A Notorious Proposition

by Adele Ashworth

  “I need to know,” he said softly against her mouth, “if I told you I loved you two years ago.”

  She sighed against him. “Yes, you did.”

  “And what did you say?”

  She pulled away from him a fraction and placed her forehead against his. “I told you then, as I’ll tell you now: I knew I loved you the moment my fingers touched your lips when we were introduced. I loved you then, I love you now, and I will never, ever stop loving you.”

  He swallowed hard as he reached for her palm and brought it to his mouth. “I’m so sorry I hurt you, Ivy.”

  She inhaled a shaky breath. “And I’m so very thankful you came back to me.”

  Lady Ivy Wentworth married Paul Garrett Faringdon-Burke, Marquess of Rye, in a lavish ceremony in London, April 20, 1852. With her brother walking her down the aisle to give her to the groom, she proceeded without reservation, her heart filled with love, and the famous Martello tiara—diamonds intact—sparkling in all its radiance upon her head.

  About the Author

  ADELE ASHWORTH

  I’ve always loved to write, but after my first attempt at a novel (nine chapters of Plastic City , the story of underwater-dwelling orphans in the twenty-third century that I wrote in the sixth grade), I took some time to get my bachelor’s degree and to try my hand at other careers before I returned to my first passion: creative writing. After lots and lots of perseverance, hard work, and a bit of very good luck, My Darling Caroline went on to win the Romance Writers of America’s RITA® Award for Best First Book of 1998.

  I live in Texas with my family, exploring history as I delve into the hearts of my characters. I love to hear from readers through my website at www.adeleashworth.com.

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  By Adele Ashworth

  A NOTORIOUS PROPOSITION

  THE DUKE’S INDISCRETION

  DUKE OF SCANDAL

  DUKE OF SIN

  WHEN IT’S PERFECT

  SOMEONE IRRESISTIBLE

  Copyright

  This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  A NOTORIOUS PROPOSITION. Copyright © 2008 by Adele Budnick. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

  ePub edition March 2008 ISBN 9780061736452

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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