“It is a book.”
Amusement tugged at her lips. “Generally, a person awaits for the respective person to open said gift before revealing the contents of the package,” she said wryly.
He leaned over and tapped the package with an impatient hand. “Open it.”
She schooled her features into solemn expression. “Will it be safe for me to do so? The whole overexerting myself business and all.”
His frown deepened and he reached for the package. “I’d not considered—”
Hermione drew the gift back and laughed. “I was being facetious.”
“Oh.”
Hermione slid her finger under the ribbon holding the satin fabric in place and withdrew a leather book; the slight weight of the volume had a warm, familiar feel. Filled with curiosity, she turned the book over and skimmed the title. She blinked at her last published work, trying to make sense of the gold lettering emblazoned across the front of the volume.
The Earl’s Entrapment
By Mr. Michael Michaelmas
He set her away from him with a scowl. “You have nothing to say?”
She tipped her head, uncertain how to account for the black glower on her husband’s face. “Um, I quite enjoy this story. It is one of my favorite books of Mr. Michaelmas.” Or it had been until her sister had gone and pointed out that she’d become the dishonorable schemer who’d trapped the hero in marriage.
“That is not it.” He draped his arms over the back of his plush, red velvet seat and drummed his fingertips. “Try again.”
“I love you?”
He growled.
“Thank you?”
Another growl, this one more of a snarl really. Oh, it wouldn’t do to tease him.
“I’m sorry?” But it really was good fun.
Sebastian folded his arms in a menacing fashion. “It would seem, madam, that you are merely venturing guesses now.”
Well, that was at least true and having a good time in the process. She held the book up. “Perhaps you’d care to enlighten me, then as to the suitable response?”
“You promised there would be no more lies between us.”
She frowned, really beginning to take offense with his sharp, commanding tone. This gentleman bore more traces to that stranger who’d challenged her in Lord Denley’s office a lifetime ago. “There haven’t been.” And there hadn’t. The last piece of herself she’d kept from him was the omission of Mr. Michael Michaelmas. She stared down at the book. Yet Mr. Michaelmas had no bearing on their future.
He removed the book from her hands and held it up damningly. “If there are no more lies, Hermione, then what is this?”
Ah, so this was that harsh, imperious tone adopted by dukes which had young ladies quaking. Not that she was quaking. She wasn’t.
“Hermione,” he barked.
She made another grab for the beloved volume. “That is a book, Sebastian. The Entrapped Earl,” she pointed out. His eyebrows dipped menacingly. “Do you have a problem with the title?” She’d found it to be one of Mr. Werksman more clever ideas.
“I don’t have a problem with the damned title.” His rumbling voice steadily increased in volume. Oh, well that was something. He tossed the book onto the empty spot beside her. “I have a problem with the damned author.”
The implications of his words slammed into her with the force of a fast-moving phaeton. “You…” She pressed a hand to her breast. This rejection far worse than his opinion on Mr. Werksman’s title. “You hate Mr. Michaelmas?” The whisper was torn from her under the weight of this staggering rejection.
A startled squeak escaped her as he hoisted her onto his lap. “Mr. Michaelmas infuriates me.”
“Oh.” She wrinkled her nose. That wasn’t well-done of her husband. He didn’t personally know Mr. Michaelmas. Granted, she was Mr. Michaelmas, but he didn’t know that…
Her husband continued in a stinging diatribe and she gave silent thanks that Mr. Michaelmas was a fictional fellow or he’d really be quite offended.
“Mr. Michaelmas is obstinate and maddening and—”
She held up a hand. “You really shouldn’t have such an unfavorable opinion of him.” After all, she was he, and she’d not allow Sebastian to disparage her without justifiable reasons.
“May I finish, wife?” he growled. He dipped his head low and she detected the flecks of gold within the green irises of his eyes. “He is obstinate and maddening and I love him.”
“You love him?” she blurted. All her earlier annoyance faded, replaced with a rapidly spreading joy, similar to the moment he’d first conceded his enjoyment with The Bitterest Baron’s Bittersweet Love.
He closed his eyes a moment and his lips moved silently in what she believed was prayer. “I love you, you daft woman.” Then the anger seemed to drain out of him. “I know, Hermione.” He spoke so softly she very nearly didn’t hear. As it was—
She blinked. “You know?”
He nodded.
She touched her fingers to her mouth. “You know.” Her mind stalled and then quickly spun wildly as she tried to sort through his admission.
“I know.” He spoke with such a gentleness tears flooded her eyes. Where was the censure, the angry disapproval?
“How?” No one knew. No one but…a likely eleven-year-old traitor. She shook her head. “You needn’t worry, Sebastian, I’ve not lied to you. I did not confess to being Mr. Michaelmas because I did not intend to write as him anymore.” Even though her fingers would forever ache with the desire to pick up a pen and create another story of another tortured couple and their ultimate triumph in the face of great tribulations.
“You said there were to be no more lies.”
She shoved away from him, running a gaze over his face. “And there were none.”
He drew in a breath and collapsed back in his seat. “You believe this is about my being displeased by your writing?”
A tear slid down her cheek. “It isn’t?” She brushed it away.
He scrubbed his hands over his face. “I swear you’re likely the most infuriating woman in all the kingdom.” His hands fell to his side. The dark glower was back in place. “Do you truly believe I would make you stop writing?”
“No.” She shook her head. “No, I didn’t believe that.”
He appeared flummoxed. “Then why?”
“I believe any gentleman who promises me the sun, moon, and stars would allow me to write, and I’d not force that upon you. I know if I wanted to continue writing as Mr. Michaelmas you would let me because that is the kind of gentleman you are and—”
“Hermione?”
“Yes, Sebastian?”
“Shut up.” He also happened to be that manner of gentleman. He kissed her. Hard. The manner of kiss that curled her toes and warmed her belly. She twined her arms about his neck, having missed the feel of him, having missed all of him. He trailed kisses down the corner of her mouth, lower. “You are not to stop writing.” He nipped the sensitive flesh of her neck. “Is that clear, love?”
Her head fell back of its own volition and a breathless moan escaped her. “Quite clear.”
“Good.” He ceased his tender ministrations so abruptly she blinked in confusion. “Here.” He slapped something hard and heavy into her hand.
She looked at the wrapped gift.
“Open it,” he commanded.
Hermione alternated her stare between Sebastian and the gift and then unfastened the ribbon. Her heart thudded to a halt. She trailed her finger over the gold lettering.
Her Charming Duke
By Mr. Michael Michaelmas
“I don’t understand,” she whispered.
He touched a hand to her cheek and with the pad of his thumb, brushed away a teardrop. Then another. And another. “It is for you, Hermione. I told you I wanted all of you. I want the aggravating parts, the loyal parts; I want your smile and laugh. I want Mr. Michaelmas.”
Hermione touched her nose to his. “Do you know what, Sebastian?”
He searched her face. “What is that?”
“I shall leave the world to its dark, brooding, and nefarious dukes.” She framed his face between her hands. Their breath mingled as one. “I want nothing more than my charming duke.”
The End
T
he Duke of Mallen’s Epilogue
Sebastian’s office resounded with the thick of midnight quiet and the scratch of his pen upon paper. He added one final item to his list and then set his pen down, quickly perusing the sheet.
Sebastian Fitzhugh, the 5th Duke of Mallen’s List
21 March 1820
Serves on the board of London Hospital √
Wedded. √
Heir Andrew Bryant, the Marquess of Atherol, born 21 March 1820 √
Cherished daughter Bettina Audrey, born 21 March 1820—17 minutes later. √
Besotted and hopelessly in love with my wife. With a grin, he picked up his pen and added a final √.
B
iography
Christi Caldwell is the USA Today Bestselling author of historical romance novels set in the Regency era. Christi blames Judith McNaught’s “Whitney, My Love,” for luring her into the world of historical romance. While sitting in her graduate school apartment at the University of Connecticut, Christi decided to set aside her notes and try her hand at writing romance. She believes the most perfect heroes and heroines have imperfections and rather enjoys tormenting them before crafting a well-deserved happily ever after!
When Christi isn’t writing the stories of flawed heroes and heroines, she can be found in her Southern Connecticut home chasing around her feisty six-year-old son, and caring for twin princesses-in-training!
Visit www.christicaldwellauthor.com to learn more about what Christi is working on, or join her on Facebook at Christi Caldwell Author (for frequent updates, excerpts, and posts about her fun as a fulltime mom and writer) and Twitter @ChristiCaldwell (which she is still quite dreadful with).
O
ther Books by Christi Caldwell
“Winning a Lady’s Heart”
A Danby Novella
Author’s Note: This is a novella that was originally available in A Summons From The Castle (The Regency Christmas Summons Collection). It is being published as an individual novella.
For Lady Alexandra, being the source of a cold, calculated wager is bad enough…but when it is waged by Nathaniel Michael Winters, 5th Earl of Pembroke, the man she’s in love with, it results in a broken heart, the scandal of the season, and a summons from her grandfather – the Duke of Danby.
To escape Society’s gossip, she hurries to her meeting with the duke, determined to put memories of the earl far behind. Except the duke has other plans for Alexandra…plans which include the 5th Earl of Pembroke!
“A Season of Hope”
A Danby Novella
Five years ago when her love, Marcus Wheatley, failed to return from fighting Napoleon’s forces, Lady Olivia Foster buried her heart. Unable to betray Marcus’s memory, Olivia has gone out of her way to run off prospective suitors. At three and twenty she considers herself firmly on the shelf. Her father, however, disagrees and accepts an offer for Olivia’s hand in marriage. Yet it’s Christmas, when anything can happen…
Olivia receives a well-timed summons from her grandfather, the Duke of Danby, and eagerly embraces the reprieve from her betrothal.
Only, when Olivia arrives at Danby Castle she realizes the Christmas season represents hope, second chances, and even miracles.
“Forever Betrothed, Never the Bride”
Book 1 in the Scandalous Seasons Series
Hopeless romantic Lady Emmaline Fitzhugh is tired of sitting with the wallflowers, waiting for her betrothed to come to his senses and marry her. When Emmaline reads one too many reports of his scandalous liaisons in the gossip rags, she takes matters into her own hands.
War-torn veteran Lord Drake devotes himself to forgetting his days on the Peninsula through an endless round of meaningless associations. He no longer wants to feel anything, but Lady Emmaline is making it hard to maintain a state of numbness. With her zest for life, she awakens his passion and desire for love.
The one woman Drake has spent the better part of his life avoiding is now the only woman he needs, but he is no longer a man worthy of his Emmaline. It is up to her to show him the healing power of love.
“Never Courted, Suddenly Wed”
Book 2 in the Scandalous Seasons Series
Christopher Ansley, Earl of Waxham, has constructed a perfect image for the ton–the ladies love him and his company is desired by all. Only two people know the truth about Waxham’s secret. Unfortunately, one of them is Miss Sophie Winters.
Sophie Winters has known Christopher since she was in leading strings. As children, they delighted in tormenting each other. Now at two and twenty, she still has a tendency to find herself in scrapes, and her marital prospects are slim.
When his father threatens to expose his shame to the ton, unless he weds Sophie for her dowry, Christopher concocts a plan to remain a bachelor. What he didn’t plan on was falling in love with the lively, impetuous Sophie. As secrets are exposed, will Christopher’s love be enough when she discovers his role in his father’s scheme?
“Always Proper, Suddenly Scandalous”
Book 3 in the Scandalous Seasons Series
Geoffrey Winters, Viscount Redbrooke was not always the hard, unrelenting lord driven by propriety. After a tragic mistake, he resolved to honor his responsibility to the Redbrooke line and live a life, free of scandal. Knowing his duty is to wed a proper, respectable English miss, he selects Lady Beatrice Dennington, daughter of the Duke of Somerset, the perfect woman for him. Until he meets Miss Abigail Stone…
To distance herself from a personal scandal, Abigail Stone flees America to visit her uncle, the Duke of Somerset. Determined to never trust a man again, she is helplessly intrigued by the hard, too-proper Geoffrey. With his strict appreciation for decorum and order, he is nothing like the man’ she’s always dreamed of.
Abigail is everything Geoffrey does not need. She upends his carefully ordered world at every encounter. As they begin to care for one another, Abigail carefully guards the secret that resulted in her journey to England.
Only, if Geoffrey learns the truth about Abigail, he must decide which he holds most dear: his place in Society or Abigail’s place in his heart.
“Always a Rogue, Forever Her Love”
Book 4 in the Scandalous Seasons Series
Miss Juliet Marshville is spitting mad. With one guardian missing, and the other singularly uninterested in her fate, she is at the mercy of her wastrel brother who loses her beloved childhood home to a man known as Sin. Determined to reclaim control of Rosecliff Cottage and her own fate, Juliet arranges a meeting with the notorious rogue and demands the return of her property.
Jonathan Tidemore, 5th Earl of Sinclair, known to the ton as Sin, is exceptionally lucky in life and at the gaming tables. He has just one problem. Well…four, really. His incorrigible sisters have driven off yet another governess. This time, however, his mother demands he find an appropriate replacement.
When Miss Juliet Marshville boldly demands the return of her precious cottage, he takes advantage of his sudden good fortune and puts an offer to her; turn his sisters into proper English ladies, and he’ll return Rosecliff Cottage to Juliet’s possession.
Jonathan comes to appreciate Juliet’s spirit, courage, and clever wit, and decides to claim the fiery beauty as his mistress. Juliet, however, will be mistress for no man. Nor could she ever love a man who callously stole her home in a game of cards. As Jonathan begins to see Juliet as more than a spirited beauty to warm his bed, he realizes she could be a lady he could love the rest of his life, if only he can convince the proud Juliet that he’s worthy of her hand and heart.
“A Marquess For Christmas”
Book 5 in the Scandalous Seasons Series
Lady Patrina Tidemo
re gave up on the ridiculous notion of true love after having her heart shattered and her trust destroyed by a black-hearted cad. Used as a pawn in a game of revenge against her brother, Patrina returns to London from a failed elopement with a tattered reputation and little hope for a respectable match. The only peace she finds is in her solitude on the cold winter days at Hyde Park. And even that is yanked from her by two little hellions who just happen to have a devastatingly handsome, but coldly aloof father, the Marquess of Beaufort. Something about the lord stirs the dreams she’d once carried for an honorable gentleman’s love.
Weston Aldridge, the 4th Marquess of Beaufort was deceived and betrayed by his late wife. In her faithlessness, he’s come to view women as self-serving, indulgent creatures. Except, after a series of chance encounters with Patrina, he comes to appreciate how uniquely different she is than all women he’s ever known.
At the Christmastide season, a time of hope and new beginnings, Patrina and Weston, unexpectedly learn true love in one another. However, as Patrina’s scandalous past threatens their future and the happiness of his children, they are both left to determine if love is enough.
Once a Wallflower, At Last His Love
Book 6 in the Scandalous Seasons Series
Responsible, practical Miss Hermione Rogers, has been crafting stories as the notorious Mr. Michael Michaelmas and selling them for a meager wage to support her siblings. The only real way to ensure her family’s ruinous debts are paid, however, is to marry. Tall, thin, and plain, she has no expectation of success. In London for her first Season she seizes the chance to write the tale of a brooding duke. In her research, she finds Sebastian Fitzhugh, the 5th Duke of Mallen, who unfortunately is perfectly affable, charming, and so nicely… configured… he takes her breath away. He lacks all the character traits she needs for her story, but alas, any duke will have to do.
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