Endearing Young Charms

It was true. The lovely young widow Lady Charteris - Delphine to her friends - had agreed to abide by her parents' wishes and marry the Comte Saint-Pierre. Delphine's parents had long since died in the Terror, but when she learned of their wishes for her, she believed it her duty to respect their wishes. Delphine would marry, but it would be a marriage in name only. But when Delphine saw Jules Saint-Pierre, she got the shock of her life: he was the same man she had seen juggling in the streets at a local fair.

Must one sister suffer in poverty while the other lives in the lap of luxury? This question plagued Harriet Clifton incessantly. Inviting herself to her widowed sister Cordelia's posh London townhouse for the season was surely the only way to meet a suitable partner - as well as escape drafty old Pringle House forever. The vain Cordelia was meanwhile casting her net for the notorious Marquess of Arden, a man who would rather court a mistress than wed a wife.

He stated quite bluntly--and much to Isabella's relief--that theirs would be a marriage in name only. But neither Harry nor Isabella was aware of the other's disguise, contrived in vain to thwart the impending nuptials. Isabella was not the selfish ice princess she seemed, nor was Harry a mincing dandy but rather a merry profligate.

Lord Percy Hunterdon despaired: He had inherited a Gothic horror of an estate along with a pair of 15-year-old brats to marry off. It was no secret to him that finding husbands for these two vile young ladies would require the utmost expertise: the care of a governess of superior caliber.

Fanny and her groom had been tricked! Parents on both sides, all impoverished, had decided to recoup their families' losses by marrying their children to the progeny of a wealthier neighbor. The joke was on them, however, when it was outed that neither family had a penny to its name.

Emily had been retrieved from orphanage life for the exclusive position of companion to Sir Peregrine's hound, Duke. Upon the gentleman's death, Emily and Duke inherited a fortune in diamonds. But Duke soon fell prey to greedy relatives, and Emily had to protect herself from Lord Storm, who had declared Emily's pedigree quite unsuitable, while at the same time threatening to steal her heart.

After ten long years, the Earl of Devenham has returned to wed Mary Anstey, only to find that their feelings for each other have cooled off considerably. Nevertheless, they both put on bright faces for the benefit of family and friends. But Mary's younger sister Emily sees through their masquerade and would sacrifice anything rather than see her retiring sister married to the now-haughty earl.