ABOUT THE BOOK
They
should be enemies… But passion and love know no bounds.
Returning from France to
his family’s manor in England, Samuel de Mowbray discovers that his two younger
sisters have been stolen away to the Highlands by the Sutherland brothers.
Determined to save his sisters from the hands of vicious warriors, he convinces
the king to send him north on a mission. While there he discovers not only that
his loyalties are beginning to waver, but that a head-strong, feisty lass could
destroy everything he believes.
Catriona Buchanan needs to
travel north to gain the help of her distant relations in saving her brother
and ridding her castle of brutal English knights. Unfortunately, it appears the
only way to escape their clutches is by trusting in the very thing she
mistrusts the most—an Englishman. Minute by minute, the man who should be her
enemy breaks down her defenses. There is something different about him and she
can’t help but be captivated by Samuel, and his steamy kisses.
EXCERPT
SIR Samuel de Mowbray had
not signed on to this jaunt into the Highlands to watch his superior officer
violate a young maiden.
The woman
embodied beauty. She was nearly tall as a man, but he guessed he had a few
inches on her. Dark, sleek hair was pulled tight in a plait down her back. Her
skin was pale, made paler by her fear he surmised, but her amber colored eyes
shot fire. She wasn’t timid—if anything she was spitting with rage. She had a
good way of keeping it tightly leashed, which impressed him greatly.
It had
been hard not to wince when Geoffrey slapped her. Samuel had two sisters of his
own. Both of which had been stolen out from under his love-struck father’s nose
and now resided here in the Highlands somewhere. He was bound and determined to
find out exactly where they were, too. He’d rip off their husbands’ limbs and
then carry his sisters back to the safety of England. When he’d arrived home
after fighting the French to find that his father had gone off on something of
a honeymoon with his sisters’ nursemaid and that his sisters had been married
off to savage Scots—brothers no less!—he about died of shock.
Getting a
position within Geoffrey’s unit had been a bit of a quandary, but his superior
officer had finally allowed it when Samuel said he wanted to lay his blade into
a Scot or two—and the king had been more than happy to send him into Scotland
thinking he might be able to gain access to the Scottish rebellion leaders.
Theoretically, joining Geoffrey’s ranks was a step down for Samuel since he’d
been at the same level as the bastard when he returned from France.
“Leave her
be, ye wicked Sassenach!” shouted the old goat Geoffrey intended to wed the
chit to. “God will strike ye down for what ye’ve done, just ye wait and see.
Run, Catriona, run!”
So
Catriona was her name? Had a hint of magic to it, and seemed to match her fae-like
beauty.
“Somebody shut that man up,” Geoffrey said
with a roll of his eyes, though he did take a step back.
Relief
flashed on her face, but was gone when she looked down to smooth her gown.
Something in his chest tightened. The Scots were brutal bastards, worse so than
his own people. Watching the woman—Catriona—be so abused by Geoffrey only
pained him more in regards to his own sisters. Were they now being beaten by
the barbarians who’d stolen them?
One of the
knights holding the old man, bashed him on the head with the hilt of his sword
knocking him from the present.
Samuel
shook his head. Blazes, but he wanted to step in. They were not here to
pillage, plunder and rape. They were here to take control of the castle as the
king had ordered. The small holding was nothing really on its own, but the
several surrounding clan holdings when combined controlled the crossing between
the Highlands and Lowlands. Having control of a major part of the border would
be beneficial in gaining access and more power in the north.
How could
he go about bringing up that point with Geoffrey? The man would not like to be
called out in front of his own unit. Would make him look bad. Would be bad for
Samuel, too, considering the leering, hungry eyes of the men watching Catriona.
“Mowbray,”
Geoffrey growled, startling him from his thoughts. “Take the lady to the
library. Mayhap she’ll be more amenable to our plans without interruption from
her kin.”
Samuel
gave a curt nod, though he’d have to ask Catriona to show him the way. Unknowingly,
Geoffrey had given him the perfect opportunity to speak with him without the
prying eyes of his men. With hope, he’d be able to convince him to leave the
chit alone. ’Haps appeal to his Godly side, mention what a sin it was to abuse
the less fortunate and wouldn’t he want to be seen as a merciful leader? But
Samuel had his doubts a line like that would sway this brutal man. He seemed to
enjoy harming others, especially those who couldn’t or wouldn’t fight back. Men
like that were never reasonable.
Stepping
forward, Samuel sighed deeply and gently gripped Catriona above the elbow. He
kept his touch light, not wanting to frighten her, but by taking hold he was
also showing Geoffrey what he wanted to see—the man didn’t need to know just
how slight his hold was.
“Show me
to the library,” he demanded in a low voice.
Catriona
glanced up at him, her fiery gaze connecting with his and sending a jolt
through him. Was it possible to be struck by lightning figuratively? Because
that was how he felt. And then he was immediately disgusted. He sneered at his
moment of femininity, baring his teeth at the chit. He didn’t like that this
woman could make him feel things he’d never felt before, and he didn’t even
know her.
She didn’t
move. But stared up at him, fear pooling in her eyes. Beneath his fingertips
she wasn’t warm and she trembled. Geoffrey had scared the warmth from her
blood. A fierce need to protect her tugged at his gut.
“The
library. Now,” he bit out. For the love of Christ, he couldn’t turn her over to
Geoffrey. With skin so smooth, she couldn’t be a day over eighteen summers, and
was most likely a virgin, if she even knew the ways of men.
Her lips
pressed together, crinkling at the corners as it looked like she would say
something. Judging from what he’d seen it wasn’t going to be pleasant, which
might only cause Geoffrey to take her to the library himself.
Samuel
widened his eyes and gave a barely perceptible shake of his head. Catriona
appeared to understand his slight warning and instead of speaking gave a single
nod, then took several tentative steps toward a slim archway off the side of
the great hall.
“Where
exactly is the library?” he asked, not wanting to be surprised by a room full
of Highlanders. They’d swept the castle, but Samuel hadn’t been on the team
that had discovered the room.
“Just up
the stairs,” she murmured, her voice strained.
As they passed through the
archway and were out of earshot of the men, Samuel whispered, “Do as I say, and
I’ll do my damndest to see he doesn’t hurt you.”
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