“I’ll live the rest of my life wondering what it would have been like….”
Her arm swept toward the shaded, grassy lawn. “I almost wish I hadn’t stopped you,” she whispered.
“Would you stop me now?” So softly she could barely hear the words, he whispered temptation in her ear. Leaning forward, ignoring the hand she thrust against his chest, he bent to her, his breath warm against her face.
She shivered, beguiled by the thought of his hands against her skin, lured by the dark splendor of his scarred face, enticed by the image of their coming together. And then she thought of the emptiness she would face, once she’d known the joy of loving Shay, only to have him walk away. It stretched before her, and she closed her eyes against the pain.
“Could you do that? Take everything I’ve offered you—and then walk away from me?”
Praise for Carolyn Davidson’s recent works
The Midwife
“…an earthy, emotional love story, peopled with unforgettable characters.”
—Affaire de Coeur
The Tender Stranger
“Davidson wonderfully captures gentleness in the midst of heart-wrenching challenges, portraying the extraordinary possibilities that exist within ordinary marital love.”
—Publishers Weekly
The Wedding Promise
“…a tense, involving love story…a beautiful, old-fashioned romance with a charmingly sensuous touch.”
—Romantic Times Magazine
The Seduction of Shay Devereaux
Harlequin Historical #556
#555 ONE KNIGHT IN VENICE
Tori Phillips
#557 GALLANT WAIF
Anne Gracie
#558 NIGHT HAWK’S BRIDE
Jillian Hart
The Seduction of Shay Devereaux
Carolyn Davidson
Available from Harlequin Historicals and CAROLYN DAVIDSON
Gerrity’s Bride #298
Loving Katherine #325
The Forever Man #385
Runaway #416
The Wedding Promise #431
The Tender Stranger #456
The Midwife #475
*The Bachelor Tax #496
*Tanner Stakes His Claim #513
One Christmas Wish #531
*“Wish Upon A Star”
Maggie’s Beau #543
The Seduction of Shay Devereaux #556
*Edgewood, Texas
Because you read whatever I hand you,
and give me your unbiased opinion… Because you clean up my messes when I’m running behind schedule… Because you cook for my family when I invite you for dinner… Because we share a love of books and discuss them by the hour… Because you call me “friend”… This book is dedicated to you, Betty Barrs
And to the man who tells me
he loves me every single day… I love you, too, Mr. Ed
Contents
Prologue
The hand reached for him. Cold, skeletal fingers wrapped around his wrist with unbelievable strength. Shrinking from the grasp, Shay groaned aloud, and the sound of his own voice wakened him. He sat upright on the narrow bed, his eyes searching the darkness, his breathing harsh and rapid.
A dream…another nightmare. The second this week. And yet, more than a dream, for the memories evoked by that groping hand were all too valid. All too painfully real.
Rolling from his bed, he stalked to the open window, looking out upon the thick greenery hedging his hideaway. Moss hung from oak trees, silver in the moonlight, and the grass held glistening drops of moisture, where dew lay heavy on each blade. It must be nearly dawn, he decided, resting one hand on the wide window frame.
He watched as an owl spread wide wings, swooping soundlessly across the span of sky between barn and trees. Dangling prey hung from sharp talons, and Shay felt a strange affinity for the hapless creature. His low chuckle was without amusement, holding instead dark shreds of bitter remembrance. He knew only too well the feeling of being captured, of the torment endured as soul and body were torn asunder, until all that remained was a shell of manhood, its essence swept up in hours and days of misery. He closed his eyes and saw another glimpse of that place called Elmira.
Another name for Hell.
Men with little to live for had been freed at the end of the conflict. He counted himself among that number. Some, with wives and children awaiting their return, had been buried beneath the northern soil. One of them, Carl Pennington, had been his friend, his commanding officer. During the time they served together, they’d discovered their families lived less than a hundred miles apart. Taken prisoners during the same battle, Shay had survived. Carl had not lived to be released.
He’d