A year after the Civil War, courageous former Union nurse Lydia McQuire was gamely scraping out an honest living. But now, as she said yes to marrying a stranger, her knees gave way with fear. Mr. Devon Quade had seemed polite and handsome when she answered his ad for a wife. Only after Lydia had arrived in Washington territory did she learn that her bridegroom wasn't to be sweet Devon Quade, but his older brother Brigham. Lydia's dislike of him was instantaneous...yet Brigham was awakening in her a white-hot passion.

A visit with Bavia's royal family was supposed to be the stuff dreams were made of for Annie Trevarren, an American girl abroad. Instead it was turning into a disaster. First Annie impetuously crawled onto a castle roof and had to be rescued by Crown Prince Rafael St. James himself. Then her dearest friend, the prince's sister, Phaedra, balks at an arranged wedding. The peasants rebel. The throne totters. Worst of all, Annie is losing her heart.

In 1886, lovely Banner O'Brien overcame every obstacle and won her coveted medical diploma. Still, she longed to escape from Oregon...and the nightmares that left her shaking, screaming one man's name. Banner fled to the Washington Territory to accept a position with Dr. Adam Corbin...arrogant, handsome, and, rumor said, violent. Although Banner respected his skills, she was unnerved by the very nearness of this moody, powerful man.

One ranch. Three sons. Only one will inherit...and on one condition. Tired of waiting for his sons to settle down, Arizona-territory rancher Angus McKettrick announces a competition: the first son to marry and produce a grandchild will inherit Triple M ranch. Now, three distinctly different, equally determined cowboys are searching high and low for brides.

Lily Chalmers wanted only two things from life: a farm of her own, and to find the sisters she hadn't seen since they were all little girls heading west on the orphan train. She certainly had no desire for a husband.

After 12 years, the headstrong Annabel McKeige is back in the frontier town of Parable, Nevada. Back to face the husband she left behind...the son she never saw grow to manhood...and the home where her heart broke when she lost a beloved daughter. But her intentions regarding their marriage are soon clear - even if her motives are not. Gabe McKeige loved Annabel too fiercely to let a chance like this slip away. So, Gabe sets out to woo Annabel the only way he knows.... Annabel is finding the man she once left is unbearably hard to resist....

Evangeline Keating came West because she had to: after her husband's passing, she needed to build a new life for her young daughter, and marrying a stranger from Montana Territory was her best chance. After a difficult winter journey, she arrives at an isolated outpost called Springwater Station. But the handsome man who's come for her is not her husband-to-be, and Evangeline soon finds herself thrust into a most inconvenient - and highly improper - arrangement.

After sailing to Australia only to find that the man who asked her to marry him has no intention of fulfilling his part of the bargain, Maggie Chamberlain vows to shape a new life for herself in Sydney. Then arrogant, wealthy Reeve McKenna captures Maggie's untried heart, thrilling her senses with the sweet, dark rush of desire. But Reeve cannot be hers alone, for he is obsessed by his search for his beloved brother James, lost two decades before.

When a woman has to choose between death and marriage to a total stranger, she must be in a dire predicament.... And for Jolie McKibben, about to pay by hanging for a terrible crime she didn't commit, salvation by marriage couldn't come a moment too soon. Housekeeping for Daniel Beckham, a widower who invoked the town's wedding ordinance to rescue Jolie from the gallows, is better than the alternative...but understanding the silent stranger who is now her husband might just about kill her.

If Lauralee had her way, all the saloons in the great Northwest would be closed down. Her crusade was successful - except for the prosperous saloon that McCallum was determined to save from her indignation. But their conflict could not quell their growing attraction for each other. Slowly the proud, powerful man melted Lauralee's defiant heart...yet as she surrendered to a rich and wild desire, her joy was shadowed by the haunting mystery of McCallum's brother's death...a mystery whose shocking outcome could forever destroy their love!

In 1883, the railroad had only recently come to Montana Territory, and outlaws still lurked in the hills. Willow Gallagher, who spent her early childhood in an outlaw camp until her father finally found her, is torn by divided loyalties. Newly married to handsome railroad baron Gideon Marshall, she finds fiery passion in Gideon's embrace until she discovers he is on a mission...a mission to capture Willow's outlaw brother, Steven. Now Willow must choose - betray her brother, or risk the love she has found with Gideon, the love she has dreamed of all her life, to save Steven.

Seven-year-old Keighly Barrow never forgot the night she spied a boy her own age at her grandmother's Redemption, Nevada, mansion. He was staring at her from an antique mirror in the ballroom, standing among gaudily dressed women in an old-time western saloon. Keighly could only discover that his name was Darby Elder - and that he lived a century ago. Twenty years later, engaged to be married, Keighly inherited her grandmother's house. Back before the ballroom mirror, she faces a handsome cowboy whose roguish air radiates trouble.

When Susannah McKittrick leaves Nantucket for the boomtown of Seattle, she is hardly looking to strike it rich; she is headed west to care for a newborn left motherless after Susannah's cousin died. Although the rigorous trip depletes all of her savings, Susannah is certain she is doing the right thing. She is less sure when she meets the infant's father, wealthy businessman Aubrey Fairgrieve - who seems embittered toward love and marriage, and indifferent toward the precious baby Susannah is so eager to care for.

She was the only child of a rich and powerful rancher. He was the son of a drunken ne'er-do-well. But when 11-year-old Luke Shardlow rescued eight-year-old Charity Barnham from drowning, she promised him one wish...any wish his heart might desire. Fifteen years later, Charity and Luke meet once more, as a sweet, sensual passion begins to grow between them, Luke and Charity discover that the only wish either of them long to fulfill is to spend a sweet eternity in each other's arms - no matter the cost.

There was trouble in Haven, Arizona, and Ranger Sam O'Ballivan was determined to sort it all out. He arrived posing as the new schoolteacher, and his first order of business was to bring the rough ranchers' children under control. To that end, he called on Maddie Chancelor, the local postmistress, whose younger brother was in firm need of discipline. Sam wasn't sure what to expect - but it was definitely not this graceful woman whose prim, proper stance was so at odds with the fire in her eyes.

Phoebe Turlow needs to get out of Seattle and forget about the man she just divorced, her dwindling finances, and the lonely nights that stretch ahead of her. But she can't foresee what awaits her on Paradise Island. Duncan Rourke is known to historians as "the pirate patriot". He's been dead for two centuries - or at least he's supposed to be, until Phoebe Turlow steps out of a van, into a run-down island hotel, and into his world.

A visit with Bavia's royal family was supposed to be the stuff dreams were made of for Annie Trevarren, an American girl abroad. Instead it was turning into a disaster. First Annie impetuously crawled onto a castle roof and had to be rescued by Crown Prince Rafael St. James himself. Then her dearest friend, the prince's sister, Phaedra, balks at an arranged wedding. The peasants rebel. The throne totters. Worst of all, Annie is losing her heart.

The pirate prince Lazar di Fiori returns with lethal grace to avenge what was stolen from him: his kingdom, his birthright, and his soul. Allegra Monteverdi, the daughter of Lazar's sworn enemy, proves an uncommonly powerful adversary. She throws herself on his mercy, her courage and beauty touching his cold, unforgiving heart. He agrees to spare the lives of her family - but only if Allegra sails away with him as his captive.

Kidnapped and taken to the beautiful city of Genoa, Cassie Brougham finds love in the arms of her captor, while she is betrothed to another man.

Jesse Morgan is a man hiding from the pain of his past, a man who has vowed never to give his heart again. Keeper of a remote lighthouse along a rocky and dangerous coast, he has locked himself away from everything but his bitter memories. A beautiful stranger washes ashore, the sole survivor of a shipwreck. Penniless and pregnant, Mary Dare is a woman who carries painful memories of her own.

Chelsea Myles earns her living as an actress with her uncle's theater troupe, performing cheap plays on the streets of London and picking the customers' pockets. Until one night, a robbery goes awry and Chelsea is left holding a purse with enough gold to buy her passage to Australia, and the chance of a fresh start. Once on board the vessel, Chelsea is intrigued by a fellow passenger, Quaid Tanner, who is returning to his vineyard in Australia. As much as Quaid admires the feisty, courageous Chelsea, circumstances seem destined to keep them apart.

After centuries of conflict, a peace treaty has finally been drawn between the warring Saxons and Norse—largely due to the wisdom and bravery of the legendary Viking leader Wolf Hakonson and the noble warrior Lord Hawk. Hawk and Wolf each married women from warring clans to unite the Saxons and Norse. But for all its blessings, the promise of peace will remain fragile—unless it can be sealed forever by a third and final marriage between these two proud clans.

Lady Aline Marsden was brought up to marry a man of her own class, but from the moment she meets John McKenna, she risks everything to be with him.

Born into riches and groomed in English luxury, Margot Armstrong didn't belong in a Scottish chieftain's devil-may-care world. Three years ago she fled their marriage of convenience and hasn't looked back - except to relive the moments spent in wild, rugged Arran McKenzie's passionate embrace. But as their respective countries' fragile unity threatens to unravel, Margot must return to her husband to uncover his role in the treachery before her family can be accused of it.

All Grace Gauthier ever wanted was the security of a good marriage, family, and home. Instead, despised by her aristocratic father's family because of her mother's foreign birth, she's taken a safe position as a governess. Now, unprotected and alone in London, accused of the shocking murder of her employer, she has no one to turn to except the mysterious - and possibly dangerous - Lord Ruthveyn.

When a royal summons from her brother arrives, Emma knows it's time to embrace her duties as the princess of a small European kingdom and marry the man her brother has chosen for her, a stranger she has never met. Instead, she does what any self-respecting princess would do - she runs away. All she wants is one week in London. One week to experience everything life has to offer, before she is locked away in a loveless marriage forever. Former naval captain Nick Gregory has inherited a title he never wanted.

Lady Guinevere Mallory has been married four times in 12 years, and each of her husbands has died mysteriously. Adept in the laws of property, she has secured the land of each of her late spouses, vastly increasing her personal wealth. After the death of her fourth husband, this trend raises some eyebrows at the royal court, and Hugh of Beaucaire is sent to investigate these puzzling events.

Lady Lucy MacMorlan may have forsworn men and marriage, but that doesn't mean she won't agree to profit from writing love letters for her brother's friends - letters that become increasingly racy as her fame grows. That is, until she inadvertently ruins the betrothal of a notorious laird.... Robert, the dashing Marquis of Methven, is onto Lucy's secret. And he certainly doesn't intend to let the lovely Lady Lucy have the last word, especially when her letters suggest she is considerably more experienced than he realized.

Rebellion has always been in the O'Reilly family's blood. So when faced with the tragic death of her brother during Northern Ireland's infamous Troubles, a teenage Nora joined the IRA to fight for her country's freedom. Now, more than a decade later, Nora is haunted by both her past and vivid dreams of a man she has never met. When she is given a relic belonging to Brigid of Kildare, patron saint of Ireland, the mystical artifact transports her back eighty years - to the height of Ireland's brutal civil war.

Welcome to a world of chivalry and honor, of danger and desire, of legend, and of love…. These four original novellas bring to life all the romance and adventure of the Middle Ages, with the common thread of a rich medieval tapestry woven through each tale by an acclaimed master of historical romance….

In 1883, the railroad had only recently come to Montana Territory, and outlaws still lurked in the hills. Willow Gallagher, who spent her early childhood in an outlaw camp until her father finally found her, is torn by divided loyalties. Newly married to handsome railroad baron Gideon Marshall, she finds fiery passion in Gideon's embrace until she discovers he is on a mission...a mission to capture Willow's outlaw brother, Steven. Now Willow must choose - betray her brother, or risk the love she has found with Gideon, the love she has dreamed of all her life, to save Steven.

A visit with Bavia's royal family was supposed to be the stuff dreams were made of for Annie Trevarren, an American girl abroad. Instead it was turning into a disaster. First Annie impetuously crawled onto a castle roof and had to be rescued by Crown Prince Rafael St. James himself. Then her dearest friend, the prince's sister, Phaedra, balks at an arranged wedding. The peasants rebel. The throne totters. Worst of all, Annie is losing her heart.

When a woman has to choose between death and marriage to a total stranger, she must be in a dire predicament.... And for Jolie McKibben, about to pay by hanging for a terrible crime she didn't commit, salvation by marriage couldn't come a moment too soon. Housekeeping for Daniel Beckham, a widower who invoked the town's wedding ordinance to rescue Jolie from the gallows, is better than the alternative...but understanding the silent stranger who is now her husband might just about kill her.

Phoebe Turlow needs to get out of Seattle and forget about the man she just divorced, her dwindling finances, and the lonely nights that stretch ahead of her. But she can't foresee what awaits her on Paradise Island. Duncan Rourke is known to historians as "the pirate patriot". He's been dead for two centuries - or at least he's supposed to be, until Phoebe Turlow steps out of a van, into a run-down island hotel, and into his world.

If Lauralee had her way, all the saloons in the great Northwest would be closed down. Her crusade was successful - except for the prosperous saloon that McCallum was determined to save from her indignation. But their conflict could not quell their growing attraction for each other. Slowly the proud, powerful man melted Lauralee's defiant heart...yet as she surrendered to a rich and wild desire, her joy was shadowed by the haunting mystery of McCallum's brother's death...a mystery whose shocking outcome could forever destroy their love!

"She who loves and runs away, lives to love another day" was Jacy Tiernan's credo. Only this fair-haired beauty had never loved again after Ian Yarbro. Ten years ago, she had fled her beloved Australian homestead with a shattered soul. Ian, the rugged sheep rancher who'd awakened her young heart to the most exquisite pleasures, had sired the child of another woman. Unable to forgive him, Jacy ran off to New York to live with her wealthy divorced mother, leaving behind all dreams of happiness. Now Jacy had returned to Corroboree Springs to care for her ailing father.

After 12 years, the headstrong Annabel McKeige is back in the frontier town of Parable, Nevada. Back to face the husband she left behind...the son she never saw grow to manhood...and the home where her heart broke when she lost a beloved daughter. But her intentions regarding their marriage are soon clear - even if her motives are not. Gabe McKeige loved Annabel too fiercely to let a chance like this slip away. So, Gabe sets out to woo Annabel the only way he knows.... Annabel is finding the man she once left is unbearably hard to resist....

When hardworking attorney Clare Westbrook learns that her ambulance-chasing boss has been murdered, she's shocked - but not exactly surprised. Harvey Kredd was known for his less-than-ethical business dealings, and even his acts of generosity were tinged with greed. Clare, working at Kredd and Associates to pay off the law school loan Harvey had granted her several years before, knows she's got no choice: indentured servitude, twenty-first-century style.

After sailing to Australia only to find that the man who asked her to marry him has no intention of fulfilling his part of the bargain, Maggie Chamberlain vows to shape a new life for herself in Sydney. Then arrogant, wealthy Reeve McKenna captures Maggie's untried heart, thrilling her senses with the sweet, dark rush of desire. But Reeve cannot be hers alone, for he is obsessed by his search for his beloved brother James, lost two decades before.

She was the only child of a rich and powerful rancher. He was the son of a drunken ne'er-do-well. But when 11-year-old Luke Shardlow rescued eight-year-old Charity Barnham from drowning, she promised him one wish...any wish his heart might desire. Fifteen years later, Charity and Luke meet once more, as a sweet, sensual passion begins to grow between them, Luke and Charity discover that the only wish either of them long to fulfill is to spend a sweet eternity in each other's arms - no matter the cost.

Evangeline Keating came West because she had to: after her husband's passing, she needed to build a new life for her young daughter, and marrying a stranger from Montana Territory was her best chance. After a difficult winter journey, she arrives at an isolated outpost called Springwater Station. But the handsome man who's come for her is not her husband-to-be, and Evangeline soon finds herself thrust into a most inconvenient - and highly improper - arrangement.

Sharon Harrison and Tony Morelli were never able to control the powerful chemistry between them. It led first to heart-stopping passion, then to marriage and children. They thought they had it all, but under pressure their happy home became an explosive battleground. Even divorce, however, can't completely separate them. Spending alternate days in their home with their children, they have an unorthodox arrangement that keeps them in close contact. And keeps the desire alive...