A Shrew for the Duke

A SHREW FOR THE DUKE A HISTORICAL REGENCY ROMANCE NOVEL EMMA LINFIELD CONTENTS A Thank You Gift Before You Start Reading… Do you love to read? Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Epilogue Extended Epilogue Preview: His Gift of a Duchess Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Also by Emma Linfield Enjoyed this book? About the Author A THANK YOU GIFT Thanks a lot for purchasing my book. It really means a lot to me, because this is the best way to show me your love. As a Thank You gift I have written a full length novel for you called Te Cursed Duke and the Bluestocking It’s only available to people who have downloaded one of my books and you can get your free copy by tapping this link here. Once more, thanks a lot for your love and support. With love and appreciation, Emma Linfield BEFORE YOU START READING… Did you know that there’s a special place where you can chat with me and with thousands of like-minded bookworms all over the globe?! Join Cobalt Fairy’s facebook group of voracious readers and I guarantee you, you’d wish you had joined us sooner! Let’s connect, right NOW! Just click on the image above! ⇧ DO YOU LOVE TO READ? If you loved this novel, click here to choose from a variety of books like this one by this author! Let’s connect, right NOW! Just click on the image above! ⇧ If this wasn’t your cup of tea, you can select another trope more to your liking here! ABOUT THE BOOK “I am paying you to court her for my benefit, and you decide to go and fall for her instead?!” Lady Catherine has sworn off gentlemen. A dedicated spinster, she keeps to her convictions even as her sister begs her to reconsider. After all, their father has declared it simply: No one can court Rose until Catherine herself is courted. And she will never let that happen… Broke and desperate to keep his siblings out of trouble, Henry, the Duke of Crawford is forced to make a despicable deal to clear his father’s debt. Deceiving Lady Catherine sounds easy enough, though, even as it weighs heavy on his conscience. He never counted on her being this difficult or charming. But the biggest surprise is how easy it was to fall for her. Staying is betrayal but leaving feels impossible. And when Catherine finally learns the truth, it will be far more than their connection on the line… PROLOGUE “I really must be going,” Lady Rose Langley said wistfully, half turning her body as if she meant to flee while at the same time not daring to actually move, for there was nothing more that she wanted than to keep this conversation going — possibly forever if she was to have her way. “Don’t go,” Viscount Morgan Windham pleaded as he reached out and touched just under her elbow. “Not yet. Another minute won’t hurt.” “But it will,” Rose assured the eager lord. “If my father sees me missing —” “Then he will be even more ecstatic when he finds you whole and perfectly well. So much that he’s likely to celebrate the fact, forgetting all the while that you snuck off when he wasn’t looking.” The Viscount wore a roguish smile, one that framed the square contours of his jawline perfectly. “So, with that in mind, I insist you stay a little longer.” Rose giggled at the sentiment, and she blushed furiously at his hand, still cupping her elbow ever so gently. She looked down at the hand, feeling her elbow grow hot under its touch. She had never felt such a way before but was under no misgivings as to why that was and why this lord brought such sensations out in her. She tore her eyes from Lord Windham a moment and glanced back down the street in the direction from which she had come. By the corner, some two hundred yards away, she could still see her father right where she had left him. He stood in a circle of four other men, all of whom were so engaged in whatever it was they were talking about that the earth might have split beneath their feet, and they still wouldn’t notice. Yes... a few more moments wouldn’t hurt, Rose thought to herself, especially when considering what she meant to do with those moments. Why, if this turned into what she already knew it to be, what she felt deep down in her heart, then she owed it to herself... “Oh, all right,” she sighed as if it were no big thing. She turned back to face Lord Windham and fixed him with a resigned smile that quickly broke as her cheeks flushed bright pink. “Another moment won’t hurt.” “Splendid,” Lord Windham smiled warmly as he locked her into his gaze. His eyes were dark brown, like deep pools of milk chocolate that Rose knew she could look upon forever. “Although, I must say, I’m not used to having a time limit attached when speaking with young ladies as beautiful as you are.” “Oh, stop...” she waved him down. “I can see the upside, however,” he continued. “It means I must work quickly to prove that I’m worthy of your time and that I’m not some rake looking to take advantage.” He reached out and took both her hands in his. “And I assure you, Lady Rose, that I am no rake.” “Are you certain about that?” she managed with a coy smile, all the while doing what she