Scoundrel Ever After (Secrets and Scandals) (41 page)

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Authors: Darcy Burke

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BOOK: Scoundrel Ever After (Secrets and Scandals)

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“Yes, I’m glad they’re here.” The relationship he and Jason had forged over the past several months meant almost as much to Ethan as his marriage to Audrey.

The baby kicked at Ethan’s palm, startling him. He didn’t know if he’d ever become accustomed to that feeling—the jolt of fierce love and possession that overcame him every time he thought of the child he and Audrey had created.

“Our son is glad too,” she said, turning in his arms.

The moonlight filtering through the gap in the curtains illuminated her beloved face, framed by the dark, haphazard curls he loved so well.

“I am not convinced he isn’t a she, but I won’t argue with you. I’ll be happy with whoever it is. I only pray she takes more after you than me.”

Audrey frowned. “Why? You have many wonderful traits. And I’d be quite happy if she had your quicksilver eyes,” she touched his temple, “or your black-as-midnight hair.” She slid her fingers into his hair and pulled his head down to kiss him.

“Fine, I’ll yield my appearance is my best quality.”

“Ha! That’s not true. You’re charming and hardworking and dependable.” She gazed up at him earnestly. “You have to stop thinking of yourself the way you were. You’re not a criminal anymore.”

No, he wasn’t. He’d once thought it impossible to leave that life behind, but now it seemed a distant memory. “Fine, I will also yield my apparent reformation.” He rotated so that he was leaning over her and he untied the top of her gown. “Do you remember how I used to watch you while you undressed when we were running from Bow Street?”

“Yes.” She’d become a bit breathless.

He pulled the neckline of her gown to reveal the swell of her breast. He kissed her soft flesh, loving the taste and feel of her. “That wasn’t very gentlemanly of me, and I’m afraid I still don’t regret it. Those are the qualities I should hope our child will not inherit.”

She tugged at his head. “But those are some of the qualities I like best about you.”

He looked up at her and arched his brow. “Indeed? You like that I’m an unreformed scoundrel?”

Her eyes narrowed as her lips spread into a seductive smile. “Oh yes. I love that scoundrel and you must promise to stay that way.”

He grinned at her as his heart swelled so full of love and joy that he felt it might burst from his chest. “Then I vow to be a scoundrel.
Your
scoundrel. Ever after.”

The end

Thank You!

Thank you so much for reading
Scoundrel Ever After
. I hope you enjoyed it!

Would you like to know when my next book is available? You can sign up for my new release
email list
, follow me on twitter at
@darcyburke
, or like my Facebook page at
http://facebook.com/DarcyBurkeFans
.

Reviews help others find a book that’s right for them. I appreciate all reviews, whether positive or negative. I hope you’ll consider leaving a review at your favorite online vendor or networking site.

This book is lendable through Amazon’s lending program. Share it with a friend!

Scoundrel Ever After
is the sixth and final book in the Secrets and Scandals Series. The first five books, in order, are:
Her Wicked Ways
,
His Wicked Heart
,
To Seduce a Scoundrel
,
To Love a Thief
(a novella), and
Never Love a Scoundrel.

I’m excited to launch my next historical series,
Regency Treasure Hunters
, in summer 2014. Check my website and Facebook page for information and updates, and of course sign up for my new release mailing list to know exactly when my next book is available.

I appreciate my readers so much. Thank you, thank you,
thank you
.

Books by Darcy Burke

Historical Romance

Secrets and Scandals

Her Wicked Ways

His Wicked Heart

To Seduce a Scoundrel

To Love a Thief
(a novella)

Never Love a Scoundrel

Scoundrel Ever After

Regency Treasure Hunters

Prequel novella (summer 2014)

Romancing the Earl (hopefully late 2014!)

Contemporary Romance

Ribbon Ridge

Where the Heart Is
(a prequel Christmas novella)

Only in My Dreams (spring 2014)

Yours to Hold (2014)

Other Intrepid Reads Authors

Books by Emma Locke

The Naughty Girls Series

The Courtesans

The Trouble with Being Wicked

The Problem with Seduction

The Art of Ruining a Rake (2014)

The Hoydens

The Danger in Daring a Lady (2015)

The Importance of Being a Scoundrel (2015)

The Hazards of Loving a Rogue (2015)

The Innocents

The Cheer in Charming an Earl (a Christmas novella)

To receive updates on future book releases, sign up for Emma’s mailing list at
http://www.emmalocke.com
.

Books by Erica Ridley

Historical Romance

Too Wicked To Kiss

Too Sinful To Deny

Born To Bite

Dark Surrender (Spring 2014)

Contemporary Romantic Comedy

Charmed

Midwinter Magic

Contemporary Romantic Fantasy

Let It Snow

To learn more about Erica, her books, or to sign up for her mailing list for contests, freebies, and new releases, visit
http://www.ericaridley.com
.

Acknowledgments

I want to thank my readers for their support and enjoyment of this series. That so many of you were eager to read Jagger’s book inspired and motivated me in the best ways possible. Finishing the series was bittersweet, but there are lots of great things ahead!

Thank you to the #plotbunnies: Elisabeth Naughton, Rachel Grant, and Joan Swan for their endless help with the Book That Would Not End. Finding just the right way to finish Ethan and Audrey’s story (and the series) took many, many tries and discussions. I couldn’t have done it without you.

A massive thank-you to my writing rock and critique partner extraordinaire, Erica Ridley. She brings the hilarity and the honesty, and I would
not
want to do this without her.

Thank you to all the wonderful people who help me produce a book: the fabulous Martha Trachtenberg, the uber-talented Trisha Schmitt, and the amazing Vickie Taylor. I also want to extend a very special thank-you to Jenn LeBlanc and Kati Rodriguez for one of the best weekends ever—who doesn’t want to spend their birthday at a romance novel cover shoot?

Big hugs and kisses to my family who put up with my insane schedule and love me anyway. You make every day a blessing. Thank you.

Scoundrel Ever After

ISBN: 1939713188

ISBN-13: 978-1-939713-18-6

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

Book design © Darcy Burke.

Cover design © Patricia Schmitt (Pickyme).

Copyediting: Martha Trachtenberg.

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.

About the Author

Darcy Burke wrote her first book at age 11, a happily ever after about a swan addicted to magic and the female swan who loved him, with exceedingly poor illustrations. An RWA Golden Heart® Finalist, Darcy loves all things British (except tomatoes for breakfast, or any other time of day, actually) and happy ever afters. Darcy writes hot, action-packed historical and sexy, emotional contemporary romance.

A native Oregonian, Darcy lives on the edge of wine country with her devoted husband, their two great kids, and three cats. In her “spare” time Darcy is a serial volunteer enrolled in a 12-step program where one learns to say “no,” but she keeps having to start over. She’s also a fair-weather runner, and her happy places are Disneyland and Labor Day weekend at the Gorge. Visit Darcy online at
http://www.darcyburke.com
where you can sign up to receive her
newsletter
(new releases only), follow her on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/darcyburke
, or like her Facebook page,
http://www.facebook.com/darcyburkefans
.

Table of Contents

Scoundrel Ever After