Book Excerpt
Stephen
gave Rose a short bow and stretched out his right hand. “Miss Van Buren, may I
have the honor of this dance?”
Rose laughed. The sound was like a
healing tonic. They took their places on the dance floor with the shadows of
the past. He held her close as he guided her over the well-manicured lawn,
weaving between the other couples. She was too beautiful to be real, and that
smell of roses she always carried—he knew he was dancing with an angel.
Rose’s eyes were bright with the
pleasure as they moved around the lawn. The other Rose glided past them in the
arms of a young man in a gray suit.
“Who was that?” Stephen asked.
“The brewer’s son. He was a nice young
man, but my father didn’t approve of him. Papa wanted me to have an easier life
than he had, so he needed me to marry well. The brewer’s family worked long
hours each day in their business.”
Rose lifted her head and looked into
Stephen’s eyes. “May I ask you something?” she said.
“Anything you like.” He smiled back at
her.
“Why did you go into politics?”
Stephen blinked. The question took him
by surprise.
“I guess I got into it because of my
dad.”
Rose tilted her head and scrunched up
her adorable forehead.
“Your father wanted you to be a
politician?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t really know
him. He died when I was two.” Stephen shot a
glance
at Peter Van Buren, who was talking to a group of men on the far side of the
lawn.
Rose frowned. “I don’t understand.”
Stephen smiled at her. “All the time I
was growing up, my mother told me stories of
my
father, of how he was interested in politics and had been planning to run for
office. After I finished law school and landed a job at my firm, an opportunity
came up to run for the legislature, and I took it. I guess politics is my way
of having a connection with my dad.” He pulled Rose closer and twirled her on
the dance floor.
The orchestra began a new song, and
Rose led Stephen toward the food tables along the back of the house. They
cleared the crowd of couples entering and exiting the dance floor just in time
to see John Jacob disappearing around the side of the house with Felicia.
“Well, now, that’s interesting. Are
they—” He didn’t finish his sentence but looked at Rose to check her reaction.
She sighed. “Yes, it is exactly what
you think.” She waved her arm and the scene around them dissolved and reformed.
They were still at the party, but the band was now playing a different song and
the light had changed slightly.
“Watch the door.” Rose pointed to the
French double doors they had passed through at the beginning of the party.
Felicia slipped quietly through them, glancing from side to side to see if
anyone had noticed her. Her lips looked slightly swollen and her skin was
flushed. A few stray hairs were out of place from her fancy hairstyle, and her
dress looked a little wrinkled. She wound her way through the crowd, stopping
to stand next to a large matronly woman who looked her up and down and frowned.
Rose turned to Stephen. “That’s
Felicia’s Aunt Miriam. She was Felicia’s chaperone for the party.” They watched
as Aunt Miriam thanked her hostesses for the lovely evening and led her niece
through the French doors and into the house.
Stephen looked around and spotted John
Jacob talking to a group of young men in a corner of the yard near the orchestra.
He didn’t look as ruffled as Felicia, but his shirt was more wrinkled than it
had been. He wore a smug expression. Stephen wanted to wipe that smile off the
man’s face with his fist.
Rose from the past twirled in front of
John in the arms of another young man. John’s expression went from cocky to
angry in an instant. Stephen tightened his fists, his knuckles turning white
from the pressure. John had already had Felicia that evening and now he wanted
Rose too.
“Stephen?”
He shook his head and turned to face
Rose. She wore a look of concern. He gave her a weak smile. He needed to get a
grip. He was getting angry about something that happened in the 1800s.
“Let’s
dance.”
About The Book
Title: The Kiss of a Rose
Author: Augustina Van Hoven
Genre: Paranormal Romance
A DISTANT PAST
In 1882, Rose Van Buren loved the wrong man and paid for it with her
life. Now, more than a century later, the angel Gabriel has granted her
another shot at living. In exchange, she must convince a smart,
handsome, up-and-coming lawyer to set aside his lofty ambitions.
A FUTURE PRESENT
Stephen Winship is headed straight for the governor’s chair. He has a
brilliant career, solid allies, and a seemingly perfect girlfriend. But
night after night he finds himself dreaming of a heavenly beauty, a
luminous but long-dead girl. Like some altered Ghost of Christmas Past,
she shows him her own tragic tale in order to “save him.” And he’s
beginning to see Rose is risking her heart as much as baring her soul.
Yet falling for her will cost him everything—and open him up to a
happiness he never imagined.
Author Bio
Augustina Van Hoven resides in the Pacific Northwest with her
husband, two dogs and three cats. She is an avid reader of romance,
science fiction and fantasy. When she’s not writing she likes to work
in her garden or in the winter months crochet and knit on her knitting
machines.
Links
Twitter: @augustinavhoven
Buy on:
0 reacties:
Een reactie posten