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The Wrong Bride
Highland Weddings #1
Gayle Callen
Releasing Oct 27th, 2015
Avon Romance
The first in a wonderfully engaging
series set in the Scottish Highlands, USA Today bestselling author Gayle Callen
creates an unforgettable story of mistaken identity and irresistible
attraction.
Shaken from sleep during the night,
bundled off to the Highlands by a burly Scot, Riona is at first terrified, then
livid. Hugh McCallum insists they were promised to each other as children to
ensure peace between their clans. The stubborn laird refuses to believe he’s
kidnapped the wrong Catriona Duff. Instead, he embarks on a campaign of
slow-burning seduction…
At first, Hugh cares only what their
marriage can do for his people. Now he’s starting to crave Riona for her own
sake. But her true identity jeopardizes his clan’s contract. And unless she
chooses to risk all to be his bride, he’ll lose the only thing he prizes more
than the lands he’s fought so hard to save-the passionate marriage they could
have together.
From Gayle: A first kiss is always such a fun scene
to write. They’re usually filled with conflict and chemistry and confusion—the
three Cs!
Riona shivered, but it
wasn’t from the bathwater’s chill. It was from the frightening realization that
there was something powerful between them, something that called to her, that
made the risks Hugh had taken to have her for himself seem arousing, not just
self-serving. There was a place inside her she’d never sensed before, surely a
recklessness, a weakness.
“Ye’re strangely quiet,
lass,” he murmured.
His gaze lazily moved over
her face, dipping to her breasts, where the upper curves were displayed above
the soapy water. Her skin felt … prickly, sensitive, even inflamed.
“I’m not done fighting
you,” she said at last, almost wincing at how breathless she sounded.
A slow grin curved his
mouth, even as he reached his hand to cup her face and tilt it toward him. The
shock of his warm palm settling so gently on her skin made her tense, but she
didn’t pull away, as if that would show that she’d given up, that she was
afraid of what he could do to her … what he could make her feel.
He leaned over the tub and
kissed her, his palm guiding her head. She wanted to show him he didn’t move
her, that this display meant nothing to her. But his lips were warm, and glided
over hers with purpose, parted gently as if he wanted to taste her. She’d never
been kissed … She felt her head swim at the sensation that seemed to
travel down her body, to her breasts, to the pit of her stomach and between her
thighs as if he’d touched her in her most secretive places.
When his tongue traced her
lower lip, she jerked back in surprise. He didn’t laugh, just studied her with
those gray eyes that were considerably warmer. He kept his hand on her face,
and his thumb caressed her cheek over and over.
“Our first kiss bodes well
for the future,” he said.
He glanced down to her
breasts again, and she stiffened. With a faint smile, he let her go and stood
up.
“Dry off,” he said, back
to ordering her around. “We have things we need to discuss.”
Not the topics she wanted to discuss, apparently, but
she didn’t argue. He turned his back and went to the window, while she hastily
dried herself and pulled on a dressing gown Mrs. Wallace had laid out for her,
trying to forget the feel of his mouth on hers, and how instead of being afraid
or disgusted, she’d felt … aroused. Her cousin Cat had told her one could feel
overwhelmed when in intimate situations with a man, and Riona hadn’t been able
to understand what she meant. She did now, and felt a new kind of fear—fear of
her own reaction and response to this compelling persuasion of his.
Hugh has known about his arranged marriage practically his entire life. When the earl goes back on his work, Hugh takes matters into his own hand by kidnapping his bride. However, Riona is the earl's niece, not his daughter, but no matter how many times Riona tells him, he thinks she is lying to get out of the contract. As it turns out, she happens to his perfect match. I loved that even though it was an arranged marriage, Hugh took his time earning Riona's love and trust over the weeks they spent together. I could actually see them form a real relationship and start to fall in love. Great beginning to a new series, the ending left me anxiously waiting for next book featuring Hugh's sister Maggie!
I received an ARC via Edelweiss for the purpose of an honest review. I was not compensated for this review, all conclusions are my own.
After a detour through fitness instructing and computer programming, GAYLE CALLEN found the life she’d always dreamed of as a romance writer. This USA Today bestselling author has written more than twenty historical romances for Avon Books, and her novels have won the Holt Medallion, the Laurel Wreath Award, the Booksellers’ Best Award, and been translated into eleven different languages. The mother of three grown children, an avid crafter, singer, and outdoor enthusiast, Gayle lives in Central New York with her dog Uma and her husband, Jim the Romance Hero. She also writes contemporary romances as Emma Cane. Visit her website at www.gaylecallen.com.
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