CAN A SCANDALOUS
CHARADE
For seven long
years, Lady Cassandra Monroe has waited for the man of her dreams to return
from the war. Unfortunately, he happens to be engaged to her flighty cousin.
What Cass wouldn’t give to take her cousin’s place! When he mistakes Cass for
Patience Bunbury, a fictitious friend her cousin has invented to escape social
obligations…even with her future husband, Cass thinks this is her chance.
LEAD TO TRUE AND
LASTING LOVE?
After defeating
Napoleon at Waterloo, Captain Julian Swift is not quite ready to settle down
and enter into his unwanted arranged marriage—especially when the real object
of his affection turns out to be a beguiling beauty he meets at a party.
Patience Bunbury is witty, independent, passionate…and, unbeknownst to him, the
cousin of his current fiancée. When the truth about Cass comes out—and Julian discovers that their courtship is anything but
accidental—will he surrender his heart to a woman who really is too good to be
true?
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Julian
pulled on his gloves. “I know I’m going to regret asking this, but why did
Mother give you five pounds?”
“Because
I won the bet, silly,” his sister, Daphne, said.
He
arched a brow. “Bet?”
“I
bet Mama that when you came home you would end things with Penelope
immediately. Mama said you’d be planning a spring wedding.”
His
brow remained arched. “Mother had that much faith in me, did she?”
“It’s
not that she wanted you to marry Penelope. I don’t think she did, really.
Though she hasn’t said. It’s just that she was convinced you would do it.”
“I
see. And you didn’t believe I’d remain so steadfast?”
Daphne
shook her head. Her blond curls bobbed against her cheeks. “Absolutely not.”
“What
made you so certain?”
“Because
I’ve been around to see her cousin Cassandra grow up, dear brother.” She gave
him a sidewise catlike smile. “You’ve seen Cassandra since you’ve been back,
have you not?”
“Yes.
I’ve seen her,” he growled.
“Perhaps
at the house party?”
Julian’s
gaze snapped to his sister’s face. “How did you—?”
“You
mentioned Lady Worthing’s eyes, which led me to believe that Lady Worthing is
in fact the Duchess of Claringdon, which then led me to believe that Miss
Bunbury might well have been Lady Cassandra. Am I right?”
Julian
clenched his jaw. “It seems the entire house party was an elaborate ruse to
fool me.”
“I
knew it! I begged Penelope to take me with her when she stopped by to visit
before she left for Surrey.”
“You
knew about this mad ploy and you didn’t think it absurd?”
“Oh,
it’s absurd to be sure. Though I think you’d have to know the Duchess of
Claringdon to truly understand. She’s a bit . . . unpredictable.”
“And
you didn’t see fit to mention to Penelope that her cousin and friend were
playacting in the country?”
Daphne
plunked her hands on her hips. “And spoil the fun? I wouldn’t think of it.”
“You’re
mad, too,” Julian declared, shaking his head.
“My
point is that you have, in fact, seen Lady Cassandra.”
“Yes.”
“So
I needn’t explain my reasoning for why I bet Mother that you’d break things off
with Penelope.” Daphne smiled at him sweetly. “And I thank Lady Cassandra
kindly for my five pounds.”
Julian
shook his head. Yes, Daphne was no longer a cute little girl with a penchant
for asking too many questions. She’d grown up to be an astute young woman who
was much more thoughtful than she first appeared. Thankfully, Julian was spared
more inquiry from his talkative sister when their coach pulled to a stop in
front of the Hillboroughs’ town house. Julian alighted first and then turned to
help Daphne from the coach.
As
soon as Daphne’s slippered feet touched the ground, the siblings turned toward
the front door.
Directly
into the path of . . . Lady Moreland, Garrett Upton, and Cassandra Monroe.
Julian
gritted his teeth. He glanced away but not before he caught a glimpse of her.
Cassandra looked like a dream in a violet-colored gown, diamonds sparkling at
her throat.
“Now
this is going to be an interesting evening,” Daphne said, with a wide grin on
her impish little face. “An interesting evening, indeed.”
VALERIE BOWMAN is an
award-winning author who writes Regency-set historical romance novels (a.k.a.
Racy Regency Romps) with a focus on sharp dialogue, engaging story lines, and
heroines who take matters into their own hands!
Valerie’s first Regency
series from St. Martin’s Press has garnered acclaim including a nomination for
Best First Historical from RT Book Reviews, a BookList starred review, and a
Publishers Weekly starred review. She is also a 2014 Kirkus Prize nominee for fiction.
Her work has been called “Too delightful to miss” by New York Times bestselling
author Lisa Kleypas and “Everything a romance should be” by New York Times
bestselling author Sarah MacLean.
Valerie grew up in Illinois
with six sisters (she’s number seven) and a huge supply of historical romance
novels. After a cold and snowy stint earning a degree in English with a minor
in history at Smith College, she moved to Florida the first chance she got.
Valerie now lives in Jacksonville with her family including her rascally rescue
dog, Roo. When she’s not writing, she keeps busy reading, traveling, or
vacillating between watching crazy reality TV and PBS.
You can find Valerie on the
web at
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ValerieGBowman
Valerie will be awarding a print copy of The Accidental Countess and fun swag (US ONLY), or a digital copy of the book for a international winner, to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Follow the tour by clicking the tour banner above - comment daily for more entries!
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