I SOOOOO love this time of year because of all the Christmas romances Β π Β Adams was able to do amazing things with a well-used trope inΒ Fooling Around so I’m very interested in seeing what she can do with the older man/younger woman theme.
*****
Christmas at Eden Manor
byΒ Noelle Adams
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: October 5, 2016
Blurb:
Brie Graves might be jobless, living with her brother, and recovering from a painful break-up, but she’s determined to enjoy the holidays. Until the end of the year, she’s going to do anything she wants to do, no matter how crazy it might be. Soon, she discovers exactly what she wants–to spend a week with a fascinating, sophisticated stranger. It doesn’t matter that she only knows his first name or that he’s more than twenty years older than her. After this one week, she’ll never see him again.
Cyrus Damon has spent his life making money and holding himself to impossibly high standards. Pressured into taking a vacation in Savannah, he’s alone and at loose ends, so he lets himself do something he never would have considered otherwise. He gives in to his attraction to a beautiful, free-spirited, and much-too-young woman. But, after the week is over, he’ll once more be the man he’s always been, left with nothing but the memory of a woman who made him happier than he’s ever been.
He has no idea that when he visits his nephew in a charming bed and breakfast called Eden Manor, he’ll find the woman he thought he’d left for good.
Find out more at: Amazon / B&N / iBooks / Kobo
*****
Excerpt:
When theyβd finished the last of the wine and the mousse had been licked clean, Brie put down her spoon and collapsed back in her chair. βWow. That was probably the best dinnerβthe best mealβIβve ever had.β
Cyrus smiled at her, almost fondly. βGood. Iβll tell Gordon you appreciated it.β
βWho decided on the menu andβ¦ ambience?β
He arched his eyebrows in amused irony. βIt was Gordon. He was very pleased about this dinner, and he might have gone a bit too far in setting the mood.β
Intrigued, Brie felt a little less boneless, so she managed to lean forward, resting her head on one hand. βReally? Does he do a lot of matchmaking for you?β
βHe never has before,β Cyrus said with a half shrug. βI was as surprised as you were.β
βWere you really? You acted totally suave, like you have romantic dinners like this all the time.β
βI doubt youβd believe me if I told you how long itβs been since Iβve had a romantic meal of any kind.β
A surge of curiosity banished a lot of her decadent languor. βHow long?β she demanded.
Cyrusβs mouth twisted into what might have been a sheepish smile. βI donβt think Iβm going to tell you.β
βBut I want to know.β
His eyes transformed as he gazed at her. The shift was almost imperceptible, but Brie felt a shudder shape itself in the base of her spine in response to his expression. βDo you always get what you want?β Cyrus continued, his voice throaty, the texture making her shudder even more.
βNo,β she admitted. βAlmost never.β
βThereβs something wrong with a world where such a thing is true.β
It took her a minute to unravel this comment, but when she did she was moved even more. The man didnβt even seem to be trying, but he had the knack for always saying the right thing, for being kind and romantic and civilized, all at exactly the same time.
Sheβd never believed it was possible before.
She knew she was treading in dangerous waters here. She was on the verge of being swept away by him completely. She wanted to enjoy herself with him this week, but she didnβt want to do something so foolish it would leave her hurt and lonely next week.
She didnβt know this man. Not really. So she could feel a resistance rising inside her, at the same time as the deep attraction.
She needed to change the mood between them. Quickly.
βLetβs walk some more,β she suggested lightly. βI could use it after such a meal.β
He stood up and took her hand to help her out of her seat. Then he didnβt let her hand go as they strolled through the gardens again.
She soon realized her suggestion might have been a mistake. The rich scent of the air, the soft moonlight, and the feel of Cyrusβs warm hand quickly went to her head. She felt unsteady, overly warm, and so fluttery she couldnβt take a deep breath.
βGod, Cyrus!β she gasped, as an ache of need pulsed through her before she was ready to handle it.
Cyrus had appeared calm, leisurely, at his ease. But heβd evidently been fighting feelings of his own. Her breathless cry seemed to snap his control. He used his clasp on her hand to pivot her around and then slid his free arm around her, pressing her against the length of his body.
His warm, lean strength was exactly what Brie wanted to feel. She freed her hand from his and instinctively twined her arms around his neck. With his hand now free, he used it to cup the back of her head.
βYouβre so beautiful, Brie,β he murmured thickly. βSo beautiful andβ¦ and glowing with life.β His eyes like flames, almost fierce in the moonlight, he leaned his head down to claim her lips.
*****
Author Info:
Noelle hand-wrote her first romance novel in a spiral-bound notebook when she was twelve, and she hasnβt stopped writing since. She has lived in eight different states and currently resides in Virginia, where she reads any book she can get her hands on and offers tribute to a very spoiled cocker spaniel.
She loves travel, art, history, and ice cream. After spending far too many years of her life in graduate school, she has decided to reorient her priorities and focus on writing contemporary romances.
If you’d like to contact Noelle, please contact her at noelle.s.adams@gmail.com. Or connect with her on Twitter,Β Facebook, andΒ Goodreads.
*****
Giveaway:
Follow the tour and enter to win great prizes!
1 grand prize winners will receive a $25 Amazon Gift Card!
1 runner-up will receive an eBook bundle of Seducing The Enemy and Hired Bride by Noelle Adams!
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b050ef29283/
*****
Romantic Reads and Such 