Books like Sarnia by Hilary Ford

As far as Melissa Wade was concerned, the future could have hardly looked blacker. Her father's second marriage had been a disaster. His new wife was as crude as she was rich, interested only in the unbridled pleasures of strong drink and the hunt. There would be no place in her debauched household for a pretty, unmarried stepdaughter. Melissa would have to wed immediately a man of her stepmother's choosing. Violently dissatisfied with, these arrangements, Melissa took the only means of escape available: a job as companion to her friend Cheryl, the wealthy young ward of the Duke of Aldwick. But as Melissa stood before her new employer--a man whose cynical, commanding presence terrified her, whose hatred of women was common knowledge throughout England--she began to wonder if she hadn't escaped into an even more dangerous trap.

When Lydia Baxter arrives at the Twin Spurs Ranch, the "family" she is expecting to work for turns out to be Sam Hatten and Matt Weber, two young bachelors desperate for a housekeeper. Lydia agrees to stay temporarily, on the condition they provide a suitable chaperon-and one couldn't ask for someone with a more critical eye or sharp tongue than Granny Arness, who suggests that marriage would solve Lydia's need for permanency. Sam, Matt, and the young Reverend Law are all available, handsome, and charming, but only one is gentle, reliable, and thoughtful...

Callias is brought to the Restoration Court by her husband John Cobden, who married her for her money, but once there he neglects her. She is pursued by many amorous gallants, including the King, but has eyes only for Sir Richard Weston. His betrothal to Anne Laver, arranged by their families, is broken by her jealous cousin. Fate, in the guise of an angry John, a malicious Anne, and even the intervention of the King, separates them, and Callias faces terrible danger.

First comes love, then comes forgiveness... But a widowed father struggling during the Depression doesn't have much faith in either—until he meets Emma Spencer in the South Dakota boardinghouse they share. She's a dedicated nurse who could love his boy and heal his own heart. But how can Boothe trust a profession he blames for his greatest loss?Emma understands Boothe Powers's pain. She has her own secret anguish and believes her dreams of a husband and child are beyond reach. Still, she can pretend when he asks her to play his temporary fiancee to protect his son. And if God would grant her one miracle, He knows exactly what her heart is yearning for....

Linetta was alone in the world. Her dying governess instructed her to go to Paris and seek the help of her niece, Marie. Had that good lady known what had happened to simple, good-hearted Marie--now Blanche d'Antigny, the toast of the Paris demi-monde, paramour of men twice her age--it would have been the last place she'd have sent Linetta! But her instructions were carried out, and innocent, inexperienced Linetta found herself caught up in a life that dazzled and bewildered her. And most puzzling of all was Marie's plan for her future: accepting the "protection" of a wealthy, generous older man. Linetta was sure the plan would have displeased her mother. But what alternatives were there? She was alone and penniless. Was there no one to help her decide what to do? Marquis of Darleston has met her on board the steamer to Paris, and he is surprised to meet her later in the home of the courtesan Blanche d'Antigny.

Lupita and Salvador trying to cross the border and try to get to there ranch ant

A tempestuous love story set in one of the wildest corners of Cornwall. Tansy Trehearn was born and bred in the beautiful and little Cornish port of the village St. Ruthyn, where Martin Wyde was opening a small hotel, The Seagull's Cry. Tansy was falling in love with her employer Martin. She had never been so bewildered, she had met the one man she could ever love, and found that she had to fight her own sister in order to get him. And that was when she learned that the cry of the seagull was no more sad and tortured than the cry of her own heart. Because while Martin and Tansy's love softly flowered, several people were plotting to ruin their newfound happiness.

The handsome Marquis of Ruckley was in a fit of temper. He raced his horses up the drive to his country estate with such speed he couldn't swerve to avoid the girl in the path of his carriage. Greatly relieved she was still alive, the Marquis carried the beautiful girl up to one of his guest bedrooms When she recovered consciousness the next morning, Ruckley discovered that his emergency houseguest was a gypsy. His unfortunate accident could turn out to be a stroke of luck: only the day before at his London club, the Marquis had bet he could pass off a common girl as a lady of quality. The enchanting, intelligent gypsy was perfect for the impersonation. What an easy way to win a thousand pounds! But the Marquis hadn't wagered on falling madly in love with his pretty imposter.

**Desiree Wild Beauty...Fierce Innocence...An Island Wracked By Greed and Rapacious Desire** Steeped in the mystic lore of her adopted people, a stranger to the civilized world she had come from, the beautiful, white-haired Silva Armitage was in danger. Three hungering men vied to possess her. Brian Cameron — He owned Desiree and thought he could own Silva, too. Estavez Rodriguez — He saw himself growing rich and powerful on Prohibition rum-running, with Silva his woman, his prize. Pedro Ortega — He talked revolution but meant to be king of Desiree, with Siulva his queen. Sworn to honor and avenge the gods of the island, determined to protect her twin brother, Silva was desperate, desperate to be free, to belong to Desiree, to herself, and to the one man she could love...

Frank Swinton is an adventurer: a man determined to raise himself above the drudgery of a nine to five job. He falls in love with Helga - the beautiful blonde girl who looks after the household. But he accidentally overhears about the death of the only son of Sir Alfred, a wealthy financier. 'The adventurer' takes fate into his own hands and goes to offer his condolences, and when he discovers that his heiress is falling in love with him, he is tempted to betray true love. =============================== NOTE: before the text, Cartland explains that she wrote "But Never Free" early in her career but it was never published. She also warns readers not to expect a typical Cartland hero in this book.

Theola would have done anything to get out of England, but escape was proving more confining, more dangerous than her former prison. She had always been nothing more than a glorified Cinderella--a poor little cousin who waited hand-and-foot on the elegant young Lady Catherine Bourne. But now Lady Catherine had left England and was sailing through the Adriatic on her way to marry the king of Kavonia. And Theola was sailing with her! She was free at last! But when the ship docked in the Kavonian harbor, Theola's new-found freedom vanished as quickly as the morning mist. The peaceful little kingdom was under seige, its imperious monarch overthrown by his own people. And before she had time to unpack Lady Catherine's bags, Theola found herself in an empty palace guarded by the fiery, handsome man who had led the revolution--the passionate and unpredictable conqueror of Kavonia.

DIPLOMACY OF LOVE Brigadier Ian McCraggan--handsome British diplomat--had gone back to Scotland to claim the old castle and become the Chief of the Clan. But when he arrived at the beloved ruin, Ian was faced with the most delicate diplomatic situation of his career. He must get rid of the proud dark beauty who had come, unbidden, to live in his ancestral home. Who was she, this enchanting Moida, who dared to challenge his right to the castle and to dispute his claim as the true McCraggan heir? When Ian discovered the amazing truth about her, and about the strange yearning in his heart, it was too late. He was betrothed to an exquisite golden-haired charmer... who wasn't going to let him go!

Fiona is alone and penniless in 1929 London. The only job she can find is as a dance hostess at Paglioni's, a chic and expensive nightclub patronised by the best people in society. It is here she meets Jim MacDonald, a handsome and rich man, but it seems as if theirs is not to be a shared future since he is already committed to another woman.

Abducted by a titled adventurer, she was sold to the Dey of Algiers for his carnal amusement. Ravished by her own husband, the sanctity of her marriage became still another kind of sin. Loved by a man she could not have, she crossed burning sands and years of shame to reach his heart.

The mystery of a name, a divided family.......and an unspoken fear Leyla is no longer sure whom to trust and where to turn. Then terror strikes .It seems a murderer roams the corridors of Pemberton Hurst............

The Earl put out his arms towards her. But Demelza did not move and he stopped before he touched her. "May I kiss you?" he whispered. "I think... if you kissed me it would be more wonderful than anything else in the world... but it would be... wrong." "Wrong?" the Earl asked. "It would be wrong... because you belong to someone else." The Earl was very still. "You took a sacred vow," she said in a low voice. "A vow no human being would keep in the circumstances!" Demelza did not speak. "How can you be so cruel?" he cried. "How can you deny me what you know in your heart is rightfully mine!" Again she did not speak. The Earl looked into her dark, troubled eyes. He lingered on the softness of her parted lips. "You love me!" he cried hoarsely. "You love me... and you belong to me!"

Friday's child is loving and giving. Juliet had devoted her life to the care of crippled and deprived children. But when she left London to work in the South of France, the phrase was to take on a deeper meaning. For Julia's new life was to bring her too much love, and too much pain, when she fell in love with a man who belonged to someone else. Juliet had always thought of love as a sacred bond and of marriage as an oath she would never break -- and she promised herself she would never love a married man. That was until she met Lucien de Maureville -- a gentle husband betrayed by a faithless wife and a lonely, tormented man caught between Juliet's budding love and a promise she hoped never to break.