The Earl Takes a Fancy

by Lorraine Heath

  The first balloon to fly from England to France was in 1785. It landed in Calais.

  As for the Fire King, he was based on a real Victorian street performer who revealed how he managed to swallow fire, and the moment I read his personal account, he filled my imagination with possibilities. I have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of him.

  Acknowledgments

  I’m not certain why I struggled so much writing this story, but from the beginning I couldn’t seem to make it work. Eventually it became a Frankenstein project, scenes hobbled together as I came to better understand the characters. As a writer, I am always amazed by how a word, thought, or experience can open up a world of possibilities within my imagination.

  I owe a great deal to the three people who played a role in bringing the story to life. My editor, May Chen, whose insights helped me to understand where I’d gone wrong; Addison Fox, who helped me see my heroine more clearly; and my son, Alex, who read the draft and offered suggestions for improving the depth of the story and also said, “I can’t believe you didn’t have him tell her, ‘You were never a passing fancy.’” And thus, a different hero came to be.

  An Excerpt from Beauty Tempts the Beast

  Lorraine Heath concludes her breathtaking Sins for All Seasons series with the story everyone has been waiting for

  BEAUTY TEMPTS THE BEAST

  Benedict “Beast” Trewlove has long haunted London’s dark and treacherous underworld, offering protection to those who need it. But when he comes to the aid of a mysterious beauty, he discovers she is a danger to his heart.

  Coming Fall 2020

  Prologue

  London

  1840

  The frantic knocking woke Ettie Trewlove from her first restful sleep in days. Her three lads, each only a few months old, were teething, which made them a grumpy lot, but tonight for some inexplicable reason they were sleeping like the angels they normally were.

  The rapping continued. With no hope of it stopping unless answered, she tossed back the covers and climbed out of her bed. After turning up the flame in the lamp on the bedside table, she carried it with her to light the way as she passed by her dear boys, smiling at the way they snuggled against each other in the small crib. They’d soon be outgrowing it, and she’d have to make other accommodations for them.

  Shuffling to the door, she opened it a crack and peered out, surprised to see a woman, a little younger than her own twenty years, standing there, a blanketed bundle cradled tightly in her arms. Until tonight, only men had made the deliveries.

  “Are you Ettie Trewlove, the woman who takes in bairns born out of wedlock and sees them well cared for?” Hope and fear wove themselves through her thick Scottish brogue.

  Ettie nodded. A baby farmer by trade, she took in by-blows no one wanted, for a few pounds each, sparing their mums the shame and the challenges to their lives that their presence would have brought them. “Aye.”

  “Will you take my lad? I’ve only a few shillings to leave with you, but you won’t have to keep him long.” With wide, dark eyes, she glanced around quickly. “Just until it’s safe. And then I’ll be back for him.”

  A few shillings would see him fed for only a couple of weeks, and she had three others in need of food. Still, she set the lamp on the table beside the door, opened it wider, and held out her arms. “Aye, I’ll take him.”

  The young woman eased aside the blanket and pressed a kiss to the sleeping babe’s cheek.

  “What the devil did you do to him?” Ettie asked in dismay.

  The stranger jerked up her head, held her gaze. “Nothing. He was born like this. But he’s a good boy, will give you no trouble a’tall. Please don’t turn him away. You’re my last hope for protecting him from those who would see him harmed.”

  Ettie knew there were those who believed children born out of wedlock were born in sin and should be denied breath.

  “I don’t blame babes for things that aren’t their fault.” If she did, she wouldn’t have found herself with three born on the wrong side of the blanket. Now four. She wiggled her fingers. “Hand him to me.”

  Taking care not to wake him, the lass—the light caught her fully, showing her to be more girl than grown—gently placed the lad in Ettie’s waiting arms. “Promise me you’ll love him like he was your own.”

  “’Tis the only way I know how to love a wee one.”

  With a tremulous smile, she pressed the coins into Ettie’s palm. “Thank you.”

  Turning away, she took three steps before looking back over her shoulder, tears now glistening in her eyes. “His name is Benedict. I will come back for him.”

  The words were spoken with fervent conviction, and Ettie wasn’t certain who the lass was trying to convince: Ettie or herself.

  She darted into the heavy fog and quickly disappeared into the shrouded darkness.

  And Ettie Trewlove kept her promise. She raised the lad as though he were her own and loved him as only a mother could.

  About the Author

  LORRAINE HEATH always dreamed of being a writer. After graduating from the University of Texas, she wrote training manuals, press releases, articles, and computer code, but something was always missing. When she read a romance novel, she not only became hooked on the genre, but quickly realized what her writing lacked: rebels, scoundrels, and rogues. She’s been writing about them ever since. Her work has been recognized with numerous industry awards, including RWA’s prestigious RITA®. Her novels have appeared on the USA Today and New York Times bestseller lists.

  lorraineheath.com

  Facebook: LorraineHeathBooks

  Instagram: Lorraineheathauthor

  Twitter: lorraine_heath

  Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.

  By Lorraine Heath

  The Earl Takes a Fancy

  The Duchess in His Bed

  The Scoundrel in Her Bed

  Texas Legacy (novella)

  When a duke loves a woman

  Beyond Scandal and Desire

  Gentlemen Prefer Heiresses (novella)

  An Affair with a Notorious Heiress

  When the Marquess Falls (novella)

  The Viscount and the Vixen

  The Earl Takes All

  Falling into Bed with a Duke

  The Duke and the Lady in Red

  The Last Wicked Scoundrel (novella)

  Once More, My Darling Rogue

  The Gunslinger (novella)

  When the Duke Was Wicked

  Deck the Halls with Love (novella)

  Lord of Wicked Intentions

  Lord of Temptation

  She Tempts the Duke

  Waking up with the Duke

  Pleasures of a Notorious Gentleman

  Passions of a Wicked Earl

  Midnight Pleasures with a Scoundrel

  Surrender to the Devil

  Between the Devil and Desire

  In Bed with the Devil

  Just Wicked Enough

  A Duke of Her Own

  Promise Me Forever

  A Matter of Temptation

  As an Earl Desires

  An Invitation to Seduction

  Love with a Scandalous Lord

  To Marry an Heiress

  The Outlaw and the Lady

  Never Marry a Cowboy

  Never Love a Cowboy

  A Rogue in Texas

  Texas Splendor

  Texas Glory

  Texas Destiny

  Always to Remember

  Parting Gifts

  Sweet Lullaby

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Excerpt from Beauty Tempts the Beast copyright © 2020 by Jan Nowasky.

  the earl takes a fancy. Copyright © 2020 b
y Jan Nowasky. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, 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 hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins Publishers. For information, address HarperCollins Publishers, 195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007.

  Digital Edition APRIL 2020 ISBN: 978-0-06-295188-5

  Print Edition ISBN: 978-0-06-295190-8

  Cover designed by Amy Halperin

  Cover illustration © Victor Gadino; © Engin Korkmaz/Dreamstime.com (staircase)

  Avon, Avon & logo, and Avon Books & logo are registered trademarks of HarperCollins Publishers in the United States of America and other countries.

  HarperCollins is a registered trademark of HarperCollins Publishers in the United States of America and other countries.

  first edition

  About the Publisher

  Australia

  HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.

  Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street

  Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia

  www.harpercollins.com.au

  Canada

  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

  Bay Adelaide Centre, East Tower

  22 Adelaide Street West, 41st Floor

  Toronto, Ontario, M5H 4E3

  www.harpercollins.ca

  India

  HarperCollins India

  A 75, Sector 57

  Noida

  Uttar Pradesh 201 301

  www.harpercollins.co.in

  New Zealand

  HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand

  Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive

  Rosedale 0632

  Auckland, New Zealand

  www.harpercollins.co.nz

  United Kingdom

  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

  1 London Bridge Street

  London SE1 9GF, UK

  www.harpercollins.co.uk

  United States

  HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

  195 Broadway

  New York, NY 10007

  www.harpercollins.com