At 21, the tall, blonde Julia Miller controls her father's
conglomerate from London. To advance her into society, a
marriage contract has been in force with Lord Richard Allen
since they were both small children. Following an accident,
Julia's mother is dead and her father is left with only
bouts of clarity from a head injury. Julia and Richard,
having a fierce dislike for one another from the forced
betrothal, impose various inflictions upon each other until
Richard, at 17, takes matters into his own hands and flees
England for the Caribbean as a pirate.
After 11 years, Richard returns to England and encounters a
beautiful young lady of interest only to discover she is
his fiancée all grown up. Scheming together to nullify
their betrothal, Julia and Richard decide to steal the
contract. Richard's father, intent on pursuing their
marriage to fill his own coffers, foils Richard and Julia
yet again. Neither Richard nor Julia expects to feel the
shifting from hate to love as they balk against being yet
again controlled by his father.
As usual, Johanna Lindsey has created another
terrific story. Her characters are colorful and lively. The
amusing banter between Julia and Richard is creative, as is
the storyline. The author has a unique gift for creating a
story that will hold the interest and keep the characters
alive and feisty so that it is impossible to keep from
turning the pages until that last one is read. I have been
reading her novels for years and she manages to keep each
novel fresh with a new plot and exciting characters.
Returning to the "wickedly witty, lusciously sensual"
(Booklist) world of her beloved Malory family, #1 New
York Times bestselling author Johanna Lindsey sweeps
readers away on a seductive adventure in which a detested
marriage contract turns childhood enemies into passionate
lovers.
Nine years ago, Richard Allen fled
England and his controlling father. Determined to live his
own life, he took to the sea and settled in the Caribbean,
joining a band of treasure-hunting pirates and adopting the
persona of a carefree, seductive Frenchman named Jean Paul
to guard the secrets of his past. When he slips back into
England to carry out an urgent task, Richard becomes
infatuated with a married woman, Georgina Malory. But his
reckless attempt to woo Georgina at a masked ball turns out
to be the worst mistake of his life because it brings him
face to face with another beautiful woman.
Thrilled that her solicitors have finally come
up with a way to free her from her betrothal contract to the
Earl of Manford’s son who abandoned her years ago, heiress
Julia Miller is ready for the marriage mart and hopes to
find that perfect someone at her friend Georgina’s ball.
Charmed by a masked Frenchman who gives her her first kiss,
she can’t help but pursue this mysterious man—until she
makes a shocking discovery. Now, to avoid falling into a
ruthless nobleman’s trap, Julia must enter a risky, intimate
charade with a man she never believed she could love.