The Maid of Milan — Beverley Eikli

A respectable lady with a secret past struggles to keep up appearances, in this novel of love, intrigue, and secrets in the Regency era. About to secure his seat in the House of Lords, Tristan Leeson is a model of diplomacy, high morals, and self-control. An attentive and considerate husband, he's even managed to curb his carnal impulses at the behest of his emotionally fragile wife, Adelaide. Steadfastly in love, yet wary of a man's touch, Adelaide longs to prove herself to the man whose offer of marriage was a rescue. After all, she had been at low ebb. Or so she claimsbecause there's more to the chaste Adelaide than Tristan knows. With Tristan's career rising, the adulation of the ton stirs something thrilling in Adelaide she hasn't felt in years. So does an unexpected visitorTristan's boyhood friend, the sensationalist writer Lord James Dewhurst, a man with whom Adelaide shares a scandalous past. Now, as it comes to light, Adelaide discovers that the high cost of deception includes the trust of the husband she loves. And she's willing to risk more than her reputation to win it back. Shortlisted for a Favorite Historical Romance Award by the Australian Romance Readers Association, The Maid of Milan is quite the page-turner... Certainly not your run-of-the-mill historical romance ( Romantic Historical Reviews ).