Claire Welton and her friends have had several
unsuccessful seasons, and have decided to shake things
up. They pledge to help each other in whatever ways they
can to change themselves from wallflowers to wives.
Claire's debut looked promising until she and the
reigning belle of the season, Cecilia, wore similar
dresses to the same event. Cecilia is a true bully, and
issued a public setdown that shattered Claire's
confidence. Since then, Claire started dressing and
acting like a mouse who didn't want to be noticed.
Jonathan Lashley is well on his way to becoming a
successful diplomat. He is in the running for an
important position, but is hampered by his seeming
inability to speak French properly. At a dinner party,
Jonathan is seated near Claire, whose friends know that
she has been carrying a torch for him forever. They play
up her strong ability in foreign languages, and Jonathan
takes the bait and asks Claire to tutor him.
The wallflowers want Claire to have a chance with
Jonathan, so they begin by working on her wardrobe. Soon
the mousy woman tutoring Jonathan is looking quite
lovely. Jonathan and Claire soon begin spending time
together at events, dancing and chatting, and getting
along famously. This doesn't escape the notice of
Cecilia, who was expecting an imminent marriage offer
from Jonathan. She was counting on her father's
influence and her own qualifications to be a diplomat's
wife to snare Jonathan.
As Claire blossoms under Jonathan's attention, he has to
make a decision. He was willing to make any sacrifice,
including a marriage of convenience, in order to secure
his future. Yet he finds that he really loves Claire,
but having her will mean there are no guarantees. I love
how Jonathan comes to realize what's truly important, and
how he stands up for himself against Cecilia's bullying
tactics. t's always good to see the mean girl get her
comeuppance. UNBUTTONING THE INNOCENT MISS is a
charming, well written romance that I enjoyed very much,
and has me looking forward to the upcoming stories about
the remaining wallflowers.
"All you have to do is watch my mouth."
Simple in theory, but how can the ton's most eligible catch,
Jonathon Lashley, concentrate on his French lessons with
Miss Claire Welton when all he wants is to claim that
delectable mouth with a heart-stopping kiss?
Wallflower Claire has loved dashing Jonathon for years—and
this Season, she's finally doing something about it! Except
the closer she gets, the more she realizes how little she
really knows him, and how much he has to teach
her…especially about the art of seduction!