Left alone on the family estate, headstrong Brien Weston has learned to manage for herself. But when she becomes too independent for her noble father’s tastes, he orders an arranged marriage “for her own good.” Taking matters into her own hands, Brien discovers that what makes a woman truly ineligible for marriage is marriage itself. So how does a woman acquire a husband . . . who won’t really be a husband? Having rejected his own father’s title and fortune, shipbuilder Aaron Durham vows to find a way to finance his dreams. But what is a charming scapegrace to do when a desperate young lady and a small fortune fall into his lap . . . with a shocking condition attached? One irresistible night of passion will change their destinies.  Touch by touch, kiss by kiss, they fall deeper into a love large enough to span continents . . . strong enough to overcome deception . . . and sweet enough to make them forget that they have been.   Left alone on the family estate, headstrong Brien Weston has learned to manage for herself. But when she becomes too independent for her noble father s tastes, he orders an arranged marriage for her own good. Taking matters into her own hands, Brien discovers that what makes a woman truly ineligible for marriage is marriage itself. So how does a woman acquire a husband . . . who won t really be a husband? Having rejected his own father s title and fortune, shipbuilder Aaron Durham vows to find a way to finance his dreams. But what is a charming scapegrace to do when a desperate young lady and a small fortune fall into his lap . . . with a shocking condition attached? One irresistible night of passion will change their destinies. Touch by touch, kiss by kiss, they fall deeper into a love large enough to span continents . . . strong enough to overcome deception . . . and sweet enough to make them forget that they have been. Left alone on the family estate, headstrong Brien Weston has learned to manage for herself. But when she becomes too independent for her noble father's tastes, he orders an arranged marriage "for her own good." Taking matters into her own hands, Brien discovers that what makes a woman truly ineligible for marriage is marriage itself. So how does a woman acquire a husband . . . who won't really be a husband? Having rejected his own father's title and fortune, shipbuilder Aaron Durham vows to find a way to finance his dreams. But what is a charming scapegrace to do when a desperate young lady and a small fortune fall into his lap . . . with a shocking condition attached? One irresistible night of passion will change their destinies. Touch by touch, kiss by kiss, they fall deeper into a love large enough to span continents . . . strong enough to overcome deception . . . and sweet enough to make them forget that they have been. Betina Krahn lives in Florida. She has two sons, Nathan and Zebulun, and a feisty salt-and-pepper schnauzer. With a degree in biology and a graduate degree in counseling, she has worked in teaching, personnel management, and mental health. She had a mercifully brief stint as a boys' soccer coach, makes terrific lasagna, routinely kills houseplants, and is incurably optimistic about the human race. She believes the world needs a bit more truth, a lot more justice, a whole lot more love and laughter. She attributes her outlook to having married an unflinching optimist and two great-grandmothers actually named "Pollyanna." One The South of England, 1787 E's at it again, my lady." The groom jerked his head toward the stable as he steadied Brien Weston's stirrup and helped her dismount. Shouts and wails burst from the stable door as she rushed toward it. Inside, down the brick-paved alley, she found a shirtless boy cringing against a mound of straw in an empty stall, begging for mercy from Seaton, the estate's raw-fisted stablemaster. She froze for a moment at the sight of a dozen bloody streaks across the boy's naked chest and arms. Another blow fell, and the child cried out as the jagged shards of metal on the broken bridle bit into his flesh. Suddenly the bloody stripes on the boy's pale skin were all she could see. "Stop!" There was a hitch in the stablemaster's movement. After a glance at her from the corner of his eye, he brushed aside the command and drew back for another stroke. She lunged for his arm and managed to stay it. "Cease this! Now!" Anger poured strength into her limbs and made a biting rasp of her voice. "Or as God is my witness, Mr. Seaton, I'll see you receive ten blows for every one you deal this boy." "Outta th' way, lady. Th' wretch needs a taste of th' lash to teach 'im to 'eel to 'is master." Seaton tried to shake her off, but she threw the force of her weight against his arm and succeeded in immobilizing it. Their glares met as they stood locked in a shockingly physical contest of wills. It apparently took a moment for him to realize that to continue dispensing this punishment, he would have to remove hi