The kiss was as nothing she'd ever known...the warmth and sweetness of his mouth was so new to her...Beautiful young Mary Monk was trembling when she surrendered her innocence to dashing Cavalier nobleman Gideon Hawkes to save herself from the destitution the Great Fire of London had assured. Gideon took her on a whim, to satisfy a fleeting desire. Yet what began as a coupling of a jaded man's lust and a desperate girl's need soon turned into something far stronger and deeper. Gideon had the power and the purpose to make Mary blossom as a woman, with a woman's passions and a woman's fulfillment. And in Mary, Gideon discovered something he had never known, even with the most dazzling ladies and captivating courtesan who frequented the lavish and licentious courts of Europe. For what he had set aflame in Mary and what she returned to him a hundredfold—was love...

"A superb spellbinder...weaving a glimmering tapestry of incredible richness...captures the heart and soul of the Regency era...a gem of a book." —Romantic TimesTWO FACES OF LOVEMiss Susannah Logan felt very fortunate to have not one but two gentlemen shepherding her through the first London season.One was the cynical and brilliant Mr. Warwick Jones, whose wit and wealth gave him free entry into society and whose pretended scorn for women was matched only by the sensual intensity of his passion for them.The other was the handsome and honorable Julian, Viscount Hazelton, whose fierce desire for an unobtainable beauty had led him to financial ruin but could not mar his irresistible, godlike good looks.Warwick Jones and Julian were good friends until they took the inexperienced Miss Logan in hand...each leading her on a different path of love and passion toward a decision that threatened to intoxicate her flesh...and yield her ripe innocence to the one man...

Miss Susannah Logan felt very fortunate to have not one but two gentlemen shepherding her through the first London season. One was the cynical and brilliant Mr. Warwick Jones, whose wit and wealth gave him free entry into society and whose pretended scorn for women was matched only by the sensual intensity of his passion for them. The other was the handsome and honorable Julian...

A brand-new, never-released novel from the USA TODAY bestselling Regency author!When a gentleman is found dead on a fishmonger's doorstep in Regency London, a rugged Bow Street Runner has to pair with the man's elegant noble nephew to solve the crime. They both find unexpected help—and infatuation—with the fishmonger's very unusual young widow.Individually, each has a reason for getting to the bottom of the mystery. And, as a trio, they find they are uniquely effective detectives with the ability to accomplish something few others can: solve a crime by scouring London, from its glorious heights of luxury to its rankest depths of depravity.

Previously published individually, these four great novellas are collected in one book for the first time!"The Legacy"—Valerian Blackwood is summoned to his aged uncle's country estate to help the old man settle a problem with his heir. What Valerian finds is a mystery—and the love of his life. He only has to decide which is more important to him: solving the mystery or winning his lady."Buried Treasure"—What is Hannah Jenkins to make of the wildly attractive silver-tongued man villagers bring to her family's house after he is found injured on the shore near her seacoast home? He says he was the victim of pirates. But who is the pirate, and who is the prey?"Something Blue"—June Heywood's coming wedding day is clouded by a vicious remark she overhears, causing her to wonder why the handsome and clever Lawrence, Lord Morrow, ever asked for her hand. Who should she believe? Gossip or her heart?"A Marriage of True Minds"—The bride's sister and the...

Simon Atwood, Lord Granger, once gave all for his country—and paid the price. Now, his handsome face haunted by a secret sorrow, Simon has undertaken a mission far closer to home, but no less dangerous. And though he hesitates to risk her safety, he must seek the help of Jane Chatham, an enchanting dance teacher who could prove a worthy partner—in espionage and in love.Forced to live by her wiles far from her well-bred country upbringing, Jane Chatham is suspicious of every man's intentions, even those of a gentleman like Simon Atwood. After all, she knows nothing of this enigmatic nobleman, and has no reason to believe his promises. Keeping him at a distance should prove simple for the resourceful, quick-witted beauty...until she finds herself mesmerized by Simon's dark and dangerous ways, consumed by a passion that puts her very life at stake.

Francesca Wyndham knew the folly of gambling. She had seen her father, Lord Wyndham, lose the family fortune, forcing her to become a plain chaperone to an empty-headed young Miss. But now Francesca was taking a gamble even her father would have blanched at. She was falling in love with the irresistible Arden Lyons, a gentleman who was clearly anything but a gentleman...

A lady in waitingPhillipa Carstairs is absolutely lovely-so everyone has said since the hour she entered the world. Any gentleman would thrill to make her his bride, yet Pippa is all alone, waiting for a fiancé who disappeared many months ago. She's long forgotten why she loved him, and she's nearly given up hope.A man of actionAt first glance, Maxwell, Lord Montrose, is nothing but a dandy-albeit a well-chiseled, irresistibly handsome one! But his foppish demeanor hides a keen mind and a steely resolve. A spy for the Crown who knows absolutely everyone, he's the only one who can help Pippa find her missing fiancé.An irresistible desireCrossing England on the trail of the elusive husband-to-be, Maxwell and Pippa have the best of intentions. But a simmering attraction builds in close quarters . . . with a sinful passion that will be impossible to deny.

Though Eve Faraday was beautiful and intelligent, she never expected to be wooed by the devastatingly handsome and utterly charming Aubrey Ashford, the most eligible bachelor in all of London. Skeptical of the sudden attention, she tries hard to avoid temptation, but the alluring Aubrey—and his kisses—prove impossible to resist! She accepts his offer of marriage and moves with him to his ancestral home at Fair Isle. But after such a whirlwind courtship and lightning-quick marriage, Eve begins to wonder if she really knows Aubrey at all. There is something mysterious, something magical and primeval about her new husband . . .Aubrey is not who he appears to be—that much is certain. But his feelings for Eve are true. And only when he reveals his astonishing secret will Eve realize that she and Aubrey might have a chance at a love that will last forever . . .

SUMMARY: A collection of short works centered around Christmas by favorite romance novelists includes stories by Mary Balogh, Sandra Heath, Edith Layton, Melinda McRae, and Mary Jo Putney

Lovely Regina Berryman was pursued by two men—the two most attractive and infamous bachelors in London.One was Jason Thomas, Duke of Torquay, whose skill and success in seduction had made him a legend of lordly licentiousness. The other was St. John Basil St. Charles, Marquis of Bessacarr, the devilish Duke's only rival as the foremost rake of the realm.These notorious gentlemen had made Regina fair game in a competition where all was considered legitimate strategy in winning her affection and capturing her virtue. And Regina's only chance of preserving her honor and protecting her heart was to turn the tables on her titled tempters—and change the dallying way Regency London played the game of love....

Miss Catherine Robins took a position as companion to the Dowager Duchess of Crewe, little suspecting what kind of strait she would find herself in. For the not-so-good Duchess expected her hired companions not to please her, but to please the gentlemen she adored having swarm around her. By the time the Duchess forced Catherine to come with her to a Paris filled with shocking amours and sinister intrigues, Catherine was painfully aware that her reputation and virtue were both in fearful danger. And when the infinitely attractive and thoroughly notorious Marquis of Bessacarr picked Catherine to be his paid plaything, her risks were compounded. This proper young lady in peril had to fight not only the Marquis' audacious advances but her own unsettling responses if she hoped to prove that all her love was more precious than all his gold...

THE EXQUISITE PRETENDERIn dress, manner, and speech, Miss Elizabeth DeLisle seemed every inch a leisured lady. No one could guess she had been forced to take a position in trade—or that she had come to the Earl of Auden's estate to entice him into naming her dismayingly disagreeable cousin Anthony heir to a fortune that she then could share.But Elizabeth had stiff competition for the Earl's imperious favor...from the schemingly seductive Lady Isabel Courtney and her odious little boy, Owen...from the implacably upright Richard Courtney and his unfortunate honesty...and from the memory of the Earl's first wife, who had made him despise women who deceived.Elizabeth knew she could never reveal the truth to the Earl—even when she forgot about gaining his fortune and began losing her heart....