The Wager

The Wager
Sally Cheney

Not To Be Trusted A rogue draped in a mantle of savagery and civilization was the only way to describe Peter Desmond, she'd decided. But Marianne Trenton shuddered to realize she was dangerously intrigued, indeed, beguiled , by the very man she'd sworn to destroy! A Prize Beyond PriceMarianne Trenton was a jewel of young womanhood, shining with an innocence that radiated its own sweet allure. She'd appeared in Peter Desmond's life at the turn of a card, then turned his heart around… and he vowed to make her his own!

Table of Contents

Cover (#u43cf77a7-5098-59ea-a922-c87e887b961b)

Excerpt (#u1473ea39-a744-5bb4-b588-0e39298e17e5)

Dear Reader (#ub6fdc673-3386-5a37-81ff-40433aebe24b)

Title Page (#udfe4949f-bf50-59c1-a53b-89f19e520bec)

About The Author (#u12188166-50c6-55fa-bd89-420ae2407c4e)

Dedication (#uc15ae440-9d5a-5f2a-82fe-2dfcc2fef873)

Prologue (#u0105c7cc-751b-558a-b26f-7877dac638bf)

Chapter One (#uf13958af-5e7a-5ca8-9204-ffa1b9963120)

Chapter Two (#uf62d9201-237b-50d7-8010-6f2022d2cd7f)

Chapter Three (#ue5c543da-444e-5ac2-9481-cab6520e9070)

Chapter Four (#u6a866cfa-4d3d-5c62-8a9a-e3d624f3f5d5)

Chapter Five (#u259c72b2-7121-51bb-bf0a-e28e2958b106)

Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seventeen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eighteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nineteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-One (#litres_trial_promo)

Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

“I have given you my soul.

“Will you not give me anything in return?” Desmond murmured.

“I will play you a game of cards for it,” Marianne replied. “If you win, you may have me. I will come to your bed, willingly, wearing nothing but a smile of invitation. There will be no damnable tears.”

“And if you win?” he asked. “I get Kingsbrook.”

There was a stunned silence. One could almost see the workings in Desmond’s head as he tried to collect his faculties.

“You would get Kingsbrook?” he finally asked, very slowly and carefully.

“Or you would get me,” Marianne said. Desmond narrowed his eyelids and appeared to be considering very seriously. “You value yourself very highly, Miss Trenton, to put your worth equivalent to this grand estate.”

“Rather, Mr. Desmond,” the girl said coolly, “it is a question of how highly you value me…!”

Dear Reader,

This month, author Sally Cheney returns with her fifth historical for Harlequin, The Wager. Known for her ability to capture the flavor of 19th-century England, the author’s new title tells the story of a young woman who sets out to destroy the man who won her in a card game, only to fall in love with him in the process. We hope you enjoy it.

Beloved Outcast by Pat Tracy is a dramatic Western about an Eastern spinster who is hired by a man with a notorious reputation to tutor his adopted daughter. Affaire de Coeur recently labeled Pat as “one author definitely worth watching,” and we hope you agree. This talented author just keeps getting better and better.

Whether writing atmospheric Medievals or sexy Regencies, Deborah Simmons continues to delight readers. In this month’s Maiden Bride, the sequel to The Devil’s Lady, Nicholas de Laci transfers his blood lust to his enemy’s niece, Gillian, his future wife by royal decree. And fans of Romantic Times Career Achievement Award winner Veronica Sattler will be thrilled to see this month’s reissue of her Worldwide Library release, Jesse’s Lady. We hope you’ll enjoy this exciting story of a young heiress and her handsome guardian.

We hope you’ll keep a lookout for all four titles wherever Harlequin Historicals are sold.

Sincerely,

Tracy Farrell

Senior Editor

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Harlequin Reader Service