A Forbidden Embrace — Anna Jacobs

When, after the death of her mother, beautiful Cassandra Trent is told that she must join her aunt and have a London Season, the twenty-year-old is full of rage. Brought up in the Northern town of Bardsley, she is convinced that she will never fit in to polite society -- and neither does she want to. But soon she develops a close relationship with her gentle cousin Susannah, who is a victim of her mother's pushy, social-climbing nature. Susannah, petrified of marrying the charming, wealthy Simeon Giffard, enlists Cassie's help, and soon Lady Berrinden's hopes for her daughter are ruined. It is, after all, Cassie for whom Simeon holds a torch and, despite the danger of losing his good name, somehow he must win the heart of this strong-willed Northern lady . . .