Secrets of the Highlander
Janet Chapman
The reviewers love
Janet Chapman THE STRANGER IN HER BED
“A thoroughly enjoyable tale of a modern-day knight and his feisty ladylove set in the rugged mountains of Maine.”
—Booklist
“More hot passion and danger in the wilds of Maine.”
—Romantic Times THE SEDUCTION OF HIS WIFE
“A charming story of love, growth, and trust.”
—Romantic Times
“Chapman presents a cast of rugged characters in rural Maine who enact a surprisingly tender romance.”
—Booklist ONLY WITH A HIGHLANDER
“A mystical, magical book if there ever was one…. A perfect 10!”
—Romance Reviews Today
“This time-traveling Highlander series has been a pure joy to read, and this book is no exception. Chapman’s amazing ability to meld rich characterization with passion and romantic adventure is unmatched and unforgettable.”
—Romantic Times
“A powerful entry in a fine romantic fantasy series.”
—The Best Reviews
“An excellent addition to her entertaining Highlander series.”
—Booklist THE DANGEROUS PROTECTOR
“One thing that Chapman does so deftly is meld great characterization, sparkling humor, and spicy adventure into a perfect blend.”
—Romantic Times THE SEDUCTIVE IMPOSTOR
“Chapman’s skills as a storyteller just keep getting better. Utilizing warmth and humor, she makes this thrilling romantic tale both funny and scary. Great reading.”
—Romantic Times
“One of the best books I’ve read in a long time…. A fun, sexy read!”
—Old Book Barn Gazette
“Engaging romantic suspense…surprising twists…Janet Chapman seduces her audience.”
—The Best Reviews TEMPTING THE HIGHLANDER
“Chapman breathes such life and warmth into her characters, each story is impossible to put down.”
—Romantic Times
“A wonderful addition to Chapman’s Highlander [series].”
—Booklist WEDDING THE HIGHLANDER
“A series that just keeps getting better, but Janet Chapman accomplishes this with her Highlander books. This is her most emotional, touching, and powerful novel to date.”
—Romantic Times
“Exciting…Janet Chapman writes a refreshingly entertaining novel.”
—The Best Reviews LOVING THE HIGHLANDER
“Janet Chapman has hit another home run with Loving the Highlander. It’s a fresh take on time travel, with both humor and drama. She’s a keeper.”
—Linda Howard
“The characters are lively, intriguing, and full of passion.”
—Romantic Times CHARMING THE HIGHLANDER
“Splendid. We can expect great things from Janet Chapman.”
—The Oakland Press
“Time travel, tragedy, tempation, along with desire, destiny, devotion, and, of course, true love, are all woven into Janet Chapman’s romance.”
—Bangor Daily News
“Terrific…A real gem of a story!”
—Romantic Times
Also by Janet Chapman
The Stranger in Her Bed
The Seduction of His Wife
Only with a Highlander
The Dangerous Protector
Tempting the Highlander
The Seductive Imposter
Wedding the Highlander
Loving the Highlander
Charming the Highlander
Available from Pocket Books
Pocket Star Books
A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2008 by Janet Chapman
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address Pocket Books Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
POCKET STAR BOOKS and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
ISBN-10: 1-4165-4521-2
ISBN-13: 978-1-4165-4521-7
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To Alex,
Hold on tight, Mr. Man,
as we explore the world together!
For those of you just joining us…
Thirty-eight years ago, an aging Scottish drùidh named Pendaär cast a spell to bring Laird Greylen MacKeage eight hundred years forward through time. Pendaär’s plan was for Greylen to meet and marry Grace Sutter so they could have seven daughters—the seventh girl destined to be Pendaär’s heir.
Except the magic got a bit out of control that fateful day, and not only did Greylen make the fantastical journey from twelfth-century Scotland, but so did three of his men and the six MacBain warriors they were battling at the time. Even their warhorses got sucked into the time-bending storm.
The ten men, finding themselves in a strange new land, did what any God-fearing warriors would do and sought refuge in the nearest church. There they met the old priest, Daar, who taught them the ways of modern society and eventually persuaded them that their destiny lay here, across the Atlantic.
The MacKeages and Daar moved to Pine Creek, Maine, where they bought several thousand acres of timberland, built a modern castle they named Gù Brath, and opened the TarStone Mountain Ski Resort. The six MacBain warriors, true to their hardheaded nature, decided to settle in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Five of them died within the next two years, chasing electrical storms in hopes they would be transported back to their natural time. Finding himself alone, Michael MacBain finally moved to Pine Creek, where he purchased a Christmas tree farm abutting the MacKeage land.
In Charming the Highlander, Greylen MacKeage, fully adapted to modern life, meets and marries rocket scientist Grace Sutter. And just as Pendaär had been promised by the powers that be, they had seven daughters—all born on the winter solstice: Heather, twins Sarah and Camry, twins Chelsea and Megan, Elizabeth, and finally Pendaär’s heir, Winter.
As for the other warriors, in Loving the Highlander, Morgan MacKeage meets Sadie Quill and they marry and have several children. It’s also in that book that Callum MacKeage marries Charlotte. As for Ian…well, you’ll have to read Tempting the Highlander to discover what happens to him!
Michael MacBain falls in love with Mary Sutter, Grace’s sister, within months of moving to Maine. But Mary dies just after giving birth to their son, Robbie. In Wedding the Highlander, when Robbie is just nine years old, Libby Hart arrives in Pine Creek and sends Michael’s heart into a tailspin all over again.
Moving into the next generation, Robbie MacBain’s story is told in Tempting the Highlander. Three years later, twenty-five-years-old Winter MacKeage comes face-to-face with her unasked-for destiny in Only With a Highlander. In this book you also get to know Greylen’s and Grace’s jilted (and very pregnant) daughter Megan MacKeage.
This is her story, in which Megan discovers a whole new kind of magic.
Chapter One
M egan MacKeage slipped out the front door of her home and strode across the footbridge guarding the entryway. Discovering she no longer was able to button her coat, she pulled it against her rounded belly and headed to the stable. It had been almost two weeks since anyone had last seen Gesader, and Megan didn’t buy her sister Winter’s explanation that the semiwild panther was merely hiding from the throng of people that had descended on Gù Brath eight days ago.