Deceived & Honoured--The Baron's Vexing Wife (#7 Love's Second Chance Series)

by Bree Wolf

  And with that she hurried off, leaving behind two rather dumbfounded looking people.

  “Your aunt is rather meddlesome,” Derek commented after a while, his gaze meeting hers.

  Madeline nodded. “Although I admit I had no idea how much.” A soft smile drew up the corners of her mouth, and she stepped closer, once more slipping her hands into her husband’s. “I shall thank her properly later, but for now…I believe we had plans.”

  With a large grin on his face, her husband pulled her into his arms, and without another delay, they left her father’s townhouse and hastened into the carriage.

  Alone at last.

  The End

  How did you like Meagan? Do you want to find out about her story and her happily-ever-after? You didn’t really think Edward was dead, did you?

  Find an extract on the next pages…

  About Bree

  USA Today bestselling author, Bree Wolf has always been a language enthusiast (though not a grammarian!) and is rarely found without a book in her hand or her fingers glued to a keyboard. Trying to find her way, she has taught English as a second language, traveled abroad and worked at a translation agency as well as a law firm in Ireland. She also spent loooong years obtaining a BA in English and Education and an MA in Specialized Translation while wishing she could simply be a writer. Although there is nothing simple about being a writer, her dreams have finally come true.

  “A big thanks to my fairy godmother!”

  Currently, Bree has found her new home in the historical romance genre, writing Regency novels and novellas. Enjoying the mix of fact and fiction, she occasionally feels like a puppet master (or mistress? Although that sounds weird!), forcing her characters into ever-new situations that will put their strength, their beliefs, their love to the test, hoping that in the end they will triumph and get the happily-ever-after we are all looking for.

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  Also By Bree

  Historical Romance:

  Love's Second Chance Series

  #1 Forgotten & Remembered - The Duke's Late Wife (Now Perma-free!)

  #2 Cursed & Cherished - The Duke's Wilful Wife

  #3 Despised & Desired - The Marquess' Passionate Wife

  #4 Abandoned & Protected - The Marquis' Tenacious Wife

  #5 Ruined & Redeemed - The Earl's Fallen Wife

  #6 Betrayed & Blessed - The Viscount's Shrewd Wife

  #7 Deceived & Honoured - The Baron’s Vexing Wife

  #8 Sacrificed & Reclaimed - The Soldier’s Daring Widow

  #9 Condemned & Admired - The Earl’s Cunning Wife (Coming August 14, 2018)

  #10 Trapped & Liberated - The Privateer’s Bold Beloved (Coming October 2, 2018)

  Love’s Second Chance Box Set One: Novels 1 - 4

  Love’s Second Chance Series Box Set Two: Novels 5-8

  Middle Grade Adventure:

  Heroes Next Door Trilogy

  #1 Fireflies (Now Perma-free!)

  #2 Butterflies

  #3 Dragonflies

  Paranormal Fantasy:

  Crescent Rock Series

  #1 How to Live and Die in Crescent Rock

  Dear Reader,

  Book seven in this series brought together two supporting characters of previous novels, and it was a joy to re-read books three and six in order to gain a better insight into Madeline and Derek. They both try to appear to those around them in a different way from whom they are deep inside. I often wonder about who people truly are when meeting them. Are they putting on a mask? Or are they truly speaking from the heart? We never know.

  In the future novels of this series, the previous couples will often do a short appearance and reveal a little about what they've been doing and (my particular favorite) how many children they have by then! I often consult those readers subscribed to my mailing list about naming the little ones. So, if you would like to put in your vote, sign up!

  Or join my FB group Bree's Belles of the Ball and put in your vote! It's as simple as that!

  This novel already gave you a little glimpse of Meagan, Edward Dunning's widow who fell in the war. Or did he not?

  What can I say? I can never resist a good story of true love, which is why I felt compelled to tell their story as well. I never planned to, but after finishing Madeline and Derek's story, I felt I couldn't move on to the next before giving them their happily-ever-after.

  Head right over to Sacrificed & Reclaimed - The Soldier's Daring Widow.

  In the meantime, if you enjoyed book seven, would you mind leaving an honest and fair review?

  Would it help if I asked, “pretty please” with a cherry on top?

  In all honesty, reviews and recommendations are so important for attracting new readers, especially for indie authors like me. I would greatly appreciate your support! Thanks so much for reading!

  Here is a link that will quickly get you to the review page. (Click me! Click me! Click me! ... Okay, I'll stop now!)

  All the best to you,

  Bree

  Read a Sneak-Peek of

  Sacrificed & Reclaimed

  The Soldier’s Daring Widow

  (#8 Bonus Novella)

  A grieving widow. A tortured hero. And a fateful love.

  EDWARD DUNNING had it all: a beautiful home, two adorable children and a wife who was his other half. Only he wanted more. He wanted more than an ordinary life. So he went to war.

  And did not return.

  In the blink of an eye, MEAGAN DUNNING lost her husband, her future, her dreams. Until, in the very moment when she found her way back into life, her husband − presumed dead for over two years − shows up on her doorstep unexpectedly.

  Broken by the horrors of war, Edward is a far cry from the man Meagan lost her heart to. Still, fierce love never dies, and Meagan is more than willing to battle the darkness in her husband’s soul to reclaim his heart.

  Will Meagan succeed? Or has Edward given up hope long ago?

  Prologue

  England, Autumn 1805 (or a variation thereof)

  As she climbed the small slope north of the village she had grown up in, Meagan Dunning felt as though each agonising step took her farther away from the life she had loved. Dragging her feet, she forced herself onward until she reached the top, a small mount, which overlooked the tiny village.

  Gazing down at the handful of homes clustered around a market square, Meagan could not help but remember the many times she had come up here with her husband. How often had they stood like this, in this very spot, and gazed down at the sleepy village? How often had they spoken of a future spent away from here, out in the world? How often had she looked at him and believed that−like her−he was merely daydreaming?

  At least, until the day he had enlisted.

  Before Meagan knew what was happening, her husband had shipped out, following a call she could not understand. And yet, she had seen the sense of adventure in his eyes that had always been there when they had spoken of a different future. A future different from that of their parents, living and dying in the same small village, never to see anything further away than a few miles.

  Now, her husband was dead.

  Closing her eyes, Meagan inhaled a deep breath, willing her tears away. After all, she had already cried a lifetime’s worth of tears upon learning
the news. Was there any use in weeping day in and day out? Would it do her any good? Did she not have two small children to think of?

  Unbidden, a sob tore from Meagan’s throat at the thought of her now fatherless children. Never would Matthew ride on his father’s shoulders again. Never would little Erin be cooed to sleep by the sound of his voice. Would she even remember him? After all, she had only been a babe.

  Wiping a sleeve over her eyes, Meagan refocused her gaze onto the small houses down in the valley, her gaze gliding from one to the other. How often had she spotted her husband walking toward her from up here as she sat in the grass, holding her little daughter, her son playing beside her?

  Two years had passed since then.

  And yet, it seemed like yesterday.

  Her heart still ached whenever she thought of her husband. Tears would sting her eyes, and sobs rose in her throat, and her heart would hurt in a way that she sometimes believed it must surely break in half.

  But it didn’t.

  The wound was not fatal. It pained her every day, but she continued on, doomed to live the life that had been theirs by herself.

  Meagan shook her head. No, that wasn’t true. She wasn’t alone. She had her children, and she could not deny that they brought her much joy. However, no matter what they did−having supper, playing in the fields or whispering to each other at nighttime−she always felt her husband’s absence. As though his loss had torn a hole into her life, that was simply always there.

  Always reminding her of what she had lost.

  Of what could have been…if he had stayed.

  “Meagan!”

  At the sound of his voice, her heart froze and her inner eye conjured an image of her smiling husband, his eyes aglow with mischief as he chased her through the tall-stemmed grass.

  Although her mind knew that it could not be, Meagan had come to realise that her heart had not yet fully accepted the loss of her other half. Often she found herself waking from dreams that seemed so real that she reached out a hand across the pillow, expecting to find her husband beside her. Only when the dream slowly faded away did reality reclaim her, bringing with it excruciating pain that spread through her entire being.

  Closing her eyes for but a moment, Meagan took a deep breath before turning to face reality once more. As expected, it was not Edward, not her husband, who came walking toward her, but his best friend Derek McKnight.

  And still, her heart ached at having its hopes disappointed once more.

  “I’ve been looking for you,” Derek addressed her, his long legs carrying him closer as he watched her through slightly narrowed eyes. Although they had never been close−he had merely been her husband’s best friend−she could tell that he was concerned for her, for his best friend’s wife.

  No, not wife.

  Widow.

  Meagan swallowed. “I needed…some time to think.”

  As he came to stand before her, his dark gaze held hers, searching. Then he nodded. “I understand,” was all he said, and from the look in his eyes, Meagan knew it to be true.

  Derek McKnight, a farmer’s son, had always possessed the ability to read those around him. Nothing and no one could hide from his scrutinising gaze, and it had been that sharp-mindedness that had guided him through the war unscathed.

  Unlike Edward, Derek had found glory and triumph in his deeds and had even been awarded the title of a baron and given his own estate. Now, he was Lord Ainsworth.

  And yet, he was here, staying true to the promise he had made her husband.

  To look after her.

  When Derek had returned, Meagan hadn’t been able to help herself to gaze past his shoulder, her eyes immediately searching for her husband. They had always been close, and it had seemed natural that Edward would be by Derek’s side. Had it not always been thus?

  “I need your answer,” Derek reminded her, his shoulders tense as he waited.

  Meagan knew she ought to accept his offer. And yet, she hesitated.

  Once more she turned to the small village at her feet, her eyes seeking out the small home she had shared with her husband. “I don’t know if I can,” she spoke as a soft breeze brushed over her cheeks, carrying her words into the world. “This place holds all our memories. If I leave it, what do I have left?”

  Behind her, Derek drew in a slow breath. “He will never leave you, no matter where you are. His memory is not tied to a place, but to you and your children.”

  Meagan nodded. “Ye’re right, and still, I feel as though I’d betray him by leavin’.” She turned to face Derek, fresh tears streaming down her face. “My mind knows that he’s dead. But my heart still has hope. What am I to do?”

  “Think of your children.”

  Shifting her gaze, Meagan looked over Derek’s shoulder at his mother’s kind face. With sure steps, Bessy approached them, Meagan’s children, Matthew and Erin, trailing in her wake.

  “Mama!” her daughter squealed and threw herself into Meagan’s arms.

  Hugging her tightly, Meagan smiled at her son, his dark brown eyes so much like his father’s.

  “Your husband,” Bessy began, her kind eyes holding Meagan’s, “was very dear to me.” Nodding, she smiled, but it was a smile full of sadness and sorrow. “I know that ye don’t have any family left here, but I…,” she glanced at her son, “we want ye to know that we will always be here for ye and your children. Come with us. We will look after ye if ye let us. I promise that ye and your children will never be alone.”

  Touched, Meagan sighed, feeling her daughter snuggle into her shoulder as her son came to stand beside her, slipping his little hand into hers. “Thank ye,” she whispered before turning her gaze to Derek. “We shall go with ye then.”

  The corners of his mouth twitched, but he did not say a word. Instead, he turned to Matthew and drew the boy away as his mother stepped forward to take Erin from Meagan’s arms.

  As she watched them walk down the hill, Meagan once more turned to face the small village. “Goodbye,” she whispered as tears streamed down her face. “I shall never forget ye. I promise to carry ye with me wherever I go.”

  Then she turned and followed the others toward a new life.

  A life without her husband.

  Click here to get your own copy!

  Overview

  Love’s Second Chance Series

  #1 Forgotten & Remembered

  GRAHAM ASTOR, Duke of Kensington, is done with love, and ROSABEL LANDER never believed in it. But when Graham needs help raising his daughter and Rosabel cannot burden her family any longer, can they find a new, happy life together?

  Click here to claim your free copy!

  #2 Cursed & Cherished

  EDMOND DUNSWORTH, Duke of Cromwell, is bankrupt and therefore he marries ANNA HANDFORD for her sizable dowry. Anna is determined to hate him. Can Edmond change her mind with his oh so charming self or will there never be a happily ever after?

  Click here to get your own copy!

  #3 Despised & Desired

  War hero FREDERICK LANCASTER never intended to become the Marquess of Elmridge. When his mother picks spinster ELLIE MUNFORD as his bride, he doesn’t expect romance — but together they might find love and healing in each other’s arms.

  Click here to get your own copy!

  #4 Abandoned & Protected

  When HENRIETTA is married off to CONNOR BRUNWOOD, Marquis of Rodridge, she’s determined to hate the Scotsman. Can she learn to look past her prejudices and find love?

  Click here to get your own copy!

  #5 Ruined & Redeemed

  When Lady CHARLOTTE’s life is ruined, she buries her past and reinvents herself as Lotte, a lady’s companion. SEBASTIAN, the future Earl of Weston, thinks marrying unsuitable Lotte is just the thing to aggravate his father — only to later learn who his bride really is…

  Click here to get your own copy!

  #6 Betrayed & Blessed

  TRISTAN TURNER, Viscount Elton, is haunted by his past and t
ries every day ineffectively to live up to his family’s expectations. When he meets ELIZABETH „BETH“ WALKER he thinks his dreams of finding unconditional love have finally come true. But Beth has a secret which threatens to tear them apart. Can Tristan and Beth find love after all?

  Click here to get your own copy!

  #7 Deceived & Honoured

  LADY MADELEINE, daughter to the Earl of Carlton, has vowed not to marry below the rank of an earl. But her plans go horribly wrong when she is compromised by the wrong man. A man named DEREK MCKNIGHT, a farmer’s son who was given a run-down barony for his service to the crown. Will Madeline ever be able to see past his title?

  Click here to get your own copy!

  #8 Sacrificed & Reclaimed (Bonus Novella)

  MEAGAN DUNNING thought she'd lost her husband EDWARD to the war. Until he−presumed dead for over two years−shows up on her doorstep unexpectedly. However, although he returns from the war after all, the battle for his soul is only just beginning.

  Will Meagan be able to reclaim his heart? Or has Edward given up hope long ago?

  Click here to get your own copy!

  #9 Condemned & Admired