The Ballad of Emma O'Toole. Elizabeth Lane

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      In the cold, dark silence of the room Emma could hear the slow cadence of Logan’s breathing. She lay still, teeth chattering.

      “It’s warmer over here.”

      Logan’s voice was like dark honey flowing over warm buttered flapjacks.

      “I don’t trust you.”

      “Now, that stings, Mrs Devereaux. Have I been anything less than a perfect gentleman?”

      “Will you stop that ‘Mrs Devereaux’ talk? I know why you married me, and you know why I married you. Let’s just call this what it is and try not to get on each other’s nerves.”

      “Suits me,” he said with a yawn. “But it’s still warmer on my side of the bed.” He shifted to clear a place for her. “Come here. I won’t bite you.”

      The bed was awfully cold. Still shivering, Emma edged closer, until he reached out and pulled her gently into the curve of his body.

      “That’s it,” he murmured. “We’re as innocent as two lambs. Now, go to sleep, Emma.”

      But something was different, and she knew at once what it was. A man could say anything with his mouth. But one part of his body would always tell the truth.

      AUTHOR NOTE

      This is a ‘Book of My Heart’. In the years that passed between its beginning and its publication the story never left me, and I never gave up on it. Seeing it in print at last, and being able to share it with you, is a very personal joy.

      Park City, Utah, is an hour’s drive from where I live. Cradled by the beautiful Wasatch Mountains, its history is as spectacular as its setting. My own pioneer great-great-grandfather directed the first settlement of the high valley—then known as Parley’s Park. Its progression from farming community to silver mining boom town, from crumbling backwater to world-class ski resort and home of the Sundance Film Festival, is a true American saga.

      THE BALLAD OF EMMA O’TOOLE is set amid the silver boom of the 1880s that brought wealth-seekers from all over the world. Young Emma O’Toole is determined to make a better life for herself, but her beauty is offset by every possible strike against her. She’s orphaned, impoverished, and pregnant by a nineteen-year-old boy as poor as she is. Fate and tragedy intervene to thrust her into the reluctant arms of gambler Logan Devereaux, a cynical man with a dangerous past. Can such an unlikely pair find happiness together? I hope you’ll be cheering them on, as I was, all the way to the end of their story.

      I offer you this book with a piece of my heart. Enjoy.

      About the Author

      ELIZABETH LANE has lived and travelled in many parts of the world, including Europe, Latin America and the Far East, but her heart remains in the American West, where she was born and raised. Her idea of heaven is hiking a mountain trail on a clear autumn day. She also enjoys music, animals and dancing. You can learn more about Elizabeth by visiting her website at www.elizabethlaneauthor.com

       Previous novels from this author:

       In Mills & Boon® Historical Romance:

       And in Mills & Boon ^® Desire ^™ :

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      The Ballad of Emma O’Toole

      Elizabeth Lane