Passionate Pasts

Synopsis

The Widow's Portionby JC BarkerIsabel is a young widow from the Bristol/Gloucestershire area, during the Wars of the Roses (1464). Denied her widow's portion, she travels across the snow to Berkeley Castle, seeking help from her former playmates, William and Maurice Berkeley. Many years ago, she had a secret passion for Maurice, a passion which might be returned. With national and local tensions high, William is determined to maintain his family pride, and that does not include allowing his brother to marry for love, particularly to a woman without noble blood. Could love make Maurice defy his powerful brother, or will their passion destroy Isabel completely?Dared to Proposeby Tess LynneLady Regina Banks - Reggie to her friends, is content with her life. She lives with her father on their estate and helps run it and the horse trading business. She never plans to marry; not for lack of offers, but because she doesn't want a man controlling her life. She does, however, have one serious flaw; she cannot refuse a dare. So, when her friends dare her to shockingly propose (during a ball) to none other than Alex Worthington, the Earl of Rothworth; a man known for his many conquests of ladies, who is she to turn down the dare? Who would have thought that such a dare would cause her so many problems as the vexing earl becomes determined to bedevil and torment her?Alex Worthington was bored. He was tired of the endless stream of women seeking him out because of his title and wealth. When the innocent Lady Banks approaches him with the most outlandish proposal of his life, he is at first shocked, then angry and finally intrigued. The chit was beautiful, bold and so much fun to rile. He couldn't resist the temptation to play along with the little game she had started, getting a little revenge in the meantime. Soon, however, play time is over and Alex is finding himself fighting an altogether different type of temptation.La Cuentista (The Storyteller)by Bethany Van SterlingSet in 18th century Spain, a young British woman, Lucilla, travels with her merchant father to Madrid where he arranges for her to study Spanish under a private tutor. Little does she know that her new teacher, Marcelo, would be a handsome, bohemian traveler that would introduce her to the secret corners of his city-and what she perceives as his womanizing ways. A storyteller at heart, Lucilla's imaginative, sensuous tale gradually entices the adventurous Marcelo-until Lucilla returns to England, before he is able to hear the ending of her unfinished tale. How far will he go to hear her story and prove his love?A War of Heartsby Jasmine Bowen1813, York, Canada. Ciel Aucoin, a young Metis girl struggles to survive in the town of York as the Port Authority, a position her father left her when he died. She mostly keeps to herself, running the docks as her father taught her. As Metis, she is a permanent outcast, with neither European nor Native towns accepting her. She keeps to herself; drowning in her solitude. However ,when John Macdonell arrives in town, a fur trader with a calm attitude, life experience, and eyes like the sky, she cannot help but take notice. A friendship blossoms into love as they find comfort in their shared feelings of loneliness, of the need to lie low and stay out of the way; two lost souls wandering in the dark. When the Americans invade and occupy York, Ciel finds herself faced with a choice. John has a secret that threatens their lives; and she can choose to go with her new love away from York forever, or to stay with the legacy her father left her. Where will her loyalties lie?