In the Arms of the Duke

IN THE ARMS OF THE DUKE A STEAMY REGENCY ROMANCE VIOLET HAMERS CONTENTS Join this amazing group! Before You Start Reading… 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: In Need of a Duchess Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Also by Violet Hamers About the Author JOIN THIS AMAZING GROUP! Did you know that there is a group where you can chat with me and with thousands of like-minded book-worms all over the globe? Group name on Facebook: Cobalt Fairy’s Voracious Readers Click here to join and I guarantee you, you’d wish you had joined us sooner! Just click on the image above! ⇧ ABOUT THE BOOK "Your birth does not define you, Judith. Do not ever listen to what society says." As the Earl of Dayton’s by-blow, Judith has slim chances of finding a husband before she is banished to the countryside to work. Until… she finds herself at the wrong place at the wrong time. Duke Mortenson is a man with a peculiar taste in women. And since he cannot forgive his mother for remarrying to a beast of a man who made him suffer as a child, he cannot allow her to pick his own bride for him either. Unless… When Judith happens upon the Dowager’s dalliance with a much younger man, the woman is desperate to buy her silence. And while she asks for nothing in return, the promise of a husband is enough to entice her... BEFORE YOU START READING… Before you start reading... Cassandra is my heroine’s best friend who is determined to help her friend succeed in seducing the Duke! And she has a special book… Here is Cassandra’s Prequel Chapter which will help you understand and visualize the story inside my book better. Many of my readers requested it and that's why I am giving it away for free! I believe you will LOVE IT! It’s not mandatory to read it, but it will be really helpful if it's your first time with this book. Read the story of Cassandra’s Book of Seduction here. Just click on the image above! ⇧ CHAPTER ONE “Let me out!” Judith Rohn, daughter of the late Earl of Dayton, cried as her knuckles rapped fervently on the door of the salon she had the misfortune of being locked in. Mistreatment was nothing new to her, but the fact that her half-brother and sister, Andrew and Anastasia, had put forth the effort to place her under lock and key when the grandest ball of the Season was underway, pained her. She had to find a husband, and they knew that. “Is someone out there?” she called, her voice hoarse from shouting excessively. Andrew had asked her to meet him here, and the instant she had entered the room, he had appeared from behind the door and shut her within. Her only hope of escape now was a servant. Several minutes of knocking ensued. Weary, Jude found a chair and slumped in it, resigned. She let her head fall into her hands, but just then, a voice sounded in the hallway before a key turned in the lock. The housekeeper, Mrs. Spurs, walked in, her eyes widening when she saw Jude. “Oh, poor child. What are you still doing in the house?” Jude sighed in relief and shot to her feet. “Lord Dayton and Lady Anastasia locked me in.” Mrs. Spurs uttered something that sounded like a curse. The servants were all Jude had, and she could never repay the kindness they had shown her throughout the years. Twenty-one years ago, Jude had been bundled up and abandoned by her birth mother, a French singer, at her father’s door. The late Earl took her in as his ward and raised her with Andrew and Anastasia, who never missed the chance to remind her of the circumstances of her birth or show her where they felt she truly belonged, which was with the servants. She had found a family in said servants, however. “You will attend that ball, Miss,” Mrs. Spurs said in a motherly tone. “We did not spend hours on your dress to have anyone stop you.” “Oh, thank you, thank you, Mrs. Spurs!” Jude hugged the housekeeper. “I will have a footman hire a hack and accompany you.” Mrs. Spurs led Jude out of the room. “You are already late to the ball, dear.” Within minutes, Jude was in a carriage and riding toward Froster Manor. Her nerves coiled tightly, and she imagined a hundred incidents of Andrew and Anastasia humiliating her at the ball because they did not want her there. Be brave, Jude. She took deep, calming breaths. The carriage stopped a half hour later, and the footman opened the door for her, asking her if she would like for him to wait. “Yes, please, Wright,” she answered, placing a hand on her belly as she turned and started up the marble steps to the front door of the manor. Guests were still arriving, and she had to join a long queue to the ballroom. She caught sight of her reflection in the mirror and gasped. Her hair was disheveled. In her desperation to get to the ball, she had forgotten to check her appearance. Deciding to find a room to smooth her coif, Jude left the queue and walked down a long hallway, glancing at the doors to determine which room could be a retiring room. Her brother’s threats to cut her privileges were increasing by the day, and she knew that her time in London was limited. Now was her only opportunity to