His Make-Believe Bride (Rakes & Rebels: The St. Briac Family Book 1)

A pretend marriage ignites a passion neither expected—and a love neither can deny.Justin St. Briac has never planned to marry. A seductive French pirate with a taste for danger, he values freedom far too much. But when his dying mother begs him to take a bride, Justin agrees to a ruse that will comfort her final days… then free him to return to the life he prefers.Mouette Raveneau once moved effortlessly through London society—until her husband’s crimes destroyed her reputation. Now living quietly in Cornwall with her two sons, she reluctantly accepts Justin’s proposal to pose as his wife. It is only a temporary arrangement… until desire turns pretense into something dangerously real.As stolen glances grow heated and the boundaries of their arrangement blur, Justin discovers a tenderness he never meant to feel, and Mouette finds herself longing for a future she no longer believed possible. Yet risking their hearts may be the most perilous gamble either has ever faced.Can a hardened rogue and a wounded widow dare to claim the love that was never meant to be real… or will fear keep them locked behind the walls they’ve built?“One of the best historical romances of the year! Cynthia Wright knocks it out of the park with HIS MAKE-BELIEVE BRIDE.” – Elizabeth Clayton, Amazon Reader