Tori Drumm is fleeing her old life in New York as a Broadway actress and moving to Colorado to reunite with her brother. When she ends up stranded in Colorado Springs, Link Buchannan offers her a place to stay and his help reaching her brother's home in Cripple Creek. Tori accepts and right away Link and Tori find themselves attracted to each other, but there is a reason Tori left New York, and she's not sure she can trust Link with her past.
Sara Luck has written an engaging romance between an actress and a businessman in a small mining town. This western romance doesn't have bar fights or shoot outs at high noon, but it still has plenty of action and excitement. Luck keeps the mining town of Cripple Creek historically accurate, and the conflict between miners and mine owners will keep readers absorbed until the very end. This conflict sets HEART AFIRE up for a riveting climax.
Tori is a former actress who is used to being independent and on her own. Her generous personality and past mistakes make her endearing and likable. Link is personable, cool headed, and like Tori, extremely generous. He's not the usual western hero, but readers will fall in love with his big heart and kind nature.
Cripple Creek is a wonderful setting for a small mining town,and the secondary characters are a hoot. Speck, Pearl, Mollie, and Manny bring depth to the story, adding tension and humor. Love and excitement fill every page of Luck's story. HEARTS AFIRE is the kind of romance you can't put down.
She left behind fame and fortune, and discovered something
far more precious: the love of a strong Western man.
From the spotlight . . .
The toast of New Yorkโs theater world, Sabrina Chadwick
dazzled with her raven-haired beauty and brilliant
performances. But her rising star came crashing down after a
disastrous night of scandal and betrayal that left the young
actress with nothing but a broken heart. Now the preacherโs
daughter who found glittering success on the stage must
begin a new life somewhere she can escape her shattered past
as Sabrina Chadwick.
. . . to loveโs shining light.
Lincoln Buchannan had no idea that the lovely lady new to
Colorado Springs had been a star back East. The wealthy mine
owner only knew that Victoria Drumm was stranded without
accommodations in a city bustling with gold rush fever! Link
offers Tori shelter in his sprawling home and agrees to help
track down her brother, a fervent union organizer in nearby
Cripple Creek. As desire flares between Tori and her rugged
rescuer, so do the demands of striking miners in a violent
and historic protest fueled by passionate convictions on
both sides.
EXCERPT
When Link and Tori reached the Union Block, Link tried the
door for the stairway beside the drugstore. When he found it
was locked, he felt Tori shiver beside him.
โDonโt worry, weโll find him. There has to be a stairway in
the alley that will lead upstairs.โ
Link led Tori down a narrow passageway that led to the back
of the Union Block. He noticed that she instinctively
pressed her body closer to his, and he put his arm around
her and drew her tight against him. When they reached the
back stairway, he turned and asked, โShall we do this, or
shall we wait until tomorrow?โ
Tori wanted to say wait, but she had no choice. It was
approaching midnight, and if she didnโt find Manny, where
would she go?
As an answer to the question, she placed her foot on the
first step and carefully made her way to the top, with Link
following behind her. When they reached the door, it was
locked.
โI guess this is the place to yell,โ Link said. โLetโs hope
your brother hears us. Whatโs his name?โ
โEmanuel Drumm.โ
Link swung around from the door.
โEmanuel Drumm? A man in his early twenties? Goes by the
name of Manny?โ
โYes, yes! Heโs twenty-four and he does go by Manny. Do you
know him?โ
โI know a Manny Drumm, but he doesnโt live hereโat least not
that I know of. About a week ago he sat at my table at a
banquet in Cripple Creek.โ
โCripple Creek? Is that near here?โ
โItโs close but you canโt get there tonight.โ
Just then, Link heard from behind the door the distinct
sound of a hammer being cocked. โFrank? Frank Atherton? Is
that you?โ
โWho wants to know?โ
โItโs Link Buchannan, from up on Weber Street. Iโm looking
for Manny Drumm. Do you know if he still lives here?โ
โHell, no. He left last summer. Went to Cripple Creek like
every other fool out to get rich.โ
โThanks, Frank, weโll leave you alone.โ
Link led Tori back down the stairs and was surprised to feel
a surge of tenderness for this woman. She had to be dead
tired, in a place where she didnโt know a soul or what she
would do. If she had any belongings, they certainly werenโt
with her now. When he got to the streetlight, he turned and
saw that tears were brimming in her eyes.
โI have a suggestion,โ he said. โIf you donโt think itโs too
presumptuous of me, I have a bed you can sleep in.โ
He felt Tori stiffen immediately.
โNo, no, noโnot with me. I mean I have a house with four
bedrooms and I live there alone, except for Otto and Hulda.
Theyโre my caretakers and they live there, too, while I live
most of the time at Cripple Creek.โ
Hearing those words, Tori collapsed against him in tears,
her body as limp as a rag dollโs.
He held her against him, trying to comfort her as he would a
child.
โIโve made a terrible mistake,โ she said as she sobbed
uncontrollably. โI shouldnโt have come, and you donโt even
know my name.โ
Link pulled his head back, and pushing her hat aside, he
smiled. โThatโs easy enough to rectify. What is your name?โ
โItโs SaโTori.โ
โSatori. Thatโs a pretty nameโnot one that Iโve ever heard,
but itโs pretty.โ
โItโs actually Victoria Drumm, but my friends call me Tori.โ
โIf your friends call you Tori, I would consider it a
privilege if you allowed me to call you by that name.โ
โMr. Buchannan, I would be honored.โ
โAnd my friends call me Link.โ
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