Fortune's Kiss

Book excerpt: Moira Hughes’s stepfather has died, and although the bulk of the family holdings must pass to a relative, a codicil to his will secures her and her mother’s future – or so she believes. When their London solicitor denies all knowledge of this codicil, practical, country bred Moira must put aside both pride and propriety, travel to London and press her rights. Once there she resolves to confront her stepfather’s heir, the dashing black sheep of the family whom she believes has unlawfully withheld her rightful share of the family fortune. Graham Foster, treasure hunter and Egyptian antiquities expert, must leave his adventurous life to return to England and claim the barony left him by a distant cousin. Upon his arrival he discovers his estranged and spoiled family making free with his inherited home and fortune, while a dazzling, dark-haired step-cousin several times removed adamantly accuses him of foul play. There are times he feels his only true friend is his pet African Sun Spider . . . Coming to a wary truce and teetering on a middle ground of irresistible if imprudent desire, Graham and Moira team up to hunt for her lost treasure. A trail of fraud, deceit and murder leads them through the streets of London and into each other’s arms, and to the most unlikely of conclusions.