The 30 year-old
spinster Miss Emmaline Dove is an efficient secretary to the handsome,
sexy rogue and successful newspaper and businessman, Viscount Harry
Marlowe. She has kept his extremely disorganized life in check, making
him appear the most organized nobleman in society. His office and home
run flawlessly. She purchases all of his personal gifts for family and
mistresses, and even steps in as the role of comforter to those
discarded. She takes comfort in her role and her ordered life,
continuing to work for him in order to convince him to publish her book
of etiquette. He turns down her most recent effort, published under the
name of Mrs. Bartleby. When Emma asks for constructive criticism as to
why the work was rejected, he responds with, "Who is Mrs. Bartleby?"
and she realizes he has never taken the time to read any of her
manuscripts. Downhearted and then furious she resigns her position.
When she enters a shop to purchase a beautiful peacock fan she has had
her eye on for a long time, she discovers a beautiful young debutante
is purchasing it. It is then that she realizes how much of her life has
passed by while attending to the needs of Viscount Marlowe.
Harry is beside himself! Where is his efficient, unremarkable and
uncomplicated Emma? His life and most importantly, his schedule, is a
mess. He is running late and missing appointments, documents are
missing, and his staff is panicked. When he realizes that Emma has
resigned, he is determined to get her back. When he arrives at her flat
in order to convince her to return, Emma informs him she will be
working for his most severe competition and will be writing her own
weekly newspaper etiquette column in the Social Gazette.
Emma's new job is a dream come true. She is an instant success! She no
longer has to worry about that rogue Viscount Marlowe, and she has more
money than she ever had before. Harry is even more miserable. Not only
is his business and personal calendar a wreck, but now he has to spend
his breakfast listening to his mother and sisters constantly praise
Mrs. Bartleby! Seeing that he cannot lure Emma back as his secretary,
he purchases the Social Gazette. Emma is suddenly in constant contact
with Harry and is troubled by growing feelings of attraction. Harry is
beginning to wonder why Emma is appearing more attractive. Desire and
passion build and soon Emma is in the arms of Harry. Harry is in heaven
with his Emma. When Emma agrees to become his mistress, he purchases a
cottage away from the city where they spend idyllic weekends. But can
Emma continue to hide Mrs. Bartleby's true identity and her affair with
Harry from her friends? When Harry realizes that he truly loves Emma,
can he take the step from lover to husband?
And Then He Kissed Her is Laura Lee Guhrke's best novel to date. It is
a well-developed pleasurable read that grabs hold of the reader from
the first page to the very end. It is sexy and witty with strong
characters throughout. This is a book not to be missed!
Publisher: Avon
(March 2007)
Reviewed
by Beverly,
Beverly Romance Books
