Enter to Win a $25.00 Starbucks eGift Card
Love in the
Vineyard
Tavonesi Series # 7
Tavonesi Series # 7
By: Pamela Aares
Releasing September 10th, 2015
SeaStar Press
A one-night stand brought Natasha Raley the greatest gift of her life—her son. She wants to give him a better life than she had, but a gambling bet lands both of them in a homeless shelter. When the shelter director gives her a ticket to a masquerade ball, Natasha finds herself dancing with the most intriguing and mysterious man she’s ever met.
Adrian Tavonesi is creating a paradise on earth in Sonoma California, determined to be worthy of his vast fortune by making the world a better place. Convinced women only like him for his money and his status, he invents an anonymous relationship with the beautiful Natasha to create a dream world for both of them.
As passion flares into an all-consuming affair, the lies Adrian and Natasha have told each other threaten to ruin everything. Adrian is kind, generous, and sincere—Natasha knows he would be the ideal father for her son. But will her past and the devastating gamble she once made destroy her new world? Or will betting on the truth this time lead to the perfect, ever-lasting love?
He couldn’t know how much she
would like to do exactly that.
Yet Natasha’s fears of giving over to the
sensations jolting through her at his touch were stronger than her impulse to
let go and enjoy the evening, the moment and the man. Her lucky night, he’d
said. She didn’t want to think about luck. She’d had the dream again the
previous night—always the same sequence of events, always the same words. It
wasn’t right. Surely her mother wouldn’t mock her from the grave.
But the man’s firm leading caught her up, and soon
she was twirling and dipping and dancing and laughing.
Until the music ended.
And Natasha snapped back into the room.
She stepped away from his hold. A rush of coolness
swept between them as if someone had opened a door or a window, but there was
neither in sight. He dipped his head toward hers and she panicked, thinking he
was going to kiss her.
“One more?” he asked, smiling. “And then we should
get something to drink.”
Relieved that all he wanted was a dance, she
nodded.
But then the DJ cued a slow song, a song she’d
never heard before. As his hand slipped to her back and down to her waist and
he drew her close, her heart rumbled a beat far faster than the slow tempo of
the lovely ballad.
He ran his other hand along her arm until his
fingertips met hers. He twined his fingers in hers, then lifted their joined
hands and rested them against his chest. Through the edge of her palm, she felt
his heart beating, keeping time with hers, keeping a tempo that had nothing to
do with the DJ or the party or the place. She tilted her head back and caught
him smiling down at her as he swayed and drew her into the first slow steps of
the dance. The music played not only around her but through her, melding with
the beat of his heart against her palm and the feel of his other hand at her
back, guiding her, meeting her, caressing her.
And she let go. Surrendered to the pulse of energy
flowing in her. And danced with the mysterious man with the beguiling smile.
When the music stopped, she felt like a woman
waking from a delicious dream. But within seconds her thoughts rushed in,
calling her defenses back into place like sentinels that had waited at the
ready, unhappy to have been dismissed for even the briefest of moments.
“Let’s get some air,” he said. “There’s a terrace
just outside the back of this tent.”
Air. Yes, air would help her return to her senses.
He took two glasses of champagne from a passing waiter
and handed one to her.
The night had turned cool, the perfect drop in
temperature that would lead to this season’s best grapes. The fog hadn’t yet
come in, but there was a distinct chill in the evening air.
He whisked off the black doublet he wore and wrapped
it around her shoulders.
“Thank you,” she said, finding her voice.
Several couples were seated
near heaters at small tables lit by candlelight. Their mingled voices and
laughter rippled into Natasha. Had she ever really had fun? She couldn’t remember.
“The stars are especially bright tonight. No moon,”
he said.
She looked up, but he wasn’t looking at the stars.
He was looking at her.
“Tell me something about you,” he said softly.
“We’re not supposed to exchange information,” she
answered.
“Only identifying information is off limits. Tell
me about something you love.”
Under normal circumstances she would’ve said Tyler.
She sorted through possible responses and found she wanted to answer. Wanted to
share some part of her with this mysterious man. But not without a reciprocal
exchange.
“If I do, then after, you tell me something. One
thing that you love.”
“With pleasure.”
His accent perhaps explained his rather formal
English. She liked the way he spoke, the way his words wound together in
unusual patterns and his accent made the words stand out, familiar yet not
familiar. For so many years she’d honed her ability to listen, to see, to use
her senses to make up for her struggles with written words. She was reaping the
reward for honing those senses tonight. With this man in this magical setting.
She hugged her elbows close to her chest. “I love
plants, everything about them. Their beauty. Tenacity. Fragility. They speak my
language.”
He raised a brow, barely visible above his black
mask. “Then we have more in common than loving to dance.”
“I didn’t say I loved to dance,” she said, glad
that it was dark and he couldn’t see the heat creep into her cheeks.
“You didn’t have to.”
If she’d known how intimate dancing with him would
feel, would she have agreed to dance? Already she felt that she’d stepped into
a world with signs and signals she couldn’t read. With sensations that tumbled
her thoughts and teased at her carefully held boundaries. But perhaps she was
like a prisoner kept too long in a dark cell. She longed for color. For song
and dance and laughter. To surrender, if only for a moment.
If only there wouldn’t be consequences.
But there were. There always would be.
|
How often do you actually still get to read for pleasure?
I read almost every day! I read both contemporary and historical romance and I also read cosmology. I am interested in quantum theory and the wonders of the universe. Reading is one of my greatest pleasures.
If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?
Well, I have been a film and radio producer and also directed campaigns to improve the lives and habitats of wild animals. At this point I can't imagine not writing, the stories just keep grabbing me and the characters show up and demand their air time. But if I didn't write? Hmmm...I suppose I would explore permaculture gardening. I love learning about native plants, love their beauty and how they provide nourishment for butterflies and bees. I'm also very interested in the uses of herbs for health. And another passion of mine is body mechanics. Maybe I'd be a personal trainer. There's such a world of wonder in our bodies, how they move and support our lives.
What 3 books have you recently read that you would recommend?
I love anything by Sara McLean, she writes the most intriguing historical romances. I've been reading Robin Carr. But my most recent read was Nora Roberts The Liar. Nora, after all these years is still an amazing story teller.
|
Pamela Aares is a USA Today Bestselling, award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance novels. Her contemporary series, The Tavonesi Series, explores the lives, loves, friendships and sizzling romances of the Tavonesi family.
Her popularity as a romance writer continues to grow with each new book release, so much so, that the Bay area author has drawn comparisons by reviewers to Nora Roberts.
Pamela Aares writes romance books that she loves reading, particularly those that entertain, transport and inspire dreams while captivating and tugging at the heart. She takes her readers on a journey with complex characters in both contemporary and historical settings who are thrown in situations that tempt love, adventure and self-discovery.
Before becoming a romance author, Aares wrote and produced award-winning films including Your Water, Your Life, featuring actress Susan Sarandon and NPR series New Voices, The Powers of the Universe and The Earth’s Imagination.
If not behind her computer, you can probably find her reading a romance novel, hiking the beach or savoring life with friends. You can visit Pamela on the web at http://www.PamelaAares.com.
Thank you for hosting Pamela and LOVE IN THE VINEYARD today!
ReplyDelete