After The Kiss by Karen Ranney (2000)
HISTORICAL: European Historical Romance
SETTING: England 1822
HEROINE: 25-ish year old widow
Margaret Esterly is desperate - and desperation can lead to shocking behaviour! Beautiful and gently-bred, she was the essence of prim, proper English womanhood - until fate widowed her and thurst her into poverty overnight. Now she finds herself at a dazzling masked ball,determined to sell a volume of scandalous memoirs to the gala's noble host. But amid the heated fantasy of the evening, Margaret boldly, impetuously, shares a moment of passion with a darkly handsome gentleman . . . and then flees into the night.
Who was this exquisite creature who swept into Michael Hawthorne's arms and then vanished? The startled, yet pleasingly stimulated Earl of Montraine is not about to forget the intoxicating woman of mystery so easily - especially since Michael's heart soon tells him that he has at last found his perfect bride. But once he locates her again, will he be able to convince the reticent lady that their moment of ecstasy was no mere accident . . . and that just one kiss can lead to paradise?
