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Five-Line Friday Romantic Proposals or Not!
Where authors and readers meet to share and read romance novel snippets!
Five-Line Friday RULES
- Five lines of your current work in progress, new release, soon-to-be-released … whatever. (Do keep it as close to five sentences as you can.)
- You are welcome to post buy links too.
- PG (I don’t have a warning on my blog about content, so it has to be appropriate for all viewers. I will delete comments that aren’t appropriate or offensive to some audiences. Sorry.)
I thought it would be fun to share proposal scenes today. If your story doesn’t have one, feel free to post something else!
This scene is from Heartbreak and Honor (Highland Heather Romancing a Scot, Book 3, December 2, 2015) This is Lucan’s first proposal to Alexa, and it doesn’t go all that well.
~~~
He gave her fingers a little squeeze and rubbed his gloved thumb across her palm. Did she tremble? “Alexandra, please forgive me for the abruptness and the inadequate location, but given today’s unfortunate events, I think it best we marry without delay.”
***
A tiny burble of laughter escaped Alexa as she withdrew her hand from the Duke of Harcourt’s. To hide her discomfit, she laid her gloves atop one another, her lips bowed in amusement.
Not a man to mince words, was he? Not a proposal really, just an announcement. “Marry. Without Delay? How about tomorrow?”
He opened his mouth, but she plowed on.
“Heavens, why wait that long? This afternoon should suffice. I shall send a footman round to collect Uncle Hugo from the bank, and he can purchase a special license on his way home.” Chuckling again, she tucked her gloves into her reticule. “My, but you do have an irregular sense of humor, Your Grace.”
~~~
Have fun!
In A Baron for Becky, the proposal is by proxy!
“No.” Becky didn’t even pause to think. Baron Overton? “Have you run mad, Aldridge? No, I will not marry Lord Overton.”
“Hear me out, Becky,” Aldridge pleaded. At least he’d had the grace to see her alone, leaving the baron in the parlour to entertain himself.
“What could you possibly say, Aldridge? Overton is a drunkard and a womaniser. He would be a worse husband than you!”
“Not usually, Becky. He has a bit of a blowout when he comes down to London, but I’m probably to blame for that.”
“Huh!” she said. “So he is weak-willed, too. Anyway, he despises me. It would never work, Aldridge.”
http://www.amazon.com/A-Baron-Becky-Jude-Knight/dp/0473327252/
I love that scene!
Thank you, Caroline. It went well with the proposal by proxy that Aldridge made to Overton.
I’ve heard great things about A Baron For Becky. 🙂 Looking forward to reading it.
Becky is a wonderful book. Aldridge is my book-boyfriend-in-the-wings.
🙂 Let me know what you think when you have time to take it in, Barbara.
Thanks, Jude. The baron clearly never got the memo: If you want to do the job right, you got to do it yourself!
🙂
Jude, this is fantastic. Just enough that I want to get to know the baron more! Excellent!
Proposal, yes. Romantic? Not so much.
“We will marry of course,” Glenaire told her. “Quickly, but not so abruptly as to cause comments.” He walked toward the door, expecting her to follow.
“I beg your pardon,” she called out to him. “We will what?”
He turned on his heel. “Miss Thornton, you will be the Marchioness of Glenaire. That is far from ideal, and the difference in our state will no doubt cause talk. We will have to endure it.”
…
“Your family would have kittens if I married you, which I will not.”
“You have respectable, if not the highest, breeding, you will show to advantage when properly dressed, and you will do well as a diplomatic hostess. My family, I was going to say, will have to deal with it.” He stalked away. “So will you.”
“I will not,” Lily shouted after him.
Good for her, don’t you think? This is from DANGEROUS WEAKNESS, on pre-order now on Amazon.http://amzn.to/1L8IDXp
LOL. What a wonderfully arrogant hero. Go, Lily!
LOL! Arrogant toad, isn’t Glenaire? I bet Lily takes him down a peg or two.
Thanks, Caroline. Hoo boy, what’d he expect? Can hardly wait for your big release party. Good luck!
He was asking for what was to come wasn’t he?
I have an unromantic proposal, too. It’s from The Rake’s Irish Lady (the sequel of To Kiss a Rake) which is still in revisions.
Colin rather liked those two words: *my wife*. He’d never expected to have reason to use them. Ever.
Judging by the expression on Bridget’s face, he might never do so again. The instant Mrs. Butterworth was gone, he muttered, “What did you expect, reams of poetry? Should I have gone down on one knee?”
Bridget gaped at him. “You’re serious,” she whispered after a long moment.
He shrugged—another mistake, but he seemed to have lost whatever finesse he might have once possessed. “It’s the logical thing to do.”
“Logical?” she cried.
I don’t have a buy link for The Rake’s Irish Lady yet, so here’s the link for To Kiss a Rake, where Colin is a secondary character who needs his own story. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZAY07OK/
Oh dear. Botched that, didn’t he?
Another clueless male! Wonderful excerpt, Barbara
I second the motion! Thanks, Barbara.
Got to love a clueless male! They may be irritating in real life, but they make wonderful stories.
He never felt guilty twisting the facts to fit his purpose before, but twist he would. He knew this was in her best interest. Gavin grabbed her hands in his to stop them from fidgeting. His expression softened as he reassured her.
“That won’t be necessary. I have another —–
proposal for you.”
Brenna stared at him in complete bewilderment. “A proposal?”
“Yes, Brenna,” Gavin answered with a soft reassuring smile, “as proposal of marriage—-to me.”
Brenna continued to stare at him with growing disbelief. Surely she had not heard him right.
“Marry you?” she whispered.
“Yes,” he answered softly. He had made up his mind several days ago and he had seen to it, he left her no avenue of escape.
Soft Sweet Fire.
Brenda Hunt
Now available on Amazon.
Sorry having trouble with computer getting the link here.
Ah, another eloquent fellow. Love it.
Ooo. Forcing her hand is he?
Oh dear. This may end well, but I can see some problems in the immediate future!
Collette, I love your heroine! :~)) Can’t wait to see the Duke’s reaction.
Poor Harcourt. He proposes a good number of times before she finally agrees.
Thank you so much, Collette, for letting me post about my romantic comedy short story, “Holiday Handbag Extravaganza,” part of the Season of Surprises holiday anthology:
Here’s a tiny tease: “Almost…there…Got it!” I jumped to my feet and dangled the money in his face. “Pay day.”
I finished my jig to check out the customer only to find —Oh By Golly— Jack, as in the Jack Treadaway, the hunky hunk from Sommerville High School days. I couldn’t believe this man graced my shop.
Why was he here?
Find Season of Surprises at: http://www.amazon.com/Season-Surprises-Holiday-Box-Set-ebook/dp/B014LZJRVM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1441331771&sr=8-1&keywords=season+of+surprises
Yes, what is he doing there? The anthology sounds fabulous!
:-/ I came back and the site says my request timed out. I hope I’m not posting twice.
Good job, Alexa! I love when girls call duke’s bluffs. The gentlemen always need it. 🙂 I have a similar take-a-duke-down-a-peg scene, but it is rife with spoilers, so… instead, from ‘Tis Her Season in Mistletoe, Marriage, and Mayhem… It is probably not a good sign when a young lady’s proposal comes through one’s father, and he is yelling throughout.
“I will listen to not another word of insolence. You will marry when I say, where I say, and to whom I say, or you will be confined to Bedlam!”
With that, he grasped her elbow, paying no attention the tears streaking her face. When she tried to pull herself away, his grip strengthened until she thought her arm would break. Stumbling after him to her room, then shoved without ceremony through the door, she was horrified to hear the lock turn.
Amazon pre-order: http://ow.ly/RJ4Cc
***
I promise I will not take advantage of your hospitality in future, but I can’t resist this one, which is my personal favorite, from La Déesse Noire: The Black Goddess. 🙂 I will post the longer version at Caroline Warfield’s launch party at the end of the month.
His teeth scraped gently against her earlobe. “I have told you I wish to marry for love, have I not?”
“What?!” While she writhed and wriggled, he refused with all his strength to release her.
“I will have you as my wife, Kali, if it is the last thing I do.”
Twisting and turning in his arms, her response was vehement. “It will be the last thing you do, as we will both be hanged by a mob if you take a half-caste whore to wife. You’ll be shunned by the whole of England.”
Amazon: http://amzn.to/19cKUjY
Wonderful, Mari. I can’t decide which I like better.
Another one who thinks he can bully his way to marriage. Honestly. Men!
Thanks, Mari. Funny how a proposal scene makes the most impression when something’s going very wrong!
Two wonderful scenes. And Kali is such a strong, vivid, and appealing character.
Here’s mine from Lady Beresford’s Lover.
“I came for this.” He dropped to one knee. “Vivian, would you do me the great honor of being my wife?”
She stepped back, covering her lips with her hand.
It is happening all over again! How could Rupert betray her in this way? “I cannot. You don’t love me. You love Cleo.”
As Rupert rose, he stared at Vivian as if she was mad.
Buy links: Kensington http://bit.ly/1Ea6UJU
Amazon http://amzn.to/1HcQ1NV
B&N http://bit.ly/1aRNi0f
Kobo http://bit.ly/1BT2OFE
Rupert wasn’t expecting that, Ella! Nicely done.
He appears to have missed some details, but this one is at least trying to do it right.
I want to know what happens next!
From A REBEL WITHOUT A ROGUE:
“Then stop chasing a dead man. Stop longing for the family you lost, and dream instead of the one you’ve found. A family filled with so much love that even your passionate heart cannot help but be filled to overflowing.”
She pulled away from him, her eyes narrowing. “A family?” she asked. “What family?”
He reached for her hands, pulling them flat against his chest so she might feel how deeply she had dug her way into his heart. “With me, Fianna. Become my wife, and make a family with me.”
At amazon: http://amzn.to/1HxCK1Q
At All Romance e-books: http://bit.ly/1TFBxej
At Kobo: http://bit.ly/1Kb4Nb3
iBooks: http://apple.co/1e3kxyh
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1O0brPx
He sounds deliciously dreamy, Bliss.
Now this I like. How can she resist?
Thanks, Bliss. I hope she said yes!
Here’s a fellow who knows how to be romantic!
I’m so sad I don’t have one to share, so I’ll just offer that when hubs proposed to me, he was old-school down on one knee, poetic, and wept (as did I).
So sweet, Tracey!
Thanks again, Collette. Fun excerpt. That chick’s got an attitude! And that guy was asking for it!
Here’s a proposal from my medieval fantasy romance WIP, “The Weeping Dragon”.
William pulled her aside and shut the door. “I can’t put off saying this any longer.”
Joan smiled. “I already know what you want to say. I could feel it coming. And my answer is yes!”
He winced. “What?”
She kissed him. “Of course I’ll marry you! And you’ll be the happiest husband, with the most devoted wife! Oh William, I love you so much!”
He sighed. “No, that’s not it! Joan, I can no longer court you. The time has come for us to part.”
Joan froze. She blinked. Am I mad? Did I just heard William say . . . .
As always, feedback is welcome. Have a nice weekend, everyone!
Ouch! I winced for her.
Oh dear. Poor Joan.
Here is a proposal from one of my early manuscripts. I’ve been contemplating going back and revising and editing it to self-publish. The title is Dreams of Angels because at one point the hero tells the heroine “I have lived with demons all my life, my lady. But I have had dreams of angels.”
The Marquess of Warren is persuaded by his best friend’s wife and by his own sister to dance with the dowdiest wallflower in the room. a young woman he is introduced to for the first time just before their dance. Much to his surprise he enjoyed dancing with Miss Theadora Delacroix. The scene I’ve posted takes place a while after their dance when her stepfather drags her from the ballroom.
“There is no need for you to bother saying goodbye to your so-called friends, my dear,” he announced in a voice intent on offering her the very best in humiliation. ”You had to know it was a waste of your time to come. Even if I had the money for a dowry, no man would ever offer for the likes of you.”
The foyer was instantly as quiet as a tomb. Elizabeth and Tessa started down the stairs to Teddy. Her entire body had grown cold and very far away. A voice like iron rang out firm and clear.
“On the contrary, sir.”
The Marquess of Warren spoke in a deceptively amiable drawl as he prowled down the stairs and across the parquet floor. “I had every intention of calling on you in the morning, but as we are all here…” He met Theadora Delacroix’s gaze and did not look away. “I would like to offer for your daughter’s hand in marriage.”
A collective gasp accompanied Rutherford’s incredulous reply. “I beg your pardon, my lord?” The man’s expression gave all the appearance of an accident of nature, with owl-wide eyes and mouth gaping like a fish.
“If she is agreeable, I would like to marry Miss Delacroix.”
Sebastian, he had ask her to call him Sebastian, glanced at Rutherford and then walked to where she stood, fixed in stunned silence. He took her hands in his and made a devoted study of her, no doubt, amazed face.
“What say you, Theadora?” he asked, his voice soft and gentle, as if he feared his very words might frighten her away. “Will you marry me?”
It took a moment for her to find her voice.
“Yes…yes, my lord. I will.”
And then she fainted dead away.
Thanks, 19th Century Lady. Intriguing snippet. After just one dance, why did he propose to her? If you decide to work on and self-pub this story, good luck!
Yes! Do it. Revise and publish. If the rest is as intriguing, I want to read it.
Sigh worthy!!
Say, I have a question for everyone. Does anybody know of a proposal, fictional or real, in which the woman asked the man to marry her? It would make a neat twist on the situation. And how did it come out? Just wondering!
There is this one from The Raven’s Lady:
“May I court you, Joselyn?”
She was silent again, but a quality in the silence gave him hope, and he waited patiently…
“I daresay, now that my last surviving relative is dead, my trustees will find me somewhere else to live,” she said after a while. “I cannot, of course, stay here as a unmarried woman in the house of a bachelor… Felix, you really do want me, don’t you? Not just my money?”
“Joselyn, I’ve not taken my officer’s pay in eight years, and it has all been soundly invested along with my prizes. Believe me, you are the treasure I want, not your money.” He moved to take her back into his arms, but Joselyn stopped him with her hand.
“Then I wonder,” she looked down shyly, “if you would consider marrying me first, Felix, and courting me after?”