Once Upon a Spy by Sheridan Jeane Secrets and Seduction #3
Publication Date: November 17, 2015
Also in this series: It Takes a Spy, Lady Catherine's Secret
Genres: Adult, Historical, Romance, Suspense
Buy: Amazon
Synopsis: London, 1854 ~ Robert, Earl of Wentworth, isn’t a spy, and he never wants to be one, but when his brother is injured and needs his help stealing an important book from the Russian embassy, he can’t refuse.
Antonia has lost everything. If she wants her life back, she needs that book. The problem is, Lord Wentworth just stole it from the Russian Ambassador.
The reluctant spy and the daring thief find themselves at cross-purposes. Who will win in this dangerous game of nations— especially when their hearts are at stake as well?Note: Although this is the third book in the series, it can be read as a standalone novel. For those who have read the first two books, you'll rediscover characters from both of them.
EXCERPT: Once Upon a Spy by Sheridan
Jeane
Chapter 1:
London, January 6, 1854
The turning point in a
man’s life isn’t always accompanied by a crash of thunder. Sometimes it’s
marked by something much more subtle and easier to miss, like the flash of a
silver gown, or the rich hue of a twist of chestnut hair.
Lord Wentworth managed
to dismiss his turning point.
As he caught sight of
the woman across the ballroom, her strong allure caught his attention,
certainly. But he ignored it, believing his immediate visceral response to be
nothing more than a reaction to her beauty.
For him, there could
be no future with her. Nor with any woman.
She represented a
precipice. Danger. One he needed to avoid.
He chose to turn his
back on the silver-gowned woman and her pull of destiny. Instead, he stepped
out onto the patio to let the chill January air envelop him. It drove away some
of the oppressive heat of the ballroom.
“Robert, come over
here,” his brother called to him. “Lord Percival is telling the most preposterous
story.”
He closed the embassy
door. The glow of the flickering torches allowed him to identify Frederick
sitting with a group of men at a stone table near the edge of the lawn.
As he strode across
the paved patio, Robert considered how fundamentally wrong it was for the
Russian Ambassador’s winter solstice celebration to be held in a building so
overheated the temperature drove the guests outdoors.
His brother
shifted his chair and made space for Robert to join the group. The low oil
lamps on the table illuminated the listeners' rapt faces as Lord Percival
recounted his latest yarn.
Everyone greeted
Robert with brief smiles and nods before they returned their attention to
Percival. He appeared well-groomed, with his neatly trimmed, sable-colored
beard, his white gloves, and his perfectly tailored evening coat all speaking
to the excellence of his valet, but something seemed slightly off about him. As
expected, an aroma of tobacco emanated from this particular group, but
Percival’s whiskey-laden breath came as a surprise. The evening was still a
fresh, young thing, with flawless skin and a lively demeanor. Wobbly-looking
Percival must have been drinking all afternoon to be so inebriated the odor
oozed from his pores.
“You’ll love
this,” Frederick murmured as he glanced at Robert. The corners of his eyes
crinkled as he smiled.
Lord Percival took a
puff on his cigar, pausing for effect, and said “…and I forcibly tossed him
from the carriage. He landed directly in a steaming pile of manure!” He slapped
his hand down on the marble table to emphasize his words, but he clipped one of
the oil lamps.
The container flipped
over. Oil flew out, splashing onto the table and the cigar Percival clutched.
The cigar immediately burst into flame. He dropped it, letting out a sharp
shriek of pain and fear. The cigar landed on the table in the spreading puddle
of oil. The men jumped back, knocking the chairs to the ground. In less time
than a the flutter of a hummingbird’s wings, fire swept down a large swath of
the tabletop.
Frederick jumped back
too, but his thin evening gloves were already drenched in oil. With mounting
horror, Robert watched as his brother froze for an instant. Flames erupted from
his hands.
The sickening image
chilled him. If Frederick had been a performer on stage, the audience would
have burst into applause, but this was no trick. No sleight of hand. It was
real, and Frederick’s hands were on fire.
Robert lurched forward
to help just as Frederick stumbled back on the uneven lawn and shoved his hands
under his arms, suffocating the flames.
There had been puddles
of ice on the table, and as the spreading flames came in contact with them,
they spluttered and sprayed droplets, like water in a skillet. Two other men
patted at their clothing, putting out tiny fires from the flying droplets of
burning oil before it could spread.
Lord Tamworth couldn’t
extinguish the fire on his sleeve. He shouted with alarm, his friends quickly
surrounding him. Someone stripped off his own evening jacket and used it to
smother Tamworth’s arm.
After consuming all
the oil, the flames quickly withered and died. Tamworth’s friends dragged over
a chair and shoved him into it. The door leading from the ballroom burst open,
and a small army of footmen came rushing outside, heading directly for
Tamworth.
Robert clenched his
fists as he took a menacing step toward the man who’d set events in motion.
“Good god, Percival, you’re a threat to everyone, you bottle-head! You’re
drunk, and you’re dangerous. Get yourself under control. It’s a wonder you
didn’t ignite as well with so much alcohol in your veins.”
Lord Percival lifted
his hands in supplication. “It was an accident. Surely you don’t think I’d
intentionally—”
Robert grabbed the
other man by his lapels. “You created this situation. Don’t try to pretend you
bear no responsibility for what happened. This is your doing.”
“Let him go, Robert,”
Frederick said from somewhere behind him. “Come here and help me.”
With a sense of
disgust, Robert gave the other man a shove, spun on his heel, and stalked into
the darkness, toward the sound of his brother’s voice.
He found Frederick
pacing in circles, stomping a track through the snow near the edge of the lawn
and muttering curses under his breath. He still had one of his hands tucked
under the opposite arm.
“We should put ice on
that to help numb the pain,” Robert suggested. “The Russians must have ice here
someplace.” He locked eyes with an approaching footman who had obviously
overheard him.
“I will bring some
immediately, my lord,” the footman said in heavily accented English.
“And some scotch,”
Frederick added.
The footman nodded,
turned, and hurried into the embassy.
Activity surrounding
Lord Tamworth caught Robert’s attention. The man’s face appeared pale and drawn
in the flickering torchlight. The fabric of his clothing had been burned away,
and Robert had a clear view of the sickeningly mottled arm and its black and
red skin. Robert’s stomach knotted as he turned to face his brother. Was
Frederick’s injury as bad as Tamworth’s?
“This is terrible,”
Frederick said.
Robert’s stomach sank.
He dreaded seeing the hand. “How bad is it?” he asked.
“Bad. Very bad.”
Frederick moved even farther away from the others and didn’t stop until he came
to a decorative railing.
“Does it hurt?” Robert
followed his brother.
“What? My hand? Of
course it hurts.” Frederick looked confused for a moment. “Oh, you thought I
was talking about— but that’s not what I meant.” Frederick glanced around and
lowered his voice. “I’m here tonight on an assignment for the Foreign Office.”
Robert rocked back on
his heels. If Frederick was worried about his assignment, the burn couldn’t be
too severe, could it? “That explains why you wanted to come to the ball with me
at the last minute. Here I thought you wanted to spend time with your estimable
older brother. Foolish of me.”
“Indubitably. Quite
foolish.”
The footman returned,
bearing a tray with two tumblers of scotch and a bundle of ice wrapped in a
white cloth. “Can I bring you anything else?”
Frederick shook his
head. “I’ll be fine. Don’t trouble yourself. Tamworth is the one who needs your
attention, not me. My injury is minor.”
The footman bowed
before hurrying toward the group surrounding Lord Tamworth.
“I can’t risk letting
anyone examine my hand,” Frederick said. “Any undue notice regarding me or my
movements tonight could jeopardize my ability to complete my task.”
A gust of wind ruffled
Robert’s dark hair, and he shoved it out of his eyes as he glanced around. Few
guests braved the frigid courtyard, so their section of the lawn accorded them
the privacy they needed for their conversation. “Why are you telling me about
your plans for tonight?”
The bundle of ice
clattered as Frederick lifted it. Robert caught a glimpse of the scorched
remnants of Frederick’s cotton gloves and the large blisters on his fingertips
before he pressed the bundle back down.
“With this injury, I
won’t be able to complete my assignment. I won’t have the manual dexterity
that’s required. I’ll need your help.”
Robert held up his
hands and stepped back. “No. Definitely not. Last year, you promised me you
wouldn’t involve me in another one of your schemes. I’m not cut from the same
cloth as you— I hate dealing in subterfuge.”
“I know, I know, but
this is different. The fate of the world is at stake. We’re risking outright
war.”
“War?” Robert stood
stunned for a moment.
“At this moment, there
is a book, a church register, sitting in a diplomatic pouch locked in
Ambassador Revnik’s desk. I’m supposed to pick the locks and retrieve it. How
will I manage if I can’t manipulate tools with my fingers? I’ll never be able
to hold them. If you don’t help, England and Russia will go to war.”
Robert stared at his
brother blankly. “I thought war with Russia was inevitable at this point.
Hardly a day goes by without some newsboy chasing me down the street and trying
to sell me a newspaper with a headline demanding that Britain respond to the
Battle of Sinop.”
“It was an atrocity.”
“The British citizens
want justice.” Last November, Russian Admiral Nakhimov had discovered a Turkish
naval squadron taking shelter in the port of Sinop during bad weather, and he
had attacked them using Russia’s new explosive shells. He’d easily won within
two hours but, even with his victory in hand, he’d continued shelling,
destroying all but one stranded ship. The massacre was unconscionable. The
destruction, wanton. The suffering, immeasurable.
“The Queen plans to
use the church register to demand justice. It contains sensitive information
she’ll use to force the czar’s hand, but the timing is critical. Everything
hinges on what we do tonight.”
More chess moves.
Trust Frederick to consider every nuance of a plan.
Frederick winced as he
gingerly pulled the remnants of his burned gloves from his hands and let them
fall to the ground. He swallowed and took a shaky breath.
His brother’s
single-minded focus on world affairs in the face of his injuries astounded
Robert. Was he telling the truth? Could tonight’s actions prevent a war? “Do
you agree war with Russia is inevitable? If so, why should you and I put
ourselves at risk and steal the book?”
“Inevitable? Perhaps—
perhaps not. Remember, the timing and circumstances of a declaration are for
the Queen to decide, not the two of us. I have a mission to complete, and it
isn’t up for debate. We must retrieve the book before the courier arrives.
He’ll be here within the hour.”
“How can the fate of
the world rest on such a small thing?” Robert took a step backward and raked
his fingers through his hair. Frederick must be exaggerating. How could
something as commonplace as a church register be so important?
“In my experience,
it’s always the little things that cause the biggest problems. ‘For want of a
nail the shoe was lost.’” Frederick stared down at his blistered hands.
The corner of Robert’s
mouth twitched. He couldn’t hold back the quip that sprang to his tongue. “Or
in this case, for Percival’s want of good sense…”
Frederick let out a
snort of derision. “The use of my fingers was lost. Yes.”
Also in the Secrets and Seduction series...
Buy (#FREE for #KindleUnlimited subscribers): Amazon
In 1851, Cecilia Paring has serious reservations about marrying her fiancé, Devin Montlake. Gone is the boy who could capture her heart with a word or a glance and in his place is a man who has made it clear that to be a proper barrister's wife, the exciting and impulsive Cecilia must change as well.
Although Devin Montlake loves his orderly life as a barrister, he's determined to follow his roadmap to achieve his goal of becoming a judge. His biggest obstacle seems to be convincing his headstrong fiancée to fulfill her social obligations with a modicum of propriety. But when the jewelry collection belonging to Cecilia's family is stolen the night before it is to be auctioned off and Devin is framed for the crime, he discovers that following his much-loved rules won't solve this particular problem. He'll need the inventiveness of his irrepressible fiancée to catch the thief.
Buy (#FREE for #KindleUnlimited subscribers): Amazon
Lady Catherine's Secret
by Sheridan Jeane
Secrets and Seduction #2
Publication Date: December 1, 2014
Also in this series: It Takes a Spy, Once Upon a Spy
Genres: Historical, Romance
Publication Date: December 1, 2014
Also in this series: It Takes a Spy, Once Upon a Spy
Genres: Historical, Romance
Synopsis: London, 1853
Despite Lady Catherine's love of fencing, she needs to stop pretending to be a boy and fraternizing with men…but not until after the fencing tournament! Her mother plans to marry her off by the end of the season, so this will be her last chance to enjoy her freedom. When she impulsively puts her reputation at risk to save the life of a dashing competitor, all seems lost when he sees through her disguise, but he vows never to reveal her secret. Thank goodness for gentlemanly honor!Daniel, Marquess of Huntley, wants to overcome the rumors of his father's madness so that he can be embraced by London society. His plan is to marry the most proper woman who will have him, and then raise stable, respectable children. He certainly isn't interested in some hoyden with a penchant for masquerading as a boy and flaunting society's rules. In fact, he'd prefer to keep his distance.
When an obsessed suitor discovers Catherine's secret and threatens blackmail, the only path out of social ruin is marriage. But what kind of protection does matrimony provide when a vengeful suitor is plotting the ultimate revenge?
ABOUT SHERIDAN JEANE
With the advent of the industrial age, life was changing. Many people tried to hold on to the old ways of life while others embraced the new opportunities open to them.
Join Sheridan as she explores the clash between the old and the new.
Sheridan has always loved books, history, and stories about amazing people who blaze new trails.
Despite naming their daughter Sheridan because they thought it might someday look great on the cover of a book, Sheridan's parents urged her in a more practical direction for college. Sheridan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science with a minor in English.
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