How Not to Fall in Love by Rebecca Leigh

by grant

in Author Interviews, eBook, News, Romance

08 Nov 2023

How Not to Fall in Love: From the Characters of A Duke Is Always Dangerous Viewpoint

How to Keep a Vexing Female Safe from an Assassin Without Losing Your Heart

By: Camden Davenport, Duke of Stafford

Never give up your room at an overcrowded inn after looking into her pleading eyes no matter how beautiful the lady or how it makes you feel when she smiles at you.
No matter what, don’t rescue the lady after she is caught eavesdropping and overhears a dangerous plot, even if the plot is against you and she climbs out of a window, risking her own life to warn you.
When fleeing from a would-be killer in the middle of the night, don’t ever pull her close enough to feel her heart beating against you.
Don’t ever take her into your arms to keep her warm, no matter how much her teeth chatter.
Never allow your body to react to the feel of her soft skin or to the sweet smell of lavender that lingers around her. It will just make things more difficult when you must let her go.
Don’t get jealous of every man that looks in her direction. It could lead to you doing things that are completely out of character, such as hiding in the bushes to spy on her.
Most importantly, don’t ever decide to take her and make her yours. It will lead to a lifetime of bad decisions and will result in you doing anything and everything to keep her safe. Because you will discover that you can’t live without her.

How to Avoid Falling in Love with a Dangerous Duke Who Is Also an Ex-Spy

By: Miss Abigail Bailey

Don’t let the sound of his voice send quivers through your body no matter how it makes you feel to be in his presence.
Do not risk your life to save his ungrateful hide, only for him to take you on a treacherous journey across the country.
Never accept his excuse for saving your life as a reason to long for him to hold you close.
Never scream after bathing causing him to come once again to your rescue. Only for him to blame you for seeing much more than was proper.
When trying to help with his investigation, don’t crash a vase over the head of his best friend who he has slated as the one man in London other than himself who is capable of keeping you safe.
Don’t believe him when he tells you that you belong to him only to leave London for months, making you wonder if he is still alive.
Finally, never allow your heart to love him so much that you will do everything to save his life so that you can have the future together that you have always wanted.

For my newest release, A Duke is Always Dangerous, the main hero was a recurring character in previous books in the series. When Camden Davenport first appeared as the dangerous spy that stole Catherine the Duchess of Leicester away for one last adventure in A Duke Always Has a Secret, I had no plans for him to appear again, but there was something about him that I liked, something that made me, as well as the readers, want to see more of him. He was dangerous, roguish, handsome, somewhat arrogant, and brazen man with a dark past. What wasn’t to love? Throughout the series, Cam made his way into the lives of the other characters, and I felt it was time for his own story to be told.

I have always felt that everyone needs that one outlet to serve as an escape from the day-to-day routines of life. Many pastimes allow people those opportunities. For me, writing has always been the diversion I needed to get away from it all. Books allow readers a chance to escape to another time or dimension, to be someone else for a bit, to journey into other worlds. Most of us love a good hero in the stories we read, and I for one must have a happy ever after. My favorite escapes have always been historical novels, especially the Regency period. I grew up reading my mother’s Barbara Cartland novels, tame by today’s romance standards, but they were packed with knowledge of the period. As I got older, I moved on to the spicier novels by authors such as Julie Garwood, Johanna Lindsey, Mary Balough, Tessa Dare, Scarlett Scott, Kathlyn Ayers, and Julia Quinn are just a few of my favorites.

My favorite romance novels have always been historical, although, I do enjoy a contemporary read from time to time. While I love to read, I also love to write my own stories. Many of which never made it out of the spiral notebooks I wrote in as a teenager.

While I have dabbled in other stories, regency romances have always held my heart and when I write, I want to create that ultimate swoon-worthy hero that makes you sigh when he says that terribly romantic phrase to the heroine he is trying to impress. Likewise, I love a heroine who can be a challenge, one that doesn’t necessarily fall at the handsome hero’s feet when he looks her way.

A Duke is Always Dangerous, I feel, has the best of both. A dashingly handsome ex-spy who will do whatever it takes to protect the lady entrusted to his charge and a lady who refuses to give in easily to his charms. I hope you enjoy Cam and Abigail’s story as much as I enjoyed creating it. Happy reading!