SOLVED. Romance novella / medieval woman adopted to the future returns home. [s]

[M—]

Does anyone recall a story about a woman who had been born in medieval times but somehow transported to contemporary times as a baby? As I recall, the story opened with the woman attending the wedding of her sibling. She accidentally stepped in a fairy ring and was transported back to her home time period, where she met her love interest, the local lord. She stayed with the lord long enough to fall in love with him and his daughter, but when the daughter became sickly she brought the girl back to modern times and modern medicine. I think the lord later followed her?

The lord was convinced the woman was magical, like a fairy or elf. When she first appeared to him, in her bridesmaid dress, she was holding a box of butterflies to be released during the wedding. The box opened the moment the lord touched the woman and the butterflies flew everywhere, but then they all froze in the medieval winter temperatures.

I'm pretty sure I read this during the 1990s, and I have a feeling it was a fairly new publication at the time. I think it was smaller story that I read in a romance anthology, the sort that featured four or five stories along a theme, but I can't recall any memories of the other stories. Boo.

Some more details:

The lord was weirdly fascinated by the woman's rose nail polish, and relieved when it started chipping off and revealing normal-colored nails.

The issue of the woman being adopted was a big part of the opening of the story. I believe her (contemporary) mother had had difficulty conceiving and was desperate for a child. (The adoption may have been illegal?) After the adoption, the lack of stress allow the mother to conceive and have at least one biological child, possibly twins.

The woman worked in a medical profession, possibly a doctor or a nurse.

Sound familiar to anyone? Many thanks!

[M—]

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[Kris]

At first Veils of Time by Lynn Kurland seemed promising because the theme is time travel romance involving a wedding. But the reviewers' descriptions on Amazon don't seem to match your story...

[M—]

I agree, that's not a match. Maybe the anthology this printed in was more magic focused than time-machine focused? (That... probably doesn't help narrow the search down, sigh.)

Thanks for the suggestion!

[Anna]

The Ruby Brooch ?

[M—]

Paramedic heroine, nice catch! But no, as a self-published 2012 work, it's much too recent to be book I'm remembering, and the plot summery doesn't seem to match my remembered details.

[M—]

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[Ayshe]

Maybe Whatever You Wish by Amy Elizabeth Saunders in Midsummer Night's Magic?

[M—]

Thanks very much! I'll track down a copy of that anthology and give it a read, see if it matches my memories.

[M—]

Ayshe wrote: "Maybe Whatever You Wish by Amy Elizabeth Saunders in Midsummer Night's Magic?"

You are spot-on with your suggestion, Ayshe. It took a bit for the interlibrary loan to find a copy of this one for me, but it was exactly right -- butterflies, rose nail polish, and younger siblings all include. Thank you so much!