Sloane Russo has had quite a bit of success with her
romance novels set in Europe, but she's decided that her
next book would be about small town love. When Sloane
meets her editor, she's told that they want her to
continue with her international romances, and that her
readers would like Greece to be the next featured
country. There's one little problem: Sloane does not have
enough money to travel to Greece, and she needs to be in
the country to be inspired.
Sloane's best friend Carly is a chef in La Dolce Vita
restaurant. Gavin Carmichael -- La Dolce Vita's manager --
notices the lovely woman with his chef. He comes over to
talk to them, and confesses he will need a babysitter for
his 13 year-old sister Bree; their regular one will be
unavailable for a while. Upon hearing of her financial
woes, Gavin asks Sloane if she'd like to tutor his
sister, as she's a writer. Sloane doesn't do children;
she has no experience with them, but she is so strapped
for cash that she agrees.
Gavin has been Bree's legal guardian since their mother
died in the past year, and the girl is taking it very
badly. Sloane has her work cut out for her with the
teenager, and still hasn't gotten over her writer's
block. Sloane and Gavin realise they've been attracted to
each other from the onset, even though they try to
resist, and they soon discover that they have much more
in common than they ever thought.
STIRRING UP TROUBLE is a simple story, about well-
meaning, honest people. They're good-looking, but not
perfect; no earth-shattering events take place, no
dreadful misunderstandings occur and no bad guys hurt
anyone. And it's precisely because of all those things
that I found it so enjoyable.
STIRRING UP TROUBLE is a simple story, about well-
meaning, honest people. They're good-looking, but not
perfect; no earth-shattering events take place, no
dreadful misunderstandings occur and no bad guys hurt
anyone. And it's precisely because of all those things
that I found it so enjoyable. STIRRING UP TROUBLE is a
fine example how an exceptionally gifted author can weave
a wonderful story out of simple things. Ms. Kincaid writes
simply yet beautifully; the dialogues are especially
brilliant: Bree expresses herself like a teenager without
ever sounding clichéd, Sloane's repartees are witty, and
the characters remain true to themselves throughout. I
loved the little touches about wines and the writing
process.
Sloane is a great character: she's spunky, no-nonsense;
she tells it like it is; it is so refreshing to see a
heroine like her. STIRRING UP TROUBLE is a pleasant, cozy
novel, and I mean this in the best way possible. I highly
recommend it, especially if you're trying to get away
from angst, rage, and revengeful exes. A lovely read
indeed!
Sloane Russo's turned a decade of crazy jobs and
whimsical
travel into a career writing steamy novels set in exotic
places. Trouble is, Sloane's flat broke now--and she
can't
channel sun-drenched beaches in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
The only fast cash in town comes with some seriously
distracting temptation: Gavin Carmichael, hot, handsome
and
oh-so-hard-headed.
Gavin isn't the impulsive Don Juan of Sloane's novels.
He's
raising his thirteen-year-old half-sister, and he's
pretty
sure he's supposed to act like he's never heard of fun.
Sloane is way too sexy and irresponsible to be his idea
of
a
good tutor for Bree, but the unpredictable anti-nanny may
be
irresistible as well. . .
Excerpt
A question poked at Gavin's conscience, getting
increasingly louder until he finally gave it a voice.
“Look…don’t take this the wrong way, but this is over
three weeks’ worth of work. I’ve got to ask, how much
help did you give Bree, exactly?”
Sloane made a less-than-dainty sound and rolled her eyes.
“I already passed eighth-grade English, and I’m not
exactly eager to do any of the writing on my own again.
Bree busted her butt, I assure you.” She started to wad
up the discarded pages at her feet, muttering a low oath
as the ball got big enough to exceed her hand.
Okay, so that had come out more accusatory than he’d
intended. He knelt to help her collect the crumpled
pages. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to imply that you did it for
her.”
“Sure you did. But like I said, you don’t have to worry.
I helped her, but only as much as she’d let me. Once we
got started, she really did most of it without even
talking to me.”
Now there was something he could relate to. “Yeah, that
sounds like her.” The ache in his bones migrated to
include everything beneath his sternum, and Gavin let out
a tired exhale. He reached for the last scrap of paper at
the exact moment Sloane did. Unable to change his course
of movement without making contact, his fingertips
brushed against the top of her hand as she closed a fist
over the page, and the sheer heat of her skin under his
hand registered in a jolt.
“Whoops, sorry.” He withdrew his hand and looked up, only
to discover his face about six inches from a pair of
heart-shaped lips, parted in a look of surprise. “I
didn’t mean to…” A quick gesture to her hand completed
the sentence. Her skin was so soft, like a stretch of
perfectly golden caramel, warm and sweet and utterly
decadent.
For a hot, impulsive moment, he wondered if she tasted
the way she looked.
“No biggie,” she murmured, not moving her eyes from his.
Up close in the soft lamp light, they looked even
prettier, kind of a cross between a summer sky and
gathering storm clouds, and the juxtaposition caught him
square in the chest. His left knee pressed against her
right thigh from when they’d both knelt down on the
floorboards, and even through the wool and denim, heat
coursed from her body in waves.
He meant to lean back, to correct the mistake of
accidentally invading her space and just let her go.
Gavin commanded himself to move, to say good night, and
give her enough room to walk out the door.
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