Bride by Ransom, Book #4

• She's collateral on a loan
• Tough Alpha Male
• Secrets
• Past Lovers

She's collateral.

Gideon Hart left Piper Montgomery broken. Broken in heart. In body. Even broken in spirit. But his return means far worse for her. In order to save her brother from financial ruin, she must give herself to him as collateral. His to do whatever he wishes.

He'll keep her.

She's keeping a sinful secret from him. And one way or another, he'll find out what it is. She'll tell him the truth, even if he has to seduce it out of her, kiss by kiss. Night by steamy night.

Piper Montgomery loved Gideon Hart, the town’s bad boy, from the time she was a child. She didn’t care that Gideon came from the wrong side of the tracks or that everyone considered him a liar and a thief, like his father. They just didn’t see the hero beneath the tarnish.

Now Gideon is bent on vengeance against those who ran him out of town at the end of a shotgun. There’s only one person who stands in his way. Piper. The woman he loved with all his heart. The woman who refused him when he needed her most.

But maybe he can have his vengeance and Piper, too. After all, she’s offered herself up as collateral on her brother’s loan. He’ll simply make her pay for every penny owed.

He’ll make her pay … in bed.

Bride by Ransom is a passionate, tender contemporary romance, guaranteed to make you a believer in happily-ever-after.

Note to Readers: Bride by Ransom is Book #4 in The Sinful Secrets Series, a contemporary romance series by USA Today bestselling author and eleven-time RITA© (Romance Writers of America) finalist, Day Leclaire. This story features a hot, take-charge alpha hero and the perfect woman for him, and a sizzling romance between soul mates.

“So now you’re going to call the contract due?”

To her surprise, Gideon shook his head. “Not at all. I simply won’t renew it when it expires next month.”
Anger flared. “There’s a difference?”

“There’s a big difference. If I called the contract due now, your brother wouldn’t have any options. Giving him an extra month, he can choose how he prefers to go down.”

“Generous of you.”

Piper's sarcasm had him closing the distance between them. “Trust me. I’m being more than generous.” His voice lashed the still, ominous air with barely suppressed fury. “Your brother did his level best to destroy me. Did you really think I’d let that go, that I wouldn’t find a way to pay him back for his kindness?”

“It wasn’t deliberate.”

“No? I think he saw it as the perfect excuse to separate us. And he succeeded, didn’t he?”

More than Spence’s accusations had separated them, as Gideon knew damn well. “And because of what happened over five years ago you intend to destroy him?” she demanded.

“Will losing what he’s spent the past five years building destroy Spencer?”

“Yes.”

Gideon didn’t relent. As far as she could tell there wasn’t a hint of compassion or forgiveness. Had those qualities been completely driven from him? “Then maybe he’ll feel a small portion of what I did. We’ll also see if he has what it takes to pick himself up and move on, or if he’ll give up.”

“And live his life in bitterness?”

A hint of genuine amusement touched Gideon’s expression. “Is that what you think I’ve done?”

“I think you’ve allowed bitterness to change the man you once were.”

“Not bitterness, sweetheart. Try the hard facts of life.” And every last one of those hard facts scored his face. “You and your brother put me on this path. Why act surprised when you discover I’ve followed it?”

Piper shook her head. “Don’t blame us for what you’ve become. We make our own choices in life, Gideon.”

She turned to examine his office once again. It was tragic to think he’d built his foundation atop the ashes of devastation. How many different firms did all this represent? How many ghosts haunted the various bits and pieces? Sadness filled her.

“Don’t you regret any of what you’ve done?”

He took a stance directly behind her. “I only have one regret in life.”

“Which is?”

His hands closed on her shoulders, turning her around to face him. “You haven’t earned the right to know.”

That roused her curiosity. “Earned?”

All expression vanished from his face and it struck Piper that she’d never sensed such loneliness in a man before. It revealed a vulnerability he’d never have acknowledged. Nor would he appreciate having her pick up on it.

She ached to hold him, to ease his pain as she had when they’d been together. But that was beyond her abilities. He’d never allow her to get that close. Not again. Once upon a time he’d have accepted her embrace. But now he’d see it as a weakness, a weakness in need of serious defense measures.

“Years ago I confided my childish secrets to you,” he said.

“I haven’t forgotten.” She regarded him steadily. “But you seem to have.”

“They were foolish dreams. Pointless dreams.”

“And the goals you’ve replaced them with are better?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because no one can take away what I have.”

This time she did laugh, the sound edged with sorrow. “Oh, Gideon. No one can take what you possess because you haven’t built anything worthy of that. And they can’t touch you personally because you won’t let them close enough to hurt you again.”

“Nor will I.” His implacability only served to confirm her suspicions. No doubt it would make her job all the more difficult. “Let’s get this over with, Piper. You’ve done your duty. You’ve come to plead with me on your brother’s behalf. And I’ve rejected your pleas. Go home and tell Spencer that it’s time to pay for what he did.”

She shook her head with a stubbornness that matched his. “No, Gideon. I’m not here to beg for mercy. Far from it.”

“Don’t hand me that. You’re here about the contract.”

“You’re right. I am.”

He lifted a sooty eyebrow. “Have you come to fulfill the terms?”

“Yes.”

Surprise, along with an intense irritation turned his eyes to ebony. “The terms are to either repay the loan or turn over Spencer’s property. You don’t have the kind of money it would take to pay back the loan. I’ve checked.”

“No, we don’t.”

“Then you plan to negotiate my takeover of the mill?”

“You’re forgetting the third alternative.”

It didn’t take long for him to come up with their other choice. “You have collateral of equal value to offer?”

She didn’t hesitate. “Yes, I do.”

“I’m warning you, Piper. I expect my money’s worth.”

“Oh, you’ll get it.”

“What are you going to give me?”

She smiled. “Myself. I’m the collateral on the loan.”