Arlene James - Glass Slipper Bride

“You aren’t going to marry Jillian!” “You aren’t going to marry Jillian!” “Is that so?” Zach muttered dangerously. Jillian tried to plead with her sister to keep quiet, but she wouldn’t be stopped. “Jillian told Mother and me that you wouldn’t have her even after she threw herself at you!” Humiliated beyond endurance, Jillian groaned. “Camille, please—” “You think I didn’t sleep with her because I didn’t want to?” Zach asked incredulously. “Let me tell you, I didn’t sleep with Jillian because I respect her too much. And you have nothing to say about me marrying her. Does she, Jillian?” “You don’t have to go through with it,” Jillian replied instead, praying that he’d declare with heartfelt sincerity that he wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of his life with her. Instead, Zach took a deep breath, his eyes full of apology and regret. “You know I wouldn’t insist if it wasn’t the only solution. For now.” For now. Jillian blinked back tears and nodded. Only for now. Letter to Reader Dear Reader, The wonder of a Silhouette Romance is that it can touch every woman’s heart Check out this month’s offerings—and prepare to be swept away! A woman wild about kids winds up tutoring a single dad in the art of parenthood in Babies, Rattles and Cribs... Oh, My! It’s this month’s BUNDLES OF JOY title from Leanna Wilson. When a Cinderella-esque waitress—complete with wicked stepfamily!—finds herself in danger, she hires a bodyguard whose idea of protection means making her his Glass Slipper Bride, another unforgettable tale from Arlene James. Pair one highly independent woman and one overly protective lawman and what do you have? The prelude to The Marriage Beat, Doreen Roberts’s sparkling new Romance with a HE’S MY HERO cop. WRANGLERS & LACE is a theme-based promotion highlighting classic Western stories. July’s offering, Cathleen Galitz’s Wyoming Born & Bred, features an ex-rodeo champion bent on reclaiming his family’s homestead who instead discovers that home is with the stubborn new owner...and her three charming children! A long-lost twin, a runaway bride...and A Gift for the Groom—-don’t miss this conclusion to Sally Carleen’s delightful duo ON THE WAY TO A WEDDING.... And a man-shy single mom takes a chance and follows The Way to a Cowboy’s Heart in this emotional heart-tugger from rising star Teresa Southwick. Enjoy this month’s selections, and make sure to drop me a line about why you keep coming back to Romance. We want to fulfill your dreams! Happy reading, Mary-Theresa Hussey Senior Editor, Silhouette Romance 300 East 42nd Street. 6th Floor New York, NY 10017 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 Glass Slipper Bride Arlene James www.millsandboon.co.uk About the Author ARLENE JAMES grew up in Oklahoma and has lived all over the South. In 1976 she married “the most romantic man in the world.” The author enjoys traveling with her husband, but writing has always been her chief pastime. Letter to Reader Dear Reader, Don’t you just love to discover some hidden strength or goodness in yourself? It makes one feel a certain careful pride and a sense of accomplishment. Unfortunately those discoveries don’t come on soft summer days spent in a hammock with a good book and a tall glass of lemonade. Such self-discovery is always the result of some difficulty in our lives, something we feel helpless to face or change. Such is the case with Jillian Waltham. Like most well-rounded adults, Jillian knows herself better than she realizes. She knows that she has talent and that she’s capable of loving selflessly. She even knows what she wants. What she doesn’t realize is that she can make others know those things about her, too, even Zachary Keller, the handsome hero who makes all the girls’ hearts go pitter-patter. It’s difficulty and the very real threat of danger that brings a hero into Jillian’s life to begin with, but it’s Jillian herself who provokes him to his very greatest acts of heroism. In doing so, Jillian discovers the depth and value of her true self—and she begins to understand, along with everyone else, that she actually deserves true love as much as, say, Zach Keller. I hope you enjoy Jillian’s journey to her true self and her true love as much as I have. God bless, Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Copyright

“You aren’t going to marry Jillian!”

“Is that so?” Zach muttered dangerously.

Jillian tried to plead with her sister to keep quiet, but she wouldn’t be stopped. “Jillian told Mother and me that you wouldn’t have her even after she threw herself at you!”

Humiliated beyond endurance, Jillian groaned. “Camille, please—”

“You think I didn’t sleep with her because I didn’t want to?” Zach asked incredulously. “Let me tell you, I didn’t sleep with Jillian because I respect her too much. And you have nothing to say about me marrying her. Does she, Jillian?”

“You don’t have to go through with it,” Jillian replied instead, praying that he’d declare with heartfelt sincerity that he wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of his life with her.

Instead, Zach took a deep breath, his eyes full of apology and regret. “You know I wouldn’t insist if it wasn’t the only solution. For now.”

For now. Jillian blinked back tears and nodded. Only for now.

Dear Reader,

The wonder of a Silhouette Romance is that it can touch every woman’s heart Check out this month’s offerings—and prepare to be swept away!

A woman wild about kids winds up tutoring a single dad in the art of parenthood in Babies, Rattles and Cribs... Oh, My! It’s this month’s BUNDLES OF JOY title from Leanna Wilson. When a Cinderella-esque waitress—complete with wicked stepfamily!—finds herself in danger, she hires a bodyguard whose idea of protection means making her his Glass Slipper Bride, another unforgettable tale from Arlene James. Pair one highly independent woman and one overly protective lawman and what do you have? The prelude to The Marriage Beat, Doreen Roberts’s sparkling new Romance with a HE’S MY HERO cop.

WRANGLERS & LACE is a theme-based promotion highlighting classic Western stories. July’s offering, Cathleen Galitz’s Wyoming Born & Bred, features an ex-rodeo champion bent on reclaiming his family’s homestead who instead discovers that home is with the stubborn new owner...and her three charming children! A long-lost twin, a runaway bride...and A Gift for the Groom—-don’t miss this conclusion to Sally Carleen’s delightful duo ON THE WAY TO A WEDDING.... And a man-shy single mom takes a chance and follows The Way to a Cowboy’s Heart in this emotional heart-tugger from rising star Teresa Southwick.

Enjoy this month’s selections, and make sure to drop me a line about why you keep coming back to Romance. We want to fulfill your dreams!

Happy reading,

Mary-Theresa Hussey

Senior Editor, Silhouette Romance

300 East 42nd Street. 6th Floor

New York, NY 10017

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

ARLENE JAMES

grew up in Oklahoma and has lived all over the South. In 1976 she married “the most romantic man in the world.” The author enjoys traveling with her husband, but writing has always been her chief pastime.