Happy Friday!!! I hope you had a wonderful Valentine's week. I'm breaking with tradition here and am going to use a kiss scene from The Lady and the LionHeart. I did a kissing blog post on Wednesday, you can read it here. I also have a giveaway on that post if you can match up the quotes to the author's who wrote them.
Two worlds collide when the circus comes to Victorian-era Virginia.
Raised amid the fame and mystique of the Big Top, Charlie Lionheart holds the audience in the palm of his hand. But while his act captivates thousands, it’s away from the spotlight where his true heart lies. Here he humbly cares for his pride of lions as if they were his brothers, a skill of bravery and strength that has prepared him for his most challenging feat yet—freeing an orphaned infant from the dark bondage of a sideshow. A trade so costly, it requires his life in exchange for hers, leaving him tarnished by the price of that choice.
As the circus tents are raised on the outskirts of Roanoke, nurse Ella Beckley arrives to tend to this Gypsy girl. All under the watchful eye of a guardian who not only bears a striking resemblance to the child, but who protects the baby with a love that wraps around Ella’s own tragic past, awakening a hope that goodness may yet reign. When their forbidden friendship deepens, Charlie dares to ask for her heart, bringing her behind the curtain of his secret world to reveal the sacrifice that gave hope to one little girl—boldly showing Ella that while her tattered faith is deeply scarred, the only marks that need be permanent are his own.
Just then a child in the row behind Ella cried out, “Look, Mama!”
Charlie, dressed in his center ring finery, strode into the arena, as strong and strapping as ever. Face powdered and painted with two jagged teardrops under his eyes, he walked with stoic authority, tall boots forging a fresh trail straight toward his audience. Ella didn’t know a single man could hush a packed house with no words, but…then there was Charlie Lionheart.
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And the kiss . . . .
His thumb felt against her lips again and he waited until she seemed calmer. To his surprise, her eyes closed. He nearly kissed her in that breath, fast and firm and achingly swift, but he had to pull on every ounce of his self-control for his touch to be as feather-light as possible.
And then his lips met hers. She was soft and she was silk. His mind and heart whirled with all that she was to him. Like the dripping of wax to an envelope, he felt a press and a pain and a freedom that something had just sealed inside him. He held her that way for only a heartbeat, then pulled away.
But she slid her hand behind his neck and tugged him back. Kissing him. And then his world went white. Everything but her…gone. From head to toe she was perfect and there wasn’t a single part of her that was less than. Overwhelming was the desire to tell her that. She was a precious gift to be given. All of her. As was this, a kiss. He knew what value it held for her. And she was giving it to him, of all people.
