Because You Asked
The Serrulata Saga
By A. E. Bennett
A bitter lady with a dark past
A grieving widow striving to help those in need. Two women will discover it’s not too late for a second chance at romance…
Lady Isolda Upshur has never known love. Married to the sovereign of the Realm at the young age of twenty, she is cast aside by her husband after giving birth to a suitable heir. Two decades later, the sovereign dies and she believes herself free, only to learn that her son has arranged for her to remarry. After this lord meets an untimely death, Isolda flees to the south of the Realm seeking solitude.
Lady Eustace Durham was happily married to the love of her life until the dreaded red fever swept through the Realm. In the wake of her husband’s death, Eustace volunteers to help others ailing from the deadly disease, but soon realizes that many women in the Realm lack basic healthcare. Using the coin her husband left her in his will, Eustace opens a clandestine clinic in her cellar to provide services forbidden by the edicts. All is well until Isolda moves into the townhouse next door.
Fearful that Isolda will betray her to the local authorities, Eustace concocts a plan. A suspicious Isolda accepts Eustace’s invitation to discern what her neighbor could want. Each intends to outwit the other, but both are surprised when sparks fly instead.
The two determine they can help each other and those in need, but when a nefarious lord threatens all they hold dear, Eustace and Isolda have to put their romantic feelings aside to fight for the greater good.
This high-heat romance with a guaranteed happily-ever-after is part of The Serrulata Saga but can be read as a standalone.
