Kiss From A Rogue (Scandalous Ladies #2)

A Woman of the Night…

Her husband left behind a bankrupt estate when he died, but Sylvia, Lady Montgomery, won’t allow the villagers who depend on her to starve. She leads their smuggling operation, even as she endeavors to come up with a safer alternative for their livelihood.

A Rogue on the Prowl…

Now that Tony Sinclair’s elder brother, the earl, has returned from war and relieved him of familial responsibilities, Tony is free to do … something. Lacking direction in his life, he decides to try on the role of rakehell. His search for pleasure leads him to a quaint coastal village, and a young, pretty widow. Tony plans to make her his first conquest, then move on.

After Sylvia’s gang mistakes Tony for a Revenue agent and captures him, Tony takes on a role he never expected to play, so he can spend more time with the bewitching widow. As danger closes in from Revenue agents and a rival gang, Tony finds himself fighting for the villagers as well as for Sylvia’s heart. But Sylvia has no intention of falling for a rake, no matter how charming the rogue … or intoxicating his kiss.

Originally published February 2006. Lightly edited for 2021 as part of the Scandalous Ladies series.
Each book in the series can be read as a stand-alone novel — a complete story arc, no cliffhangers, no family tree chart required to keep track of who is who — but most readers prefer to enjoy them in the order they’re written and published. Kiss From A Rogue is book 2 of 4.

Sample from Kiss From A Rogue:

Sylvia gave him a sideways look, her chin lowered. “Why are you doing this?”

Tony sighed. His right hand was covered in blisters; he’d cheated death by working on the edge of a slick roof roof forty feet above the earth; he’d pretended to be a smuggler, knowing the government would see it as no pretense if he was caught; and just this tonight he’d fought a man twice his size in defense of a woman who’d become his acquaintance only because members of her gang had abducted him and knocked him unconscious.

Why, indeed?

Sylvia leaned closer, intent on his answer, her green gaze focused on his face, her lips slightly parted. He sat forward, cupped her cheek with his left hand, and kissed her. She stayed perfectly still, allowing him to brush his lips against hers, to caress her cheek with his thumb. He pulled back a bit, giving her a chance to escape should she want it.

She followed him, not allowing a break in contact. Fire coursed through his veins as their breath mingled and she kept her lips pressed against his. Someone moaned.

They separated a fraction. “Good answer,” she whispered.