Airs and Graces — Erica James

Ellen has been living on her own in a picturesque if damp cottage in Cheshire since her husband abandoned her for the pleasures of another woman in Provence. Struggling to make ends meet, and having married once for love, she is now determined that the second time around it will be for money. Close at hand is Duncan, her attractive and enticingly single divorce lawyer. Just when her plan is about to come to fruition, two new people enter her life: Jo-Jo, a homeless girl who is several months pregnant; and Matthew, an artist who paints murals in country houses and who openly criticizes Ellen for being mercenary and devious. As hostility gives way to a close friendship with Matthew, Ellen begins to realize that she has wavered off course from her original plan.