Another Irish Hunk Hero

posted by Loucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindy

One month from tomorrow, my second release The Treasures of Venice is scheduled to hit the shelves. I'll be a multi-published author! WOW! I don't think the full impact has hit me yet, and probably won't until I go into a book store and see both my books there on the shelves.

I'm still getting accustomed to the concept that people are reading my stories and loving my characters. I don't think this truly hit home with me until a couple of weeks ago. The afternoon of our Sourcebooks book signing to be exact! The other booksignings I've had thus far really didn't compare with this one. Suddenly there were all these people I didn't know lined up for me to autograph my book. WHAT A RUSH!

(Here's a photo of me at the signing.)

Many of them commented on how much they liked Irish heroes, and of course, I told them my next book had an Irish hero too. In fact, my critique partners and anyone else who has read The Treasures of Venice, say they love this hero even more than my previous one! I think it's because Keirnan Fitzgerald is a charmer, and also a bit of a rogue. Actually, my heroine is more than a little suspicious of him when they first meet.

See what you think:

Maybe she was still dreaming. Hunky strangers just did not swoop into her real life. Or if they did, she’d learned better than to trust them. They were never around for long. Probably when she looked up he wouldn’t be there at all.

“Came for Carnevale last week, did you?”

Okay, she had to peek. He was still there, movie star handsome with his mused hair and knowing azure gaze. He held open a gallery door and she stepped inside.

“No, we only arrived yesterday. From Florence, I mean. We were there for three days.”

She sounded like a flustered fourteen-year-old. Apparently her scanty knowledge of how to act with an attractive man had abandoned her along with her philandering fiancé. She could feel a blush creeping up her cheeks as they crossed the polished wooden floor.

“So, you’re not traveling alone.”

Was that an undertone of disappointment in his voice? No, she must be mistaken.

“I’m with a tour group. There are fourteen of them, fifteen counting me.” Sam’s blush deepened as the Irish hunk’s perceptive eyes made a slow trip from the toes of her shoes to the top of her head. She took one of those deep, cleansing breaths she’d learned in yoga then extended her hand. “I’m Samantha Lewis. Most people call me Sam.”

“Sam?” He frowned in a playful way. “That’s no name for a pretty girl.”

Rather than shaking her hand, he placed it in the crook of his arm and escorted her to a side door. The leather of his jacket felt smooth and supple under her fingers, the muscle in his forearm solid and substantial, definitely not a dream.

“I’m Keirnan Fitzgerald from County Kildare.”

I hope you enjoy reading about my Irish hunk hero as much as I enjoyed writing about him.

So tell me some of the things you find appealing in a romance hero.