Samhain Publishing

WINNER POSTED! Winner is seton Check the comments for contact info

Her Majesty, My Love has all the elements I most love in romance. Adventure, lots of action, intrigue and a kick ass heroine

Of all my books, this one is the one I’m most proud of. I’m so thrilled that it’s found a home with Samhain.

Her Majesty, My Love
by Sharon Long aka Maya Banks
http://www.sharonlong.com

http://www.samhainpublishing.com/romance/her-majesty-my-love

Read the blurb and excerpt after the jump!

Princess Isabella Chastaine holds the fate of her tiny island nation in her hands. Literally. Escaping the men who murdered her parents, she flees to England with a sacred map outlining the location of ancient relics—items necessary for a new ruler to ascend the throne, items buried deep within the granite caves of her homeland.

Simon Rothmore, Earl of Merrick, has faithfully served the English crown since his recruitment into an elite secret agency. His newest task, deciphering the puzzling assassinations of the royal family of Leaudor, leads him to track down the only remaining member…Princess Isabella.

Betrayed by those closest to her, and deeply suspicious of possible English involvement, Isabella vows to return to her country and seek justice for her family. She will allow no one, especially not an arrogant English earl, to interfere in her quest.

But love has a way of uniting even the most unlikely souls. Together, they travel across two countries, encounter painful betrayals, complete a mystical quest, and forge a new destiny neither had dreamed possible.

Excerpt:

After nearly an hour of torturous travel, she tumbled out of the tunnel and onto the floor of another cavern. “Careful,” she warned, but she heard Merrick tumble out behind her, cursing under his breath.

She held up her torch to illuminate her surroundings and could only make out that they had entered a similar room to the one they had just left. She walked forward, swinging the torch from left to right in an attempt to see anything.

“Over here,” Merrick called.

She whirled around and quickly walked to where he stood. He lit a torch that hung on the wall and walked a few spaces more to light another one. Soon the room glowed with the light of a dozen torches.

Once again she unfolded the map and studied it intently. On the map, the room they were currently in was identified with a moon. Made sense. The last room was the sun. This much darker room was the moon. From the moon, a line was drawn to the right. She looked toward the left then the right. Both had passageways leading from those directions.

Carrying her torch, she headed for the right tunnel. Though the passageway was narrow, they could both easily stand and walk which made the going much faster. When she stepped out of the tunnel and into a larger open area, she paused and waited for Merrick to catch up.

As she moved her torch slowly from right to left, she heard a noise that sounded like hoof beats. Then she realized it was the flapping of wings. She barely had time to duck before hundreds of bats swarmed over her head and into the tunnel Merrick had just stepped from.

She placed her hand over her chest, trying to still the thundering of her heart. Closing her eyes, she took in a deep breath. Surely a year had just been frightened from her.

Merrick slid an arm around her and squeezed reassuringly. “You are doing fine.”

She smiled and moved forward into the small room, looking around for torches to light. To her surprise, as she neared the far end, she discovered that this was not the small space she had thought. Indeed it was an enormous cavern. They were just on a small ledge with a large gap between them and the rest of the cavern.

As she neared the edge, she looked down into the darkness. She kicked a stone listening for when it hit bottom. But silence was the only thing she heard. Gulping, she backed away from the edge.

“Looks like you have two options,” Merrick said, gazing out over the chasm.

She moved in his direction and took in what he was looking at. There were two bridges leading across the drop off. Both led into a tunnel on the opposite side. But neither was accessible from the other bridge. A huge stone outcropping jutted outward over the gap, isolating the two passageways from one another.

It appeared she had another choice to make. She consulted the map, but she already knew it wouldn’t be any help. It was more a general guide to keep her on the right path. Any choices to be made would be hers to make alone.

“This one isn’t safe,” Merrick spoke up.

She put away the map and walked over to the rickety rope bridge that led to the other side. Her gaze went to the other option. A natural stone bridge spanned over half the gap and where it ended, sturdy logs had been laid to complete the path.

Definitely the safer of the two.

She walked over to inspect the stone bridge but was nagged by a feeling of doubt. Faith. The monk had said she needed faith.

She quickly spun around and bumped into Merrick. “We take the rope bridge.”

“Are you mad?” he demanded. “You’ll get yourself killed.”

“Faith, Merrick. Father Ling said I must have faith.”

“Faith isn’t about going blindly to your death,” he retorted. “Faith is nonsense. It’s for people who have nothing else.”

She gave him a troubled look and reached out to cup his cheek. “You sound so cynical.”

“Faith is merely setting yourself up for inevitable disappointment,” he said bitterly. “It’s a useless attribute.”

She started to reply but he cut her off. “I won’t let you do this, Isabella. It isn’t worth your life.”

“Where is your faith, Merrick? Didn’t you have it once, maybe long ago? Is it buried beneath that solid wall of responsibility and duty? Do you always go about expecting the worst?”

“I have none,” he said shortly. “And if I expect the worst, I am never disappointed.”

“Do you not have faith in me?” She let the words dangle in the air, pinning him with the force of her gaze.

“I—” He broke off and looked away. He took her hands in his. “I do believe in you, Isabella. If that means I have faith in you, then I do. You are the only person I believe in, and if anyone can succeed in this, you can.”

She could not contain the broad smile at his admission. “If you have faith in me, then realize I would do nothing to jeopardize my life or the future of my country.”

She turned to the rope bridge and the few wooden planks that served as steps and sighed. “I know it seems crazy, but I know this is the way I am supposed to go. Have faith in me, Merrick. I won’t let you down.”

“I’m going first,” he said firmly, pushing her out of the way.

He stepped gingerly onto the first plank, gripping the rope with his left hand and holding the torch in his right hand. With extreme caution, he put forth his other foot and stepped to the next one. The bridge swayed under his weight, and he stood still for a moment to steady it.

She watched as he moved forward again, her chest tightening at his demonstration of concern for her. He believed in her. Had faith in her when he had no other faith. When everyone else in his life had let him down. God, this man meant more to her than anything. She stopped short in her thoughts, mortification surging over her. She had been about to say he meant more to her than any crown. More than this quest, more than avenging her parents.

But she couldn’t allow herself to think such thoughts. Couldn’t become weak. Revenge had gotten her this far, and it would sustain her until Jacques was dead or in prison, and she was on the throne. She had no room for any other emotion.

She looked back up to see Merrick step safely to the other side and relief lessened the horrendous weight she felt pressing down on her. Now it was her turn.

“Put your torch down,” he called out. “Use both your hands to hold on. We can use my torch. Just take it slow and easy and don’t rush.”

After laying aside her torch so it still lit her way, she grabbed the rope in her hands and stepped onto the first plank. Sweat broke out on her forehead, and she sucked in her bottom lip, afraid to even breathe. Closing her eyes, she reached out with her foot for the second step.

“Open your eyes,” he ordered. “Focus on me and don’t look down. You can do this.”

Her eyes fluttered open, and she stared across the distance to where he stood, torch in hand. Gritting her teeth in determination, she stepped forward again. She was halfway across when her foot slipped off the small plank. With a cry, she skidded sideways and tumbled off the bridge.

“Isabella!” she heard him shout as she shot downward.
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Now, if you made it all the way down here, you get details on how to win a copy of Her Majesty Simply tell me the last Samhain book you read and you’ll be entered to win. Contest closes tonight (Tuesday Jan 2 at midnight CST) Check back here in the comments for the winner. I’ll post it Wednesday morning.