Book picks similar to
Moon Flower by Shirl Henke


historical-romance
historical
cheating
cheating-hero

After The Ashes


Cheryl Howe - 2003
    After the death of her mother, she follows her younger brother out west, hoping for a fresh start with her last living relative. Instead she finds a ruthless bounty hunter looking for the brother she knows she must protect at all costs. She doesn't expect the price to be losing her heart to a man who promises her nothing but shared passion.Christopher Braddock wants information more than the bounty of a bumbling kid who got mixed up with the outlaw Braddock has been searching for since the war. But when his prey's sister tries to throw him off her brother's trail, Braddock isn't noble enough to not let her try. What he doesn't expect is the spark that brings his body, and worse, his numbed emotions back to life. His unexpected feelings for Lorelei has Braddock crossing the line from bounty hunter to outlaw. He'll do whatever it takes to keep Lorelei safe, including breaking her heart.

The Marriage Bed


Stephanie Mittman - 1996
    Set on the Williamson Farm in 1897 Wisconsin, we are introduced to Olivia and Spencer on their wedding night.  Spencer's life has been beset with tragedy; Olivia is his second wife and a poor consolation prize for a man whose family was torn from him by Scarlet Fever.  Olivia has been a friend and neighbor to him throughout his life and she has been in love with Spencer for as long as she can remember.  Now she only wants to make him happy again and to help replace some of what he has lost.  Fighting his growing love for Olivia, Spencer makes terrible and hurtful mistakes, pushing Olivia away before he is finally able to court his wife and to accept the love she offers-- and to give love in return.

Sinful


Susan Johnson - 1993
    That is until he stepped into his carriage one evening and found it already occupied… Chelsea tempted him with a sinful offer. Sinjin adamantly, albeit politely refused. She was a young unmarried maiden, too dangerous for a man who'd vowed never to wed. No matter how luscious the prize, he wasn't reckless enough to be entrapped by the tantalizing minx. Can the spirited young beauty change his mind?

Dreaming of You


Jennifer McNare - 2013
    However, the innocent young beauty has no idea what her new husband will demand of her, once they are legally wed. It isn’t long however, before Melody discovers that the widowed earl had a purpose in choosing her for his bride, the daughter of an impoverished country baron. Impotent and childless, Charles is in desperate need of an heir, in addition to someone he can force into going along with the heinous scheme he has concocted.Gavin Montrose, son of the wealthy Duke of Rutherford, is as charming as he is handsome. However, unbeknownst to him, he is also the man Charles Cavendish has selected to father his heir. Abducted from the grounds of his family’s country estate, he awakens to find himself in the midst of a nightmare. Assuming that he has been abducted for ransom, Gavin is stunned to learn of his mysterious abductor’s true purpose. To gain his freedom and protect his family from harm, he must father a child he will never meet, with a woman whose name he will never know and whose face he will never see. Desperate to safeguard the people they love, both Melody and Gavin have no choice but to go along with the insanity that has been forced upon them or suffer the unbearable consequences. Compelled to meet in absolute darkness in the bedchamber of an isolated cottage, their identities a fiercely guarded secret, they will develop a bond neither of them had anticipated and discover a passion more powerful than either of them could have possibly imagined. But dare they call it love?Years later, when fate intervenes and Gavin and Melody’s paths inadvertently cross…

Shadows and Lace


Teresa Medeiros - 1990
    The Dark Lord of Caerleon used Rowena to slay the ghosts of his past, but he would be ensnared in his own trap--slave to a desire he could never hope to quench.

Hidden Fires


Laura Jordan - 1982
    Instead, the matriarch makes Lauren a scandalous offer to marry her son in name only. Lauren has strong feelings for him but are they strong enough?

What Mattered Most


Linda Winfree - 2007
    Houston homicide detective, John OReilly, is torn between two women. One is the woman he's loved without hope for years. The other carries his unborn child. Now, a man bent on revenge wants OReilly to choose, and any choice he makes could cost him everything.Gutsy sheriffs deputy, Lanie Falconetti, is determined not to repeat her mother's mistakes in love. Her no-strings-attached affair with John OReilly leads to an unexpected but joyfully welcomed pregnancy. However, the shadow from John's past threatens not only her chance at happiness but her life and that of her unborn baby as well.Warning, this title contains the following: explicit sex, violence.

Prince Charming


Julie Garwood - 1994
    Now dear Esther -- one of London's richest and most formidable matriarchs -- lies dying. But first she was going to help Taylor pull off the scam of the season.To escape becoming a ward of her unscrupulous uncle, Taylor would wed Lucas Ross, a rugged American rancher. Lady Esther's money would enable Ross to return home to Montana. Taylor had her own urgent reason to go to America...a precious legacy she hadn't revealed to Ross, for they had agreed to part ways once they reached Boston. But as her handsome new husband spoke of life in Montana, Taylor began planning a new future. To Taylor, the wide-open spaces of Montana sounded like paradise....

Forbidden Love


Karen Robards - 1983
    Forbidden Desires...He was her guardian, absentee landlord of her neglected life--until Megan Kinkead returned to Maam's Cross Court, determined to make Justin Brant notice her.  She finally commanded the attention of the sixth Earl of Weston when she burst into his room and caught him stark naked in the tub.  Suddenly she knew a woman's hunger--and a woman's needs....Forbidden Kisses...When had the scrawny brat from hell become a fiery, raven-haired, violet-eyed temptress?  Justin told himself she was still a child as she offered him a seductive yet innocent kiss.  He tried to remind himself that he was her guardian, her protector.  But the flashfire desire that blazed between them ignited a love neither had ever known before.  Then he told her he was married....Forbidden Secrets...Bestselling, award-winning author Karen Robards sweeps us into Ireland's lush landscape in this spellbinding novel of a headstrong young beauty and her aristocratic guardian, torn between passion, propriety, and...Forbidden Love.

Her Husband's Harlot


Grace Callaway - 2011
    . .After a disastrous wedding night, proper Lady Helena Harteford fears for the fate of her new marriage. Disguised as a doxy, she tracks her husband down at a bawdy house to reason with him . . . and instead discovers the thrill of forbidden passion. An innocent ruse turns into a risky deception; how far will this once-wallflower go to win her husband's love?Unfit to be a Husband . . .Orphaned at an early age, Nicholas Morgan escapes his violent beginnings to become a successful merchant--only to discover that he is the legitimate heir of the Marquess of Harteford. His transition to the ton is rocky and made rockier when he marries above him. Torn between guilt and lust, he tries to protect his sweet, innocent wife from the demons of his past. But can he safeguard her from his own raging desires?Caught between Past and Present . . .When a dangerous nemesis rises from Nicholas' past, husband and wife must work together in order to survive. From the drawing rooms to the stews of Regency London, they find themselves caught in a game of passion and seduction. Will true love prevail? Or is Helena destined to remain . . . Her Husband's Harlot?(approximately 105,000 words or 367 pages)

Marriage Meltdown


Emma Darcy - 1997
    She had to do something to show him just how much she really desired him - had always desired him. But she'd have to act fast if she didn't want to lose him to another woman!

Lord Ruin


Carolyn Jewel - 2002
    He planned to marry for beauty. But a night of unforgettable passion left him a changed man—a man tied to a bespectacled spinster. Anne Sinclair's long legs drove him wild with desire, and her quick wit challenged his mind. Ruined for any other, the notorious rake had only one choice: to court his wife. To win her confidence, however, nothing less than his love would do.The Divine SinclairAnne Sinclair had sworn to protect her sister from the infamous Lord Ruin. Yet she never expected to sacrifice her own virtue. Forced to give the rogue her hand in marriage, she vowed never to relinquish her heart. But Ruan worshiped her body and valued her intelligence, making Anne long to succumb to the ultimate temptation: falling for her husband.

Adora


Bertrice Small - 1980
    And in the dying days of the great Byzantine Empire - that last vestige of what had once been Imperial Rome - her value as the emperor's daughter was priceless.Three men claimed her as wife. Orkhan, the powerful Ottoman sultan; the dashing pirate Alexander, lord of Mesembria; and Prince Murad, to whom Adora's heart truly belonged. In a grand epic that sweeps the reader from the golden palaces of fourteenth-century Byzantium to the blazing sensuality of the sultan's harem, Adora was a woman who firmly controlled her own destiny because she and Murad were meant only for each other. And together their passions would forge an empire.Adora! Her name was the secret of all love.Publisher Note: This story was previously published elsewhere, 1980-1995.

Seize the Fire


Laura Kinsale - 1989
    Leger is a princess in desperate need of a knight in shining armor. Sheridan Drake, amused by Olympia's innocence and magnificent beauty, but also intrigued by her considerable wealth, accepts the position of white knight. Unaware that Sheridan is a notorious scoundrel, Olympia willingly allows herself to submit to his protection and his potent embrace. Theirs is a love born in deception. But as they weather storms on the high seas and flee from nefarious villains, the love sparked by lies begins to burn uncontrollably. Taking shelter on a desert island paradise, the princess and the dark knight battle overwhelming odds to keep their adoration burning bright.

Gypsy Lady


Shirlee Busbee - 1977
    While dancing in a Gypsy encampment, Lady Catherine Tremayne ignites the interest and passion of Jason Savage. Thinking her a Gypsy, he whisks her away for his own enjoyment. As soon as he discovers her true identity, Jason and Catherine marry. The story does not end there, however, for Jason is on a government mission and in pursuit of revenge. He will allow nothing to stand in his way. But love has a way of interfering with even the most determined plans, and Catherine will settle for nothing less than Jason's full love.