Spotlight & Giveaway: One Night with a Millionaire by Shannyn Schroeder

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Shannyn Schroeder to HJ!

Hi Shannyn and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, One Night with a Millionaire!

Tell us about the book with this fun little challenge using the title of the book:

One Night with a Millionaire
O is for orgasms, of which Tess receives many
N is for nurse, which is Tess’s career
E is for expectations, from which Miles runs.

N is for not enough free time, which Tess bemoans when trying to date
I is for included – Miles wants to be included Tess’s whole life, even with the kids
G is for gala, where Miles and Tess meet
H is for happy-go-lucky, which is how Miles chooses to live
T is for together as a family.
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

Tess shimmied into her silk navy dress, knowing it wasn’t quite as fancy or formal as some women would wear, but it would do. It was either this or the little black dress she’d had for almost a decade. Her life rarely called for formal wear.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

•  The book was originally planned to be longer, but I had to trim it to fit the guidelines of the publisher’s line.
• In the original version of the story, Tess is older than Miles by about 7 years.
• Tess was one of the easiest characters for me to write because although I’ve never been a divorced nurse, I know EXACTLY what it’s like to run kids around to all of their activities and feel like there’s not even time to breathe much less have fun.
• I think this is the first book I’ve written where the only pizza being consumed is by the kids in the opening of the book (and the main characters don’t partake of the meal).
• I used images from the Peninsula Suite at the Peninsula Hotel in Chicago as my inspiration for the first time Tess and Miles get together. It has a great view of the city (not that they had time to notice).
  https://www.peninsula.com/en/chicago/luxury-hotel-room-suite-types/the-peninsula-suite

Was there a scene in this book that was harder to write than others?  

One of the hardest scenes for me to write was a scene where all of the parts of Tess’s life crash together. She’s on her way home from work and plans to meet Miles there for a late dinner. Her ex is there dropping the kids off. Unfortunately, Miles arrives before she does. I needed to show her relationship with her ex without making him the stereotypical jerk, but still show her frustration with how he acts.

As she neared her house, she saw Miles sitting on the front porch looking pretty damn unhappy. Then she realized why. William was there with the kids.
“Hey,” she said, trying to sound cheerful.
“When you said the kids had eaten with your ex, I didn’t make the connection that he would be here.”
She took a deep breath. “Do I even want to know?”
“I rang the bell, expecting one of the kids to answer. When a grown man opened the door, I was surprised.”
“And?”
“I told him I was here to see you, and he told me you weren’t here yet and closed the door on me.”
She shook her head. William was an ass. “Can you wait out here for like five more minutes?”
“Sure.” He looked disappointed, but his presence in the house would only make things worse.
“I’m home,” she called as she went inside.
Andrew and Billy sat at the dining room table, doing homework, she hoped. As she neared, she realized that no, they weren’t. They were playing on tablets. “What are those?”
“Aren’t they cool? Dad got them for us. He says this way we can FaceTime him while he’s away.”
“Away?” What the ever-loving hell? Her fury bubbled up faster than she could control.
William came from around the corner, where she sincerely hoped he’d been in the bathroom and not her bedroom. William didn’t always respect boundaries. “We need to talk.” She moved past him straight to the kitchen, assuming he would follow.
Behind her, she heard Billy say, “Ooo…that’s her mad voice.”
“What do you want, Tess? I have plans.”
She spun and waved her hands. “Plans. You always have plans. So do I. He happens to be sitting on the front porch where you slammed the door on him.”
“What would you have me do when some strange man comes knocking? Invite him in?”
“Yes. That’s the courteous thing to do. You didn’t have to hang out with him, but to leave him outside was ridiculous.”
“I’m here with the kids. It’s my time—”
She almost lost it. “Yes, your time. You could take them to your house and spend hours with them. Instead, you feed them and dump them off at your earliest convenience.”
“Convenient. Need I remind you that I take Wednesdays as a favor to you?”
“They’re your children. It’s not like I’m out partying while you slave away caring for our kids. I’m at work. And even if I were out partying, it shouldn’t matter. Those kids are your responsibility, too.”
He bristled at her tirade. “I’ve always provided well for our children.”
“Yes, provided.” She held up her hands. They’d been having this same conversation and argument for years. “It doesn’t matter. From now on, all I’m asking is that you not be rude to my guests.”
“You mean your boyfriend.” He crossed his arms.
She matched his stance. “Whoever happens to be here.”
“Are we done?”
“Yes.” As he turned to leave the room, she remembered the tablets. “Wait. I thought we agreed no more buying expensive gifts just because.”
William turned back. “The tablets weren’t very expensive. And kids need the most up-to-date technology. It’s how to be successful.”
I’m so sure the games are all about being successful. “The boys said something about you going away?”
“Yes. Margaret and I have a vacation planned. We’re leaving Saturday and we’ll be gone two weeks. I want to be able to talk with them and see them.”
Tess ground her teeth. “So you’re cutting this weekend short, and you’ll miss next Wednesday and your next weekend. Am I hearing that right?”
“Yes. But we’ll be able to talk using the tablets, so you don’t have to worry about using your phone.”
As if the phone was her biggest problem. William was trying to buy the kids’ love, using money to make up for not being there. “Well, thanks for all the warning so I can make plans around work.”
“I’m sure your mother will help. She always does.”
“That’s not the point.”
He didn’t get it. He never would. She waved him off before her anger got the better of her. “I’ll talk to you whenever you get back.” She walked past him to get Miles from the porch. What she’d thought would be a simple conversation had lasted much longer than she’d planned. She hoped Miles hadn’t left.
She heard William saying goodbye to the boys as she opened the front door. Miles was sitting on the top stair. “I’m so sorry. I completely understand if you don’t want to stay. As much as I’d like to say it won’t happen again, I can’t guarantee it.”
Miles stood and smiled at her. “I don’t scare off that easily. Unfortunately, dinner is probably on the cold side now.”
“I’m like the worst girlfriend ever.” The tension from her argument with William still sat in her shoulders and guilt for everything with Miles made her stomach ache.
Miles set the bag of food down and pulled her into a hug. “I happen to think you’re a pretty good girlfriend. Your ex sucks, but you’re not so bad.”

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 

What do you want people to take away from reading this book?

Finding love is hard at any point, but when you’re in the second phase of your life, it might seem impossible. I wrote this series because it shouldn’t be impossible. There is life—and love—after divorce.
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: One of Shannyn’s digital backlist titles of the winner’s choice.

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: If you only had one night a year free from responsibility, what would you do?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Book Info:

Over-forty, single mom Tess Howland’s life is all about caring for other people. Indulging in a one night stand is just what she needs. She doesn’t expect to meet anyone she would introduce to her kids, especially not some rich playboy who acts like a big kid himself. Even if he keeps giving her the best sex of her life.

Millionaire Miles Prescott can’t get the sexy nurse he met at a fundraising gala out of his head. For the first time ever, he doesn’t want a woman with no-strings-attached. He wants everything—even it comes with a ready-made family with a woman in her forties. Suddenly, helping with homework doesn’t sound like the worst thing in the world, especially if it means being near Tess.

But what happens when he’s ready to step up and she says no?
 
 

Meet the Author:

Shannyn Schroeder is the author of the O’Leary series and the For Your Love series, contemporary romances centered around large Irish-American families in Chicago and the Hot & Nerdy series about nerdy friends finding love. Look for her new series – Daring Divorcees in 2019. When she’s not wrangling her three kids or writing, she watches a ton of TV and loves to bake cookies.
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