Kingsley Family

Lady Brandice Townsend stands miserably on the threshold of womanhood. Not only must she bid good-bye to the man she's adored since childhood as he sails off to war, she must embark on her dreaded debut into London society. Restless and disheartened, Brandi is drawn back to Emerald Manor, the fairy-tale cottage whose lush gardens are her own private haven. Abruptly, tragedy strikes, wresting away all she holds dear, leaving naught but a dark and uncertain future. Lord Quentin Steel is torn from his brilliant military career in Wellington's army by news of a shattering family disaster. Returning home to the Cotswolds, he is confronted by two staggering discoveries: that the death of his parents was no accident and that the Brandi he left behind has blossomed into a rare and extraordinary woman-one who inspires feelings he can neither allow nor control... Together, Brandi and Quentin must unearth the agonizing truth behind his parent's demise and in the process reveal a love more precious than all the facets of Emerald Garden.

Nicole Aldridge, the only child of England's most acclaimed jockey, is driven by one goal: to protect her father from merciless blackmailers. With Nick forced to give up his career and go into hiding, his daughter Nicole, an expert rider who grew up at her father's knee, disguises herself as a boy to compete in the celebrated Derby. But when her new employer, Dustin Kingsley, the Marquis of Tyreham, suspects something is amiss, she is torn between her growing feelings for him and her desperate need to keep her father safe. Die Aldridge. The painted words pierced Nicole's soul like the fatal stab of a dagger... Nicole Aldridge, daughter of England's most acclaimed jockey, Nick Aldridge, whisks her father into hiding to protect him from blackmailers who have threatened his life for refusing to throw a race. Desperate to keep her father safe and the two of them fed, Nicole dresses as a boy and answers an ad addressed to her father by the Marquis of Tyreham. As Nick's "protégé," she wins the position of jockey, hired by the marquis to run the race of a lifetime: the celebrated Epsom Derby. Dustin Kingsley, Marquis of Tyreham, renowned as a thoroughbred breeder and the town's most sought-after bachelor, is restless, empty-until he meets the beautiful stranger sitting by the Thames. Determined to win Nicole's heart, Dustin plunges headlong into the ominous mystery eclipsing their future, hell-bent on convincing Nicole that he's the only man for her. An impossible masquerade, a never-to-be-forgotten Derby, and a cherished wishing locket propel Nicole and Dustin toward a climactic finish, where danger threatens a love destined by wishes and fate to prevail.