~ One ~
A LOW, STRONG MALE voice cursed beneath his breath as Jenny tried to recoup and get to her feet.
As she pressed her hands into the earth and tried to straighten, she heard him dismount and within an instant felt herself pulled up into a standing position, though she wasn’t sure her shoes were touching the earth.
A pair of startlingly blue eyes glared angrily down into her own, and the voice said in a tone that made her open her eyes wide, “Well, well, at least it’s a pretty wench that’s detained me.”
He sounded as though he were some huge giant about to eat her, and without another word, and before she realized what he was doing, that was what he did.
Jenny found herself being ruthlessly kissed! In that moment, with this stranger’s lips on hers, she was almost too shocked to react, but she was just a bit aware of a tingling sensation that journeyed through her body.
At length her mind returned to her and she made an effort to resist by putting her hands to his chest and pushing hard. This, however, did not budge him. He seemed to hold her in a vice-like grip. She should have been afraid but was too astonished to consider that.
She was, however, furious at his daring, and when he put his head back to look at her and laugh, she felt something of her old self return. The old, vibrant Jenny would never stand for such treatment!
As he got into position, obviously meaning to kiss her again, she reacted and, feeling both outrage and anger, formulated a quick plan.
She immediately relaxed in his arms and allowed the scoundrel to believe he had conquered her. As she expected, his grip eased up.
Jenny had just enough time to bring her booted foot into position and then thrust it hard and forcefully into his shin.
She felt a great deal of satisfaction as he cried out in pain and paused only briefly to wag her finger and tell him, “Fie, sir—fie!” Then she ran. She held her skirts in hand and put the road behind her as fast as she could, only stopping when she sighted the green lawns of her home, Ashley Grange.
Once on her own estate, she leaned up against a tree and, breathing hard, hurriedly glanced behind her. Thanking providence her assailant had not deemed it worth his trouble to pursue, she sucked in a long, delicious breath of air and then proceeded to the house. Oddly enough, her anger abated and just a touch of amusement tickled her senses as she thought of the way he’d reached for his injured leg. Ha, served him right.
About Claudy Conn
Claudy Conn, a native New Yorker, now lives with her husband, Bob; their wolf, Cherokee; and Cherokee’s son, Rocky Man, who weighs in presently at 190 pounds.
She loves horses and riding and raised her ten-year-old gelding Southern Pride from the moment he was born. She also loves gardening, swimming, skiing, hiking, and travel—and of course, reading, writing, but no, she says, no arithmetic!
To get her monthly news, her reviews for all her new paranormal romances, and excerpts, come on and visit her at her website:
http://www.claudyconn.com
To see pictures of Cherokee—and her shepherd-wolf son!—have a look at her Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Claudy-Conn-Paranormal-Romance-Author/135826686471445
Read more about Claudy Conn’s books
Through Time Series
Through Time-Pursuit
Revenge is the driver. Will love be the equalizer in
Through Time-Pursuit
? Chance LeBlanc and Princess Royce are about to find out in this contemporary fantasy romance, picking up where
Catch & Hold—Legend
left off.
Legend Series
Prince Prelude—Legend
In this stand-alone tale and the backstory for the Legend series, we find ourselves in 1814. Gais and the prince come head to head over a woman. We will see Lamia DuLaine when she first sees Julian Talbot, and we will meet the first Maxie Reigate. Come along and see their world unfold …
Spellbound—Legend
Maxie is a reluctant heroine who travels to Scotland to find and save herself. Julian is a Druid priest in a modern age, and he is full of guilt—Can Maxie turn to him? Or will she turn to Prince Breslyn, a Royal Fae hunk offering her everything?
Aaibhe—Shee Queen (Novelette)
This is a love story but it is fringed with envy, jealousy, and bitterness—oh and more. It is laced with the havoc those devastating emotions can bring. It is about the seeds of hate born of love, and what havoc that hate can wantonly roar over even immortals. This is a story of Aaibhe, Queen of the Seelie Fae, because she deserves that it be told.
Shee Willow—Legend
Half-human, half-Fae Willow Lang has never felt she truly fit in either world, but she’s doing her best to ignore her Fae nature. But when she finds herself in the middle of a conflict between the Seelie Fae and the evil Dark Fae, she must embrace her Fae powers in order to protect the Human world.
Prince in the Mist (Novella)
Fact one: By tradition and treaty, Fae do not interfere with the human world—it is against the rules. Fact two: For a Royal Fae prince who suffers from the ennui of immortality, watching and interacting with humans—especially lovely, spirited human females—can be entertaining. Fact three: When entertainment changes to affection, and affection becomes love, rules will be broken.
Trapped—Legend
Magical powers, a castle, and a charming prince sound like the ingredients for a fairy-tale life, but for BJ Mulroy, reality turns out to be a whole lot more complicated. The war between the Seelie and the Unseelie is heating up, BJ has been drawn into the fray … and there’s the matter of the seventeenth-century hunk in the painting.
Free Falling—Legend
They call her Z, and she is a handful ready to explode. She has entered the war against Gais and the Dark Fae and means to take him on all by herself. She is driven. Aaibhe, Queen of the Seelie Fae, has other plans, and she sends in Prince Danté to execute and preserve her wishes. When Z and the prince meet, hackles go up on both sides.
Catch & Hold—Legend
Half-human/half-Daoine Fae Radzia MacDaun—Z to her friends—finds herself in the Dark Realm, where she’ll have to fight Gaiscioch on his own turf. Danté, Prince of the Tuatha Dé and Z’s lover, is not about to let her face this danger alone, however, and the two of them are thrust on a ride that takes them to the edge of life as we know it …
Shadow Series
ShadowLove—Stalkers
Shawna Rawley has no choice but to run when Pentim Rawley, one of the most evil vampires who has ever lived, discovers she is his daughter. Chad MacFare has an offer for Shawna he thinks she can’t afford to refuse: he’ll protect her from Pentim and his minions. But Shawna doesn’t trust the sexy immortal. She knows he has his own agenda—he wants to kill her father, and he wants to set her up as bait …
ShadowHeart—Slayer
Damon Drummond and Nikki Walker are on opposite sides. He is a potent vampire—she is a skilled and powerful vampire slayer. Problem right there … but when they look at each other, sparks of all kinds fly. Too much stands between them: He will live forever, she will not, and yet …
ShadowLife—Hybrid
WB and his clan have moved in, and section by section Dublin is going dark. When the team needs help, they turn to a shapeshifter, Roxie MacBran.
Hungry Moon Series
Hungry Moon: Quicksilver
Seeking a haven in which to recover from heartache and betrayal, Ravena MacAllister returns to the Scottish Highlands she loves. But instead of peaceful solitude, Rave discovers a passion she had never dreamt possible and an adventure that will change her life—if she survives. Oh, and she’s also going to have to face a truth she has long tried to deny:
she is not exactly human
.
Risqué Regencies
Myriah Fire
Myriah Whitney wants thunder and lightning, not a proper courtship and a sensible marriage. Then circumstances lead to an encounter with the mysterious Lord Kit Wimborne—in his bed, with both of them naked, no less!—and the meeting is an explosion of wills that finally sets Myriah on fire …
Oh, Cherry Ripe
Cheryl Elton has been in London for three seasons and refuses to be courted. When her mother takes matters into her own hands, Cherry runs!
Rogues, Rakes & Jewels
What happens when an eligible marquis pretends to be a rake and a gambler, and the woman he is supposed to be courting disguises herself as a masked French card dealer? Find out in this spicy, risqué Regency romance.
Taffeta and Hotspur
Hotspur wants Taffeta—how far will he go to make her his? Taffeta has a secret—will it land her in trouble?
Wildfire Kiss
Lady Babs is a rule-breaker, but has she met her match in Lord Wildfire?
Runaway Heart
Chelsea takes London by storm, but the only man she wants thinks she is no more than a child.
Netherby Halls
Circumstances have forced Sassy to take on a teaching position at Netherby Halls, a school for well-bred orphaned girls, but her developing powers as a white witch tell her something wrong, something evil, lurks there. And what about the dashing marquis who keeps appearing in her life?
After the Storm
Jenny insisted she would never fall in love again, but she found herself drawn to the handsome Earl of Danfield. She also knew about his wild reputation, but it didn’t matter. His proposal would give her what she wanted. Peace.