A Passionate Performance (Signet Regency Romance) - Softcover

Putman, Eileen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0451190033 ISBN 13: 9780451190031

Publisher: Signet, 1997

Synopsis

A poor but beautiful actress, Miss Sarah Armistead agrees to pose as the latest conquest of a cynical, handsome rake for money's sake, but as she begins to succumb to her employer's charms, she finds it hard to keep up the ruse. Original.

About this title

About the Author

For me, 1989 was a magical year. It's the year my first child was born, the year I decided to leave the gritty, slightly insane world of journalism for the grubbier, slightly more insane world of motherhood.

Since then, I've had a second child, gotten a master's degree, taught college writing courses, and published nine romance novels. Plus, I can recite Cat in the Hat from memory. Love is the glue that makes it all work. I guess that's why I write romance.

I love spinning stories that are fun, yet with deeper undercurrents, which is why I especially like historical romance. The tension between the social constrictions of the Regency era, for example, and the urgent yearnings of the human heart provide luscious, fertile ground for some ripping good romance.

Humor keeps us all from losing our minds, and my goal as a writer is to make you cry, but not so hard that you can't laugh at the same time. As a journalist, I learned that what makes a good story is the same everywhere. A common humanity links us all, whether it's revealed through heartfelt emotions or heartfelt humor. I hope that's what comes through in my work.

To everyone who has helped make my books successful, my humble thanks. I've won some awards, which modesty almost (but not quite) prevents me from including: Romantic Times' nomination for best 1997 Regency, the Colorado Romance Writers' Award of Excellence, The Regency Plume's Award of Excellence, and a commemoration from the National Readers' Choice Awards. There are also some sterling reviews, which you can read at your leisure, along with excerpts from my latest releases.

Happy reading!

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

"Very well, Miss Armistead. Let us begin at the party scene, where you, as my mistress, encounter my latest flirt. What, precisely, is wrong with the way I have envisioned your actions?"

Her freckles almost disappeared in the flush that spread prettily over her face. She cleared her throat.

"The nibbling," she stated firmly. "No respectable woman would nibble at a man's ear in public."

"`Tis for an obvious purpose," Justin snapped. "You are demonstrating to the other woman your prior claim and reminding me of our shared carnal delights."

"Yes, well." Her face turned deepest scarlet. "It is far too brazen. Perhaps your mistress could accomplish the same thing by lightly touching your arm and sending you a knowing gaze."

He almost laughed out loud. "You expect a man to respond to such subtlety?"

"I rather imagine that the merest touch from a woman you loved would be sufficient to kindle the, ah, spirit of desire."

"Let me say it plainly, Miss Armistead. You are playing the part of my mistress, a woman I bed. You are not playing the part of a woman I love."

"I am aware of the distinction, Lord Linton." Embarrassment strained her voice. "But you have written this too broadly. The intensity of the scene will come from the undercurrents between the characters, as demonstrated by subtle cues, not by any coarse actions that would simply brand your mistress as a common harlot."

There was a moment of silence as Justin weighed her arguments. "Show me," he commanded.

"What?" Her voice held a note of alarm.

"You will show me just how you would carry off this particular scene in a believable fashion."

Hesitantly, she picked up the statuette of a falcon that stood on a bookshelf. "We will pretend this is the other woman, the one you have unwisely chosen to flirt with. I, your mistress, see this woman as a threat...so I will try to make myself as amiable as possible."

"That will not work," Justin said blandly. "I do not like amiable women."

She eyed him suspiciously. "You are trying to make this difficult for me, are you not, Lord Linton?"

"Not at all, Miss Armistead."

"Very well," she replied, her tone brisk. "As your mistress, I wish to engage your attention, so that you will remember the, er, delights we have shared and forget about the other woman."

"You will have to get closer than that, Miss Armistead. I have difficulty remembering delight from halfway across the room."

"Of course." Despite her sudden flush, she set the falcon down and moved decisively toward him, stopping a foot or so away. "Is this better?"

"Eminently." Justin discovered that he was vastly enjoying this particular scene.

"Perhaps I would put my hand on your arm like so." Tentatively, she touched the sleeve of his jacket.

"Surely you can do better, Miss Armistead. I can barely feel that."

Chewing her lip with pearly white teeth, she considered the matter. As he studied the small indentations in that smooth, rosy mouth, Justin felt a sudden pang of desire that owed nothing to the scene on the pages but arose from an entirely different one in his increasingly lurid imagination.

Just then, the pressure on his arm increased. Her fingers pressed firmly, provocatively, in the crook of his elbow, and he could feel his pulse point there throb with awakening need. She moved closer, so close that he was aware of the warmth she generated.

Only her fingers touched him, lingering tantalizingly as they made an impression in the fabric. Kerseymere and fine linen shielded his bare skin from her touch--so flimsy a barrier that he easily felt her heat, yet so complete his clothing might well have been forged steel.

Justin studied those fingers. Long and delicate, they possessed a sensuality that hinted of hidden talents. Bemused, he allowed his gaze to wander upward to her face. Her eyes held no naked desire, nothing that he could identify as a woman's raw craving for her lover. They radiated only a mesmerizing awareness of him, a simmering warmth that abruptly made it difficult to breathe or speak.

Unaccustomed to this sudden helplessness, Justin could only stare at her. Dimly, one part of his brain realized what had occurred.

Sarah Armistead had turned the full force of her sensual power on him, and it left him breathless with wonder and longing.

"Good God," he muttered.

Edition details

• Publisher: Signet
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0451190033
• ISBN 13: 9780451190031
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224