However, as the summer draws to a close, he struggles to figure out exactly what he's feeling for her. Peter must work hard to gain her trust, but he's eventually rewarded with her friendship. When he first meets the lovely Susanna he's utterly smitten with her beauty, but her imperviousness to his charm offers him an intriguing challenge. However, growing up surrounded by women has given him a great love of the fairer sex, and he's a consummate flirt. As a result, he lived a fairly coddled existence and hates conflict of any sort, finding it difficult to stand up for himself and make his opinions known. After his father passed when he was three, he grew up under the watchful eye of his mother and five older sisters, while his male relatives made all the decisions regarding his property until he came of age. Peter Edgeworth, Viscount Whitleaf, was the youngest of six children and the only male in the family. Soon she discovers hidden depths in him that destroy all her preconceived notions, but although they form a close friendship and become lovers before the summer is over, the differences in their social stations and Susanna's desire for independence prevent her from making a deeper commitment. However, each time they find themselves at the same social engagements, he never fails to charm her. During a summer visit with friends in the countryside, she meets an incredibly handsome young man whose name unfortunately stirs up unpleasant old memories, making her suspect that he's probably not a good person. The school has been Susanna's home ever since, first as a student and now as a teacher. That's when a chance encounter led to her being offered a place as a charity pupil at Miss Martin's School for Girls in Bath.

So she ran away to London in search of employment, but was unable to find any because of her young age. Although the family for whom her father worked had always been kind to her, she overheard remarks following his death that made her believe she would only be a burden to them. Her mother died in childbirth, and her father passed when she was twelve. Susanna Osbourne was born to parents who were barely more than servants. Evernight Teen Summer Kick-off Blog Hop.Cosmo Red Hot Reads from Harlequin Launch.

Simply magic by mary balogh