The Trouble with Highlanders by Mary Wine (Guest Post/Giveaway)

Please give a very warm welcome to Historical Romance author, Mary Wine!

Hello!
Thanks for having me over to chat! My newest book is on sale and it’s a Highlander tale. ‘The Trouble with Highlanders’ follows ‘The Highlanders Prize.’ So let’s see, you sent me some questions...

10 Reasons Why Highlanders Make the Best Romance Heroes 

or 

10 Reasons Why Romance Heroes Look Better in a Kilt

Oh my, I’m distracted just thinking about these. Since I’m a card carrying history Geek, Let’s talk about kilts first. Wool retains ninety percent of its insulating factor when wet. Cotton only ten percent. So you can see why wool was a good choice for clothing in the Scottish Highlands. The kilt as we know it evolved over time. It’s actually very hard to research them in the earlier centuries. This is due largely to the fact that cloth was very expensive. I mean major investment sort of expensive. Wool was one of the backbone industries in Scotland but you still only sheered a sheep once a year. This is why you see kilts. It’s not only your day time wear, it’s what you wrap up in at night. Early on, it was worn a little more like a Roman toga with a belt around the waist. It settled into the pleated, secured at the waist garment you know after the middle ages. Those longer pleats at the back were what you pulled up to cover your head when it rained.

So what makes a Highlander a great hero? Let’s face it, they were powerful men. Anyone who could survive the elements had to be tough and no one did it alone. Belonging to a clan was essential to survival. You pooled your resources to build a castle that would be used to defend against raiders. That sort of loyalty is intoxicating. It really is the stuff that heroes are made of. That dedication to the well being of all, what gal wouldn’t want that directed at her?

The more research I do on this period and setting, the more in love I fall with it. The facts of life, how did you cook up supper? It’s more complicated than just a pot and fire, these people held lavish celebrations. How did they live from day to day and through seasons when there was no fire brigade to summon if you had an accident or supper market to run to if you needed food? Highlanders faced it all and that makes them the stuff of legends in my mind. They composed some of the most cheerful music too.

I hope you enjoy my newest offering.

Mary Wine
MaryWine.com

After a night of intense passion, beautiful heiress Daphne MacLeod left Norris Sutherland without so much as a backward glance. Norris, the son of a very powerful Earl, is used to getting what he wants -- and right now, he wants Daphne back in his bed.
When Daphne is kidnapped by a rival clan leader who is intent on forcing her into marriage so that he can control her lands, Norris has a choice to make. Will he let go of the one woman he's ever desired for more than one night, or will he resolve himself to rescuing the woman who has captured his heart?

Goodreads

Excerpt from 'The Trouble with Highlanders.'

“Well, it matters naught. Yer father will likely be well on his way to selecting another bride for ye and I do nae need any rumors linking us.”
“I rather enjoy the memory of the facts linking us.” His voice had dipped low and deep, just as it had the night they…
“Ye should nae voice such things,” she sputtered.
He was amused by her, his eyes twinkling with pleasure. “And why nae? Ye enjoyed making those memories—a great deal.” Now there was a hint of pride in his tone.
Daphne fought the urge to shiver. Emotion wanted to wash away her sense and leave her helpless in front of him.
“Enough, Norris. The priest is already threatening to write to the bishop about me transgressions.” She bit her lip, stunned by how easily she was sharing personal information with him. “I have enough to worry about.”
“I see…” he muttered in a tone she recalled instantly from their more intimate moments. “Ye mean the man is threatening to write about our transgressions, do ye nae, lass?”
“No,” she snapped and side-stepped once more to avoid him. “Father Peter would never accuse ye.”
He paused for a moment, his expression turning pensive. “In that case, the man is a hypocrite. I recall being deeply involved in your transgressions. In fact, I’m very tempted to add to the list. If the man is going to carry tales to his superior, I believe we should make sure he has something unique to report. I know a few positions he’s likely never heard of.”
Her eyes widened. “Ye’re going to end up locked in the stocks for saying things such as that.”
Norris grinned, flashing his teeth at her. He shook his head, irritating her. She couldn’t seem to shake the urge to argue with him. She stepped forward, pointing her finger at his wide chest.
“Don’t think being the son of an earl will save you. The church will no doubt double their efforts to make ye repent so ye set a good example. Mind yer words and do nae be grinning at me like that.”
“I’m grinning because I assure ye, lass, if I get locked in the stocks for impious behavior, it will be for me actions, not just me words. Which means, I would nae be alone.” He caught her up against him in a motion that was almost too fast to see. One moment she was pointing at him and the next moment his arms bound her against him. She had only a moment to inhale the warm scent of his skin and notice just how solid his body was before his mouth claimed hers.
His kiss was demanding. His lips pressed hers apart while he cupped her nape and angled her face upwards for the assault. She struggled against him, trying to push him away but he held her prisoner. It was a desperate attempt to maintain her sanity. A moment later her discipline crumbled beneath the teasing motions of his lips. He wanted her mouth to open and she had lost the will to deny him. What was worse was the fact that she wanted his kiss, needed it to be harder. She curled her hands into his doublet, holding him close as she kissed him back.
The kiss changed instantly. He became more demanding and it fanned the flames smoldering inside her. Passion leapt to life between them, as though they hadn’t parted for weeks. It twisted and bit into her, unleashing a potent poison.  But she wasn’t the only victim, Norris growled softly, the savage sound one she recalled from the darkest hours of the night they’d spent together. He trailed his lips along her jaw line and onto her neck where he bit her gently. She shivered, the reaction instant and uncontrollable. His grip held her in place as he raised his head and locked stares with her. For a moment, he let her see what the darkness had prevented her from gazing upon the night they shared his bed. Hunger glittered in his green eyes making them glow. She was mesmerized by the sight because it echoed her own longings so closely.
“Since ye kissed me back so passionately, ye’ll be in the stocks beside me.” 
His words were arrogant. She tried to shove him away and would have bitten the beast if he hadn’t released her. Her skirt got caught beneath her feet and she stumbled further away.
“Ye insufferable marauder.”
He tipped his head back and roared with amusement. Her temper sizzled, turning her cheeks scarlet.
“Take yer demands somewhere else, Norris Southerland, for I do nae care whose son ye be or what title ye’re set to inherit.”
He smirked at her but it was a very personal expression, one that reminded her that he knew her… intimately.
“Since yer father is dead and yer brother has yet to show his face, ye’ll face me demands, Daphne MacLeod, as a vassal should. I’m here to see what condition yer land is in.” He closed the gap between them, gripping a handful of her skirt to keep her near so his last words could be shared only between them. “But if ye’d like me to run ye to ground, I will be happy to do so. So turn yer back on me lass… I dare ye.”

~*GIVEAWAY*~

Sourcebooks is giving away one copy of The Trouble with Highlanders to one reader (US & Canada only, please.) To enter, just leave a comment on this post: Why do you think Highlanders make the best romance heroes? And then fill out the Rafflecopter below. Additional entries are available but not required. Good luck!

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