It Started with a Scandal

Lord Philippe Lavay once took to the high seas armed with charm as lethal as his sword, and a stone-cold conviction: he'll restore his family's fortune and honor, no matter the cost. Victory is at last within reachwhen a brutal attack snatches it from his grasp and lands him in Pennyroyal Green ;An afternoon of bliss brings a cascade of consequences for Elise Fountain. She is shunned by her family and ousted from a job she loves, and her survival means a plummet down the social ladder to a position no woman has yet been able to keep: housekeeper to a frighteningly formidable prince.The bold and gentle Elise sees past his battered body into Philippe's barricaded heart . . .

When Louis XiV died in 1715, his great grandson came to the throne at the age of five. A battle over who should be regent and rule the country until the king was old enough developed between two parties, one led by Philippe, Duc d'Orleans, and the other by Duc de Maine. Although Philippe became regent, the followers of his rival did not remain idle. A young man, Raoul d'Harmental, was committed to kidnap the regent until, by the strange action of fate, Raoul's very life depended upon the man he was to have kidnapped.