But Patience Harrington, try as she might, has never been a proper lady. Her bumbled London season left her with no marital prospects and no recourse but to accept her father's invitation to travel to gloomy Blackfield Castle. Surely, spending a few nights in the presence of priceless antiques and a devilish viscount can't be as bad as facing the ton gossip.Focused solely on his secret government project, Thomas cares little for the valuable antiques he's recently inherited. The troublesome young woman who has come to assess them, however, stirs his senses in every way. Patience is a distraction Thomas can ill afford --- a beautiful temptation that makes him ache with desire. For a spy is threatening to destroy all he has built, and Patience is hiding something. With so much at stake, Thomas must do whatever it takes to seduce the truth from Patience's lips before lives --- and his own heart --- are lost.

    Until the uncompromising Lord Greyson Sheffield accused her of being a fraud, shattering her world and sending her into exile in the Scottish Highlands.Now Greyson has received word of a young witch in Scotland, and he travels to Little Firkin to investigate, only to find that the girl in question has a companion who is none other than Fanny Walcott, now a ravishing woman. Audacious Fanny is more than his match in every way, and as the sparks of challenge set fire to a passion neither can control, Grey is prepared to risk everything for the one woman he can never forget.Fighting an unseen enemy, thrown together by danger and desire, the cynic and the enchantress discover their own brand of magic...and a love too powerful, too consuming, too beguiling for either to resist.

    A handsome and reclusive horse breeder, Spencer Dumarque, the fourth Duke of Morland, is a member of the exclusive Stud Club, an organization so select it has only ten members--yet membership is attainable to anyone with luck. And Spencer has plenty of it, along with an obsession with a prize horse, a dark secret, and, now, a reputation as the dashing "Duke of Midnight." Each evening he selects one lady for a breathtaking midnight waltz. But none of the women catch his interest, and nobody ever bests the duke--until Lady Amelia d'Orsay tries her luck. In a moment of desperation, the unconventional beauty claims the duke's dance and unwittingly steals his heart. When Amelia demands that Spencer forgive her scapegrace brother's debts, she never imagines that her game of wits and words will lead to breathless passion and a steamy proposal. Still, Spencer is a man of mystery, perhaps connected to the shocking murder of the Stud Club's founder. Will Amelia lose her heart in this reckless wager or win everlasting love?

    Yet, despite everything, he found there was something about her that was ... brave. All his life he had been surrounded by betrayal, and this woman, who believed there was still goodness in him, was special indeed.Grace knew that the safety of her home depended on her betrothal --- signed, sealed and delivered! Lachlan's strength and unexpected care of her were dangerously appealing. She could fall for this man with secrets in his eyes ...

    Luckily, his able new secretary, J. Quincy, seems scrupulously loyal, and possesses the invaluable ability to flawlessly forge the master's signature. But imagine Sinclair's surprise when he discovers the "J" stands for "Josephine." His cherished employee is, in actuality, a quite delectable lady in disguise.Jo desperately needs this position, and never actually lied about her gender—though she didn't quite expect Sinclair's keen eye to expose the truth so quickly. If the ton finds out, the scandal could be devastating. But Jo believes she can still be of service to the dashing lord. The greatest difficulty, however, will be keeping her mind on business with Sinclair standing so tantalizingly, intoxicatingly close. And what this earl wants, he usually gets.

    Lorna’s father, Gideon, an avid sailor, is determined to claim victory for his own White Bear Yacht Club in the next summer regatta. Having recently suffered defeat at the hands of the rival club, Gideon is willing to do almost anything to win back the prize he sees as his. Jens, pressed into service as a waiter as an elegant family dinner party, overhears Gideon’s lament, and is sure his boatbuilding skills can be put to use on behalf of his employer. Brazenly crossing the boundary between servant and master by offering to design and build a boat that is sure to win the race. Jens incites Gideon’s ire but piques his interest too. With Lorna’s help, he convinces Gideon to finance the project.Grateful for her intervention yet wary of jeopardizing his chance to build the boat of his dreams, Jens nevertheless is powerless to face of Lorna’s growing interest in the boat and him. He soon finds himself eagerly awaiting her visits to the boatshed, and stars teaching her about the craft of boatbuilding, as well as the craft of love.Despite the rigid caste system which keeps them apart, Lorna and Jens are drawn inexorably together, and begin an affair as fresh and innocent as the summer itself. But the repercussions of their passionate idyll soon separate them against their shame to endure loneliness where it is always “November of the heart.”

    Ruthless and mocking, tender and virile, the notorious pirate awakened all Lucy's passionate longings, then abandoned her with nothing but a kiss...A Pirate's PrizeNow safely at home, the alluring waif is tormented by treacherous memories—and by the presence of Gerard Claremont, her mysterious new bodyguard. Everything about him, from his forbidding size to his impertinent manner, sparks her defiance. And even when Gerard's smile turns seductive, no one can make her forget Doom. Yet only when Lucy's path crosses the captain's once more, will she learn who is on a voyage of retribution, and who is out to steal her heart...

    Cal can command the toughest of men, but his wild half-sisters are quite another matter. They might just be his undoing.When he discovers that Miss Emmaline Westwood, the girls’ former teacher, guides them with ease, Cal offers her a marriage of convenience. But strong-minded and independent Emm is neither as compliant nor as proper as he expected, and Cal finds himself most inconveniently seduced by his convenient wife.Emm knows they didn’t marry for love, yet beneath her husband’s austere facade, she catches glimpses of a man who takes her breath away. As pride, duty and passion clash, will these two stubborn hearts find more than they ever dreamed of?

    Lady Guinevere Mallory’s beauty transcended even a portrait painter’s skill. It was nearly impossible to believe that this woman, who had buried four husbands before her thirtieth birthday, could have used murder and the dark arts of witchcraft to achieve her great wealth.I carried the king’s writ to investigate Lady Guinevere’s oft-repeated widowhood. Was it mere coincidence that each death had left her wealthier than the last? The fact that I believed she also held lands that rightfully belonged to my family made my investigations all the more personal and all the more thorough.Surely, I thought, such a woman would bear some obvious mark of treachery on her countenance, in her manner. But when we met I saw only the beauty of her pale blond hair and her deep violet eyes that seemed to me to offer a glimpse into the intriguing world of her brilliant mind and spirit. I began to wonder how the gentle hands of such an elegant woman, whose cool composure belied her dubious past, could have committed cold-blooded murder.Now as I learn more about the mysterious widow, I find myself growing more curious about the secrets of her heart–and more determined to reveal those secrets. Guinevere is the most captivating and intriguing woman I have ever met. I have but one question: Will my interest in her prove to be a fatal one? Hugh of Beaucaire

    No one in high society would dream that the elusive jewel thief is one of their own -- demure New Orleans debutante Mystere Rillieux, a woman who hides her past as well as her seductive womanly charms from everyone she meets. Everyone but one man...Railroad magnate Rafe Belloch has no lack of fortune and no lack of pride. Which is why he has never forgotten the masked woman with startling blue eyes and catlike grace who once relieved him of his money -- and his clothes. Someone Rafe suspects he has just met again.Now, amid the glittering balls and operas of the summer season, a dangerous dance around the truth begins, where a man bent on delicious justice closes in on his prey...and a master deceiver may finally meet her match...

    He has received a letter stating that his late, younger brother, George, ruined a young lady. But how could this be possible? George was a scholar, a serious young man; without mincing words, he was a prude and a stick. Whereas Rohan enjoys the reputation of being a womanizer, George had the reputation of cold porridge.Enter the ruined young lady, Susannah, who claims she wasn't ruined. She claims she's a Carrington, but George didn't leave her in fine fettle. She has a three-year-old daughter, very little money, a younger brother, and a wastrel father. In short, she's not in very fine fettle. She and her daughter are also in danger.When Rohan and Susannah team up, they find themselves on the trail of a legendary treasure somehow connected to MacBeth, eleventh century king of Scotland--a fantastic legacy of ancient good and evil. There are also cats to be trained for the races, limericks to be sung to the heroes, a murder to be solved, a vicar with more secrets than a wizard's wand, and a man and a woman who are linked by magic as old as time.

    She's wretched at embroidery, pitiful at the pianoforte, and entirely too informed about the human body, courtesy of her father's scientific journals. And now she's been compromised by a dandy she despises! When her parents arrange a hasty marriage, there is only one man she can turn to for help. Rescued!No one knows that Irish groom Connor Riordan is the fifth Duke of Dunbrooke, "killed" in action at Waterloo, and he wants it to stay that way. But a true gentleman never turns away a damsel in distress. Soon Connor and Rebecca dash away—only to be pursued by bumbling highwaymen, a scheming duchess, and Rebecca's fiancé. Ravished! Being with the beautiful and desirable Rebecca jeopardizes Connor's secret every day—and tests his willpower every night. For if ever there was a reason to bring the Duke of Dunbrooke back from the dead, it would be to make Miss Tremaine his Duchess!

    Years before, a gypsy fortune-teller had told her of a purple blossomed tree, a far-off shore, and a devil of a man who awaited her there. Now, as she neared her destination, shipwreck and fate threw her into the arms of a rescuer, "Demon" Lucien Sinclair, the notorious ex-convict who had become rich in the gold fields of New South Wales. Lucien - wild and wickedly handsome - was the fallen archangel of her dreams. But the crime in his past was linked to a dangerious secret. And the passion awakened under the Jacaranda tree could cost Arabella her future, even her life...or give her Lucien forever to cherish, forever to love.

    Now, in book one of this sweeping and sensual series set in Regency England, join Brendan David Hampton, Earl of Northam, as he unravels a mystery.and the secrets of a woman's heart. None of the four friends are yet wed, though the wagers are on North -- captivated by a most unique lady. Libby Penrose is wise, witty, beautiful, and quite determined to remain alone. But when the intrigues of a notorious jewel thief find them plotting together, a stolen kiss seals their fate as lovers -- yet leaves North with more questions about Libby than answers. Despite her vow to deny her deep attraction to this powerful, sensual man, Libby surrenders to the breathless desire he awakens. She could not have imagined the whirlwind events that would find North accused of a crime.nor her own confession that would save him -- and compromise them both into matrimony. But sweet words of love remain unspoken and elusive. For Libby harbors a dark secret, one that threatens the untested bonds of her marriage. And soon fate will force her to make a harrowing choice: trust her husband.or lose him forever.

    Claire just as fate, too, had been merciless. The once wealthy, flirtatious belle stood on the auction block to be sold as a servant. Her sensual figure disguised, her glorious titian hair disheveled, she looked like a waif, but she was all woman, trembling when she recognized the highest bidder—idol of her childhood dreams, the owner of plantation Belle Chene. A man of blazing passion, Alex du Villier bought the girl out of pity, but her aqua eyes stirred his soul and her body ignited his blood. She would be the perfect mistress to make him forget his coming marriage to a cold, haughty heiress. Now he intended to teach this innocent beauty that although he had purchased her freedom, he could steal her heart. An affair of burning desires. . . . Under a Creole moon their passion became a wildfire neither could control, driving them to heart-wrenching choices of silken sin . . . or freedom and love.