Excerpt: 'Cinderella and the Ghost' by Marina Myles

HEA shares an excerpt from Marina Myles' new release, Cinderella and the Ghost, book four in her Cursed Princes series.

First, here's the blurb about the book (courtesy of Kensington):

When her demanding stepmother died, Ella Benoit knew just how far their fortunes had fallen, unlike her spoiled stepsisters. So she never expected the bequest from her late father. A chateau in France and the freedom to live her own life, all at once!

The chateau has seen better days, but Ella knows she can put the ruined house to rights. The life-size portrait of its first owner, Jean-Daniel Girard, seems to watch her work with approval, even pleasure. With bright blue eyes, strong features, and an athlete's body, the viscount is a tempting sight even now, more than three hundred years after his tragic death. But the more she looks at the portrait, the more convinced Ella is that she's met Jean-Daniel before. In another life, perhaps—or maybe, as the form who haunts the halls at night, invading Ella's dreams…

EXCERPT

Once Ella confirmed that a life-sized painting wasn't hanging inside the ballroom, she made her way up the grand staircase. Inexplicably, she felt drawn to where she was going. When she reached the second floor of the house, she studied a wall of faded frescoes depicting late seventeenth century life.

When something told her to go on, she padded to the third floor landing. A palpable hush filled the corridor ahead of her. Then a charged stream of energy rushed her way. Since all the curtains were drawn over the arched windows, darkness and shadow surrounded her. Ella should be doing so many things. Unpacking. Cleaning. Deciding which bedroom would be hers. But a sense of urgency prompted her feet to continue.

What will I find in this part of the house? Glimpses of the valiant but very dead Jean-Daniel Girard?

Gulping, she opened door after door and peeked in. She finally came to a storage space, with an additional staircase leading up to an attic. Creeping up those stairs, Ella surveyed the articles on the landing. Broken mirrors and furniture draped in white sheets lay strewn about. Tangled strings of cobwebs swathed the wood paneling.

As a beam of sunlight angled into the room. Ella's pulse sped. In the corner, she spotted an item covered with a black cloth. The object reclined against the far wall—and appeared to be larger than she was.

Pushing the curtains open, she allowed more sunlight to bathe the space. Hands quivering, she moved back to the draped item and pulled away the black cloth.

The painting's frame was stunning. On it, Ella located a nameplate.

Jean-Daniel Girard—Viscount de Maincy

1677-1703

Slowly, as though her life was being altered with every centimeter, her stare ascended to the nobleman's astonishing face. In an instant, time seemed to stand still.

Find out more about Marina and her books at www.marinamyles.com.