A Prince of a Guy
by Eileen Dreyer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Contemporary Romance
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BLURB:
When New
Yorker Casey Phillips visits the tiny country of Moritania, she simply wants to
see where her ancestors came from. Instead, she's mistaken for a princess.
The real princess has been
kidnapped, and Crown Prince Eric von Lieberhaven insists Casey—a dead ringer
for the missing royal—step into the princess's shoes until she can be freed.
As Casey upends royal tradition,
Eric finds himself hoping the cheeky American never returns home. But can a
secretary from Brooklyn really find happiness with a prince?
EXCERPT:
The
Royal Palace of Moritania, the Alps, 1987
Eric
handed her up the steps before him as a silent groom appeared from somewhere
and took the Bronco away. Casey half expected him to sweep the cobblestones
behind them. When they reached the door, it magically opened, another liveried
servant bowing and smiling as he passed them on.
"Rolph,"
Eric said, easing Casey along when she slowed, "is Her Majesty the queen
available for visitors?"
"I
shall check for you, Your Highness. Refreshments?"
He
stole a look at Casey, who was rubbernecking the paintings on the walls with
undisguised astonishment. After a moment he nodded. "Yes, I believe they
will be needed. In the Great Hall, if you please."
Rolph
dispatched a discreetly questioning look, but bowed and moved away. Casey was
still trying to take in the extent of the entryway.
Train
stations were smaller. The walls extended up some thirty feet, decorated with
what looked suspiciously like old masters and terminating in a high, vaulted
ceiling that some brave painter had gotten his hands on. It was all light and
froth, cherubs and swirling gold banners swimming around a vault of milky
white. The floors were of gleaming dark wood covered in what had to be
priceless Oriental rugs. The effect was one of immense space, the inside of the
building mirroring the image given by the outside. Quiet, understated grace and
wealth.
No
need for ostentation here. It only made her want to see more.
"Like
your decorator," she finally managed, casting a sidelong glance over to
where Eric was enjoying her reaction.
"Moritania
might not be big—" he bowed a little in acknowledgment, "—but it is a
country rife with good taste. I'd like to show you something, if you don't
mind."
"The
only thing you could show me to beat this would be the Sistine chapel."
Walking
to the right side of the hall, Eric opened a great oak door. Casey walked past
him into an even more impressive room. It was long, with six matched sets of
crystal chandeliers and floor-to ceiling windows that reflected in the mirrors
along the opposite wall.
"Been
to Versailles, had they?" she breathed, coming to a stop.
Eric
wouldn't let her. Instead, he took her by the elbow and gently propelled her
down the parquet flooring. "I'm sure you don't know," he was saying,
"but my brother just died recently."
Casey
immediately turned to him. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't."
He
nodded with a sad little smile. "He was much older than I, and his heart
was bad. The upshot of it is that next week his daughter, my niece, will become
the new queen of Moritania. She is his only child, and his wife is also
dead."
Casey
had no idea where the conversation was leading. He seemed so reluctant to tell
her that she knew it was something important to him. She couldn't think of
anything more to do than nod.
Then
he stopped walking. Turning to her, he took hold of both of her arms, his eyes
trying to communicate something of import. They had softened. Casey felt even
more confused.
"What?"
"The
portrait here at the end of the Great Hall has just gone up. It is a painting
of the next queen of Moritania, Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess
Cassandra."
He
turned Casey to face the painting. Casey's jaw dropped. Looking back at her
from the canvas was a young woman with delicate features, a gently molded face
with deep, wide-set hazel eyes and a small, straight nose. A small mouth curved
just at the ends as if she was amusing herself immensely with a private joke.
Diamonds and rubies glittered at her throat, and a mane of tawny hair swept
back, thick and styled sleekly away from tiny ears where teardrop diamonds
hung.
Casey
turned to Eric and then back to the picture and then back to Eric again, unable
to speak. Then she turned once again to the portrait and finally admitted what
he'd been trying to prepare her for. She was staring at a portrait of herself.
"And
here I thought losing the car was going to be the high point of my day."
Copyright
Eileen Dreyer
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
New York Times bestselling,
RWA Hall of Fame author Eileen Dreyer has published 31 romance novels in most
genres, 8 medicalforensic suspenses, and 10 short stories.
2015 sees Eileen enjoying
critical acclaim for her foray into historical romance, the Drake’s Rakes
series, which Eileen labels as Regency Romantic Adventure that follows a group
of Regency aristocrats who are willing to sacrifice everything to keep their
country safe. She is also working on her first nonfiction book, TRAVELS WITH
DAVE, about a journey she's been taking with a friend's ashes.
A retired trauma nurse,
Eileen lives in her native St. Louis with her husband, children, and
large and noisy Irish
family, of which she is the reluctant matriarch. She has animals but refuses to
subject them to the limelight.
Website -
http://eileendreyer.com/
Facebook -
https://www.facebook.com/EileenDreyer
Twitter -
https://www.facebook.com/EileenDreyer
Purchase Link
Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Prince-Korbel-Classic-Romance-Humorous-ebook/dp/B015ES5NZO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1442885725&sr=8-1&keywords=a+Prince+of+a+Guy+Eileen+Dreyer
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