The Viking Takes a Knight (23 page)

Arrha—a series of gifts given by the bridegroom to the bride; money or valuable things given to seal any contract.

Asgard—home of the gods.

Braies—slim pants worn by men.

Brudh gumarind—the bridegroom's ride.

Brudh hlaup—the bride running.

Brynja—chain-mail shirt.

Burh (or burgh)—fortresses or fortified towns built in strategic locations throughout Britain, first ordered by King Alfred, circa a.d. 871. Eventually they became known as towns. The name burh became burgh, then bury, then borough. So, any modern town with that suffix usually means it was an original fortified town dating back a thousand years.

Castellan—one who oversees a castle in the absence of the castle's lord.

Companaticum—“that which goes with bread,” which usually meant whatever was in the stockpot of thick broth always simmering in the huge kitchen cauldron. Usually with chunks of meat. Unfortunately, not cleaned out for long periods of time.

Coppergate—a busy, prosperous section of tenth-century
York (known then as Jorvik or Eoforic) where merchants and craftsmen set up their stalls for trading.

Drukkin (or drukkinn)—drunk, in Old Norse.

Ealdorman—a royal official who presided over shire courts and carried out royal commands within his domain. Comparable to later earls.

Ell—a measure, usually of cloth, equaling 45 inches.

Encaustum—tenth-century type of ink made by crushing the galls from an oak tree (boil-like pimples on the bark) which contain an acid. Mixed with vinegar or rainwater, the substance was thickened with gum arabic. Iron salts added color to the ink.

Hectares (of land)—equal to about two and a half acres.

Hide—a primitive measure of land, equaling the normal holding that would support a peasant and his family, roughly 120 arable acres.

Hird—permanent troops.

Housecarl—part of the permanent troops assigned to a king or nobleman.

Jorvik—Viking word for Viking-Age York, known by the Saxons and Romans as Eoforic.

Lygisogur—lying stories.

Mancus/es (of gold)—equal to six shillings.

Mansongr—maiden song or love poem.

Minna—an Old Norse term meaning literally “memory,” but came to be used to indicate a “memorial cup or toast.”

Morgen gifu—the morning gift given by a bridegroom the day after the wedding to show that he was well pleased. In fact, the bride price consisted of three parts: the mundr and morgen gifu given by the groom or his family and the heiman flygia given by the bride's family to the groom.

Norsemandy—tenth-century name for Normandy.

Northumbria—one of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, bordered by the English kingdoms to the south and in the north and northwest by the Scots, Cumbrians, and Strathclyde Welsh.

Odal rights—laws of heredity.

Sennight—one week.

Skyrr (or skyr)—soft cheese similar to cottage cheese.

Sulung—area that could be kept under cultivation by a single plough team of eight oxen, equal to two hides.

Sumbel—a Viking practice of passing around a drinking cup at a feast whereby each recipient was expected to make a toast or a boast, sing a song, or recite a story.

Thrall—slave.

Valhalla—Odin's hall, where Viking warriors who die in battle spend eternity.

Valkyries—female warriors.

Wattle and daub—early method of building.

Wergild (or wergeld)—a man's worth.

Witan, or witenagemot—the king's council of advisors, precursor to the English Parliament.

F
or John of Hawk's Lair, the unexpected appearance
of a beautiful woman at his door is always welcome. Yet the arrival of this alluring Viking woman, Ingrith Sigrundottir—with her enchanting smile and inviting curves—is different…for she comes accompanied by a herd of unruly orphans. And Ingrith needs more than the legendary knight's hospitality; she needs protection. For among her charges is a small boy with a claim to the throne—a dangerous distinction when murderous King Edgar is out hunting for Viking blood.

A man of passion, John will keep them safe—but in exchange, he wants something very dear indeed: Ingrith's heart, to be taken with the very first meeting of their lips…

C
aedmon of Larkspur was the most loathsome lout
Breanne had ever encountered. When she arrived at his castle with her sisters, they were greeted by an estate gone wild, while Caedmon laid abed after a night of ale. But Breanne must endure, as they are desperately in need of protection…and he is quite handsome.

After nine long months in the king's service, all Caedmon wanted was peace, not five Viking princesses running about his keep. And the fiery redhead who burst into his chamber was the worst of them all. He should kick her out, but he has a far better plan for Breanne of Stoneheim—one that will leave her a Viking in lust.

T
he self-motivation tape was supposed to help
Ruby Jordan solve her problems, not create new ones. Instead, she was lulled into an era of hard-bodied warriors and fair maidens. But the world ten centuries in the past didn't prove to be all mead and mirth. Even as Ruby tried to update medieval times, she had to deal with a Norseman whose view of women was stuck in the Dark Ages. And what was worse, brawny Thork had her husband's face, habits, and desire to avoid Ruby. Determined not to lose the same man twice, Ruby planned a bold seduction that would conquer the reluctant Viking—and make him an eager captive of her love.

A
s tall and striking as the Valkyries of legend, Dr.
Rain Jordan was proud of her Norse ancestors despite their warlike ways. But she can't believe it when she finds herself on a nightmarish battlefield, forced to save the barbarian of her dreams.

He was a wild-eyed warrior whose deadly sword could slay a dozen Saxons with a single swing, yet Selik couldn't control the saucy wench from the future. If Selik wasn't careful, the stunning siren was sure to capture his heart and make a warrior of love out of
The Outlaw Viking
.

B
anished from polite society, Lady Eadyth of Hawk's
Lair spent her days hidden under a voluminous veil, tending her bees. But when her lands are threatened, Lady Eadyth sought a husband to offer her the protection of his name.

Notorious for loving—and leaving—the most beautiful damsels in the land, Eirik of Ravenshire was England's most virile bachelor. Yet when the mysterious lady offered him a vow of chaste matrimony in exchange for revenge against his most hated enemy, Eirik couldn't refuse. But the lusty knight's plans went awry when he succumbed to the sweet sting of the tarnished lady's love.

E
ven fierce Norse warriors have bad days. 'Twas
enough to drive a sane Viking mad, the things Tykir Thorksson was forced to do—capturing a red-headed virago, putting up with the flock of sheep that follows her everywhere, chasing off her bumbling brothers. But what could a man expect from the sorceress who had put a kink in the King of Norway's most precious body part? If that wasn't bad enough, Tykir was beginning to realize he wasn't at all immune to the enchantment of brash red hair and freckles. Perhaps he could reverse the spell and hold her captive, not with his mighty sword, but with a Viking man's greatest magic: a wink and smile.

F
or Rurik the Viking, life has not been worth living
since he left Maire of the Moors. Oh, it's not that he misses her fiery red tresses or kissable lips. Nay, it's the embarrassing blue zigzag tattoo she put on his face after their one wild night of loving. For a fierce warrior who prides himself on his immense height, his expertise in bedsport, and his well-toned muscles, this blue streak is the last straw. In the end, he'll bring the witch to heel, or die trying. Mayhap he'll even beg her to wed…so long as she can promise he'll no longer be…
The Blue Viking
.

 

The Viking's Captive

(originally titled
MY FAIR VIKING
)

T
yra, Warrior Princess. She is too tall, too loud,
too fierce to be a good catch. But her ailing father has decreed that her four younger sisters—delicate, mild-mannered, and beautiful—cannot be wed 'til Tyra consents to take a husband. And then a journey to save her father's life brings Tyra face to face with Adam the Healer. A god in human form, he's tall, muscled, perfectly proportioned. Too bad Adam refuses to fall in with her plans—so what's a lady to do but truss him up, toss him over her shoulder, and sail off into the sunset to live happily ever after.

T
oste and Vagn Ivarsson are identical Viking
twins, about to face Valhalla together, following a tragic battle, or maybe something even more tragic: being separated for the first time in their thirty and one years. Alas, even the bravest Viking must eventually leave his best buddy behind and do battle with that most fearsome of all opponents—the love of his life. And what if that love was Helga the Homely, or Lady Esme, the world's oldest novice nun?

A Tale of Two Vikings
will give you twice the tears, twice the sizzle, and twice the laughter…and make you wish for your very own Viking.

H
e was six feet, four inches of pure, unadulterated
male. He wore nothing but a leather tunic, and he was standing in Professor Meredith Foster's living room. The medieval historian told herself he was part of a practical joke, but with his wide gold belt, ancient language, and callused hands, the brawny stranger seemed so…authentic. And as he helped her fulfill her grandfather's dream of re-creating a Viking ship, he awakened her to dreams of her own. Until she wondered if the hand of fate had thrust her into the loving arms of…
The Last Viking
.

A
Viking named Joe? Jorund Ericsson is a tenth-
century Viking warrior who lands in a modern mental hospital. Maggie McBride is the lucky psychologist who gets to “treat” the gorgeous Norseman, whom she mistakenly calls Joe.

You've heard of
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
. But how about
A Viking Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
? The question is: Who's the cuckoo in this nest? And why is everyone laughing?

M
agnus Ericsson is a simple man. He loves the
smell of fresh-turned dirt after springtime plowing. He loves the feel of a soft woman under him in the bed furs. He loves the heft of a good sword in his fighting arm.

But, Holy Thor, what he does not relish is the bothersome brood of children he's been saddled with. Or the mysterious happenstance that strands him in a strange new land—the kingdom of
Holly Wood.
Here is a place where the folks think he is an
act-whore
(whatever that is), and the woman of his dreams—a winemaker of all things—fails to accept that he is her soul mate…a man of exceptional talents, not to mention…
A Very Virile Viking.

W
hat do you get when you cross a Viking with a
Navy SEAL? A warrior with the fierce instincts of the past and the rigorous training of America's most elite fighting corps? A totally buff hero-in-the-making who hasn't had a woman in roughly a thousand years? A dyed-in-the-wool romantic with a hopeless crush? Whatever you get, women everywhere can't wait to meet him, and his story is guaranteed to be…
Wet & Wild
.

I
n and out, that's the goal as Lt. Ian MacLean
prepares for his special ops mission. He leads a team of highly trained Navy SEALs, the toughest, buffest fighting men in the world and he has nothing to lose. Madrene comes from a time a thousand years before he was born, and she has no idea she's landed in the future. After tying him up, the beautiful shrew gives him a tongue-lashing that makes a drill sergeant sound like a kindergarten teacher. Then she lets him know she has her own special way of dealing with over-confident males, and things get…
Hot & Heavy
.