Characters Who Travel the Romantic Road - #3 Max Petersen

I sometimes think of film actors when I’m in the midst of creating my characters. From the moment the character of Max Petersen came to life in Romantic Road, I saw him as the British actor Rufus Sewell. His voice resonated in my ears when Max spoke.   

Allow me to introduce you to Max Petersen:

 

Rufus Sewell as Max

Tall, dark, broad shouldered, with a gorgeous physique, Max has deep brown eyes to drown in and a funny lopsided smile. His hair is dark brown, and he wears it a bit longer than is fashionable.

He’s totally unconscious of how good looking he is. He wears blue jeans when he’s not wearing khaki pants and hiking boots, or motorcycle leathers. In the right setting he’s been known to don traditional Tyrolean loden. After all, he grew up in the lake country east of Salzburg, in Sound of Music country.

He is quirky, with a wild and outrageous sense of humor. He delights in teasing Lacy.  

But Max is a bit of an idealist. He sometimes has trouble coming to grips with things as they are. He must face the conflict between his job as an “ask no questions” agent, and a man in love, who can see more than one side to an issue.

In the following scene, Max helps Lacy recover from too much mulled wine at lunch:

Her head was pounding. Aspirin. Surely she must have some aspirin in her purse. She rummaged through it to no avail. Maybe Max had some.

When she opened her room door, he was leaning against the wall. In one hand he had a small glass filled with a clear liquid. He handed it to her. “Drink,” he said. “Think of it as medicine.”

She looked from Max to shot glass, back to Max.

“You have a headache?” he asked.

Numbly Lacy nodded, the very action hurting.

“Drink.”

She took the proffered glass and swallowed the fiery alcohol in one gulp that left her gasping for breath.

When she stopped sputtering she asked, “What on earth was that?”

“Schnapps. Just sit down for a moment and let it do its work.” He led her to an ancient carved wooden bench placed along the wall of the large center room. “You had quite a bit to drink at lunch time.”

 As she revived, it began to come back. Lunch. Apple fritters and mulled wine. And after lunch…

“What happened after lunch?” she asked, afraid of the answer.

“You mean you don’t remember?” He sounded hurt, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “How could you not remember?” He leaned into her and kissed her insinuatingly.

Lacy pushed him away and put her head in her hands. “No. Oh, no.”

Max took her hands away from her face and looked into her eyes, dead serious. “Nothing happened between us after lunch, Lacy. There are rules about that sort of thing. I promise you when…that is…if we make love, it will not be when you’ve had too much to drink.”

 “You beast.” Lacy pummelled him with her fists. “You let me think …”

“Feeling better now?” he asked, laughing, catching her hands in his and holding them.

Lacy realized indeed she did feel better. She felt fine.

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My latest romantic thriller, Romantic Road, is available for sale.   

 Click here for your purchase options.

This romantic thriller is a mix of hair raising suspense, romance and a sprinkling of humor. 

Escape Rating A - Marlene Harris, EscapeReality.net

"Like her other books, the story in this one operates on more than one level.  The suspense is edge of the seat, while Lacy's inner journey makes her a sympathetic and fascinating character. If you enjoy edge-of-your-seat suspense with a heart-pounding romance wrapped around a story that also makes you think, read Romantic Road, or any of Blair McDowell's marvelous stories.".....More

5 out of 5 Stars - Jack Magnus, ReadersFavorite.com

"Blair McDowell's romantic suspense novel, Romantic Road, is exciting and fast-paced. Lacy is a strong and appealing character whose fairy-tale marriage has abruptly ended, leaving unanswered questions and danger. The quest Igor sets for her leads her and the reader on a marvelous trip through Canada, Austria and Hungary, and the author's familiarity with each of these venues makes Lacy's adventures truly come alive.".....More

5 Stars out of 5 - Debbie Davenport, Librarian via NetGalley

"This is my kind of book: a fast-paced romantic suspense thriller with teeth! And the puzzles Igor left that Lacy must follow all over Europe... beautiful! The secrets will blow your socks off!"

5 out of 5 Stars - Celia Lewis, Pres., Romance Writers of America, Greater Vancouver Chapter

"A challenging love story, a deadly dangerous secret, a mysterious quest from New York through Europe, the latest story from Blair McDowell has it all!... I love romantic suspense, and this story was very fascinating to me, not least because of the unusual locales, adding an exotic flavour. I'm already wanting to read the next story by Blair McDowell!" 

To read more about Romantic Road, as well as my other novels, please visit my website:

http://www.blairmcdowell.com