The Dane's Bride

By Lizzie Ashworth

Suffering an onslaught of savage Danish invaders, the Saxon lord Aetherwulf, Earldorman of Gloucestershire, has been forced to wed his daughter Aetherlin to Hrald, Jarl of Dunholm. The union will protect his lands and the villages, but as Aetherlin journeys to Dunholm and faces her wedding night, she fights for self-control. She stands now facing her new husband across the fire pit of the great hall, listening in shock as he demands she remove her clothing.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lizzie Ashworth
• Release date: Jan 24, 2016
• ISBN: 9781310534843

Lizzie Ashworth

I love to write! Which is a good thing, because no matter what I'm doing, my brain edits sentences, selects or discards words, equivocates over paragraph formation. My file cabinet is stuffed with folders full of ideas, scenes, and half-finished work.My favorite part of writing is description. I want my readers to see, smell, hear, and feel what is going on in the story as if they are there. I can't think of many things as wonderful as those hours when words are pouring through my head and spilling out onto the page, creating a physical world full of passionate people!Other pursuits have taken up parts of my life--a technical profession for a career, children, questionable progress in learning to watercolor. I enjoy cooking, gardening, and time at the Pacific coast. Sunrise and sunset create special moods for me, the twilight between two worlds--fully of creative energy. Most of all, I love snuggling up with a good book.

Book preview

The Dane’s Bride

An erotic historical romance

Passionate Invader Series

Lizzie Ashworth

The Dane’s Bride by Lizzie Ashworth

Passionate Invader Series

Copyright 2016 Lizzie Ashworth

2nd Edition 2020

Cover Photo: © Filin2802 | Dreamstime.com –

Half-naked Warrior With A Sword In Medieval Clothes Photo

Also: © Nuno Ferreira | Dreamstime Stock Photos (fire)

All rights reserved. This book is copyright material and must not be copied, translated, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any form without prior written permission of the author, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution, circulation or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

The Dane’s Bride

875 AD

Kingdom of Guthrum, The Danelaw

Aetherlin stared at the man through the leaping flames of the firepit, her stomach knotted in hatred. Hrald, Jarl of Dunholm. Her hands clenched in want of a weapon. Taut muscle quivered in her legs, eager for escape. Breath hitched in her throat.

Fire cast his shadow to the far wall as if he were a denizen of Hell itself, his tall frame looming and pale eyes glittering in the orange-red reflection. He wore fitted leather leggings and an open vest over his muscled chest. Lengths of dark hair brushed his wide shoulders. Gold bands wrapped his biceps and forearms, badges of his prowess in battle and the respect of his tribesmen. His forehead creased in his determined expression, although the quirk of his cruel mouth bespoke lascivious thoughts. About her. And what he would do to her.

In spite of the message of anger and resistance she sent with her glare, he did not relent in his survey of her. His gaze lingered over her red marriage dress with its scrolling needlework and golden thread. Her attending lady had wept as she dressed her in the clothing ordered by her father Aetherwulf, Earldorman of Winchester. These were not garments Aetherlin would have chosen,