Thursday, June 27, 2019

One Night of Temptation by Darcy Burke - New Release and Giveaway


One Night of Temptation
by Darcy Burke
Series: Wicked Dukes Club, #6
Genre: Historical Romance
Release Date: June 25, 2019




Faced with a marriage she can’t abide, Lady Penelope Wakefield takes drastic measures to preserve her freedom. Her brilliant plan is foolproof until a sexy but imperious rector “rescues” her.

Rector Hugh Tarleton has no patience for the Society philanthropists who seek to bestow their pity—and not much else—on his oppressed flock in one of London’s worst neighborhoods. When the daughter of a marquess is kidnapped and brought to the rookery, he vows to protect her, but the temptation to surrender to their mutual desire will certainly ruin them both.






Hugh was suddenly fascinated with learning what Lady Penelope did to pass her evenings. “What would you be doing if you were at home?”

She cocked her head to the side. “Any number of things. We would go to a ball or a series of routs or perhaps a dinner party.”

“What happens at a rout?” he asked. She made a face, and he laughed. “That doesn’t recommend the event.”

“It’s mostly an excuse to see and be seen.”

“I thought that’s what the park was for.”

She gave him a serious stare that was contradicted by her sardonic tone. “Yes, but at a rout, you’re in evening clothes. So it’s an entirely different opportunity to see and be seen.”

“Indeed, that’s incredibly different.” He laid the sarcasm on extremely thick and was rewarded with a brilliant smile. “Do you dance at a rout?”

She shook her head. “You pay your respects to the host and hostess, you do your seeing and being seen, and you go to the next one.”

“That sounds rather…boring. Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. You are correct. But then, most of it is boring.”

Nothing she’d said so far that day had been so pleasing. Well, almost nothing. “Does that include balls? I’ve never been to one.”

She gaped at him in surprise. “Never?”

He reconsidered. “Does an assembly count?”

“I should think so. It’s not all that different from a private ball.” She picked up her wineglass. “Though I suspect the refreshments are not typically as good. One thing you can almost always rely on at a ball is delectable food. Hostesses often try to outdo each other when it comes to decorations, music, and food.”

“I see. Do your parents host balls?”

She swallowed a sip of wine and let out a harsh laugh. “Goodness, no. They’re too cheap. Though they’re happy to partake of other’s largesse.”

“I presume you spend most of a ball dancing?”

“Yes. That is a young lady’s primary occupation at a ball, particularly if she’s on the Marriage Mart.”

He recalled her saying she danced, but not whether she liked it. “Do you find that part boring?”

“It depends on my partner. Do you like to dance?”

“I do, actually, though I’m not very good at it. I enjoy the music and the carefree joy it brings. In some ways, I suppose I like watching people dance as much as doing it myself, maybe even more.”

She gave him a sly look. “What about the waltz?”

“I haven’t ever done it. Have you?”

She nodded. “It took me three visits to Almack’s to obtain permission.”

He stared at her. “It requires permission?”

“The patronesses must grant it.” She rolled her eyes. “Almack’s is its own special hell.” She clapped a hand over her mouth as her eyes widened.

Hugh chuckled. “No need to apologize. I’ve heard much worse, as you can imagine. Indeed, I’ve been known to use the word hell in my line of work.” He winked at her.

Her eyes lit with mirth, and she dropped her hand to the table. “I’ll show you how to waltz if you like.”

While he hadn’t waltzed, he was aware of the dance and knew it involved touching each other in ways that seemed rather intimate. He probably shouldn’t, but the chance to hold her was too tempting to refuse.

He rose and moved around the table to offer her his hand. “Will you dance with me?”








Darcy Burke is the USA Today Bestselling Author of sexy, emotional historical and contemporary romance. Darcy wrote her first book at age 11, a happily ever after about a swan addicted to magic and the female swan who loved him, with exceedingly poor illustrations. Join her Reader Group at https://www.darcyburke.com/join-my-reader-group/. A native Oregonian, Darcy lives on the edge of wine country with her guitar-strumming husband, their two hilarious kids who seem to have inherited the writing gene, two Bengal cats and a third cat named after a fruit.





USA Today bestselling author Darcy Burke and New York Times bestselling author Erica Ridley are teaming up to bring you a brand new series of six fun, sexy historical romances: the Wicked Dukes Club!

To celebrate, we're giving away WINNER'S CHOICE of any six (6) books in our backlist: Three (3) from Darcy, and three (3) from Erica in the format of your choice! (Paperback or ebook)

You can have your pick from Darcy Burke's Untouchables series, Legendary Rogues series, and Secrets & Scandals series, and from Erica Ridley's Dukes of War series, Rogues to Riches series, or 12 Dukes of Christmas series.




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