To Trust a Thief

I really love a good rogue. Pirates, thieves, highwayman, bandits….there’s just something about a sexy bad boy (with redeemable qualities, of course) that is just so fun to read.

The bad boy in my historical romance To Trust a Thief is just such a rogue. Bryant has been under the villainous Lord Rellik’s thumb ever since Rellik saved him from hanging as a boy. He’s been a part of Rellik’s network of thieves ever since, becoming a master at what he does. Though he’s one of “the bad guys”, he’s a bad guy with a conscience. He never hurts anyone if he can avoid it. While his position as Rellik’s top criminal has made him a wealthy man, he wants out, and the Courtland treasure is his ticket.

While he’s had his liaisons in the past, he’s never been truly in love and hasn’t had much happiness in his life. His father was extremely abusive and during an altercation in his early teens, ended up slicing Bryant’s hand so badly he lost a finger and carries a massive scar up his arm. Instead of making Bryant a harsh, abusive person himself, it’s made Bryant feel protective toward those weaker than himself. He’s fiercely protective of his mother and sister and will do anything to keep them safe. The only other person he is close to is his best friend Julian, a fellow thief and Rellik-henchman. They are “brothers-at-arms”, and Julian is the only person Bryant implicitly trusts.

Min, my heroine, makes him laugh, something he hasn’t really had in a long time. She’s also intelligent, strong-willed, and a bit klutzy, which sparks both his admiration and interest along with his protective tendencies. After a lifetime of hardening his heart against anyone who might break through his defenses, Min sort of worms her way in. She’s his equal while still having enough klutz in her to engage his protective side. The thought of betraying her fills him with unfamiliar guilt and makes him more determined to get away from Rellik. For the first time, Bryant has the want, and the hope, for a different life.

While he’s really pretty decent, aside from the whole master thief thing, he doesn’t think of himself as a good person. He doesn’t think he deserves Min. He loves her and does what he can to get them both out of their predicaments, and while he would love to ride off into the sunset with her, he thinks she deserves someone better and has a hard time believing she really loves someone like him.

This was the release week for To Trust a Thief. Seeing it out there in the world was a surreal and amazing experience that has been a very, very long time coming. I am overjoyed to share Min and Bryant’s story And to help celebrate, I’m giving away a few treasures of my own, including a gorgeous Victorian bookmark, a $25 gift card, a hilariously fun Shakespeare Insults clock, a beautiful locket inspired by the one in the book, and for the grand finale, a Nook Color! Just CLICK HERE to enter!

Blurb:

Minuette Sinclair is at her aunt’s finishing school to become a proper Victorian lady. But her parents are in trouble and her fake finace is, too. Min hears about a legendary lost necklace and she is determined to find the treasure and use it to buy her family and her fake fiancé out of their misfortunes.

Unexpected competition in the form of master thief Bryant Westley has Min tripping over her own feet to get to the treasure first. Desperate, she can’t refuse Bryant’s offer to partner up in the search – even though she knows she can’t trust him.  Things become more complicated when Min realizes that her fake fiancé loves her and their convenient engagement means more to him than her. She realizes that she loves Bryant. But can she trust Bryant with her heart if she’s not sure she can trust him with their “partnership”?

You can find To Trust a Thief at:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Goodreads

Book Trailer:

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