Valerie Parv - The Monarch's Son

“You’d better tell me now,” Allie urged.

Before Lorne could speak, his security man said in awed tones, “I have the honor to present His Royal Highness, Prince Lorne de Marigny, ruler of the sovereign islands of Carramer.”

She felt faint, but this time it had less to do with the pounding she had taken in the surf than with the impact of the man standing before her. “You’re the ruler of the whole country?”

Lorne nodded.

The combined effect of her ordeal and the discovery that she had been rescued by the monarch himself combined to overwhelm her precarious hold on consciousness. The security man’s startled cry and Lorne’s barked command were the last things she heard before she saw the sand rushing up toward her.

The Monarch’s Son

The Prince’s Bride-To-Be

The Princess’s Proposal

Dear Reader,

Looking for sensational summer reads? All year we’ve been celebrating Silhouette’s 20th Anniversary with special titles, and this month’s selections are just the warm, romantic tales you’ve been seeking!

Bestselling author Stella Bagwell continues the newest Romance promotion, AN OLDER MAN. Falling for Grace hadn’t been his intention, particularly when his younger, pregnant neighbor was carrying his nephew’s baby! Judy Christenberry’s THE CIRCLE K SISTERS miniseries comes back to Romance this month, when sister Melissa enlists the temporary services of The Borrowed Groom. Moyra Tarling’s Denim & Diamond pairs a rough-hewn single dad with the expectant woman he’d once desired beyond reason…but let get away.

Valerie Parv unveils her romantic royalty series THE CARRAMER CROWN. When a woman literally washes ashore at the feet of the prince, she becomes companion to The Monarch’s Son… but will she ever become the monarch’s wife? Julianna Morris’s BRIDAL FEVER! persists when Jodie’s Mail-Order Man discovers her heart’s desire: the brother of her mail-order groom! And Martha Shields’s Lassoed! is the perfect Opposites Attract story this summer. The sparks between a rough-and-tumble rodeo champ and the refined beauty sent to photograph him jump off every page!

In future months, look for STORKVILLE, USA, our newest continuity series. And don’t miss the charming miniseries THE CHANDLERS REQUEST…from New York Times bestselling author Kasey Michaels.

Happy reading!

Mary-Theresa Hussey

Senior Editor

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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To my darling Paul, the real prince in my life

Silhouette Romance

The Leopard Tree #507

The Billionaire’s Baby Chase #1270

Baby Wishes and Bachelor Kisses #1313

*The Monarch’s Son #1459

lives and breathes romance, and has even written a guide to being romantic, crediting her cartoonist husband of nearly thirty years as her inspiration. As a former buffalo and crocodile hunter in Australia’s Northern Territory, he’s ready-made hero material, she says.

When not writing about her novels and nonfiction books, or speaking about romance on Australian radio and television, Valerie enjoys dollhouses, being a Star Trek fan and playing with food (in cooking, that is). Valerie agrees with actor Nichelle Nichols, who said, “The difference between fantasy and fact is that fantasy simply hasn’t happened yet.”

The Carramer Crown takes place in the fictitious island kingdom of Carramer in the South Pacific. French explorer la Perouse called Carramer “the loveliest fleet of islands anchored in any ocean.” Carramer comprises three inhabited islands and a handful of tiny offshore islands. The main island is Celeste, home to the capital city of Solano, and the ruling monarch, Lorne de Marigny. Across the Carramer Strait lies the larger, blissfully beautiful Isle des Anges (Island of the Angels) and its near neighbor, tiny Nuee, both governed by Prince Lorne’s younger brother, Michel, next in line to the throne after Lorne’s son, Nori. Younger sister Adrienne sees no role for herself in government, and yearns to establish a horse-breeding stable.

Carramer’s traditions are a mixture of French and Polynesian influences. It enjoys a perfect climate, as near-constant trade winds prevail throughout the year and most rain falls as daytime showers that are accompanied by rainbows, giving rise to the popular name for Carramer of “the Rainbow Isles.”

There is rumored to be another royal offspring living in the United States, but so far that story remains untold.

Valerie Parv

Official historian to the sovereign state of Carramer

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Epilogue

As soon as Allie Carter felt the powerful undertow start to drag her out to deep water she knew she was in trouble. The current flowed as fast as a river, much too powerful for her to swim against. It was all she could do to keep her head above water.

Every instinct urged her to fight her way back to the fast-receding beach, but she resisted the temptation, knowing it was the way to certain death. Instead she made herself swim parallel with the shore. She knew that sooner or later the current would dissipate in calm water, then she could turn toward land, although judging by the ferocity of the current, it was likely to be a long way from Saphir Beach where she’d entered the water.

“Let it take you, don’t fight it,” she told herself to curb her rising panic. She couldn’t help thinking about the sharks that frequented the deeper waters. Maybe they only ate women from Carramer and not visiting Australians, she thought. Talk about wishful thinking. The thought distracted her briefly from the growing ache in her shoulders and arms, although it did nothing for the rawness of her throat from swallowing salt water.

Just when she was afraid she wouldn’t have the strength to make it back to shore, she felt the current’s grip slacken, and she began angling her strokes to carry her to a cove visible in the distance. Exhaustion and salt water blurred her vision but she thought she saw someone moving about on the sand, unless it was more wishful thinking.

By the time she reached shallower water she couldn’t summon the energy to stand up, and she flopped in the breakers, chest heaving with the struggle to breathe, barely able to see out of stinging eyes. Waves washed over her head and threatened to carry her out to sea again but she had no strength left to fight them.