“And she’s … she’s … well, everyone knows she isn’t right. “She’s but a child,” Bowen said in disgust. He felt deeply betrayed by his king and wanted no representative of the crown on his lands for a second longer. The king’s messenger had departed and was even now riding beyond the Montgomery border. Graeme Montgomery stared grimly back at his brother, unable to formulate a response for the growing rage in his chest. “He cannot tie you to the wee daft daughter of our most hated foe. “ ’Tis madness!” Bowen Montgomery exclaimed. He only hoped to hell that they didn’t kill each other at the wedding. Clansmen would be lost.Īnd so the king devised a plan to force peace between two bitter enemies.Įarly one morning, before the sun had fully risen over the horizon, he sent two messengers on horseback, each to deliver the royal decree to Laird Armstrong and Laird Montgomery. Now that the winter snows had thawed and the long nights had come to an end, battle would resume. The king had not the time, nor the desire, to lose such valuable supporters to infighting. The Montgomerys and the Armstrongs were at war. His two most powerful allies, the two most powerful clans in his kingdom, loathed the very sight of each other. King Alexander II could focus on other matters, but for one thing. The winter snows had fled, chased by the warmth of longer days.

Spring had come, bringing with it lush green grass among the rock outcroppings and boulders that were so predominant over the terrain. The land whispered softly of its gratitude for a brief respite from violence, rebellion, and bloodshed. But when clan rivalries and dark deeds threaten the wife he has only begun to cherish, the Scottish warrior will move heaven and earth to save the woman who has awakened his heart to the beautiful song of a rare and magical love.Peace had come to the highlands. As intimacy deepens, he learns her secret. Graeme is intrigued by the mysterious Eveline, whose silent lips are ripe with temptation and whose bright, intelligent eyes can see into his soul. Graeme is a rugged warrior with a voice so deep and powerful that his new bride can hear it, and hands and kisses so tender and skilled that he stirs her deepest passions. But when an arranged marriage into a rival clan makes Graeme Montgomery her husband, Eveline accepts her duty-unprepared for the delights to come.

Content with her life of seclusion, Eveline has taught herself to read lips and allows the outside world to view her as daft.

No one, not even her family, knows that she cannot hear. Eveline Armstrong is fiercely loved and protected by her powerful clan, but outsiders consider her “touched.” Beautiful, fey, with a level, intent gaze, she doesn’t speak.

Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks