If the Duke Dares

 

IF THE DUKE DARES

by Darcy Burke

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

GENRE:  Regency Historical Romance

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

BLURB:

 

Incorrigible flirt Acton Loxley, Duke of Wellesbourne is in need of a duchess. En route to greet a potential bride, he encounters a most intriguing and captivating widow who completely distracts him from his task. However, she disappears before he can deepen their acquaintance. Acton begrudgingly goes to meet his bride, unaware she and the widow are one and the same.

 

When Persephone Barclay’s younger sister is compromised, Persephone must wed before the scandal spreads. Her parents scramble to present her to the Duke of Wellesbourne; except he’s precisely the kind of rogue she has now vowed to avoid. Taking flight to avoid a match, Persephone runs straight into her would-be betrothed and pretends to be someone else. But dash it all, the duke proves to be irresistibly charming! If she remains in his company, she’ll end up in the wicked scoundrel’s clutches.

 

Even worse, her second attempt at escape lands her in increasingly poor circumstances. With nowhere to turn and her safety at risk, she may have to accept help from the one man who threatens her resolve—and her reputation.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT

 

“I confess I am embarrassingly curious about you.”

 

Once again, her stunning eyes met his. “Why?”

 

He shrugged. “A beautiful woman traveling alone is curious.”

 

Her eyes had widened the slightest degree when he’d called her beautiful. Did she not like to be complimented? He’d met a woman like that once. She’d found flattery empty and preferred when a man showed what he thought of her instead of telling her. Acton had worked hard thereafter to demonstrate his soaring opinion of her attributes.

 

“It oughtn’t be. I’m a widow on my way to visit family. Since you’re being unabashedly inquisitive, I’ll do the same. Where are you going?’”

 

“Home, actually.”

 

“And where is that?”

 

He narrowed one eye at her. “Are you equally curious about me, or just giving as good as you get?”

 

“Probably the latter.” Her mouth tried to smile, but she wouldn’t let it. Why not? Perhaps she was newly widowed and didn’t think she ought to show amusement. That would explain the laugh that had come out as a snort. She’d tried to stop it. “You’re avoiding answering my question.”

 

“Not on purpose. Home is near Stratford-upon-Avon.”

 

A serving maid brought Acton’s dinner and the bottle of wine. She poured Madeira into his glass and deposited the bottle on the table before dipping a brief curtsey on her way out.

 

“A curtsey for you?” Acton’s companion asked. “And the innkeeper called you ‘sir.’ Are you nobility?”

 

“Er, yes.” He usually proudly proclaimed his title, as his father had taught him to do, but in this private dining room alone with this beautiful woman, he wanted to be just a man. He picked up his wineglass. “To making new friends.”

 

She gave him a dubious look as she plucked up her glass and gently tapped it to his. “Friends? It’s a trifle early to make such pronouncements, isn’t it? Perhaps we won’t get on at all.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

 

Darcy Burke is the USA Today Bestselling Author of over sixty captivating, compelling historical and contemporary romance. Darcy wrote her first book at age 11, a happily ever after about a swan addicted to magic and the female swan who loved him, with exceedingly poor illustrations. Her novels have been translated into five languages and are also available as audio books. Join her Reader Club at https://www.darcyburke.com/join.

 

A native Oregonian, Darcy lives on the edge of wine country with her guitar-strumming, teacher husband, artist daughter, and writer (yes!) son. They’re a crazy cat family with two Bengal cats, a small, fame-seeking cat named after a fruit, a rescue Maine Coon with attitude to spare, an adorable former stray who wandered onto their deck and into their hearts, and two bonded boys who used to belong to (separate) neighbors but chose them instead. You can find Darcy in her comfy writing chair, folding laundry (which she loves), or enjoying game night with the family. Visit Darcy online at http://www.darcyburke.com and follow her social media: Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/darcyburkefans, Instagram at http://www.instagram/darcyburkeauthor, and Pinterest at http://www.pinterest.com/darcyburkewrite.

 

If the Duke Dares website link: https://geni.us/IftheDukeDares

 

If the Duke Dares buy links

 

Amazon: https://geni.us/IftheDukeDares-Amz

Apple: https://geni.us/IftheDukeDares-App

Barnes & Noble: https://geni.us/IftheDukeDares-BN

Google Play: https://geni.us/IftheDukeDares-GP

Kobo: https://geni.us/IftheDukeDares-Kobo

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

GIVEAWAY INFORMATION 

 

Darcy Burke will award a $25 Amazon/BN GC + swag to a randomly drawn winner (swag US/Canada only)

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway