num_pages: 376
description: The crusader feared nothing — until he met...The Temptress“I will not wed a man who thinks to own me.”Furthermore, Esmeraude of Ceinn-beithe declares that she alone will name the winner of her heart. To the knights gallant who ride from afar to do her bidding, she issues a a riddle that is both quest and test. And then she flees, daring her suitors to follow.Thus begins the Bride Quest of Bayard of Villonne, to compete for the hand of a woman he has never seen....Newly returned from the Crusades, Bayard has warned his family of a pending attack upon their estate. When they pay no heed to his message, he swears to protect the family holding himself ... even if its price is a marriage of convenience.It seems a simple matter to win the hand of a rural maid in a barbarian contest — until the chase begins. Esmeraude’s challenge makes her far more intriguing than Bayard has dared to hope. But when he follows her across the waters and rescues a tattered, ravishing damsel in disguise, he knows he has found her.Recklessly, she offers herself to the handsome stranger. But not even a passion that touches both their souls can win her hand. For Esmeraude will settle for nothing less than total surrender of the crusader’s worn and wary heart ... a treasure Bayard is determined to keep shielded forever.
language: English
title: The Temptress
titlecomplete: The Temptress (Bride Quest, #6)
genres: Fiction, Medieval, Medieval Romance, Historical Romance, Historical, Historical Fiction, Romance
ratings_count: 260
series: Bride Quest, Bride Quest II (Scottish Bride Quest)
publisher: Dell Publishing