Eleanor Glover never thought to marry. But when wickedly handsome Geoffrey Westerley, Lord Staines, agrees to an arranged marriage with her, she knows her duty. Geoffrey makes it plain that he wants nothing more than a sensible wife—and a Christmas Eve wedding to please his dying father. With a dearth of suitors, and her family's expectations weighing heavy, Eleanor agrees to the match, with one condition—a condition she cannot name or write upon her blank card. Despite Geoffrey's generous promise to give her anything her heart desires she cannot believe he will ever offer the only thing she truly wants for a Christmas gift…his love.

As an earl's son, Geoffrey Westerley knows his duty—and since he cannot have the woman he loved and drove away, he will have the bride his father intends. Geoffrey knows his passionate nature scared away one lady, and he is determined to treat his shy intended with respect and restraint. But when he finds Eleanor beneath a kissing bough, tradition demands that he pluck a mistletoe berry and kiss her. He never anticipated his bride's warm response, and as the wedding draws near he begins to see there is more to his bride than a quiet exterior. There may be enough to her, in fact, to heal a wounded heart—and a passion deep enough to match his own.

After a scandal gets his brother disinherited, Theodore Winslow plans to get his brother back in their father's grace by getting himself into an even worse scrape—he's bringing home a low-born strumpet for a bride. But he's only hiring a girl to play the part, and his plans go awry when his father refuses to act as he should. Theo soon finds he wants more than he paid for, and his sweet Molly Sweet is far more than he ever bargained for. His proper mistress is anything but...

A cook in a bawdy house, and an orphan with a zest for live, Molly Sweet dreams of one day owning her own inn. She'll do almost anything to achieve that, including acting like a woman for sale and an intended bride. But playing a hard-hearted jade proves more difficult than expected, and as her feelings for Theo grow, the lines between pretending love and the reality blur. She can't bring herself to sell her body, but she cannot avoid giving away her heart. The only question now is will it land in accepting hands?

With too many secrets in her past, and too little future as an actress, Theodosia Newell wants one thing more than all else—security. She’s seen her mother abandoned, her younger brother die, and she’s vowed never to be poor. But then her path crosses that of a man who tempts her to abandon caution and all thought for the future for a passionate affair. Can she find the courage to break from her deepest fears? And will her love prove enough to save them both?

Born with a soul for adventure, David Llewellyn cannot resist a challenge—and his enthusiasm for life is as magnetic as his personality. But two women share his life, and only one can be his. Will his stubborn refusal to make a choice between them lead him to lose everything? Or will he find, in the journey to the lost city he dreams of discovering, a path to a deeper love than he thought possible?

For ten years, the affair between David and Thea goes from passion to love. Lives are changed. Secrets come out. Marriages end. And new ones begin. Through it all, the desire of two strong-willed people lead them to clash, and to eventually find their own path--to each other and to facing the need and love they share. From London to Italy to Syria, the Paths of Desire lead them on a journey they must make together.