An Outrageous Proposal. Maureen Child

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       Having a lover like Sean was really a slippery slope.

      Georgia wasn’t interested in trusting another man. Giving her heart over to him. Giving him the chance to crush her again. Sure, Sean was nothing like her ex, but he was still male.

      “What do you say, Georgia?” he asked, reaching down to take her hands in his and give them a squeeze. “Will you pretend marry me?”

      She couldn’t think. Not with him holding on to her. Not with his eyes staring into hers. Not with the heat of him reaching for her, promising even more heat if she let him get any closer. And if she did that, she would agree to anything, because the man could have her half out of her mind in seconds, she well knew.

      With him holding on to her, the beat of his heart beneath her ear, Georgia was tempted to do all sorts of things, so she looked away from him, out the window to the rain-drenched evening. Lamps lining the drive shone like diamonds in the gray. But the darkness and the incessant rain couldn’t disguise the beauty that was Ireland.

      Just as, she thought, looking up at Sean, a lie couldn’t hide what was already between the two of them. She didn’t know where it was going, but she had a feeling the ride was going to be much bumpier than she had planned.

      Dear Reader,

      As most of you know, I love Ireland. The gorgeous countryside, the incredible views everywhere you look and especially the warm generosity of the Irish people.

      The village of Dunley, where this story is set, is fictional, but I used elements of the many different villages I’ve stayed in to create the town itself and its citizens.

      In the first book of my Irish duet, Up Close and Personal, you met Ronan Connolly and Laura Page, the woman who knocked his feet out from under him.

      In An Outrageous Proposal you’ll find the story of Ronan’s cousin Sean Connolly and Georgia Page, Laura’s sister.

      These two were so much fun to write about. Sean’s life is just as he wants it, and to make sure nothing changes he’s willing to do whatever he has to. Georgia, on the other hand, is desperate to make changes in her life.

      When these two collide, sparks fly and no one’s life will ever be the same.

      You’ll also find a sprinkling of Gaelic in this book—a good friend of mine provided the translations. But if I’ve made mistakes, they’re mine alone.

      Thank you all so much for your continued support and the wonderful letters you write. I’m delighted to be able to spend my days writing stories for Mills & Boon^® Desire™, and it’s a pleasure for me to hear that you enjoy reading them!

      You can visit me on Facebook, or stop in at my website, www.maureenchild.com.

      Happy reading!

       Maureen

      About the Author

      MAUREEN CHILD is a California native who loves to travel. Every chance they get, she and her husband are taking off on another research trip. An author of more than sixty books, Maureen loves a happy ending and still swears that she has the best job in the world. She lives in Southern California with her husband, two children and a golden retriever with delusions of grandeur. Visit Maureen’s website, www.maureenchild.com.

      An Outrageous Proposal

      Maureen Child

      

www.millsandboon.co.uk

      For two wonderful writers

      who are fabulous friends,

      Kate Carlisle and Jennifer Lyon.

      Thank you both for always being there.

      One

      “For the love of all that’s holy, don’t push!” Sean Connolly kept one wary eye on the rearview mirror and the other on the curving road stretching out in front of him. Why the hell was he the designated driver to the hospital?

      “Just mind the road and drive, Sean,” his cousin Ronan complained from the backseat. He had one arm around his hugely pregnant wife, drawing her toward him despite the seat belts.

      “He’s right,” Georgia Page said from the passenger seat. “Just drive, Sean.” She half turned to look into the back. “Hang on, Laura,” she told her sister. “We’ll be there soon.”

      “You can all relax, you know,” Laura countered. “I’m not giving birth in the car.”

      “Please, God,” Sean muttered and gave the car more gas.

      Never before in his life had he had reason to curse the narrow, winding roads of his native Ireland. But tonight, all he wanted was about thirty kilometers of smooth highway to get them all to the hospital in Westport.

      “You’re not helping,” Georgia muttered with a quick look at him.

      “I’m driving,” he told her and chanced another look into the rearview mirror just in time to see Laura’s features twist in pain.

      She moaned, and Sean gritted his teeth. The normal sense of panic a man felt around a woman in labor was heightened by the fact that his cousin was half excited and half mad with worry for the wife he doted on. A part of Sean envied Ronan even while the larger part of him was standing back and muttering, Aye, Ronan, better you than me.

      Funny how complicated a man’s life could get when he wasn’t even paying attention to it. A year or so ago, he and his cousin Ronan were happily single, each of them with an eye toward remaining that way. Now, Ronan was married, about to be a father, and Sean was as involved in the coming birth of the next generation of Connollys as he could be. He and Ronan lived only minutes apart, and the two of them had grown up more brothers than cousins.

      “Can’t you go any faster?” Georgia whispered, leaning in toward him.

      Then there was Laura’s sister. Georgia was a smart, slightly cynical, beautiful woman who engaged Sean’s brain even while she attracted him on a much more basic level. So far, he’d kept his distance, though. Getting involved with Georgia Page would only complicate things. What with her sister married to his cousin, and Ronan suddenly becoming insanely protective about the women he claimed were in “his charge.”

      Damned old-fashioned for a man who had spent most of his adult years mowing through legions of adoring females.

      Still, Sean was glad to have Georgia along. For the sanity she provided, if nothing else. Georgia and Sean would at least have each other to turn to during all of this, and he was grateful for it.

      Sean gave her a quick glance and kept his voice low. “I go much faster on these roads at night, we’ll all need a room in hospital.”

      “Right.” Georgia’s gaze fixed on the road ahead, and she leaned forward as if trying to make the car speed up through sheer force of will.

      Well, Sean told himself, if anyone could pull that off, it would be Georgia Page. In the light from the dashboard, her dark blue eyes looked fathomless and her honey-colored hair looked more red than blond.

      He’d first met her at Ronan and Laura’s wedding a year or so ago, but with her many trips to Ireland to visit her sister, he’d come to know Georgia and he liked her. He liked her quick wit, her sarcasm and her sense of family loyalty—which he shared.

      All around them, the darkness was complete, the headlights of his car illuminating the narrow track winding out in front of them. This far from the city, it was mainly farmland stretching out behind the high, thick hedges that lined the road. The occasional lighted window in a farmhouse