Snowflakes and Wallflowers: Christmas Wallflowers

To his surprise a lovely young woman named Matilda comes to him the next day, pleading prettily for leniency for herself and her ailing aunt who had been living in a cottage free for years. Too used to the wiles of women, Arthur remains unmoved by her words and tells her coldly there will be no reconsideration of his orders. He is the new Earl of Castleton and he will be obeyed. The next thing he knows, he’s choking on a snowball thrown at his face and Matilda is marching away, back straight and head held proudly high. Once again, his temper explodes. He grabs her and wrestles the shrieking, kicking woman to a bedchamber and locks her in until he decides what to do with her.

He finds himself intrigued and reluctantly impressed by her show of spirit. She’s not the usual, simpering, coy type of woman who all but worships at his feet in London. And her beauty . . . he feels an unexpected lust when he imagines her long, russet hair and eyes the color of good whiskey. Deciding it’s been too long since he’s had a mistress, he knows exactly how to solve the problem of Matilda: he’ll allow her free use of the cottage she lives in for the rest of her life in exchange for being his mistress this Christmas season...