Eileen Wilks - The Loner And The Lady

Cover Page

Excerpt Why Was She Here In This Cabin With A Stranger? No, he wasn’t a stranger. His face was familiar, of course it was, and she’d think of his name in a minute. In a minute she’d remember… But his name never came to her. And suddenly she was afraid. “Who are you?” she whispered. He stopped dead. If his face had been unrevealing before, it was flatly blank now. “Seth,” he said slowly. “Seth Brogan.” She closed her mouth. Licked her dry lips. Stared at him as if she could force her way through his deliberate blankness, force her way through to what she desperately needed. And asked her next question. “Who am I?”

Dear Reader Dear Reader, It’s hard to believe that this is the grand finale of CELEBRATION 1000! But all good things must come to an end. Not that there aren’t more wonderful things in store for you next month, too… But as for June, first we have an absolutely sizzling MAN OF THE MONTH from Ann Major called The Accidental Bodyguard. Are you a fan of HAWK’S WAY? If so, don’t miss the latest “Hawk’s” story, The Temporary Groom by Joan Johnston. Check out the family tree on page six and see if you recognize all the members of the Whitelaw family. And with The Cowboy and the Cradle Cait London has begun a fabulous new western series—THE TALLCHIEFS. (P.S. The next Tallchief is all set for September!) Many of you have written to say how much you love Elizabeth Bevarly’s books. Her latest, Father of the Brood, book #2 in the FROM HERE TO PATERNITY series, simply shouldn’t be missed. This month is completed with Karen Leabo’s The Prodigal Groom, the latest in our WEDDING NIGHT series, and don’t miss a wonderful star of tomorrow—DEBUT AUTHOR Eileen Wilks, who’s written The Loner and the Lady. As for next month…we have a not-to-be-missed MAN OF THE MONTH by Anne McAllister, and Dixie Browning launches DADDY KNOWS LAST, a new Silhouette continuity series beginning in Desire. Senior Editor Please address questions and book requests to: Silhouette Reader Service U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269 Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

Title Page The Loner And The Lady Eileen Wilks www.millsandboon.co.uk

Dedication This one has to be for Karen.

About the Author EILEEN WILKS is a fifth-generation Texan. Her great-great-grandmother came to Texas in a covered wagon shortly after the end of the Civil War—excuse us, the War Between the States. But she’s not a full-blooded Texan. Right after another war, her Texan father fell for a Yankee woman. This obviously mismatched pair proceeded to travel to nine cities in three countries in the first twenty years of their marriage, raising two kids and innumerable dogs and cats along the way. For the next twenty years they stayed put, back home in Texas again—and still together. Eileen figures her professional career matches her nomadic upbringing, since she tried everything from drafting to a brief stint as a ranch hand—raising two children and any number of cats and dogs along the way. Not until she started writing did she “stay put,” because that’s when she knew she’d come home.

Dear Reader Dear Reader, I love to write Desires for the same reasons I love to read them. They’re fast, spicy, varied, and give me characters I want to spend time with. Many of my favorite authors are found within Desire’s red covers. So when my editor told me my book would be part of the big birthday party Desire is throwing to celebrate its 1000th book, I went up like a rocket. The only reason I can’t call it a dream come true is because it hadn’t occurred to me to dream so big. Being part of a celebration headlined by authors whose books I’ve cherished for years is like being a rookie invited to step up to the plate in the fourth inning of the World Series—scary, thrilling, absolutely wonderful. I didn’t plan to write The Loner and the Lady. For a couple weeks I’d been trying to begin a different book, but I was trapped in the first chapter. Finally I cleared my computer screen. “This isn’t working,” I said. “What do I really want to write?” I found myself with Seth on a mountain in the middle of a storm, looking for a lost dog—and amazed when he discovered another sort of stray. The Loner and the Lady turned out to be what I really wanted to write. I’ve always had a weakness for dark, brooding heroes, so I loved the time I spent with Seth and Sophie. I hope you will, too.

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Copyright

No, he wasn’t a stranger. His face was familiar, of course it was, and she’d think of his name in a minute. In a minute she’d remember…

But his name never came to her. And suddenly she was afraid.

“Who are you?” she whispered.

He stopped dead. If his face had been unrevealing before, it was flatly blank now.

“Seth,” he said slowly. “Seth Brogan.”

She closed her mouth. Licked her dry lips. Stared at him as if she could force her way through his deliberate blankness, force her way through to what she desperately needed. And asked her next question.

“Who am I?”

Dear Reader,

It’s hard to believe that this is the grand finale of CELEBRATION 1000! But all good things must come to an end. Not that there aren’t more wonderful things in store for you next month, too…

But as for June, first we have an absolutely sizzling MAN OF THE MONTH from Ann Major called The Accidental Bodyguard.

Are you a fan of HAWK’S WAY? If so, don’t miss the latest “Hawk’s” story, The Temporary Groom by Joan Johnston. Check out the family tree on page six and see if you recognize all the members of the Whitelaw family.

And with The Cowboy and the Cradle Cait London has begun a fabulous new western series—THE TALLCHIEFS. (P.S. The next Tallchief is all set for September!)

Many of you have written to say how much you love Elizabeth Bevarly’s books. Her latest, Father of the Brood, book #2 in the FROM HERE TO PATERNITY series, simply shouldn’t be missed.

This month is completed with Karen Leabo’s The Prodigal Groom, the latest in our WEDDING NIGHT series, and don’t miss a wonderful star of tomorrow—DEBUT AUTHOR Eileen Wilks, who’s written The Loner and the Lady.

As for next month…we have a not-to-be-missed MAN OF THE MONTH by Anne McAllister, and Dixie Browning launches DADDY KNOWS LAST, a new Silhouette continuity series beginning in Desire.

Senior Editor

Please address questions and book requests to: Silhouette Reader Service

U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269

Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

www.millsandboon.co.uk

This one has to be for Karen.

is a fifth-generation Texan. Her great-great-grandmother came to Texas in a covered wagon shortly after the end of the Civil War—excuse us, the War Between the States. But she’s not a full-blooded Texan. Right after another war, her Texan father fell for a Yankee woman. This obviously mismatched pair proceeded to travel to nine cities in three countries in the first twenty years of their marriage, raising two kids and innumerable dogs and cats along the way. For the next twenty years they stayed put, back home in Texas again—and still together.