To find the killer, rookie detective Callum Pederson has gone undercover where the Princes hold court. He’s found enough secrets among the bros to bring them in for questioning—but he could very well get lost in the games the Princes play.

    Since then, guilt and regret have made him impervious to love. But when he rescues a family of would-be homesteaders attacked by the notorious Deckom gang, one of the sisters shines a light on his cold, locked-down heart.The last thing Brady deserves is happiness, and he fights his unwelcome feelings for Belle. Which is fine with her, since she'll never let herself care for another lawman—even one as wonderful as Brady.Heat level 3/5: contains some violence, minor cursing, and not-so-minor kissing.

    But his criminal attraction to his upper-crust First Lieutenant, Garnet Littleton, threatens to overturn all he’s ever worked for. Lust quickly proves to be the least of his problems, however. The deadly combination of typhus, rioting convicts, and a monstrous storm destroys his prospects . . . and shipwrecks him and Garnet on their own private island. After months of solitary paradise, the journey back to civilization—surviving mutineers, exposure, and desertion—is the ultimate test of their feelings for each other. These two very different men each record their story for an unfathomable future in which the tale of their love—a love punishable by death in their own time—can finally be told. Today, dear reader, it is at last safe for you to hear it all.Note: This is a revised, stand-alone edition of the story originally published in the Hidden Conflict anthology in 2009.

    He has also sworn to love her forever…secretly, of course. A relationship between a hulking, lowly palace guard and the queen is impossible. Still, when he hears Britta crying one night, he can’t help but offer his king-sized embrace as comfort. Rex is shocked when Britta is not repelled by him in the least. Miracle of miracles, she is eager for much more than solace. The penalty for putting his filthy hands on the virgin queen is dead, but what a way to go...

    Now, five years later, Lord Drayton has returned to London with hideous battle scars that have made him a social pariah. Adelaide doesn't see Roan's wounds, but rather the man she has always secretly loved. Although she has been courted by a handsome lord with marriage on his mind, it is Roan she secretly desires. Roan is stunned when he is reacquainted with Addy Bruce. In the years that have passed, Addy has grown into a true beauty and the toast of the ton. He is not sure which surprises him more—her transformation, or the fact she is the only woman who treats him as though his scars do not exist. When Roan learns of Addy’s engagement to a rival, he must move fast…or lose her forever.Please note: LITTLE MISS INDEPENDENT is a short novella (9,700 words) that was originally published in THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF REGENCY ROMANCE. The story is a sweet romance (no sex).

    It wasn’t until years later when Nick introduced her to fencing that they finally had a proper outlet for their frequent arguments.Having just emerged from mourning following her mother’s death, Eleanor is exactly where she wishes to be at the age of four-and-twenty: an on-the-shelf spinster and unofficial companion to her aunt. Unfortunately, her ambitious uncle has other plans for her future. On the eve of his house party, he lays down his ultimatum: either Eleanor marries the man of his choosing, or he'll force her seventeen-year-old sister to do so instead.When Nick unexpectedly arrives on their doorstep after a two year absence, Eleanor is in no mood for their normal banter. Seeming to know exactly what she needs, Nick challenges her to pick up the foil once more. During their pre-dawn matches, he shows her just how strong she can be . . . and exactly how much he’s changed since leaving. But when her old adversary becomes her only ally, she may very well find herself . . . Ruined by a Rake.

    The story first appeared in the 2010 Anthology The Mammoth Book of Regency Romance. Lydia Bettridge is a young woman suffering the pangs of unrequited love. To capture the attention of Geoffrey Danforth, the man who has stolen her heart but barely notices her, she has resorted to desperate measures with a seemingly clever plan. By engaging the help of Phillip, a friend of her brother's, to play the love-smitten fool in public, she hopes to pique the interest of her unnamed love. But when Geoffrey himself shows up to take Phillip's place, all her careful planning is turned upside down. What's a girl to do but to make the best of it? This short story was originally published in The Mammoth Book of Regency Romance.

    But saving people is second nature, whether its doctoring a man mauled by a mountain lion or battling a wolf to save a child.Veterinarian and horse rancher Missouri Harper, the sole support for her three sisters and ailing aunt, must fight her attraction to the handsome miner, whose bravery puts her in his debt. To keep the land she has claimed for her family, she must remain a spinster for three years.Struggling against bitter winter weather, lack of provisions, and wild predators, Missouri vows to deny her love to protect her sisters’ legacy.

    Haunted by her father's former captivity with the Shawnee Indians, as well as the secret sins of her family's past, Lael comes of age in the fragile Kentucky settlement her father founded. Though she faces the loss of a childhood love, a dangerous family feud, and the affection of a Shawnee warrior, Lael draws strength from the rugged land she calls home, and from Ma Horn, a distant relative who shows her the healing ways of herbs and roots found in the hills. But the arrival of an outlander doctor threatens her view of the world, God, and herself--and the power of grace and redemption.This epic novel gives readers a glimpse into the simple yet daring lives of the pioneers who first crossed the Appalachians, all through the courageous eyes of a determined young woman. Laura Frantz's debut novel offers a feast for readers of historical fiction and romance lovers alike.

    His enhanced abilities come with a high price: on the full moon, he becomes capable of savagery beyond telling, while the new moon brings a sexual hunger that borders on madness.Rescuing a weapons inventor from undead kidnappers is just another assignment, though one with an added complication—keeping his hands off the man’s pretty young apprentice, who insists on tagging along. At odds with polite society, Satira’s only constant has been the aging weapons inventor who treats her like a daughter. She isn’t going to trust Wilder with Nathaniel’s life, not when the Guild might decide the old man isn’t worth saving. Besides, if there’s one thing she’s learned, it’s that brains are more important than brawn. As the search stretches far longer than Wilder planned, he finds himself fighting against time. If Satira is still at his side when the new moon comes, nothing will stop him from claiming her. Worse, she seems all too willing. If their passion unlocks the beast inside, no one will be safe. Not even the man they’re fighting to save. Warning: This book contains a crude, gun-slinging, vampire-hunting hero who howls at the full moon and a smart, stubborn heroine who invents mad-scientist weapons. Also included: wild frontier adventures, brothels, danger, betrayal and a good dose of wicked loving in an alternate Wild West.Word Count: 36,653 = approximately 146 pages.

    . . and nothing was ever the same again!Once upon a time, four superstar storytellers—New York Times bestselling authors Stephanie Laurens and Mary Balogh, along with Jacquie D'Alessandro and Candice Hern—came up with a delicious idea. What if they each wrote a story about a proper young lady stranded at a remote inn away from society's constraints? What would happen? And how long would it take for her to give in to desire?In these four amazing tales, four heroines will come face-to-face with the men who got away . . . only to discover that, instead of anger, there is still a passionate connection that cannot be denied. And while each of their lives is quite different, and their pasts utterly unique, they will all make a common discovery—that one night can change everything . . . forever.

    She knows better than that. And the boy she finds hiding in the woods out back is too wild and dangerous to trust. But he may be her only chance at survival.From New York Times bestselling author Skye Warren comes an emotional new spin-off series. THE PRINCE is a 13,000-word prologue to the new Masterpiece duet.

    Now Lily is happily single, and she's turned it all around. She knows she's a good mom, a homeowner, and a businesswoman, all wrapped up in one good-looking package.A package that police officer Tucker Matthews is dying to unwrap. This ex-military man sure doesn't need another woman in his life. His last girlfriend left him with nothing but memories and a cat named Pinky! But living next door to Lily has been driving him nuts. He dreams about her long blonde hair and even longer legs. And maybe it's time to go a little crazy . . . and fall in love.

    Pump and dump. Hit it and quit it. One night stand. Didn’t matter how I branded it—that’s all she had wanted it to be. That much was clear when she left me with my pants down and my dick still out.What she hadn’t counted on was fate intervening and our worlds colliding—again.The day I showed back up in the life of Chloe Griffins, I knew I had to have her again. My body was hungry for another taste. Like an addict, I’d been craving another hit for months, and there she was—flesh and bone, tits and ass.The fact that she worked for the competition should’ve been reason enough for me to leave her alone. I had a job to do that summer and f*cking Chloe wasn’t part of it. But I was like a man possessed.I’d do whatever it took to have her again.

    BOLD. BRAVE. Laird Gavynn MacEuann's a man of action and skill. Both in battle and with the lasses. Notorious for towering strength and matchless features, he takes what he wants and never loses - but conquering this particular castle is easy compared with claiming and then controlling the beautiful, spike-tongued lass he frees by mistake.STUNNING. SPOILED. STUBBORN. Lady Brielle Dilbin is headstrong. Proud. She'd rather molder in a dungeon than accept her father's will. If the mud-covered Highlanders would give her a moment, she'd tell them so. Or make their leader understand. Or do something other than deal with passions and forbidden lusts that no gently-bred lady should have to endure; especially connected to the man who orders her silence and then demands obedience as well. --short story originally published in the Mammoth Book of Scottish Romance, Jan 2011EXCERPTShe'd be the death of him yet.Gavynn ducked his head before pulling back up and sliding his hands along his hair to sluice water, ignoring where the lass stood, arms wrapped about her while she shivered in place. The burn was hip-deep on him. Cold, clean, fast moving, and difficult to hear over. Gavynn amended that. He couldn't hear much over his own heartbeat. All of it made him vulnerable. This wasn't a good idea, but he hadn't had one since meeting her. His chest and belly were tender with bruising, his muscles throbbed with the work he'd forced on them, and the woman's linen under-dress was as useless as a film of white mist would be.She was true beauty; in form as well as face. Well-formed. Lush. Curved in all the proper places. Possessing heavy, hand-filling breasts, a narrow waist, and hips well-rounded to greet and satisfy a man. When she'd bent forward to wash her face, his groan almost made it through clenched lips. Gavynn grabbed hand-scoops of water, angrily splashing cold and wet all over. Then he bent his knees, dipping to his armpits in chill. All in an effort to divert the pressure building in his groin as blood filled the area, engorging and hardening, and angering him with how little his mind controlled anything.Nothing worked. He couldn't keep his eyes and thoughts off her. Gavynn lifted his head to the twilit sky, close to howling his frustration. And when he brought his head back down he got a full dose of his utter stupidity. He hadn't even heard them. Gavynn sent the curses soundlessly before rising to face a solid wall of armor-clad men atop horses. They carried torches. Possessed full weaponry. And all he claimed was the sword at his back.