Meet the Author:
With the same trademark atmospheric settings, relatable characters and cute canines that made several of her cozy mysteries #1 Amazon US and Canada bestsellers in multiple categories, Vivian Conroy pens romance as Viv Royce, creating heartthrob heroes ranging from rugged pilots to royals reluctant to believe in true love who meet their match in that girl next door or the co-worker with the business ideas exactly opposing their own – happy endings guaranteed! When not frequenting fictional worlds, Viv loves to hike (especially in the mountains), craft with paper, felt and clay, and hunt for the perfect cheesecake. Quite active on Twitter, she's the founder of #HistFicChat, a live Twitter chat about historical fiction, featuring authors like Kate Quinn, Anna Lee Huber and Susan Spann, and would love for readers to follow her and connect via @VivWrites.
About the Book:
Prince Nicolas is looking for a priceless royal heirloom. Trying to stay under the radar, he keeps that he’s a prince secret—especially from the cute antiques dealer he asks to help him. The longer it takes, the more time they get to spend together, though no matter how attracted he is to Lizzie, love is certainly not an option for the heir to the crown of Belfort.
Lizzie Cates fled her family’s new-found fame and fortune because life in the spotlight wasn’t for her. She loves her small town, where the most exciting thing on the schedule is the car parade for the Fourth of July. That’s just how she likes it, until Nicolas comes along. Lizzie finds herself falling for the caring man who craves the country and small-town life as much as she does.
Except Nicolas has a secret that will shatter both their dreams...
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Excerpt:
[Nicolas, who's hiding his royal identity and posing as a diplomat on a mission, asks Lizzie to help him find a precious antique that was lost decades ago.]
“And…” She hesitated and a shadow crossed her features as if she considered a problem. “If we do find it, will you actually buy it? Not make trouble for the person who has it? I mean, I already asked if it was stolen and you said it wasn’t, but...”
“You don’t want to create any problems for other people. I understand.”
“I also have a selfish reason.” She looked him in the eye. “It took me years to build up this business. On my own. I don’t need anything damaging my reputation.”
“I understand. I can assure you I will buy it back. At any price.” Money was no issue. He wanted the bird of paradise back for different reasons. To resolve his grandfather’s breach of loyalty to his royal duty when he had given away the bird. Precious heirlooms passed down by previous generations should never leave the family. By returning the bird of paradise to the palace, Nicolas would set the record straight.
She smiled with relief. “Thank you, that is good to hear.” Then another frown drew her brows together. “I do have to admit one other thing. I’m on the organizing committee for the Fourth of July festival in Wood Creek. This is a very big thing here, with a parade, picnic, and other activities. I don’t know if I have all that much time to look for your bird of paradise.”
“In return for you looking for the bird box, I could help you with some of the organizing. I’ve done things like that before.” He spread his hands in an inviting gesture.
***
Really? Lizzie looked him over. He was some hotshot from a European country on a diplomatic mission to set straight something his grandfather had done wrong. And he wanted to help her organize the Fourth of July celebration in her town? He said he had done things like that before, but he probably meant he had given other people orders to do it for him. “We can’t afford to hire people to do everything for us. We do a lot ourselves. Which means painting and dressing a stage, etcetera. I…uh…don’t know if you have any experience with something like that?” Working with your hands.
“Not really, but how hard can it be?”
Lizzie bit back a smile. He had no lack of self-confidence. “Okay then.”
“You know what?” He checked his watch. “It must be about closing time for your shop. How about having coffee together? You can tell me more about this Fourth of July festival and what I can do to help.”
She hesitated. Her back was sore from her work at Mrs. Landers’ cottage and she really wanted a hot shower, an easy meal on the sofa, and some mindless TV to unwind before dropping into bed. But wasn’t this a great chance to get to know him better?
She glanced down at her clothes.
“It won’t be a big thing,” he assured her. “Just something at a place down the block. It seems like a nice street full of artisan shops.”
“Oh, yes, it’s great. All the shopkeepers are my friends.” She smiled at him. “Okay then. Let me close up the shop and I’m all set to go.”
“I’m the stranger here, so you’ll have to tell me where we can get really good coffee.”
Lizzie put her clipboard away, her mind racing. A moment ago she had mentioned her shopkeeper friends. They would be surprised to see her going for coffee with a handsome man. In a small town like Wood Creek, people kept an eye on their neighbors. Kindness, yes. Curiosity, also. And in some it was a bit stronger than in others. Did she really want to create talk? Then again, if he was going to help with Fourth of July, people were going to notice. Maybe it was better to get it over with right away.
She turned to him. “If you’re going to help out with the Fourth, I have to know what I can say about you. I’m not going to mention this…uh…diplomatic mission. Because it’s so vague, it will only provoke more questions.”
“Introduce me as Nicolas, a prospective buyer who’s lending you a hand with the festival in exchange for extra speedy service. Or something.” His eyes twinkled.
Lizzie had to draw a deep breath to get oxygen into her system. Her head seemed so light. “Okay.”
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