Read The Highlander Series Online
Authors: Maya Banks
The Highlander Series
| The Highlander Series |
| McCabe Trilogy [1] |
| Maya Banks |
| Random House Publishing Group (2012) |
From a rising star in Scottish romance
comes a breathtaking trilogy of forbidden passion, legendary heroes, and sacred
bonds. In Maya Banks’s Highlander series, collected here in one must-have eBook
bundle, three unforgettable brothers risk everything to save their clan and
their legacy—and to surrender their hearts to love.
Contains a
thrilling preview of Maya Banks’s sensual new novel,
Never Seduce a
Scot
!
IN BED WITH A
HIGHLANDER
Ewan McCabe is poised to take back what is his—until
a blue-eyed, raven-haired temptress is thrust into his life. The illegitimate
daughter of the king, Mairin is wary of love. But her attraction to her ruggedly
powerful new husband makes her crave his surprisingly tender touch. And as war
draws near, Mairin’s strength, spirit, and passion challenge Ewan—a man who
dreams only of revenge—to confront his demons and conquer the strangest
territory of all: his heart.
SEDUCTION OF A
HIGHLAND LASS
Fiercely loyal to his family, Alaric McCabe is
prepared to wed for duty as well. But on his way to claim the daughter of a
neighboring chieftain, he is ambushed and left for dead—only to be saved by the
soft touch of a Highland angel. An outcast from her own clan, Keeley McDonald is
drawn to the wounded warrior and his strong, lean body. As forbidden love draws
them into pleasures of the flesh, conspiracy and danger circle closer. Alaric
must make an impossible choice: Will he betray his blood ties for the woman he
loves?
NEVER LOVE A
HIGHLANDER
Caelen McCabe’s young, reckless heart nearly
destroyed his clan—now he must marry to salvage an uneasy alliance. But Caelen
trusts no woman, especially not the beauty who torments him with white-hot
longing. Rionna McDonald had vowed to protect her heart—until she finds herself
craving the sensual delights of a husband who guards his emotions as fiercely as
his clan. When the ultimate battle for the McCabe legacy is upon them, Rionna
risks her life to prove to Caelen that their love is too precious to lose.
In Bed with a Highlander, Seduction of a Highland Lass
, and
Never Love a Highlander
are works of fiction. Names, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
A Ballantine eBook Edition
In Bed with a Highlander
copyright © 2011 by Maya Banks
Seduction of a Highland Lass
copyright © 2011 by Maya Banks
Never Love a Highlander
copyright © 2011 by Maya Banks
Excerpt from
Never Seduce a Scot
© 2012 by Maya Banks
All Rights Reserved.
Published in the United States by Ballantine, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
Ballantine Books and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.
The novels contained in this omnibus were each published separately by Ballantine Books, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., in 2011, 2011, and 2011.
This book contains an excerpt from the forthcoming book
Never Seduce a Scot
by Maya Banks. This excerpt has been set for this edition only and may not reflect the final content of the forthcoming edition.
eBook ISBN: 978-0-345-54267-0
Cover illustration: Alan Ayers
v3.1
In Bed with a Highlander
is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
A Ballantine Books Mass Market Original
Copyright © 2011 by Maya Banks
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Ballantine Books, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
B
ALLANTINE
and colophon are trademarks of Random House, Inc.
eISBN: 978-0-345-51948-1
Cover design: Lynn Andreozzi
Cover illustration: Alan Ayers
v3.1
For Kim Whalen, who believed in this book from the very beginning and who told me she would absolutely find a home for it. You did just that.
For Lillie, who is such an invaluable support in so many ways. You make my reader heart so very happy with our book dishing, and your unwavering support of my stories is something I’ll always be grateful for.
To Fatin, who is like a mama lion. You take such good care of me. I love you for that!
And finally to my family for trekking all over Scotland with me. For the missed trains, the ridiculous roundabouts, the horrible food, and one of the best times of my life. Love you all so much.
C
HAPTER
1
Mairin Stuart knelt on the stone floor beside her pallet and bowed her head in her evening prayer. Her hand slipped to the small wooden cross hanging from a bit of leather around her neck, and her thumb rubbed a familiar path over the now smooth surface.
For several long minutes, she whispered the words she’d recited since she was a child, and then she ended it as she always did.
Please, God. Don’t let them find me
.
She pushed herself from the floor, her knees scraping the uneven stones. The plain, brown garb she wore signaled her place along the other novices. Though she’d been here far longer than the others, she’d never taken the vows that would complete her spiritual journey. It was never her intention.
She went to the basin in the corner and poured from the pitcher of water. She smiled as she dampened her cloth, and Mother Serenity’s words came floating to mind.
Cleanliness is next to Godliness
.
She wiped her face and started to remove her gown to extend her wash when she heard a terrible crash. Startled, she dropped the cloth and whirled around to stare at her closed door. Then galvanized to action, she ran and flung it open, racing into the hall.
Around her, the other nuns also filled the hall, their
dismayed murmurs rising. A loud bellow echoed down the corridor from the abbey’s front entrance. A cry of pain followed the bellow, and Mairin’s heart froze. Mother Serenity.
Mairin and the rest of the sisters ran toward the sound, some lagging back while others shoved determinedly ahead. When they reached the chapel, Mairin drew up short, paralyzed by the sight before her.
Warriors were everywhere. There were at least twenty, all dressed in battle gear, their faces unwashed, sweat drenching their hair and clothing. But no blood. They hadn’t come for sanctuary or aid. The leader held Mother Serenity by the arm, and even from a distance, Mairin could see the abbess’s face drawn in pain.
“Where is she?” the man demanded in a cold voice.
Mairin took a step back. He was a fierce-looking man. Evil. Rage coiled in his eyes like a snake waiting to strike. He shook Mother Serenity when she didn’t respond, and she warbled in his grasp like a rag doll.