By Arrangement
by Madeline Hunter

The lady and the commoner...

Lady Christiana Fitzwaryn was not opposed to marriage.But she demanded to be married on her own terms, not as punishment for a romantic indiscretion, and especially not to a common merchant.Yet she was in for a shock when she met David de Abyndon.For she was confronted by no ordinary merchant but a man of extraordinary poise and virility.He was unaffected by their difference in social status.And even less affected by her well-thought-out arguments against their upcoming betrothal.Instead, it was Christiana who felt uneasy in the presence of this naturally lordly man behind whose cool blue eyes she sensed the most uncompromising of passions.

David de Abyndon understood Christiana's dilemma, for he too harbored a secret pain.How could he tell her that there was more to this arrangement than met the eye?How could he tell her about his deal with the king--a deal that meant he had all but bought Christiana sight unseen?

What's more, now that he had seen this beautiful, spirited woman, how could he convince her that the love she sought was not in the callow knight she had romanticized but in the flesh-and-blood arms of the man who may have bought her body--but in the bargain lost both his heart and soul?

Madeline Hunter's Bio

Madeline Hunter's first romance was published in June, 2000. Since then she has seen twenty-seven historical romances published, and her books have been translated into fourteen languages. Over six million of her books are in print. She is a seven-time RITA finalist, and two-time RITA winner. Twenty-five of her books have been on the USA Today bestseller list, and she has also had titles on the New York Times printed list, Publishers Weekly list, and the Waldenbooks paperback fiction list. She has received four starred reviews in Publishers Weekly, and Romantic Times has awarded twenty-three of her books 4 1/2 stars. Madeline has a Ph.D. in Art History, and until recently she taught at an eastern university. She currently lives in Pennsylvania.