About this ebook
Handsome, good kisser, love, and a rake.
Those are the requirements Grace Snowdon expects to find in her future husband. However, Grace's focused search for her perfect match during her debut season may be closer than she realizes…
Arthur Osborne, Earl of Sidmouth has been in love with the inquisitive and ambitious Grace for quite some time. When one dance between good friends changes everything, Arthur is determined to be her perfect match, if only Grace will tell him the truth about what it is she wants…
Can Grace embrace the truth about Arthur? Or will Arthur fail to live up to Grace's high expectations?
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Only A Rake Will Do - Christina Diane
Only A Rake Will Do
Christina Diane
Only A Rake Will Do
Copyright 2024 by Christina Diane
Edited by Emily Lawrence
Cover Design by Devin McCain @studio5twentyfive
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and events are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be considered real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely a coincidence.
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a database and retrieval system or transmitted in any form or any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the owner of the copyright and the above publishers.
NO AI TRAINING: Without in any way limiting the author’s exclusive rights under copyright, any use of this publication to train
generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to generate text is expressly prohibited. The author reserves all rights to license uses of this work for generative AI training and development of machine learning language models.
eBook ISBN: 978-1-964713-07-6
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-964713-09-0
Contents
Dedication
Note to Readers
Content Warnings
1.Chapter One
2.Chapter Two
3.Chapter Three
4.Chapter Four
5.Chapter Five
6.Chapter Six
7.Chapter Seven
8.Chapter Eight
9.Epilogue
10.The Unlikely Betrothal Series
11.Dearest Reader
12.The Earl and the Vixen - Chapter 1
Acknowledgments
Meet The Author
Dedication
For those of you that get excited when a spectacled bookish guy is also a beefcake with a naughty side.
Note to Readers
Iam so delighted and honored that you have picked up my book! Before you dive in, I would like you to know that I write for the modern reader. My stories are character-driven, fast-paced, and spicy with fun dialogue. While I love the Regency era and exploring the social constructs for the time period, I don’t focus on complete historical accuracy. I complete research and attempt to create the setting and behaviors that are close to what you would expect of the era, but sometimes the characters and story have minds of their own. I wouldn’t want you to be disappointed if you want a setting, themes, and language that are entirely accurate. If that is really important to you, this book might not be for you. And I understand!
Historical stories are a form of escape and are a fantasy in their own right, and I aim to help bring you to a world that might look and feel very much like the Regency era with diverse, inclusive characters who are fun, sexy, and intriguing as they find their path to love.
If you are excited about hard-headed and swoonworthy gentlemen, spirited and passionate heroines, fun banter, high spice, and guaranteed happily ever afters, set in my interpretation of the Regency era, then I hope you will keep reading and escape into a world of passion, romance, and sharp tongues.
Content Warnings
While this book isn’t heavy on content warnings, I do my best to capture things that I think a concerned reader might wish to know about. If you ever feel like I missed something, please message me and I will update this list to improve the reading experience for other readers. To prevent spoilers, you can find content warnings for all of my published books here: https://christinadianebooks.com/content-warnings/
Chapter One
Sussex, England Late - February 1812
Grace Armstrong, the youngest daughter of the Earl of Snowdon, rushed away from her brother’s study after walking in on something she didn’t understand between her brother, Elias, and his wife, Lydia. She only wished to ask her brother something, but she knew enough to know she would intrude if she interrupted whatever had made them so enamored with each other.
She raced away and found her sister Jenny in their parlor. Sister, why would Elias enjoy Lydia sitting on his lap so much? Wouldn’t he rather her sit in her own chair?
she asked, not pausing long enough for her sister to respond. Perhaps it is easier to kiss her if she’s in his lap, but still.
Jenny responded by laughing so hard her shoulders shook.
What’s so funny?
Diana, her oldest sister, asked as she glided into the room and sank into her usual spot on the plush settee.
Grace entered Elias’ study without knocking,
Jenny said, laughing and flashing Diana a knowing look.
Grace was only three-and-ten and understood nothing that occurred between a husband and a wife. Her sisters gave each other that annoying look they reserved for when she was curious about things.
She wasn’t convinced that Jenny, five-and-ten, or Diana, nine-and-ten, knew much more than she did. Girls weren’t told much about what to expect, but as her older sisters, they acted as if they knew more than her on every topic.
Oh my,
Diana exclaimed. She poured cups of tea for both her and her sisters. Dare I ask what you saw?
The sisters were no strangers to stumbling upon Elias and Lydia in compromising positions throughout their sprawling country home. Grace was quite curious about the faint sounds of passion that echoed from behind closed doors from her brother and her sister-in-law. Not that anyone would explain it to her, even if she asked.
"Lydia was sitting on his lap, and they were kissing, so I ran away. He seemed to enjoy it far too much for me to interrupt. Don’t enter