Lady Be Good
Copyright © 2015 Meredith Duran
Cover image © Alan Ayers
Author photograph © Shelley McGuire
The right of Meredith Duran to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by her in accordance with the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published in this Ebook edition in 2015
by HEADLINE ETERNAL
An imprint of HEADLINE PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by arrangement with Pocket Books,
a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Apart from any use permitted under UK copyright law, this publication may only be reproduced, stored, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, with prior permission in writing of the publishers or, in the case of reprographic production, in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency.
All characters in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Cataloguing in Publication Data is available from the British Library
eISBN 978 1 4722 2233 6
HEADLINE PUBLISHING GROUP
An Hachette UK Company
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50 Victoria Embankment
London EC4Y 0DZ
Visit Everleigh’s Auction House
Find out more about Headline Eternal
Meredith Duran blames Anne Boleyn for sparking her lifelong obsession with British history. A graduate student in the social sciences, she spends her free time collecting old etiquette manuals, guidebooks to nineteenth-century London, and travelogues by intrepid Victorian women.
The Duke Of Shadows
and
Bound By Your Touch
ranked among the top 100 romances of all time in the 2010
All About Romance
poll, and the
USA Today
bestselling
Fool Me Twice
is a RITA nominee in Historical Fiction.
For more on Meredith visit her website
www.meredithduran.com
, and connect with her on Twitter
@meredithduran
, and on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/AuthorMeredithDuran
.
‘A sophisticated, witty, smart novel that, like a Mary Balogh romance, compels the reader to look deeper and uncover great depth as well as grand passion’
Romantic Times
‘In modern romance, there is still room for the hero that Byron described as “that man of loneliness and mystery” . . . It’s possible that no one writes him better than Meredith Duran, whose books are as dark and dangerous as the heroes they feature’
The Washington Post
‘Meredith Duran unceasingly delights . . . as a wordsmith and a master at understanding the elements that connect complex, genuine, and lovable characters’
Buried Under Romance
‘A powerful story with emotional punch . . . A joy to read’
The Romance Dish
‘Top-notch romance’
Publishers Weekly
‘Wildly romantic’
Dear Author
‘Witty, often hilarious, sensuous, and breathlessly paced . . . An engaging mystery-enhanced escapade’
Library Journal
‘Sexy, inventive, and riveting, it’s hard to put down and a joy to read’
All About Romance
Rules For The Reckless Series
Your Wicked Heart (e-novella)
That Scandalous Summer
Fool Me Twice
Lady Be Good
Luck Be A Lady
The Duke Of Shadows
Bound By Your Touch
Written On Your Skin
Wicked Becomes You
A Lady’s Lesson In Scandal
At Your Pleasure
Catching the lady red-handed. . .
Born to a family of notorious criminals, Lilah Marshall abandoned her past to transform into the perfect lady. A hostess at Everleigh’s, London’s premier auction house, she leads a virtuous life full of art and culture. All her dreams are within reach – until a gorgeous and enigmatic viscount catches her in the act of one last, reluctant theft.
Chasing one red-hot passion. . .
Viscount Palmer is society’s most dashing war hero. But his charming façade masks a dark secret: he’s haunted by a murdering madman’s vow to destroy anyone he loves. When the hunt for his enemy leads him to Lilah, he realises they can help one another. Their attraction is instant and electrifying, but one tempting touch could be their undoing. And as passion flares, their very lives hang in the balance. . .
Want more Rules for the Reckless? Don’t miss
That Scandalous Summer
or
Fool Me Twice
and the
Your Wicked Heart
e-novella.
For Estelle, Madeleine, Grace, and Sophia—
may all your stories end happily
When one’s acknowledgments continually generate a sense of déjà vu, it’s an excellent sign that one’s life is blessed with friends and family who deserve far more gratitude than a single page could contain. My thanks, as always, to the usuals: S. J. Kincaid, whose gift for encouragement is rivaled only by the inspiration her talent provides me; The Family Duran, of Oakland and Denver; Lady Rohlfs, Doctor of Law, Philosophy, and Unrivaled Weekends in St. Louis; Janine Ballard, Critique Partner for the Ages; Lauren McKenna and Elana Cohen, who make Pocket Books feel like home; and my husband, who keeps me fed, rested, encouraged, amused, optimistic, amazed, and impossibly happy. (Happy ever after, indeed.)
Who o’er yonder battlement, when enemy drums did pound,
Did shout the name of Britain, and vow to stand his ground;
Who for sake of Queen and Country, pressed forward unafraid,
As through the hills of Bekhole, he led the fateful raid—
What courage lifted him through that dark and bloody vale!
What brave emboldened heart, where ordinary man must pale!
Nary a flinch or falter, nor thought of turning back—
“Onward,” he commanded, “to the ridge; attack!”
For him alone does England, which tenderly forged his mettle,
Await the end of battle, and the dreadful smoke to settle.
We pray God his soul to keep, his awful duty to acquit,
For our nation’s pride rests soundly on our brave and noble Kit.
His mother’s face so tearful, his father’s lit with pride—
These visions linger with him at every desperate stride.
Our grateful praise and adulation, our applause so proudly won—
He hears nothing but the cannon, until the bloody war is done.
Together will we gather, on that destined glorious day,
To welcome home our hero, with garlands bright and gay
And cry out the name that rings in every patriot’s soul:
Major John Christian Stratton, Hero of Bekhole!
