His Make-Believe Bride

By Martha Hix

She’s a bride with a secret as big as Texas… 
 
Widowed and alone, Linnea Powell agrees to swap places with a reluctant mail-order bride. Arriving in Lubbock, Texas, armed only with her future husband’s letters promising a prosperous life, Linnea feels hopeful—until the stagecoach leaves her standing before a handsome stranger who has more ambition than he does prospects. Still, Linnea accepts Sam Kincaid’s proposal, knowing the moment he seals their vows with a hungry kiss, she’ll never be able to keep her past a secret. For her appealing new husband is all too eager to share the marriage bed….
 
Sam knows there’s something mysterious about his new bride. But that only adds to Linnea’s allure. And when he learns his wife is really a vulnerable widow, he’s even more determined to give her the life and family she dreams of. Sam’s not afraid of hard work, especially when the prize is Linnea’s love. What the rugged rancher doesn’t know is that Linnea has an even bigger secret, one that could destroy his reputation—and shatter his heart….
 
Praise for Martha Hix

“A romantic mixture of sensitivity, humor and spice, Martha Hix's delicious love story offers a refreshingly atypical heroine.” —RT Book Reviews, 4 Stars, on Terrific Tom

“Filled with humor...and a wealth of love.  Enjoy!” —RT Book Reviews on Magic and the Texan

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Oct 25, 2016
• ISBN: 9781601839374

Martha Hix

Martha Hix -- author of 15 romance novels, one medieval novella, and a section of the Lair of the Wolf continuing story at Romance Communications that will soon be published by Leisure Books -- finds herself amazed that life can be this grand. Recently one of the six writer-celebrity emcees in the Mr. Romance Cover Model Pageant, sponsored by ROMANTIC TIMES Magazine aboard Carnival Cruise Line's m/s Celebration, as well as being the organizer of the RT Spice Girls, Martha enjoys a splendid personal life along with an amazing career...for, she says, "a fat girl." Martha's newest book addresses the issue of being fat and being satisfied with it. Terrific Tom, a Silhouette Special Edition available in mid June of this year, has received fantastic support for looking the issue of weight in the eye and saying, "So what?" Her books have been translated into an assortment of foreign languages, some of them very foreign--like Japanese, Mandarin, Greek, and Turkish. Her historicals, Destiny's Magic and Mail Order Man, were finalists in the HOLT Medallion competition, an award for literary excellence determined by readers across the nation. "The best 'literary excellence,'" Martha says, "comes from the wonderful letters I receive from readers." A Texas native and resident whose family has been in the Lone Star State since the 1840s, Martha says with her trademark grin, "I enjoy writing. I get to be in charge." She has a couple of daughters, a couple of grandkids, and a couple of pets, but only one husband. She says, "He's great. I don't know how he puts up with me, not to mention my moods and antics. But I'm glad he does." If Martha could have three wishes on a magic lamp? "Great health for my family. Great health for myself. And that chocolate eclairs weren't fattening. But since they are, so what?" On a trip to the Copper Canyon in Mexico, Martha and her traveling companion, Evelyn Rogers, put their Spanish to the test, asking everyone, "What famous person, living or dead, would you most like to meet?" We asked Martha the same question, and she replied, "Golda Mier. She was an American woman of simple origins, not beautiful, yet she rose to lead Israel. I'd love to ask what fired her soul, what made her happy and sad. Why Israel was important to her." Recently Martha became pals with multi-published author and cover model, the gorgeous and talented SUSAN PAUL. Martha and Susan have formed the Podners writing team to explore various forms of fiction.