Katherine Langford is in London ready to make her debut to society when she discovers that the home next door is being rented by the "Murderous Marquess" Hayden Rowling. Always impulsive, Katy decides to sneak over and take a peek at the notorious M...
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It seemed the Devil had come to claim his bride...
Although every gaze in the enormous ballroom was fixed on the man at the top of the stairs, he had eyes only for Katy. The burning look he gave her made several of the women standing nearby fumble in their reticules for their smelling salts.
As he started down the steps, a wave of excited chatter swept the room. "Is that him? Could it be?"
"Look at those eyes! He's even more handsome than she described."
"Oh my! He looks rather savage and unpredictable, doesn't he? I've always admired that in a man."
For some of the younger guests, it was their first glimpse of the notorious recluse once known as the Murderous Marquess. Others still remembered him as the prized catch who had broken the hearts of their eager young daughters by marrying a penniless French girl. But to all of them he was now the hero of Lady Oakleigh's infamous novel—a man wrongly maligned not only by them, but also by the very woman who stood watching his approach, as pale and silent as a statue. More than a few of them hoped he had come to give her the set-down she so richly deserved.
As Hayden's determined strides carried him across the ballroom, both Hero and Anthony moved to intercept him. Josephine shook her head frantically at her brother and grabbed her husband's arm, digging her fingernails into his sleeve.
Stopping in front of Katy, Hayden sketched her a crisp bow. "May I have the honor, my lady? Or is your dance card already full?"
"I don't have a dance card, my lord. In case you've forgotten, I'm a married woman."
His eyes smoldered down at her. "Oh, I haven't forgotten."
Mr. Beale stepped aside, eagerly surrendering her. From the glazed look in his eye, Katy could tell he was already mentally tallying how many copies of her book this fresh scandal was bound to sell. "I'd best hand you over without a fight, my lady. I've heard your husband is the jealous sort. We wouldn't want him to call me out, now would we?"
Giving Hayden a conspiratorial wink, he bowed and backed away, leaving Katy all alone to face her husband. As the musicians took up the soaring melody where they had left off, Hayden swept her into his arms and into the dance.
Katy stole a glimpse at the daunting set of his freshly shaven jaw above the snowy folds of his cravat, hardly daring to believe that she was in his arms once again. His hand was splayed at the small of her back, its possessive heat urging her nearer with each dizzying turn around the ballroom.
Gazing straight ahead, he said, "I owe you an apology, my lady. It seems you're capable of maudlin sentimentality after all. You simply weren't going to be happy until you made a hero of me, were you? I just don't understand why you had to do it at your own expense."
