Short Straw Bride
ONE OF THEM WOULD HAVE TO MARRYThe McLain brothers were fed up and tired - tired of the hunger in their cowboy-sized stomachs, tired of dingy curtains and dirty dishes. Tired of worrying about who to leave the ranch to when they were gone.Luke could imagine the perfect wife - biddable, tidy and willing - and when he saw Eleanor Williams in church one Sunday, he thought she'd do just fine. But little did he knew that the practical Eleanor had a mind of her own - and other ideas about marriage!
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Table of Contents
Praise for Dallas Schulze whom Booklovers calls “A talent to be reckoned with.”
Gunfighter’s Bride
“…a delightful historical…A nonstop read that truly satisfies.”
—Romantic Times
“…a highly entertaining and emotional read.”
—Rendezvous
Temptation’s Price
“Ms. Schulze gifts her fans with this wonderful historical…”
—Romantic Times
“So you think Ellen Williams is the one?”
“Eleanor,” Luke corrected automatically. “And I won’t know till I’ve had a chance to talk to her a bit more.”
“I don’t know, Luke. Marrying’s a serious business.” The laughter died out of Daniel’s eyes, which were the same clear gray as his brother’s. “Maybe this ain’t such a good idea after all. Maybe we ought to just forget the whole idea and try another housekeeper.”
Luke opened his mouth to agree that it had been a dumb idea from the start and that they should put it behind them. And found himself remembering Eleanor’s big brown eyes, the shy smile in them, and heard her voice saying that she’d lived in Black Dog six years, four months and twelve days.
“I said I was going to find a wife and that’s what I’m going to do,” he heard himself say stubbornly. For some reason, the idea of having a wife just didn’t seem as bad as it once had.
Dear Reader,
This month, we are very pleased with the long-awaited return of Dallas Schulze to Harlequin Historicals with her terrific new Western, Short Straw Bride. This award-winning author, who has written numerous contemporary novels for Silhouette and Harlequin, will make her MIRA debut in early 1997. Meanwhile, don’t miss this heartwarming tale of two people who many for practical reasons, and wind up falling head over heels in love.
Reader’s Choice Award winner Laurie Grant is also back with her new medieval novel My Lady Midnight. This intriguing story features a Norman widow who becomes a political pawn when she is forced to go undercover as a governess in the home of the baron she believes responsible for the death of her best friend.
Miranda Jarrett’s new Sparhawk book, Gift of the Heart, is a touching story set in the wilds of the New York frontier where a woman, abandoned by her no-good husband, discovers happiness in the arms of a fugitive haunted by his past. And Beauty and the Beast, by Taylor Ryan, is a Regency tale about a troubled nobleman who is badgered into health by an interfering young neighbor.
We hope you’ll keep a lookout for all four titles wherever Harlequin Historicals are sold.
Sincerely,
Tracy Farrell
Senior Editor
Please address questions and book requests to:
Harlequin Reader Service
U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269
Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3
DALLAS SCHULZE
loves books, old movies, her husband and her cat, not necessarily in that order. A sucker for a happy ending, she finds that her writing gives her an outlet for her imagination. Dallas hopes that readers have half as much fun with her books as she does! She has more hobbies than there is space to list them, but is currently working on a doll collection. Dallas loves to hear from her readers, and you can write to her at P.O. Box 241, Verdugo City, CA 91046.
“There’s just no getting around it, Luke. We need a wife.”
Daniel McLain’s tone was grim, befitting the serious nature of his pronouncement.
“There’s got to be some other way.” Luke’s expression was even bleaker than his brother’s.
“None that I can see.” Daniel splashed a goodly measure of whiskey into his glass and then did the same for Luke. “We’ve put a lot of work into this place. If something happens to us, the ranch’ll be sold to some stranger. Neither of us wants to see that.”
Luke could have pointed out that, under those circumstances, they wouldn’t actually see the ranch fall into someone else’s hands, but he didn’t. Daniel’s logic might be slightly skewed but there was a basic truth in what he was saying.
“A son. That’s what we gotta have, Luke. One of us has to have a son to take over when we’re gone.”
“It isn’t like either one of us has a foot in the grave,” Luke said with some annoyance. At thirty, he didn’t consider himself yet on a nodding acquaintance with eternity. “We’ve got plenty of time to think about wives and sons and who’s going to take over when we’re gone.”
“Maybe.” Daniel’s expression was solemn. “But Heck Sloane was younger than both of us and Bill Parley wasn’t even thirty-five. Look at them.”
In point of fact, no one could actually look at either man. They’d both met their demise in the past six months.
“Heck was a fool to take on that shootist. Him and those damned pearl-handled Colts of his were just looking for an excuse to die young.”
“Bill didn’t have pearl-handled Colts,” Daniel noted gloomily. He was well into his third glass of whiskey and clearly feeling the fell hand of fate on his shoulder.
