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Informationen zum Autor Jude Deveraux is the author of forty New York Times bestsellers, including The Scent of Jasmine, Scarlet Nights, Days of Gold, Lavender Morning, Return to Summerhouse, and Secrets. To date, there are more than sixty million copies of her books in print worldwide. She lives in North Carolina. To learn more, visitwww.judedeveraux.com. Klappentext Bestselling author Jude Deveraux spins a rollicking story of a mismatched couple who unearth a sparkling, irresistible passion across the rugged West! Captain Ring Montgomery was handsome, a skilled rider, a crack shot, popular with the men and their ladies. That was reason enough for a jealous, surly colonel to saddle Montgomery with a most peculiar assignment: to escort an opera singer into the Colorado gold fields. Ring’s plan was to scare the little lady enough so that she’d hightail it for home. After all, a Civil War was brewing! But LaReina, The Singing Duchess—as Maddie was called—didn’t scare easily. And she didn’t intend to explain her reasons for coming West to any high and mighty soldier. Captain Montgomery might be smart enough to figure out that she was no European duchess, and gentleman enough not to take advantage of her. But he’d have to go on thinking she had some insane desire to sing opera to a bunch of ragtag miners—for she didn’t dare trust him with the truth… "Chapter 1" Colonel Harrison read the letter a second time, then leaned back in his chair and smiled. The answer to a prayer, he thought. That was the only way to describe the letter: the answer to a prayer. Just to make sure it did indeed say what he thought it did, he looked at the letter again. General Yovington had issued orders from Washington, D.C., that Lieutenant L. K. Surrey was to leave the post of Company J, Second Dragoons, for a special assignment. But since Lieutenant Surrey had died just last week, Colonel Harrison would have to choose someone to take the assignment in his place. Colonel Harrison's smile grew broader. He was choosing Captain C. H. Montgomery to take Lieutenant Surrey's place. The lieutenant, now replaced by Captain Montgomery, was "requested" to escort a foreign opera singer into the gold fields of the Colorado Territory. He was to remain with her and her small band of musicians and servants as long as the lady needed him. He was to protect her from any dangers she would possibly encounter on her journey and to do what he could to make her travels more comfortable. Colonel Harrison put the letter down, handling it as though it were a precious relic, and smiled so broadly his face nearly cracked. Lady's maid, he thought. The high and mighty Captain: Montgomery was being ordered to be nothing more than a lady's maid. But, more important, Captain Montgomery was being ordered away from Fort Breck. Colonel Harrison took a few deep, cleansing breaths and thought about having his own fort to command, and about not having to deal with the perfection, the cool knowledge of Captain Montgomery. No longer would the men look to their captain for confirmation of every order, for permission to do: what their colonel asked of them. Colonel Harrison thought back to when he first came to Fort Breck a year ago. His predecessor, Colonel Collins, had been a drunken, lazy old fool. Collins's only concern had been surviving until he could retire, get out of Indian country and go back to Virginia, where people lived in a civilized manner. He was content to turn over all responsibility to his second-in-command, Captain Montgomery. And why not? Montgomery's record had to be seen to be believed. He'd been in the army since he was eighteen, and in the ensuing eight years he'd worked himself up through the ranks. He'd started as a private, and, after extraordinary heroism on the field of battle, he'd been made an officer. He'd gone from second lieutenant to captain in a mere three years, and at the rate he was going he'd ou...
