hidden gems 💎
11 stories
Violets And Other Small Scandals by MargotAsh
MargotAsh
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    Parts 27
One singer past her prime, one admirer out of his depth, and one last chance at an encore. Scene: London, 1835. Once the darling of Covent Garden, Aimée Millet has exchanged ovations for creditors and a pension barely fit for decency. Her loyal maid, Nellie Simmons, guards what remains of their household pride with a teapot and a tongue sharp enough to steal scenes. Enter Mr Julian Harcourt: twenty-four, earnest, and catastrophically well-bred. His impulsive gallantry sets Bloomsbury whispering and Aimée's temper alight. A polite apology spirals into a comedy of missteps, music, and inconvenient tenderness. Julian believes love can mend what the world has broken; Aimée knows better. Yet when kindness arrives with violets, laughter, and the first glimmer of hope she has dared to feel in years, it becomes impossible to refuse. For readers who like their romance witty, their heroines wary, and their happy endings hard-won.
Waltzing the Viscount by Aditi-K
Aditi-K
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    Parts 14
A reluctant viscount. A transformed debutante. One impulsive waltz that changes everything... Daniel Bennett, Viscount Kennard, has always lived by duty-first to his family, then to his title. With his sister well married and society watching his every step, he has no patience for the frivolities of a London Season-least of all escorting a cousin he remembers as a gawky, relentless girl he once avoided at every turn. But when she arrives in London, Daniel is unprepared. The awkward child of his memory has become a poised, luminous young woman with a quick wit that unsettles him as much as it captivates him. Avoidance proves impossible when a waltz draws them into dangerous proximity, awakening feelings Daniel never intended to face-especially not for her. And the more he tries to remember that she is family, the harder it becomes to ignore the way his carefully ordered world begins to tilt. Claire Montrose once harbored a girlish fancy for her cousin-a fancy she has long since tucked into the quietest corner of her heart. Now in London under her aunt's sponsorship, she is determined to secure a future of her choosing-not merely become another jewel displayed for society's inspection. The last thing she needs is Daniel's watchful, disapproving gaze following her every move. Yet beneath his formality, she glimpses a man far more complex than the distant boy she once adored-a man whose steadiness challenges her, whose presence she cannot seem to escape, and whose nearness threatens to awaken the very feelings she had sworn to forget. As stolen glances turn into lingering touches and duty collides with desire, Daniel and Claire must decide whether protecting their reputations is worth denying what they feel. For sometimes, the most scandalous step of all... is a waltz.
Lydia in the Country (or Mrs Wickham Reflects) *COMPLETE* by KRWalters
KRWalters
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    Parts 20
Lydia Bennett has been consigned by widowhood and her own sisters to the remote village of Lowick. She intends to stay for only a week, but the fanatical local Reverend, Mr Wakefield, is waging a war on fun - Christmas carols are cancelled, the Harvest Festival is banned and May Day dancing considered the greatest horror of all. Will Lydia be able to ensure the town's thousand year old May Day celebrations go ahead? Will local landowner Mr Sitwell, caught between his sense of responsibility and the outright cruelty of the priest, join Lydia or oppose her? In the battle between society and sobriety who will prevail? Complete and finished story.
Gentle Green by AnnSepino
AnnSepino
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    Parts 16
Fate decided that their paths should cross. | For friendly, hard-working Sua, the only things that matter in life are the happiness and safety of her friends and family. She's more than content to manage her late father's inn with her pet antula by her side. However, being an innkeeper in a small town isn't always easy... or safe. There's danger lurking in the woods, and only she is allowed to stop it. Through a twist of fate, a mysterious traveler comes along and distracts her from the threat to her home. Sa Gin's new, handsome face becomes the talk of the town overnight. What's more, he has a charming personality, a purse full of money... and a weapon on his back. Can Sua trust this stranger with her burden and her heart? Or does the newcomer already have enough secrets of his own?
Waking Nerissa (Fair Tales of the Regency, Book Two) by thequietwriter
thequietwriter
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    Parts 7
Henry Dunn, Baron of Dunn, believes he has done what any responsible husband must. After the birth of their second child, his wife's behavior left him desperate, and he placed her under the care of the reputable Dr. Sharp. Meanwhile, Nerissa drifts between wakefulness and dream as her laudanum dosage quietly increases. Time slips and dulls around her, leaving her unsure whom to trust and terrified that she may never see her family again. As Henry struggles to cope with life without his wife, he must confront a far more painful question: Did he rescue his wife... or abandon her? And can a marriage strained by illness, distance, and fear find its way back to love before it is too late?