Two original stories in one unique collection
by Miranda Lee and Susan Napier
Revenge is a powerful emotionâloveâs
wrongs always beg to be righted. But vengeance has its price, as each character in this exciting collection of two brand-new romances soon discovers!
Be enticed and involved by dangerous
desires, share the passion of bittersweet seductions, as two irresistible men from Down Underâone an Australian, the other a New Zealanderâfind the time has come to settle old scores. Will these gorgeous guys win the women theyâve always wanted?
Turn the pages and find out!
CHAPTER ONE
âJAMES hasnât seen your dress, has he?â Kate asked, glancing at the magnificent satin and lace bridal gown hanging on the wardrobe door. âYou know thatâs considered unlucky.â
Ashleigh put down her mascara and smiled at her chief bridesmaid in the dressing-table mirror. âNo, Miss Tradition. He hasnât. Not that it would worry me if he had,â she added with a light laugh. âYou know I donât believe in superstitions. Or fate. Or luck. People make their own luck in life.â
Kate rolled her eyes. âYouâve become annoyingly pragmatic over the years, do you know that? Whereâs your sense of romance gone?â
It was killed, came the unwanted and bitter thought. A lifetime ago...
Ashleigh felt a deep tremor of old pain, but hid it well, keeping her mascara wand steady with an iron will as she went on with her make-up.
âJust look at you,â Kate accused. âItâs your wedding-day and youâre not even nervous. If I were the bride my hand would be shaking like a leaf.â
âWhat is there to be nervous about? Everything is going to go off like clockwork. You know how organised Jamesâs mother is.â
âI wasnât talking about the wedding. Or the reception. I was talking about afterwards... You know...â
âFor heavenâs sake, Kate,â Ashleigh said quite sharply. âItâs not as though Iâm some trembling young virgin. Iâm almost thirty years old, and a qualified doctor to boot. My wedding-night is not looming as some terrifying ordeal.â
Oh, really? an insidious voice whispered at the back of her mind.
Ashleigh stiffened before making a conscious effort to relax, letting out a ragged sigh. âIâm sorry,â she apologised. âI shouldnât have snapped at you like that.â
âYou are nervous,â her friend decided smugly. âAnd you know what? I think itâs sweet. James is a real nice man. Much nicer than...â Kate bit her bottom lip and darted Ashleigh a stricken look. âOh, I...Iâm sorry. I didnât mean...I...â
âItâs all right,â Ashleigh soothed. âI wonât collapse in a screaming heap if you mention his name.â
âDo you...ever think of him?â Kate asked, eyes glittering with curiosity.
Too damned often, came the immediate and possibly crushing thought.
But Ashleigh gathered herself quickly, refusing to allow Jakeâeven in memory formâto mar her wedding-day.
âJakeâs as good as dead as far as Iâm concerned,â she stated quite firmly. âAs far as everyone in Glenbrook is concerned. Even his mother doesnât speak of him any more.â
âWhat about James?â the other girl asked. âI mean...he and Jake are twins. Doesnât he ever talk about his brother?â
âNever.â
Kate frowned. âI wonder what Jake would think of his quieter half marrying his old girlfriend. Does he know, do you think? They say some twins, especially identical ones, have a sort of telepathy between them.â
Ashleighâs fine grey eyes did their best to stay calm as she turned to face her old school-friend. âJake and James never did. As far as Jake knowing...â She gave a seemingly offhand shrug. âHe might. His mother insisted on sending him a wedding invitation. God knows why, since she doesnât even know where heâs living now. She posted it to his old solicitor in Thailand, who once promised to pass on any mail. Naturally, she didnât receive a reply.â
Ashleigh sucked in a deep breath, then let it out slowly, hoping to ease the constriction in her chest. âJake wouldnât give a damn about my marrying James, anyway,â she finished. âNow...perhaps weâd better get on with my hair. Timeâs getting away.â
Kate remained blessedly silent while she brushed then wound Ashleighâs shoulder-length blonde hair into the style theyâd both decided on the previous day. Even though Ashleigh appeared to be watching her hairdresser friendâs efficient fingers, her mind was elsewhere, remembering things she shouldnât be remembering on the day she was marrying James.