Can a water nymph save her true love from the Titanic or are they both doomed forever?
Water nymph Madeleine has spent a lifetime searching for the human she can marry to become mortal. Finally, she finds true love with Joe Marlowe, but the romance is put on hold when he signs up as crew for the Titanic.
Joe never expects to see Maddy on board the ship but she's a welcome sight during the voyage. He knows she's keeping a secret from him but it doesn't diminish his love for her. They have the rest of their lives to discover each other. After an unforgettable night together in the Titanic's indoor pool he knows he's found the woman he wants to marry.
As the liner sails towards its fate, can Madeleine save Joe, and find her happy ever after?
Publisher's Note: This book was previously released by another publisher. It has been revised and re-edited for release with Totally Bound.
General Release Date: 18th April 2014
April 1912
“I’ve signed on for Titanic.”
The excitement in Joe Marlowe’s brown eyes sparkled as bright as the stars shining down on the Southampton docks.
“You never have!”
Days earlier, Madeleine had witnessed the passenger liner slip into its White Star berth in the dead of night, its sheer size dwarfing her in the water below. She never would have guessed Joe would be part of the circus surrounding it. A selfish sadness rained down on her at the thought the great ship would now carry away the love she had spent a lifetime searching for.
“I might not even sail. I’m only part of the standby crew,” Joe said, clutching her hand.
Madeleine chastised herself for making her sorrow so apparent that he already regretted the momentous opportunity. “For your family’s sake, I hope you do, Joe.”
She reached a reassuring hand up to stroke his face, brushing through the black locks curling softly over his ears and luxuriating in the feel of his skin beneath her fingertips. She loved to touch him. In the unending cold of her world, his warmth was a heartening reprieve.
“With Dad out on strike with the rest of the miners, we need every penny at home.” Joe sighed as his thoughts diverted from the glamour of Titanic to the reality of his home life.
Madeleine forced down the anticipated loneliness already swelling in her chest at the prospect of his departure, and concentrated on the practicalities. “How long will you be gone?”
“A few weeks, if I sail. Unless I meet a rich heiress, of course, in which case I may never come back.” Joe teased her with a nudge and a wink.
Madeleine let him coerce her into a smile.
What difference will a matter of days make? After all, she had endured a long past without him.
“Don’t fret. You’re the only one for me, my love.”
He dropped a kiss on the back of her hand. The mere touch of his lips sent a tingle of illicit sensation along her suddenly sensitive skin.
“When I return, I want us to get serious. I would like to meet your parents and discuss our future, Madeleine.”
Joe’s earnest proposal reached into the place where Madeleine’s soul should have been and caught her unawares. His youthful naivety was a stark contrast to the cunning of the men who’d used and abused her over the years. In the quest for her ‘happily-ever-after,’ she had succumbed to too many false promises to find, in the end, her body was all they wanted. Her beauty was both a blessing and a curse.
With hair like spun gold, eyes the colour of the sea and a figure most men fantasised about, Madeleine knew she could easily pass for someone younger than Joe’s twenty-six years. No one would ever imagine her to be eons older, burdened with immortality until she married a human and bore a child. Caring, kind and yet to lay a hand on her, Joe Marlowe was the sole human she wanted to break the curse.
“We will discuss that when the time comes,” she said, knowing a difficult conversation lay ahead.
“Madeleine, we’ve been seeing each other for a while now.”
Joe snatched the flat cap from his head, unleashing a mop of unruly hair, and stuck it into his pocket. He tapped his finger on his lips the way he always did when he had something on his mind. She loved that he was such an open book to her.
Was this it? Madeleine rejoiced, expecting him to finally gather her into his embrace.
“So…you can tell me what it is you’re hiding from me.”
His words knocked the romantic daydreams clean out of her.
“I…er…I don’t know what you mean.”
She did not wish to divulge her secret now, when they were about to part. Better they discussed the matter when a commitment was imminent.
Jorja Lovett is a British author with both Irish and Scottish roots, which makes for a very dry sense of humour. Writing since she was old enough to wield a pen, it wasn't until she joined her crit group, UCW, that she pursued her passion seriously.
Now, with Joe Manganiello as her permanent muse, if she can leave the pause button on her Magic Mike dvd long enough, she hopes to spend the rest of her days writing steamy romances.
Reviewed by Doris
Loved this story. Such a unique premise, that will have you on the edge of your seat, as things unfold, and you can't possibly see how this will all work out. With Jorja's inimitable style she weaves a...
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