Yesterday, my first pirate romance, Queen Takes Hook, was released! Huzzah!

If you’re a subscriber to my newsletter, then you’ve already seen the teaser for Captain Hook’s salacious new story. But if you haven’t, then allow me to provide you with that now. With no further ado, I present the first chapter of Queen Takes Hook.

Chapter One

The king is dead.

Celeste stared at the words written on a scrap of parchment. Her tears dripped upon it, smudging the ink until the words were no longer legible.

Her father was truly gone.

She swallowed a sob lodged in her throat as memories rose in a thick mist and wrapped around her. Her father teaching her how to wield a blade, how to ride a horse. His instruction for her tutor to include politics and philosophy, forgoing the finer points of embroidery and etiquette. Late nights playing chess in his study. Windy rides on the beach at sunrise. Each recollection burned, branding her mind, leaving her aching and exhausted.

She missed him.

There had been no better man. No better king.

Wiping away the tears, Celeste pushed aside the devastating note from her uncle. Nothing felt real. Her older sister, Caroline, had locked herself in her chamber after receiving the news three days ago, leaving Celeste to deal with the announcement alone.

She should have waited until her uncle returned, but the kingdom deserved to know the truth—their king had been slain by pirates.

King Leopold, accompanied by Peter, his brother and trusted adviser, had taken to the seas a month earlier to broker a trade deal with the northern kingdoms. He assured his daughters he would return before summer’s end with bountiful riches and a stronger kingdom.

Celeste stared out the window, watching the sun dip below the water’s horizon, hues of gold and blue dancing in the brilliant fire of the setting sun. Her gaze drifted across the waves, and she noted the dark ships asleep in the harbor below.

The castle sat high upon a hill overlooking the port and village. The sharp crags of the rocks and a steep slope protected the building from pillaging pirates and cannon fire. Scattered rock formations jutting from beneath the waters gave any approaching ships easy cover, but no one could climb the sheer cliff side, although many had died in the attempt.

In her twenty-one years, she’d never seen someone daft enough to try.

The castle was well fortified and supplied through secret tunnels in the mountain. Few knew the intricate passageways weaving beneath the castle. Her father had told her stories about the detailed craftsmanship of their forefathers, who had built the port before the kingdom of Nevarro even existed. The defenses of the castle had protected them from pirates for centuries.

The king should have never left the safety of his home.

A soft knock at the door stirred Celeste from mourning.

Her maid, Diana, appeared and curtseyed. “Your uncle has returned, my lady. He wishes to speak with you in your father’s study.”

Celeste slowly rose, smoothing the folds of her damask skirt. “Has he summoned my sister as well?”

“Aye, my lady. ’Tis the first time I’ve seen her emerge from her chamber since the messenger arrived.”

“Good.” Relief filled Celeste. Uncle Peter would be able to guide them about what steps to take next.

Caroline had always curried favor with Uncle Peter.

While their father had doted on his youngest daughter, Uncle Peter favored his eldest niece. After their mother died, Caroline and Celeste relied solely upon each other for many things—companionship the most important—but their temperaments clashed.

Taking a deep breath, Celeste studied her reflection in a mirror. She looked the part of a proper princess, complete with frilled gown and hair perfectly arranged in a delicate braid wrapping around her head like a crown. But inside, a storm raged. She straightened with perfect posture and exhaled, focusing her strength upon what must be done.

Outside her chamber, the corridors lay silent and empty.

She made her way through the familiar halls, following the stairs to her father’s study near the back of the castle. A few servants bowed as she passed, and she forced a polite smile, despite the tempest churning inside her.

The door to the study stood open, and a warm flickering light beckoned from within. Celeste entered, bracing herself for a deluge of memories contained within this room.

Her breath caught as a dark figure shifted behind the massive mahogany desk. For a fleeting moment, she thought it was him. Her father. Alive and well. But the thread of hope snapped as the figure lifted his head, revealing familiar dark hair and a neatly trimmed mustache.

“Uncle Peter.” Celeste smiled, hating how the forced action hurt her cheeks. “I am relieved you have returned.”

“My dear Celeste.” He rounded the desk and opened his arms.

She stiffened at his overpowering scent of patchouli as he embraced her.

When they broke apart, his gaze scoured the room behind her. “Where is your sister?”

“I—”

“Uncle Peter, I’m so glad you have returned.” Caroline burst through the door and practically launched herself into his arms.

Celeste stepped to the side, thankful for a reprieve from her uncle’s overwhelming patchouli cologne.

Uncle Peter and Caroline shared her father’s dark features—black hair and soft brown eyes. Celeste, however, favored her mother, with golden hair and eyes the color of the sea at sunrise. Celeste and Caroline were as different as night and day.

“Come, now.” Uncle Peter led Caroline to a chair by the fire. “Sit.”

Celeste commandeered her father’s chair, savoring the worn fabric beneath her fingertips, hoping it would imbue her with his presence.

Uncle Peter stepped back, looking between the sisters. “In this difficult time, it’s important to remember our strength as a family.”

Caroline’s smile matched Celeste’s.

“My brother was a generous and noble man, a fine king…” He paused and covered his mouth in a moment of thought. “Nevarro has suffered a devastating loss at the hands of brutal pirates.”

The tempest swirled more strongly inside her, but Celeste folded her hands in her lap and bit her tongue.

“His dying wish was that I ensure his line continues and that his legacy endures.” He inclined his head toward Caroline. “According to the laws and customs of our land, his firstborn child will inherit the title. Caroline, it is your duty to take your place as reigning monarch of Nevarro.”

Celeste took her sister’s hand and squeezed it. Caroline’s dark eyes met hers, uncertainty hidden in their depths.

“You will make a fine queen, Caro,” Celeste said with a comforting grin.

Caroline turned to their uncle. “How will I—”

“I shall remain at your side for as long as you need,” he assured her, dropping to his knee. “You have nothing to fear.”

“Thank you, Uncle.” Caroline’s hesitation dissolved.

“I shall begin making the necessary arrangements.” Uncle Peter placed his hand upon Caroline and Celeste’s joined fingers. “As your only living relative, it is my sworn duty to protect you.”

“What of the pirates who murdered our father?” Celeste asked, unable to contain her rage any longer.

Uncle Peter sighed, dropped his hand, and rose to his full height. “The fiends had escaped by the time I came to Leopold’s aid. He tried to fight them…but I was too late.”

Celeste dropped her gaze to the red and gold threads woven through the carpet. Tears stung her eyes. She swiped at them and sniffed. She refused to mourn a moment longer.

“Tomorrow, we will lay the king to rest,” he said softly. “Then we will prepare to crown our new queen. The people of Nevarro must see strength, even in times of trial and despair.”

“Aye,” Caroline replied, rising to her feet.

Celeste nodded, unable to voice the words flowing through her mind like a river. She feared for the future of the kingdom without her father’s firm hand to guide it. Caroline would make a fine queen, of that Celeste was certain, but would she be able to make tough decisions? Caroline shied away from conflict and often acquiesced to keep the peace.

If she did the same with matters concerning the kingdom, it would fall to ruin.

Perhaps with Uncle Peter by her side, she would take his advice when faced with indecision.

Neither option boded well for the people of Nevarro because they showed weakness. There was naught Celeste could do. She was the second child of the king, not the heir.

“You both should get some rest.” Uncle Peter bowed before leading them to the door. “We shall speak more in the morning.”

“Goodnight, Uncle, Sister.” Celeste took her leave, unable to contain the agitation roiling through her. There was much to be done…and much left unsaid.

What had happened with the pirates? Why had they not harmed Uncle Peter? Perhaps she could ask for details without Caroline present. She did not wish to upset her sister with unpleasant information, but Celeste needed to know the truth to put her mind at ease.

Circling to the empty garden, Celeste inhaled deeply of the early evening air and blooming jasmine and roses. She leaned against a stone balustrade, admiring the view of the sea and the sky and the kingdom beyond the castle walls. Darkness spread across the sea like a star-speckled curtain.

She would wait until Caroline retired before seeking out Uncle Peter. Then she would have her answers…or at least, she could put her mind at ease and be able to sleep.

“Oi, where have you been?” A deep voice echoed from a thick tangle of roses in the arbor behind her.

She opened her mouth to respond, but another—familiar—voice interrupted.

“You must learn patience. There were things I needed to attend to.”

Uncle Peter? Celeste snapped her mouth shut and ducked behind a wall of jasmine. Deep in the shadows, she listened, her heart pounding in her ears.

“Take care of the two brats, then we can make our move for the throne.”

“All good things take time.” Uncle Peter seemed unperturbed by the other person’s impatience. “Have you done as instructed?”

“Aye. The princess will not live to see the sun rise.”

“Very good. Once Celeste is out of the way, there will be no one to challenge my authority.” He chuckled.

A shiver of dread snaked down Celeste’s spine. She closed her eyes, willed herself to be still. Should they catch her, she would be as good as dead.

“And the other one?”

“Leave Caroline to me.”

“As you wish, my lord.”

Anger flooded her as panic stole her breath. Her uncle wanted her dead. Treason. Why? She needed to warn Caroline. They needed to expose him for the traitorous bastard he was.

Dread gripped her heart with an iron fist.

What if it had not been pirates who killed her father?

She choked on a sob, muffling it beneath her hand.

“Did you hear that?”

The stranger’s question made the hair on her neck stand up.

Damn and blast, they would find her here and end it all. Curses.

Careful not to make any more noise to betray her, she ventured deeper into the garden, away from the conspirators, their voices disappearing in the distance.

When she reached the stone mausoleum in the mountainside, she slipped into the tomb and sealed the door behind her.

“Forgive me, Mother,” she whispered, pressing a hand to the small, carved stone beside her mother’s final resting place.

A mechanism clicked and whirred behind the stone, then revealed a narrow passage that disappeared into the mountain.

Once inside the tunnel, she closed the door and encased herself in stifling darkness. Feeling along the wall, she searched for the items her father had left here in case of emergency.

She managed to light a small lantern and hung it above a trunk against the wall. Within it, she found men’s clothing, a dagger, boots, rope, a bag of coins, and several other faded items.

Celeste stared at the contents and sighed. She could not return to the castle. There was no way to warn Caroline of their uncle’s duplicitous nature. All she could do was run and hide.

Or she could go to the village in disguise, find someone willing to aid her.

But no amount of coin would persuade someone to go against her uncle.

Damnation.

Unless…

Whispers abounded of a captain who sailed these waters. One whose heart was as black as sin and as ruthless as the sea itself, whose loyalty could be bought for a price.

Surely, she was not desperate enough to enlist the aid of a mercenary to save her kingdom?

But she could not expose this treason alone. Celeste needed help to protect her sister and the kingdom. Could she trust a pirate to keep a bargain?

There was no alternative.

After donning men’s garments, she ventured deeper into the cave, embarking on a dangerous mission to find the infamous Captain Hook.

---

The notorious Captain James Hook wants nothing more than to enjoy his ale and savor a few moments of peace away from his crew. After his recent failures, the allure of a pirate’s life sank beneath the deep blue waves along with the smoldering wreckage of the Jolly Roger. But he persists at the command of his father, who grants him one last chance to redeem himself as well as a new ship.

When a woman in disguise propositions him outside the tavern, he’s loathe to trust anyone…especially her. The Princess of Navarro, wanted for murder and kidnapping, is desperate and in dire need of a savior. The opportunity holds both the promise of riches and the peril of a merciless death. Only a madman would take the bargain she offers. But James Hook knows treasure when he sees it.

Princess Celeste is a rare gem indeed and not the weak, simpering royal he expects. She plays right into his desires, using them to her advantage. Hook discovers far too late, he’s merely a pawn in her game.