Book-Hopping Characters Sometimes when I m creating a minor character, he or she just seems extra vivid to me.

I always feel the greatest freedom in writing about my supporting players , be cause I'm not bound by rules or preconceptions. I don t have to worry about making them likeable or attractive, or educated . . . they just are what they are. And every so often, they show a surprising potential to be a hero or heroine. This happened to me with one of my past novels, Then Came You, when I created a minor character named Derek Craven. Unlike the typical hero of a romance novel, he wa s a cockney-born gambling club owner . . . the son of a prostitute . . . minimal ly educated . . . and although he was handsome in an offbeat sort of way, he had slightly snaggly teeth, and a scar on his forehead. But something about him was so interesting to me that I eventually made him into the hero of my next book, Dreaming Of You. And he arguably became my most popular character ever. I have other minor characters who visit various books, and on occasion they do get their very own love stories. Here are the ones I m asked about the most often: ******************************************* Derek Craven was a minor character in Then Came You and then became the hero of Dreaming Of You. He has visited a few other stories, but he is more or less in retirement now. The problem with Derek is that he seems to overpower every st ory that he s in. He can t help it! Derek has made a brief appearance in an old shor t story of mine called Promises , in the anthology Three Weddings and a Kiss, and h e is the father of the bride in another novella, Against The Odds in the anthology Where s My Hero. There are the briefest of mentions of Derek s gaming club in Someo ne To Watch Over Me (don t blink, you ll miss it) and in my recent The Devil In Wint er. ******************************************* Dr. Jacob Linley certainly gets around in my novels. He first appeared as a minor character in one of my Bow Street Runner novels, Someone To Watch Over Me. During the next few years, as I wrote novels set in the early Victorian period, whenever I needed a doctor I just brought in Jake Linley. I joke that it was la ziness on my part, as I didn t want to have to do the work of creating a brand new character . . . but the truth was that I was getting rather fond of Jake. He ma de some fairly strong appearances in Where Dreams Begin, Lady Sophia s Lover and W orth Any Price, before I finally made him the hero in "Against The Odds from Wher e s My Hero. Becoming Derek Craven s son-in-law is a daunting proposition, but I thi nk Jake handles it pretty well. ******************************************* Grant Morgan was the hero of my first Bow Street Runner novel, Someone To Wa tch Over Me, and afterward he played significant parts in Lady Sophia s Lover and Worth Any Price. His growth over these books, from a rough-around-the-edges Runn er to a powerful magistrate in his own right, was really fun for me. ******************************************* Sir Ross Cannon, the reserved, lonely and secretly passionate Bow Street Mag istrate, was a minor character in Someone To Watch Over Me, the hero of Lady Sop hia s Lover, and he visited Worth Any Price. ******************************************* Nick Gentry, the dashing villain of Lady Sophia s Lover, reformed just enough to become the hero of Worth Any Price, changing from a crime lord into a Bow Str eet Runner, and then into a very reluctant viscount.

******************************************* Gemma Bradshaw, the tall red-haired madam, will probably never ine . . . her past is just too shady. But I liked her so much as a er in Suddenly You that I had her play a much larger role in Worth r job was to turn Nick Gentry into a world-class lover . . . and I well at it! ******************************************* Marcus, Lord Westcliff is my favorite hero after Derek Craven. He is an aris tocrat, unlike my usual common-born professional men, and he is principled, rese rved, powerful and inwardly longing for love. He made a minor appearance as the heroine s employer in Worth Any Price, another turn as the meddling older brother of the heroine in Again The Magic, and as the hero s bossy best friend in Secrets Of A Summer Night. He will finally get his own love story in It Happened One Aut umn , when I pair him with a free-spirited, headstrong American heiress who driv es him crazy. ******************************************* Simon Hunt is easily defined as a classic "Kleypas hero"--tall, dark-haired, self-made and more than a little sarcastic. Underneath his self-assured exterio r, however, he is consumed with love for the heroine. I thought Simon would be t he perfect hero to launch the Wallflower Series, with Secrets Of A Summer Night. Simon is the best friend of Marcus, Lord Westcliff, and he makes a strong suppo rting appearance in Marcus's story, Autumn Affair. He also appears in the subseq uent book Devil In Winter. ******************************************* Sebastian, Lord St. Vincent, is one of my rare blond heroes. He is a first-r ate ladykiller, not only gorgeous but amoral. He is mentioned briefly in Secrets Of A Summer Night, and does a villainous turn in Autumn Affair. After that I ha d no plans to make him into a hero, because he was sufficiently dastardly that I couldn't see how any woman, least of all a wallflower, could reform him. Howeve r, I eventually couldn't resist the challenge, and I gave him his own book, Devi l In Winter. It was quite a trick to make his transformation from bad guy to her o believable--I had to put him through the wringer! ******************************************* Andrew, Lord Drake, is another villain-turned-hero . . . he is the hero s alco holic half-brother in Because You re Mine, and then a sexy reformed rake in my nov ella I Will from the anthology Wish List. ******************************************* I have a lot more character-sharing I could mention, but I ll have to keep adding to this page as I find the time. Many readers have asked me if I will someday wr ite stories about Nicole or Henry from Then Came You . . . Vardon, Lord Ravenhil l from Where Dreams Begin . . . or any of Derek Craven s children, who are mention ed in Against The Odds . At this time, none of these are likely except perhaps for Vardon. I just have to find the right story for him . . .I ll let you know when I do. become a hero minor charact Any Price. He think she did