When did you start writing?
RS: I started writing in 2004 summer after I finished reading for fun for one year. I’d been going to college for five years and working on my Masters in History and wanted something fun to read, so I asked my friend who I always saw with a romance novel in her purse for a book to borrow. I loved it and was hooked. Should I mention that a month ago that very same friend announced she was divorcing her husband, then she ran off with mine. Hmmmm…such negativity. I’ll stop, LOL
HL: There has to be a good story in that, just waiting to be written, Rebecca. :) Hmm, moving swiftly on, LOL, what do you do for fun when not writing?
RS: Fun? What’s that? LOL Actually, when I’m not writing, I crochet or just live my life with friends and family. I am a teacher, so I’m busy with the high school kids, plus I teach college at night on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I coach Mock Trial, National History Day and Model United Nations Teams, and I sponsor the German club because I teach History and German. I also do Vacation Bible School and Church Camp and Christmas Programs and…you get the picture, right? Plus, I have two foreign exchange students this year. Ugh!
HL: Phew! I'm in awe! You are some busy lady! I'm amazed how you actually find time to write. Talking of which, what comes first: the plot or the characters?
RS: Characters drive the plot. If people aren’t who they are, they do the things they do. Besides, I’m a pantser.
HL: I absolutely agree. If I didn't have my characters to tell me what happens next I'd be lost! :) I'm sure everyone is dying to know about your latest release - what do you think readers will enjoy about it
RS: My latest release is Guard My Body, and it’s about a librarian with a wild side who helps out her sister and her partner, CIA operatives. She wants to live her sister’s wild life for a bit and act out the stories she likes to read. It’s a bit much for her at first, but she’s tough and smart and falls for the bad boy. Who wouldn’t like that? The bad boy should do it for everyone reading this story: a biker…and they meet in a biker bar. :)
HL: Wow, that sounds amazing, Rebecca. Now for something I love to know about my interviewees - have you a favorite actor/hunk
RS: I think there are several actors I could hang out with an be perfectly happy, but…hmmm…do I have to pick…ugh…so many men… so little time: so: How about Brad Pitt if I stick with someone my age, or…I wish Heath Ledger was still around...
HL: Yes, I think you might have a queue behind you there, LOL! If someone were to play one of your characters in a movie, which character and what actor would it be and why?
RS: For the gals, if you’re tough as nails and have an attitude, you could choose any of my characters, but sometimes you have to have a death wish too. I write heroines who are assassins, sniper, or people being stalked. Life expectancy is questionable…but there’s always a happy ending so…you know how that turnsout. :)
For the guys, if you’re as sexy as my heroes….play any part…and I want to meet you…and stare…a lot :)
HL: What have you learned about writing since you were published that surprised you the most?
RS: I’ve learned that the competition if ridiculously fierce. Seriously, you all need to stop writing so the supply is low and the demand is high and they’ll buy stuff and that’s it .:)
HL: *Grin* Now there's an idea"! What’s you’re writing process? Has it changed since writing your first book?
RS: I’m a pantser, so I sit down and know the basic story line and my characters and go from there. My process hasn’t changed but style has because I’ve learned what not to do: no passive voice…and lots of other 'dos and don'ts'
HL:Tell us about your writing environment, for instance do you listen to music when you write and if so, what kind of music – or do you find it distracts you?
I like it perfectly quiet when I write…and when I sleep. I kill anyone or anything that comes within miles of me when I am ready to focus and pen:) Okay, not really. I’d never actually kill anyone…:)
HL: LOL. Lastly, a question just for fun. If you could be any animal, which one would it be?
RS: Tiger…Well, anyway, that’s the first one that came to mind. They’re beautiful and I’d like to be. They’re tough and they’d eat their young if they got mad enough, and they’re fast and energetic and strong…I like those qualities.
HL: Yes, I agree the tiger us a beautiful and charismatic animal - and unfortunately one of the endagered species of this world. Let's hope we don't lose this wonderful creature, Well, Rebecca, it's been a privilege to have you as my guest, and I wish you continued success with your books -
BIOGRAPHY: Rebecca Savage’s Publishing Journey
An avid reader can become a prolific writer. Such is the case with me. I started out in my teens reading Louis L’Amour. I have one hundred ninety of his paperbacks and fifteen of his books bound in leather. I read them all, loved them and saved them. I only read one romance during my teens, titled The Daring Deception. Lately I’ve tried to find it so I can buy it, but I haven’t been successful in my attempt to locate it. I only want it for nostalgic purposes, since I had no idea I’d eventually become a romance junkie and writer. In essence, that book was my romantic beginning.
I never read another romance until 2003 when I graduated with a Masters in History and decided to read something for fun. A friend of mine always carried a romance novel in her purse and read constantly. I borrowed a couple of books from her, and the rest is history. I was hooked.
I read all kinds of romance, but only write contemporary suspense/intrigue. I had a top secret clearance in the Air Force when I served as a Morse Code operator/supervisor, so I seldom have to research, yet. I’ve done a bit of digging to confirm things I already suspected to be true, but mostly I write from experience or imagination and stick to the facts as much as possible.
I read books from August 2003 until May 2004, and I was lying on the couch reading one day and thought, “What would I write if I wrote a book?” I like action movies that make you think, a story with a good plot with a hero and heroine trying to figure out what’s affecting their lives, bringing them together, and pulling them apart. I started there. I decided to write a suspense/mystery, since neither the reader nor the characters knew who was after the hero/heroine, although sometimes both the reader and characters do know who the villain in my works is, but the villain is allusive.
So, all those books I read, and still read, were a learning process, just as everything else in my life has led up to where I am now. I was a good student, a good military leader, a good reader, and I hope I’m a good writer. Only time and sales will tell.
I wrote a trilogy in summer 2004 while off for the summer from teaching. I wrote another trilogy in summer 2005. I joined RWA in October 2005, after searching for a publisher on the internet and seeing advice to join organizations like RWA and local chapters. That’s how I ended up at CRW, but not until March 2006. Teaching slowed down the process. Darn those daytime jobs.
CRW taught me so much. My first meeting I learned writing is a business and how to write a query/synopsis. I had no idea there were such things. I also learned how extreme the competition is. I had no idea so many writers existed and wanted to be published or what a game it is. I learned it’s all about persistence and taking the steps to get there. I also learned I’m a fly by the seat of my pants, character driven writer, not a plotter.
After joining RWA/CRW I went back to those first six novels and began self-editing based on things I learned about craft: voice, passive, throw away words, POV, etc. I started submitting to agents, editors, and publishers. I took any and all advice from the rejection letters and fixed anything I was told was wrong.
I didn’t start working with Critique Partners or judging or reviewing for magazines until this year(2007). I wasn’t ready, even though I might’ve thought back then I was. I had to climb the ladder. I had to learn craft and even technical programs. I had no idea what track changes on Microsoft word was. I know. Seems silly, huh? Like everyone should know these things.
When I first started coming to meetings, I thought I was so writing illiterate, and I was. Terms most writers are comfortable with totally escaped me. I didn’t know what POV was, or lots of other things. I didn’t go to college to be a writer. I wasn’t an English major. I’d never been a journalist. I worked on a Masters in History. So my background was foreign to what most successful writers have under their belts.
That didn’t stop me. I just kept plugging along. I had no idea how long it’d take. I thought I’d submit and get published. End of story. Boy, what an eye opener the past few years have been, and when I moved from South Carolina and could no longer attend CRW meeting, I joined MORWA in St. Louis, Missouri.
I landed in a few writers’ woes and pitfalls along the way, but my writer friends have shown me the right way to do things. I submitted to an online agency, and it turned out to be bogus. I paid eighty dollars for my stuff to be looked at, and they tried to weasel me out of more. Thank goodness CRW stopped that mistake.
So my fist pitfall was a hoax agency, and then I contracted with an e-publisher that went out of business, but just kept my work and didn’t tell me anything. Come to find out, my editor was holding my ms, and after the ninety days – thank goodness for that clause – she emailed me and told me of the issues within the company. That company no longer exists.
I was allowed to pull my work from their company and resubmit elsewhere. I did. I got a contract for the trilogy I penned in 2005. I signed with The Wild Rose Press: Fueled By Instinct,Cloaked In Assassination, and Destination Ever After.
My other trilogy wasn’t ready yet. It was my first attempt at writing, and I’d worked on it, but it took a lot more tweaking to ready it. Now I’ve published it with Champagne Books, Guard My Baby. and the first book released in January 2009 and made the bestseller list for February 2009 and is listed as Best Book: Coincidence, Combustion, and Consequences are the three titles in that trilogy. I also have a book published by Double Dragon/Carnal Desires: Guard My Baby
In the meantime, I wrote another story in 2006 after joining CRW. I submitted to Harlequin and was asked for a full ms. The editor liked it, but not enough. I sent that story to an agent, along with a note saying Harlequin asked for a full. When Harlequin rejected, she did, too, but she asked to meet with me in Dallas at nationals.
I wrote another book after RWA nationals and submitted it to her. She liked it and asked for me to fix a couple of things. I made the changes and resubmitted. She asked for one more thing. I fixed that, too. She asked for one more thing, and I’m in the process of doing those changes now and will resubmit soon.In other words, it’s all about not giving up. I suppose there’s a time to quit, but as long as a writer is not at a stand still – work on something else while going through the process of one edit – then it’s not a bad thing to take awhile working and dealing with a possible agent/publisher."Never let anything hold you down. Rise above it."
As a writer I admit to being frustrated by some of the 'non' words and 'non-sentences' I see on blogs and emails, or hear in every day speech or on the TV, i.e. "I was like - wow!" What the heck does that mean, when you actually analyse it? LOL. I also have to admit, however, that some of it is actually quite colourful.
Take this excerpt from Michael Quinion's website:
"In what seems to have been a mixture of rueful admissionof error and pleasure in accidental accomplishment, the Times notedon 23 April that a transcription error in an interview on 15 April with the neuroscientist Baroness Greenfield has gone viral. She wasconcerned that excessive playing of computer games or using socialnetworks such as Twitter would stop the malleable brains of youngpeople developing as they should: "It's not going to destroy the planet but is it going to be a planet worth living in if you have aload of breezy people who go around saying yaka-wow. Is that thesociety we want?"
Within 24 hours, it is said, Google had 75,000results for "yaka-wow". It has inspired a Twitter stream, a page on Facebook, mugs and T-shirts; it has become a personal philosophy:"I think, therefore I yaka-wow"; and it has led to the creation of the virtual First Church of the Yaka-Wow. What Baroness Greenfieldreally said was "yuck and wow", a derogatory comment about thelimited emotional range and vocabulary of Twitter users. Considered linguistically and culturally, it's a fascinating example of the way electronic communications can today create and transmit a new word."
I think 'yaka wow' is a good step forward from plain old 'wow'!
This article is reproduced with permission from: *World Wide Words - copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2010. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org/
Next time your heroine loses her temper with the ill tempered hero, she might call him a swoose!
According to Michael Quinion* in his 'Worldwide Words' 'when an ill-tempered husband rouses his wife to the point of retaliation, she gives vent to her feelings in the culminating insult: "You swoose!" [Wisconsin State Journal, 5 Sep. 1920.]' So what on Earth is a swoose? I hear you ask. Michael describes it thus:
" A bird prodigy of evil and hybrid character is the despair of a Norfolk farmer. It rejoices in the name of the "swoose", a portmanteau word indicating its origin, for its father was a swan and its mother a goose. This ill-assorted pair had three children - three "sweese". [Daily Mail, 13 July 1920.]
It wasn't the earliest mention of this curious hybrid, the first having been in the Harrison Times of Arkansas in 1911, though it,too, referred to a bird accidentally bred in Norfolk. The name musthave been fairly widely known by 1920, since a horse named Swoosewas racing then. The Daily Mail mentioned the birds several timesduring that year, reporting that the young sweese were terrorising the farmyard and killing ducks. "Of late," the paper noted, "theircharacter has been relapsing into such savagery as may prove theirruin." News of the birds spread widely. If we are to believe thisAmerican report, their name briefly became part of the vernacular:
A very few other sweese appeared in the 1920s and 1930s as crosses between various breeds of goose and swan that were kept together onfarms. The word reached the hit parade in 1941 when Alexander the Swoose, a song performed by the Kay Kyser band, reached number 3 in the charts.
This led directly to the most famous swoose, a B-17 bomber that American forces based in Australia had created by cannibalisingother aircraft and nicknamed the Swoose because of its hybrid character. It was piloted by Frank Kurtz, who in 1944 named his daughter after the plane. Swoosie Kurtz has become a well-known actress. She was once asked whether she had thought of changing hername: "Change it to what - Tiffany? It's been an advantage. It's unforgettable. I'm the only one."
So no, it's probably not a good idea to name your next heroine Swoosie, but it does make me wonder what a fantasy romance novel might be like that had a goose and a swan as its main characters!
This article is reproduced with permission from: *World Wide Words - copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2010. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org/
Apologies for being late posting this, I've had a busy week! Thank you to everyone who stopped by on the 'Blog Jog' whether you left a comment or not. I'm sorry I couldn't send a prize to everyone, but I hope you enjoyed wandering round my blog and all the other great blogs that took part in the Jog.
First of all I'd like to say a big 'hello' to everyone who took part in 'Blog Jog' Day and an even bigger thank you to those who took the time to comment and/or follow me. I'll post the winners of my little contest tomorrow. Today though is Monday's Word Day, and it's a little different to my usual Monday post.
This will be the sixth year that Brenda Novak has hosted her Annual Online AUCTION in aid of Diabetes Research. I thought this was such a wonderful and worthwhile enterprise that I would devote today's blog post to it.
In a recent interview on Sharon Donovan's Blog, Brenda said "The auction is such a fun thing to participate in! It runs every May (May 1 – May 31st) in honor of Mother’s Day at http://www.brendanovak.com/
This will be my sixth year hosting it. Together with my friends, publishing contacts, diabetes research supporters and fellow authors, we’ve raised $770,000 so far. Our goal for this year is to break $1 million."
Sharon was diagnosed as a type 1 diabetic at the age of six and developed diabetic retinopathy in her early twenties. She is donating fifty copies of her wonderful and inspiring book 'Echo Of A Raven' the true story of her battle with diabetes, and her amazing courage and fortitude when she lost her battle to save her sight.
If you'd like to know more, you can read the full interview at Sharon's blog, HERE
Please spread the word. The Auction runs until the end of May and there are some fantastic prizes to be bid for, including books, gift baskets, Gift Certificates, Editor Evaluations, and much, much more.
Here's the direct link to the Auction itself. Please help find a cure for this terrible affliction which can have such a devastating effect on the people who suffer from it.
I love learning about new blogs! I thought you might like to as well. I'm taking part in "Blog Jog Day" and invite you to click on the blog at the end of this post, and follow along,
Please explore all this Blog has to offer, before jogging on over to the next Blog.
You just may find a new blog you need to follow! Each blog will take you to another blog and so on.
While you're here, please click on "Follow" at the top of this blog or in the column on the right, directly below the Blog Jog Logo. And if you can, please leave a comment.
I'll be making a draw from all the names of anyone who comments here today and the winner will get a $6 Wild Rose Press Gift Card.
Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy the rest of my Blog and have fun blog jogging today!
If you'd like to visit another stop in the jog , or find out more about Blog Jog Day, go to: http://blogjogday.blogspot.com
Have some fun and find some great new blogs to follow.
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Aubrey Dionne on this blog, as part of her Goddess Fish Blog tour. I knew I would enjoy her book, 'Nebula's Music' and I wasn't wrong!
Nebula is a cyborg - with memories of the woman from whom she was created and whose image she wears. These memories are fleeting and occur whenever she plays the Steinway piano on board the Flightship 'Freedom' where she is a senior officer.
When the crew rescues a band of rebels, the gesture rebounds on them and their ship is attacked by Gryphonites, a fierce and savage race of aliens who are intent on capturing slaves to work their mines. Nebula makes a sacrifice which propels her into terrible danger - and into the arms of Radion, one of the rebels, who loved the woman from whom she was formed.
Nebula's Music is a touching and fast moving story of love and adventure. The pace rises like a musical crescendo to its exciting climax. The description is vivid and detailed whether it's the view of the stars from the Flightship or the interior of the Gryphonite mines. I loved all the characters, especially Nebula herself. Although an artificially created cyborg, she has the courage and emotions of a human woman. She is not merely a replica of the woman whose death Radion seeks to avenge however. In some respects she is actually more human, with a greater capacity for love and empathy, enhanced rather than overshadowed by her artificial strength and abilitiies.
For a relatively short story, the characters all had wonderful depth and variation. I found myself empathising with each of them in turn, alien and human, although the story is told purely from Nebula's Point Of View. The Gryphonites were delightfully evil antagonists and there were some nailbiting moments which made me wonder if the two main characters would ever achieve a satisfactory conclusion. I felt there was enough packed into this novella for a full-length novel, and was sorry when it ended.
FIVE STARS
Hywela Lyn
If you'll enjoy your Science Fiction with a touch of Romance, you'll love Nebula's Music.
(Don't forget to check out Jean Hart-Stewarts historical romance as well, in the post below. There's still time to leave a comment and be in line to win her prize tee shirt.)
I love interviewing other authors and finding more about them and their writing process. Today I am happy to welcome Jean Hart Steward on the fifth day of her Goddess Fish virtual book tour.
HL Over to you then Jean. First of all, tell us about yourself
JHS I’m not good at talking about myself. Basically shy, but love to get to know people if they’ll let me ask the questions. The most striking fact in any biography I write is that my father was killed by a golf ball when I was six. My rather sheltered mother was forced to work and her teaching hours were longer than mine. I was forbidden to leave the house until she got home, so I became an avid reader even then. To me it was just a fact of life, but others seem interested. I’ve dabbled at writing ever since I can remember. Did any of you develop an early interest in reading? I love to know how people started reading.
HL: Gosh that's a sad memory from childhood, but like you, I learnt to read early ad have never looked back. So what do you do for fun when not writing?
JHS: Read, naturally. Play computer games. Watch TV but not much, don’t have time. Listen to music.
HL: .Going back to your early life, when did you start writing and what inspired you to start?
Wrote my first novel at twelve. Wish I still had it so I could wince at how terrible it must have been. The only thing I remember about it is the heroine was named Aurora and I thought I was terribly original. I don’t think I had any startling inspiration to write. I’ve always scribbled at something and did some writing on every job I held.
HL: I think a lot of us would say that we have scribbled away at every opportunity, LOL! What made you decide to write historical novels and how do you go about your research?
JHS: I was fascinated very early with King Arthur and his gallant knights. Then I read Jane Austin and that did it. I research like crazy for every book. Mostly on the web but sometimes books of history. I don’t start right until I’ve researched the period, since that’s an integral part of the characters. Sometimes I have an idea for the opening lines, but don’t work at it until I know the era.
HL: I think that's the wonderful thing about history, the research is so fascinating. I too love Jane Austin and the Arthurian legends. So can you tell the readers, what comes first: the plot or the characters?
JHS: That’s a hard one. On the whole, I’d say the characters, although I envision them in some setting that turns out to be basic to the plot. Don’t think I can really pin it down. It’s all an evolutionary process.
HL: Can you tell us about your latest release and what you think readers will enjoy about it
JHS: Now here’s a question I can answer. The Third Rose is the book of my heart. Out of all the books I’ve published this one is dearest to me. Wolf and Sara have a hard time finding their love, as spies, codes, a nasty villain, and the Battle of Waterloo get in the way. I did more research for this book than any I’ve ever written. Essentially it’s a sensual love story, with so many obstacles you wonder if they’re ever going to make it. Of course they do, but getting there is fun.
HL: Oh that book of our heart. We all have one don't we! And we pour our heart and soul into it. The Third Rose sounds really intriguing. If someone were to play one of your characters in a movie, which character and what actor would it be and why?
JHS: Wolf, in The Third Rose. I’d say Clark Gable if he were alive. Wolf is big, sexy, completely in control until he meets Sara. Kinda like Rhett Butler. Or the gorgeous Hugh Jackman. Now there’s a guy who can be cast in the hero role in any of my books.
HL: Mmm, I like both those characters, good choice! If you were to be reincarnated as an animal, which one would you like it to be, and why?
Not enamored of the idea, but I guess a cat. I admire their independence and ability to survive. Also I love their slightly veiled contempt for humans.
HL:What’s you’re writing process? Has it changed since writing your first book?
JHS: I wake every night between 2 and 4 and work on whatever plot problem is bothering me. In the morning I try to retrieve at least one of the solutions I came up with, but I can’t get to it generally ‘til later. Promo, duties. etc.,ugh. Around three I settle down to write and except for a dinner break work until I go to bed. The only change in schedule since started is more time to promo. Come to think of it, more time to writing too since my head is more concentrated since I was first published. Having an editor waiting for a book is a great spur.
HLE: Isn't it just! Ok, here's another question I love to ask fellow authors. What have you learned about writing since you were published that surprised you the most?
JHS: Another easy one. I didn’t dream it was up to the author to push so much. Wish that weren’t so, but it is.
HL: *Sigh* I couldn't agree with you more, Jean. Well sadly we've reached the end of the interview. I've really enjoyed having you as my guest, thank you so much. Before you leave us, could you just tell us where we can purchase your books?
Wolf’s espionage duties bring danger to them both. When he
decodes a message threatening the assassination of Wellington at Waterloo, they both set out for Brussels to catch the villain.
Can their growing love endure through war, a desperate villain who is out to stop them, and Wolf’s determination to save Wellington at any cost?
Here’s the opening pages in The Third Rose
At last. The bastard had come home. He must have lit more candles, as the room became brighter. She could see a large man, elegantly dressed, stride across the room. Double drat! He moved out of her vision, and she did not dare part the draperies any further. She waited, breath suspended, as he re-appeared and sat on the bed. He arched one long muscled leg, bending over to tug at his boot. His face was in shadow, but his build was powerful, that of a more than adequate sportsman. His size didn’t worry her. A gun was a great equalizer.
He meant to take his boots off himself? She was surprised he didn’t require his valet to wait up for him. An unusual bit of consideration for a servant, one she’d not expected. She’d thought she’d have to stay hidden until the valet had come and gone. Perhaps this was better, since at least he was decently clothed. Not that she’d let any missish tendencies deter her. Actually seeing a large nude male might be educational.
Now was the time.
She cocked the gun and stepped out in front of him, the barrel pointed directly at him.
“You will please rise, my lord. I do not intend to shoot a seated villain.” She felt pride in the composure of her voice. She’d worried a little about that.
Wolverton did not appear unduly upset, although his eyebrows arched upward. He bent the long leg stretched on the bed and clasped both hands around his knee.
“A woman. How interesting. I admit you make a very fetching young man dressed in those breeches, but your voice is definitely female. Might I inquire why you have your gun pointed at me?”
She had to give him his due. His tone seemed as cool as hers, and she certainly must have been a nasty surprise. Although come to think of it, he probably often found women accosting him in his bedchamber. But surely for more pleasurable purposes, cad that he was.
“Stand up, my lord.”
Neither her voice nor the hand holding the gun on him wavered, as Joshua Sinclair, Earl of Wolverton, slowly placed both his boots on the luxurious Aubusson carpet and rose to his feet.
“Is there anything I can do for you, madam?” he inquired, as politely as if he were asking her if she took milk with her tea.
She shook her head slowly, carefully lowering the gun a trifle. What a shame he was such a handsome devil, but then she should have expected no less from a despoiler of virgins.
She was pleased to see him blanch a little as he realized where she aimed.
“Can I persuade you to raise your gun a little? I don’t mind being shot in the chest nearly as much as if you hit the most valued part of my anatomy.”
Again she gave him credit. He seemed remarkably self- possessed; no pleading, no ranting, just civilized conversation. As if they were at a blasted tea.
“I am aiming precisely where I wish to, my lord. And I’m a good shot. You will ruin no more girls like Samantha.”
At this his eyebrows did fly up. Lovely thick dark eyebrows that matched his shock of slightly tousled hair.
“Madam, might we discuss this? I know no Samantha, nor do I think I’ve ever met a female named Samantha.”
He sounded so sincere. Probably any other woman, one not so knowledgeable of men and their deceitful natures, would believe him.
“Samantha Browning. The vicar’s daughter you forced to your will in the copse by the road three months ago. Or do you rape so many women you forget all their names? I’d not waste time talking except I want you to realize why you are about to be maimed.”
His eyes, a clear candid gray, remained on hers. He confronted her without hesitation, his air of controlled power commanding her to face him just as directly.
“I can easily prove I wasn’t even in the country three months ago. Wellington asked me to come to Vienna during the Congress of Vienna. Actually, I rather resent such an accusation. I have many faults, but ravishing unwilling females is not one of them.”
For the first time her gun wavered. Those sincere eyes almost made her doubt. But then of course he knew how to be convincing. Practiced seducers always were.
“You told her you fought with Wellington. You also gave her your name, Lord Wolverton.” Her tone once again accused him, but his eyes did not leave hers.
“Blessed hell,” he said quietly. “It’s an acquaintance of mine then.”
He stood silent, his eyes hooded as he seemed lost in thought. Definitely not the way a guilty man would act. For the first time she felt a whisper of hesitation. Why didn’t he show even a slight sign of culpability?
“Did she give you a description?” he questioned. “Does that also match?”
“She mentioned a few details. She said you were dark-haired, good-looking, and well-dressed. And spoke like a nobleman. Oh yes, she said you were of average build.” Her voice faltered on the last few words.
Those sable brows quirked upward again, as he softly challenged her.
“And am I of average size, in your considered viewpoint, madam?”
She flushed as she looked at him. He loomed over her, an impressive male. Well over six feet and athletically honed. No one could have a doubt the body beneath those elegant clothes was fit and muscular. He exuded the animal magnetism she’d expected, but no one could call him average. In fact she’d never seen a more un-average man. He was a superb example of masculinity.
Her breath stalled.
She strove to recollect what Samantha had said. I could not fight him off, although I struggled as hard as I could. I was surprised because he’d not seemed that strong.
Something didn’t match. No one, not even an innocent such as Samantha, could be surprised if this outstanding physical specimen proved overpowering. She remained silent for a long moment.
He spoke gently. “May I persuade you to tell me the whole story? I think you’ll feel badly if you geld the wrong man.”
She hesitated once again, trying to think what to do. The hesitation proved a mistake. He moved so quickly she was only conscious of a blur of motion, rather like a panther pouncing on a gazelle. Suddenly he stood beside her, holding her arm with one strong hand, and her gun in the other. He not only moved like a huge cat, but as quietly. His hand was a warm bronze color, doubtless a reminder of the Peninsula. Long, fingers capable of unusual power gleamed. She stared at them as if mesmerized.
How would they feel like caressing my cheek? And maybe other parts of me?
“I’ll be more than happy to discuss this matter with you, madam. Shall we both be seated?”
His voice remained calm and not at all angry, but it had taken on a steely quality. She took a deep breath and inhaled a scent of brandy and man, with a touch of lemony cologne. This, this male completely overset her. His invasive aroma did little for her quivering nerves.
How had he moved so quickly, as big as he was?
He stepped away and she felt the room wasn’t quite so airless. She could breathe again.
He checked the gun with a warrior’s expert touch.
“Do you mind if I uncock this?” His tone sounded somewhat amused. “I am thankful it doesn’t appear to have a hair trigger. If I’d known that I wouldn’t have been quite so apprehensive. You did have me concerned, considering where you were aiming.”
Sara’s legs wobbled and she sat down abruptly on the nearest chair, Blast his composure. He’d not revealed a smidgen of anything but being in complete control. Of himself, and the whole situation. She hated his dratted calm.
“Shall we sit over here by the fire? I want the whole story, my dear lady, with nothing held back. I have the right, I think you’ll agree.”
Now no amusement remained in his voice. He sounded like the arrogant lord she knew he was, and quite determined to have every detail. His implacable gaze never left her suddenly flushed face. She could easily see why his friends called him Wolf.
He held the gun in his large hand, pointing it at the floor, but she still resented the inherent menace. In fact her temper mounted. How unfair that a sizable male, simply by virtue of physical strength, could overpower a female with justice on her side? Men held so many advantages, and mostly undeserved.
She sucked in her lower lip as she debated what to say. Still it would be best to go along with him for the moment. After all, he held the gun. Worse, he had the power to turn her over to the authorities for housebreaking, attempted murder, or whatever charge he chose. Her word would be nothing against an Earl’s.
She moved grudgingly to one of the large red velvet chairs flanking the fireplace while he took the other. She noticed for the first time that the room held only pieces to accommodate his large frame, and that the red furnishings and dark furniture were tastefully luxurious. At any other time she’d think it an appealing room.
Lord Wolverton’s eyes held both amusement and caution. In spite of the fact he now held her own gun on her, he could feel the indignation coming off her in waves.
“You do owe me an explanation, my nameless visitor. Ladies with cultured voices and a certain grace of bearing don’t commonly try to shoot a man in a treasured section of his anatomy. Among other things I’d like to know how you gained access to my bedchamber. I doubt my butler admitted you. He’d be properly shocked at any well-bred female wanting in my rooms at such a scandalous hour, and especially one dressed as a male.”
Sara longed to slap him for his continuing humor. Drat it all, the man had almost been unsexed! And he’d never turned a hair. Jean will be giving away a The Third Rose T-shirt to one randomly drawn commenter. To follow the rest of Jean's blog tour (and get more chances to win), please visit Jean on her other blogspots, listed below:
Spring has sprung, bringing with it spring flowers in myriad colours and varieties as well as the dreaded weeds. including the ubiquitous nettle.
Before you leap for the weedkiller (remember the environment and the butterflies that rely on nettles to feed their caterpillers) You might find the following article by *Michael Quinion as intreresting as I did.
"Your favourite word magazine* may be accused of nearing the knuckle(a British idiom meaning verging on the indecent), since urtication- flogging with nettles - has been advocated for erotic stimulation in various cultures. But it's known best as a method of provokinginflammation, a folk remedy for several ailments.
...The word can be traced back to Roman times. Latin "urtica" is thestinging-nettle, a name in turn taken from the verb "urere", to burn. The medical term "urticaria" refers to a condition of the skin that's also called nettle rash and hives.
Romans are said to have performed the nettle-flogging technique with other aims in mind than easing arthritis:
'Dreading the (British) climate, [Romans] brought nettles to plant around their first camp in Kent, intending to use them as food, animal fodder and, more bizarrely, as a quick heating system. A flogging with nettle stems was, they had discovered, just the thing for warming chilly limbs. Enthusiasts might like to know that it's calleurtication.
[Independent, 22 Sep. 2001.]' "
Hmm, don't know about you but I can think of more comfortable ways of keeping warm - like curling up under the duvet with a good book, for instance!
This article is reproduced with permission from: *World Wide Words is copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2010. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org/
