Deborah Simmons - Maiden Bride

Cover Page

Praise Praise for Deborah Simmons other works Taming the Wolf “…funny, challenging and exciting…5 s” — Affaire de Coeur “…thrilling,…a breathless love story…41/2” — Romantic times The Vicar’s Daughter “…absolutely wonderful!…You won’t be able to put it down!”— Affaire de Coeur “this one has found a place on my shelf for keepers.” — Rendezvous The Devil’s Lady “Deborah Simmons guarantees the reader a page-turner…” — Romantic Times the Squire’s Daughter “…a priceless gem…warms the heart and cheers the spirit…” — Affaire de Coeur

Excerpt “If he has done more than hold your hand, I will kill you both,” he promised, his voice a guttural bark. His gaze never left her, bright and probing and denying her innocence. “Perhaps you did not realize that ‘tis not wise to be alone with a man!” He spat the words out as if they tasted foul upon his tongue. “We were talking, nothing more!” Gillian protested, alarmed by the look in his glittering depths. “Trust you not your own guard?” “Nay! I trust no one when it comes to you!” Nicholas growled, taking a step toward her. Comprehension dawned slowly, laced with so much disbelief that Gillian shook her head, as if dazed. Regarding him with wide-eyed wonder, she whispered the truth. “You are jealous.” He flinched, but did not deny it. “You are mine, body and soul, and you had best remember it!”

Dear Reader Dear Reader, Whether writing atmospheric Medievals or sexy Regencies, Deborah Simmons continues to delight readers with her romantic stories, be they dark and brooding or light and full of fun. In this month’s Maiden Bride, the sequel to The Devil’s Lady, Nicholas de Laci transfers his blood lust to his enemy’s niece, Gillian, his future wife by royal decree. Don’t miss this wonderful tale. Fans of Romantic Times Career Achievement Award winner Veronica Sattler will be thrilled to see this month’s reissue of her Worldwide Library release, Jesse’s Lady. We hope you’ll enjoy this exciting story of a young heiress and her handsome guardian who must survive the evil machinations of her bastard brother and a jealous temptress before they can find happiness. Beloved Outcast by Pat Tracy is a dramatic Western about an Eastern spinster who is hired by a man with a notorious reputation to tutor his adopted daughter. And our fourth book this month is The Wager by Sally Cheney, the story of a young Englishwoman who reluctantly falls in love with a man who won her in a game of cards. We hope you’ll keep a lookout for all four titles wherever Harlequin Historicals are sold. Sincerely, Tracy Farrell Senior Editor Please address questions and book requests to: Harlequin 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 Maiden Bride Deborah Simmons www.millsandboon.co.uk

About The Author DEBORAH SIMMONS Deborah Simmons began her writing career as a newspaper reporter. She turned to fiction after the birth of her first child when a longtime love of historical romance prompted her to pen her own work, published in 1989. She lives with her husband, two children and two cats in rural Ohio, where she divides her time between her family, reading and writing. She enjoys hearing from readers at the below address. For a reply, an SASE is appreciated. Deborah Simmons P.O. Box 274 Ontario, Ohio 44862-0274

Dedication Special thanks to Linda Hoffman, Laurie Miller and Jennifer Weithman for their insistence upon and assistance with Nicholas’s story

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Epilogue

Copyright

Taming the Wolf

“…funny, challenging and exciting…5 s”

— Affaire de Coeur

“…thrilling,…a breathless love story…41/2”

— Romantic times

The Vicar’s Daughter

“…absolutely wonderful!…You won’t be able to put it down!”— Affaire de Coeur

“this one has found a place on my shelf for keepers.”

— Rendezvous

The Devil’s Lady

“Deborah Simmons guarantees the reader a page-turner…”

— Romantic Times

the Squire’s Daughter

“…a priceless gem…warms the heart and cheers the spirit…”

— Affaire de Coeur

he promised, his voice a guttural bark.

His gaze never left her, bright and probing and denying her innocence. “Perhaps you did not realize that ‘tis not wise to be alone with a man!” He spat the words out as if they tasted foul upon his tongue.

“We were talking, nothing more!” Gillian protested, alarmed by the look in his glittering depths. “Trust you not your own guard?”

“Nay! I trust no one when it comes to you!” Nicholas growled, taking a step toward her.

Comprehension dawned slowly, laced with so much disbelief that Gillian shook her head, as if dazed. Regarding him with wide-eyed wonder, she whispered the truth. “You are jealous.”

He flinched, but did not deny it. “You are mine, body and soul, and you had best remember it!”

Dear Reader,

Whether writing atmospheric Medievals or sexy Regencies, Deborah Simmons continues to delight readers with her romantic stories, be they dark and brooding or light and full of fun. In this month’s Maiden Bride, the sequel to The Devil’s Lady, Nicholas de Laci transfers his blood lust to his enemy’s niece, Gillian, his future wife by royal decree. Don’t miss this wonderful tale.

Fans of Romantic Times Career Achievement Award winner Veronica Sattler will be thrilled to see this month’s reissue of her Worldwide Library release, Jesse’s Lady. We hope you’ll enjoy this exciting story of a young heiress and her handsome guardian who must survive the evil machinations of her bastard brother and a jealous temptress before they can find happiness.

Beloved Outcast by Pat Tracy is a dramatic Western about an Eastern spinster who is hired by a man with a notorious reputation to tutor his adopted daughter. And our fourth book this month is The Wager by Sally Cheney, the story of a young Englishwoman who reluctantly falls in love with a man who won her in a game of cards.

We hope you’ll keep a lookout for all four titles wherever Harlequin Historicals are sold. Sincerely,

Tracy Farrell

Senior Editor

Please address questions and book requests to:

Harlequin 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

Deborah Simmons began her writing career as a newspaper reporter. She turned to fiction after the birth of her first child when a longtime love of historical romance prompted her to pen her own work, published in 1989. She lives with her husband, two children and two cats in rural Ohio, where she divides her time between her family, reading and writing. She enjoys hearing from readers at the below address. For a reply, an SASE is appreciated.