Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors !

The Dandy Lyon

BLURB:

In love, the odds may never be in your favor.

Ruthless, wealthy, social outsider Marcus Dandridge has fallen in love. Hard. So hard he’s already attempted to force marriage to Lady Joanna Longford by means of blackmail—and failed utterly, gaining the eternal enmity of her brother. Now desperate, Marcus consults his friend, Mrs. Dove-Lyon at The Lyon’s Den, whose recommendation is a wild gamble–one Marcus would never lay odds on at his gaming establishments. But he’s so desperate to have Joanna, he’s willing to roll the dice just once more.

Lady Joanna Longford, just out and already bored by the conventional gentlemen she’s met, is suddenly intrigued by the darkly handsome Mr. Dandridge. He’s different from the other Society men—which makes her even more susceptible to his unconventional pursuit of her.

Still, the odds are against them, until Fate—and her brother’s decree that they will never marry—triggers a defiance that may well spell disaster for both of them…

As the first chapter is setting up Marcus’s character, I’m going to start my snippet with the beginning of Chapter 2 where Marcus and Lady Joanna will meet officially for the first time. The setting is London, May 5, 1820. Enjoy!

EXCERPT:

His stomach tied in knots, Marcus fell in just behind Lady Hamilton as they threaded their way around the clusters of guests as they traversed the ballroom. He had to constantly remind himself to breathe else he was likely to meet Lady Joanna only to faint dead away in front of her. They reached the lady in question and Marcus had to fight to keep a pleasant but neutral expression on his face–it would not do, in ton Society, for a gentleman to show his emotions.

Not that he was a gentleman.

“Lady Longford, Lady Joanna Longford, and Lady Celinda Grantham,” his hostess smiled perfunctorily at the ladies, “ladies may I present to you, Mr. Dandridge, an acquaintance of Lord Hamilton.”

“Ladies, how do you do?” Marcus tried not to sound gruff, but his voice didn’t want to cooperate. “I’m delighted to meet you.” He addressed them all, but his gaze never left Lady Joanna’s face.

And a little bit more…

“Mr. Dandridge.” Lady Celinda curtsied and cast an admiring glance at him.

“Good evening, Mr. Dandridge.” A slight bow of her head was all Lady Longford deigned to give him, still she didn’t seem to recognize his name. That was encouraging.

“How do you do, Mr. Dandridge?” Lady Joanna’s liquid tones sent a shiver down his spine as she gave a curtsy and smiled at him.

Marcus thought his heart would stop. He had to get himself in hand, however. “I am quite well, my lady. I wished to ask, if you are not engaged for the next dance, if I might claim you as my partner.”

To his total surprise and relief, the lady smiled eagerly. “I am not engaged at present, sir, and would be happy to agree to partner you.”

A bit dazed, Marcus nodded and offered his arm. He’d never expected it to be this easy. Longford, for all his talk, apparently hadn’t warned his sister about his interest in her. Which was strange, if he thought about it. Did he truly think Marcus would forget about Lady Joanna? As if any man could. Still, he mustn’t look any gift horse in the mouth. And he must enjoy this stolen dance to the utmost before Lord Longford returned to the ballroom and put a stop to it.

The Dandy Lyon, part of Dragonblade Publishing’s Lyon’s Den shared world series, is now available for preorder on Amazon as an e-book for $.99. Grab your copy here!!

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the WWW snippets here! There are some great stories out there!