I gave myself to him — willingly, trustingly, passionately — and we soon wed. Then a horrible revelation emerged, shattering my innocence and my marriage... Five years later, Merlyn returned to my doorstep, desperate for my help. The scoundrel swore he was haunted by memories of me, that a treasure locked in Ravensmuir could clear his name. Yet I could not surrender to his will again. Now he is said to be murdered and Ravensmuir has fallen into my hands. But even as I cross the threshold of this cursed keep, I hear his whisper in the darkness, feel his caress in the night, and I know that Merlyn has told me but part of his tale. Should I do as is right and expose his lair? Or dare I trust my alluring but deceptive spouse - the rogue who destroyed my heart? — Ysabella Praise for THE ROGUE: “Passion and intrigue test the boundaries of love and honor – THE ROGUE is medieval storytelling at its best!” Terri Garey, RITA Award Winning Author of DEAD GIRLS ARE EASY “An engaging tale of lost love found.” Booklist “A beguiling medieval romance from Delacroix…readers will devour this rich and compulsively readable tale.” Publishers Weekly This edition includes excerpts from THE SCOUNDREL.

    But nothing could defend her from the brooding magnificence of the invader who quickened her wild Welsh blood and stole her tender soul.Robert de LangleyFaull of arrogance and outlaw vigor, the fabled Lion of Normandy would hold his old enemy's daughter hostage for his plundered lands - until he decreed that he must keep them both.Tossed between vengeance and lingering desire, war made them enemies, and passion possessed them.

    Clad in black from his gleaming helm to the tips of his toes, he was all battle-honed muscles and rippling tendons. In his stark black armor he looked lethal and sinister, every bit as dangerous as his name implied. He was a man renowned for his courage and strength, for his prowess with women, for his ruthless skill in combat.But when he saw Raven of Chirk, with her long, chestnut tresses and womanly curves, he could barely contain his embroiled emotions. For it was her betrayal twelve years before that had turned him from chivalrous youth to hardened knight. It was she who made him vow to trust no woman—to take women only for his pleasure. It was she who had made him ruthless and bitter and incapable of love. But only she could unleash the passion in his body, the goodness in his soul, and the love in his heart.

    Scandalous. In fact, Miss Sarah Hamilton, a proper Philadelphian, finds London society altogether shocking. How can it be that she has awakened from her innocent slumber to find herself in bed next to a handsome--and exceedingly naked--man? The laughing onlookers standing in the doorway are no help whatsoever and surely this amorous lunatic cannot be a duke, as he claims. She is compromised--though she most certainly will not marry him! The Sweetest Moment Of His James, the Duke of Alford, is enchanted by his unexpected bedmate--and not at all afraid of her pink-cheeked fury. True, the circumstances and place of their meeting are most unusual, but the spirited American who's pummeling him with a pillow is an incomparable beauty. If Sarah will only listen to his perfectly reasonable explanation, James is sure that he can capture her heart. . .forever.

    To rid them of this evil, the legend says, Marcus must wed a fabled warrior maiden with hair like an angel's halo, eyes the color of the rarest heather, and an extraordinary gift that makes her more formidable than any army. But first he must win the most desperate battle of his life...the one for her mind, her body, and her heart.Lady Avalon d'Farouche can't deny she bears the telltale marks of the Kincardine legend, nor can she disown the strange, mystical intuition that allows her to see things others cannot. Yet Avalon believes she alone holds the key to her destiny—a future in which no man will own her. So when Marcus Kincardine seizes her for his own purposes, she never expects him to ignite a fiery passion within her. Still, she refuses to sacrifice her soul and fulfill the legend by surrendering to desire. But how long can she deny him...and how long will he let her?

    A handsome and reclusive horse breeder, Spencer Dumarque, the fourth Duke of Morland, is a member of the exclusive Stud Club, an organization so select it has only ten members--yet membership is attainable to anyone with luck. And Spencer has plenty of it, along with an obsession with a prize horse, a dark secret, and, now, a reputation as the dashing "Duke of Midnight." Each evening he selects one lady for a breathtaking midnight waltz. But none of the women catch his interest, and nobody ever bests the duke--until Lady Amelia d'Orsay tries her luck. In a moment of desperation, the unconventional beauty claims the duke's dance and unwittingly steals his heart. When Amelia demands that Spencer forgive her scapegrace brother's debts, she never imagines that her game of wits and words will lead to breathless passion and a steamy proposal. Still, Spencer is a man of mystery, perhaps connected to the shocking murder of the Stud Club's founder. Will Amelia lose her heart in this reckless wager or win everlasting love?

    If they are discovered, Brenna knows she will hang. But her life changes the day England's most notorious privateer James Vaughn, the Earl of Montgomery, arrives to claim Brenna's younger sister as his bride. Brenna knows her sister will be no match against such a man. To save her, Brenna dons the wedding veil and marries the brute herself ...EXCEPT THE MAN WHO COMPLETELY AROUSES HER ...Known as The Enforcer, James Montgomery has been charged with ridding the land of rebels disloyal to the king. He's not amused to learn he's been tricked into marrying the wrong sister. In retaliation, he decides to tempt his new wife until she begs to be taken to his bed. Yet, James soon finds that it is he who is enticed. But when a secret about Brenna is revealed, James discovers that all of his love may not be enough to save her ...

    But when the interfering Grand Duchess Natasha decides it's time for her grandson to wed, Alexsey finds himself in Scotland, determined to foil her plans. Brainy, bookish, and bespectacled, Bronwyn Murdoch seems the perfect answer—she isn't at all to the duchess' taste.Living at the beck and call of her ambitious stepmother and social butterfly stepsisters, Bronwyn has little time for a handsome flirt—no matter how intoxicating his kisses are. After all, no spoiled, arrogant prince would be seriously interested in a firm-minded female like herself. So . . . wouldn't it be fun to turn his "game" upside down and prove that an ordinary woman can bring a prince to his knees?

    Set during the misty Middle Ages, when brave knights in shining armor rescued fair maidens and chivalry and honor were prized above all things, this quartet of novellas from some of the genre's best-known writers takes the concept of the vow and spins it into four very different yet thematically linked medieval tales. Lynn Kurland - The Traveller (MacLeod #2.6)(de Piaget/MacLeod #7.5) A bedraggled knight makes a solemn vow to protect, defend, and rescue any and all maidens in distress - even those from Manhattan... Patricia Potter - The Minstrel A vow to marry for love transforms a marquis into a minstrel who must sing for his supper - and for a woman whose heart is true... Deborah Simmons - The Bachelor Knight A forgotten vow comes back to haunt the greatest knight in all the land,when a fair maiden asks for hand in marriage... Glynnis Campbell - The Siege Trapped underground with his unwilling betrothed, a determined knight vows to free her - body and soul...

    Her only comfort was her lovely new home--the village of Wyckerley in the heart of Devonshire. And even more irresistible was her attraction to Christian Morrell, "Christy," the vicar of All Saints Church. He looked like an archangel, his strength something palpable, his golden-haired handsomeness a source of light in her dark life.Anne's husband had once been Christy's closest friend, but war and life had scarred Geoffrey inside and out. Now he was going to leave her behind in Wyckerley, with the shocking truth of their marriage still hidden as deeply as his dangerous plans. Anne had no right to want Christy to love her, and no choice but to need him, even though she risked his ruin...and her own. But he was everything to her. She would defy this world for him...and the next.

    Each is about to discover the woman who is his perfect match—but perfection doesn't come easily, even for the noble Duke of Ashton...Battered by the sea, Adam remembers nothing of his past, his ducal rank, nor the shipwreck that almost claimed his life. However, he's delighted to hear that the golden-haired vision tending his wounds is his wife. Mariah's name and face may be familiar, but her touch, her warmth, feel deliciously right. When Mariah Clarke prayed for a way to deter a bullying suitor, she didn't imagine she'd find the answer washed ashore on a desolate beach. Convincing Adam that he is her husband is surprisingly easy. Resisting the temptation to act his wife, in every way, will prove anything but. And now a passion begun in fantasy has become dangerously real—and completely irresistible.

    Nor does she realize that she has met her soul mate. Independent, competent, intelligent, fiercely proud of her heritage, determined always to live near her own family, and known to her family as the "wee wildcat" because of her quick temper, Catriona is the daughter of a Highland chieftain and granddaughter of the even more powerful Chief (or Captain) of Clan Chattan. But her life changes forever when she persuades Sir Finlagh Cameron to return with her to her home to recover from his wounds.Sir Finlagh "Fin" Cameron is on a mission for the heir to Scotland's throne, who has sent him to the Highlands to persuade the Chief of Clan Chattan to arrange a secret meeting for him with two other great lords (the Lord of the Isles and the Lord of the North). Until Fin meets Catriona, however, he has no idea that her father was the Clan Chattan war leader who led them in the battle that wiped out many of Clan Cameron's best warriors, including Fin's own father. The sole survivor of that battle, Fin accepted a bequest of vengeance from his dying father, providing him with a dilemma to face as he begins to fall in love with Catriona. He is not the only one enticed by her charms, either. There are two other contenders, one of whom is his own master, the heir to Scotland's throne. With royal mischief afoot, if Catriona and Fin are ever to find happiness, they must first avoid disaster that could change Scotland's history, and find ways to be open and honest with each other.

    They do not know his true name: Niall Braewick, son of the Laird of Kincaid. It has been years since he escaped into the forest the night his father was murdered. Now he has returned, ablaze with a vengeful hunger. He will gain the MacClaren chief’s trust, gather his clan, and take back his lands. And take the MacClaren’s daughter as well…Though he pulled her from the river, saving her life, Elspeth has been warned to keep her distance from her father’s hired warrior. He is a barbarian—a shame, as he is far more compelling than the lechers and fools competing for her dowry. Little does she know that, like the castle itself, she is a prize Niall intends to claim…but will he extract blood for blood and possess what is his, or will his enemy’s beautiful, innocent daughter tempt him to forsake his dream of conquest?

    But the former abbey they received came with a price—a curse that no family member would ever know happiness.Devin Aincourt, Earl of Ravenscar, makes no apologies for who he is—a drinker, a womanizer, a gambler. Having been cast aside by his disapproving father years before, Dev is content to live out his cursed life in this hedonistic manner. Until his mother asks him to make a bold move to restore the family name and fortune: marry a rich American heiress.Believing it will be a marriage in name only, Dev agrees to marry Miranda. But he never imagined that this feisty, unconventional foreigner would have plans of her own: to restore Blackwater, the old abbey, to its former glory, to extricate Dev from the clutches of a devious mistress and to win his heart for her own. All while risking her own life to an unknown enemy.

    . .Shop girl Poppy Fairchurch knows it’s pointless fantasizing about the Duke of Autenberry. Still, dreams can’t hurt anyone . . . unlike the carriage Poppy spies bearing down upon the unsuspecting duke. After she pulls him to safety, the duke lapses into a coma and Poppy is mistaken for his fiancée. But one person isn’t fooled: his arrogant and much too handsome half-brother, Struan Mackenzie. Soon Poppy isn’t sure what she wants more . . . the fantasy of her duke or the reality of one smoldering Scot who challenges her at every turn.. . . is not who you think.An illegitimate second son, Struan may have built an empire and established himself as one of the wealthiest men in Britain, but he knows he will always be an outsider among the ton. Just like he knows the infuriating Poppy is a liar. There’s no way the haughty Duke of Autenberry would deign to wed a working class girl. It doesn’t matter how charming she is. Or tempting. Or how much Struan wants her for himself.