Despite the inglorious pedigree, Evangeline might have made a decent enough match if not for her crippling shyness, which resulted in a torturous stammer.

Though Evangeline’s mother had come from decent lineage, her father was little better than gutter scum. Evangeline was the only child of Ivo Jenner, the notorious London gambling club owner, and a mother who had run off with him-only to quickly realize her mistake. Sebastian regarded her with veiled contempt, pondering what he knew of her. Miss Evangeline Jenner, the lamblike creature who now stood before him, was as unlike Lillian Bowman as it was possible to be. Lillian Bowman, a lively American heiress, had put up fierce resistance to his plan until she had been rescued by her fiance, Lord Westcliff. He should have chosen far less spirited prey. And Lillian herself had promised to be an entertaining bed partner, with her dark-haired beauty and her fiery temperament. Her family was wealthy, whereas Sebastian was titled and in financial straits. In retrospect Lillian Bowman had been a foolish choice, though at the time she had seemed the perfect solution to Sebastian’s dilemma. Vincent, stared at the young woman who had just barged her way into his London residence, it occurred to him that he might have tried to abduct the wrong heiress last week at Stony Cross Park.Īlthough kidnapping had not, until recently, been on Sebastian’s long list of villainous acts, he really should have been more clever about it.

The Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas