Bestselling
western romance authors, Kat Flannery and Alison Bruce take you on an exciting
journey with the release of HAZARDOUS UNIONS, Two Tales of a Civil War
Christmas.
Title: Hazardous Unions
Author: Kat Flannery and Alison Bruce
Genres: Historical Romance, Western Romance
Categories: Holiday-Themed, Military, Mystery/Thriller
Publisher: Imajin Books
Release Date: 9/7/2013
Word Count/Length: 150 pages
Purchase link: Amazon
Twin sisters separated by war, bound by love…
After
the death of their father, twin sisters Maggie and Matty Becker are forced to
take positions with officers’ families at a nearby fort. When the southern
states secede, the twins are separated, and they find themselves on opposite
sides of America
In
the south, Maggie travels with the Hamiltons to Bellevue , a plantation in west Tennessee Bellevue Bellevue
In
the north, Matty discovers an incriminating letter in General Worthington’s
office, and soon she is on the run. With no one to turn to for help, she drugs
the wealthy Colonel Cole Black and marries him, in hopes of getting the letter
to his father, the governor of Michigan
Two
unforgettable stories of courage, strength and honor
Reviews: “You’ll sigh with pleasure as you finish each story” ~ Caroline Clemmons, author of Bluebonnet Bride “Stories that play on your senses like a sonata. A must read!” ~ Jacquie Rogers, award-winning author of Much Ado About Madams “Wonderfully entertaining and well-written, with engaging characters…delightful!” ~ Charlene Raddon, author of To Have and To Hold
Excerpts
Maggie by
Alison Bruce
Fall 1862.
The Yankees were coming.
We'd seen the signs days
ago. News was, most of west Tennessee Bellevue
"Why me?"
"Someone has to
meet them, Miss Maggie," Mammy said, setting out tea things as if the
neighbors were coming to call. "Mrs. Hamilton hasn't got your nerve and
Miss Patience wouldn't be a lick of good even if she would come
downstairs."
"I'm just a
servant," I objected half-heartedly.
"Yeah, like Tad
here is just a dumb nigger." Mammy cocked her head to one side and a
moment later I heard the faint but shrill whistle of the kettle. She smoothed
the skirt of her greying white pinny over her faded grey dress. Eventually, the
two garments were going to match. "Watch out for her, boy," she said,
before heading around the corner of the wraparound porch toward the kitchen
door.
Only Mammy could get
away with calling Thaddeus "boy" or "nigger" without coming
under the resolute stare of a man who looked like he could have been carved out
of a huge block of obsidian. Mammy was his aunt and had raised him, along with
Major Hamilton, from nursery age. The boys had been more like brothers than
master and slave, Mammy said, until Master Ned was sent off to West Point to be made an officer and a gentleman. It was
hard for me to reconcile her picture of Master Ned with the aloof man who had
employed me to take care of his wife.
I was barely sixteen
when I was hired by the Captain, now Major Hamilton. Some days I felt that I
was twice that age now, instead of just a couple of years older. Today,
watching the Union contingent approach, I felt like that frightened girl again.
I took small comfort in the pair of pistols hidden in the pockets of my
crinoline. Knowing that Thaddeus was watching over me from the shadows, armed
to the teeth, was more reassuring.
Half a dozen hard looking
men approached the house. Four of them spread out, some facing us, some partly
turned to keep an eye on the out buildings. Two of them rode up the path
towards the porch. I felt like I was being ringed in by a pack of hungry
wolves. The leader of the pack rode up to the bottom of the front steps.
Wolfish was a
description that fit him. Hard muscled, wary eyes, shaggy dark hair spiking out
from his cap, he looked old with experience and young in years. His uniform had
seen better days and his beard was untrimmed, but it appeared that he had made
some effort to clean up before approaching the house. That was a good sign.
I had also made an
effort for appearances sake. Instead of my usual long braid, I had twisted my
blonde hair into knot and allowed tendrils to fall free on either side of my
face. I was wearing one of the calico dresses Mrs. Hamilton bought me in St. Louis
"Afternoon, ma'am.
I'm Captain Seth Stone. I have a cavalry troop under my command that needs to
set up quarters for the winter."
"I see." My
voice was steady, but I could feel my knees wobble beneath my skirts.
"And?"
"And this looks
like a good place to stay."
"How many are you expecting
us to accommodate?"
I heard a chuckle from
one of his men. It was stifled with a sharp look from the grim-faced sergeant
behind the captain.
"Not so many as
there should be," the Captain said, ignoring the interruption. "If
you'd oblige me by asking your man to lay down his arms, maybe we can discuss
terms."
“Gott hilf mir,” I prayed, but held my ground. "You have your
protectors, Captain. I have mine."
With a hand gesture, he
signaled his men and they all dismounted as neatly as if they were on parade.
Then he dismounted and held out his reins to the sergeant.
"Thaddeus, would
you lead these troopers and their horses to water?"
Thaddeus stepped out of
the shadows, empty handed. "Yes, miss."
The two men passed on
the stairs. Thaddeus was significantly taller and broader than the Union
officer and was doing his best guard dog imitation, but the Captain didn't
flinch when they passed. He did keep his eye on Thaddeus until he was in the
range of his own men. Then he turned his attention back to me and I lifted my
head up to make eye-contact. He may not have been as tall as Thaddeus, but he
was not a small man and I am on the short side for a woman.
Having asserted his
dominance, he backed up a step.
"I understand this
is the Hamilton
"No, sir. I am
Magrethe Becker, Mrs. Hamilton's companion."
His eyes widened.
"Maybe I should be speaking to the lady of the house."
"Mrs. Hamilton is
indisposed and asked me to..." I stopped, looking for the right word. Meet
with him? That sounded too friendly. Deal with him? Almost rude.
"Negotiate terms with you."
He let out a short bark
of laughter.
"My terms are
simple, Miss Becker. I need to winter seventy men and three officers, plus
myself. It'll be tight, but this place looks like it has enough room with the
house and out buildings. We'll need food and fodder of course. You can either
offer, or I will take."
I shook my head.
"No."
He barked out a longer
laugh. "What makes you think you're in the position to say no?"
"Twelve wounded
union soldiers in our care, Captain Stone."
Matty by Kat
Flannery
December 1862
What had she done? Matty
Becker was going to hell, and there'd be no one to save her. A loud snore
echoed from the other room. She peeked around the corner and caught a glimpse
of Colonel Black's stocking feet. She'd burn for sure. She glanced at the paper
she held and groaned. She was a horrible, devious, scheming letch. Maggie
wouldn't be pleased. Maggie wasn't here. Another
snore blew into the kitchen and she placed her head onto the table banging her
forehead twice. There was no turning back now.
Last night she'd pushed
aside her conscience and let fear guide her. For her plan to work, she'd have
to throw all sense to the dogs, not that she hadn't done so already by
following through with the blasted thing. She couldn't fail now. If her family
found out what she'd done they'd never forgive her. Worse yet, if Colonel Black
found out she'd be locked behind bars, a fate far better than the one that got
her in this mess to begin with.
She placed the paper on
the table and went into the bedroom. Colonel Black lay on the bed with his
clothes stripped off and tossed about the floor. He'd been out for nine hours
and would wake any minute. Matty stood, pushed all thoughts of reason from her
mind and removed her dress, corset and pantaloons. Her face heated and the room
spun. He rolled over and she jumped into the bed next to him, pretending to
sleep. She knew the moment he'd woken. The bed stilled and she couldn't breathe
the air was so stiff.
"What the
hell?" He sat up and she knew the instant he saw her. "Son of a
bitch."
She felt his nudge once,
twice and now a shove almost knocking her from the bed.
"Wake the hell
up," he growled.
She squeezed her eyes
closed and willed strength into her soul so she could face the dark Colonel.
She rolled over pretending to wipe the sleep from her eyes.
"Who are you?"
He placed his head in his hands. She'd bet he had one heck of a headache.
"Your wife,"
she said.
"The hell you
are." He shot out of bed without grabbing the sheet, and she averted her
eyes.
"Please cover
yourself." She held up the sheet and he ripped it from her hand. "The
marriage license is in the kitchen on the table if you do not believe me."
She watched as he grabbed
his head and closed his eyes. The heavy dose of laudanum she'd placed in his
drink the night before had done the trick and it wasn't but a mere suggestion
they marry that the Colonel jumped to the challenge. Soon they were standing in
the dining room in front of a preacher. Words were spoken—words she thought to
say with someone she loved, someone who'd wanted her. Her stomach lurched and
her mouth watered with the urge to vomit.
"How did this
happen?" he asked sitting on the end of the bed.
"Mrs. Worthington
sent me to see if you needed anything."
"I was
drinking." He looked at her. "I was drunk."
She shrugged.
He stood holding the
sheet tight to his midsection.
She couldn't help but
notice the rippled stomach and defined muscles on his chest.
"We can annul. I
had too much to drink. My head wasn't clear."
She shook her head.
He frowned.
"We have
consummated." A lie of course but she was desperate.
His mouth fell open. A
moment she knew he'd not remember. After the preacher left, she'd taken him to
the bedroom where he passed out before hitting the bed.
"Impossible. I'd
remember that."
She shook her head again
praying he'd buy the fib.
He pulled on his pants
and dress shirt. "I don't even know you. Why in hell would I marry
you?"
"My name is Matty
Beck—Black. I was employed with the Worthington
His brown eyes lit with
recognition. "You're the house maid."
"Yes."
"I married a
maid?"
The words stung and she
turned from him so he wouldn't see the disappointment upon her face.
"Why would you
marry me if I was into the spirits?"
"You seemed fine to
me."
He took a step toward
her. "Why would you marry me at all when you don't even know me?"
She gripped the blanket
on the bed. "You…you said kind words, and I…I believed them.
"How desperate are
you to marry a stranger?" he yelled. "You found out who my father is.
You want money. You tricked me."
Well, he got the last
one right, but the first two irritated her. She was not the kind of person to
marry for money. Really, who did he think she was?
"Sorry to
disappoint you but I refused my inheritance years ago."
"If you mean to say
that I could not find myself a suitable husband because I am a maid, then
you're wrong."
"That is exactly
what I am saying Miss—"
"Black."
"The hell it is."
He went into the kitchen
picked up the marriage license and stared at it.
Matty dressed quickly
and inched into the room. Confusion pulled at his features and she began to
feel sorry for him. This was her fault. She'd planned this. Now she had to
continue telling the lie she'd told. She glanced outside and shivered. Boldness, be my tongue. Shakespeare's
words echoed in her mind. It was worth it. She'd been living in fear for a
week. Colonel Black had been her saviour, and she risked a life full of love and
happiness for this—a lie in which she'd speak for the rest of her life. She
swallowed back the lump in her throat and willed the tears not to fall.
"Why
can't I remember?" He glanced at her. "And why in hell would I marry
you?"
Author bios:
Alison Bruce has had many careers and writing has always
been one of them. Copywriter, editor and graphic designer since 1992, Alison
has also been a comic book store manager, small press publisher, webmaster and
arithmetically challenged bookkeeper. She is the author of mystery, suspense
and historical romance novels.
Website: http://www.alisonbruce.ca
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/alisonebruce
Kat Flannery’s love of history shows in the novels she
writes. She is an avid reader of historical, suspense, paranormal, and romance.
When not researching for her next book, Kat can be found running her three sons
to hockey and lacrosse. She’s been published in numerous periodicals. This is
Kat’s third book and she is hard at work on her next.
Website: www.katflannery-author.com
Giveaway:
Author is giving away 2 Kindle copies of "Lakota Honor"
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