An Affair in Autumn Read online

  Forbidden in February by Suzanna Medeiros

  Seduced in September by Genevieve Turner

  An Affair in Autumn by Jennifer Haymore

  A Duke by December by Sabrina Darby

  Keep reading for a sneak peak of by Sabrina Darby!

  A Duke by December

  by

  Sabrina Darby

  Elizabeth Smith is secretly in love with the tall, handsome golden-haired man who rescued her from Arkansas Territory and offered her a new life. Unfortunately, she knows he’ll never see her as anything more than his secretary.

  Nathaniel Hughes has spent the majority of his life in America amassing his fortune. When he discovers he is the next Duke of Beckworth, he must reluctantly travel to England, face down his past, and rehabilitate an estate to save those who live on it. But every duke requires a duchess and an heir.

  He’ll figure this out somehow with Lizzie, his loyal and capable secretary, at his side. Once at Beckworth, he finds it increasingly difficult to deny a powerful attraction to the woman he has vowed to protect—even from himself. Can he find the strength to choose duty over desire?

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  Excerpt from A Duke by December:

  As a servant handed her a glass of the sweetly intoxicating drink, her gaze locked with Nate just a few feet away.

  And then just inches.

  She took a quick sip, letting the spirits wet her suddenly parched mouth.

  “Queen of the fairies,” he said softly, his gaze admiring. “An apt choice.”

  Heat rushed through her. Did he recognize her? She nodded in acknowledgement, half afraid to speak, to break the sudden spell that seemed to have been cast over them, making the air between them nearly tangible.

  “Would you care to dance?” he continued, and again she nodded, placing her glass down onto the table beside her. She rested her hand on his arm and followed him back to the middle of the floor, aware of everything about him, his heat, his height, the strength of his arm beneath her hand.

  If she had ever concocted a romantic fantasy involving Nate, it would have been this. What if they were strangers at this moment? What if they were only now meeting at a ball, wrapped up in the magic of a masquerade? If she were some other woman whom he actually thought beautiful?

  As they stepped into the middle of the room, the first strains of a waltz began, and her breath caught in her throat. It was one of only two waltzes scheduled for the night. His arms would be around her, so close. The room would spin, and her heart would spin.

  Excitement and dread warred within her. Although she had learned the simple dance the day after the impromptu lesson without benefit of Nate’s help, there was also another significance to this dance.

  “It’s almost midnight,” Nate said.

  So his thoughts had followed her own.

  Midnight would be time for the unmasking, and when this sweet fantasy would end.

  She stepped into his embrace, and the world turned, tilted, and dizzied her. All that existed were his hands keeping her upright as they spun about the room, and she understood exactly why this dance was considered scandalous. She was indecently aware of his body, of his skin, of the curl of his hair at his nape.

  Time disappeared and joy swept through her. She laughed and his teeth flashed white in an answering grin. If only this moment would never end.

  But all too soon, it did. Before even the music ended, he whirled her away from the dancers and through the throng of people toward the edge of the ballroom. Dizzy and breathless, she followed him.

  As she’d been following him for over a year. With complete trust and love.

  As she’d follow him anywhere.

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  Dedication

  For Lawrence, as always.

  About the Author

  USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Haymore is the author of sexy historical and contemporary romance. Her books have been nominated for numerous awards, including five RT Book Reviews Reviewers Choice awards and the prestigious RITA® award for best historical romance.

  You can find Jennifer in Southern California trying to talk her husband into yet another trip to England, helping her three children with homework while brainstorming a new five-minute dinner menu, or crouched in a corner of the local bookstore writing her next novel.

  To learn more about Jennifer, visit her at her website: www.jenniferhaymore.com, on Twitter at @jenniferhaymore, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jenniferhaymore-author. To sign up for Jennifer’s newsletter, click here.

  Also by Jennifer Haymore

  The House of Trent

  The Duchess Hunt

  The Rogue’s Proposal

  The Scoundrel’s Seduction

  The House of Trent: The Lady Esme Novellas

  The Devil’s Pearl

  His For Christmas

  One Night with an Earl

  The Highland Knights

  A Highlander’s Heart

  Highland Heat

  Highland Temptation

  Highland Awakening

  Her Wicked Highlander