Cirrus@Austlit

'The instant Captain Declan Frobisher laid eyes on Lady Edwina Delbraith, he knew she was the lady he wanted as his wife. The scion of a seafaring dynasty accustomed to success, he discovered that wooing Edwina was surprisingly straightforward-not least because she made it plain that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

'Declan's vision of marriage was of a gently-reared wife to grace his arm, to manage his household, and to bear his children. He assumed that household, children, and wife would remain safely in England while he continued his life as an explorer sailing the high seas.

'Declan got his wish-up to a point. He and Edwina were wed. As for the rest-his vision of marriage...

'Aunt of the young Duke of Ridgware and sister of the mysterious man known as Neville Roscoe, London's gambling king, even before the knot was tied Edwina shattered the illusion that her character is as delicate, ethereal, and fragile as her appearance suggests. Far from adhering to orthodox mores, she and her ducal family are even more unconventional than the Frobishers.

'Beneath her fairy-princess exterior, Edwina possesses a spine of steel-one that might bend, but will never break. Born to the purple-born to rule-she's determined to rule her life. With Declan's ring on her finger, that means forging a marriage that meets her needs as well as his.

'But bare weeks into their honeymoon, Declan is required to sail to West Africa. Edwina decides she must accompany him.

'A secret mission with unknown villains flings unexpected dangers into their path as Declan and Edwina discover that meeting the challenge of making an unconventional marriage work requires something they both possess-bold and adventurous hearts.

'The first voyage is one of exploration, the second one of discovery. The third journey brings maturity, while the fourth is a voyage of second chances.' (Publication summary)

'After a decade of captaining diplomatic voyages for Frobisher Shipping, alongside covert missions for the Crown, Captain Robert Frobisher decides that establishing a home with hearth and wife should be his next challenge. But an unexpected mission intervenes. Although Robert sees himself as a conservative businessman-cum-diplomat and this mission is far from his usual sphere, it nevertheless falls within the scope of his abilities. As matters are urgent, he agrees to depart for West Africa forthwith. To Robert, his way forward is clear: Get to Freetown, determine the location of a slavers' camp, return to London with the information, and then proceed to find himself a wife. Already in Freetown, Miss Aileen Hopkins is set on finding her younger brother Will, a naval lieutenant who has mysteriously disappeared. Find Will and rescue him; determined and resolute, Aileen is not about to allow anyone to turn her from her path. But all too quickly, that path grows dark and dangerous. And then Robert Frobisher appears and attempts to divert her in more ways than one. Accustomed to managing diplomats and bureaucrats, Robert discovers that manipulating a twenty-seven-year-old spinster lies outside his area of expertise. Prodded by an insistent need to protect Aileen, he realizes that joining forces with her is the surest path to meeting all the challenges before him completing his mission, keeping her safe, and securing the woman he wants as his wife. But the villains strike and disrupt their careful plans leaving Robert and Aileen no choice but to attempt a last throw of the dice to complete his mission and further her brother's rescue. Compelled to protect those weaker than themselves and bring retribution to a heartless enemy, they plunge into the jungle with only their talents and inner strengths to aid them and with the courage of their hearts as their guide.' (Publication summary)

'The eldest of the Frobisher brothers and widely known as the lord of the privateers, Royd Frobisher expects to execute the final leg of the rescue mission his brothers have been pursuing. What he does not expect is to be pressured into taking his emotional nemesis, childhood sweetheart, ex-handfasted bride, and current business partner, Isobel Carmichael, with him. But is it Isobel doing the pressuring, or his own restless unfulfilled psyche?

'Resolute, determined, and an all but unstoppable force of nature, Isobel has a mission of her own find her cousin Katherine and bring her safely home. And if, along the way, she can rid herself of the lingering dreams of a life with Royd that still haunt her, well and good.

'Neither expects the shock that awaits them as they set sail aboard Royd's ship, much less the new horizons that open before them as they call into London, then, armed with the necessary orders and all arrangements in place, embark on a full-scale rescue-assault on the mining compound buried in the jungle.

'Yet even with the support of his brothers and their ladies and, once rescued, all the ex-captives, Royd and Isobel discover that freeing the captives is only half the battle. In order to identify and convict the backers behind the illicit enterprise and protect the government from catastrophic destabilization they must return to the ballrooms of the haut ton, and with the help of a small army of supporters, hunt the villains on their home ground.

'But having found each other again, having glimpsed the heaven that could be theirs again, how much are they willing to risk in the name of duty?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.