A Scandal By Any Other Name
{ COMPLETED }
BOOK TWO OF THE HAMILTON SERIES
WARNING: A Regency Era novel. Adult content with detailed smut…Read at you own risk
Genre: Historical Romance / Smut / Enemies-to-Lovers / Mystery / Comedy / Found family
[Book Two of the Hamilton Series. Can be read as a standalone, but better enjoyed after Lady Ines’ Scandalous Hobby.]
To the world, Duke Rowan Hamilton is the perfect gentleman. But in the bedroom, he is a man possessed.
Rowan Hamilton has it all: a Ducal title, the face of a fallen angel, and a smile that makes debutantes faint. He is the "Golden Duke"—charming, responsible, and utterly adored by society.
But it’s all a lie.
Beneath the coats and polite manners, Rowan is a man haunted by a ghost. For three years, he has remained faithful to the memory of a masked woman who stole a kiss, bested him at a game of chance, and vanished into the night. He doesn't want any one as his wife; he wants her.
When his domineering aunt tires of his bachelorhood, she hires London’s most notorious underground matchmaker to force the issue.
Enter Miss Delaney Kingsley.
She is sharp-tongued, infuriatingly competent, and entirely unimpressed by his title. Her mission? To drag Rowan to the altar with the season’s "Diamond," Lady Celine, within three months to collect the juicy payment Rowan’s aunt had to offer.
Rowan intends to fire the meddlesome woman. But when Delaney looks at him with those hazel, intelligent eyes and orders him around like a young lad, he feels the first spark of life he’s felt in years.
He decides to play her game. He will let her find him a wife.
But he has no intention of choosing anyone even Lady Celine.
"You were hired to find me a Duchess, Miss Kingsley. But the only person I want in my duchy and in my bed... is you."
As mysteries turn into forbidden nights and the bickering turns into scorching passion, Rowan begins to suspect that his matchmaker is hiding a secret of her own.
She moves like a shadow, handles a rifle like a soldier, and tastes exactly like the ghost he’s been hunting for three years.
What to Expect:
* High Stake Mystery: They try to untangle themselves from the Farrington’s trap.
* The Golden Retriever Duke: Who turns into a possessive Alpha behind closed doors.
* The Matchmaker Trope: She’s trying to marry him off; he’s trying to take her clothes off.
* High Heat: Slow burn that explodes into intense smut.
* Competence Kink: He falls harder every time she bosses him around.
* Cameos: Featuring the chaotic domestic life of Duchess Ines and Duke Carcel (and their baby Harry!).
Excerpt:
"Your Grace, please focus," Delaney snapped, adjusting his cravat with efficient, gloved hands. "Lady Celine is waiting in the ballroom. You must look at her as if she is the only woman in the world."
Rowan caught her wrist, stopping her movements. He stepped into her space, backing her against the heavy oak door of the study, his "Golden Boy" mask slipping to reveal the hunger beneath.
"And how, exactly, does one do that, Miss Kingsley?" he whispered, his voice rough. "Show me."
"I—I cannot show you, It I s not in my place to—"
"Then teach me," he growled, lowering his head until his lips brushed the sensitive skin of her neck. "Teach me how to pretend I am not burning alive every time you walk into a room."
Cameron_Rose_8326 · History
400+ chapters into the story and it still keeps me interested. I wasn't expecting much from a romance storyline but it surprisingly hooks you by giving light into many intriguing aspects of the entertainment industry. But man do this couple live through one scandal to another! The author could already change the title to "Scandal Magnets" or "Scandal Warriors". 😁