Last Chance Knit & Stitch (38 page)

This pattern makes a simple ribbed stocking cap with a circumference of 21 inches. As shown it’s a short hat, for a variation you can knit the cap an extra 3 inches in length and have a turned up edge.

M
ATERIALS

Yarn: Red Heart acrylic wool, worsted weight.

Needles: 16-inch size US8 circular needles; size US8 double-pointed needles

G
AUGE

16 sts x 24 rows = 4 inches in stockinet stitch on size US8 needles

A
BBREVIATIONS

K—knit the stitch

P—purl the stitch

K2tog—knit two stitches together

P
ATTERN

Ribbed pattern: *K1, P1* repeat from * to * to the end of the round.

I
NSTRUCTIONS

Cast on 84 stitches onto circular needles.

Join the round and place a marker.

Start knitting rounds using the ribbed pattern. Work even until the piece measures 6.5 inches. (For a longer hat, knit to your desired size.)

S
HAPING THE CROWN

You can start shaping the crown on the circular needles, but at some point the work will become too small for the circulars and you’ll need to switch to the double-pointed needles.

You should have 6 stitches remaining on the needles.

Cut your yarn, leaving a six inch tail. Using a tapestry needle thread the end of the yarn back through the loops of the remaining stitches and draw tight to close the top of the hat. Weave in the yarn ends.

Dear Reader,

When Mrs. Emma Curtis, the heroine of THE ROGUE’S PROPOSAL, came to see me, I’d just finished writing
The Duchess Hunt
, the story of the Duke of Trent and his new wife, Sarah, who’d crossed the deep chasm from maid to duchess, and I was feeling very satisfied in their happily ever after.

Mrs. Curtis, however, had no interest in romance.

“I need you to write my story,” she told me. “It’s urgent.”

I encouraged her to sit down and tell me more.

“I’m on a mission of vengeance,” she began. “You see, I need to find my husband’s murderer—”

I lifted my hand right away to stop her. “Mrs. Curtis, I don’t think this is going to work out. You see, I don’t write thrillers or mysteries. I am a romance writer.”

“I know, but I think you can help me. I really do.”

“How’s that?”

“You’ve met the Duke of Trent, haven’t you? And his brother, Lord Lukas?” She leaned forward, dark eyes serious and intent. “You see, I’m searching for the same man they are.”

My brows rose. “Really? You’re looking for Roger Morton?”

“Yes! Roger Morton is the man who murdered my husband. Please—Lord Lukas is here in Bristol. If you could only arrange an introduction … I know his lordship could help me to find him.”

She was right—I did know Lord Lukas. In fact…

I looked over the dark-haired woman sitting in front of me. Mrs. Curtis was a young, beautiful widow. She seemed intelligent and focused.

My mind started working furiously.

Mrs. Curtis and Lord Luke? Could it work?

Maybe …

Luke would require a
lot
of effort. He was a rake of the first order, brash, undisciplined, prone to all manner of excess. But something told me that maybe, just maybe, Mrs. Curtis would be a good influence on him … If I could join them on the mission to find Roger Morton, it just might work out.

(I am a
romance
writer, after all.)

“Are you
sure
you want to meet Lord Lukas?” I asked her. “Have you heard the rumors about him?”

Her lips firmed. “I have heard he is a rake.” Her eyes met mine, steady and serious. “I can manage rakes.”

There was a steel behind her voice. A steel I approved of.

Yes
. This could work.

My lips curved into a smile. “All right, Mrs. Curtis. I might be able to manage an introduction …”

And that was how I arranged the first meeting between Emma Curtis and Lord Lukas Hawkins, the second brother of the House of Trent. Their relationship proved to be a rocky one—I wasn’t joking when I said Luke was a rake, and in fact, “rake” might be too mild a term. But Emma proved to be a worthy adversary for him, and they ended up traveling a dangerous and emotional but
ultimately sweetly satisfying path in THE ROGUE’S PROPOSAL.

Come visit me at my website, www.jenniferhaymore.com, where you can share your thoughts about my books, sign up for some fun freebies and contests, and read more about THE ROGUE’S PROPOSAL and the House of Trent Series. I’d also love to see you on Twitter (@ jenniferhaymore) or on Facebook (www.facebook.com/jenniferhaymore-author).

Sincerely,

Dear Reader,

My mother was a prodigious knitter. If she was watching TV or traveling in the car or just relaxing, she would always have a pair of knitting needles in her hand. So, of course, she needed a steady supply of yarn.

We lived in a medium-sized town on Long Island. It had a downtown area not too far from the train station, and tucked in between an interior design place and a quick lunch stand was a yarn shop.

I vividly remember that wonderful place. Floor-to-ceiling shelves occupied the wall space. The cubbies were filled with yarn of amazing hues and cardboard boxes of incredibly beautiful buttons. The place had a few cozy chairs and a table strewn with knitting magazines.

Mom visited that yarn store a lot. She would take her knitting with her sometimes, especially if she was having trouble with a pattern. There was a woman there—I don’t remember her name—but I do remember the half-moon glasses that rode her neck on a chain. She was a yarn whiz, and Mom consulted her often. Women gathered there to knit and talk. And little girls tagged along and learned how to knit on big, plastic needles.

I went back in my mind to that old yarn store when I created the Knit & Stitch, and I have to say that writing about it was almost like spending a little time with Mom, even though she’s no longer with us. There is something truly wonderful about a circle of women sharing stories while making garments out of luxurious yarn.

I remember some of the yarn Mom bought at that yarn store, too, especially the brown and baby blue tweed alpaca that became a cable knit cardigan. I wore that sweater all through high school until the elbows became threadbare. Wearing it was like being wrapped up in Mom’s arms.

There is nothing like the love a knitter puts into a garment. And writing about women who knit proved to be equally joyful for me. I hope you enjoy spending some time with the girls at the Knit & Stitch. They are a great bunch of warm-hearted knitters.

Dear Reader,

So here we are. Back in Trouble, Wyoming, catching up with those crazy McDermotts. In case you didn’t know, these men have a way of sending the ladies of Trouble all into a tizzy by just existing. At the same time there was a collective breaking of hearts when the two older McDermotts, Noah and Chase, surreptitiously removed themselves from the dating scene by getting married.

But what about the other McDermott brother, you ask? Brody is special in many ways, but no less harrowing on those predictable female hormones. And, even though Brody has sworn off dating for good, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have it coming. The love bug, I mean. And he gets bitten, big time. Sorry, ladies. But this dark-haired heartbreaker with the piercing gray eyes is about to fall hard.

Happy Reading!