Mayhew inhaled another orange-blossom-scented breath and thought that he couldn’t possibly be any happier than he was at that moment, lying in a three-poster bed, holding his wife, while a kitten purred on the pillow alongside them.
Then he remembered that this was the first of many such mornings together, and he discovered that it was possible to be even happier. He gathered Willie closer, tucking her warmth and her soft, slender curves in tightly to his body. “This is going to be so good,” he whispered in her ear. “Us, together, forever.”
“It most certainly is!” Willie said.
And it was.
Author’s Note
The kittens in Lieutenant Mayhew’s Catastrophes are based on a litter of day-old kittens that I found several years ago. I raised them until they were old enough to be rehomed, and I found it fascinating how quickly they developed strong and disparate personalities. One of them was an utterly fearless and very fluffy little girl whose greatest desire was to explore. Her adventures were often quite hair-raising. She had an extremely laid-back brother who adored lying in my hand and having his belly rubbed. He would close his eyes and purr blissfully.
Scout, Mr. Bellyrub, and their siblings made their debut in Lady Isabella’s Ogre. Lieutenant Mayhew made his debut in that novel, too. I’ve always wanted to know what happened to him when he headed off with two kittens in a basket, and I’m delighted to finally have the chance to tell his story.
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Happy reading!
Emily
Emily Larkin grew up in a house full of books—her mother was a librarian and her father a novelist—so perhaps it’s not surprising that she became a writer.
Emily has studied a number of subjects, including geology and geophysics, canine behavior, and ancient Greek. Her varied career includes stints as a field assistant in Antarctica and a waitress on the Isle of Skye, as well as five vintages in New Zealand’s wine industry.
She loves to travel and has lived in Sweden, backpacked in Europe and North America, and traveled overland in the Middle East, China, and North Africa.
She enjoys climbing hills, yoga workouts, watching reruns of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly, and reading.
Emily writes historical romances as Emily Larkin and fantasy novels as Emily Gee.
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www.emilylarkin.com
Also by Emily Larkin
THE BALEFUL GODMOTHER SERIES
Prequel
The Fey Quartet novella collection
Maythorn’s Wish ~ Hazel’s Promise ~ Ivy’s Choice ~ Larkspur’s Quest
Original Series
Unmasking Miss Appleby
Resisting Miss Merryweather
Trusting Miss Trentham
Claiming Mister Kemp
Ruining Miss Wrotham
Discovering Miss Dalrymple
Garland Cousins
Primrose and the Dreadful Duke
Violet and the Bow Street Runner
Octavius and the Perfect Governess
OTHER HISTORICAL ROMANCES
The Earl’s Dilemma
My Lady Thief
Lady Isabella’s Ogre
Lieutenant Mayhew’s Catastrophes
The Midnight Quill Trio
The Countess’s Groom
The Spinster’s Secret
The Baronet’s Bride
FANTASY NOVELS
(Written as Emily Gee)
Thief With No Shadow
The Laurentine Spy
The Cursed Kingdoms Trilogy
The Sentinel Mage
The Fire Prince
The Blood Curse
Copyright © 2020 by Emily Larkin
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
www.emilylarkin.com
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
Lieutenant Mayhew’s Catastrophes / Emily Larkin. -- 1st ed.
ISBN 978-0-9951396-4-0
Cover Design: JD Smith Design
Created with Vellum