Going Rogue (31 page)

Ophelia had thought that was what she’d wanted, too. To be married with a home of her own, babies on the way. But she’d since learned that she simply wasn’t ready. What about her studies? Her botany? She wanted to live—to dance, to drink, to have fun.

She liked to think of herself as a butterfly. She’d spent the last twenty years of her life in a cocoon, and finally, she could feel the first signs of wings beginning to come through.

And being a Ribbon would only help her learn to fly.

“Miss Marshall?” Alex called from her desk at the front of the room. “Could you please come forward?”

Ophelia walked past all the stares to stand at the front of the room with the other nominees. She took her place at the end of the line, trying her best not to tremble in front of them all.

“As your Ribbon Regent . . .” Alex starting reciting a speech she’d written on a piece of foolscap. She’d been given the post of interim leader by Meredith until a new one could be elected.

Alex walked down the row of ladies, handing each one of them a scroll. “Written on these are the tasks you must complete prior to moving your ribbon . . .”

Ophelia bit her lip, anxious to read what was written on the document.

The rest of the ceremony moved along quite slowly. Or at least that’s how it seemed, but very well might have just been her nerves. As soon as it was over, she made quick work of the wax seal holding the scroll together.

Alex walked up behind her, looking very much like a member of parliament in her powdered wig and black robe. “Hurry it along—I want to see what yours says.”

“You mean they’re not all the same?”

“Ha!” Alex bleated. “What fun would that be? Of course they’re all different.”

Ophelia unrolled the document, her heart beating wildly inside her chest.

It was a list of tasks . . .

“Isn’t it great? You see, everyone receives a list of different tasks to complete. There’s one task for every current member of the group.”

Ophelia bit her lip as she read. Each task grew exponentially more embarrassing as the list progressed. Suddenly, she was starting to regret her decision to live dangerously.

“And people really do these things?”

“Not people, Ophelia.
Ribbons
.”

Ophelia took a staggering breath. “Heaven help me,” she whispered.

Because she was most certainly going to need it.

Also by Jessica Jefferson

COMPROMISING MISS TISDALE

Ambrosia Tisdale is the very picture of propriety and the epitome of what a respectable young lady should be. Haunted by a memory and compelled by her family, she pursues perfection to a fault.

The Earl of Bristol, Duncan Maddox, has returned to London after years of familial-imposed exile. As the second son, he has led a life filled with frivolity, leisure, and a healthy dose of debauchery. Now his older brother has died, leaving the family’s flailing legacy in Duncan’s unwilling arms.

At the behest of his uncle, Duncan is advised to do the one thing that could provide instant fortune and respectability—he must marry. But there is only one prospect who meets the unique requirements to solve all the Earl’s problems—the lovely Miss Ambrosia Tisdale. But securing the prudent daughter of a Viscount’s hand proves to be more challenging than this scandal-ridden second son of an Earl has bargained for.

With scandal, extortion, treachery, and even love itself threatening to keep him from his goal, will Duncan succeed or find himself compromised by Miss Tisdale?

Now available on Amazon:
http://tinyurl.com/lucwmjq

TAMING MISS TISDALE

The sexy second installment in The Regency Blooms, a Regency-era historical romance series

Miss Tamsin Tisdale believes herself to be completely unsuitable for London life. After a myriad of social mishaps, and the potential ruination of her family name, she’s shipped away to her cousin’s northern estate. Only after she accepts the type of existence Society dictates she must follow will she be welcomed home.

Marcus Winston, the Duke of Grayson, has a lackluster reputation. The last in a dying line, he’s endured a protected life--rank with privilege, but encumbered by isolation. After a brief encounter with rebellion, he learns the devastating consequences of his carelessness and willingly accepts living life from inside his gilded cage.

However, a chance meeting with the brazen Miss Tisdale gives Marc the opportunity to reinvent himself into the man he’s always dreamed of being. But when his deception comes to light, and ghosts from both their pasts threaten to unravel the intimacy they’ve come to cherish, will either of them set their fears aside long enough to embrace love? Or will Miss Tisdale’s stubbornness divide them?

Now available on Amazon:
http://tinyurl.com/ofczcqr

CHASING THE OTHER TISDALE

The third installment in The Regency Blooms series

She’s the other sister . . .

Overshadowed by the beauty of her older sister, Lillian is better known as the other Tisdale; unremarkable and unsure how she will ever deliver on the promise of her family’s name.

He’s a rake in need of reforming . . .

Will Colton leads a frivolous existence, embracing notoriety instead of managing his family’s fortune. Determined to forget his financial burden and his father’s growing resentment, he maintains a lifestyle dedicated to pleasure and self-indulgence.

When Will is invited to the Tisdale estate for an extended holiday, he never expects to become friends with the forgettable Lillian. But when a family secret comes to light, he must choose between leaving London and protecting the honor of one woman or staying and risking the reputation of another.

Upon his return, Will finds the girl he left behind has come out of the shadows and into her own. Lillian’s finally the center of attention, and not all of it good. With his own reputation in tatters, can a reformed rake lure her out of the hands of London’s bachelors and back into his own arms? Can he escape his past and reclaim her heart, or has he lost her forever?

Now available on Amazon:
http://tinyurl.com/nv58mc9