Banking on Temperance Book Three When beautiful Temperance Jones and her mother enter Basil Fitzpatrick’s St. Louis bank, the handsome ladies’ man believes he’ll only be conducting a monetary transaction for the down-on-their-luck Jones family.  But Fate intervenes, and that first meeting becomes so much more to both Temperance and Basil.  Dying of consumption, Preacher Jones extracts a promise from his daughter Temperance that she will do whatever it takes to get the rest of the large family to Oregon. With the threat of civil war looming, he wants to see his sons safely away from conflict. With Basil’s help, the Jones family begins to put down roots, and the faraway dream of traveling on to Oregon loses its luster for everyone but Temperance.  She knows she must go on, no matter what—if not for her promise to her father, then to protect her own heart from Basil—for she has loved him since the moment they met. Is Basil ready for a permanent commitment? To love Temperance would mean taking on the burden of providing for her mother and siblings, as well—a tall order for a man who, up to now, has only looked out for himself. Drawn to the tiny spitfire like a magnet, Basil must decide if he’ll let Temperance travel the Oregon Trail with another man, or will he gladly spend the rest of his life BANKING ON TEMPERANCE? Read Reviews | Read Excerpt Order eBook: Amazon Order Paperback: Amazon

Since book one, I’ve been waiting for Basil—the devil-may-care playboy—to meet his match, and in my wildest dreams, I could not have envisioned the perfection that was Temperance—an astonishingly stubborn woman whose name is one of the greatest misnomers of all time. Banking on Temperance delivers a captivating story on a grand scale that I could not have put down to save my life. -- Micah Persell, Author Of Eternal Life

Temperance sputtered and fumed, breathing fire as the door to Basil’s apartment staircase closed behind him. That no-good, self-centered ass! How dare he say their friendship had been destroyed by her ambition! If they’d truly been friends, he would have stood by her and championed her clever attempts to get her family moved westward. But once he introduced her to Jake, it was as if he’d turned his back on her. She could take him turning his back on her as a woman, but not as a friend. She yanked open the door and ran up the stairs.

“How dare you!” She didn’t bother to knock at the top of the steps, she was so angry.

He turned to face her, but didn’t reply.

“Well? How dare you say that I’m the one who turned away from your friendship? You’ve become my best friend here in town, Basil, and I miss our good times. You never come to the restaurant anymore, and you barely talk to me at all here. Do you want me to quit? To leave?”

“Yes.”

“Yes, what?”

“If you know what’s best for you, leave, right this minute.”

“Why? Because you’ll tell me something I don’t want to hear?”

Basil crossed the room to her in two strides. He placed his hands on either side of her face and growled, “Not because of what I’ll tell you, but because of what I’ll do.” He lowered his mouth to hers, crushing her tender lips beneath his own.

Temperance stood still, in shock at what was happening. The breath whooshed out of her lungs. Her arms hung by her sides, but her mouth and tongue were doing battle with Basil’s. She moved her arms finally, and wound them around his broad shoulders, welcoming him. Her back was up against the wall as Basil continued to kiss her with all the pent-up passion that had been building between them for months. She pulled him closer, reveling in his scent of spice and man. She tasted the tobacco on his breath, along with mint, and thought there had never been so delightful a combination.

This is where I belong. Not Oregon.

A small moan drifted from her mouth as she sunk her fingers into his hair. He ran a row of scorching kisses from the left corner of her mouth up to her temple, then down to the pulsing vein in her neck. As he tugged gently, her whimpers became stronger. She was desperately kissing his hair, his forehead, anything she could touch. His moans matched hers as the torrid, sensual dance continued.

His hand drifted to the buttons running down the front of her dress. He slowly unbuttoned each one, taking the time to kiss each inch of new skin he uncovered. Temperance thought she would surely combust from the sensation of his mouth on flesh that had never before been touched by a man. She squirmed and wrapped her fingers into his hair.  “Oh, sweet Lord,” she cried out.

Basil pried his lips from her, and backed off a step. He ran his hand through his hair. Temperance couldn’t talk. She couldn’t breathe. Her senses were still writhing out of control. He backed away one more step, staring at her with lust-filled eyes.
“That is why you should never set foot in this apartment. If you come near me again, I’ll not stop. I will have all of you, and ruin all your plans for marriage to Jake. And that is why we can no longer be friends. You’ve made your choice, Temptress. Now leave me alone.”