âDid anybody ever tell you that you look great in mud?â
âSorry,â Owen said. âIâd like to return the compliment, but no dice. Youâre just not the mud type. Let me help you get it off.â
âNo, I donât want your help.â
âToo bad, because I really want to do it.â
It was a primitive form of play, as old as man, as enticing as woman. Winding his hand through her long, wet hair, Owen tugged just hard enough to let her know he could.
Olivia let him draw her back until her gaze met his, only inches separating them. And in that small space where their breath meshed, the air was hot enough to turn the rain to steamâ¦.
Dear Reader,
Spring is a time for new beginnings. And as you step out to enjoy the spring sunshine, Iâd like to introduce a new author to Silhouette Special Edition. Her name is Judy Duarte, and her novel Cowboy Courage tells the heartwarming story of a runaway heiress who finds shelter in the strong arms of a handsomeâyet guardedâcowboy. Donât miss this brilliant debut!
Next, we have the new installment in Susan Malleryâs DESERT ROGUES miniseries. In The Sheik & the Virgin Princess, a beautiful princess goes in search of her long-lost royal father, and on her quest falls in love with her heart-meltingly gorgeous bodyguard! And love proves to be the irresistible icing in this adorable tale by Patricia Coughlin, The Cupcake Queen. Here, a lovable heroine turns her heroâs life into a virtual beehive. But Cupidâs arrow does get the finalâerâsting!
Iâm delighted to bring you Crystal Greenâs His Arch Enemyâs Daughter, the next story in her poignant miniseries KANEâS CROSSING. When a rugged sheriff falls for the wrong woman, he has to choose between revenge and love. Add to the month Pat Warrenâs exciting new two-in-one, My Very Own Millionaireâ two fabulous romances in one novel about confirmed bachelors who finally find the women of their dreams! Lastly, there is no shortage of gripping emotion (or tears!) in Lois Faye Dyerâs Cattlemanâs Bride-To-Be, where long-lost lovers must reunite to save the life of a little girl. As they fight the medical odds, this hero and heroine find that passionâand soul-searing loveânever dieâ¦.
Iâm so happy to present these first fruits of spring. I hope you enjoy this monthâs lineup and come back for next monthâs moving stories about life, love and family!
Best,
Karen Taylor Richman
Senior Editor
For Amy Mullervy,
with gratitude
is a troubling combination of hopeless romantic and dedicated dreamer. Troubling, that is, for anyone hoping to drag her back to the âreal worldâ when she is in the midst of writing a book. Close family and friends have learned to coexist peacefully with the latest cast of characters in her head. The author of more than twenty-five novels, she has received special recognition from Publishers Weekly and Romantic Times. Her work also earned her numerous awards, including the prestigious RITA from Romance Writers of America. Ms. Coughlin lives in Rhode Island, a place very conducive to daydreaming.
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
O livia hated to lose. To be truthful, it went beyond hate. She abhorred losing, to anyone, under any circumstances, but she especially loathed being bested by one of her four older and frequently infuriating brothers.
Together, they had seen to it that she learned to think fast and stand her ground at a very young age. Now twenty-four, she no longer had to dodge water balloons or check for reptiles before climbing into bed, but their propensity for teasing and practical jokes persisted, and she was adept at deflecting, countering or ignoring their efforts as the situation warranted. Sometimes she even enjoyed the challenge, and she dearly loved her brothers. She just flat-out refused to lose a wager to one of themâ¦particularly as ridiculous a wager as the one sheâd allowed herself to be roped into this time.
Olivia winced just thinking about it. If Brad had challenged her privately, she would have found some way to resist the bait. But no, her brother had tossed down the gauntlet in the middle of the Historical Associationâs annual ball, in front of dozens of amused witnesses. In Baltimore society, it didnât get any more public than that. Sheâd had no choice but to accept the challenge on the spot, and now pride and her own mulish nature demanded she follow through. Precisely as Brad had anticipated when he set her up, she thought with chagrin.
Pride and pigheadedness. The combination had landed her in a tight spot on more occasions than she cared to recall. But this time sheâd even outdone herself. This time she was scaling new heights of absurdity. There certainly was no sane explanation for crawling out of bed at what she deemed the crack of dawn on this brisk October morning, to drive to some godforsaken little town in the backwoods of upstate New York.