A STRUGGLING ACTRESS WITH A BRUISED HEART AND A CLOSELY GUARDED SECRET

(portrait by Polina Ipatova, copyright Victoria Vane)

“But surely, Mr. Hull, if you must switch the parts of the leading players, there is some small role I can play? Please,” she begged. “I won’t disappoint you.”

“Indeed? But I question how badly you want it—”

“Desperately.”

“But what are you willing to sacrifice?” His gaze narrowed as it swept her top to toe. “If I grant your wish and put you on stage tonight, I wonder if you are prepared to make the best use of it?”

Phoebe knew what he was asking, and it was the last thing she wanted—to barter what little she had preserved of her self-respect. Having already experienced the faithlessness of one man’s heart, her greatest fear was to base her entire future on another’s fickle affections. Experience had taught her the folly of trusting pretty words and the emptiness of murmured promises. She had once given freely, and it had cost her dearly. Yet, she now found herself at an unavoidable, unenviable, and ultimately inevitable crossroad.

At least this time, she stood to reap a tangible reward for her favors. What more did she really have to lose? “Yes, I will,” she whispered her life-changing decision. “I will make the most of any chance you give me.”

“Very well then.” Hull nodded to the wardrobe mistress who tossed her an elaborate silk gown with a feathered and bejeweled domino. Phoebe caught them with a racing heart. “Kitty’s masquerade costume? I have the part of Kitty?”

Hull gave a curt nod. “Apropos, don’t you think? If it is patronage you seek, a well-played Kitty shall surely deliver. I just pray you don’t squander the opportunity…as it could well be your last.”

“But it is a meager six lines.” Phoebe stared dismally after his departing back.

“E’s right enough, duckie,” Mrs. Andrews clucked. “‘Tis not the lines but the delivery what counts. Every great actress knows when a part is well-played, the audience believes the player for the real person. Kitty is a shameless little baggage. If your six little lines are well-played, you will have gents queued at your dressing room door—that is if you have the pluck for the part. That, dearie, is the decision you must needs make.”

Accepting the role of the disreputable Kitty would certainly determine her path. With this truth staring her otherwise bleak-looking future right in the face, Phoebe lifted her chin, squared her shoulders, and jutted her bosom with a hand placed saucily on her hip. “If that is so, Mrs. Andrews, I promise to be a Kitty they won’t soon forget.”

- A WILD NIGHT’S BRIDE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A lover of history and deeply romantic stories, Victoria Vane combines these elements to craft romantic historical novels and novellas for a mature reading audience. Her writing influences are Georgette Heyer for fabulous witty dialogue and over the top characters, Robin Schone , Sylvia Day, and Charlotte Featherstone for beautifully crafted prose in stories with deep sensuality, and Lila DiPasqua for creative vision in melding history with eroticism.
AWARDS & ACCOLADES 2012:
• LR Café Best Author Nominee 2012
• Swept Away by Romance Favorite Author 2012

A Breach of Promise , December 2011 Ellora’s Cave
• Night Owl Reviews “Top Pick”
• Reading Romances 5 flames and “Pen Award”
• TBR Pile 5stars/Book of the month winner September 2012
• LASR Erotic Reviews 5 STAR/Book of the Month Nominee
• The Romance Studio 5 Sweetheart Nominee
• TRS CAPA Nominee 2012

THE DEVIL DEVERE SERIES- Library Journal Best E-Book Romance 2012
LR Cafe Best Series Nominee 2012
A Wild Night’s Bride 
• Night Owl Reviews Top Pick
• Amazon Top 100 Best seller
The Virgin Huntress 
• Night Owl Reviews Top Pick
The Devil You Know 
• Night Owl Reviews Top Pick
• The Romance Reviews Top Pick
• LR Café Best Historical Romance nominee 2012
The Devil’s Match 
• Night Owl Reviews Top Pick
• The Romance Reviews Top Pick
• LASR Reviews Book of the Month December 2012
• Swept Away by Romance Best Historical Romance of 201