Welcome to Teaser Tuesday, the tantalising blog series where I share snippets from works-in-progress, up-coming releases and published novels. Unless I’m feeling lazy and invite good writing buddies to fill in for me, like today!

Regular readers will know how much we adore having multi-award winning, best-selling historical romance author Anna Campbell on the blog. Why? Because she’s FUN, with juicy snippets, sumptuous covers and very often a giveaway.

So read on, my lovelies, and make sure you read to the end for your chance to win!

Hi Cathryn!

It’s me again! Thank you so much for letting me swing around to your blog so often to talk about my new releases. It’s starting to feel like a home away from home!

I’m very excited on this Pancake Day to talk to you about a book that I’ve always thought of as a delicious confection. I hope readers agree!

Even the cover is delicious! Don’t you love that purple dress?

Charming Sir Charles which was out yesterday is the fifth book in my bestselling Dashing Widows series. Sally Cowan, Lady Norwood, my heroine, is all sparkle on the outside, but on the inside, she hides deep wounds from her unhappy past (in this case her first marriage).

She’s convinced that love has passed her by. She’s so convinced, in fact, that she hasn’t picked up that the dashing baronet she’s earmarked as her niece’s future husband is actually madly in love with her!

As you can imagine, that’s a recipe for mayhem!

This excerpt takes place early in the story at Amy and Pascal’s wedding reception (see Pursuing Lord Pascal, Dashing Widows 4) when Sally finds herself unexpectedly wistful as she sees her fellow Dashing Widows, Amy and Morwenna, finding love while she’s left on the shelf.

The problem is that the shelf is safe and comfortable, and she’s not sure she wants to jump off it any time soon!

Half Moon Street, Mayfair, April 1829

Sir Charles smiled. “So now Garson is pursuing Morwenna, I’d say the days of the Dashing Widows are definitely numbered.”

Sally tried her champagne, enjoying the crisp flavor with its hint of dryness. A little like Sir Charles’s conversation, in fact.

From the first, she’d enjoyed talking to him. He was a sensible, intelligent man, qualities Meg mightn’t appreciate fully at this stage. But Sally, having lived with a man neither sensible nor clever, knew that in the long term, her niece would come to value Sir Charles’s good sense. “I’ll have to gather some more Dashing Widows together, so I can keep the tradition going.”

“Why on earth should you?” He settled that dark toffee gaze on her, and his tone was thoughtful. “After all, you’ll be married again yourself.”

Sally jerked, and spilled a few drops of her champagne, luckily on the floor, not on her lovely bronze silk dress. She struggled to keep her voice from betraying how his words had sent a cold chill down her spine. “Oh, I’m well past marrying age.”

“Utter nonsense,” he said, with more emphasis than she thought her statement deserved.

Sally shook her head and smiled. “Oh, perhaps some old codger might take me on, to make his life comfortable and run his house. But where would be the fun in that?”

“There wouldn’t be any.” Sir Charles frowned at her. “You speak as if you’re pushing fifty. When anyone with eyes can see you’re an attractive woman in the prime of life.”

“Why, thank you, sir,” she said with an exaggerated flutter of her eyelashes. “You flatter me.”

He didn’t smile back. Which was odd. His sense of humor was another of the many things she admired about him. “Sally, I’m serious.”

Startled, she stared at him, while disquiet stirred in her stomach.

Sally? Surely they weren’t on terms where he should use her Christian name. She bit back a protest. If he was to marry Meg, she supposed she couldn’t insist on the letter of propriety.

Had he been standing quite so close before? She’d never been so conscious of his height and power. The urge to deliver another frivolous answer withered under the unusually somber expression in his dark eyes.

“I’m too old for romance, Sir Charles.” She placed a slight weight on his title. “And I have no other reason to marry. I’m well provided for. I have a lovely home. I have wonderful friends.”

“What about companionship?” Her assertions left him visibly unimpressed. “Specifically of the masculine variety.”

Her lips tightened. “A lover, you mean?”

You can read a longer excerpt and the blurb on my website.

Charming Sir Charles is only 99 cents on Amazon.com!  Buy now from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo and iBooks.

GIVEAWAY!

I’ve got a Kindle download of Charming Sir Charles for someone who comments today. No geographical restrictions.

Just tell me your favourite way to have pancakes! Me? I like bananas, maple syrup and ice cream, or the classic crepes suzette with lemon juice and sugar. Yum! Betcha you like crepes suzette too, Cathryn, with your love for all things French.

Good luck in the draw!

You are quite right, Anna, I do love crepes suzette but when I make pancakes at home, which happen regularly on weekends, I have mine with butter and honey. So, so bad but oh so delicious!

What about you, readers? How do you love your pancakes? Share away and we’ll pop you in the draw to win a copy of Anna’s gorgeous new release Charming Sir Charles.

Please note: Giveaway closes midnight AEDT, 3^rd March 2017. Open internationally.

If you’d like to learn more about Anna, please visit her website. You can also connect via Facebook and Twitter using @AnnaCampbelloz.