Rescued from Ruin
Sometimes love starts with a scandal it seems... especially in the lives of the Lacey and the Huxley siblings.
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0.5. EVER YOURS, ANNABELLE by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
She’s not one for half measures.
Lady Annabelle Huxley believes anything worth doing is worth doing boldly, and that includes adoring Robert Conrad. As a girl, she chased him with reckless abandon, and he always rescued her when she pushed too far… until the day rescuing her cost him everything—and lost her the boy she loved like no other.
He’s not the boy she remembers.
The accident that shattered his body and his future left Robert Conrad fighting a battle only the hardest men win. After seven hellish years, even his tough soldier of a grandfather thinks he needs a wife to ‘civilize’ him. But the season’s sole temptation is Annabelle, no longer a worshipful girl, now a siren with a womanly laugh, sarcastic mouth, and curves to make an uncivilized man sweat.
Love this powerful is not so easily broken.
Her habit of chasing trouble hasn’t changed. Neither has his driving need to protect her. So, when a scandalous secret draws danger too close, he’ll wield his weapons ruthlessly—blackmail, betrothal, seduction—to keep her safe once more. And when his strength is all that stands between her and a perilous abyss, she’s reminded why loving Robert Conrad has always been the hardest habit to break.
1. THE MADNESS OF VISCOUNT ATHERBOURNE by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
The night that changes everything…
Life for Victoria Lacey should be perfect. And it is—perfectly boring. Agree to marry a lord who has yet to inspire a single, solitary tingle? Why, of course. Smile as though this is not the thousandth time he’s mentioned hounds and hunting? It’s all in a day’s work for the oh-so-proper sister of the Duke of Blackmore. Surely no one would suspect her secret longing for heart-racing, head-spinning passion. Except, perhaps, a dark stranger… on a terrace… at a ball where she should definitely not be kissing a man she has only just met.
The obsession that leads to ruin…
Hatred, not love, drives Lucien Wyatt, Viscount Atherbourne, to tempt the ‘Flower of Blackmore’ into sin. Her brother has done unthinkable damage to Lucien’s family, and he intends to exact revenge in the only way left to him: Ruining his enemy’s sister, then stealing her from Blackmore by making her his own.
The woman who will set fire to her husband’s heart…
As Lucien carries out his ruthless plan, tutoring his new bride in the finer points of pleasure, her surrender leaves him breathless… and soon a new obsession awakens—a scandalous fascination with his irresistible wife.
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2. THE TRUTH ABOUT CADS AND DUKES by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
When a wager goes wrong...
Painfully shy Jane Huxley is the furthest thing from a diamond of the first water. Bookish, bespectacled, and, well, plain, she never expected to befriend a dissolute charmer like Colin Lacey, much less agree to help him retrieve a lost family heirloom. Fortunately, he is nothing like his cold, rigid older brother. Unfortunately, he is not above deception if it means winning a wager. And that puts Jane in a most precarious position.
A formidable duke will marry a plain Jane...
For Harrison Lacey, the Duke of Blackmore, protecting his family honor is not a choice, it is a necessity. So, when his cad of a brother humiliates the unwitting Lady Jane, Harrison must make it right, even if it means marrying the chit himself.
And a marriage of convenience will become so much more...
Her reputation hanging by a thread, Jane agrees to wed the arrogant Duke of Blackmore, although she’s convinced it will result in frostbite. Only after lingering glances lead to devastating kisses does she begin to suspect the truth: Perhaps—just perhaps—her duke is not as cold as he appears.
3. DESPERATELY SEEKING A SCOUNDREL by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
Desperately seeking a fiancé...
Miss Sarah Battersby is in dire need of a man, preferably one skilled at deception. Upon her father’s death, she will be left with no home and nary a penny. With time running out, she must either accept the proposal of a man she loathes, or stall long enough to secure a teaching position by telling one teensy, trifling lie—that she is promised to someone else... who doesn’t technically exist. But Sarah refuses to be defeated by insignificant details. The answer lies in finding the right man for the job. And, as luck would have it, she has stumbled on just the candidate... though he could use a little patching up.
Desperately seeking a refuge...
Where Lord Colin Lacey goes, trouble follows—even when he attempts to do right. Tortured and hunted by a brutal criminal, he is rescued from death’s door by the stubborn, oddly fetching Miss Battersby. In return, she asks one small favor: Pretend to be her fiancé. Temporarily, of course. With danger nipping his heels, he knows it is wrong to want her, wrong to agree to her terms. But when has Colin Lacey ever done the sensible thing?
Desperately seeking a love to conquer all...
As lies turn to longing, and longing to something deeper, they realize it will take more than passion to see them through the danger to come. They will need a plan. They will need family. Above all, they will need a love strong enough to steel a lady’s resolve and transform a scoundrel's heart.
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4. THE DEVIL IS A MARQUESS by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
When a rake beyond redemption...
A walking scandal surviving on little more than wits, whisky, and wicked skills in the bedchamber, Benedict Chatham, the new Marquess of Rutherford, is at the end of his rope. Deeply in debt and down to his last farthing, he must marry nothing short of an absolute fortune, or risk utter ruin.
Must marry for money...
Enter Miss Charlotte Lancaster, unfashionably tall heiress to just such a fortune and a clumsy, redheaded disaster in her five London seasons. While she dreams of leaving England for a life of trade in America, her father schemes to trade her dowry for a title—and Marchioness of Rutherford will do nicely. Charlotte wants her independence, not a husband, and certainly not a disreputable devil who renders her weak and wobbly with a single scorching glance. But she’s a practical sort, and a year with the devil might buy her freedom... provided she can resist his seductive charms. That shouldn’t prove a problem, for he could not possibly want someone like her, and the feeling is mutual. Really. It is.
Love grows in the most unexpected places...
When her father demands a startling price for his daughter’s hand—one year of fidelity and sobriety—Chatham must change his libertine ways... at least temporarily. And when he does, Charlotte begins to see him in a new light—not as the scandalous charmer she married, but as the husband she just might adore.
5. WHEN A GIRL LOVES AN EARL by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
What a girl wants...
Miss Viola Darling always gets what she wants. Always. And what she wants more than anything is to marry James Kilbrenner, the Earl of Tannenbrook. She’s fallen hard for the giant, taciturn, surly brute, and she positively will have no other. The problem? He’s not interested. Not even a little. But Viola cannot afford to lose. And she has her heart set on James. If only he will bend to a bit of persuasion.
Is an earl like no other...
James Kilbrenner knows how determined the entirely-too-beautiful Miss Darling can be—the daft woman cornered him at a perfectly respectable dinner and mangled his cravat before he could escape. He has no desire to marry, less desire to be pursued, and will certainly not kiss her kissable lips until they are both breathless, no matter how tempted he may be.
And only the right one will do...
Thrown in her path by a meddling marchioness, James finds himself under sensual siege from a tiny, flirtatious sprite who puts both his heart and his vow to remain unwed at risk. And when scandal looms, he learns the hard way that a man can resist only so long before the indomitable Miss Darling gets her way.
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5.5. TWELVE NIGHTS AS HIS MISTRESS by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
Wooing may not be his strong suit...
Admittedly, when it comes to courtship, the Marquess of Wallingham’s strategy has been a few roses short of a bouquet. Charles Bainbridge has spent two long years wooing the woman he loves, waiting patiently until he is half-mad. Now, at a winter hunting party, he has one last chance to persuade her they are meant to be. And this time, he won’t let meaningless doubts, his meddling mother, or a few mishaps and mangled bonnets stand in his way.
And passion may not be hers...
Safe and comfortable inside her tidy, carefully ordered existence, Julia Willoughby has never known longing like this. Others see Charles as the quiet, manageable sort. Julia sees the truth: This dragon’s son has a fire of his own. Enough to sear her with a touch, a glance, a kiss. For the sake of his happiness, she refuses to bind him in a childless union. Her heart, however, isn’t so easily convinced, for it wants Charles rather madly.
But a marquess must do what a marquess must do...
Outraged at the thought of losing her to a dusty country squire, Charles makes a final offer: Spend twelve nights in his bed, and if she can still deny they are perfect for each other, he will let her go. But not before thoroughly tempting the lovely, stubborn Julia to trade sensible predictability for the sweet chaos of true love.
6. CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS LORD by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
Never judge a man by his cover…
Society knows the affable Earl of Dunston for his flashy waistcoats and rapier wit. Lady Maureen Huxley knows him as Henry Thorpe, her best friend—an irresistibly kissable, strictly platonic friend. Which means her dreams of marriage, motherhood, part-time cookery, and full-time domestic bliss must be fulfilled elsewhere. But after three seasons and a parade of fickle suitors, Maureen’s hopes are fading. Worse, she suspects Henry is to blame.
Never trust a man with too many secrets…
Years spent hunting his father’s murderer through London’s dark underworld have honed Henry Thorpe into a deadly blade with one purpose—catching a killer of fathomless evil. Nothing mattered more until Maureen Huxley came along. To keep her safe, he must keep her at arm’s length. Yet he can’t resist drawing her close, making her laugh, dreaming of doing wicked things to her lush body. Very well, perhaps he also dissuaded some of her suitors. But what’s a little deception between friends?
Never provoke a man as dangerous as this one…
With his enemy growing bolder and Maureen contemplating marriage to another man, Henry is caught in the crossfire between his mission and his heart. Any move could exact a devastating cost. But losing the woman he loves is one price he refuses to pay.
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7. ANYTHING BUT A GENTLEMAN by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
A spinster hatches a plan (with a smattering of blackmail).
Miss Augusta Widmore has no time for proprieties. She must force her sister’s ne’er-do-well betrothed to the altar with all haste—or watch her sister bear the scandalous consequences. But with the blackguard resisting his duty, she needs leverage. And only one man can provide it.
A giant holds all the cards (or so he thinks).
Sebastian Reaver has no time for presumptuous women. He has a club to run. So, when a perfect nuisance invades his office, demands a fortune in markers, and refuses to leave until he relinquishes them to her, he knows just the thing to send her scurrying back to Hampshire: Exact a price this prim country spinster would never agree to pay.
A fiery battle begins (with both sides playing for keeps).
Ordinarily, Augusta would never agree to become the mistress of a notorious club owner—whether he’s a lowborn ruffian or the wealthiest man in London or the most intriguing, ill-tempered giant she’s ever encountered… or all three. Calling his bluff raises the stakes (and the heat), but retreat will mean ruin for Augusta. Now, Sebastian wants her total surrender, and he has a few tricks up his sleeve—soul-stealing kisses, unexpected honor, and electrifying persuasion for the woman he never saw coming.
8. A MARRIAGE MADE IN SCANDAL by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
Wanted: A countess for the most feared lord in London.
With a family legacy tainted by murder and madness, Phineas Brand, the Earl of Holstoke, is having a devil of a time securing a proper wife—or even an improper one. Society misses faint at the sight of him. Matchmaking mamas scurry to avoid him. Only one woman is bold enough to keep drawing near, and she’s more scandalous than he is.
Caution: A lady’s brazen ways may lead to ruin.
Lady Eugenia Huxley knows all about running aground in the marriage mart, thanks to a scandal involving a footman and too much drink. No matter. She’ll gladly pursue millinery over matrimony. But when her sister’s spurned suitor returns to London in search of a wife, she can’t resist offering him a bit of courtship advice, even if the chilly, brilliant, honorable Lord Holstoke does give her shivers—heated, head-to-toe shivers that are anything but fearful.
Danger: This match may be combustible.
After a series of vicious murders brings suspicion to Holstoke’s door, Eugenia risks everything to be his alibi. The only rational remedy is to marry the minx before she generates another scandal. Yet, the dangers don’t end at the altar. A poisonous enemy coils ever closer, threatening the woman who awakens his soul. How far will he go to protect her? That may be the greatest danger of all.
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9. A KISS FROM A ROGUE by Elisa Braden
SYNOPSIS
All she wants is an ordinary life.
A cruel past left Hannah Gray with one simple longing—normalcy. Normal ladies ride and waltz without fear. They have safe, normal husbands to give them safe, normal kisses. After years of healing, she’s ready to find ‘normal’ for herself, and Lady Wallingham’s house party is the perfect place to begin. Perfect, that is, except for the cynical wolf-in-rogue’s-clothing whose every hungry glance threatens to crack her armor and pierce her fragile heart.
All he wants is to forget her.
Bow Street runner Jonas Hawthorn vowed never to see the cold, haughty Miss Gray again. A year ago, he nearly died trying to protect her, only to be dismissed like a lowly servant. But soon, he’ll have land and servants of his own. He just has to locate an old dowager’s stolen goods, collect his prize, and avoid the beauty who haunts him like a moonlit sky.
All it takes is a single kiss.
He never meant to touch her. She never meant to reveal the truth. But once he’s tasted the heat and longing hidden beneath her icy mask, the only mystery this Bow Street man burns to solve is how a roguish wolf might win the elusive Miss Gray for himself.