Book picks similar to
A Marriage by Chance by Carolyn Davidson
historical-romance
romance
western
historical
Innocent Fire
Brenda Joyce - 1988
Here is the beginning of the Bragg empire-opulent and glamorous-vast, dangerous, and as untamed as the sweeping plains of Texas…Leaving behind the sheltered life of a French convent, Miranda journeyed to the New World and an arranged marriage to a prosperous Texan rancher. Arriving in America, the innocent European met her fiance's friend Derek Bragg, a rough-hewn Texas Ranger, whose harsh manner and candid comments about her beauty enraged the shy miss. Although Bragg fought to deny his feelings for his charge, he knew that he was falling in love with her. Miranda, too, was struggling with her desire for her escort as they trekked across the treacherous wilderness. Drawn to the lawman--enflamed by his raw masculine virility--will Miranda sacrifice her innocence to the fire blazing out of control in her heart?
Lions and Lace
Meagan McKinney - 1992
Born to luxury, she belonged with the Astors and the Vanderbilts at cotillions and soirees. But she shivered with fear and something more as she faced the handsome, ruthless Trevor Sheridan. He had bankrupted her fortune and would expose her family's scandalous secret unless she accepted his outrageous offer, his emotional blackmail ... his heart-stopping kiss.HE BROKE THEM ALLBorn Irish, brought up in the streets, Trevor "the Predator" Sheridan learned early how to get the wealth and the women he wanted. An expert at games of power, he played one that would destroy every famous family who had snubbed him. Tricking the beautiful Alana was his trump card. But he never intended to want her ... until her beauty and her resolve stole his breath away.NOW THEIR DESIRES SWEPT THEM TOWARD RAPTURE ... OR RUIN
Knight on the Texas Plains
Linda Broday - 2002
But when a strange twist of fate—and a poker game he'll never forget—leaves an innocent little girl in his care, Duel vows to defend his new family to his very last breath. If only he knew a single thing about taking care of babies.Just as Duel swears his life can't get any more complicated, a beautiful woman stumbles into the light of his campfire, desperate for help. Jessie Foltry is hungry, tired, and running for her life. She agrees to help Duel care for the child in exchange for his protection, even as she fights to guard her broken heart. But Duel will do whatever it takes to make Jessie see that the Texas plains have more than one kind of knight, and perhaps their salvation is closer than either of them could have dreamed.
The Wedding Raffle
Geralyn Dawson - 1996
True, the thrice-widowed beauty's elaborate plan to lure him to her remote ranch is a little unethical, but she'll make it up to him. Or so she thinks.Captain Luke Prescott, a renowned ex-Texas Ranger and bona fide hero, can't help but find his suspicions (among other things) aroused by the town's mysterious widow. But when he wins Honor's raffle for a valuable racehorse and arrives to collect, he soon discovers he wants a different kind of prize altogether. Honor doesn't want to sacrifice her heart, but Luke has the means to force her hand. After all, he holds the winning ticket.
Counterfeit Lady
Jude Deveraux - 1984
In eighteenth-century Virginia, the lush lands embraced the rivers that bounded the great plantations. There Clayton awaited his English lady...but when he showered his bride with ardent kisses, the woman he found in his arms was Nicole Courtalain!
Hometown Cinderella \ The Inn at Hope Springs
Ruth Axtell Morren - 2012
A half-share in her father's Maine farmhouse is the only refuge she has left, even if her resentful stepmother treats Mara as little more than a servant. But there is one bright spot: the unexpected kindness of neighbor Gideon Jakeman.A widowed farmer with a teenage daughter, Gideon hardly pictures himself as anyone's Prince Charming. Especially a woman of Mara's refinement. Yet his quiet, rugged strength makes her feel as though she's found her rightful place by his side, if they can find faith enough to forge their own happy ending.
Somewhere I'll Find You
Lisa Kleypas - 1996
But the glamorous leading lady guards a shocking secret: a mystery husband whom she does not know, dares not mention ... and cannot love.For years Damon Savage has been searching for the stranger his parents wed him to without his consent, hoping to legally free himself from matrimony's invisible chains. And he is astonished to discover his "bride" is none other than the exquisite lady he'd hoped to make his mistress! But though his wife by law, Julia will never truly be Damon's—until he conquers her fears, his formidable rivals ... and her proud, passionate, and independent heart.
The Lost Duke of Wyndham
Julia Quinn - 2008
A soldier. And he has always been a rogue. What he is not, and never wanted to be, is a peer of the realm, responsible for an ancient heritage and the livelihood of hundreds. But when he is recognized as the long-lost son of the House of Wyndham, his carefree life is over. And if his birth proves to be legitimate, then he will find himself with the one title he never wanted: Duke of Wyndham.Grace Eversleigh has spent the last five years toiling as the companion to the dowager Duchess of Wyndham. It is a thankless job, with very little break from the routine... until Jack Audley lands in her life, all rakish smiles and debonair charm. He is not a man who takes no for an answer, and when she is in his arms, she's not a woman who wants to say no. But if he is the true duke, then he is the one man she can never have...
Sweet Release
Pamela Clare - 2003
Though Cassie hated the slave trade, her Virginia plantation demanded the labor, and she knew this fevered man would surely die if she left him. But as his wounds healed and his muscled chest bronzed from the sun, Cassie realized Cole Braden was far more dangerous than his papers had indicated --- for he could steal her breath with a glance or lay siege to her senses with a touch.Abducted, beaten, and given a new name, Alec went from master of an English shipbuilding empire to fourteen years of indentured servitude in the American colonies. There, he was known as Cole Braden, a convicted ravisher and defiler of women. And while he longed to ravish the auburn-haired beauty who owned him, he knew his one hope of earning her love --- and his freedom --- was to prove his true identity. Only then could he turn the tables and attain his ... Sweet Release.
The Marriage Wager
Candace Camp - 2007
No longer in the first blush of youth and without a marriage portion, Miss Constance Woodley can scarcely imagine why one of the leading lights of London society should take an interest in the likes of her. But under her benefactor’s guiding hand, she’s transformed into a captivating creature who catches the eye of the handsome, charming and ever-so-slightly notorious Lord Dominic Leighton. And before the shocked eyes of the entire ton, the “nobody” and the rakish viscount show that even in the heartless world of the marriage mart, when love is at stake, all bets are off.
The Bride Fair
Cheryl Reavis - 2002
But then Max Woodard, an enigmatic Army colonel with a gentle heart, offered her passion and a loving partnership in a brave new world...!Though a former prisoner of war, Colonel Max Woodard vowed to deal fairly with the Southerners under his governance. He yearned to understand them, most particularly Maria Markham, a womanly mix of true grit and glory. But could she ever love a man who wore the face of an enemy?
The Last Renegade
Jo Goodman - 2012
With all of the good men dying at the hands of a local rancher and his three sons, Raine hires a shootist to be the town’s protector. But her handsome new employee is more than a hired hand; he’s a man who keeps his guns close and his secrets closer. BUT NOTHING COULD PROTECT HER HEART After a chance encounter on a train, Kellen Coltrane travels to the Pennyroyal to carry out a dying man’s last wish. But once he meets the hotel’s fiery-haired proprietor, Coltrane finds himself assuming the role of the shootist’s accomplice and agrees to protect Bitter Springs. And as he learns more about Raine’s own tragedy, Coltrane can’t deny his growing desire for the courageous widow, or the urge to protect her from the threat that draws near…
Harper's Bride
Alexis Harrington - 1997
But what is considered a practical payoff soon becomes a passionate romance, as the woman discovers a warm heart behind the prospector's cold exterior. And when the deadbeat dad returns to collect what he feels is rightfully his their lives will change forever!
Miss Wonderful
Loretta Chase - 2004
To prove he is not an idle fop only concerned with sartorial pleasures, Alistair agrees to help his old friend, Lord Gordmor, by traveling to the wilds of Derbyshire to convince Gordmor's neighbors to support the nobleman's proposal to build a canal. Upon arriving, Alistair, a famous war hero and eligible bachelor, finds everyone couldn't be nicer, everyone except for respectable, practical, spinsterish Mirabel Oldridge. The last thing Mirabel wants is for her tranquil little corner of England to be destroyed by a noisy, nasty canal, and she is prepared to use every weapon at her disposal--including her disheveled coiffure and unstylish wardrobe--to stop Alistair.
The Pirate Lord
Sabrina Jeffries - 1998
His men are tired of wandering the high seas and want to settle down with wives on the uncharted island paradise they've discovered. And the women are bound to be grateful to be rescued from the life of drudgery awaiting them in New South Wales . . . Lord, he's so clever!
A Splendid Passion
Married? To pirates? Sara Willis couldn't be more appalled. First she demands proper courting—at least a month. The darkly handsome pirate lord gives them two weeks. Then Sara insists the men vacate their huts for the women—Gideon demands her kisses in return. As the demands heat up, so do their passions—and soon Sara can't remember just why she's fighting the devilishly seductive captain so hard. . .