Moonlight Lover (43 page)

"Wife." He struggled to hide the grin.

She stared at him. It was only by employing extreme concentration that she didn't allow her mouth to drop open. "Yours?"

He nodded carelessly. "Unless you've had a better offer."

Speechless, Rachel sank down on the bed as if all the substance had suddenly left her body.

Sin-Jin frowned as he watched her. "This wasn't exactly the response I was hoping for. You look as if I've just asked you to return to the cell to be lashed to the walls."

"No," she said softly, then raised her eyes to look at him. "I just thought that I'd never—that you'd never—" Her voice trailed off like the gray mist fading into the moors.

"What?" Sin-Jin took her hands in his and brought Rachel to her feet. "That I'd never what?"

She wasn't going to cry, damn it. She wasn't. She'd never believed that one should cry over happiness. "Want me that way," she concluded.

Gently, he slid his thumb along her cheek and watched desire spring to her eyes. "Rachel, I want you in every possible way."

She still couldn't believe it, was afraid to believe it. "As your mistress, yes, but as a wife?"

He blessed the day Riley had slumped drunkenly into
his arms, leading him to this moment. To this woman. "If
I'd wanted a mistress, Rachel, I would have chosen a woman far more agreeable in spirit than you."

She opened her mouth, but he wouldn't let her speak.
"I want a wife, Rachel, a challenge. Someone who makes
my blood sing and my heart glad to be alive every moment
of the day. And the night."

He stole a kiss and savored it. He fervently wished that
the carriage had broken down before it had arrived to afford them a little time. He leaned his forehead against hers and waited until his heart settled down before he spoke again.

"Especially the night. In short," he held her away and looked into her eyes. "I want you. Will you marry me, Rachel O'Roarke?"

She was silent for a moment, letting his words sink in, letting them warm her the way the bathwater had done in the manor, slowly, slipping over every inch of her skin. And then she grinned.

"Yes, Oh, yes." She threw her arms around his neck. "Yes, I'll marry you!"

"Marry? Did someone say marry?"

When they turned to look, Franklin was peering into
Rachel's room. The driver had arrived and was calling for
his fares. Franklin had come to hurry Rachel and Sin-Jin
along. He'd found Sin-Jin's room empty and had followed
the sound of their voices.

Sin-Jin nodded. "Rachel and I are getting married."

Franklin beamed. "Wonderful. May I give the bride away?”

Rachel smiled, settling comfortably against Sin-Jin. "I couldn't think of anyone else I'd like more. You've been a father to me these last ten years."

Franklin shrugged depreciatively. "An absent father, but I shall not be absent from your wedding," he promised with relish.

The elder statesman eyed the couple and remembered his own youth. How hot blood had surged. Prudently, he stepped out of the room.

"Remember," he warned, "we need to leave by three o'clock in order to arrive on time to board the ship." He examined his timepiece. "You have half an hour to complete that kiss you were beginning."

"But the carriage, the driver," Rachel protested. "They're here."

"You leave the driver to me," Franklin told her. "I can amuse him for a while." He winked at them. "You two just get on with it."

With a smile, Benjamin Franklin closed the door behind him. He knew that though he had spent his years giving advise, there were many who didn't heed it. But at the moment, he could at least safely assume that there were two people in Paris taking it to heart.

Marie Ferrarella

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The Women's Contemporary Originals from Marie Ferrarella--Read them all!

SAPPHIRE AND SHADOW

"A look at the grit beneath the glitz and one woman's triumph over both"--Nora Roberts

SAPPHIRE AND SHADOW is a vivid and compelling story of heart break and betrayal, of facing the death of dreams you've built your life on, of picking up the pieces and learning to live again. Johanna Whitney somehow draws from deep inside to find the strength to triumph in the end.
 

CHOICES

Shanna Brady has spent her whole life living in the shadow of her family, from her mother the socialite to her father the senator to her husband the aspiring politician. When she finds her husband in bed with his secretary, she vows to stand on her own. But a brilliant speech writer desperately wants to stand beside her. .

FLASH AND FIRE

She's smart, she's tough, she's beautiful.  But can she type?

Never mind.  Amanda knows what she's doing and she doesn't need the incredibly annoying Pierce Alexander, who thinks he's the world's gift to women, trying out his latest seduction techniques at every turn. But there he is, getting under her skin, being adorable with her baby, befriending her nanny, and ambushing her at the supermarket. She gives in--just a little--only to find him taking over her job when her main antagonist at the television station where she's an anchor sets her up for dismissal. Can she fight them all on her own?

Just watch her! 

Marie's Women’s Contemporary Originals

USA Today and Publisher's Weekly bestselling author Marie Ferrarella is releasing her three hard-to-find women's contemporary novels written in the tradition of Danielle Steel, Nora Roberts and Debbie Macomber.  Finally available again, these heart-tugging stories explore the tangled emotional lives of three women.
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Marie’s Originals
 

are reprints of books published earlier by Bantam’s Loveswept line or Berkley/Jove and made available again in e-book form. There are six books currently being published in this format only.

1. Irresistible Forces

2. No Way to Treat A Lover

3. December 32….And Always

4. Smoldering Embers

5. Scenes From The Heart

6. Claimed by Rapture

They can be read in any order. Enjoy them all!

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