LITMIR.BIZ

      The man who sees her beauty…

      Ben Hampton is the last man in England that workaholic historian Luce would ever choose to be stranded with. Tall, dark and infuriatingly arrogant, he’s also a reminder of her not-so-glorious romantic history—something she’s spent the past few years burying herself in work to forget.

      Hotel tycoon Ben knows there’s fire behind Luce’s buttoned-up exterior, and fanning its flames is an irresistible temptation. Luckily, getting snowbound in the countryside gives him the perfect opportunity to tempt out the real Lucinda Myles!

      “All right. What’s the plan?”

      “A night off. With me. You put on your best party dress, let me take you out to dinner. You talk about yourself, not the things you’re supposed to be doing. You let me take responsibility for showing you a good time. You relax. We have a nightcap in my suite, then you get a good night’s sleep.”

      “In my own room?” Luce stamped down on the corner of her mind that was happily imagining what might happen if they were both in his room. Ben’s smile grew a little wolfish. “Well now, that’s up to you.”

      “Really,” Luce said, flatly.

      “Of course.” Ben looked mildly offended. “I’m not saying I won’t give it my best shot. You’re a beautiful woman, and I enjoy the company of beautiful women. But at the end of the night, you get the choice of my bed or the spare room. Either way you have a bed for the night.”

      Luce found her gaze caught on his. He thought she was beautiful? Ben Hampton actually wanted her. Sober, all grown up, not obviously crazy…and he wanted her. She could have dinner with him, flirt, kiss…more. All she had to do was say yes.

      Dear Reader,

      There’s something magical about snow. Especially when you’re sitting inside by a warm fire, mug in hand, watching it fall and cover the land. Or crunching through the first fall, leaving crisp footprints in your wake. Building snowmen, sledging, running inside to warm up again…or just enjoying the hush that a good snowfall brings to the world.

      Of course if you’re trying to drive through mid-Wales, U.K., in a snowstorm, like Luce and Ben are in this book, it’s a whole lot less fun. Especially if it traps you in a cottage in the middle of nowhere with someone you haven’t seen in ten years and didn’t like very much even then.

      But the magic of snow can’t be resisted, and the power of a romantic, secluded cottage shouldn’t be underestimated. Until the inevitable thaw, when the world returns to normal—but leaves Ben and Luce changed forever….

      I grew up on the Welsh border—not very far from Chester, where this story starts—and I had so much fun setting this book in familiar locations. Ben’s cottage is, I’m afraid, fictional, but based on many cottages I’ve spent very happy holidays in over the years. And while the restaurant where they first eat dinner together doesn’t exist in the real world, the one that sits in the same spot on the Chester Rows in reality is a favorite for Mum and me to stop at for lunch when indulging in a little retail therapy!

      I hope you enjoy Ben and Luce’s snowy adventure—maybe even as much as I enjoyed writing it.

      Best wishes,

      Sophie

      Stranded with the Tycoon

      Sophie Pembroke