Bøker av C K MacKenzie

She escaped a doomed betrothal only to find herself unwittingly married to her handsome protector.Layla Braithwaite didn't belong anywhere. Born to a British merchant and an Egyptian widow, she lived most her life in the shadows, hidden away. When her mother dies, she finally escapes the family that only saw her as their servant. Little did she know that searching for a way out of Damietta, and an unwanted marriage, would lead her straight into the arms of a British sailor.Philip Conrad sailed for Damietta to reestablish trade between England and Egypt. Sure, he'd been seeking adventure, but he hadn't expected a woman to sneak aboard his ship-nor did he expect the pull of attraction. Never one to turn his back on a person in need, he agrees to help her escape the country. But when the man who's intent on marrying her discovers them together, Philip does the only thing possible.He marries her himself.It was not how he intended his stay in Egypt to begin. Layla hadn't wanted marriage at all, but she isn't foolish enough to object. When her father's old business partners reveal their suspicions that her parents were murdered, Layla is determined to find those responsible. The problem? She has no idea how. Luckily, her new husband agrees to walk into this new danger with her.From a marriage of convenience with a runaway bride to partners in crime.With each secret they uncover about her family, Layla and Philip grow closer. But will it be enough to last a lifetime? Or will the weight of those secrets bury their marriage before it truly begins?

Kaya escaped famine but not her arranged marriage.Trained to fight for her future, Kaya's dreams focused on traveling beyond the four walls that were both her refuge and prison. However, when her overprotective grandfather arranges her marriage to an English soldier, Kaya refuses, despite the danger threatening her life. Marriage had never been her plan. Suddenly all her dreams of exploring the world she's only read about dissipate, as fleeing as the rains that plunged Cairo into famine.Sergeant Paul Hartley isn't a saint. When he receives a letter offering marriage and atonement for his many sins, he flees Bombay, the army, and a sometimes criminal life. In Cairo he finds famine and a reluctant bride. The beautiful, proud Kaya stirs more than his greed for the promised dowry of jewels that assure him a retirement in the south of France.A trek through the Sahara has them seeking refuge from a sandstorm. The intimacy of the cave leads to confessions and passion flaring between them. Kaya doesn't trust him even as he fights beside her for survival against slavers and secrets from their past. Trust is only the beginning as passions ignite into shared intimacies as they both question an uncertain future.