I have built my life around the careful performance of control, yet Philippa Grier sees through every layer the moment she steps into the library. Our hands brush while sorting the papers that will decide my claim to this house, and the spark that passes between us makes me ache to drop the mask and let her decide how far we go.

The threat of scandal hangs over every whispered word in these Belgravia rooms, but the need to surrender grows louder than the fear of ruin that has followed me since childhood. I command the household with steady words even as my throat tightens at the thought of her claim on me, and I cannot tell how much longer I can keep the secret from consuming us both.