Welcome to First Kiss Friday. You’ve seen author Cathy MacRae’s work here before on our Medieval Monday hop. Today she joins us from Wolfebane Publishing to share the first kiss scene from her novella The Penitent. Our novella’s released as a part of Kathryn Le Veque’s De Wolfe Pack Connected World and we’re thrilled to share this excerpt with you. Happy reading, my lovelies, and enjoy!

Excerpt:

Simon arched a brow, matching the gesture with a curved lip as he stepped close to Iseabal and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Ye wouldn’t cheat me out of my three days, would ye?”

A shiver of desire shot through Iseabal before she could steel herself against the reaction. Simon leaned closer, the heat of his body overwhelming, his nearness both a frustration and a delight. Liquid heat softened Iseabal’s bones as Simon kissed her ear.

“Do not forget, my heart. Ye are home.”

“I dinnae say we would wed.”

“Ye will.”

Torn between laughter and outrage, Iseabal planted a fist on one hip. “Ye cannae force me into marriage, Simon de Bretteby.”

He caught her hand and drew it to his lips, dropping a kiss to the backs of her fingers. “I do not plan to force ye, Izzy.”

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Blurb:

Simon de Bretteby is one of The Saint’s closest friends and most loyal soldiers. His entire life has revolved around service to Lord de Wolfe’s nephew—except for one summer when he was ordered across the Scottish border to put a stop to a rogue chieftain who’d stolen cattle from an English lord. Injured and separated from his men, de Bretteby had little chance of survival, but a kind-hearted Scottish lass boldly healed his body, though he left his heart in her keeping.

Iseabal Maxwell, daughter of Chief Maxwell’s bastard son, has little love for English soldiers—and even less love for clan politics. With her sister ordered to wed as a pawn for peace along the border, Iseabal expects the same bleak future. As relations between the two nations grows ever more strained, defying her father’s orders by saving the life of an English knight risked much. But letting him go was the hardest thing she has ever done.

Now her life lies in ruins—her father dead after the English besieged their home, her fate decided by a man she fears. What will happen when she appears on Simon’s doorstep, carrying secrets she would die to protect?

Buy link:  https://amzn.to/2JLk4X5

Author bio:

Cathy MacRae lives on the sunny side of the Arbuckle Mountains where she and her husband read, write, and tend the garden—with the help of the dogs, of course.

You can visit with her on facebook, or read her blogs and learn about her books at www.cathymacraeauthor.com. Drop her a line—she loves to hear from readers!

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