Cherokee Embrace — Teresa Howard

Lacy Dawn Hampton sighed with exasperation as she fanned herself in the gazebo at Paradise Plantation. How sheltered and boring her life was. She longed for passion and excitement, but her father and three older brothers protected her from everything. Then she heard a splash and her green eyes widened as a towering Indian emerged from the lake and walked straight toward her. Modesty fled as Lacy crossed the lawn to meet the handsome half breed. She felt the heat of his impassioned flesh, then his first touch, finally a kiss that made her tremble with desire. Tomorrow she'd be a proper southern belle once more, but today she must savor a fiery forbidden rapture in the arms of a savage lover.

Chase Tarleton had traveled the Trail of Tears when his Indian family was driven from their native Georgia. Now, back for a reunion with his white grandparents, Chase found himself torn between two worlds, the Cherokee camp he'd left behind and the vast plantation, Towering Pines, that would someday be his. Nearing his destination, Chase paused for a refreshing swim and spied a vision in peach colored satin. The luscious golden haired belle was staring straight at him. Instinct overrode caution as Chase clasped the delicate maiden in his strong arms, crushing her velvety softness against his bronze chest. He knew he must taste those teasing crimson lips, span that tiny waist with his muscular hands, and caress every satiny inch of her tempting, creamy body.