The Earl in My Bed: A Forgotten Princesses Valentine Novella by Sophie Jordan Page B

Owen.”
    Her smile slipped. They had not heard from Owen since Jamie returned home. There had been no response when they sent him news of their marriage. They had begun to fear the worst. She watched as her husband quickly ripped it open, not bothering to rise for a letter opener.
    She waited, heart racing as he scanned the words. When he finished, he dropped the parchment to his lap. “Well?” she prompted unable to read his expression.
    “Owen’s coming home.”

 

    Ready to find out what happened to Owen,
    the mysterious Earl of McDowell?
    Here’s a sneak peek at his story,
    HOW TO LOSE A BRIDE IN ONE NIGHT,
    available August 2013 from Avon Books.

 

    An Excerpt from
    HOW TO LOSE A BRIDE IN ONE NIGHT
    C onsciousness pulled at her. Eyes still closed, Annalise floated, flying, arms suspended at her sides.
    A heavy, pulling throb in her head and a sharp sting in her ribs pawed at her —urging her to dive back into the comfort of oblivion. But something else nagged at her, urging her to wake up. A memory. Something she should not forget. It sank its teeth through the fog of her thoughts, hunting her.
    Everything came back in a rush then. She stopped herself just short of opening her eyes. She tensed and then quickly forced the tension back out . . . purging it from every limb as she concentrated on lying perfectly still. On not opening her eyes .
    A soft breeze swam over her. The hem of her nightgown fluttered at her calves and she knew she was outside. Still close to the water. She could hear it lapping the sides of the barge.
    Cool hands held her. He was taking her somewhere. She knew without opening her eyes that it was Bloodsworth. Her husband. Her murderer . He thought he had killed her back in their cabin. Smothered her with a pillow. So where was he taking her now?
    It was safe to assume he would finish his gruesome task once he realized she was still alive. She hung limply in his arms, not daring to so much as lift her chest to breathe. Her life depended on his belief that he held a corpse.
    He came to a halt. It felt windier, standing in one place—wherever that was—no longer swaying with his movements. He adjusted her in his arms with the barest grunt. The moments stretched. The silence deafening. It took everything in her to play dead, to feign that she wasn’t aware of his body holding her so closely, of the hands gripping her—the same ones that held a pillow down over her face just moments ago.
    Then she was lowered unceremoniously, dropped to the hard deck. Her head hit with a hard thump, her neck snapping back sharply, but she schooled her features into a blank mask and bit the inside of her cheek to keep from crying out. The wind buffeted her, playing with the hem of her night rail.
    His voice rolled over her, his tones as crisp and familiar as ever. “Well, we can’t forget this, can we?”
    He seized her hand, grabbing her ring finger tightly. His fingers pulled on the wedding band he had slid on only hours before. His grip was hard and merciless, twisting her finger in an unnatural direction in his effort to reclaim his family heirloom. “Don’t want to give it up, do you, wife?”
    She prayed the ring would just slide free and rid her of this agony. At last it slid off her finger.
    The soles of Bloodsworth’s boots scraped over the deck. She sensed him standing above her. His voice rang out in satisfaction. “There we go. Saved you from that nasty bit of rubbish.”
    She envisioned him standing over her and addressing his precious family ring. She was “ that nasty bit of rubbish.” How could she have ever thought he cared for her? She should have known her bridal settlement was the only thing that attracted his suit. And perhaps she had known that, but she thought he at least liked her. Enough to keep her around. Enough not to kill her.
    His arms came around her again. He hefted her up with a grunt. “Little cow, I’m thinking you’ll sink straight to the bottom. Farewell, wife