About the AuthorLouise Allen has been immersing herself in history for as long as she can remember. She finds landscapes and places evoke powerful images of the past - Venice, Burgundy and the Greek islands are favourite destinations. Louise lives on the Norfolk coast. She spends her spare time gardening, researching family history or travelling in search of inspiration. Please visit Louise's website - www.louiseallenregency.co.uk, or find her on Twitter @LouiseRegency and on Facebook.Excerpt. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.London-June 3, 1814The skeleton clock on the overmantel struck four. No point in going to bed. Besides, he was thoroughly foxed, although not drunk enough to keep him from lying awake, wondering what had possessed him to make this insane plan. And worse, to follow through with organisation so ruthlessly efficient that to cancel now would throw his entire staff, financial team, estate management and social life into disorder-and make it seem he did not know his own mind.'Which I do not,' Rhys Denham informed the ragged-eared ginger tom that sat on the hearthrug eyeing him with the disdain that only a feline or a dowager duchess could muster. 'Know my own mind, that is. Always do, just not this time.'The appearance of the kitchen mouser on the principal floor, let alone in the study of the third Earl of Pal-grave, was unheard of. The household must be stirring already, too distracted by their master's imminent departure for the Continent to notice an open door at the head of the servants' stair.'It seemed a good plan at the time,' Rhys mused. The brandy at the bottom of the glass glowed in the candlelight, and he splashed in more and tossed the lot back. 'I'm drunk. Haven't been this drunk in years.' Not since he had woken up one afternoon and realised that drink was never going to blot out the disaster of his wedding day, restore his faith in friendship or his delusions about romantic love.The cat switched its attention to the plate with the remains of the cold beef, cheese and bread that had been left out with the decanters. 'And you can stop licking your whiskers.' Rhys reached for the food. 'I need this more than you do. I have to be more or less sober in three hours.' That seemed improbable, even to his fogged brain.'You have to admit, I deserve a holiday. The estate is in order, my finances could hardly be better, I am bored to the back teeth with town and Bonaparte has been out of harm's way on Elba for a month,' he informed the cat around a mouthful of beef. 'You think I am a trifle old for the Grand Tour? I disagree. At twenty-eight I will appreciate things more.' The cat sneered, lifted one hind leg and began to groom itself intimately.'Stop that. A gentleman does not wash his balls in the study.' He tossed it a scrap of fat and the cat pounced. 'But a year? What was I thinking of?' Escape.Of course, he could come back at any time and his staff would adjust to his demands with their usual smooth efficiency. After all, if there was some kind of crisis, he would return immediately. But to cancel on a whim was not responsible behaviour. It put people out, it let them down, and Rhys Denham despised people who let others down.'No, I am going to go through with this,' he declared. 'It will do me good to have a complete change of scene, and then I'll be in the mood to find a pretty, modest, well-bred girl with a stay-at-home temperament and good child-bearing hips. I will be married by the time I am thirty.' And bored out of my skull. A vision of the succession of prime bits of muslin who had worked their magic in preventing just such boredom flitted across his memory. They had never expected dutiful monogamy. A wife would. Rhys sighed.The friends who had deposited him on his doorstep an hour ago after a convivial farewell night at the club were all married, or about to be. Some even had children. And, to a man, they seemed cheered by the thought of someone else falling into parson's mousetrap. As Fred Herrick had put it, 'About time a rake like you stops nibbling the cheese, takes a proper bite at it and springs the trap, Denham.''And why is that such a damnably depressing thought?''I could not say, my lord.' Griffin stood in the doorway, his face set in the expressionless mask that signified deep disapproval.What the devil had his butler got to be disapproving about? Rhys levered himself upright in his chair. A man was entitled to be in his cups in his own house, damn it. 'I was speaking to the cat, Griffin.''If you say so, my lord.'Rhys glanced down at the rug. The ginger beast had vanished, leaving behind it only a faint grease stain on the silk pile.'There is a person to see you, my lord.' From his tone it was clear this was the cause of the stone face, rather than his master's maudlin conversations with an invisible cat.'What kind of person?''A young person, my lord.''A boy? I am not up to guessing games just at the moment, Griffin.''As you say, my lord. It appears to be a youth. Beyond that I am not prepared to commit myself.'Appears? Does Griffin mean what I think he means? 'Well, where is it____Him?' Her? 'Below stairs?''In the small reception room. It came to the front door, refused to go down to the tradesman's entrance and said it was certain your lordship would wish to see it.'Rhys blinked at the decanter. How much had he drunk since he got back from White's? A lot, yes, but surely not enough to have imagined that faint hint of desperation in Griffin's voice. The man was capable of dealing with anything without turning a hair, whether it was pilfering footmen or furious discarded mistresses throwing the china.A faint trickle of unease ran down his spine. Mistresses. Had Georgina failed to take her cong as calmly as she had appeared to do yesterday? Surely she was satisfied with a very nice diamond necklace and the lease on her little house for a further year? Rhys got to his feet and tugged off his already loosened neckcloth, leaving his coat where it was on the sofa. Ridiculous. He might seek pleasure without emotional entanglement, but he was no Lord Byron with hysterical females dressed as boys dogging his footsteps. He was careful to stick to professionals and fast married women who knew what they were about, not single ladies and certainly not unstable cross-dressing ones.'Very well, let us see this mysterious youth.' His feet seemed to be obeying him, which was gratifying, considering the way the furniture swayed as Griffin preceded him down the hallway. Tomorrow-no, this morning- promised a hangover of monumental proportions.Griffin opened the door to the room reserved for visitors who did not meet his exacting standards for admission to the Chinese Drawing Room. The figure seated on a hard chair against the far wall came to its feet. Short, bundled into an ill-fitting dark suit of clothes that said 'junior clerk' to Rhys's unfocused eye, it had a pair of portmanteaux at its feet and a battered beaver hat on the chair by its side.Rhys blinked. He wasn't that drunk. 'Griffin, if that is male, then you and I are eunuchs in the Great Chan's court.'The girl in the youth's clothes gave an exasperated sigh, set her fists on the curving hips that betrayed her sex and said, 'Rhys Denham, you are drunk-just when I was counting on you to be reliable.'Thea? Lady Althea Curtiss, daughter of the Earl of Wellingstone by his scandalous first wife, the plain little brat who had dogged his heels throughout his boyhood, the loyal friend he had scarcely seen since the day his world fell apart. Here, in the early hours of the morning in his bachelor household, dressed as a boy. A walking scandal waiting to explode like a smouldering shell. He could almost hear the fuse fizzing.Rhys was bigger than she had remembered. More solid. Moremale as he loomed in the doorway in his shirtsleeves, his chin darkened by his morning beard, the black hair that came from his Welsh mother in his eyes, that blue gaze blurred by drink and lack of sleep. A dangerous stranger. And then she blinked and remembered that it was six years since she had seen him close to. Of course he had changed.'Thea?' He stalked across the room and took her by the shoulders, his focus sharp now, despite the smell of brandy on his breath. 'What the blazes are you doing here? And dressed like that.' He reached round and pulled the plait of mouse-brown hair out of the back of her coat. 'Who were you attempting to fool, you little idiot? Have you run away from home?'Rhys was thin lipped with anger. Thea stepped back out of his grip, which made it easier to breathe, although it did nothing for her knocking knees. 'I am dressed like this because on a stagecoach in the dark it is enough to deceive lecherous men. I am perfectly aware that I do not pass muster as a youth in good light. And I have left home, I am not running away'Rhys's lips moved. He was silently counting up to ten in Welsh, she could tell. When he had been a boy he would say it out loud and she had learned the numbers. Un, dau, tri 'Griffin. More brandy. Tea and something to eat for Lady Althea. Who is not, of course, here.'Thea allowed herself to be shepherded into the study. Rhys dumped her bags on the hearthrug and pushed an ugly ginger cat off one of the chairs that flanked the fire. 'Sit. The cat hairs can't make that suit any worse than it is.' The cat swore at both of them, battered ears flat to its skull.When she clicked her fingers, it curled its tail into a question mark and stalked off. Hopefully this was not an omen for how her reception was going to be. 'Is it your pet?'Rhys narrowed his eyes at her. 'It is the kitchen cat and appears to think it owns the place.' He dropped into the opposite chair and ran his hands through his hair. 'Tell me this is not about a man. Please. I am leaving for Dover at seven o'clock and I would prefer not to postpone it in order to fight a duel with some scoundrel you fancy yourself in love with.'If he was sober, it would help. As for duelling, she wondered if he was capable of hitting a barn door with a blunderbuss in this state. 'Of course it is not a man.' Of course it is, but if I tell you the details we'll never get anywhere. 'Don't be ridiculous. And why would you be fighting duels on my behalf, pray?' It was surprising how difficult it was to keep her voice steady. She must be more tired than she had realised.'I always used to be,' Rhys said with a sudden grin and drew his index finger down the line of his nose. Its perfect Grecian profile had been lost in a scrap with some village boys who had called her names when she was six and he was twelve. The smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared. 'So if it isn't a man''It is, in a way.' She had rehearsed all this in the smelly darkness of the stagecoach through the long hours on the road. Not quite lies, not quite the truth. 'You recall I have had three Seasons. No, of course you do not-our paths never crossed in town. You weren't attending all the Marriage Mart ghastliness that I was expected to.'His jaw set hard and she bit her lower lip. Stupid, tactless, to mention marriage. He still cares; it must still hurt. 'Anyway, Papa said I was wasting money and another Season with all the other girls so much younger would be even worse. So he sent me back to Longley Park and set about finding me a husband locally.''Do you mean you didn't have any offers-?' Rhys broke off as Griffin brought in a tray, then waved a hand for her to help herself as he sloshed dark liquid into his glass. 'I mean, I know that with your mother''Oh, yes, several very eligible younger sons offered. My dowry is respectable and there's my trust fund, of course.' Both were considerable inducements to make up for the other things-her plain speaking, her intellectual enthusiasms, her very average looks. Not to mention a mother who had been an actress and her father's mistress before their impetuous marriage and her tragic death in childbirth. 'I turned them all down.''Why?' Rhys squinted at her over his glass, apparently in an effort to bring her into focus.'I didn't love any of them.' They didn't love me. None of them. 'Papa has settled upon Sir Anthony Mel-dreth.' Would Rhys understand if she explained why she felt so betrayed now? Why she had to leave? The old Rhys would have done, but this man, in this condition? No, better to fudge. 'We did not suit, but Papa says that either I marry Anthony or I must remain at Longley and be a companion for Stepmama for the rest of my days.''Hell.' Rhys obviously recalled her stepmother's capacity for hypochondria, vapours and utterly selfish behaviour all too well. He rubbed long fingers against his forehead as though to push away a headache, or perhaps push coherent thought in. 'I understand your problem.'Does he understand? Probably not, a man like Rhys couldn't be expected to comprehend the sheer mind-numbing dullness a spinster daughter was supposed to dwindle into. It would be like being buried alive. Nor could she expect him to comprehend the horrors of finding herself married to a man she did not like or trust or have a thing in common with.'I can see it would be tiresome,' he continued, confirming her belief in his lack of understanding. 'But running away' He frowned at her. 'I do not have time to deal with this now. I am about to leave for a Continental tour.''I know, Papa told me. He considers it shows a commendable enthusiasm for culture he had hitherto not recognised in you. Please listen, Rhys. I am twenty-two and of age. I am not running away, I am taking control of my life.''Twenty-two? Rubbish. You don't look it.' It was not a compliment.Thea gritted her teeth and ploughed on. 'All I need is the approval of two of my three trustees in order to take control of my money and be independent.' It wasn't a fortune, but it would give her freedom, give her choice. 'If I do not get consent, then I will receive nothing unless Papa approves my marriage.''One of the trustees is your father, I presume.' Rhys picked up the decanter, studied it for a moment then put it down. 'Tempting as complete oblivion is at this moment-''He is,' she interrupted. 'And Grandmother was quite well aware of what he is like.' There was no point in feigning filial piety. Her father had been a distant, shadowy figure throughout her childhood, only taking any notice when she was of an age where she could not be relegated to the nursery. A girl was bad enough. A girl without a glimmer of her mother's legendary beauty and charm was worthless unless she made a useful marriage. Thea felt she hardly knew him, and, regrettably, felt no desire to do so. should you read two books at once Unlacing Lady Thea (Harlequin Historical)
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. I loved this book.By Kindle CustomerIt was so brilliantly written and I actually loved all the characters. I couldn't stop reading it to find out what would happen next between those two friends. It was a very enchanting love story.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Louise Allen is in a class of her own!By JulieUnlacing Lady Thea is a vivid, compelling and wonderfully passionate Regency romance from the inimitable pen of multi award-wining author Louise Allen!Lady Althea Curtiss is under no illusions about her looks. She knows that she is plain and ordinary and not like the other simpering ladies of the Ton desperate to catch the eye of a suitable husband and she has got absolutely no problem with that. Thea wants adventure, excitement and to be her own woman unhindered by the archaic conventions of society. She will only surrender her independence if she can find a man who loves her and respects her for who she is and who does not have his eye on the fortune he will be entitled to once he becomes her husband. Nobody is more surprised than Thea when she starts being courted by one of the marriage marts most eligible bachelors. Swept away by love and rosy visions of a romantic future together, Theas resolves to be an independent woman begin to crumble until she realises that her Prince Charming is in fact a merciless fortune hunter who had been colluding with her father! Heartbroken, furious and betrayed, Thea realises that she doesnt want to stay under her fathers roof for a moment longer than necessary, so she flees his house dressed as a boy and throws herself at the mercy of her childhood friend, Rhys Denham, Earl of Palgrave.Rhys has got enough problems of his own the last thing he wants or needs is to get embroiled in yet another scandal! Hes already given the Ton plenty to gossip about when his fiancee had jilted him for another and since then his exploits and many casual romantic liaisons have shocked and titillated debutantes and dowagers alike. Sick of drinking himself into a stupor night after night and determined to put the upheaval of recent times behind him, Rhys decides to head off on a Grand Tour of the Continent to rest, recuperate and forget about England for a couple of months. Rhys hadnt been planning on having a travelling companion, but when Thea turns up on his doorstep begging for his help, he knows that he cannot leave her to her own devices and reluctantly agrees to let her accompany him on his journey to Europe.Thea has been in love with Rhys for most of her life, but she is very much aware that hes never seen her as anything other than a friend. With his brooding good looks and generous spirit, Rhys was the kind of man who could have any woman he wanted and he usually preferred beautiful and sophisticated young ladies rather then spirited and average looking girls like her. But thrown into close proximity together by circumstance, Thea is surprised when Rhys begins to look at her in an entirely different lightAs Rhys and Theas friendship gives way to something deeper, will they finally have the courage to face up to their feelings for one another? Or will their reticence and their fears condemn them both to a lifetime of loneliness and regret?Louise Allen is on top form once again with Unlacing Lady Thea. Sparkling with searing emotion, delightful humour, authentic period detail, scandalous passion and nail-biting romantic drama, Unlacing Lady Thea is an outstanding historical tale that once again confirms Louise Allens position as a consummate storyteller who is in a class of her own!Louise Allens gift for creating characters that leap off the pages and take on a life of their own from the moment they set foot on the page is unparalleled and readers are sure to love feisty, fiery and independent Thea, who is determined to be her own woman at a time when this was frowned upon. On the other hand, Rhys Denham is a deliciously saturnine hero with a heart of gold and a wicked sense of humour whose charisma and magnetism is sure to have readers reaching for their smelling salts!Exceptional as ever, Unlacing Lady Thea is a first-class historical romance from a writer who just keeps getting better and better: Louise Allen!This review was originally published on Cataromance0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Unlacing Lady TheaBy Clare O'BearaNow Boney has been locked away on Elba, Rhys Denham, an Earl, is looking forward to the Grand Tour of Europe as an escape from boredom. He doesn't expect a childhood friend, Lady Thea Curtiss, to arrive at his home dressed as a youth.LADY THEA has three seasons behind her, she's of intellectual enthusiasms and average looks, and she has a dowry but refuses to marry eager young men who don't love her. I liked the girl immediately. She's determined not to obey her father and sit as a spinster in the country so she hopes to join Rhys, unchaperoned, and travel to her godmother in Venice. Aged 22 she claims to not care if her name is ruined. Rhys is 28 and he agrees provided she travels incognito with her maid and tells her godmother she had been respectably chaperoned.The journey is anything but easy, though relatively luxurious. Carriages, inns and boats help the two friends cross lands littered with returned soldiers wearing cast-off uniform. The worried maid mutters about "murdering Frenchies, sharpening the guillotine" but the innkeepers prefer to bring in money. The wreck of a diligence, a heavy French coach, shows how travellers were constantly exposed to danger on poor roads. Paris and Venice are glamorous cities returning to gaiety.Thea is a sensual young woman who has read about marriage and has no intention of ending up as a lonely companion to her hypochondriac mother. She has money of her own, though access to it is tricky, and wishes for a life outside the constraints of society. She wasn't expecting to fall in love, and Rhys may be a good steward of his estates but he has a rake's reputation with women. Thea fast learns that being imprudent is dangerous.I loved author Louise Allen's 'Tarnished Amongst The Ton' which also developed themes of travel and unconventional ladies of advanced ideas. This adult romance brings the European settings beautifully to life. It is great fun and explores the period interestingly so I highly recommend UNLACING LADY THEA.