Ana Seymour - Lucky Bride

Cover Page

Excerpt “I was hoping to get another dance with you,” Parker said. Molly gave a happy laugh. “All you had to do was ask.” He pulled her to a stop, then pointed above her head. “I’m asking,” he said, his voice suddenly thick. She looked up to catch a brief glimpse of mistletoe, just before his lips came down on hers. Parker had meant the gesture to be friendly, but before he had reached her mouth he knew that it was going to be more than that. He kissed her once, before releasing her as if he’d been burned. Molly stood watching him for a long moment. He put his arm back around her waist. “I… ah…could try it again.” She stepped backward and shook her head. “No. Then I’d have to fire you.” “So if I kiss you again, I lose my job? Hmm.” The decision took him about three seconds before he snatched her against him again….

Dear Reader Dear Reader, Ana Seymour’s seventh book for Harlequin Historicals, Lucky Bride, is a sequel to Gabriel’s Lady. When ranch hand Parker Prescott discovers that his boss might be forced to marry a dangerous con man, he sets out to save her… only to fall in love with her in the process in this delightful Western set in Wyoming Territory. Romance Writers of America RITA Award nominee Gayle Wilson is back with Raven’s Vow, a haunting Regency novel about a marriage of convenience between an American investor and an English heiress. Elizabeth Mayne, another March Madness/RTTA Award nominee author, is also out this month. Lord of the Isle is a classic Elizabethan tale featuring an Irish nobleman who unwittingly falls in love with a rebel from an outlawed family. Our fourth title for the month, The Return of Chase Cordell, is a Western from Linda Castle, who is fast becoming one of our most popular authors. It’s a poignant love story about a war hero with amnesia who rediscovers a forgotten passion for his young bride. Whatever your taste in reading, we hope you’ll enjoy all four of these terrific stories. Please keep an eye out for them 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 Lucky Bride Ana Seymour www.millsandboon.co.uk

About the Author ANA SEYMOUR has been a Western fan since her childhood—the days of the shoot-’em-up movie matinees and television programs. She has followed the course of the Western myth in books and films ever since, and says she was delighted when cowboys started going off into the sunset with their ladies rather than their horses. Ms. Seymour lives with her two daughters near one of Minnesota’s ten thousand lakes.

Dedication In memory of my grandmother Jane Lovene Eiler my ever-present example of a woman of spirit

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

Epilogue

Copyright

Molly gave a happy laugh. “All you had to do was ask.”

He pulled her to a stop, then pointed above her head. “I’m asking,” he said, his voice suddenly thick.

She looked up to catch a brief glimpse of mistletoe, just before his lips came down on hers.

Parker had meant the gesture to be friendly, but before he had reached her mouth he knew that it was going to be more than that. He kissed her once, before releasing her as if he’d been burned. Molly stood watching him for a long moment.

He put his arm back around her waist. “I… ah…could try it again.”

She stepped backward and shook her head. “No. Then I’d have to fire you.”

“So if I kiss you again, I lose my job? Hmm.” The decision took him about three seconds before he snatched her against him again….

Dear Reader,

Ana Seymour’s seventh book for Harlequin Historicals, Lucky Bride, is a sequel to Gabriel’s Lady. When ranch hand Parker Prescott discovers that his boss might be forced to marry a dangerous con man, he sets out to save her… only to fall in love with her in the process in this delightful Western set in Wyoming Territory.

Romance Writers of America RITA Award nominee Gayle Wilson is back with Raven’s Vow, a haunting Regency novel about a marriage of convenience between an American investor and an English heiress. Elizabeth Mayne, another March Madness/RTTA Award nominee author, is also out this month. Lord of the Isle is a classic Elizabethan tale featuring an Irish nobleman who unwittingly falls in love with a rebel from an outlawed family.

Our fourth title for the month, The Return of Chase Cordell, is a Western from Linda Castle, who is fast becoming one of our most popular authors. It’s a poignant love story about a war hero with amnesia who rediscovers a forgotten passion for his young bride.

Whatever your taste in reading, we hope you’ll enjoy all four of these terrific stories. Please keep an eye out for them 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

has been a Western fan since her childhood—the days of the shoot-’em-up movie matinees and television programs. She has followed the course of the Western myth in books and films ever since, and says she was delighted when cowboys started going off into the sunset with their ladies rather than their horses. Ms. Seymour lives with her two daughters near one of Minnesota’s ten thousand lakes.

In memory of my grandmother Jane Lovene Eiler my ever-present example of a woman of spirit

Wyoming Territory

November, 1876

Parker Prescott pushed back the brim of his lucky Stetson and grimaced as he surveyed the dusty street. Whoever had named this place Canyon City must have had a darn good sense of humor. This sure as hell wasn’t Parker’s idea of a city. And the closest thing he’d seen to a canyon in the brown plains he’d just crossed was the collapsed prairie dog hole that had lamed up his horse.

He sighed. It appeared the livery was at the far end of town, past a row of three saloons, a bathhouse and a tonsorial parlor. He took a step back and gave his mount a pat. “Just a little farther, Diamond,” he told the animal. “Then you can give that leg a nice long rest.”

Parker had walked the last few miles into town, and the thought of that bathhouse was appealing. He’d see to Diamond, then head back and try to soak away his aches and his gloomy mood in a steaming tub. The aches would disappear faster than the gloom, he reckoned.

Diamond seemed to sense that her limping journey was about over. She tossed her head and followed willingly as Parker started up the street. His horse’s mishap was the last in a string of plain bad luck that had set Parker to wondering why he’d ever left New York City in the first place.