The Red King
by Kate Hill
Release Date: July 01, 2015
Format(s): Ebook
Heat Level: Erotic
Pairing(s): M/F
Genre/Themes: Fantasy
Length: Super Plus Novel
ISBN: 9781419993534
Purchase Links: All Romance Ebooks / Barnes and Noble
Blurb:
Torn from her beloved convent home, Delia is forced to marry Areus of Lortia. The contract states she must deliver an heir within a year or the marriage can be annulled. Delia vows to control her fate by ensuring there will be no child–until she is mesmerized by Areus, the proud, virile warrior king.
Areus agrees to marry Delia to gain her father’s army to continue his fight against Hypatios, the mad prince of Zaltana. He doesn’t expect to fall in love with a convent-reared mouse, but from the first, Delia rouses his lust and touches his heart.
Their life together hangs in the balance as the war with Zaltana advances and Areus discovers Hypatios is far more than just his sworn enemy.
Excerpt:
Delia prepared the necessary tools, then approached and unwound the bandages. Beneath them, a slash ran down the length of his ribs. It was fairly shallow, but she shuddered to think of what might have happened if the blade had gone any deeper. As he’d guessed, several stitches were torn, although they had been carefully and skillfully sewn.
“You shouldn’t have ridden here like this,” she said.
“It’s enough I insulted you by being late. Short of death or takeover, I had no intention of postponing our wedding.”
His words actually touched her. She hadn’t expected him to be so considerate. “Under the circumstances, I would have forgiven the insult.”
“But your father might not.”
Her stomach tightened. Her father. It was the king he had been concerned with offending. It reminded her again that their marriage was about politics, not family. Still his bluntness annoyed her and she started cleaning his wound less gently than she should have.
He flinched a bit and drew a sharp breath.
“You call yourself a healer, woman? My horse would be gentler.”
“I was under the impression a rugged warrior such as yourself was impervious to pain.”
He glanced at her. “Are you always this peevish? I’ll give you fair warning, Lortia is no place for a spoiled princess. Remember, you are now a queen. I expect you to act like it.”
Delia’s stomach knotted. “You expect? You and my father rip me from the only real home I’ve ever known and order me into a country constantly at war with the most powerful kingdom in the land. My father wants a beast to protect the gates of his realm and you want a broodmare. You should both rot, along with most of the men in this world.”
“For a virgin reared in a convent, you have a foul tongue in your head. I wonder if it’s sweeter when not used for speaking.”
“What– I can’t believe you just– What kind of animal are you–” He silenced her by dragging her onto his lap and covering her mouth in a kiss that was like nothing she’d ever imagined.
http://www.kate-hill.com/theredking.html
Social