two wounded souls are forced on a journey neither wants, resulting in tragedy and disaster. Battle-hardened, untrusting and son of a Scottish Chieftain. Duncan MacThomas wants only to see his country free from English rule. Honor-bound to ensure his clan's financial future, Duncan reluctantly travels to England to wed a woman he doesn't want. Wealthy and pampered. Catherine Gillingham anticipates a marriage to a Duke's son and is dismayed when her king decrees she must wed a Scotsman, the sort of man all of London despises. Can these two opposites find love amidst war and lower their barriers to find the peace they seek within their countries and themselves?

    

    Hate. Honour. Obey.It is the year 1485. King Richard III has fallen at Bosworth, his crown seized from the mud of the battlefield by Henry Tudor. The new monarch intends to stamp his authority on all of England, crushing all remaining opposition under his royal heel. And now, he has sent his men to Whitleigh...Frances de Whytte loathes the battle-hardened, arrogant warlord who has usurped her family home, driven her brother away, and now, claims to own all that she holds dear. He has stolen her birthright. The House of York is ruined. But her family need her to protect them, so she will do what she must to ensure the survival of those she loves.But she will never surrender to this ferocious Tudor warrior. She would die first.Whitleigh Castle is mine now, by right of conquest. I am now Duke of Whitleigh, a title bestowed on me at the Battle of Bosworth by a grateful king, I own this keep and all within it, including the belligerent sister of the previous duke. I intend to be master here and will particularly enjoy bringing this impudent little wench to heel.But love and hate make odd bedfellows, and in these turbulent times, who knows what alliances might form? When love and hate, honour and duty collide, and when my loyalties are tested to the limit, even I do not know what choices I might be forced to make.Warning: This book contains sexually explicit content which is only suitable for mature readers. If such content upsets you, please do not purchase this book.

    Then Evangeline Buchan comes to the Scottish court with her gentle heart and beautiful eyes, and sets his world askew.The feud between the Ruthvens and Buchans started long before Jamie’s birth - though neither he nor Evangeline know the reasons. Can their love reveal the secrets and heal the pain of the past, or will the feud prove too strong for even true love?

     AMBER by Elizabeth Rose Amber de Burgh is a novice of the Sisters of St. Ermengild, in training to take her final vows of becoming a nun. But when the doors to the church slam open one night and a wounded man named Lucifer who everyone thinks is the devil enters, her life changes forever. Lucifer, or Lucas as he prefers to be called, has a very tarnished past and a future that fares no better. And when he lays his eyes on the abbey's new novice, he knows he can never let her become a nun. Having been abandoned as a baby on the steps of the church, Lucas will do anything to live a different lifestyle. And before he knows it, he finds himself right in the middle of church corruption. He is sent to Canterbury on a pilgrimage with Amber, but while she intends to pray, that is the furthest thing from his mind. His mission is to steal the Regale ruby of Canterbury Cathedral at Becket's shrine. Can a pure dove change the morals of a devil or will he change her morals first? FOLLOW YOUR HEART by Ruth Kaufman Joanna Peyntor has two uses for a man: to pose for a stained glass window design or to commission her skills. But when her brother conspires to ruin her reputation, she concedes to a third: a husband to help save her glass-painting workshop. On a quest to redeem his family name and lands, Sir Adrian Bedford must marry without delay. But what woman he’d accept would wed an impoverished former nobleman who insists on an unusual stricture in their marriage contract? Joanna, a woman striving to succeed in a man’s world. When irresistible attraction makes their marriage of convenience inconvenient, will his dangerous secrets keep them from following their hearts? THE HIGHLANDER’S OUTLAW BRIDE by Cathy MacRae Thrust into the role of laird upon his father's unexpected death, Connor MacLaurey returns home to learn his cousin has usurped his lands and title. Furthermore, his betrothed--a lass he barely knows and certainly did not agree to marry--is hunted by the sheriff, accused of stealing cattle. His plan is to petition the king for clemency for the foolish chit, break the betrothal, and take his castle back from his treacherous cousin. Marriage is not in his plans. Brianna Douglas has no use for men. Widowed young, berated daily for failing to give her husband a child, and sent home in subsequent disgrace, she devotes her life to holding her family's land for her young brother as their sotted father drowns his sorrow in whisky over their mother's death. Raiders have hit her clan hard, and to save them, she finds herself betrothed to Laird MacLaurey's absent son to seal a pact of protection with the MacLaurey clan. Forced into a marriage neither wants, it will take a king's edict and sacrifice from both to discover what love means. But can they accept their losses and learn from their mistakes before Brianna marries another? HIGHLAND DAYDREAMS by April Holthaus Forced into a loveless marriage Lara's husband Dermot, wanted more from her than just a docile wife, he wants to claim a treasure her clan secretly has in their possession. After several failed attempts to claim it, Dermot found a way to rid the burden of his defiant bride by having her locked away in the dungeon forever. Lara had almost given up hope until a nameless warrior whose strength and strong-will gave her the courage she needed. Thought to be dead, Bram MacKinnon barely held onto life after battling the English for Scotland’s freedom. Imprisoned with no means of escape, he is rescued by his cellmate, a woman. For saving his life, he vows to protect her and return her to her family, but Bram did not realize it was more than he bargained for.

    As battles and treachery rain down upon them, Beiste and Elle find an unlikely ally in a ghost, and discover that a few stolen moments of passion can bring light from the shadows… In Kathryn Le Veque's DEEP INTO DARKNESS, Findlater Castle in the Scottish Highlands becomes a place of mystery and doom for Jamison Munro and his wife,Havilland. Traveling across the highlands one dark and stormy night, they stumble upon a lonely Host in Findlater Castle, a pathetic soul waiting for his wife to return to him. It is a terrible tale of a tragic love story that the Host tells the travelers but when Havilland becomes curious about mysterious tapping sounds that go on in the middle of the night, she soon realizes the danger that she and her husband are in. It becomes a race against time for Havilland to free a trapped spirit and save both their lives in the process. In Terri Brisbin’s UPON A MISTY SKYE, Alexander MacDonald and Isabel MacLeod were not supposed to meet or fall in love or marry. Now that they have, both of their parents plan to separate them, by any means possible. But the ghost of Duntulm Castle has other plans for the forbidden lovers and those who stand in the way of true love. In Madeline Martin’s A GHOSTLY TALE OF FORBIDDEN LOVE, Gavin MacDuff is a laird with a cruel and bitter aunt he’s sworn to protect. Senara is the new lady’s maid at Castle of Park and has sacrificed everything for the betterment of her family. Their paths tangle and lead to a road of hidden longing and secret passion – all of which is threatened by the power of one ghost who is fixed on revenge. In Ruth A. Casie’s THE MAXWELL GHOST, traitors, deception, murders and ghosts run rampant at Caerlaverock Castle. Jamie Collins, a man of reality not magic, serves Lord Herbert in exchange for a his own farm. Laura Reynolds, the Herbert's distant cousin comes to the castle to solve the murders and put the ghost to rest. The two, long-time friends find their destinies intertwined with hidden passions, but all is in jeopardy when Laura becomes the murderer’s next target. Jamie will find he needs some ghostly assistance to save Laura and declare his love.

    But after his brother is nearly killed in a treacherous attack, Graham kidnaps the laird’s daughter in an act of revenge.Cameron MacDougall has devoted her life to the healing arts. She’s long rebelled against her father’s feuding ways, but when Robert Graham abducts her, she’s finds herself at the center of the dispute between their families. She expects the anger she feels, not the simmering attraction to the powerful warrior, or the love she develops for his clan.Can she stop further violence between the clans with her escape? Or will she find her surrender leads to a lasting peace and her own heart’s desire?

    No other woman pleased him, not even the daughters of other lairds, so he finally settled for Anna sight unseen. But when his men went to meet her guard, she was all alone and badly beaten. Who could have done such a thing and why? ~

    

    She’s the noblewoman he abandoned nine years ago. Can forgiveness give them a second chance at love this Christmas?The Scottish Highlands, 1308. Infamous mercenary Hamish Dunn betrayed a powerful clan and is now pursued by killers almost as ruthless as himself. Deep in the snowy wilderness, a Highland faerie convinces Hamish to travel to the Border Lands for one last job.Deidre Maxwell has a dangerous secret. She’s not the widow she claims but a disowned noblewoman with an illegitimate daughter. After being cast aside by Hamish, the man she loved, she’ll never let herself be hurt again. And she’ll keep her daughter, Maeve, safe from the pain of rejection whatever the cost.When Hamish visits the warden of the West English March, he finds more than a job. The lass he never stopped loving is now the family’s wet nurse and has a daughter. Hamish wants to protect them both, though he has been hired to murder Deidre's father. Deidre strives to keep him from learning of his child, but she can’t resist the dark Scot’s draw. Can the magic of Christmas and a child’s love heal the wounds of the past and finally give this improbable pair a happy ending?Highlander’s Christmas is a historical romance novella set in medieval Scotland and connected to the enthralling Called by a Highlander time travel romance series. If you like reunion romances, secret babies, and dark alpha heroes, then you’ll swoon over Mariah Stone’s tale of forbidden love.Previously published in the 12 Days of Christmas in a Highlander's Arms collection

    Where the legend ends, the story begins... Lancashire, England, AD 1480 The story of England's last wolf plays a large part in Kate's life. The man who killed the wolf is her father, Sir John Harrington, lord and master of Wraysholme Manor. Strangely, though, her knowledge of the tale is all second-hand. Her father, for unknown reasons, refuses to speak of exactly what happened the day the wolf was killed. Nor will he speak of Kate's mother, who died soon after giving birth. So, Kate is left to wonder about her past, although lately her curiosity has been overshadowed by a series of unusual dreams. Indeed, her lonely heart has been captured by the handsome stranger who speaks to her in sleep. But he is not the only man who haunts her nights. There is another who lurks in the shadows of her subconscious. Who is he, and why does she feel so threatened by him? When Kate is brutally snatched from her home, she begins to understand the meaning behind her dreams and the incredible truth about her past. Her captor is a man void of emotion and without conscience, yet Kate finds herself irresistibly drawn to his dark charisma. As the reason for her kidnapping is revealed, Kate is faced with a decision. Will she find the courage to make the right choice? Can the love of a gentle heart hope to save an unfeeling and corrupted soul? Perhaps – especially if their destinies were preordained long ago. The death of the wolf, it seems, is part of an much older legend.

    Now, at age seventy-nine, she feels compelled to leave behind her story for the world and set the record straight about the beginnings of modern history.He has had his arms raised for how many hours now? Shouldn't there be a Joshua to help this Moses? I suppressed a smile at my wittiness, knowing better than to voice the thought aloud. My ladies would be shocked by my allusion to the great Jewish prophet. Well aware of my reputation as an empty-headed nitwit among those who served my husband, such low expectations had served me well. Best to maintain the fiction.In a surprising change of genre and style, Wilder brings her extensive research and wide-ranging imagination  to bear on the seminal story of our time: the passion of the Christ. The result is a compelling and harrowing love story replete with historical figures such as Seneca, Socrates, and Pilate himself. It is sure to captivate both believers and skeptics alike, and remain in readers' minds long after the last page is turned.

    When her family is threatened, she does the one thing she can to protect them: publishes a book exposing them all.After his disaster of a marriage, Liam Westwood, the Earl of Keswick, made a sacred pact: never fall in love again. Having spent his years abroad, he never expected to meet a vixen that would test his sanity and haunt his nights upon his return.With the Ton’s most scandalous secrets hiding between the pages of her book, Nora has no shortage of people who wish to see her suffer. And some are determined to see her ruined. When the manuscript falls in Liam’s hands, his feelings of betrayal are overshadowed by a single thing: a name that jumps out more than all the others put together. His.

     Lady Fiona MacDonnell is certain Laird Jamie MacLeod is the devil himself. Their clans are sworn enemies, each steeped in hatred born from a long-standing feud. But when threatened by a powerful neighboring clan, they must unite to survive. The Devil has never been hotter, his angel never so fine, but will their forced marriage be hell on Earth or together will they find heaven?

     When Moray Allen is left in charge of Muir Castle the fortnight before Yule, he doesn't anticipate any excitement. The excitement is all down south, where the Grant and Ramsay cousins are embroiled in their final battle with the Channel of Dubh, smugglers who trade in human cargo. But the chieftain hasn’t been gone for more than a day when Moray spots a golden-haired lass in the wilds surrounding Castle Muir. He suspects she’s lost and in need of food, but she runs from him. Meanwhile, the chieftain’s son, Steenie, is preparing for Yule with his beloved pet, Paddy, who seems to have his own plans for the holiday--plans that involve the mysterious stranger. Although Shona escaped the Channel of Dubh with her brother and three other bairns, she knows they’re not safe. Their food supply has run out and winter weather is settling in across the Highlands, seeping into the cave they're using for shelter. To protect herself and the others, Shona must place her faith in someone, although she’s hesitant to trust any man, even the handsome Highlander she keeps seeing. Moray and Shona are both in need of a little Yuletide magic. Who better to help them than Paddy the Pony?