Striking up a deal with Brighton’s most dangerous devil seemed sensible at the time . . .
Sharp-tongued Lady Lilly Trenton, fond of creating exotic clothing for exotic purposes, retired from the season with one goal: Shake off a marquess who tried to trap her into marriage using the very hobby she loved and who refuses to give up his suit. Opening a milliner’s shop in Brighton seemed the perfect choice, until a scarred, black-clad stranger walks through her door determined to procure her services. How did this handsome, scarred rogue even know her secret? But when that pesky marquess darkens her doorstep once more, the devil makes an offer she simply can’t refuse . . .
Ruthless Dagger Fury, one of the seven bastard sons of the Duke of Crane, doesn’t do distractions—he certainly doesn’t do ladies of the ton. He has an empire to protect, a traitorous brother to hunt, and a family under siege from an uncle who’d see them all destroyed. But everything changes when a possible lead sends him to a milliner’s shop on North Street to investigate. What he finds is a suspicious beauty of the upper class and the last complication he needs. But in an effort to gain information, he promises to help her deal with a pest, and once he gives his word, he never breaks it.
As Lilly’s tormentor grows bolder and tension mounts under Dagger’s own roof, two people from opposite worlds must decide if the walls they’ve spent a lifetime perfecting are worth tearing down—for each other.
Tropes you’ll enjoy:
Protector romance
Bodyguard vibes
Protective alpha hero
Dark vs. sunshine
Secret identity
Found family
Forced proximity
Class difference
Forbidden love
Opposites attract
Fish out of water