Bøger af Sandra Sookoo

When two people are too shy to give romance a chance, a little ducal interference is needed. It's Christmastide, and Griffin Ivy, Earl of Hollingsworth, has been summoned by his ducal parents to Ivy Castle, a monstrosity of an estate deep in the heart of Warwickshire County. He's terrified of taking the title of duke soon, and instead of mingling with society, he'd rather bury himself in books or walk the acreage, for then anxiety can't touch him... until he meets his father's nurse, Nora. When Miss Nora Ridley is told to draw the earl out of his shell during the holiday season so he'll feel more comfortable at social events, she balks at the odd request. Not only would it mean she'd need to circulate within the duke's family in public, but the order also comes with a borrowed wardrobe making her into someone she isn't... but then she meets Griffin and her perspective changes. They're both ill-at-ease within company, but Ivy Castle is big enough to provide a respite from responsibilities and an opportunity for quiet talking. As they're pushed into traditional holiday activities and entertainments, an unlikely and surprising romance blooms between them. The magic of Christmastide helps to usher in love, but a little white lie and societal differences threaten to tear the couple apart... unless they both take a leap of faith together.

When all else fails, sometimes it's up to fate to arrange a romance. It's Boxing Day as well as his ducal parents' wedding anniversary, and Graham Ivy-Lord Bonham-is stuck at a Christmastide house party. He hasn't been bothered with settling down or finding a bride, for he's had too much fun playing the rogue in London, but when a mysterious, pretty, stranger arrives at Ivy Castle during a celebration ball, he might just change his mind. Miss Arabella Holly is in a spot of bother. Her travelling coach broke a wheel on the muddy roads, and in desperate need of assistance, she walks a few miles until she reaches the Duke of Whittington's doorstep. Surely the occupants of the castle will assist in her quest to flee the clutches of a horrible man who wishes to claim her hand in marriage thanks to her father losing everything at the gaming tables. A series of events that smack of intrigue or a bit of theatric fiction worthy of Drury Lane catches Graham and Arabella up in its vortex. Staying two steps ahead of the lecherous lord who wants to take her away provides thrills but falling tip over tail into love at first sight is much more exciting. As the Holly and Ivy affair comes to a head, Graham offers the ultimate way to fix the problem, much to the shock and delight of his whole family.

Life isn't always perfect, but the key to living happily is enjoying what you have. Since the peril and danger stalking them has passed, the Hawkins family is at their country estate in Kent to rest. Emmaline, the Countess of Archewyne, is both excited and melancholy when she stumbles upon a note written by her father-the Earl of St. Ives-before he was murdered that outlines a treasure hunt just like he'd done for her when she was a child. Perhaps she can finally tell him goodbye. Miles Lawrence Hawkins, the fifth Earl of Archewyne, has much on his mind now that his friend and mentor has died, leaving the responsibilities of the king's agents to him. First and foremost, he wants to make certain his growing family is still intact after the horrors they'd come through, but how to usher in healing when well-meaning friends and colleagues keep dropping by and shattering the peace? Not to mention the damned geese that won't leave him alone. As Emmaline and Miles follow the clues her father hid about the estate, they make plans for a holiday to Egypt, the country where their love affair first began. Throughout it all, St. Ives' written words bring them closer as a family. With their children and the ever-present geese gathered around, the treasure they seek is found, and serves to make them all delighted on a summer's evening.

Even if the world is falling to pieces, when the treasure of the heart is discovered, a fight is needed to keep it.King's agent, Bentley Courtenay-Lord Castlereagh-has been sent on his first solo mission to rescue a widow, who's been abandoned in the dense jungles of Venezuela. He intends to bring her back to England to answer questions regarding the poisoning death of a peer. Yet what awaits him in the on the Orinoco River has him wondering why the devil he ever signed up to work for the Crown.Widowed Cora, Lady Trammel, is on a quest to locate a deadly orchid and destroy every last bloom before the toxin she accidentally created can fall into the wrong hands. When she encounters a king's agent who fires her imagination, she declines his demand to return to London. The fate of the world is at stake, and she has to fix her mistake, for her discovery has the capacity to kill every human on Earth.In the course of the journey, desire flares between Bentley and the older, more experienced Cora, but she's not looking for love. While he loses his heart, evidence of the fabled city of El Dorado comes to light, and their mission takes a critical turn into dangerous adventure, so matters of love are shelved. Pursued by threats, time is running out to destroy the deadly toxin and protect the world's greatest treasure from men who mean both to use both for their own insidious gain.

Andrea Peterchef never thought her job would include a nine-year-old Piper and vomit. Then she meets Max, a workaholic stockbroker with a voice like melted chocolate and she vows to help her charge and him reconnect as a family. Maxwell Gildenthall is haunted by the 9/11 deaths of his girlfriend and his cousin-Piper's dad. Deadlines and data define his life-not baby dolls and dress-up. When Andrea cajoles him into playing the part of dad, the benefits of spending time with the plus-size au pair are a bonus, but he can't ditch the guilt. It'll take more than a spoonful of sugar and a dose of Christmas magic to mend the broken family. It'll take the power of love.

When a bridal contract is struck, either parental outrage will void the arrangement or the love of a child will sweeten the deal. Oliver Darrington-Viscount Tralsburg-wants nothing more than to hide out at the family property in Brighton until he can secure a sea-worthy ship and return to adventuring the world. However, being handed his former mistress' child isn't part of that plan. Neither is the sudden longing for his pretty Italian neighbor. Eloisa Hawthorne is in dire straits. Her older brother has gambled away her sister's hand to a horrible man. In order to save her sister's virtue and her future, Eloisa needs a fast fortune-or someone who can immediately cover the debt. When her handsome neighbor offers a temporary engagement contract, she accepts with alacrity. Too bad she fell in love with his dark-haired offspring. How scandalous! When the two attend his mother's London dinner party, Oliver wishes the union wasn't merely a lark. Eloisa fears for the adorable child's upbringing in heathen locales, but what can she do? The contract is only for a month, and love was never an option. Something must be done to throw over convention before the moment is lost and matters of the heart are sacrificed.

Shadows of the past can either haunt or heal.Ambrose Colin Heathermore, the fourteenth Marquess of Northampton wants to be left alone. Now that he's back in London and has put life as a celebrated spy behind him, he must take up the reins of his real life and attend to his title. Which he will after a quick tryst with an experienced lightskirt at a ball. If it will help him forget the woman he first loved in France, all the better.Lady Mary Clarke, a daughter of the Duke of Tarkington, is tired of proper ton life. She's spent more time as a widow than she has as a wife, so she's ready for excitement and adventure. When she's mistaken for a courtesan by the Marquess of Midnight, she plays along for the hope of causing a scandal. She won't let the farce go too far, but she does intend to enjoy herself.After one passionate night together, Mary is properly ruined and the marquess is in the drink, yet the past won't remain there. Danger stalks his London townhouse, prompting him to flee with Mary to Surrey for safety. They spin multiple threads of fiction to stay one step ahead of a French madman bent on revenge, who will do whatever is necessary to meet that goal. Only quick thinking and a little luck will keep both Colin and Mary alive long enough to grasp the happy ending they both desperately want but are trying hard to deny.

Nothing found in the sands of Egypt is as valuable as the treasure of the heart.Crispin Herrick, the newly minted Duke of Litton is anxiously awaiting his first mission as a King's agent. Until then, a dig in the King's Valley he's sponsoring occupies his time... until he chases down a criminal at the Antiquities Museum. Once he catches her, he's shocked and delighted to discover she's the same woman he flirted with in London a year ago, but now she's as skilled in lying as she is in keeping secrets. Miss Juliana Barrington lives under an assumed identity in Cairo, exiled there when her last mission for the Crown went catastrophically awry. All she wants is to redeem herself by finding a powerful relic before her enemies can, but when her path crosses that of the handsome ex-pawn broker, she can't help but panic. No matter how her heart twinges, mixing desire with duty is a horrible idea.Crispin and Juliana join forces to find the pieces of the Staff of the Gods, allegedly belonging to Moses himself. Danger dogs their footsteps while romance flickers to life as the days go by, and when the trail leads to a mysterious tomb in the Valley of the Kings, treasure hunting evolves into running for their lives. Staying ahead of disaster is critical; evildoers and death are powerful foes, but hard-fought victory might bring happy endings... if they can survive long enough.

Bad stuff happens. Love makes it bearable.All Morgan Davidson wants is a chance to reconnect with her fifteen-year-old niece - sans digital dependency. She books a cabin for Christmas week in rural southern Indiana, but contracting a case of the warm fuzzies for a handsome ranger isn't part of the plan.Carter Poole, single dad and park ranger, has simple tastes. He's not on Facebook, doesn't let his five-year-old son play video games and spends a lot of time outdoors. When he's sent out to investigate mysterious tracks, he meets Morgan and a spark ignites between them. He invites her to share the holiday with him and his son.Between teenage angst, emotional drama and second-guessing, Morgan and Carter manage to steal a few moments alone. When his son goes missing on Christmas Eve, the world narrows and they realize what matters most-family. The more mismatched the better.

It's Christmastide in London, and Lady Tabitha Sinclair, only child of the deceased Duke of Rathesborne is trying to figure out who she is. With her position among the covert King's agents in flux, she has to decide what she'll do with her time, for it certainly won't be attracting a man as her mother wishes. A chance meeting with a handsome stranger at a musicale changes her course as well as her thinking.The Honorable Duncan Beauchamp wants only one thing this Christmas season: a night where he won't be crushed by familial expectation or buried beneath an onslaught of nightmares. He has no intentions of finding a match like his father hopes, but when he sits next to an intriguing, auburn-haired woman at a ton function, he has second thoughts.An instant connection binds them, and after striking up an unlikely friendship, the two set out to have fun throughout London's society events. After dances, crashing a masquerade, and stealing kisses, they find solace and understanding in each other, but will the quick heat of desire last long enough to usher in the slow burn of love? Scandal might force their hand, but perhaps it will also bring them both that one silent night.

Sometimes, the romance of a lifetime starts with one perfect night. It's the year 1885 and the world has just begun giving up its ancient secrets. Miss Charlotte Blakely is a librarian in Rome. She's researching evidence of the fabled Veil of Veronica, but her time abroad is drawing to a close. Her viscount father is dying and has called his children home, yet a chance encounter with a stranger one balmy night might change her direction. Mr. Everett Desmond is the English ambassador to Rome. He's dashing and would have been daring had he gone down a different path, but being jilted at the altar sent him far from England and sordid memories. Now, life has grown staid and boring. When he literally crashes into a pretty lady on the street, he's intrigued enough to further an acquaintance. Desire flares after a couple of moonlit strolls, and a kiss at the Trevi fountain irrevocably changes both of their lives. Budding romance blooms beneath the heat and they find themselves enchanted enough to land into potential scandal. Is it a love to last a lifetime or is it merely a moonlight indiscretion? Only they can decide what they truly want for the future.

Holidays are best spent with the ones you love, especially when adventure is in the offing. It's the Christmastide season, and the Hawkins family is at their country estate in Kent. Emmaline, the Countess of Archewyne, is excited, for it's her first Christmas with her little family as well as one of the few she's spent in England. Passing his leisure time with his loved ones gives Miles Lawrence Hawkins, the fifth Earl of Archewyne, great pleasure, as does anticipating their faces when they open his gifts. And he's found the most splendid thing for his wife-a fresh archeological dig of ancient Roman origin on his property. When plans for Christmas Eve preparations go awry and Miles is taken hostage at gunpoint, Emmaline is at her wit's end. Heartsick and worried, only a clue from some overly affectionate geese will be able to save her beloved's life. If she can reach him in time, they'll both find themselves beguiled on a Christmas morning.

Busting up a wedding has never been so personally satisfying. Nora "Can't Say No" Lenhart's life is way past complicated. To add stress to everything, she's just been appointed maid of honor for the upcoming wedding of the World's Worst Boss and her ex is the best man. Looks like she'll need to buy stock in an antacid company as she tries to ditch the green-eyed monster of wedding envy. Camden Webber is an FBI agent with a massive chip on his shoulder-namely not being able to forget the woman whose usual inability to say no didn't keep her from shooting down his proposal five years before. Though he has jaded views on weddings and marriage, Cam agrees to stand at his best friend's side. After all, train wrecks are interesting, right? When Nora and Camden are thrown together at an engagement dinner, despite their tumultuous romantic history, they devise a plan to break up the ill-suited bride and groom. As the big day nears, emotions hit a breaking point, proving that wedding planning is more suited to a reality show and while happy endings are optional, they exist amidst the rubble, if the couple looks hard enough.

As long as a lady has hope in her heart, it doesn't matter the obstacles she faces on the path to love. Miss Evelina Aston is the youngest child of a viscount. Through no fault of her own, she's fallen headfirst into the scandal of the Season. With her father on the brink of bankruptcy, when she's caught alone and in a compromising position with an earl, he calls for an immediate proposal. It doesn't matter that the man she's being forced to wed is a rake high on the instep, she has no say in the proceedings. Charles Bowling, Earl of Ethersham-and heir to the Duke of Tarkington-is in rather a spot of bother. Caught literally with his pants down in a lady's retiring room at a ball, he's mired in further disgrace when a woman-not the one he was waiting for-comes flying into the room, trips, and lands at his feet. Parental outrage ensues, and before he can protest, he's wedded to the shy lady, and they're bound for his father's country estate in the Lake District to begin their life of married inconvenience. With tarnished reputations and gossip trailing in their wake, both Evelina and Charles are forced to endure each other's company. As the July days go by, desire flares as hot as the summer sun while they explore the woodlands and fells, but differences and misunderstandings keep widening the gulf in their relationship. Unless they find trust and compromise, they'll never be able to build something worthy of the future and perhaps love.

Surviving the wilds of Cornwall is more life changing than they thought. Miss Caroline Sloane is on her way to Poughill, Cornwall. In highhanded fashion, her estranged grandfather has arranged a marriage for her to a sea captain she's met but once, and she wishes to convince him otherwise. She'll marry for love or not at all, but an accident with the crowded mail coach on which she's traveling throws her existence into chaos. Alan Blackmore, the Earl of St. Clair, has been summoned to his Devon estate by his ducal father. His engagement, designed by the duke years ago, has now come due and he must wed to merge holdings. The last thing he wants is a leg-shackling, for he enjoys his life of a rake too much, and he means to tell his father off, but one dark, rainy night on mud-slick roads changes his course forever. Lost and injured in windswept and rugged Cornwall, the first order of business is survival. As their wounds heal, Caroline and Alan come to know each other while living a simple, uncomplicated life. A friendship of necessity slowly grows into something passionate and scandalous, but when reality returns to rescue them, they both must decide what is more important: duty, tradition, or an unexpected love.

What happens in London after midnight doesn't always remain a secret. Baldwin Benedict Loverly, Duke of Broadmoor, wants nothing to do with society in general or women specifically. His stint in the military during the war broke him in mind and spirit. Now he can barely leave his townhouse without suffering from crushing bouts of fear and anxiety, but when he meets an unconventional woman who planned his aging aunt's birthday celebration, he might strive to overcome his challenges. Outgoing and sunny Miss Georgianna Abernathy, step-daughter of the Earl of Dirkenstead knows how people want to celebrate. When a pair of valuable emerald and diamond earbobs, directly off the ears of one of the beau monde's popular duchesses, is found inside a cake she ordered, she panics. With scandal looming, she barely hides the jewelry in her skirts before the handsome duke comes upon her and makes her yearn for dreams she'd let go. Once he temporarily subdues the alleged thief, the situation forces him to forget about his woes. Though he makes it his mission to prove her innocence, something about the story niggles at him. Discovered in a compromising situation, he puts forth the story of their engagement to lend her protection, and Georgianna objects-strenuously-which deepens the mystery surrounding her, but as they give into passion during the investigation, life grows more complicated. Unless they can find the real thief, both of them might be arrested with no chance for the romance neither of them expected to find.

Sometimes fate doesn't give you what you want because something better is in the offing. Captain Elias Frampton is a man without purpose. Five months after being jilted, he's ready for a new chapter of his life. Undecided about whether he should return to the sea or find a position in England, he embarks on a trip up the Cornwall coast, but his coach is caught in a winter storm squall, forcing him to take the last room at a posting inn of a fishing village. It's just the place for him to gain a new perspective. Miss Helen Everly's dreams for her life are all but forgotten. She cares for her ailing father as well as running the Brown Hart Inn he owns because that's all she's known. It's a good life and a happy one as long as she can find something positive in each day. Yet it's also a lonely life. Men in the small Cornish village keep the sea as a mistress and aren't the marrying type. Yet Christmastide is a time for miracles, and she's not above sending up a prayer for hers. As Elias and Helen are thrown together by unique circumstances and they enter into an odd friendship, they both try to ignore the sparks flying between them due to past disappointments. But during traditional Christmastide entertainments and a few stolen kisses, they come to discover everything they'd previously believed about romance had been wrong and that love is so much sweeter when it arrives unexpectedly.

Self-confirmed spinster Miss Anne Deighton wants to match her younger sister to a gentleman and see her happily married before settling into her fate... for her own previous two engagements failed. Quiet Reginald Marleigh, Viscount Ingleby, has come to the Wiltshire countryside to attend May Day festivities... and to turn his attention to the responsibilities of his title. Yet during the four days of the country festival, there are all too many opportunities for mischief and stolen kisses... and perhaps reckless danger. If the two of them let themselves, they'll see there is magic in Mayflowers, and it might just encourage love to bloom.

Lily Henderson's greatest passion is knowledge. Christopher Farnsworth thrives on order and decorum. But her penchant for Suffragette rallies and logical reasoning soon clashes with his quiet, controlled ex-military lifestyle over a bowl of potato soup.The two agree to a wager and matchmaking-or rather romance-is the intended outcome. The premise? A suitable match by Easter. If he loses, he'll attend Easter church services dressed in one of his aunt's outrageously-colored and beaded gowns. If she loses, she'll ride, Lady Godiva-style, around the heart of Indianapolis, which is the height of scandal for 1904. The problem is neither Christopher nor Lily can find matches as good as themselves. Romantic sabotage becomes the order of the day. The original wager is forgotten when the only thing the pair gambles with is their hearts.

A holiday to remember... if they can survive.Good things are happening in Samantha Arnold's life. She's moved into a house in the big city and her first romance novel is almost published. This holiday season she intends to celebrate, especially since it's her first Christmas with her boyfriend.Special Agent Mitchell is ready to settle into his life at the Bureau after being sent on a globe-hopping working vacation, but at the airport, he's met with news that chills his blood-one of the most dangerous criminals he ever put behind bars has been released due to a clerical error. Finding the bad guy wars with the need to keep Sam safe. Distance is key, but it's the holidays and his girlfriend has romantic plans. While dodging bullets, family issues and attempts on their lives, both he and Sam will need to find the courage to survive-for each other, for love and for their future.

Sometimes love needs a few wagers to stick the second time around.Pleasure is his only pursuit... Colin Rowley, Viscount Hartsford, has been given an offer too good to ignore: if he comes home to Lancaster Hall and his family by Christmas morning, he'll win a coveted racehorse as well as an estate. Trouble is, recollections attached to his ducal father's castle leave him haunted, especially those regarding the first girl he's ever loved, the one who rejected him.Faced with reduced circumstances... Widow Lucy Ashbrook is leaving London for the last time. Now that her husband's savings have dried up, she can no longer afford her lifestyle, so after she attends the Christmas house party at Lancaster Hall-the site of so many delicious memories-she'll return to her parents on the neighboring property. Too bad the man who first won her heart, and who accompanies her on the journey to Derbyshire, hasn't changed his selfish ways.The magic of the holiday season... When a series of mysterious events continually throw Colin and Lucy together, they can't help but revisit the past, and rediscover the joy made during those long-ago winters. Happiness will elude them both unless they find the Yuletide wonder and give themselves over to a love that has waited... with the help of a few, secret Christmas wagers working behind the scenes.

When in doubt, always do the right thing, especially when love is in the offing.As the year 1818 comes to an end, Lady Theodosia Cavendish, only daughter to the Marquess of Armestead, pretends to enjoy society's glittering ballrooms and endless rounds of parties, for she has other, more interesting projects to fulfill her. An opponent to the men who build their fortunes on the backs of the slave trade, she makes certain social injustice is always at the forefront in London... even at the expense of her life.Mr. Samuel Johansen, son of an English lord and a high-born Jamaican lady, is a glassblower by trade and a pugilist by recreation. He's as handsome as sin, which helps in navigating society, for he adores the life of a gentleman, but what he truly desires is a seat in the House of Commons, to fight discrimination, poverty, and class separation by helping to change laws... no matter his own personal battles.While holiday gaiety mingles with dark hatred, one chance meeting between Theodosia and Samuel spark not only an unlikely romance but also conflict in their world. As their relationship deepens, they court intrigue and danger, and in the process provoke powerful men who wish their secrets to remain just that. When happiness is in their grasp, it's dashed away in an egregious plan by a black hearted peer that changes their lives. Only with hope and love can they finally have their happily ever after.

Sometimes long-held secrets are the very things that will eventually lead to freedom.Lady Amelia Jane Coventry-Smythe wants nothing more than to shut herself away to mourn in private all the people she lost from her life over the years. Unfortunately, peace is not hers, for the one man she never hoped to see again has just landed in her parlor by mysterious circumstances, with an invitation to her Christmastide house party in hand... and her addiction to him flares anew.Cornelius Matthew Edgerton, Marquess of Winchester, is perplexed thanks to the arrival of holiday invitation. He hasn't heard from Lady Amelia in thirteen years... not since he abruptly left her bed during an affair that he never forgot. Encouraged to attend by her cousin-his best friend-when he arrives at the manor house, his reception is decidedly cool, even though the heat between him and the lady still lingers.Underlying polite public interactions, desire builds and explodes into frantic need, but while the two of them draw closer in new understanding and friendship, danger threatens both of their lives. As Christmas morning arrives, emotions boil over to sour the blooming romance. Only a miracle-and perhaps forgiveness-can help them find the happily ever after they never had the first time around.

Love at Christmastide is wonderful... if the couple in question believes in the magic. Alistair Forsythe, the 12th Earl of Reardon, is the most sought-after man in the ton this Christmastide season. Handsome, of good character, and possessing a large fortune, he finally intends to do his duty to his title after being in India for years. In the market for a wife, he can now easily have his pick of any woman, yet none of them have snared his interest-not since Carole-but she is beyond his reach. Miss Carole Hazelton doesn't give two farthings about a man's position within the ton or his looks. In fact, she's not thought about the beau monde since that horribly embarrassing day five years ago when Alistair left her standing alone at the altar. Now making her living as a governess, she's both dismayed and furious to discover the neighbor who's returned to the townhouse next door is the man who'd jilted her-Alistair. As that old scandal recirculates, it throws their reputations into question. To repair the damage, the earl and Carole must practice forgiveness. While she's not quick to forget, he's not above employing charm and mistletoe to his advantage or drawing on their past romance, but when the feelings they both thought long dead come rushing back, that love just might ruin them both... or provide a second chance they never knew they needed.

Trust can be a stumbling block, but it can also be freeing in the right circumstance. With only her reprobate, now-dead husband to judge by, Marjorie Attler doesn't trust men. The crumbling manor house by the sea is a fresh start, but when a privateer appears in her bed-while she's sleeping-he introduces her to a passion she'd only dreamed. Then he challenges her legal claim to the property and her justified distrust intensifies. After being at sea for five years, Clinton Montmorency, captain of the Storm Tossed Rogue, has come home for a spell. He wants peace and quiet, and perhaps a woman to warm his bed. Imagine his delight when he finds one beside him his first night home. She might do for a midnight companion, but he doesn't need another managing female in his bachelor life. Ownership of the house aside, they have bigger matters to square with. Marjorie's disgraced cousin is about to give birth, while Clinton's ward is making designs on his fortune. Throw in a smuggler, a sordid plot for the Rogue, as well a troublesome fever and it's an adventure, complicated by the fact that Marjorie is as elusive and alluring as the sea while Clinton is just as hard to tame.

Searching for answers... Widowed Lady Elizabeth Dunston, daughter of the Earl of Hallewell, has lived a quiet life for years at her father's country estate, for it was her beloved husband's last request that she find peace. The last thing she wants is an attraction to the intriguing former soldier asking for work. Too bad anxiety continues to bedevil her and makes tranquility-and indifference-impossible. Distracted by forbidden desire... Captain Christopher Mowbray is down on his luck. After an injury put an end to his cavalry career, he's knocked about England searching for purpose. Now, needing a paying job, he stuck around a rich nob's property hoping to become a jack of all trades. What he didn't expect was the instant desire for the pretty widow or the need to play father to her boy, and it's damn hard to hide his interest in both. Dodging threats to their lives... While they struggle to deny the tension between them, danger has the couple in its sights, and when two attempts on their lives fail, Christopher must do something to protect the little family. As forced proximity gives way to passionate meetings, they try to puzzle out who wants to harm them. Aren't they already broken enough? Answers come during a May Day ball and put the fragile, budding romance into jeopardy. If they stay strong, they might just grasp the dream they never knew they wanted. If they survive.

A proper gentleman. A desperate lady. One little indiscretion that will change their lives. Carew Harcourt Fitzwilliam-Duke of Edenthorpe-is dreadfully dissatisfied with his life. Engaged since childhood to a woman unsuited to him, he feels trapped and hopeless. What he needs is a distraction, which comes in the form of a possible jewelry heist. Too bad it has arrived with his best friend's sister, now a beauty he can't banish from his mind. Miss Leah Haddington, only daughter of Baron Langley, can square with being overlooked by men in the ton due to her auburn hair and freckles, but being left penniless by her father's gambling is beyond the pale. There's only one man who can help retrieve a stolen bauble-her deceased brother's best friend. It matters not that a forbidden attraction is brewing between them. He's engaged to another, so where is the harm in a partnership? As they plot and plan their way through ton ballrooms and a practice theft in a bid to snag a missing tiara, that desire ignites. A heated, passionate mistake, to be sure, for he's to wed someone else in mere days, but the need to belong was too strong to ignore. When the theft goes awry and danger is brought to bear, they must both decide what they want more from life-staid security based in expectation and tradition or unpredictable scandal born out of unexpected love.

Agent Kevin Herriman is finally marrying Carlie and life is perfect, but during a congenial game of paintball, someone fires at him with real bullets. When the engagement ring goes missing, he assumes coincidence. He ignores both incidents, until the shooter tries again in a public venue.Carlie Noblett is beyond excited. It's her wedding weekend and she'll finally have her agent all to herself-no work, no cases, no crime. But when someone sends her a threat at her bachelorette party, she wonders. As little sabotages crop up as the weekend progresses, she panics. Is she strong enough for this life?When an usher turns up dead, Kevin can't deny that murder is in play. The only thing he wants is to marry Carlie, but unless he can stay one step ahead of the killer, he'll wear his tux to his own funeral. Time's running out for love to conquer all.

In the hunt for relics of infinite value, perhaps the greatest treasure of all is family. Three months after the birth of his son, Miles Lawrence Hawkins, the fifth Earl of Archewyne, is attempting to acclimate to fatherhood, but he longs for adventure. Someone is masquerading as the heir to a powerful and ancient ducal title with the anonymous backing of other members of the ton, and Miles is asked to investigate. It would mean leaving his wife and child, yet he refuses to return to London without them. Emmaline Hawkins, the new Countess of Archewyne, is torn between wanting to be a good mother and wishing to recapture the excitement digging up relics and hunting treasures brings. Just as she thinks her adventuring days are over, she meets a young pawn broker questing after the legendary Lancelot Stone. Determined to retain the thrill of the chase, she stumbles upon solid proof the relic is in Paris, and convinces her husband they should investigate. As Miles and Emmaline chase shadows and investigate macabre sites, their steps are dogged by unsavory characters. The closer they move toward unmasking the duke's imposter heir as well as finding the fabled relic, the bolder a killer grows in attempts on their lives. As an unbelievable plot unfolds, their only recourse is to fight, side by side, and hope that leaving staid domesticity behind was the right choice.

A man rejected by society and cursed for life... Alexander Laurence Hayes-6th Duke of Everington has a horrible secret: he's forced to become a beast each night. But when he stumbles upon a secret gentleman's club in London that caters to men of his affliction, perhaps he'll finally have some answers. It matters not that a meeting with a beautiful woman might have sparked his desire, he has more urgent interests than bedding her. Perhaps. A woman who dreams of love but is skeptical of magic... Eleanor Riverton is not easily given to fancy. The sister of a Bow Street Runner, she relies on facts not fairy stories. So when she's chased through the Mayfair streets by what she assumes is a wolf and then meets a man who claims he's a duke in the same night, her curiosity is triggered. The fact he is stark naked and gorgeous makes no difference, or that her first instinct is to shoot him. Possibly. Opposites attract while fear and hope collide... With the new knowledge that experiencing the kiss of true love will break the curse, Alexander sets out to charm the woman he'd chased. While attraction flares hot and immediate, his beast won't go down without a fight, and Eleanor is livid when she discovers the duke's secret. Only by working together will they gain the freedom they both seek... unless they kill each other first. Definitely.