by Bree Wolf
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Acknowledgments
About the Book
Author's Note
Prologue
Chapter One − Cause & Consequence
Chapter Two − A Chance Encounter
Chapter Three − Life & Death
Chapter Four − Widows & Brides
Chapter Five − A Fateful Night
Chapter Six − An Unusual Woman
Chapter Seven − A Heart's Desire
Chapter Eight − A Desperate Attempt at Happiness
Chapter Nine − A Tempting Dare
Chapter Ten − Different Perspectives
Chapter Eleven − In Hyde Park
Chapter Twelve − To Risk It All
Chapter Thirteen − A Life's Reward
Epilogue
About Bree
Also By Bree
Read a Sneak-peek
Prologue
Rules to Be Broken
(#5 A Forbidden Love Novella Series)
by Bree Wolf
Rules to Be Broken
by Bree Wolf
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, brands, media, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner.
Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Cover Art by Victoria Cooper
Copyright © 2017 Sabrina Wolf
www.breewolf.com/
All Rights Reserved
This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
To my Son
My Greatest Joy
My Dream Come True
Acknowledgments
A great big thank-you to all those who inspire me daily, those who tell me to keep writing, those who laugh and cry with my characters and me. I love being a writer, and I could never sit down every day to do what I love without all of you. Thank you.
About the Book
She is scandalous.
He is virtuous.
Do they even have a chance?
After a minor faux-pas, DIANA LAWSON finds herself forced into a marriage of convenience to save her reputation. However, London society still talks, and no matter how hard Diana tries, the whispers and stares never cease.
After her well-respected husband dies in the arms of his mistress, Diana finally resigns herself to her fate and decides to live by her own rules alone.
ARTHUR ABBOTT, EARL OF STANHOPE, is a stickler for propriety and has never met a rule he did not feel compelled to uphold. However, when he saves a young widow from a most inappropriate situation, he is drawn into a world quite unlike his own. Convinced that he is only lending a hand out of duty, Arthur agrees to a daring compromise.
For Diana to uphold society’s rules, Arthur must break them.
Can scandalous and virtuous ever walk hand in hand?
Author's Note
Those of you who have already read ‘A Brilliant Rose’ will notice that the prologue of ‘Rules to Be Broken’ is the same as in the second novella. I wrangled with that decision, but ultimately decided not to make any changes because in both novellas it is that very scene that sets our heroes and heroines on their path. It is that scene which is the catalyst for all those that follow, shaping our heroine’s life like no other ever has, allowing the story to unfold as it should.
Prologue
London, Summer 1815
Four Years Ago
Her heart thudding in her chest, Diana tiptoed down the small cobblestone path as her dainty steps echoed through the night air. The moon shone overhead, casting its silvery light into the shadowy dark of the gardens, and from the terrace, the sounds of music and laughter reached her ears. The earl’s ball was still in full swing, and to Diana’s delight, it had been rather easy to escape her parents’ watchful eyes and sneak out into the night.
A part of Diana’s mind warned her, cautioned her that such a behaviour could have disastrous consequences. Her heart, however, was focused on one thing alone: the man she loved.
If she could only speak to him for a few moments and assure him that his pursuit was indeed most welcomed, he would surely speak to her father that very night and ask for her hand in marriage.
At the thought, the breath caught in her throat, and she stopped in her tracks. Drawing the fresh night air into her lungs, Diana sought to steady her nerves. When the slight dizziness that had seized her so unexpectedly finally subsided, she swallowed and then proceeded down the path.
In the dark, the tall-growing hedges and bushes looked ominous, and more than once, Diana drew back with a startled gasp because she feared she had stumbled upon someone lurking in the shadows, intent on doing her harm.
“Where is he?” she mumbled under her breath craning her neck, hoping to catch a glimpse of his tall, striking figure.
After he had asked her to follow him into the night−the gaze in his smoldering eyes saying more than a thousand words ever could−Diana had not hesitated. Ensuring that her parents were otherwise occupied, she had slipped out the terrace doors, following his silhouette until it had disappeared among the shadows.
As the chilled night air brushed over her heated cheeks, Diana’s feet carried her onward until at last she found the small pavilion as it stood like an island in the midst of a green ocean, its tall, white-washed pillars reaching into the sky.
His back to her, he stood motionless on the other side of the small space, sheltered under a canopy roof, his strong arms resting on the small rail, and stared out into the night.
At the very sight of him, Diana’s heart soared and a rush of emotions swept through her body. Her lips began to tingle at the mere thought of his mouth pressed to hers, and her palms grew moist with nervous anticipation.
Taking another deep breath, she stepped forward, her dainty steps all but silent as she approached him. His intoxicating scent mingled with the soft night smells as the jasmines began to bloom, and Diana thought for a moment she would faint on the spot as her heart raced in her chest.
Coming to stand behind him, she lifted her hands, desperate to be in his arms, and softly placed them on the top of his back, gently letting them slide down over his strong muscles.
The moment Diana touched him, he froze before drawing in a deep breath. “I’ve been waiting for you,” he whispered in that deep, raspy voice that made her breath catch in her throat every time it reached her ears.
A smile spread over her face, and joy filled her heart.
Like a feline, he suddenly spun around and pulled her into his arms, his hungry mouth seeking hers.
Locked in his tight embrace, Diana abandoned all thought as her body responded to his touch as though it recognized him from a previous life. Deep down, Diana had always known that he was her soul mate.
As his lips roamed hers, she held on to him, feeling her knees grow weak. A soft gasp escaped her as his hands travelled upward, and he suddenly drew back.
In the dim light of the moon, he gazed into her eyes, a slight frown curling his brows before he stepped back. “I apologise, Miss−”
“Diana!”
At the sound of her father’s enraged voice, Diana’s head spun around. Finding her parents standing by the tall-growing hedge that shielded the pavilion from passersby, she swallowed as their disbelieving eyes stared at them, shifting from her to the man by her side.
Turning to face her parents as they hurried toward them, their faces pale in the moonlight, Diana smiled. “Father, Mother, I can explain.”
Clearing his throat, Robert Dashwood stepped forward. “I apologise, sir. There has been some misunderstanding. I−”
“Whatever misunderstanding you thought has occurred, I expect the next words I hear to include a proposal considering the liberties you’ve just now taken with my daughter!”
With love in her heart and a smile on her face, Diana turned to the man by her side. Butterflies fluttered in her belly as she took a deep breath. This was it! The moment she had been waiting for her entire life.
“A proposal?” Laughing, her soul mate shook his head. “I’m afraid I have to disappoint you.”
Staring at him, Diana felt the blood rush from her cheeks as the world grew dim around her. “What?” she gasped, her knees suddenly weak as pudding as the butterflies in her belly died a slow death.
“I apologise,” he said, his eyes shifting from her father to her. “As I said, this was a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding?” her father boomed as heart-wrenching sobs tore from Diana’s throat, and she sank into her mother’s arms. “You take advantage of a young girl and then you refuse to do the only decent thing there is left. What kind of a gentleman are you?”
Chuckling, Robert Dashwood leaned against the rail. “The worst kind, I assure you.”
“Social etiquette dictates that−”
“I don’t care about social etiquette−”
“You will be ruined. Your reputation−”
“My reputation will not suffer for all of London already knows the kind of man I am.” Standing up straight, the notorious viscount stepped forward, fixing her father with serious eyes. “Your daughter, on the other hand, has everything to lose. Therefore, I suggest you be reasonable.”
“You downright refuse to marry her?” her father huffed.
“Yes, sir,” he confirmed. “You will be well-adviced to return to the festivities before we are discovered. No harm has been done so far.”
Shaking his head, her father coughed, “No harm? You’ve compromised her.”
“Upon my honour−or what is left of it−it was only a kiss.”
Only a kiss? Diana’s head spun as she clung to her mother, her hopes crashing into a black abyss that was threatening to swallow her whole. What was happening? Did he not love her? Had he not told her so a million times? Had his loving gaze not spoken the words that his lips had confirmed a mere few minutes ago?
Glaring at the man she loved, her father returned to her side. “You are without honour, Norwood. I sincerely hope that one day you will reap what you sow.”
An amused smile on his face, Lord Norwood nodded to her father before his eyes dropped to hers. “All my best to you, Miss…Lawson, is it?” Then he turned and walked away, the shadows swallowing him whole as though he had never been there.
Supported by a parent on either side, Diana placed one step before the other, her mind tormented by the incomprehensibility of what had just happened and her heart aching with the love so unexpectedly ripped from her life.
“I can only hope that Norwood keeps quiet,” her father mumbled under his breath, anger still ringing in his sharp voice. “If anyone finds out what happened here tonight, your chances for a favourable match will be ruined.”
In that moment, Diana could not bring herself to care. After all, what value could her reputation possibly have when her heart had just been ripped into pieces?
Chapter One - Cause & Consequence
London, Spring 1819
Four Years Later
“You have truly outdone yourself with the refurnishing, Diana,” her cousin Rose praised as her green eyes glided over the drawing room, taking in the exquisite curtains, the newly acquired antiques as well as the polished pianoforte that stood under the tall, arched window. “It is as though it shines.”
Diana nodded as was expected of her, then mumbled. “You’re too kind.” Glancing at her husband, his haggard face in an ever-present frown, he nodded his approval, then turned to Rose’s husband, Viscount Norwood, as well as her father, Mr. Lawson, offering both gentlemen a drink.
Glancing at her own father, his eyes blank as he stared into nothing, Diana sighed. Ever since her mother’s death not two years ago, the lively man her father used to have been had vanished. These days he spent his time seated in a comfortable chair, mourning the loss of his wife without an outward sign. Occasionally, Diana’s efforts would coax a monosyllabic answer out of him, but his eyes barely saw her and she believed that most days he wasn’t even aware of his surroundings.
“You have a fine collection here, Mr. Reignold,” Mr. Lawson mused as his eyes slid over the bookshelf, his gaze occasionally narrowing as he read the titles on the spines. “Who is your book dealer?”
Unable to look at her husband’s self-satisfied face any longer, Diana drew in a slow breath as her eyes came to linger on her cousin’s husband, Viscount Norwood.
A shiver went down her spine, and she jerked her head away, knowing that prolonged exposure to his charms would only reopen old wounds.
Almost four years had passed since that fateful night that had chattered not only her reputation as well as her heart, but also her belief in the goodness of this world.
Now, she lived in a nightmare, married to a man who reminded her at every opportunity that he had saved her from certain ruination.
Although Lord Norwood had promised to keep that night in the gardens to himself, the whispers had started nonetheless. Soon, Diana had been the centre of gossip, her reputation damaged beyond repair. Her only option had been to marry her father’s old friend. A man who had lost his first wife as well as his son in childbirth and never remarried until Diana’s father had begged him to save his daughter.
As he considered her own judgement to be impaired, her husband had set strict rules for her. He determined how she dressed, who she could call on, where she could go, what pastimes she could indulge. Nothing was left for Diana to decide on her own.
Even her son’s name had been chosen without her being consulted.
Benedict. What an ugly name! Diana thought.
“Are you all right?” Rose asked, leaning closer as her watchful eyes slid over Diana’s face. “You seem out of sorts.”
Diana forced a smile on her face, only too aware of her husband’s presence. “I’m perfectly fine, dear cousin. Thank you.”
Rose’s brows furrowed as though she meant to argue. Then, however, she took a deep breath and a gentle smile came to her face. “How is Benedict? Does he already sleep through the night?”
Taken aback, Diana shrugged. “How would I know?” she snapped before she could stop herself. Glancing at her husband to see if he had noticed her slip-up, Diana felt a cold shiver run down her spine when she found his shoulders tensing. Although he stood with his back to her, by then, Diana had learnt to interpret his signs of displeasure and disapproval that told her she had once more acted in an unsuitable way.
As certain as the sun rises in the east, another lecture would await her that night.
“I cannot say,” Diana replied, her voice once more soft and melodious. “However, his nurse says that his development is age-appropriate.”
A soft frown came to Rose’s face as her mouth opened and then closed. Clearly, she did not know how to respond!
“He is a delightful boy,” Diana’s husband chimed in, making her flinch as he turned from the bookshelf and approached them. “Strong and healthy with a sunny disposition.”
Following her husband, the other two men joined their little circle as well, and to Diana’s great dismay, she was unable to overlook the gentle smile that came to Lord Norwood’s face as he met Rose’s eyes. His arm brushed against hers as though by accident, and he almost imperceptibly leaned toward her, his eyes tracing the curve of his wife’s mouth.
Almost shunned by society at large, Di
ana mostly spent her time in her cousin’s company and had had ample opportunity to observe the delicate signs of the deep love that existed between Rose and her husband.
To this day, every little sign of affection felt like a stab to her heart. Did she still love him? Diana wondered. She couldn’t be certain for the past few years had dulled her emotions in such a way that now−with the exception of the occasional meltdown−she barely felt anything at all.
Nothing but regret.
As though on cue, her son’s agonising wails drifted down from the upper floor, slowly growing in intensity.
“Oh, the poor baby,” Rose murmured, her gaze shifting to the hall where a large staircase led to the upper floor and the nursery. “Should we not see to him?” she asked, her eyes almost pleading as she turned back to Diana.
“His nurse will−”
“That is a marvellous idea,” Diana’s husband interrupted, his narrowed gaze fixed on her face, ordering her to comply. Then he turned to the other two gentlemen, drawing them into yet another conversation about dusty, old books and the utterly boring topics they discussed.
“Come,” Rose whispered, drawing Diana forward toward the staircase. As they ascended the stairs, she turned to look at Diana. “Has he said Mama yet?”
Diana shrugged. “Not that I know of.”
Again, Rose looked at her with that slight frown, her eyes filled with incredulity as though nothing Diana said or did made any sense.
Diana could not blame her. Ever since that night four years ago, nothing had made sense anymore.
When they entered the nursery, they found Benedict’s nurse, holding him in her arms, slightly bouncing in her step as she tried to soothe the wailing one-year-old.
“Hello Miss Sharp,” Rose greeted the woman, “what seems to be the matter? Did something frighten him?”