Following the recent death of her
father, and in need of both a job and somewhere to live, Kiya takes a
housekeeping job on the spur of the moment. She soon finds herself living in a
beautiful but neglected mansion, working for a strange and reclusive man.
St. John is a man scarred by the past, both physically and emotionally, and is determined to live out his life alone. They are two very different people, drawn to each other almost against their will, but can Kiya convince St. John that he is not the monster he believes himself to be?
EXCERPT
Singing softly to herself, Kiya was halfway into the room before she
realised that she was not alone. From the corner of her eye, she saw St. John
O’Neill spin around in surprise and she gave a startled cry, the vase slipping
through her fingers to smash on the floor by her feet. He was a very tall man,
easily 6ft. 5ins, broad-shouldered and muscular. His thick black hair, although
clean, was long and unkempt, and his beard did not quite hide the vivid scar
that ran from high on his right cheek down to his mouth. Incredibly bright blue
eyes bore into her and, despite the scar and his rough, dishevelled appearance,
Kiya was breathlessly aware that he was an incredibly attractive man. He
continued to stare at her, radiating an aura of menace, and Kiya gave an
unconscious shiver.
‘Seen enough?’ he asked coldly.
Blushing furiously, aware that she had been staring, Kiya quickly bent
to pick up the pieces of shattered vase.
‘Leave it.’ His words were clipped.
‘I’m sorry, I didn’t realise what time it was. I’ll just clear…’ she
babbled, nervously.
‘Dammit, I said leave it.’
Her hand jerked at his unexpected ferocity and she gave a yelp of pain
as the sharp edge of the broken vase sliced her palm. She stood quickly,
lifting her hand to check the severity of the cut, and felt a wave of nausea
wash over her at the surprisingly profuse amount of blood pouring from the
wound. She heard St. John mutter an explicit curse and looked up to see him
striding quickly towards her, his expression furious.
ABOUT ELLIE GRAY
Ellie lives in the
beautiful East Riding of Yorkshire with her partner, David, and two children,
Joe and Abbie.
Ellie is a contemporary
romance author, published with the lovely Tirgearr Publishing, and is a proud
member of the Romantic Novelist Association.
Her debut novel, Beauty
and the Recluse, was published in February 2016 and her second novel, Love on
the Nile, is due to be released in the Summer of 2016. Inbetween working
full-time in public services and studying for an MSc in Public Management,
Ellie is currently working on her third novel.
A few random pieces of
information about Ellie:
- Favourite
TV shows – The Walking Dead, The X-Files, Nashville, Dr. Who, The Great
British Bake-off!
- Favourite
Music – I’m an 80’s girl!, country, sixties, Elvis, classical (when I’m
writing)
- Favourite
Food – Indian, tapas, crisps, cheese
- Favourite Drink – black coffee – copious amounts when I’m writing, Sauvignon blanc when I’m not.
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