“This story grabs your attention and doesn’t let go.” ~Under the Covers
After being dumped by her beau two years prior, Amelia Wimple is disturbed to find her ex at her door one late night with a favor to ask of he. When Lord Samuel Verrington appears apologetically on her doorstep in the middle of the night, the butler attempts to refrain from allowing him entrance in protection of Amelia’s sensitivities, but when she is asked to harbor the rake Lord Stephen Brookes, who had just been beaten and left for dead, Amelia is intrigued and jumps into action. Amelia decides to secretly nurse Lord Brookes back to health and to Hell with propriety.
Aside from being a handsome rogue, Lord Brookes has issues. Of course! The rake is no less than a gambler, and boy did he lose big, enough to warrant broken ribs. From the moment Amelia begins to care for Stephen, he mind wanders to the inappropriate. Things begin to heat up as Stephen regains his strength and Amelia finds she wants to be ravished by a rogue. Soon, Stephen realizes that there was so much more than met the eye when he previously knew Miss Amelia Wimple and would like to take the chance at making her his own. Can a rake like Lord Stephen Brookes convince Miss Amelia Wimple that he is reformed and ready to live on the straight and narrow? Well the very least be on the straight and narrow publicly, while in private they heat up the sheets.
What a great read! To All The Rakes I’ve Loved Before by Anne Barton is a perfectly paced love story wrapped up into one convenient little package of a novella. This story grabs your attention and doesn’t let go. Anne Barton is such a great writer. I am looking forward to reading much from this very talented lady.
*ARC provided by publisher
Excerpt
“Look, I can patch up garden-variety cuts and broken bones, but next time?” The doctor snapped his bag shut with more force than was necessary. “You could bleed to death in the street.”
“There won’t be a next time.” Stephen knew this in his bones. Gambling had lost its thrill long before tonight. He was done.
“Right.” The doctor didn’t even try to hide his skepticism as he quit the room.
Stephen’s eyelids grew heavy. He didn’t want to be lectured. He just wanted to sleep. Although he wouldn’t mind if Amelia kept him company. She was the same, sweet young woman he remembered Sam courting, only now she was more…sensual.
He liked the rogue curls that had sprung free from her bun and the way they floated about her neck when she moved. He liked the way she smelled—like raspberry jam and fresh laundry. But mostly he liked the way she’d touched him—with a seductive combination of curiosity and genuine appreciation.
He’d wanted to reach out and loosen the tie of her silky robe till the front gaped open. Of course, a proper miss like her probably wore a modest night rail beneath, but he preferred to imagine her naked, all lush curves and soft skin, begging for his touch. If he had his way, he’d pull her down on top of him, broken ribs be damned, and they would explore and enjoy each other until morning.
Even in his groggy state, he knew that would never, ever happen, but he saw no harm in dreaming of it. Dreaming of Amelia.
About the Author
Anne Barton started swiping romances from her mom’s bookshelf as a teenager and decided historicals (with their balls, dukes, and gowns) were the best. So, when she had the chance to spend a semester in London she packed her bags—and promptly fell in love with the city, its history, and its pubs. She dreamed of writing romance, but somehow ended up a software analyst instead.
Fortunately, a few years and a few careers later, Anne found her way back to writing the stories she loves and won the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart® for Regency Historical Romance. She lives in Maryland with her husband and three children, who try valiantly not to roll their eyes whenever she quotes Jane Austen. Her weaknesses include reality TV, cute-but-impractical shoes, and coffee. Lots and lots of coffee.
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[about-author author=”Anne Barton”]
