The Forger and the Duke
Series: Ladies Least Likely, #2
by Misty Urban
Release date: March 5th, 2024
Genres: Adult, Historical, Romance
Blurb:
In 1776 London, orphaned vicar’s daughter Amaranthe Illingworth supports her small household with her skills as a copyist, but her quiet routine is shattered the day three children show up at her door seeking aid from her brother, their tutor. Behind them storms in Malden Grey, would-be barrister and their erstwhile guardian, who accuses Amaranthe of kidnapping the young Duke of Hunsdon and his siblings.
The former duke’s illegitimate son, Malden Grey has learned to live by his wits, and he’s told he’ll advance to the bar if he takes a proper wife. As she helps him restore order at Hunsdon House, Amaranthe seems a likely candidate—if only Mal can unearth the truth behind the rumors that she’s been forging, and selling, priceless medieval manuscripts. Amaranthe, in the meantime, needs to stay on her guard lest the charming Malden Grey steal her heart at the same time she’s hoping to borrow from his library a priceless book that could make her fortune.
But when Mal’s foray into Amaranthe’s past yields a discovery that will change both of their destinies, they’ll have to fight together to clear their names and stake out a future together—if either has a future at all.
Excerpt:
A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “You are not a dog I am to try patting on the head, to overcome my fear it might bite me.”
“I am exactly that.” His voice came as a low rumble. He felt her answering laugh inside his chest. “Try me and see.”
He stood still, waiting for her decision. He feared he might die if she couldn’t conquer her fear. I want you to touch me, she’d said. He’d never heard sweeter words in his life.
Holding his gaze, her eyes dark pools, she raised his hand to her mouth and slowly slid his fingers over her lips. Desire crashed through him. Her lips were cool as cream. She pressed her cheek to his palm, then moved his hand to her throat, pressing the heel of his palm beneath her collarbone. The fabric of the fichu tucked into her neckline fluttered beneath his fingers, and her breath grew fast. His own sounded ragged in his ears.
“All right?” she whispered, as if asking permission.
“Very much so.” His voice scratched his throat. Desire had him tight and hard, but he stood riveted as if he were one of the standing stones on the moors. Nothing could induce him to move and frighten her away.
She rose to her tiptoes and brought her cheek close to his. Her soft, warm breath against his ear stirred a nearly painful ache. She slid her fingers into his hair beneath the leather strip that held his queue and her touch on his scalp made him groan with pleasure.
She pressed her lips to his cheek, dragging her mouth over the day’s stubble, and he squeezed his eyes shut to hold himself at bay. Her scent, her touch, her heat surrounded him. The sight of her hazy eyes and soft skin was too much for mortal man to bear.
GIVEAWAY
Blitz-wide giveaway (INT) ends March 14
- eBook copy of The Forger and the Duke
AUTHOR BIO:
Misty Urban is a medieval scholar, freelance editor, and college professor who likes to write stories about misbehaving women who find adventure and romance. She holds an MFA and Ph.D. from Cornell University and lives in the Midwest in a little town on a big river.
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