Today I have author Donna Alward talking about her cast list for The Heiress’s Pregnancy Surprise.
A VIP assignment…
an unexpected consequence!
Ex-SAS officer Jacob Wolfe’s latest job, as aristocrat Charlotte Pemberton’s bodyguard, is pushing him to his limits. Never one to step over the line, he’s determined to ignore their intense connection. Until a single dance leads to a forbidden kiss… and Jacob is tempted to break all his rules. But their resulting night together has an unexpected consequence…
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One of the things I still do with each book is cast my characters. I’m a really visual person, so having that image in the back of my mind as I’m writing really helps. THE HEIRESS’S PREGNANCY SURPRISE is no different – I’ve cast all the characters in the HEIRS TO AN EMPIRE series! More about that later… for now though, would you like to see who I have as Charlotte and Jacob?
This is Charlotte Pemberton, who works with Aurora Inc publicity and in this book, is handling the company’s presence at New York Fashion Week for the first time. I’ve cast her with Irina Shayk, who just had the right look about her. Gorgeous and yet not overdone, with bob-length hair and a classic sense of style. There’s a natural look to her that I really like. What do you think?
Then I had to cast the right hero – Charlotte’s bodyguard. I knew Jacob couldn’t be “pretty.” He’s a bodyguard and ex-SAS so I wanted him a little more rough-and-ready, and yet could easily see him in a suit. Someone with a little bit of danger about them, who wouldn’t exactly fit in with the Aurora, Inc. crowd… and so I cast Jacob Wolfe with Charlie Hunnam. In the next book (coming in May), the hero describes Jacob as a “big blond viking.” He also has a heart of gold…
Of course, I don’t just cast characters – I do locations, too! You can see all of my visual inspiration on my Heirs to an Empire Pinterest board, including French Villas, English country homes, Italian villas, Paris flats…I had a marvelous time populating my board with lovely photos!
Here are a few little snippets where I’ve described Charlotte and Jacob:
“You’ll notice a lot tonight,” she said, her stomach in knots. “Tons of A-listers here. And there’s always Fashion Week drama.”
“As long as the drama doesn’t involve harming you, I’m good.”
Right. Because he was her bodyguard. The protective statement shouldn’t feel so comforting, but it did. Charlotte was very used to handling herself, and she knew she could. But she couldn’t deny it felt good having a wingman tonight. What he’d said earlier about exhaustion and feeling overwhelmed rang in her ears. Tonight she was both.
She was even happier to have his company when they entered the room that was already packed. Just inside the door, Jacob reached down and tugged on her hand. “I’m sticking close. And you should hydrate. You haven’t eaten enough today, but keeping hydrated will help.”
“I think I can manage,” she said, but knew he was right. She watched as he undid the button on his suit jacket. She was in a black dress, a straight column with simple lines, and a white band across the bodice—the Aurora brand colors. At her ears were the diamonds that her father had given her on her eighteenth birthday. Last fall she’d loaned them to Gabi Baresi, for the night that William proposed. Right now they kept Charlotte anchored. Cedric Pemberton had been a wonderful father and a steadying influence.
She fully expected to see some gorgeous and innovative wardrobe choices tonight. But for her… She wasn’t a model. She stuck with what Aurora did best: the red-carpet look.
Amelie took a sip of her coffee and lowered her voice. “I don’t know, Charlotte. He’s terribly good-looking.”
She wasn’t wrong, and it wasn’t like Charlotte hadn’t noticed. Even standing in the kitchen with a scowl on his face, he cut an impressive figure. He’d ditched the suit and now wore jeans and a sweater, the first fitting his long legs and fine butt perfectly and the second managing to make his shoulders look even more forbidding. His hair was rumpled as if he’d run his fingers through it, and his eyes had been icy fire as he’d told her to let him do his job.
He was an intense man. She kind of liked it, not that she’d admit such a thing. Besides, she had to focus on the job at hand. “Well, looks aren’t everything,” she responded. “Now, let’s look at the schedule.”
While bestselling author Donna Alward was busy studying Austen, Eliot and Shakespeare, she was also losing herself in the breathtaking stories created by romance novelists like LaVyrle Spencer and Judith McNaught. Several years after completing her degree she decided to write a romance of her own and it was true love! Five years and ten manuscripts later she sold her first book and launched a new career. While her heartwarming stories of love, hope, and homecoming have been translated into several languages, hit bestseller lists and won awards, her very favorite thing is when she hears from happy readers.
Donna lives on Canada’s east coast. When she’s not writing she enjoys reading (of course!), knitting, gardening, cooking…and is a Masterpiece Theater addict.
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