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The Prisoner Bride. Susan Paul Spencer
Читать онлайн.Название The Prisoner Bride
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Автор произведения Susan Paul Spencer
Издательство HarperCollins
“You tremble,” he murmured
“There is no reason, Glenys. Can you think I would ever bring you harm?”
“Nay,” she said weakly, hearing how badly her voice shook, “but I am not…I have no…skills or…knowledge. I know nothing.”
“And I know everything,” he said softly, rubbing his thumb lightly across her lips. “We are not well matched. I vow I wish I could be as you are again, but ’tis impossible.” He lifted his other hand, sliding his fingertips slowly down the side of her neck. “Have you ever been kissed, Glenys?”
“N-nay,” she whispered, filled with both terror and anticipation.
He smiled. “Good. ’Tis most selfish of me, but I confess that I am glad to be the first.”
With his thumbs he carefully tilted her face upward, leaning toward her slowly…so slowly…until he was but a breath away….
Praise for Susan Spencer Paul’s previous work
The Captive Bride
“Like a sorceress Ms. Paul enchants her readers and carries them on a magical journey into the past.”
—Rendezvous
Beguiled
“A charming, sweet, emotionally satisfying read.”
—Romantic Times Magazine
The Bride Thief
“A thoroughly researched tale of passion and pageantry in the Middle Ages. THE BRIDE THIEF will steal your heart.”
—Bestselling author Susan Wiggs
#588 THE QUEST
Lyn Stone
#589 THE MAIL-ORDER BRIDES
Bronwyn Williams
#590 SARA AND THE ROGUE
DeLoras Scott
The Prisoner Bride
Susan Spencer Paul
Available from Harlequin Historicals and
SUSAN SPENCER PAUL
*The Bride’s Portion #266
*The Heiress Bride #301
*The Bride Thief #373
*Beguiled #408
*The Captive Bride #471
*The Stolen Bride #535
*The Prisoner Bride #587
Dedicated with love to my wonderful uncles
Richard Alton Walls
Who, even when I was very young, encouraged me to follow my dream of being a writer
Charles Yancy Walls
Whose support these many years has meant more than I can put into words
Alton Emmett McQueen
The true writer in our family, who taught me a great deal about my craft and saved me from making many embarrassing mistakes in my earliest books
And, finally, in memoriam, to Morris Neil McQueen
Whose letters still inspire me in so many ways, and whom I miss even more greatly with each passing day
Contents
Prologue
London, May, 1440
“I’ll not kill the girl, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Nay, nay, of course not,” Sir Anton Lagasse assured his guest at once. “You misunderstand me completely. I love Glenys, and she loves me. I should never want any harm to befall her. I only want her taken and kept fully safe until her family agrees to let us marry.”
Sir Anton looked about nervously at the depraved assortment of villains filling the tavern, and prayed that he’d not have to remain much longer before his business was concluded. The Black Raven wasn’t the sort of place he normally visited. It was, however, a favorite haunt of thieves, whores, and murderers—all of whom could be found here and hired for a price. Withdrawing an expensive handkerchief from his tunic, he mopped his sweating brow before turning back to the man who sat opposite him at the table, a man who was as comfortable among these people as Sir Anton was uncomfortable.
“Against her will, you said,” his guest replied, setting his tankard aside with slow deliberation. “A woman who loves a man would willingly be secreted away in order to marry him. I can but wonder at how greatly this Glenys of yours cares for you if she must be taken by force and imprisoned until you come to fetch her.”
Sir Anton considered his companion with