Spotlight & Giveaway: Earls Rush In by Jennifer Haymore

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Jennifer Haymore to HJ!

Hi Jennifer and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Earls Rush In!

 
Hi! Thank you so much for having me!
 

Please summarize the book a la Twitter style for the readers here:

The Earl of Trevelyan has a reputation for being a beast in society’s circles, but nothing—nothing—will stop him from rescuing Charlotte from her disastrous engagement. He promised his best friend that he would look after her. Of course, the earl can only protect her from the blackguard who’s trying to marry her. Protecting her from himself is quite another matter…
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

“Miss Chapman, would you be amenable to me asking your uncle for your hand in marriage?”
Charlotte stared at the man gazing up at her from bended knee. On some level, she had expected this—all signs had led to Mr. Bagshaw’s imminent proposal. Even so, a wave of dizziness crashed over her, and she gripped the arm of the sofa as if it could keep her from tumbling further into the odd version of reality her life had become ever since her brother’s death.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• I wrote this book on a boat! It was the only place I could focus without all the distractions of the remodeling going on in my house.
• Earls Rush In features a Filipino secondary character I wrote in honor of my husband and his family.
• I’m currently writing a sequel to Earls Rush In—it’s the enemies-to-lovers story of Ridge (the earl’s best friend) and Georgiana (Charlotte’s best friend), and it is SO FUN!

What first attracts your main characters to each other?

Opposites attract! He loves how pretty, sweet, and outgoing she is. She loves how he’s big, rough, and gruff.
 

Using just 5 words, how would you describe your main characters”love affair?

Grump kidnaps sunshine—sparks fly!
 

The First Kiss…

The fire in her voice crackled over his skin. He was close to her now. So damn close, he could smell the lilacs on her skin. So close, he could see the flush that had crawled up from beneath the neckline of her dress, a wicked burst of heat that went straight to his groin.

“I…don’t know.” He’d almost forgotten what she’d asked, but he’d never let anyone think badly of her. He’d protect her, hold her, take care of her to his dying breath.

Her gaze dropped to his lips, and his pulse jumped. Oh, God. He watched her thick lashes sweep back up as her eyes locked with his.

Charlotte. Beautiful, sweet, lovely Charlotte.

He must survive this temptation. Protect her from the secrets he still held.

She licked her lips. Her breath caught.

And the decade-old dam inside him broke.

Their lips surged together like two poles of a magnet, invisible forces inevitably connecting them.

He was going to die. Of pleasure. Of the perfection of her mouth. Of her sweetness.

He slipped his arms around her, feeling the dip of her slight waist against his big hands, and pulling her toward him until her body was flush against his own.

He kissed her with the pent-up ferocity of a lifetime. All that existed was the pleasure. Of touching her. Of her sweet lips moving tentatively against his own. Of the gentle curves of her body that pressed against him without restraint.

Without revealing too much, what is your favorite scene in the book?

My favorite scenes are those that put the characters in horrible situations! (I’m evil that way!) Here’s one where Charlotte’s ex-fiance arrives when another man is calling on her, and even though she’s dumped him, he pretends they’re still engaged.

Dobbs entered again. “Excuse me, Miss Chapman. You’ve another visitor.”

She blinked at him.

“Mr. Reginald Bagshaw,” he said, voice utterly lacking emotion.

Oh, dear.

She glanced at her aunt, whose lips curled into a smile at this development, then over at Mr. Greaves seated on the sofa across from her. Swallowing, she nodded at Dobbs. “Show him in,
please.”

“Yes, miss.”

This was going to be awk—

“Charlotte! My darling!”

Bagshaw rushed in, and Charlotte couldn’t help it. She cringed away, her hands blocking her head as if he were a missile headed directly between her eyes. He skidded to a stop in front of her and wrenched her hand into his own. “Are you all right, my dear? I was so very worried!”

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would be absolutely crucial to include?

It would have to be when the earl realizes he’s in love with Charlotte…

He slipped out early, stewing in his carriage all the way home, and finally, as the conveyance turned into his street, his mind reached the crux of the matter.

He wanted Charlotte.

More than anything.

More than his next breath. More than his honor.

He loved her. For years, his love for her had been a part of him he’d tried to silence, but now it was more than just a part. It was overwhelming. Every single part of him felt inundated with love.

He was in love.

For the first time in his life.

Readers should read this book …

If you want to read a fun snowed-in sunshine and grump romp with, of course, only one bed…

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

I’m currently working on the companion to this story, which features Lord Trevelyan and Charlotte as secondary characters, helping the enemies, Ridge and Georgiana, fall in love.

My next release is A LADY’S RULES FOR RUIN, wherein a lady, in an effort to stay independent, stages her own ruin. It all goes well, until….
Well, you’ll have to read the book!

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: A $5 gift card to Amazon so you can grab your own copy of Earls Rush In.

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: If you had to be trapped in a snowstorm with one bed, with someone who’s name we all know (no personal significant others allowed!), who would it be?

 
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Excerpt from Earls Rush In:

There was a sudden loud crack and then a soft rush, accompanied by a blast of cold air. And then a series of low-pitched, muffled, but creative curses.

“Finn?” She sat up. “What was that?”

Snuffling noises sounded from his direction, and she thought she saw— “Oh!”

A mound of snow had fallen on top of his bed. She scrambled over to him.

Coughing and sputtering, he emerged and tumbled off the edge of the cot. She crouched down beside him, feeling for him in the dimness.

“Are you all right?”

“There is a leak,” he announced unnecessarily.

“Are you wet?”

He gave her a look so baleful she could see it in the darkness.

“Oh, dear. Come to the fire.”

She knelt and stoked the fire while he lit one of the lamps. They both turned toward the cot in the flickering light. It was, indeed, covered with a large pile of snow.

She looked warily toward the ceiling, wondering if it was all going to come crashing down. He seemed to read her mind. “The rest of it is stable,” he told her. “It’s just that area. See there?” He gestured to the edge of the roof, where it flattened out from a sharp pitch. “The snow collected there, and this old roof couldn’t manage the weight of it.”

He shuddered slightly, drawing her eyes back to him. He was soaking wet, his clothing plastered to his body, showing the contours of his hard-stacked muscles. She busied herself finding him a dry shirt, which she handed to him while keeping her gaze steadfast on the floor planks.

“Thank you,” he said. She sank into a chair and kept her eyes averted while he swapped shirts and donned a clean pair of trousers.

Afterward, they were both silent for long minutes. Finn tried to move the cot, but that was no use, as it was nailed to the wall. Finally, he yanked the wet bedclothes off and shook the snow off them. “I’ll sleep on the floor.”

She chewed her lip, her gaze moving to the enormous, dry pink bed. There was room enough for the two of them. Surely they could both keep their hands….and bodies…to themselves.

“Absolutely not,” she said. “The floor is cold and hard, and your blankets are wet.”

“The floor is fine,” he said.

“It isn’t. Sleep on the bed. There is plenty of room.”

He didn’t answer her, instead just stood there, his handsome face twisted in consternation.

“It will be all right,” she said. “If you can trust me not to…um…compromise you further.”

“It’s not you that I don’t trust,” he muttered.

She sucked in a shaky breath. Did that mean he wanted to kiss her again? Because she wanted him to…oh, so badly. She wanted to kiss him back—his lips and his rough-hewn jaw, and then lower, to the muscular chest she’d just seen so perfectly contoured by his wet shirt, and…

Stop it, Charlotte!

She shook herself, shocked and perturbed and more than slightly thrilled by her scandalous thoughts. Dragging her eyes away from him, she lifted her chin. “Come to bed.”

Excerpts. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

The beloved “sunshine” of the ton, Miss Charlotte Chapman, is trapped in the carriage with an utter madman. There’s simply no other explanation for it. Why else would the rough, reclusive Earl of Trevelyan—her deceased brother’s most beloved friend—sweep her away during a terrible snowstorm without explanation? All she knows is that his rather boorish behavior somehow involves her pending betrothal…

Trevelyan has a reputation for being something of a beast in society’s circles, but nothing—nothing—will stop him from rescuing Charlotte from her disastrous engagement. He promised his best friend that she and her sister would be looked after. Of course, the earl can only protect her from the blackguard who’s trying to marry her. Protecting her from himself is quite another matter…

Now, thanks to their upended carriage, they’re stranded at a country inn—which has only one room left. And all it takes is one kiss to unlock the simmering desires they’ve never admitted…and a heartbreaking secret that could shatter Charlotte into a million pieces.
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Meet the Author:

USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Haymore is the author of sexy historical and contemporary romance. Her books have been nominated for numerous awards, including five RT Book Reviews Reviewers Choice awards and the prestigious RITA® award for best historical romance.
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