Christmas Male. Cara Summers

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      Dear Reader,

      I loved writing Christmas Male for many reasons. First, it gave me a chance to wind up Blaze’s year-long mini-series UNIFORMLY HOT!, which features hunky military heroes. Second, it allowed me to tell D.C. Campbell’s story. You may remember him from my summer books, Twin Temptation and Twin Seduction.

      Telling D.C.’s story also allowed me to revisit one of my favorite cities—Washington, D.C. I fell in love for the first time in our nation’s capital, so it will always hold a special place in my heart. And the holiday season is the perfect time for love to be in the air. Especially when there’s a legendary diamond involved…and two hot-for-each-other people who aren’t looking for a sexily-ever-after. But the holidays have a way of giving us all what we really want, even if we don’t know it yet.

      May all your Christmas wishes come true!

       Cara Summers

      P.S. I’d love to hear from you. Please visit me at www.carasummers.com.

      About the Author

      RITA^® Award nominee CARA SUMMERS is currently working on her thirty-fifth story, a new Blaze^® romance. Her books have won several awards, including two Golden Leaves, three Golden Quills, an Award of Excellence, a Holt Medallion and a Lifetime Achievement Award from RT Book Reviews. Who does she credit with inspiring her to become a romance writer? Her dad, who was always an avid reader of genre fiction, and her mom, who handed her a romance novel about fifteen years ago and said, “Try it. You’ll love it.” And Mom was right. Cara’s been reading and writing romances ever since! Visit her at www.carasummers.com.

      To my niece and godchild Emma Fulgenzi, who is just the sort of smart, strong, independent woman I like to write stories about.

      May all your Christmas wishes come true—and then some!

      I love you!

      Prologue

       Washington Post—December 20 Is True Love In the Air?

      THE RUBINOV DIAMOND EXHIBIT at the National Gallery has created a lot of excitement in Washington during this holiday season. Although whether people are flocking to see the stone because of its long, sometimes bloody history…or its acclaimed ability to bring lovers together, has yet to be discerned.

      The brilliant blue diamond boasts a long and somewhat checkered history. After disappearing for generations, sometimes centuries, it always resurfaces—and always with a new owner. Like other large diamonds, rumors of obsession, murder and theft swirl around it. At one point, it is said that the diamond spent some time in the possession of pirates in the Aegean. More recently in 1999, master jewel thief Arthur Franks was credited with facilitating the Rubinov’s reappearance on the market. Neither story has ever been authenticated.

      But what seems certain is that whenever the diamond reappears, a new love story is born.

      According to the legend, the diamond’s power to ignite an intense attraction between true lovers dates back to ancient times. A few scholars argue the stone originated in Greece, and some even favor the theory that it was Aphrodite, the goddess of love, who first brought the stone to earth and gave it to a mortal she desired above all others.

      Its current name, the Rubinov, was bestowed on it in 1917 when Count Peter Rubinov, a close friend of Tsar Nicholas of Russia, fell in love with one of the servants in the royal household and had the diamond made into a necklace for her. Shortly afterward, Count Rubinov, his lover and the necklace disappeared. Many believe it was through the power of the blue stone that they escaped when the Tsar and his family were put to death.

      And Count Rubinov’s romance isn’t the only one. In another story, Helen of Troy was in possession of the stone when Paris first saw her, and it was his irresistible attraction to Helen that compelled him to kidnap her.

      Another account claims that Merlin gave the diamond to Guinevere to solidify her relationship with Arthur. Instead, she wore it when she met Lancelot…

      In more current stories, it is maintained that the Rubinov played a role in bringing Bonnie and Clyde together before they went on their bank-robbing spree. And though Britain’s royal family has always denied it, there are a few insiders who believe the Rubinov was briefly in their possession when Edward first met Mrs. Simpson.

      According to my own research, Jacqueline Bouvier photographed it when it was last exhibited in Boston while she was dating John F. Kennedy. The picture she snapped of the necklace is still archived in the John F. Kennedy Library.

      But the clincher as far as this reporter is concerned is the number of stories that have crossed my desk since the Rubinov Exhibit opened on December 15. Love is definitely in the air in our nation’s Capitol. The latest announcement came from Senator McNeil of Wisconsin, who insists that his daughter met her new fiancé in a chance meeting at the exhibit.

      Regina Meyers, spokesperson for Gregory Shalnokov, the reclusive owner of the Rubinov, says Mr. Shalnokov is very pleased his diamond has contributed to the joy of the season.

      Clearly, the Rubinov diamond is a matchmaker extraordinaire. This reporter’s advice: The clock’s ticking. If you want to make the legend of the Rubinov live on, run, don’t walk, to the National Gallery. The diamond is scheduled to return to the private collection of Gregory