Lady Amelia Templeton has had nightmares since age nine of the massacre between the rebel Highlanders and the English soldiers. Sleeping in the bed of her betrothed, Lt. Col. Richard Bennett, during his absence from Fort William, Amelia is nearly beheaded. A virile, bloodthirsty Highlander known as the Butcher is shocked to find Amelia rather than Richard, whom he intends to behead in vengeance for Richard's brutal rape, beating and beheading of the Butcher's betrothed.
The Butcher, Duncan MacLean, holds Amelia hostage in drawing Richard to his death. Suffering near rape by soldiers and after long hard treks through the woods, they arrive at their destination. Respect grows for the gorgeous Highlander protector who makes her blood run hot. Duncan soon learns that taking Richard's bride as revenge backfires and Amelia is now embedded in his blood. Duncan is captured and his identity and life are threatened, while Amelia is desperate to devise a plan to free him from the dungeon and certain death.
Julianne MacLean has written a most exciting and thrilling story in her saga of three fierce Highland warriors sworn to protect their land and those they love. Lady Amelia and Duncan are brave, hot-blooded opposites unable to deny the sexual draw towards each other. Their story is full of passion and deeply rooted vengeance. I truly look forward to the next story in this series from this most talented storyteller.
THE ENEMY IN HER BED
Lady Amelia Templeton would rather die than surrender to a
man like Duncan MacLean. He is the fiercest warrior of his
clanโher peopleโs sworn enemyโand tonight he is standing
over her bed. Eyes blazing, muscles taut, and battle axe
gleaming, MacLean has come to kill Ameliaโs fiancรฉ. But once
he sees the lovely, innocent Amelia, he decides to take her
insteadโฆ
THE LOVER IN HIS ARMS
Stealing the young bride-to-be is the perfect revenge
against the man who murdered Duncanโs one true love. But
Lady Amelia turns out to be more than a pawn of vengeance
and war. This brave, beautiful woman touches something deep
in Duncanโs soul that is even more powerful than a warriorโs
fury. But when Amelia begins to fall in love with her
captorโand surrenders in his armsโthe real battle beginsโฆ
EXCERPT
From Chapter Three of CAPTURED BY THE HIGHLANDER (By
Julianne MacLean, published by St. Martin's Press, March 1,
2011):
Amelia sat on the floor of the cave, fighting against an
overwhelming sense of defeat. No matter how hard she tugged
and wrenched at the thin ropes binding her wrists, she could
not free herself. She was trapped like a helpless fawn in a
wolfโs den, and soon her captor would return and do what
heโd wanted to do to her all along, since the moment heโd
crept into her fiancรฉโs bedchamber.
Then suddenly he was there before her, kneeling down,
pulling a knife from his boot. Terror exploded within her.
โPlease,โ she said, tugging harder and more desperately at
the bonds.
โIf you possess the smallest shred of humanity, you will let
me go. You must.โ
He raised the knife in the dim light, and just when she
thought he was going to cut her throat, he sliced through
her bonds instead. They dropped lightly to the ground.
โYouโre a fighter, arenโt you?โ He took both her hands in
his and held them up to inspect the undersides of her
wrists. โI admire your tenacity, but look what youโve done
to yourself.โ
A thin trail of blood was dripping down her arm. He reached
for a cloth, dipped it into the pot of water that hung on a
hook over the unlit fire, and touched it to her wrists.
Gently, he washed the blood away.
โAre you going to kill me?โ she asked, glancing uneasily at
the sword he carried. โBecause if I am to be put to death,
I wish to know.โ
He remained focused on what he was doing. โIโm not going to
kill you.โ
She was grateful for the information, certainly, but was
still a far cry from feeling calm and reassured.
โWhat about the other Highlander?โ she asked. โHe doesnโt
seem to like me very much.โ She glanced toward the mouth of
the cave.
โYouโre right. He detests the very ground you walk on.โ
The Butcher folded the cloth and continued to wipe her
forearm with the cleaner side of it.
โWhy? Because I am English? Or is it because I am engaged
to Colonel Bennett?โ
He paused. โI reckon both those things make him want to
murder you where you stand.โ
The cloth touched a tender spot, and Amelia snapped her hand
back.
He looked at her intently, and somehow without a single
word, he persuaded her with his eyes to endure the
discomfort without complaint. She found herself responding,
as if she were being lured into a comfortable obedience...
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