A Promising Kiss

A lighthearted duke with a hidden agenda. A young woman on the verge of making her come-out. A group of women known as damaged doves who might stand between the pair’s future happiness . . .

Lady Verina Fulton is looking forward to making her come-out into Polite Society. Her extended family is close-knit, and she values the bonds of family above all else. She is eager to find a husband who will share her same values. Before the Season begins, she accepts an invitation to visit her cousin, the new Lady Merriman. It is through Lord Merriman that Verina meets the Duke of Reddington.

Matthew Keaton became the Duke of Reddington at the tender age of twelve. His first act as a duke is to remove his mother from the madhouse where she had been wrongfully confined by her husband. Matthew is fiercely independent and uses his ducal wealth and power to rescue other women who have been unjustly placed in asylums.

During Verina’s stay at Merrifield, she and Matthew grow close. They share a promising kiss, and both go into the Season wondering if their kiss will lead to a more permanent relationship. Verina is torn between her desire for a traditional marriage and her growing admiration for the duke’s unconventional heroism, even as Matthew struggles to balance saving damaged doves with the rising attraction he feels for Lady Verina.

Will Verina and Matthew reconcile their differences and build a future together, or will their contrasting paths lead them to separate destinies?