Tycoon's Temptation

by Trish Morey

  The silence weighed heavily between them, while the ocean between them leached away and let her pass, until she was in his arms, her arms around his neck, his around her as he whirled her into a kiss, their first kiss as more than mere lovers. Their first kiss as a couple in love.

  She let that kiss speak for her and wipe away the hurt and the pain, let that kiss show him her love and her hopes and her dreams she hadn’t dare dream.

  Until this very moment.

  When finally they stopped to draw breath, and to smile at each other and to laugh and kiss again, she put her hands to the beautiful face of the man she loved and found the words she needed to say. ‘I love you, Franco Chatsfield. And a lifetime spent with you sounds just about perfect.’

  And it was.

  * * * * *

  If you enjoyed this book, look out for the next instalment of THE CHATSFIELD: RIVAL’S CHALLENGE by Abby Green, coming next month.

  UNCOVERED!

  Read on for an exclusive interview with Trish Morey

  Creating a world as large as The Chatsfield must be very exciting—did you discuss the hotels with the other authors?

  One of the best things about writing a book in a continuity is that you get to work closely with, and bounce ideas off, a bunch of authors you like and admire. Given these are people you usually only meet up with at conferences, it’s very, very cool. And while we’re working together, sorting out the details of what a particular hotel looks or feels like, we’re also having a lot of fun.

  What was the most fun bit about creating this luxurious, scandalous world?

  Being handed an outline of a story of a character in a scandal-ridden family, set in the most sumptuous of settings, and being able to flesh it out in all its glorious detail! And even though Franco’s story is set largely in a vineyard in rural South Australia, I was able to take my characters to Sydney’s gorgeous Chatsfield Hotel and give my characters a taste of five-star luxury.

  Did you do any extra-special research for writing this book? A sneaky cocktail at an exclusive hotel perhaps?

  No sneaky cocktails for me—but a certain amount of very good sparkling wine may have been consumed—all in the name of research, of course!

  Seriously, researching for this story was a very good excuse for a weekend away with my hubby, as we headed down to the Coonawarra area to find out about this beautiful fertile region first-hand. We spent the weekend visiting wineries and talking to local vignerons and cellar-door salespersons, getting all kinds of hints and insights into this fabulous region and the people that make it so special. It really helped me get to grips with my heroine, Holly, and her place in the world.

  What did you most love about writing your story?

  Apart from the research, you mean? I think it was taking two characters who were so unimpressed with each other and so full of resentment for each other in the beginning, and slowly chipping away that resentment until there could be no denying the pesky attraction that simmered away beneath. And, as respect between the two grew, that attraction meant Franco and Holly wanted to spend more and more time together. That attraction and respect soon developed into something much more powerful.

  When writing your hero and heroine’s story, did they surprise you in any way?

  Holly sure did! She was such a homebody and so comfortable in her Purman Wines polo tops, I had no idea when I started writing her story that she had a wicked secret going on underneath.

  I have to say, that wasn’t the only surprise she had for Franco either!

  To your mind, who is the most scandalous Chatsfield?

  Definitely not Franco, though he’s got his fair share of secrets. He left the scandal to his siblings when he moved away when he was sixteen—but the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree! Learning he’d fathered a child before he’d left was a bit of a wake-up call, though he’s managed to curb his ways in recent years.

  If you could have given your hero or heroine a piece of advice before they started on their journey in your story, what would it have been?

  If I could have had a quiet word with Franco before he embarked on his long trip to Australia to get Holly’s signature on that contract, I would have warned him to maybe not take too much for granted—that some people might not be as impressed with doing business with the Chatsfield empire as he might like!

  Name five things on your desk when you write.

  My computer, of course.

  One of a big cup of coffee, an Earl Grey tea or a glass of water, depending on what time of the day it is.

  A printout of my pages to date, so I can check anything I need to quickly, but most of all to reassure me that the manuscript is actually growing.

  A collection of pens in different shades so I can mark up those pages.

  A beautiful ruby-red crystal heart I bought from Tiffany’s in New York at my first ever Romance Writers of America conference in 2003, a month after selling my first book. It reminds me of those first heady days and how lucky I am and how fantastic this job is.

  Do you listen to music when you write?

  I do. I don’t put a specific soundtrack together for a book, because the tracks I like to listen to while writing my books give me the right tone. I know the words by heart, so absorb them rather than have to listen to them, but I will find some tracks work more for particular scenes. These I might play over and over while writing a love scene, for example.

  What is your worst habit when writing?

  Eating far too much! I try to counter that by taking the dog for a walk every chance I get, which also helps with thinking through plot problems, but some days the eating wins.

  Do you have a writing routine? If so, could you share a bit about it with us?

  When my girls were all in school, I did. I had between 9.00 and 3.00 to work in relative peace at home. These days, however, the girls are all either in their final year of school or at uni, so their contact hours are all over the place and there are people coming and going all hours of the day. I think my routine has become more a case of ‘write when you can’, and I look back at those lovely blocks of time and wonder why I didn’t do more.

  UNDER THE MICROSCOPE

  Read on for an exclusive interview with Franco and Holly

  If you had to pick your most public scandalous moment, what would it be?

  Franco: The day the tabloids learned I’d dropped out of Eton. That one would be hard to beat. I remember the front page of the paper the next day—the paparazzi got a photo of my father practically frothing at the mouth, threatening to disown me if I didn’t go back to school.

  But you didn’t, did you?

  Franco: [grim-faced] No. I left for Italy the same day.

  Holly: [shaking her head] Wow! I don’t think I’ve ever had a public scandalous moment. My one public moment was totally humiliating—I don’t want to say any more than that here, though Franco knows—but at least it wasn’t plastered all over the papers.

  Was there an even more scandalous event that didn’t make it into the press?

  Franco: [looking uncomfortable, his features tight] Yes. And it’s ironic really, because there was me thinking I was escaping my scandalous family history by running away to Italy, only to discover that the apple didn’t fall that far from the tree.

  Can you be more specific?

  Holly: [taking his hand] You don’t have to do this, Franco.

  Franco: No. It’s OK. It’s a long time ago and I can talk about this now. [Pauses for a breath] About five years after I moved to Italy, an old girlfriend came looking for me. Apparently I’d fathered a child before I left for Italy and I would never have known except the child needed a kidney donor. I was the last hope for a match and it turned out that I was one. [Shakes head on a sigh] Not that it helped. Anyway, the tabloids would have been all over it if they’d found out. Thank goodness they didn’t. It was tough enough without those scavengers sniffing out the story.

  What do you love most about Holly, Franco? And vice ve
rsa?

  Franco: Just one thing? Maybe that smart tongue that was doing its best to slice me apart from our first meeting.

  Holly: Well, you were asking for trouble turning up in that helicopter of yours.

  Franco: What could I do? They were all out of Maseratis!

  On that, what were your first thoughts when you saw each other?

  Holly: My very first thoughts? I thought he was drop-dead gorgeous and it was all the more reason not to like him.

  Franco: [laughing] I remember that scowl. I also remember thinking you were going to be trouble. Seems I was right [earns him a dig in the ribs].

  If your house were on fire and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

  Franco: So long as I had Holly, I wouldn’t care about anything else.

  Holly: He’s just trying to make up for that last answer.

  What is the naughtiest thing you did at school?

  Franco: I used to sneak away from rugby to visit my girlfriend.

  Holly: [blinking] I once borrowed a book from the library without checking it out. My life is so boring by comparison.

  What is your guiltiest pleasure?

  Franco: [looks knowingly across at Holly] Holly knows.

  Holly: [blushes but holds his gaze] Franco! I’m not telling anyone that!

  What is your worst habit?

  Franco: I never hang the towels up in the bathroom after I’ve used them.

  Holly: And I leave them there. [Smiles] One day he’ll learn.

  What is your favourite film?

  Franco: High Noon.

  Holly: Love Actually.

  What present would you put beneath the Christmas tree for each other?

  Franco: Something turquoise, to match Holly’s eyes.

  Holly: Ooh, how long is it till Christmas?

  How will you spend your first anniversary as a couple?

  Franco: [slips his arm around his wife’s shoulders] A beach somewhere, footsteps in the sand and a low-slung pearl of a moon. Good food, good wine and three hundred and sixty-five days’ worth of memories.

  Holly: [smiling] Not to mention three hundred and sixty-five nights …

  What is your biggest secret?

  Franco: I’m crazy in love with this woman.

  Holly: That’s hardly a secret. You married me, remember?

  Franco: OK, so you answer the question. What’s your biggest secret?

  Holly: [smiling widely] I was waiting for the right moment to tell you. Are you sure you want me to tell while everyone’s listening?

  Franco: [bustling interviewer from room] Interview’s over!

  ISBN: 978-1-472-09592-3

  TYCOON’S TEMPTATION

  © 2014 Trish Morey

  Published in Great Britain 2014

  by Mills & Boon, an imprint of Harlequin (UK) Limited

  Eton House, 18-24 Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1SR

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