Jacob Was Marrying Her For Money, Not Love.
Money, and the undeniable passion that flared between them. He wasnât thinking of forever. Only three nights ago, Claire had actually been relieved to learn that he didnât love her. How could so much change so quickly?
She held out her hand and hardly noticed as the jeweler slipped a ring on.
Last night, saying yes had been so easy. She loved him. He needed her. Given time, he might well come to love her, and last night, in the private darkness theyâd shared, answers had formed and flowed easily.
âDo you want a larger stone?â Jacob asked.
âIf the diamond was any bigger, Iâd have to start working out just to lift it. Itâs a beautiful ring. I justâ¦â She turned to look at him. His eyes were frowning, intent. He wasnât taking this business of getting a ringâof getting marriedâas lightly as it seemedâ¦.
Dear Reader,
Welcome to Silhouette Desire, where every month youâll find six passionate, powerful and provocative romances.
Octoberâs MAN OF THE MONTH is The Taming of Jackson Cade, part of bestselling author BJ Jamesâ MEN OF BELLE TERRE miniseries, in which a tough horse breeder is gentled by a lovely veterinarian. The Texanâs Tiny Secret by Peggy Moreland tells the moving story of a woman in love with the governor of Texas and afraid her scandalous past will hurt him.
The exciting series 20 AMBER COURT continues with Katherine Garberaâs Some Kind of Incredible, in which a secretary teaches her lone-wolf boss to take a chance on love. In Her Bossâs Baby, Cathleen Galitzâs contribution to FORTUNES OF TEXAS: THE LOST HEIRS, a businessman falsely accused of a crime finds help from his faithful assistant and solace in her virginal embrace.
Jacobâs Proposal, the first book in Eileen Wilksâ dynamic new series, TALL, DARK & ELIGIBLE, features a marriage of convenience between a beauty and a devastatingly handsome financier known as the Iceman. And Maureen Childâs popular BACHELOR BATTALION marches on with Last Virgin in California, an opposites-attract romance between a tough, by-the-book marine drill instructor and a free-spirited heroine.
So celebrate the arrival of autumn by indulging yourself with all six of these not-to-be-missed love stories.
Enjoy!
Joan Marlow Golan
Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire
Jacobâs Proposal
Eileen Wilks
is a fifth-generation Texan. Her great-great-grandmother came to Texas in a covered wagon shortly after the end of the Civil Warâexcuse us, the War Between the States. But sheâs not a full-blooded Texan. Right after another war, her Texan father fell for a Yankee woman. This obviously mismatched pair proceeded to travel to nine cities in three countries in the first twenty years of their marriage. For the next twenty years they stayed put, back home in Texas againâand still together.
Eileen figures her professional career matches her nomadic upbringing, since sheâs tried everything from drafting to a brief stint as a ranch handâraising two children and any number of cats and dogs along the way. Not until she started writing did she âstay put,â because thatâs when she knew sheâd come home. Readers can write to her at P.O. Box 4612, Midland, TX 79704-4612.
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
âWe have to get married.â
Outside, wind thrashed the shrubbery and snatched leaves from the oaks. Inside, three brothers stood in silenceâtwo of them stunned, one grim. All three were tall, strong men, but that was the only obvious resemblance. They werenât full brothers, after all. A close observer might notice a certain shared grace, the identical long-fingered hands, a likeness about the jaws and strong throats. Those few people who knew the West brothers well knew of other traits their father had passed on to his sons. Less visible traits than physical strength and grace.
Less desirable ones.
Luke, the middle brother, gave a quick bark of laughter. âWhat, the three of us? This is Texas. Iâm pretty sure there are laws against that sort of thing.â
âDonât be any more of an ass than you have to.â That came from Michael, the youngest, who sat in one of the wing chairs facing the empty fireplace. His eyes were as dark as his hair; he had the build of a dockworker and the face of a scholar. âThe treatments are that expensive, Jacob?â
The oldest and tallest of the brothers stood in front of the mantel. Jacob West was a lean, broad-shouldered man with harsh features and a remote expression. His hair was dark enough to look black in the artificial light; his eyes were oddly pale, as nearly colorless as human irises can be. âEach treatment takes eight days and costs just under a hundred thousand dollars. None of it, of course, is covered by insurance, since itâs experimental.â
Michael whistled soundlessly.
âEven you donât have that kind of money.â Luke pushed away from the wall heâd been leaning against. âGod. The last time I saw Ada, she looked fine. Itâs hard to take inâ¦how long have you known?â