With her final season in the ton a surprising success, Lady Camille Bellington retires to her family’s Yorkshire estate for Christmas with a marriage proposal in hand. Beautiful and charming, but too independent for society, Camille has given up on the hope to marry for love. So she will marry for duty. The man of her childhood dreams hasn’t been home in three years, even to secure his dukedom, and her heart went with him.
His best friend’s little sister is lost to him…
War hero Tristan Tierney, Duke of Mercer, returns to his ancestral home for the holidays to find himself burdened with a title and the woman he left behind betrothed to another. As he’s only seen death and destruction for years, he’s come to believe true love is a myth. His aloof demeanor veils his deepest unspoken desire, to possess Camille Bellington.
Childhood friendship gives way to something altogether more dangerous as two people give love a second chance.
If you like mischievous heroines and devilish dukes with a splash of Regency splendor thrown in, then you’ll adore Chasing the Duke.
Award-winning author Tracy Sumner’s storytelling career began when she picked up a historical romance on a college beach trip, and she fondly blames LaVyrle Spencer for her obsession with the genre. She’s a recipient of the National Reader’s Choice, and her novels have been translated into Dutch, German, Portuguese and Spanish. She lived in New York, Paris and Taipei before finding her way back to the Lowcountry of South Carolina.
When not writing sizzling love stories about feisty heroines and their temperamental-but-entirely-lovable heroes, Tracy enjoys reading, snowboarding, college football (Go Tigers!), yoga, and travel. She loves to hear from romance readers!
Download your FREE steamy historical romance novella:
He’sbreaking the rules for one woman, and coming dangerously close to
falling in love…
Simon Nugent, Earl of Fielding, knows he’sflawed. He’sarrogant, possessive, and haunted by a terrible choice he made long
ago. Sowhen a former friend’s daughter gives him the chance to do a good
deed, he grabs it. Except he’dlike to grab her as well and teach her a thing or two about kissing.
If only she weren’tso damn stubborn.
Ida Strong wants one thing – justice on behalf of her father. She has no
room for anything else, in spite of her growing and (at times)
inexplicable attraction toward a certain earl. But for a woman who knows
what betrayal tastes like, placing her trust in others is hard. Risking
her heart, would be downright foolish. Until it’s the only thing that
seems to make sense.
London May, 1821 WEARY OF TRYING TO FIND an acceptable bride, Simon Garrison Nugent, Earl of Fielding, had ceased all attempts at marriage and was currently avoiding debutantes much as he would a leper. By keeping his distance. Instead, he chose to pass his evenings with friends. At his age of three and thirty, marriage was expected. He knew it had to happen soon if he was to maintain his dignity. After all, the longer he remained unattached, the more it looked like he’d not yet recovered from losing his fiancée to another man. It had been three years since the incident yet it still rankled. Gabriella, now the Duchess of Huntley, would have made the perfect countess. The very idea of her choosing an ill-bred ruffian, even if he did happen to have a prestigious title, was bad enough without Simon having to worry about what people would think of the next bride he picked. She would have to be at least as pretty, graceful, and accomplished as Gabriella. Preferably more so, which brought him back to the inadequacy of the women currently available for marriage. Seated in a quiet corner of White’s together with Baron Hawthorne and the Earl of Yates, Simon sipped his brandy and tried to force his thoughts away from the past by focusing on what Yates was saying. “It was never meant to get this out of hand,” Yates explained while looking precisely like the sort of man whose neck was being squeezed by a noose. He was a good fellow – one of the few who seemed to tolerate Simon’s company – though sadly too kind for his own good, seeing as he’d gotten tangled up with an untitled woman who lacked a dowry and connections. “All I meant to do was help the girl. She’s a friend of my sister’s after all.” “If every man with a sister offered to step out with all her unremarkable friends, he’d have gotten himself engaged a dozen times over,” Baron Hawthorne muttered. He tossed back the remainder of his drink and poured himself another. “It’s your own damn fault for being too nice.” “He’s right, you know,” Simon said. Stretching out his legs, he crossed them at the ankles and cradled his snifter between his hands while pondering Yates’s dilemma. Apparently there had been a compromising situation which just happened to have been witnessed by a group of matrons hoping to find a reprieve from the stuffy ballroom. Simon sighed. “The trouble is,” he said, deciding to meet Yates’s gaze dead on, “hell, the trouble has always been, that she’s not your equal. Socially, I mean.” “Well done, Fielding.” Hawthorne said with a smirk. “It’s always good to know you’ll remind us of what’s acceptable.” Simon fought the urge to roll his eyes. “Tell me I’m wrong.” His demand was, as expected, met by silence. Not even Yates attempted to argue. “Miss Harlowe is not countess material. This doesn’t mean she cannot be perfectly lovely, but no matter how you turn it, she’ll always be born into the wrong family.” There was a heavy moment of silence, and then Hawthorne asked, “Has your outlook on life always been this sunny?” Simon snorted. “I’m just trying to be realistic. If Yates marries Miss Harlowe, he will no longer be welcome in certain circles, people will talk, and his life as he knows it will be forever changed, which I very much doubt is something he wants.” “From determined wife hunter to cynical loner,” Yates murmured, his narrowed eyes fixed on Simon with interest. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten your eager pursuit of Gabriella Matthews. Hell, you were even engaged to her for what, ten seconds or so, roughly four years ago?” “The Duchess of Huntley?” Hawthorne inquired with wide eyes. “I don’t recall that at all.” “Three,” Simon clipped. “It was three years ago.” “You must not have been at the Coventry Ball that season,” Yates said to Hawthorne. “Fielding announced the betrothal – even kissed Gabriella before one and all – only to let the whole thing fizzle away into nothing. A short while later, Huntley and Gabriella were married and you,” Yates tilted his almost empty glass in Simon’s direction, “haven’t proposed to anyone since.” “Perhaps because I haven’t met anyone else worth asking,” Simon said. Yates leaned back, his expression suddenly distant and thoughtful. “I think you need to fall in love,” Hawthorne told Simon with a grin. “God forbid,” Simon muttered. Worrying over his future was difficult enough without throwing love into the mix. “I don’t think he believes in love,” Yates said. Simon gave his friend a deadpan look. “Of course I do. There have been so many blissful unions of late, I’m inclined to believe we live in a world full of rainbows where cupids lurk behind every bush. Hell, even Carlton Guthrie, the Scoundrel of St. Giles – a man I would have sworn had no heart – is smitten with his young wife.” “Sounds like an epidemic.” Simon snorted in response to Hawthorne’s comment and took another sip of his drink. “By the by,” Yates murmured in a more discreet tone than earlier, “I’ve promised Celeste I’d try and find her a new protector, in case this thing with Miss Harlowe doesn’t blow over and I end up marrying her.” “I don’t understand why you’d want to give up your mistress if you’re not in love,” Hawthorne said. “Out of respect for my wife,” Yates said. He emitted a heavy sigh and looked at Simon. “I don’t suppose you would be interested?” “I’m afraid not. In my experience mistresses are demanding and hard to get rid of.” His last one had even made a spectacle, chasing after him on Oxford Street when he’d tried to end things with her. It had been most embarrassing. “Celeste isn’t like that. She’s quite agreeable and sweet.” “Nevertheless,” Simon said. “No wife or mistress,” Hawthorne said with a pitying look that put Simon on edge. “You must be in need of a good tup.” “It’s not so bad,” Simon said. Hawthorne raised an eyebrow. “Really? How long has it been since you last had a woman?” Simon shrugged. He hated this – hated being made to feel lacking in some way. Attempting to show indifference, he busied himself with refilling his glass. “Three months or so.” “Damnation,” Yates murmured. “Hell, it’s no wonder you look so tense.” Hawthorne reached inside his jacket pocket, retrieved a card, and handed it to Simon. “If I may, I suggest you stop by Amourette’s on your way home tonight.” “It’s a brothel, is it not?” Simon asked. When Hawthorne nodded Simon instinctively winced. “I don’t think so.”
About the Author
Born in Denmark, USA TODAY bestselling author Sophie Barnes spent her
youth traveling with her parents to wonderful places all around the
world. She’slived in five different countries, on three different continents, and
speaks Danish, English, French, Spanish, and Romanian. But, most
impressive of all, she’sbeen married to the same man three times—in three different countries
and in three different dresses.
When she’snot busy dreaming up her next romance novel, Sophie enjoys spending
time with her family, swimming, cooking, gardening, watching romantic
comedies and, of course, reading.
He’sbreaking the rules for one woman, and coming dangerously close to falling in love…
Simon Nugent, Earl of Fielding, knows he’sflawed. He’sarrogant, possessive, and haunted by a terrible choice he made long ago. Sowhen a former friend’s daughter gives him the chance to do a good deed, he grabs it. Except he’dlike to grab her as well and teach her a thing or two about kissing. If only she weren’tso damn stubborn.
Ida Strong wants one thing – justice on behalf of her father. She has no room for anything else, in spite of her growing and (at times) inexplicable attraction toward a certain earl. But for a woman who knows what betrayal tastes like, placing her trust in others is hard. Risking her heart, would be downright foolish. Until it’s the only thing that seems to make sense.
Born in Denmark, USA TODAY bestselling author Sophie Barnes spent her youth traveling with her parents to wonderful places all around the world. She’slived in five different countries, on three different continents, and speaks Danish, English, French, Spanish, and Romanian. But, most impressive of all, she’sbeen married to the same man three times—in three different countries and in three different dresses.
When she’snot busy dreaming up her next romance novel, Sophie enjoys spending time with her family, swimming, cooking, gardening, watching romantic comedies and, of course, reading.
As the most distinguished watchmaker in England, Christian Bainbridge
believes in accurate timepieces, not love. He secretly offered his heart
years ago, and he’s never gotten it back. When Raine Mowbray stumbles
into his life again, Christian realizes the woman he’s worshiped from
afar is still the woman he desires above all others.
Raine Mowbray needs solitude and employment, not love. A housemaid forced
to flee a loathsome earl’s grasp, the last thing she’s seeking
is a man’s amorous attention. When she finds herself unexpectantly
paired with a gorgeous watchmaker in need of an assistant, she’s
unnerved by his wit, kindness—and clandestine devotion to her.
If you like spirited heroines who fight falling in love and charmingly
arrogant heroes who think they know best, then this is the book for you!
Snuggle up with Tempting the Scoundrel, a steamy second chance,
love-at-first-sight Regency Romance!
This is a Downton Abbey-ish novella at 98 pages and 25K words!!
Award-winning author Tracy Sumner’s storytelling career began when she
picked up a historical romance on a college beach trip, and she fondly
blames LaVyrle Spencer for her obsession with the genre. She’s a recipient
of the National Reader’s Choice, and her novels have been translated into
Dutch, German, Portuguese and Spanish. She lived in New York, Paris and
Taipei before finding her way back to the Lowcountry of South
Carolina.
When not writing sizzling love stories about feisty heroines and their
temperamental-but-entirely-lovable heroes, Tracy enjoys reading,
snowboarding, college football (Go Tigers!), yoga, and travel. She loves to
hear from romance readers!
Lady Cassandra has no desire to marry. But when Captain Devlin Crawford brings scandal to her doorstep and offers salvation, she cannot say no. Not with her daughter’s future at stake. So she decides to accept Devlin’s offer, provided he agrees to never being intimate with her. For although Cassandra is drawn to Devlin, she refuses to dishonor the memory of her one true love.
Devlin knows he’s made a mess, but now that it’s done, marrying Cassandra doesn’t seem like the worst idea in the world. Far from it, though it will take serious effort on his part to convince her of this. Especially since she’s never stopped mourning the man she was meant to marry over a decade ago. So once they set off on a grand ocean voyage, Devlin embarks on his greatest adventure yet – the wooing of his wife.
Other Books in The Crawfords Series:
No Ordinary Duke
The Crawfords, Book 1
Release Date: August 2018
He’s everything she’s trying to avoid…But somehow precisely what she needs…
Caleb Crawford doesn’t want to be a duke. He’d much rather build houses for a living. So when fate disrupts his peaceful life and burdens him with the responsibilities of a newly inherited title, he does what any sensible man would do by fleeing London, disguising himself as a laborer, and seeking refuge with three young spinsters who need his help with a leaky roof.
Ruined by a marquess who promised her the world, Mary Clemens has sworn to avoid marriage forever. Instead, she intends to live out her days with her friends and the orphaned children they’ve taken into their care. But when Mr. Crawford comes knocking, Mary finds herself in real danger of risking heartbreak all over again. Especially when she discovers that he’s not at all what he seems.
Emily Howard knows she is destined to be a spinster. She has accepted this fate, but that doesn’t stop her from wanting to experience kissing. What she doesn’t expect, is for Griffin Crawford, the handsomest man in the world, to do the honors. Or for all her female relations to discover her in his embrace. Naturally, marriage is instantly mentioned, but since Emily knows this is not what Griffin wants, she tries to escape him, her family and the ensuing scandal.
When Emily flees the Camberly ball in the wake of their kiss, Griffin goes in pursuit. He will not allow his sister-in-law’s determined friend to risk her safety for any reason. And risk it she will if she means to return to her countryside home by herself. But the longer he remains in her company, the more he is tempted to kiss her again. If only he could risk falling in love and remain in England forever.
“I cannot believe the duke and duchess would think to invite her.” The speaker had just stepped onto the terrace a few yards from where Devlin stood.
“It is my understanding that she and the duchess are dear friends,” another voice gently advised.
“Well yes. There is that, I suppose. But to not consider the Vernons’ feelings really is bad form.” There was a small sniff. “Can you imagine having your scandalous daughter make a spectacle on the dance floor for all the world to see? I mean, honestly! She practically threw herself at him, poor man.” There was an outraged snort. “As if Lord Devlin would ever consider marrying the likes of her. The mere thought of it is—”
“What?” Devlin asked stepping forward. He set his glass aside anven if that meant forcing the horrid baroness to choke on her own words.
“Yes?” he inquired in an eerily quiet voice that managed to turn his own stomach. “You were saying?”
“Um…merely that…er…” She glanced at her friend while fidgeting with her gloves but when she found no help there, she surprised Devlin by raising her chin and looking him dead in the eye. “You are a duke’s brother for heaven’s sake and she is nothing but a—”
“Lady DeVries,” Caleb snapped.
“—trollop,” the baroness finished, punctuating her statement with a victorious smile.
What she couldn’t see was the blood rushing through Devlin’s veins or the tight strain of his muscles. Never in his life had he been so livid, and if Lady DeVries had been a man, he would have called her out by now so he could have the pleasure of shooting her dead.
“Devlin,” Caleb murmured from somewhere nearby. “Don’t do anything rash. I beg you.”
But the middle-aged woman who stood before Devlin, dripping with smug maliciousness, had pushed him past all reason. “And what makes you so much better?” he asked.
Lady DeVries gasped. Her friend gulped, took a step back, and then fled back inside the ballroom, abandoning the baroness to her fate. Caleb groaned and Monty managed to get in a weary, “For God’s sake, Dev,” before Lady DeVries recovered and said, “I will not be spoken to in such a rude manner. I deserve better.”
“So does Lady Cassandra.”
The baroness crossed her arms. “Don’t be absurd. She might have been born into the nobility, but she threw all of that away the moment she chose to—”
“Madam,” Devlin seethed, “I would advise you to choose your next words wisely.”
“Or what?”
“Or I shall have to ask you to leave,” Caleb said.
The baroness scoffed – scoffed! – in response to her host’s statement, but Caleb apparently chose to let it go without comment. “Why am I not surprised?” she asked as she turned away and started toward the French doors leading back to the ballroom. But just when Devlin thought that might be the end of their quarrel, she turned back to face him with all the arrogance Devlin despised about the aristocracy. “Lady Cassandra is a fallen woman. When even her parents can see that, I don’t understand why you find it such a hard concept to grasp.”
“Oh, Jesus,” Monty murmured.
Devlin speared Lady DeVries with his hardest glare. “You will not speak of her in that manner.”
“As much as I respect your family, I hardly think it appropriate for you to advise me on how I may or may not refer to a person of such low moral standing as Lady Cassandra.”
Maybe it was the fact that he’d just gotten off a ship after several months at sea, maybe it was the champagne—though he seriously doubted it, or maybe it was the fact that he’d really enjoyed seeing Cassandra again that finally made Devlin come up with something completely unplanned and, quite possibly, cataclysmic. What he did know was that he could think of only one way in which to give Cassandra the stamp of approval necessary to make this woman regret her words.
Blind with rage and as he’d later admit not entirely clear-headed, he ignored Caleb’s words of warning and leaned toward the baroness. Meeting her gaze with all the hatred he possessed for her at that moment, he said, “It bloody well is when she is to be my wife.”
About the Author
Born in Denmark, USA TODAY bestselling author Sophie Barnes spent her youth traveling with her parents to wonderful places all around the world. She’s lived in five different countries, on three different continents, and speaks Danish, English, French, Spanish, and Romanian with varying degrees of fluency. But, most impressive of all, she’s been married to the same man three times—in three different countries and in three different dresses.
When she’s not busy dreaming up her next romance novel, Sophie enjoys spending time with her family, swimming, cooking, gardening, watching romantic comedies and, of course, reading.
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here:
Cookie Policy
