Claudia Martin is headmistress of a girls' school, and she has resigned herself to a life of spinsterhood. But then comes along Joseph Fawcitt - tall, dark and exquisitely sensual. Joseph is determined to make Claudia his at any cost. And the cost could be high, for he is heir to a dukedom and is expected to honour the family's legacy.

In Mary Balogh's engaging and seductive new novel of drama and romance, a woman comfortable in her solitude allows temptation to free her heart, when a daring war hero shows her how truly extraordinary she is.
THE PROPOSAL
Gwendoline, Lady Muir, has seen her share of tragedy, especially since a freak accident took her husband much too soon. Content in a quiet life with friends and family, the young widow has no desire to marry again. But when Hugo, Lord Trentham, scoops her up in his arms after a fall, she feels a sensation that both shocks and emboldens her.
Hugo never intends...

They meet in a ferocious snowstorm. She is a young teacher with a secret past, and he is the cool, black-caped stranger who comes to her rescue. Between these two strangers, desire is instantaneous. Stranded together in a country inn, Lucius Marshall, the Viscount Sinclair, and Frances Allard share a night of glorious, unforgettable passion.

While on a summer holiday in Wales, Anne meets Sydnam Butler, a tacitum hero of the Peninsula Wars. Gentle yet courageous, he is unlike any man Anne has ever encountered. Then, Anne makes a surprising discovery. She has no choice but to test Sydnam's love. Their passion becomes a showdown between long-buried fears and grand dreams.

Colonel Lord Aidan Bedwyn has come to Ringwood Manor to keep his promise to a dying fellow officer. He has sworn to protect the man's sister no matter what - even when he finds that Miss Eve Morris wants no part of his protection. Finally, Aidan makes Eve an offer she cannot refuse.

On a visit to Bath, a stranger bursts into Lady Freyja's room and entreats her to hide him. His name is Joshua, who is intrigued by the beauty. He makes her a surprising request: to pose as his fiancee and help thwart his family's matchmaking schemes. For two people determined to be free, it's the perfect plan...until passion blindsides them both.

From the moment he spies Lady Morgan across the glittering ballroom, Gervase Ashford, Earl of Rosthorn, knows he has found the perfect instrument of his revenge. But, wedlock is not on the mind of the continent's most notorious rake. Nor, is it of interest to the fiercely independent Lady Morgan herself.

On a Flemish battlefield, Lord Alleyne Bedwyn is thrown from his horse and left for dead, only to awaken in the bedchamber of a Brussels brothel. The dark, handsome diplomat has no memory of who he is or how he got there - yet of one thing he is certain: he owes his life to the angel of undoubtedly dubious virtue who is nursing him back to health.

When Susannah is introduced to the charming, handsome Peter Edgeworth, he unsettles her with his seductive gaze and brash pursuit. Yet the more Peter advances, the more Susanna withdraws. Suspecting that Susanna is haunted by a tragic history, Peter is determined to defy the mysteries of her past for a future with this exquisite creature.

Lord Ferdinand Dudley is accustomed to getting what he wants - that is, until he appears at the door of Pinewood Manor, attempting to claim his rightful estate, and is met by the bewitching fury of Lady Viola Thornhill. She refuses to relinquish the home she calls her own. He refuses to leave and so the contest begins.