Headstrong Harts

Five lessons in pleasure. One lesson in love. Fraser MacGregor, thirteenth Duke Molineux, seizes the opportunity to use the title he unexpectedly inherited, to further his whisky business. He leaves his Highland home and heads for London where he's accosted by a feisty lass, who smashes a vase over his head. Delilah Hart should be relishing her first London season. But she'd rather be a writer than a bland society wife. Her secret occupation of writing anonymous, inflammatory articles about the notorious Molineux family, is the first step to realizing her dream. But when the new duke makes her an offer she can't refuse-to learn about her cause for social justice in exchange for five lessons in the art of pleasure-she begins to question her beliefs and desires. Before long, Delilah realizes that her heart, as well as her career, is at stake. Contains mature themes.

Sometimes, a losing hand can be the greatest victory of all. Born into poverty, self-made banker Dexter Hart is now one of the wealthiest men in London. His ambition is to marry a title-and who better than the daughter of his enemy Viscount Alderley, the man who once whipped him as a boy, and on whom he vowed revenge? But Dexter's plan backfires, and he finds himself tricked into marrying Alderley's illegitimate daughter instead. Margaret Alder has known heartbreak and betrayal, and has lived in exile and disgrace for eight years. When her natural father rips her away from her home, he bullies her into marrying a stranger. The marriage thrusts Meggie into a world she doesn't understand, with a bridegroom even more reluctant than she-a world of society, traditions, and etiquette, where even the servants don't hide their scorn. But she soon learns that beneath her husband's ruthless exterior lies a passionate man who renders her breathless with his fiery kisses and skillful touch. But when Meggie's past returns to haunt her, she must decide whether she can trust the husband she's growing to love-or risk losing him forever. Contains mature themes.

A lasting friendship, a dream sacrificed, a life destroyed. Major Devon Hart, the ultimate rake, had women flocking to his bed, until a street brawl four years ago left him scarred, inside and out. His once-handsome face now damaged beyond recognition, he remains hidden, except at night, when he dispenses his own brand of justice on the streets of London. He has nothing to live for except his friendship with Colonel Fossett, who saved his life, and his love for Lady Atalanta Grey, a woman he can only hope to admire from afar. Lady Atalanta longs to be loved for something other than her wealth and beauty. Her life holds no excitement, until the night she's set upon by thieves. The masked stranger who comes to her aid stirs delicious passions with tender words and scorching kisses, but he disappears before she can identify him. Devon believes that Atalanta could never love the scarred, bitter man he's become. But when Fossett asks for Devon's help in wooing her, Devon must choose between sacrificing his dream of happiness, or betraying the man to whom he owes everything. When a man has little to live for, will he sacrifice his dreams for the sake of a friend? Contains mature themes.

A spinster. A prizefighter. A marriage of convenience. This bout can't end well. Plain, prim, and beyond marriageable age, Dorothea Hart is resigned to the life of a spinster aunt. But she yearns for a family of her own, and is hopelessly attracted to the 'Mighty Oak'-a prizefighter renowned for his prowess-who stirs previously unknown passions in her. Widower Griffin Oake made his fortune in the ring-but he can't buy respectability, or a footing in society for his daughter. After a disastrous first marriage, he has no wish to wed again, but is looking to employ a genteel woman to chaperone the rebellious teenager-preferably the plainest, dullest woman in London. When Dorothea is publicly compromised, she's pushed into a marriage of convenience with the object of her infatuation. Exiled to the country, with a husband who avoids her, and a stepdaughter determined to defy her, Dorothea's dream of a loving family seems further away than ever . . . and she begins to suspect that Griffin's first wife's death was not an accident. Contains mature themes.