Christmas Deadline
AUTHOR Laura Tolomei
GENRE: Erotic Romance, Historical, Ménage, LGBTQA+
ISBN 978-1-4874-3172-3
PAGES # 165
WORDS # 47,000
RELEASE: December 25 2020
PUBLISHER: eXtasy Books
Three people, three different destinies, a common deadline. Will Christmas of 1855 prove to be their downfall or the way forward to a new union and everlasting happiness?
Count Mathew de la Roche feels trapped. To keep La Belle Dame, the sugar plantation in Martinique he inherited at his uncle’s death, he must enter into a stable relationship and provide for a viable heir of his own by Christmas of 1855. Problem is—he likes variety in his bed and doesn’t want to be tied down to a single person.
Amandine Duvalier is the Creole daughter of a slave and a marquis, the master of the now-abandoned Cantrell plantation. Impossible for her to inherit her father’s estate, she’s about to be kicked out of the place where she was born, and she has only until Christmas of 1855 to find new accommodations. Problem is—she’s a certified witch, so no one’s going to offer her a roof over her head.
Kabir Sayed is an Indian prince from one of those obscure reigns tolerated by the British. He stands to inherit the throne, but he’s not sure he wants it. His brother would be better suited for this job, and Kabir has left home to learn more of the world surrounding him. He’s working as an indentured laborer on La Belle Dame, cutting up sugar canes by the hundreds, and he has until Christmas 1855 to make up his mind about the succession. Problem is—Johannes Van Dyke has it in for him, and he might’ve just killed him after a severe beating.
As their paths cross in unexpected ways, the Christmas deadline looms on the horizon. What hasn’t entered the equation so far is the magnetic attraction they feel for one another. Will it be enough to overcome their prejudices and lead them to true union and everlasting happiness?
Count Mathew de la Roche
(PG Excerpt)
“Welcome, Count de la Roche.” Octave Rimbau rose from his chair to greet the young man entering his office. “Please, take a seat.” He gestured to a leather armchair in front of his desk. “I’m glad you could see me on such short notice.” On sitting down, he studied his guest intently.
The twenty-seven-year-old Count Mathew de la Roche was a fine specimen of a man. Tall and slender, his broad shoulders and chest tapered to a slim waist and long, elegant legs. His large, smoky green eyes shone from a deeply tanned, intensely masculine face. A connoisseur of male beauty, no one better than Octave could appreciate the aquiline nose, high forehead, full lips, square jaw with an adorable cleft in the middle, not to mention the prominent and bushy eyebrows. Thick auburn hair to the shoulder completed the look of a French aristocrat who has settled in the West Indies with a certain degree of success.
“You didn’t leave me much choice,” Mathew teased lightly. “When the baron’s lawyer summons, one must comply.”
“Especially if one’s future is at stake,” Octave agreed in an equally bantering tone.
Mathew gave off the first sign of impatience. “I thought mine was settled.”
Not by a long shot. “Not exactly.” Octave twisted one side of his long mustache of which he was inordinately proud.
“What do you mean?”