Chase Family Collection: Limited Christmas Edition Read online

  Chase Family Collection

  Limited Christmas Edition

  Lauren Royal

  Contents

  Book Description

  More Chase Family Books

  Chase Family Tree

  A Secret Christmas

  1. One

  2. Two

  3. Three

  4. Four

  5. Five

  6. Six

  7. Seven

  8. Eight

  9. Nine

  10. Ten

  11. Eleven

  12. Twelve

  13. Thirteen

  14. Fourteen

  15. Fifteen

  16. Sixteen

  17. Seventeen

  18. Eighteen

  19. Nineteen

  20. Twenty

  21. Twenty-One

  22. Twenty-Two

  23. Twenty-Three

  24. Twenty-Four

  25. Twenty-Five

  Author’s Note

  Never Doubt a Viscount

  1. One

  2. Two

  3. Three

  4. Four

  5. Five

  6. Six

  7. Seven

  8. Eight

  9. Nine

  10. Ten

  11. Eleven

  12. Twelve

  13. Thirteen

  14. Fourteen

  15. Fifteen

  16. Sixteen

  17. Seventeen

  18. Eighteen

  19. Nineteen

  20. Twenty

  21. Twenty-One

  22. Twenty-Two

  23. Twenty-Three

  24. Twenty-Four

  25. Twenty-Five

  26. Twenty-Six

  27. Twenty-Seven

  28. Twenty-Eight

  29. Twenty-Nine

  30. Thirty

  31. Thirty-One

  32. Thirty-Two

  33. Thirty-Three

  34. Thirty-Four

  35. Thirty-Five

  36. Thirty-Six

  37. Thirty-Seven

  38. Thirty-Eight

  39. Thirty-Nine

  40. Forty

  41. Forty-One

  42. Forty-Two

  43. Forty-Three

  44. Forty-Four

  45. Forty-Five

  46. Forty-Six

  47. Forty-Seven

  48. Forty-Eight

  49. Forty-Nine

  50. Fifty

  51. Fifty-One

  52. Fifty-Two

  53. Fifty-Three

  54. Fifty-Four

  55. Fifty-Five

  56. Fifty-Six

  57. Fifty-Seven

  58. Fifty-Eight

  59. Fifty-Nine

  60. Sixty

  61. Sixty-One

  62. Sixty-Two

  63. Sixty-Three

  64. Sixty-Four

  65. Sixty-Five

  66. Sixty-Six

  67. Sixty-Seven

  68. Epilogue

  Author’s Note

  The Scandal of Lord Randal

  1. One

  2. Two

  3. Three

  4. Four

  5. Five

  6. Six

  7. Seven

  8. Eight

  9. Nine

  10. Ten

  11. Eleven

  12. Twelve

  13. Thirteen

  14. Fourteen

  15. Fifteen

  16. Sixteen

  17. Seventeen

  18. Eighteen

  19. Nineteen

  20. Twenty

  21. Twenty-One

  22. Twenty-Two

  23. Twenty-Three

  24. Twenty-Four

  25. Twenty-Five

  26. Twenty-Six

  27. Twenty-Seven

  28. Twenty-Eight

  29. Twenty-Nine

  30. Thirty

  31. Thirty-One

  32. Thirty-Two

  33. Thirty-Three

  34. Thirty-Four

  35. Thirty-Five

  36. Thirty-Six

  37. Thirty-Seven

  38. Thirty-Eight

  39. Thirty-Nine

  40. Forty

  41. Forty-One

  42. Forty-Two

  43. Forty-Three

  44. Forty-Four

  45. Forty-Five

  46. Forty-Six

  47. Forty-Seven

  48. Forty-Eight

  49. Forty-Nine

  50. Fifty

  51. Fifty-One

  52. Fifty-Two

  53. Fifty-Three

  54. Fifty-Four

  55. Fifty-Five

  56. Fifty-Six

  57. Fifty-Seven

  58. Fifty-Eight

  59. Fifty-Nine

  60. Sixty

  61. Sixty-One

  62. Sixty-Two

  63. Sixty-Three

  64. Sixty-Four

  65. Sixty-Five

  66. Sixty-Six

  67. Sixty-Seven

  68. Sixty-Eight

  69. Sixty-Nine

  70. Seventy

  Author’s Note

  A Gentleman’s Plot to Tie the Knot

  1. One

  2. Two

  3. Three

  4. Four

  5. Five

  6. Six

  7. Seven

  8. Eight

  9. Nine

  10. Ten

  11. Eleven

  12. Twelve

  13. Thirteen

  14. Fourteen

  15. Fifteen

  16. Sixteen

  17. Seventeen

  18. Eighteen

  19. Nineteen

  20. Twenty

  21. Twenty-One

  22. Twenty-Two

  23. Twenty-Three

  24. Twenty-Four

  25. Twenty-Five

  26. Twenty-Six

  27. Twenty-Seven

  28. Twenty-Eight

  29. Twenty-Nine

  30. Thirty

  31. Thirty-One

  32. Thirty-Two

  33. Thirty-Three

  34. Thirty-Four

  35. Thirty-Five

  36. Thirty-Six

  37. Thirty-Seven

  38. Thirty-Eight

  39. Thirty-Nine

  40. Forty

  41. Forty-One

  42. Forty-Two

  43. Forty-Three

  44. Forty-Four

  45. Forty-Five

  46. Forty-Six

  47. Forty-Seven

  48. Forty-Eight

  49. Forty-Nine

  50. Fifty

  51. Fifty-One

  52. Fifty-Two

  53. Fifty-Three

  54. Fifty-Four

  55. Fifty-Five

  56. Fifty-Six

  57. Fifty-Seven

  58. Fifty-Eight

  59. Fifty-Nine

  60. Sixty

  61. Sixty-One

  62. Sixty-Two

  63. Sixty-Three

  64. Sixty-Four

  65. Sixty-Five

  66. Sixty-Six

  67. Sixty-Seven

  68. Sixty-Eight

  69. Sixty-Nine

  70. Seventy

  71. Seventy-One

  72. Seventy-Two

  73. Seventy-Three

  Thank You!

  Author’s Note

  Bonus Material

  Excerpt from WHEN AN EARL MEETS A GIRL

  Excerpt from TEMPT ME AT MIDNIGHT

  Explore the Chase Family World

  Books by Lauren Royal

  A Dozen Free Books

  Enter Lauren’s Contest

  About Lauren
Royal

  Acknowledgments

  Contact Information

  Book Description

  Two families, four connected novels…

  You choose the order to read!

  This limited-time holiday set includes a romance novel set at Christmastime that can be read either first or last.

  If you feel like saving the Christmas story for the end, start with Never Doubt a Viscount, followed by The Scandal of Lord Randal, A Gentleman’s Plot to Tie the Knot, and finally A Secret Christmas. If you choose this order, you’ll meet Chrystabel and Joseph in their daughters’ three books, then be delightfully surprised to learn how the two of them met and fell in love.

  If you’d prefer to read the books in chronological order, A Secret Christmas comes first. With this order, you’ll meet Chrystabel and Joseph before their children are born.

  Either order works well!

  A SECRET CHRISTMAS - England, 1651 - Christmas has been outlawed by the new Commonwealth government—but that won’t stop Lady Chrystabel Trevor from embracing the holiday spirit. When she finds herself snowed in with handsome and intriguing Joseph Ashcroft, the Viscount Tremayne, merrymaking leads to mayhem. In a time of fear and oppression, can the magic of Christmas bring two hearts together?

  NEVER DOUBT A VISCOUNT - England, 1673 - Lady Violet Ashcroft isn’t planning to marry—she’d rather spend her time reading her beloved books than risking her heart. That is, until a handsome viscount named Ford Chase moves into the neighborhood…

  THE SCANDAL OF LORD RANDAL - England, 1677 - Lady Lily Ashcroft fell for dashing Oxford professor Lord Randal Nesbitt at sixteen. Four years later, her older sister Rose wants him—and with two sisters locked in a tempestuous love triangle, scandal can only be around the corner…

  A GENTLEMAN’S PLOT TO TIE THE KNOT - England, 1677 - Determined to land a wealthy, titled husband, Lady Rose Ashcroft heads off to Charles II’s court to find love. And runs smack dab into Christopher “Kit” Martyn, the one man who could ruin all her plans.

  More Chase Family Books

  CHASE FAMILY SERIES

  When an Earl Meets a Girl

  How to Undress a Marquess

  If You Dared to Love a Laird

  A Duke’s Guide to Seducing His Bride

  Never Doubt a Viscount

  The Scandal of Lord Randal

  A Gentleman’s Plot to Tie the Knot

  A Secret Christmas

  A Chase Family Christmas

  CHASE FAMILY SERIES: THE REGENCY

  Tempt Me at Midnight

  Tempting Juliana

  The Art of Temptation

  Chase Family Tree

  To see a larger version of the Chase Family Tree, click here!

  A Secret Christmas

  For my dear nieces

  Stacy and Lindsay Gordon

  Wisconsin and London are one thing,

  but please don’t move to Wales.

  I don’t cope well in the wilderness.

  One

  Grosmont Grange, England

  December 20, 1651

  LADY CHRYSTABEL Trevor adored Christmas.

  Or at least she had until this year.

  She frowned as her sap-sticky hands wove yet another wreath from the greenery she and her younger sister had collected. “Just five more days,” she said, thinking of all the decorating they still had to do.

  Arabel meticulously measured two loops of red ribbon. “But just four days until Christmas Eve.”

  “Yes, and we have to be ready by Christmas Eve.” Chrystabel sighed as she eyed the enormous pile of boughs they’d cut and trimmed. “I cannot believe how long it took to make the garlands. This isn’t easy alone.”

  “You’re not alone, Chrystabel.” Arabel sounded sweetly sympathetic. “I’m still here. Matthew’s still here.”

  “Martha and Cecily aren’t here.” Martha and Cecily were their older sisters. “And neither is Mother.” Not that Mother had helped her girls prepare for Christmas, anyway. She’d always been a rather uninvolved parent, leaving her children to be raised by nursemaids. But this was their first Christmas without her, and having her home and not participating had been better than not having her with them at all. “It makes me sad that we never see her.”

  “Just pretend she’s dead,” Arabel suggested airily.

  Arabel said everything airily. Pretty, seventeen-year-old Arabel was dark-haired and dark-eyed and statuesque—like Chrystabel and the rest of the Trevors—and she was the happiest person Chrystabel knew. Nothing ruffled her. She could find the good side of anything.

  Unabated cheerfulness like that set Chrystabel’s teeth on edge.

  “Mother is not dead,” she pointed out unnecessarily. “I could forgive her if she were dead.” Their father had died, after all—fighting for the king in the Civil War—and Chrystabel had never blamed him for leaving them. Death was sad but normal.

  But there was nothing normal about being alive and not even an hour’s ride away—and ignoring your own children.

  Especially at Christmas.

  Chrystabel set her jaw. “I will never forgive her for marrying that…that man.”

  That man was the Marquess of Bath, and he had no interest in the grown children of his second wife. The sorry and shocking thing was that Mother seemed similarly disinclined to spend time with her first family. She was too busy with her new husband and his children that she was raising. Raising. Even though she’d barely deigned to notice Chrystabel and her brother and three sisters—the five children she’d given birth to—all the years they were growing up.

  “You cannot let Mother’s selfishness ruin our Christmas,” Arabel chided. “We’re not children anymore. Let it go. I have. Martha and Cecily have.”

  “Martha and Cecily are married with children of their own. They don’t need a mother anymore.”

  “For heaven’s sake, Chrys, you’re nineteen years old—you don’t need a mother anymore, either.” Arabel handed her a perfect red bow. “Here. Attach it, and that’s one more wreath finished.”

  “Still twelve more to make,” Chrystabel said with a sigh.

  Arabel’s laugh sounded suspiciously like a snort. “You’re the one who insists upon decorating this entire, huge house.”

  Arabel was right about that—and more. Chrystabel knew she needed to dispense with the anger she felt toward their mother. It served no purpose. She would take a lesson from her less-than-ideal childhood: When she had her own family, she would do better.

  Right then and there, she determined to do better.