The Destined Queen

by Deborah Hale

  “But I wanted to be with you.” He knew he could not have done much but worry, yet it seemed wrong that his child’s birth should be so close and him not know.

  “You are with me now.” Maura’s features began to tense. “You have a country to run, remember? And I have been in Sorsha’s capable hands.”

  Her tired smile twisted into a grimace.

  “Are you in much pain?” Rath nudged a moist curl off her brow.

  Her lips were clenched too tight to reply, but she gave him her answer by nearly crushing the bones of his hand in her grip. Once the birth pang passed, she sank back onto the pillow and raised his throbbing fingers to her lips.

  “When have you known me to let the fear of pain keep me from what I want?” Maura echoed the words she had spoken to him on the night he’d first claimed her for his own. That had been the happiest day of Rath’s life…until now.

  There was every bit as much pain in bearing a baby as there was pleasure in breeding it. The thought ran through Maura’s mind as she clung to Rath’s hand through several more pangs, each longer and harder than the last.

  Then Sorsha bid her tuck up her knees and try to push, promising it would not last much longer. It still seemed like a long time to Maura until her baby came squirming and wriggling into the world.

  “She looks more like an outlaw than a princess,” Rath teased with a look of proud befuddlement on his face when he held his daughter for the first time.

  The tiny creature seized his finger. “She has a grip like one, too!”

  “Shall we still call her Abrielle, as we planned?” Maura chuckled. “Or would you prefer Ratha…or Vangette. Something with a fierce, outlaw ring?”

  “Don’t listen to your mother,” Rath told the baby as if she could understand him. “Abrielle was a strong woman and clever and brave. It is a fit name for you.”

  The infant gave a lusty squall.

  “I reckon your wee princess is hungry,” said Sorsha, who was busy getting Maura clean and comfortable after the birth.

  “What is that outlaw saying?” asked Maura as Rath settled her daughter in her arms. “About always eating and drinking when you have the chance?”

  She lowered her shift and watched with contentment as the child rooted for her bosom and began to suckle.

  A great rumble of noise sounded outside the window.

  “What is that?” Maura asked.

  “Why, the drums and horns announcing the birth of our heir.” Rath pressed a tender kiss to her brow.

  How would their subjects feel about the news? Maura wondered. She and Rath had revealed the truth of her parentage and been assured it would not stand in the way of her being queen. Still…a stubborn qualm of doubt lingered in her own mind.

  As suddenly as they had begun, the clamor of the horns and drums stopped. Then, after an instant of silence, wave after wave of joyful cheering greeted the news.

  “You hear that?” murmured Rath. “They love you both almost as much as I do.”

  Maura let a few tears fall as she heaved a sweet sigh of fulfillment. She thought back to her crowning ceremony and the sense she’d had that day of her and Rath being wed to their subjects. Now she was a mother, too. Not just of little Abrielle, but of a whole kingdom.

  And any fear she might have felt at that great responsibility was swept away by a powerful wave of happiness.

  COMING NEXT MONTH

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  Women’s Fiction

  Books that celebrate the “next” stage of women’s lives…because every life has a second chapter! From Harlequin Next

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  Women’s Action Adventure

  Strong, sexy, savvy heroines who save the day…and always get their man. From Silhouette Bombshell

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  Fantasy/Science Fiction

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  ON SALE OCTOBER 1ST

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  MASQUERADE by Brenda Joyce, HQN Books (historical romance)

  Romantic Suspense

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Harlequin Intrigue and Silhouette Intimate Moments

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  Stories of faith, hope and love that warm the heart and nourish the soul—from Steeple Hill Love Inspired and compelling suspense—from Love Inspired Suspense

  DIE BEFORE NIGHTFALL by Shirlee McCoy, Steeple Hill Love Inspired Suspense

  Women’s Fiction

  Books that celebrate the “next” stage of women’s lives…because every life has a second chapter! From Harlequin Next

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  Fantasy/Science Fiction

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  ON SALE OCTOBER 15TH

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  THE TYCOON’S TROPHY WIFE by Miranda Lee, Harlequin Presents

  Inspirational

  Stories of faith, hope and love that warm the heart and nourish the soul—from Steeple Hill Love Inspired and compelling suspense—from Love Inspired Suspense

  DECK THE HALLS by Arlene James, Steeple Hill Love Inspired

  Women’s Action Adventure

  Strong, sexy, savvy heroines who save the day…and always get their man. From Silhouette Bombshell

  FLAWLESS by Michele Hauf, Silhouette Bombshell

  Chic Lit

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  THE NIGHT I GOT LUCKY by Laura Caldwell, Red Dress Ink