A Lady of His Own; Stephanie Laurens

Written by Stephanie Laurens and published by Avon in 2004, A Lady of His Own is the third novel in the Bastion Club series, which is unrelated to the Cynster books. I particularly enjoy the Bastion Club books as well as Ms. Laurens' shorter books which are slowly being rereleased- I think. Anyhow, I like her shorter books too. I know alot of regular romance readers are tired of the Cynsters and their related books, but consider trying these, they're quite good.

Charles St. Austell, Earl of Lostwithiel. Can I just say I love that name, Lostwithiel? No reason. Just do. Anyhow. Onwards. He's returned from the war and is at home on an assignment to find a French sympathizer operating from the English coast using the smugglers. Also nearby is Lady Penelope Selbourne, former childhood playmate. Charles never thought she'd be unmarried after all of his long years away, but here she is. Sneaking around his house in the middle of the night.

Two adults (Penny is in her late 20's & Charles is in his early 30's) discover each other amid murder, smugglers and nosy relatives. ALOHO allows us to watch two people build a relationship upon their shared childhood history. Penny realizes she has unconsciously used Charles as the template on her husband hunting, naturally no one matches up. Charles, for his part, has nurtured the memories of hearth and home to sustain him amid the horrors of war.

Can Charles convince Penny he's really the one? Will he be able to keep her safe from the murder terrorizing the coast? Can Penny and Charles come to terms with each other? And will Dalziel ever get his own book?