Flirting With Disaster (Camelot 3)

“No,” he corrected. “Lucky me.”

Acknowledgments

I’ve had a soft spot for stuttering heroes ever since I read Stephen King’s It as a kid—and I read it over and over and over again. So I’d like to dedicate this book to King, with thanks for all the hours of entertainment and inspiration, and an extra-big helping of gratitude for that wonderful, grieving Stuttering Bill.

Like just about everything Sean says, Flirting with Disaster didn’t come out smooth and perfect on the first go-round. There was a baby in the first draft, for one thing. (No, it wasn’t Sean and Katie’s.) Also, someone got shot. Bonus points for guessing who! The story changed a great deal between the first and last versions, and I owe a debt of gratitude to everyone who read it for me and gave me feedback that helped me improve it. Faye Robertson and Gina L. Maxwell were early cheerleaders. Their enthusiasm for the very idea of a stuttering hacker hero built my confidence.

My agent, Emily Sylvan Kim, and my editors at Random House, Sue Grimshaw and Angela Polidoro, made excellent revision suggestions, as did many of my writing friends and critique partners. Amber Lin and Serena Bell both managed to be really excited about the book when I most wanted to drown it in the bathtub. Courtney Milan, Del Dryden, Meg Maguire, Carrie Herring, Charlotte Stein, and Anna Cowan all offered supportive comments and general buoying. There are really no words to express how necessary all of this help is to a writer, so I’ll just have to say “Thank you, you wonderful, wonderful women, you.”

Any remaining mistakes or horrid errors—intentional or not—are, of course, my own.

Photo: Mark Anderson, STUN Photography

RUTHIE KNOX graduated from Grinnell College as an English and history double major and w

ent on to earn a Ph.D. in modern British history that she’s put to remarkably little use. She debuted as a romance novelist with Ride with Me—probably the only existing cross-country bicycling love story yet to be penned—and followed it up with About Last Night, which features a sizzling British banker hero with the unlikely name of Neville. Flirting with Disaster is the third book in her Camelot series, which kicks off with How to Misbehave, followed by Along Came Trouble. Ruthie moonlights as a mother, Tweets incessantly, and bakes a mean focaccia.

THE EDITOR’S CORNER

Welcome to Loveswept!

Whether you’re on the beach, in the park, or sitting poolside, there’s nothing like spending a warm summer day reading a good book – especially one that has romance, sizzling passion, and deeply felt emotion. Luckily, we have just the thing to make your summer even more sweltering – in the very best way.

Samantha Kane’s captivating regency romance, TEMPTING THE DEVIL, is an erotic tale of secrets and temptation, and after reading it, you’ll be reaching for that fan for a whole ’nother reason! And we’re also incredibly excited about Mary Ann Rivers’s sexy debut contemporary romance novella, THE STORY GUY, where Wednesdays turn into a day of temptation and pleasure for a mild-mannered librarian who responds to the most intriguing personal ad.

We also have some classics that you won’t want to miss:

Sandra Chastain’s exceptional stories, SILVER BRACELETS and DANNY’S GIRL, Ruth Owen’s riveting AND BABIES MAKE FOUR, Jean Stone’s moving SINS OF INNOCENCE, Iris Johansen’s thrilling TIL THE END OF TIME, and Katie Rose’s irresistible A HINT OF MISCHIEF.

If you love romance … then you’re ready to be Loveswept!

Gina Wachtel

Associate Publisher

P.S. Watch for these terrific Loveswept titles coming soon: August heats up with three e-originals: Stacey Kennedy’s intoxicating CLAIMED, Elisabeth Barrett’s blazing SLOW SUMMER BURN, and Toni Aleo’s red-hot BLUE LINES, as well as Sandra Chastain’s stirring SURRENDER THE SHADOW, Katie Rose’s unforgettable COURTING TROUBLE, Adrienne Staff’s alluring CRESCENDO, Iris Johansen’s tantalizing YORK, THE RENEGADE and Ruth Owen’s ultra-sexy BODY HEAT. September arrives with more timeless stories for you – Three enticing stories from Sandra Chastain, THE JUDGE AND THE GYPSY, FIREBRAND, and THE LAST DANCE, beloved author Iris Johansen’s THE DELANEY’S OF KILLAROO, Fran Baker’s enchanting SEEING STARS, as well as two original stories: Lauren Layne’s seductive AFTER THE KISS, and Mira Lyn Kelly’s sexy and sweet TRUTH OR DARE. Don’t miss any of these extraordinary reads. I promise that you’ll fall in love and treasure these stories for years to come.…

Read on for excerpts from more Loveswept titles …

Read on for an excerpt from Ruthie Knox’s

How to Misbehave

Chapter One

Friday, July 16, 1999

When the tornado siren began to scream, Amber was alone in the building with him.

Him.

The foreman. The guy with the deep tan and the hard hat and the oh-my-lord arms.

Everybody had a different name for him. One of the lifeguards called him “the Italian Stallion.” A patron had referred to him as “Mr. Yummy.” Rosalie, the weekday receptionist, said his name was actually Patrick Mazzara, and he was trouble.

Amber just thought of him as “him.”

She thought of him a great deal more than was good for her.