Who Wants to Marry a Duke Read online

  Praise for Sabrina Jeffries’s previous novels

  “Best-selling Jeffries brilliantly launches her new Duke Dynasty series with another exemplary Regency-set historical brilliantly sourced from her seemingly endless authorial supply of fascinating characters and compelling storylines.”

  —Booklist on Project Duchess

  “Anyone who loves romance must read Sabrina Jeffries!”

  —Lisa Kleypas, New York Times bestselling author

  “Quick pacing, witty dialogue, and charmingly original characters set Jeffries’s books apart.”

  —Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

  “Master storyteller Jeffries is at the top of her game.”

  —RT Book Reviews on The Secret of Flirting

  “Quick wit, lively repartee, and delicious sensuality drive the elaborate plot of this sinfully delightful addition to Jeffries’s latest series.”

  —Library Journal (Starred Review) on The Pleasures of Passion

  “With its irresistible combination of witty banter, well defined characters, and a wonderful surfeit of breathtaking sensuality, the latest in Jeffries’s Sinful Suitors series is a straight flush.”

  —Booklist (Starred Review) on The Danger of Desire

  “Lovely, poignant, and powerful.”

  —Kirkus Reviews on The Study of Seduction

  Books by Sabrina Jeffries:

  Project Duchess

  Seduction on a Snowy Night

  (anthology)

  The Bachelor

  Who Wants to Marry a Duke

  Published by Kensington Publishing Corp.

  Who Wants To Marry A DUKE

  SABRINA JEFFRIES

  ZEBRA BOOKS

  KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.

  www.kensingtonbooks.com

  All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.

  Table of Contents

  Praise

  Also by

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  Lydia’s Husbands and Children

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Epilogue

  UNDERCOVER DUKE

  ZEBRA BOOKS are published by

  Kensington Publishing Corp.

  119 West 40th Street

  New York, NY 10018

  Copyright © 2020 by Sabrina Jeffries, LLC

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales, or persons living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

  To the extent that the image or images on the cover of this book depict a person or persons, such person or persons are merely models, and are not intended to portray any character or characters featured in the book.

  If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

  Zebra and the Z logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

  ISBN: 978-1-4201-4857-2

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4201-4861-9 (eBook)

  ISBN-10: 1-4201-4861-3 (eBook)

  To my daddy, who always has a big smile

  for his “firstborn,” quirky daughter.

  And to my mom, who tirelessly takes care

  of my daddy these days.

  Thanks to both of you for all the love you give.

  Lydia’s Husbands and Children

  1 Project Duchess

  2 Seduction on a Snowy Night

  3 The Bachelor

  4 Who Wants to Marry a Duke

  5 Undercover Duke

  Prologue

  London

  April 1800

  Having finally come into his title as the Duke of Thornstock, Marlowe “Thorn” Drake leaned against a pillar to survey the crowd at the Devonshire House ball. Why hadn’t his twin sister returned to England with him when he’d asked? If Gwyn were here, she’d be mocking the fops with their excessive cravats and taking bets with him on which gentleman would make a drunken fool of himself first.

  She’d be keeping him well entertained.

  God, how he missed her. Until now, they’d never been apart, and it still chafed him that she’d blithely watched him sail away without her. He’d never counted on feeling so alone in the land of his birth. He was English, damn it, and this was his rightful home. Since he’d never felt as if he belonged in Berlin, despite having lived there almost since birth, he’d expected matters to be different in his native country.

  Instead, everything smelled and tasted odd, from the weak coffee his servants gave him in the morning to the strange liquid he was drinking now, which bore a faint—very faint—resemblance to the Glühwein he’d drunk in Prussia, although not nearly as good.

  “So what do you think of your first marriage mart?” asked his half brother Grey, who’d come up beside him.

  Fletcher “Grey” Pryde, the Duke of Greycourt, had returned to England at the age of ten to be educated for his future role as duke. That probably explained why he seemed comfortable with English life. He’d had fifteen years here. Thorn had only had six months.

  Not that he would let his older brother see his discomfort. “This is a marriage mart?” Thorn snorted. “I’d imagined something a bit more . . . mercenary, with mothers sniffing the crowd in search of eligible gentlemen for their pretty vixens.”

  Grey laughed. “That’s not far off the mark, at least for ladies who have only their looks to commend them. With heiresses, it’s more like the fathers sniffing about—trying to ferret out the fortune hunters.”

  “Then I suppose I should be glad Gwyn did not come with me.” Thorn pushed away from the pillar. “Father and I had enough trouble keeping the fortune hunters at bay in Berlin.”

  “I would have helped you with that.” Grey gazed up. “Gwyn would have loved that ceiling. She would have tried to sketch it for her book of architectural wonders. That’s why I can’t figure out why she refused to come back with you.” He fixed his gaze on Thorn. “Do you know why she chose to stay in Berlin?”

  “She said Mother needed her,” Thorn replied.

  “Nonsense. Mother is perfectly capable of fending for herself. Besides which, Mother has Maurice, who dotes on her. There’s got to be another reason.”

  Thorn had a pretty good idea of what it was, but Gwyn had never admitted it, and he wasn’t about to speculate to Grey. “What are you doing at a marriage mart, anyway?”

  Grey turned grim. “I lost a bet.”

  “Ah. What are the terms?”

  “I have to stay until midnight . . . or until Lady Georgiana is introduced to me, whichever comes first.”

  “Devonshire’s daughter? The one coming out this Season?”

  “Precisely.”

  “Then you’ll be able to leave soon enough,” Thorn said. “They’ll introduce her to
you first of anyone.”

  “And you. Or have you forgotten your exalted station?”

  “No.” How could he? Every time he entered a room, people bowed and curtsied for all they were worth.

  “Never lose sight of who you are,” Grey said. “You’re not accustomed to how devious matchmaking mamas and their scheming daughters can be. Look at it this way: They’re the hunters, who want to hang your ducal coronet on their trophy wall. So keep an eye out.”

  “I plan to. As soon as I see the Devonshires coming, I’ll flee.”

  “I didn’t mean keep an eye out for the Devonshires, for God’s sake,” Grey said. “They take precedence over us both. Fleeing would be like giving them the cut direct. Even I am not so reckless as all that. I may need one of them someday.”

  Thorn would rather risk that than take one step awry in conversation with them. Although earlier he’d had someone point them out to him, this would be his first time to actually meet the powerful Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, and he was a bit shaky on the protocol. In Prussia, Thorn had been the only English duke around since Grey had left for England.

  “First of all,” Thorn said, “I don’t have your ambition to own half of London. Second, I can escape a ballroom without being noticed if I have to.”

  “You think so, do you? Look around, little brother. Half the young ladies in here have their eyes on you.”

  “Or you. When the exalted duke and duchess introduce you to their daughter, everyone will be so fixed upon that august event that no one will even notice I’ve vanished.” Thorn grinned at him. “Besides, I’ve no need to marry as well as you. I can be content with one of the pretty vixens, as long as she’s also clever and amusing.”

  He heard a snort behind him, but when he looked back, he saw nothing. He must have imagined it.

  Grey frowned. “From what I’ve heard, Lady Georgiana is neither. Supposedly, her mother eclipses her in that respect as well as in looks.”

  “That’s a damned shame. For you, anyway. Would you marry her for her connections in spite of it all?”

  “Only if the gossip is wrong about her and she proves to be, as you put it, clever and amusing. And pretty.” He smiled at Thorn. “I want everything in a wife.”

  And he’d probably get it, too, once he decided to settle down. Grey had the sort of wavy black hair that always looked as if he’d just left some woman’s bed, and his blue-green eyes and chiseled features ensured that he could get back there anytime he pleased. Unfortunately for the ladies, he was very particular.

  “That’s probably why you haven’t yet married. You set the bar ridiculously high.” Thorn sipped some of the mysterious liquor in his glass and grimaced.

  “How can you stand to drink that?” Grey said.

  “I keep trying to figure out what it is. It tastes like port, but it’s too thin for that and far sweeter. Nor would I expect port to be served at a ball for ladies making their debuts.”

  “And yet it is. What you’re drinking is negus, a punch the English have concocted out of watered-down port and whatever spices are lying about. Or so I’ve surmised through years of trying to drink it without making a face.”

  “It’s vile.” Thorn looked around for one of those footmen who took the glasses away. Instead, he spotted the Devonshires heading in their direction. “And I believe it’s time to make myself scarce. Our hosts are approaching.”

  Grey nodded. “I see them. I know Devonshire himself well enough to speak to, but I’ve never met the duchess or her daughter. The duchess is rumored to be a fascinating woman. Are you sure you don’t wish to stay around?”

  “Another time, perhaps,” Thorn muttered.

  At twenty-one, he was hardly ready for marriage. Right now he could barely make his way through the myriad rules in London society and manage the properties of his dukedom, much less drag a woman along with him. Nor was he yet comfortable enough with the brother he hadn’t seen in years to admit that.

  The Devonshires now paused to speak to another acquaintance, so he circled the pillar in search of a balcony where he could hide out. Then he collided with another guest and spilled negus on the front of his waistcoat.

  He stared down at the prominent red spots. “Damn! Why don’t you watch where you’re going?”

  “Why don’t you? I was just standing here minding my own business.”

  His head snapped up to find a fetching female with fire in her eyes staring him down. Like many of the young ladies, she wore white silk, but the curious embroidery of gold thread along her bodice drew his gaze to her full breasts. And he did like a buxom woman.

  Instantly he changed his manner. “Forgive me. I didn’t mean to offend. I simply wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.”

  “Clearly, Your Grace. You were too busy trying to escape poor Lady Georgiana, who is the nicest person one could ever meet.”

  He grimaced. “I take it you overheard my conversation with my brother.” That explained why his effusive apology hadn’t softened her. And he refused to apologize for not wishing to meet Lady Georgiana. Why should he? This chit shouldn’t have been eavesdropping on a private conversation.

  Drawing out his handkerchief, he began to dab at the spots on his waistcoat.

  She shook her head, sending the fringe of blond curls around her face bouncing. “You’ll make it worse trying to get it out like that. If you come with me, I can clean it.”

  “Really? How in God’s name do you mean to do that?”

  “With champagne and bicarbonate of soda,” she said, as if that made all the sense in the world.

  It piqued his curiosity. “What is bicarbonate of soda, and where the devil do you intend to get some?”

  “I carry it in my reticule, of course.”

  Of course? “Because that’s what all young ladies carry in their reticules, I suppose.”

  “Do they? I thought I was the only one.” Before he could even respond, she added, “But if we don’t act quickly, those spots will stain your waistcoat for good.”

  He could afford to replace his waistcoat ten times over, but he hadn’t even had a chance to dance, so her offer to wipe away the spots had merit. Besides, he wanted to see what magic she meant to conjure up with her odd ingredients—and if she really did have bicarbonate of soda in her reticule. “Then by all means, lead the way.”

  With a nod, she took his glass of negus and replaced it with a glass of champagne sitting abandoned on a nearby tray. Then she guided him out onto a balcony. “The hall to the Devonshire library isn’t too far. We can do it there.”

  Do what there? Thorn nearly asked. Did the pretty wench really intend to whisk away his spots? Or did she have some other, more lascivious purpose in mind?

  Now that would be a result he’d embrace. The woman’s bodice was intriguingly low cut. He’d assumed from her gown’s color that she was a debutante, but he might have been lucky enough to have stumbled over some fast-living married woman.

  One would think that if the young lady was that, she’d be curtsying and flirting like all the other females he’d encountered in society. Then again, London society was wilder than Berlin’s. He was still trying to figure out the rules.

  As the stepson of the British ambassador to Prussia, Thorn had been expected to behave appropriately, which had generally meant not having any fun. But in the six months since he’d left home for England, he’d begun to loosen his strictures, encouraged by other young bucks he’d met. Still, this was the first time a young lady had tempted him to misbehave.

  They’re the hunters, who want to hang your ducal coronet on their trophy wall. So keep an eye out.

  He would. But he’d enjoy this intriguing encounter, too. There had been few enough of them since his return.

  They traversed the balcony, then passed through a pair of French doors into a hallway not frequented by the rest of the guests. That roused his curiosity even further.

  “Since you mean to save my hapless waistcoat, perhaps we should
introduce ourselves,” he said. “I am—”

  “I know who you are, sir,” she said curtly. “Everyone does. My good friend Lady Georgiana pointed you out to me from the moment we entered the ballroom.”

  “Is that why you were eavesdropping on my conversation with my brother?”

  “Hardly.” She shot him a mutinous glance. “I was there first, you know, trying to hide from my stepmother.”

  “Why?”

  She blew out a frustrated breath. “She keeps trying to match me up with gentlemen I don’t care for. I do not need or want a husband, but she refuses to believe me.”

  He figured he’d better not say what he was thinking: that perhaps her stepmother was right. As sulky as his unnamed companion was, she also seemed an odd blend of innocent and seductive, the sort that could easily get into trouble with a gentleman. He didn’t yet know what to make of her.

  “I see,” he said, for lack of anything better to say. “But I still don’t know your name.”

  “Oh! Right.” She shot him a faint smile. “I tend to forget such niceties.”

  “I noticed.”

  Her smile vanished. “Well, you don’t have to rub it in.”

  He burst into laughter. “I swear, you are the most bewildering female I have ever met. Aside from my twin sister, that is.” He bent close to whisper, “I’ll give you her name if that helps you to offer me yours. Hers is Gwyn. And yours is . . .”