The first wedding night that Lady Juliana St. Albans spent with the dark and daring Rhys Vaughan was intoxicating, the heady culmination of her new husband's driving hunger and her own awakened sensuality. When he mysteriously disappeared the next morning, she waited for him in hope and desperation. And when he was finally proclaimed dead in a shipwreck, she bitterly mourned the loss of her love. The second wedding night that Juliana spent with Rhys Vaughan was six years later.

For ten years, Anthony Westfield, Viscount Somerton, hasn't been able to forget the woman with whom he spent one scandalous night. When their paths cross again, he's shocked to discover Victoria Seaton is an accomplished pickpocket. But Somerton leads a double life of his own. Working on an undercover assignment, he makes Victoria a proposition: pretend to be his mistress or risk ruin. Yet soon he's tempted to turn their charade into reality - and surrender to an explosive passion.

Maximilian Cale, the Duke of Lyons, long ago buried his grief for his missing elder brother, Peter. When a mysterious note arrives from Tristan Bonnaud asserting that the Duke's brother is alive, it leads Max straight to the winsome Lisette Bonnaud, illegitimate daughter of a viscount and Tristan's sister.

Lady Rebecca is determined to find a husband on her own terms, rather than marry any of the aging suitors her greedy aunt and uncle foist upon her. Her chance comes at the Kingsborough Ball, where she meets several potential grooms...yet no one compares to the dangerously handsome Daniel Neville. Notorious rake and heir to the Marquess of Wolvington, Daniel Neville is in need of a bride, but finding a lady who's willing to accept his past is an entirely different matter.

Lady Amelia Plume has many admirers – it’s too bad they’re all fortune hunters and fops who can’t provide the exotic adventures she seeks. But the ballrooms of Mayfair have become much more appealing since the arrival of Major Lucas Winter, an American with a dark past and a dangerous air. Lucas is brash, arrogant – and scandalously tempting. Every thrilling kiss sparks hotter desire, yet Amelia suspects Lucas has a hidden motive in wooing her. And she intends to discover it, by any means necessary.

Gareth Fitzallen is celebrated for four things: his handsome face, his notable charm, his aristocratic connections, and an ability to give the kind of pleasure that has women begging for more. Normally he bestows his talents on experienced, worldly women. But when he heads to Langdon's End to restore a property he inherited - and to investigate a massive art theft - he lays plans to seduce a most unlikely lady.

"Heartless" Cordelia Bering refuses every marriage offer she receives. Yet men still try to win her, drawn by her sharp wit and intoxicating green eyes. But Cordelia knows a marriage could reveal her deepest secret and truly endanger her life. Besides, she hasn't met a man worth considering, until... Sebastien Thorne, a spy in the service of the Crown. One of the elite agents in the group known as the Zodiac, he comes to London determined to solve a mystery with roots on the Continent.

At twenty-six, aspiring novelist Avis Copley intends to wear spinsterhood as a badge of honour. But when she discovers a volume of erotica that ignites a searing fire within her, Avis realizes just how much she doesn't know about the actual pleasures of the flesh. Determined to learn more, she devises a daring plan...Avis chooses Emory Billingsworth, a fellow novelist - not to mention a beautiful specimen of manhood - to instruct her in carnal pleasure.

For Chloe Wherlocke, it all begins with a vision - a glimpse into the future that foretells a terrible plot against Lord Julian Kenwood and his newborn son. Chloe's psychic gift allows her to save the child from certain death, but the earl remains in grave peril.... Julian Kenwood knows someone is trying to kill him, and he suspects his scheming wife and her lover are behind the plot. But Julian is shocked when Chloe, a captivating, dark-haired stranger, warns him that sinister forces are indeed at hand - and exposes a devastating secret that changes his life forever....

A disgraced son with a dark reputation, William Ferguson Avenel is content to live in exile in Scotland - until his father dies in the scandal of the Season, making him the new Duke of Rothwell and leaving him in charge of his young sisters. With rumors of insanity swirling around their family, the girls desperately need a chaperone. And he thinks he's found the lady for the job...until Rothwell discovers her dangerous secret life.

The fairy tale courtship did not turn into a happily-ever-after. Not until her husband dropped dead, that is. He had been horrible enough to Christiana during their short marriage, and she was not going to allow the traditional period of mourning to ruin her sisters' debuts as well. So she decides to put him on ice and go on as if nothing's happened.... Until the real earl appears.

As the reluctant new Viscount Middleton, Braden Tavers already has several reputations to save - including his own. So it's imperative he rescue his estate's healer Tia Featherstone from her impetuous plan to find his rakehell brother Jonathon. And he'll do whatever it takes to keep her determined spirit and unworldly charms at arm's length. But protecting this stubborn beauty from himself is only stoking an irresistible desire - and an insidious danger threatening them both....

When scholarly Miss Ivy Wareham receives word that she's one of four young ladies who have inherited Lady Celeste Beauchamp's estate with a magnificent private library, she packs her trunks straightaway. Unfortunately, Lady Celeste's nephew, the rakish Quill Beauchamp, Marquess of Kerr, is determined to interrupt her studies one way or another.... Bequeathing Beauchamp House to four bluestockings - no matter how lovely they are to look at - is a travesty, and Quill simply won't have it.

Heartbroken by the loss of her brother, Miss Leonora Craven vows to uncover the truth about his "accident", which seems to have been anything but. Jonathan Craven was involved with the Lords of Anarchy, a notorious driving club, and Leonora can't help but suspect foul play. But the only way she can infiltrate their reckless inner circle is to enlist the help of Jonny's closest ally, Lord Frederick Lisle. If only he didn't also happen to be the man who broke Leonora's heart....

After years abroad, Royal has returned to Bransford Castle to find his father dying and the family treasury nearly empty. Then the old duke wrests a final promise from his guilt-ridden son: that Royal will marry heiress Jocelyn Caulfield and restore the estate to its former glory. However, it is not his fiancée who quickens Royal's pulse, but rather her beautiful cousin Lily Moran. Penniless Lily knows that nothing can come of their undeniable attraction - but there is a way she can help Royal.

Lady Isabella Wharton has little interest in the customs of the country. But when her godmother asks her to pay a visit to her bachelor grandson in Yorkshire, she goes to see the newly-titled - and notoriously rustic - Duke of Ormond. Trevor Carey doesn't care about what goes on behind ballroom doors. He is content with the simple life - and isn't ashamed to admit it to a society flirt like Lady Isabella. But the country air brings out a different side of Isabella - one full of longing and passion. Can her sophistication be hiding a desire for love?

Oliver Sharpe, the Marquess of Stoneville, has been London's most notorious rake for years. Fed up with his behavior, his grandmother threatens to disinherit him if he doesn't tame his wild ways and wed within the year. Outraged, Oliver decides to hire a woman from a brothel to pose as his fiancée to prove that he can't be forced into marriage.

Maximilian Cale, the Duke of Lyons, long ago buried his grief for his missing elder brother, Peter. When a mysterious note arrives from Tristan Bonnaud asserting that the Duke's brother is alive, it leads Max straight to the winsome Lisette Bonnaud, illegitimate daughter of a viscount and Tristan's sister.

Lady Rebecca is determined to find a husband on her own terms, rather than marry any of the aging suitors her greedy aunt and uncle foist upon her. Her chance comes at the Kingsborough Ball, where she meets several potential grooms...yet no one compares to the dangerously handsome Daniel Neville. Notorious rake and heir to the Marquess of Wolvington, Daniel Neville is in need of a bride, but finding a lady who's willing to accept his past is an entirely different matter.

Ripped from her dying mother's arms, Morgana Fowler was cast into a life of desperate thievery. With a tongue even sharper than the blade she deftly wields, she has all but mastered her devious trade - until she picks the pocket of a dashing American who wrests her from the sordid streets of London. In the arms of her gallant protector, she is helpless against the longing he elicits within her.

Four amazing talents have come together to create one of the most unforgettable events of the year. The results are spectacular - each story is as unique as a lover's first kiss.

Forced to resort to a life of crime in order to support his siblings, Asher Cordell is now ready to walk the straight and narrow path. But when an old rival, the Marquis of Ormsby, infuriates him with his insipid arrogance, Asher cannot resist stealing his famous diamond. However, he's shocked to discover his beautiful neighbour, Juliana Greeley, is already lurking in Ormsby's library. Asher has known Juliana since childhood and always harboured a secret affection for her.

Gareth Fitzallen is celebrated for four things: his handsome face, his notable charm, his aristocratic connections, and an ability to give the kind of pleasure that has women begging for more. Normally he bestows his talents on experienced, worldly women. But when he heads to Langdon's End to restore a property he inherited - and to investigate a massive art theft - he lays plans to seduce a most unlikely lady.

As publisher of the weekly London ladies' gazette Heart to Heart, Krista Hart is known for her outspoken views on such unpopular issues as social reform - risking her reputation and her very safety with every controversial article. She refuses to be intimidated, although she knows full well it makes her the target of angry opposition. When she encounters a powerful Viking descendant imprisoned as a local sideshow attraction, Krista angrily demands his release.

Orphaned beauty Meg Amberley never planned to pose as Lord Cade Byron's fiancée. Caught in a snowstorm, she takes refuge at his estate. Stranded together, Meg soon finds herself falling under Cade's spell. When the roads clear, she intends to leave, but fate intervenes. Haunted by his past, Cade Byron has buried himself in the country. Then Meg - with her lush curves - invades his house and his life. With her reputation compromised, he proposes a pretend engagement and a London season where she can find a husband.

The winner of the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart contest for unpublished manuscripts, Christine Merrill has built a considerable fanbase for her steamy romance novels. Here, shy heiress Miss Penelope Winthorpe lives under the oppressive thumb of her bullying brother. In an attempt to escape his dour company, she accidentally weds Adam Felkirk, Duke of Bellston. Felkirk was not looking for marriage either, yet now he is intent on seducing his new bride.

Joan Bennett is a breath away from being a spinster. She’s had four seasons without a suitor. After reading a shockingly sensuous book, Fifty Ways to Sin, Joan decides perhaps it’s time to stop being proper and start being sinful, while she’s still young enough to enjoy it. And what better partner than her brother’s drinking mate, Viscount Burke? He seems the type to know how to give a lady a lascivious adventure.

Desperate to help her widowed sister and baby escape a deadly pursuer, Lady Chastity Ware dresses as a highwayman and captures the first coach to travel down the road. Coming face-to-face with its occupant, the arrogant aristocrat Cyn Malloren, she orders him to drive her to a remote cottage. Little does Chastity realize that after long months of recovering from his war wounds, the handsome Cyn is looking for adventure, and being abducted by a cocky highwayman - obviously a lovely woman in disguise - is even more than he had hoped for.

For ten years, Anthony Westfield, Viscount Somerton, hasn't been able to forget the woman with whom he spent one scandalous night. When their paths cross again, he's shocked to discover Victoria Seaton is an accomplished pickpocket. But Somerton leads a double life of his own. Working on an undercover assignment, he makes Victoria a proposition: pretend to be his mistress or risk ruin. Yet soon he's tempted to turn their charade into reality - and surrender to an explosive passion.

When a royal summons from her brother arrives, Emma knows it's time to embrace her duties as the princess of a small European kingdom and marry the man her brother has chosen for her, a stranger she has never met. Instead, she does what any self-respecting princess would do - she runs away. All she wants is one week in London. One week to experience everything life has to offer, before she is locked away in a loveless marriage forever. Former naval captain Nick Gregory has inherited a title he never wanted.