It's a rakish Christmas with these romance heroes
The madness of the holidays is upon us! Take a break from the crazy with notable rakes "Lucky" Luke Wainwright (Sinfully Ever After by Jayne Fresina), Benedict DeBreed (Craving the Rake's Touch by Bronwyn Scott), Ross Thornbury (The Rake's Handbook by Sally Orr), Alex Knight (Twice Tempted by Eileen Dreyer), Richard Barrett, Lord Hartley (A Rake by Any Other Name by Mia Marlowe) and Damian Beaumaris, Duke of Cirencester (The Rake's Bargain by Lucy Ashford), as they tell us what their favorite lady wears to celebrate the season …
"Lucky" Luke Wainwright from Sinfully Ever After: Well, that depends, don't it? I know what I'd like her to wear, but knowing this lady she'll be as buttoned-up as a nun to be sure I don't get any ideas. She's unpredictable, though, so I can't say for sure. Mayhap my luck will return and she'll be wearing some of that lace I like. The sort that you can see teasing little bits of skin through, but not quite as much as you desire ... Again, I'd best say no more. She could be wearing that officer's pistol in her muff again!
Benedict DeBreed from Craving the Rake's Touch: I love a woman in a red silk nightgown with thin straps. Red shows a woman's confident about her sensuality and she's willing to be a participant in her own pleasure. Sarah has one and I love hooking my thumbs under those straps and watching the silk slide down her body.
Ross Thornbury from The Rake's Handbook: To celebrate our holidays together, Elinor wears gowns bedecked with ruffles. I deplore ruffles, so I can receive no greater gift, and there is nothing I enjoy more than freeing her of them. Since I am leaving her in a ruffle-deprived state, I try to distract her from their disappearance as best I can.
Alex Knight from Twice Tempted: Emerald green velvet for the family time, with holly woven into her glorious red-gold hair, and perfect emeralds and rubies in her ears and throat. The only reason her dress won't be cut very low is because I refuse to share the beauty beneath. That is for later when she slips into the fire-lit room in slinky, slithery silk and lace the color of her blushing skin, so sheer that I'm taunted with mere hints of what is to come.
Richard Barrett, Lord Hartley from A Rake by Any Other Name: Clearly, you have not met Sophie or you'd know she'll wear whatever she pleases, whether it's fashionable or not. She was raised in India and has what my grandmother calls "outlandish ideas." I find them intriguing. I wouldn't be surprised to see her ride up to Somerfield Park astride an elephant and dressed as if she just escaped a Turkish harem. Hmm … I may even suggest it.
Damian Beaumaris, Duke of Cirencester from The Rake's Bargain: My favorite lady — my wife — dresses exquisitely, always. But I've warned her that Brandon Abbey can be very cold in December — it often snows — so she's had some beautiful outfits made in fabrics like velvet, with a fur-lined pelisse and hood for church on Christmas morning. At night — well, at night, it's a different matter. And if you'll pardon my abruptness, what she wears then is entirely our own business.
Find out more about these rakes at their creators' websites: