Distinguished Rogues, book 6
In life there are choices…
Spinster Iris Hedley was once the darling of the ton until her father lost his fortune through an illness of the mind. Reduced to living as a penniless guest while her father rots in debtors prison, she’s determined to escape unscrupulous robbers who’ve set her to spy on the ton by the only means possible—by becoming a wealthy mans mistress. Unfortunately for Iris, her proper upbringing never covered intimacy or seduction so she asks the one man she trusts for help with private lessons in the duties of a mistress.
…in love there is but one
Martin Andrews, the Earl of Louth, may have a soft spot for tiny Iris Hedley, especially after her father fled London with a horde of debtors nipping at his heels. Her request for lessons in seduction leaves him reeling and although tempted it’s an offer he must refuse for her own good. Convinced she’s headed for heartbreak, he sets out to prove that surrendering to wicked pleasure is not worth the sacrifice of her future only to discover that her problems are more complicated than his own.
An Improper Proposal is the sixth steamy regency historical romance novel in Distinguished Rogues series but can be read as a stand-alone.
- Penniless Spinster
- Big-Hearted Earl
- Mistress Lessons
eBook Edition
BUY DIRECT Amazon US Amazon UK Amazon CA Amazon AU
Apple Books Barnes and Noble Google Play Kobo
Print Edition
Paperback Books-a-Million Bookshop.org Powell’s Waterstones Booktopia
Add to your Goodreads Want to Read Shelf
Add to your Bookbub Wishlist
Praise for An Improper Proposal …
★★★★★ The Earl of Louth is magnificent… He is a big man with an even bigger heart and if he hadn’t fallen for Iris so completely I might have wanted to give her some competition ~ Night Owl Reviews
Read an Excerpt
Iris Hedley was not afraid of the world, although a series of unfortunate events had taken away everything that had once been comforting in it. At one and twenty years of age, she should have been settled into marriage like so many of her former friends, rather than left on the shelf and a secret visitor to the Marshalsea Prison for indebted gentlemen.
“Come and eat, Father,” she urged gently as she polished Alexander Hedley’s spoon so it gleamed as brightly as the poor dented thing could manage then placed it beside the smuggled repast she’d served up to him. Oh, how there were times when the memory of her former happy home life caused a lump to form in her throat, and made her miss what had been lost in recent years.
Unfortunately, as had become his habit, her father did not budge from his slump on the edge of his cot in the room he shared with two other men in the musty barracks. He’d once been a fine man, wealthy, possessed of great wit and intelligence, courted by those in society who valued such things highly. Now he stared off into space quite often, absorbed in his own thoughts and lost in his memories of the past.
The change had begun prior to his incarceration and she feared for him. Her father had not taken his confinement well, but she supposed few independent gentlemen did. He was not in his right mind. He hadn’t been himself in a long time.
“Father?”
He grumbled, “Goose again?”
Cold goose breast and turnip soup was a luxury in this place, but Iris didn’t dare remind him of his situation. She was grateful Lady Heathcote’s cook set aside this meal every day, but she was always aware she spent someone else’s coin to care for her father. Pointing out that fact only added to his distress. “Yes, Papa. Come and sit down now so I might share it with you.”
As hoped, her father brightened at the news she would share the meal with him and perched on the stool beside the makeshift table. She handed him the spoon so he could start on his soup. “I cannot stay long today. Lady Heathcote has given me a list of errands to run on her behalf before tonight’s entertainment.”
Her father stared at the spoon a moment then snatched up the bowl of cooled soup and drank from it directly. He shuddered, wiped his mouth with the napkin and then glanced sidelong at her plate, where a single slice of goose rested. “Lady Heathcote has servants to do errands,” he grumbled. “And you should be resting so you are prepared for the evening.”
“I don’t mind helping her. Running errands to the dressmaker gives me something to do with my days, and in a small way makes up for the burden of providing me with food and lodgings. I am indebted to her.” Esme, a popular widow of independent fortune, had taken her in before her father had fled the country and his debts. She didn’t like to imagine what would have happened to her without Esme.
At first, her father had remained on the continent to assess his true situation, leaving Iris in Esme’s temporary care with a promise to return soon. While away, the scale of his losses must have preyed on his mind and he’d returned much sooner than expected, only to surrender himself to his debtors. He’d entered the Marshalsea willingly, although few knew that small detail, and she planned to keep it that way. The tally of losses had steadily risen against him until Iris had feared he might never be free. Esme insisted they conceal his location for the sake of her reputation, but it was difficult to allow others to believe her father had abandoned her for a life abroad.
“A woman should have a home of her own, a child to bounce on her knee and a respectable situation.” Her father sighed and looked about them mournfully. “This is not the life I wanted for you.”
What he’d wanted was for Iris to marry a viscount, have a home in the heart of Mayfair, and a dozen grandchildren perched on his lap as he sipped whiskey in a library. Unfortunately, a life of that nature would be forever denied them both. Her father was ruined good and proper and Iris, despite all Esme had done to protect her, had fallen victim to greedy, unscrupulous men.
She hugged him close. “We will win through Papa, never doubt it.”
Book Info
Publish Date: 9 June 2015
Digital ISBN: 978-0-992486-38-9
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-925239-42-3
Genre: Regency Historical Romance
Related Books
Distinguished Rogues Series
1. Chills – Jack and Constance
2. Broken – Giles and Lillian
3. Charity – Oscar and Agatha
4. An Accidental Affair – Merrick and Arabella
5. Keepsake – Kit and Miranda
6. An Improper Proposal – Martin and Iris
7. Reason to Wed – Richard and Esme
8. The Trouble with Love – Everett and Whitney
9. Married by Moonlight – Gilbert and Anna
10. Lord of Sin – Julian and Portia
11. The Duke’s Heart – Sinclair and Kitty
12. Romancing the Earl – Price and Lenore
13. One Enchanted Christmas – Otis and Margaret
14. Desire by Design – Alexander and Sylvia
15. His Perfect Bride – Harry and Ophelia
16. Pleasures of the Night – Teddy and Eugenia
17: Silver Bells – Hector and Ruby
18. Seduced in Secret – Winston and Charlotte
19. Yours Until Dawn – Drew and Aurora
20. No Ordinary Lady