Why, the latest on-dit is that rakish Viscount Sheffield is canceling the fête of the year because he hasn't time for silly soirees. He doesn't need time—he needs her! When a flash of lightning destroys the venue for his family's annual Christmas ball, Lord Benedict Sheffield intends to enjoy a relaxing holiday for once. But after twelve days of beguiling Lady Amelia's guerrilla tactics, he's up to his cravat with tinsel . . . and tumbling head over heels in love.

    But Julia's bold gaze lit other fires he had long suppressed. And now this glorious stranger was his bride. But when he tried to claim his husbandly rights, she demanded three months grace--three months to know a stranger's mind, to touch a stranger's soul, to go where no woman had ever gone before. Into his lonely heart . . . With This Kiss.

    So what do you get a man who has everything? Innocent and comely Verity Ewing plans on giving Julian her heart—the most precious gift of all.previously published in The Gifts of Christmas AnthologyThe Season for Suitors (Tallants, #3.5) by Nicola CornickAfter some close encounters with rakes in which she was nearly compromised, heiress Clara Davenport realizes that she needs some expert advice. And who better for the job than Sebastian Fleet, the most notorious rake in town? But the tutelage doesn't go quite as planned, as both Sebastian and Clara find it difficult to remain objective when it comes to lessons of the heart!previously published in Christmas Keepsakes AnthologyThis Wicked Gift (Carhart, #0.5) by Courtney MilanLavinia Spencer has been saving her hard-earned pennies to provide her family with Christmas dinner. Days before the holiday, her brother is swindled, leaving them owing more than they can ever repay. Until a mysterious benefactor offers to settle the debt. Innocent Lavinia is stunned by what the dashing William White wants in return. Will she exchange a wicked gift for her family's fortune?

    She is determined to be an ex-spinster by Christmas. To that end, she has invited a prospective suitor to spend Christmas with her family. She knows very well that Lord Brockton would love to get his hands on her dowry, and she’d love to be a married woman with a home and family of her own.The very idea of his Lady Caroline throwing herself away on the likes of the vile Lord Brockton rankles Christopher Perry. A pity he cannot offer for her himself, but a duke’s daughter is too far above his touch, given his family’s humble origins. Nevertheless, Christopher attends the Duke of Aldridge’s Christmas house party with the intention of thwarting Lady Caroline’s grave misalliance with Brockton. If only he’s not too late . . .

    The hero in all of her tales is one Nathan Carruthers, Earl of Basingstoke. The rumors surrounding his wicked assignations are beyond anything she could dream of, and once enhanced by her wild imaginings, she’s created a lover no man could live up to. Basingstoke has ignored the rumors about his romantic scandals for the most part, accepting them as part of being a single gentleman with a title. In one way, it’s kept the marriage-minded mothers from thrusting their daughters into his reach. Although a staunch member of the Wicked Earls’ Club and enjoying his carefree ways, he admits he’s reached an age when he would like to marry. Luckily, those supposed scandals aren’t keeping away the woman he’s grown to love--Lady Phoebe. When Basingstoke discovers Lady Phoebe’s diary, he blames her for creating the rumors. Hurt to the bone, he wants nothing more to do with her. Heartbroken, she goes in search of the real rumormonger. Can she prove her innocence and regain Basingstoke’s love?

    She has fallen in love with her best friend, and that cannot be. The problem? She hasn’t met him. Not once. For they have only ever corresponded by letter. When she sets out to uncover the identity of her secret correspondent, her world shatters. For Addy turns out to be none other but London’s worst hellrake.Adrian St.Addington, hellrake extraordinaire, has a problem. He is developing a marked tendre for a spinster, and that cannot be. The problem? He suspects she is taking him for someone he is not. Or is it that she knows precisely who he is? Either possibility he finds profoundly disturbing. For he has a role to uphold, cost what may. And a depraved heart like his surely cannot fall in love…least of all with a plain, outspoken spinster.Determined to discover the truth behind the man she loves, Lu does what she does best: she sits down and writes a letter…Escape into the world of the Regency ton with Sofi Laporte's new series, where spinsters are merry, rakes are charming, and no one is who they seem.

    His ward deserves a reputable governess, so he threatens to give Adriana the sack mere days before Christmas.Desperate to convince the sexy duke not to tear her from the little girl she's grown to adore, Adriana challenges him to prove she’s not the reputable governess he believed he hired. If he can seduce her before the Twelve Days of Christmas have come to an end, she will leave without protest.But when they find the challenge more difficult than either imagined, can they face the consequences of their decisions?

    What she needs is a husband, and she knows well enough that romance and matrimony aren't always compatible. While providing for her twins and the child she now carries is paramount, wedding a virtual stranger—even a wealthy one, like Gideon St. Goddard, Duke of Stanthorpe—is no light matter.Sabrina knows the friend who arranged the union would not promise her to a true scoundrel, but one look at her future husband convinces her that he is a shameless rogue. A shockingly handsome and desirable one, at that. Why has he agreed to marry her? When Gideon flashes that wicked, seductive smile, the reason hardly matters, but the chance that he'll steal her heart becomes all too real...

    In an innovative new twist for anthologies, each author is reintroducing a secondary character from a previous book to star in his own story!A resourceful beauty's determination to locate the true father of a poor foundling sets off a society scandal—and ignites a fire in handsome Reggie Carmarthen's world-weary, aristocratic heart in Stephanie Lauren's unforgettable Lost and Found Captivated by the fetching, marriage-wary noblewoman he finds concealed in his shrubbery, Harry Chamberlain, the roguish Earl of Granville, agrees to help the delightful lady escape...while hatching a plan to woo and win her himself in Christina Dodd's smoldering The Third Suitor A wounded hero, James Reyburn has no expectations of romance—until a storm-tossed beauty with a secret blows into his life in Elizabeth Boyle's enchanting The Matchmaker's Bargain

    Eliza has eagerly awaited her picture-perfect nuptials, but there is just one problem: Joshua, her groom, is nowhere to be found. After Joshua’s brother, Matthias, calls for the police, Eliza awaits word. But when the news arrives, all her hopes for wedded bliss come crashing down: her betrothed has been located in a London alley. Murdered. Soon, Eliza learns that beneath the polished façade, the man she very nearly married lived a double life—a life that he gambled . . . and lost. Though Eliza and Matthias were innocent bystanders to Joshua’s indiscretions, it is they who are left to pick up the pieces. As they learn to rely on each other through their shared trials, they are surprised to find themselves on an unexpected path of friendship and love. But even as they envision building a life together, the echoes of the past threaten to rob them of the promise of a shared future.

    . . and in the process find that love just might conquer all . . . A series of stepfathers and a difficult childhood have left Fletcher “Grey” Pryde, 5th Duke of Greycourt, with a guarded heart, enviable wealth, and the undeserved reputation of a rogue. Grey’s focus on expanding his dukedom allows him little time to find a wife. But when his mother is widowed yet again and he meets the charmingly unconventional woman managing his stepfather’s funeral, he’s shocked to discover how much they have in common. Still, Grey isn’t interested in love, no matter how pretty, or delightfully outspoken, the lady . . . Beatrice Wolfe gave up on romance long ago, and the arrogant Duke of Greycourt with his rakish reputation isn’t exactly changing her mind. Then Grey agrees to assist his grief-stricken mother with her latest “project”: schooling spirited, unfashionable Beatrice for her debut. Now that Beatrice is seeing through Grey’s charms to his wounded heart, she’s having trouble keeping him at arm’s length. But once Grey starts digging into her family’s secrets, she must decide whether her loyalties lie with her family . . . or with the man whose lessons capture her heart . . .

    Isn’t that what every lord wants? The lady makes a proposal. It took nothing more than her father’s death for Prudence Roxbury and her sisters to fall on hard times. The only flicker of hope in their bleak future is that their beautiful sister, Sarah, will marry and save them all from a life of destitution. But when Prudence hears that their father’s distant relation and heir has finally taken up residence in their old family home, Hagley Manor, she concocts a plan to rescue them from their miserable fate. After all, what lord wouldn’t want a beautiful wife on his arm? The gentleman offers a bargain. A hundred years have passed since a bitter feud tore the Roxbury family apart. But now Max, Lord Roxbury, has an opportunity to right the mistakes of the past. When he moves into Hagley Manor he has no idea the former residents live but a mile away. That is until he finds an intriguing young woman on his front steps, wrestling with a drunken lout and a potted plant. Indeed, Prudence Roxbury might be the answer to his problems. Captivated by her wit and beguiling smile, passion soon ignites. The stipulations of his father’s will means he must marry within three months. But what is a gentleman to do when he swore never to marry for anything less than love?

    

    By offering him a kiss in lieu of the jewels she had to leave behind, she commits the very type of act that caused her exile. When her dour guardians extend her punishment to performing charitable work at the local orphanage, she's further tempted by the home's owner, a provincial gentleman who stirs her passion in a most wicked way.HE WAS HER DOWNFALLDesperate to save his orphanage from financial catastrophe, Montgomery "Fox" Foxcroft leads a double life as a highwayman. The arrival of wealthy, well-connected Miranda, whose kiss he can't forget, presents a lawful opportunity to increase his coffers. His problems seem solved-until she rejects his suit. Out of options and falling for the heiress, Fox must risk what principles he has left and take advantage of her wicked ways-even if it ruins them both.

    . ."Honoria Duchamp is well aware that men often consider widows easy prey for the role of mistress. What else could explain the attentions of handsome Lord Devin, and his visits to her bookshop? The much younger Viscount has even shown interest in the printing press with which she creates pamphlets on London's basest injustices. Yet his chief interest appears to be in her. . .Coerced to investigate Nora's controversial pamphlets, Devin expected to find a bookish matron. Instead, he is taken with Nora's womanly beauty, sharp intellect, and quick wit. Soon, what begins as an unwelcome task becomes a pleasure, and Devin's job becomes more dangerous-for them both. For Nora has no idea of the vicious element she's crossed. Now Devin will risk his reputation to protect her-and much more to win her love. . .