Accidentally his, p.1
Accidentally His, page 1
PRAISE FOR SABRINA JEFFRIES
“Anyone who loves romance must read Sabrina Jeffries!”
—Lisa Kleypas, New York Times bestselling author
“This heartwarming historical romance teems with witty banter and wanton desire. The immersive detail and enchanting cast of characters create a compelling romp that will leave readers ready for more.... VERDICT This book will appeal to readers seeking a playful and provocative Regency romance with an independent, intelligent heroine. Recommended for fans of Sophie Irwin, Eloisa James, and Virginia Heath.”
—Library Journal on What Happens in the Ballroom
“Jeffries again proves her mastery of historical romance with this scintillating series début, complete with bold, determined characters whose sparring only highlights their sexual tension. Historical romance fans will be riveted.”
—Publishers Weekly on A Duke for Diana
“Olivia’s scientific gifts will draw in and delight fans of bluestocking romances, such as Tessa Dare’s A Week to Be Wicked. . . .”—Library Journal on Who Wants to Marry a Duke
“The chemistry is as intense in the bedroom as it is in the science lab in Jeffries’s intoxicating third Duke Dynasty Regency romance . . . Jeffries’s perfect blend of romance, mystery, and suspense is sure to have series readers anxious for more.”
—Publishers Weekly on Who Wants to Marry a Duke
“The thing that makes all of Jeffries’s heroines stand out is that none of them are quiet and boring. Pretty? Often. But the women she writes are spirited, intelligent, devilish, brave, independent, and politically and culturally savvy. They are true heroines; she-ros, if you will. And Olivia Norley is definitely a she-ro.”
—Bookpage on Who Wants to Marry a Duke
“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
KENSINGTON BOOKS BY SABRINA JEFFRIES
Duke Dynasty series
Project Duchess
The Bachelor
Who Wants to Marry a Duke
Undercover Duke
Designing Debutantes series
A Duke for Diana
What Happens in the Ballroom
Accidentally His
Accidentally His
A Designing Debutantes Novel
SABRINA JEFFRIES
ZEBRA BOOKS
Kensington Publishing Corp.
www.Kensingtonbooks.com
Table of Contents
PRAISE FOR SABRINA JEFFRIES
Also by
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Epilogue
Teaser chapter
ZEBRA BOOKS are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2024 by Sabrina Jeffries, LLC
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales 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: 978-1-4201-5381-1
ISBN-13: 978–1-4201–5382–8 (eBook)
For Wendell Williams and Julie Brennan,
and all of my autistic son’s many other caregivers
through the years. Thank you for your hard work,
dedication, and loving care. I know Nick appreciates it,
and his parents definitely appreciate it! Y’all are the best!
Chapter 1
London
August 1812
Colonel Raphael Wolfford nodded a greeting as Sir Lucius Fitzgerald settled into the carriage seat opposite him. While the carriage rumbled on, the spymaster surveyed Rafe with a keen eye.
Rafe arched an eyebrow. “Perhaps I should have worn my uniform.”
“Why start now? On the Peninsula, you were always some Spanish peasant or Irish mercenary or whoever you needed to be to unearth French secrets. You’re the only soldier I’ve ever known to dress as a Jack in the Green to gain intelligence. So tonight, you’re better off playing who you actually are for once: heir presumptive to a viscount.”
Rafe gave a rueful chuckle. “I’ve always heard that ladies prefer a man in uniform.”
“Not these ladies. If they see a uniform, they’ll assume you’re the spare, not the heir, and that wouldn’t suit the purposes of your plan, now, would it?”
“Probably not.”
“Besides, we don’t want anyone knowing you’re still a commissioned officer. Or that you’ve been in England over a year and a half.” Sir Lucius removed his pocket watch to check the time. “So, are you absolutely sure about attending this event as your true self?”
“Yes.” Even if he still wasn’t sure who his true self might be. “I see no other way to continue this investigation.”
“You understand that your proposed scheme is uncertain at best and dangerous at worst.”
Rafe shrugged. “Uncle Constantine risked his life to uncover the truth, so the least I can do is risk mine.” Instinctively, he smoothed a hand over the secret pocket in his breeches that held the blade he carried everywhere. “Though I don’t see the danger in it, honestly. My uncle was using an alias when he was shot, so it’s not as if the damned spy for the French knows who Uncle Constantine is, and thus who I am to him.”
“We can’t be certain of that. Constantine can’t tell us if he was recognized as General Wolfford . . . or even if he was forced to reveal his identity in order to make headway in his investigation. Hence, my worry about the danger.”
A pistol shot to the head of Rafe’s uncle a year and a half ago had put an end to Constantine’s inquiries, leaving the old general a bedridden prisoner to demented ravings. That would not be Rafe, damn it.
“Yes, well, after the most recent information we received, I have to do something more,” Rafe said. “Going about incognito hasn’t worked. I need to infiltrate that nest of vipers to find and unmask the culprit.”
Sir Lucius eyed him askance. “Is that what you consider the Harper sisters and Elegant Occasions to be—a nest of vipers?”
“Not them,” Rafe said irritably. “Their involvement in treasonous activity is tangential at best, although I still haven’t ruled out Lady Foxstead’s new husband. But their father, his servants, and possibly even their mother and her new husband undoubtedly have a hand in it.”
“That’s what your uncle believed, at any rate.”
“And no one could ever say he lacked for good instincts in intelligence work. He taught me everything I know.”
Just not enough. Rafe gazed out the window at the passing oil lamps, which shed about as much light as his spying on the Harper family from afar had done. Rafe hadn’t before encountered a wilier enemy than Osgood Harper, the Earl of Holtbury. The bastard never took a step wrong, as evidenced by his successful divorce from his first wife and marriage to another Society woman. Both spoke to Holtbury’s devious ability to use rules, power, and money to his advantage.
It grated on Rafe. “But I still don’t know for certain who the spy is. Or where Uncle Constantine hid his notes and most recent reports about it. Or who attacked him when he got too close.”
“These things require patience. And you’ve already succeeded in eliminating people in the Harper family’s outer circle as suspects: several of their close friends, the Elegant Occasions butler, a handful of other servants. . . .”
“Yes, but time grows short. Wellington has already suffered setbacks because of this spy. And with Napoleon invading Russia, Wellington must strike hard in the Peninsula while he can.”
Sir Lucius tensed. “What did that new Edinburgh physician you consulted say about Constantine’s memory?”
“He confirmed what I’d begun to suspect. The old general will never recover his mind. And he may not live mu ch longer, either.” Uncle Constantine’s work had always consumed him, even after his retirement from the army, so before he died, Rafe wanted him to know his mission had been completed, even if Rafe had to say the words to a man only half-aware of their meaning.
The sudden ache in Rafe’s chest made him clench his teeth. As his uncle always said, Letting your heart rule your head / Is the surest way to end up dead. Uncle was fond of rhyming rules.
Rafe fought for calm. “That’s why I must get inside their inner circle.”
“Hence, my concern about the danger.”
“It will be worth it if I learn something of value. Taking increasingly greater risks with no result—like at that May Day affair—frustrates me.” Especially when his investigation into his late mother wasn’t progressing, either.
“You got closer to the earl than ever before at that event.”
“For all the good it did me.” Rafe huffed out a breath. “Masquerading as a Jack in the Green didn’t exactly make it easy to cozy up to the man. Besides which, I was nearly unmasked.” By the man’s daughter, Lady Verity Harper. The vixen was sometimes too inquisitive for her own good.
“Given your reputation, I find it highly unlikely they would have guessed who you were. Why, you even fooled Beaufort, and their chef knows you well.”
“Oh, I took care of the matter, never fear. But it was a near thing,” Rafe said. “You try slipping onto the grounds of a hunting lodge when the guests are all family and friends, and the only servants or performers are thoroughly inspected by the very people I wish to deceive. It’s nothing like entering a ball in the city where I can blend in and people don’t all know each other.”
Sir Lucius arched an eyebrow. “Are you saying the Chameleon is no longer capable of insinuating himself anywhere he chooses?”
The familiar nickname irked Rafe. Perhaps he’d deserved the moniker on the Peninsula. Or, more likely, that was what happened when bored soldiers amused themselves—their stories of his various exploits grew more legendary with every retelling. Especially since he’d managed to do his work without his true identity being known by anyone but a select few. Wellington. Sir Lucius. His uncle.
Rafe stiffened. “War requires different strategies. Abroad, I was gathering intelligence on the enemy and not on my own countrymen. Even you must admit that any further spying I do on that family will gain me naught until I can become a trusted friend to them.”
“By courting Lady Verity.”
“Why not? Someone needs to. The woman has been running amok for far too long.”
Sir Lucius smirked at him. “Do I detect a trace of irritability in your tone?”
“Not a bit.”
Liar. Of course Rafe was irritable. He had a mission, and Lady Verity Harper had been thwarting it. Every bloody time he’d veered close to uncovering some important bit of information, she’d shown up, forcing him to retreat before he could be caught or recognized. It was time he regained control of the situation.
“You think to turn her up sweet,” Sir Lucius said, “so she’ll tell you whatever you wish to know.”
He shrugged. “Every woman in Society wants a husband.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure about that. Although if you have to court a lady to unmask our quarry, it might as well be a pretty one.”
“Her looks have naught to do with it.” Granted, he was attracted to the woman. Who wouldn’t be? The green-eyed, gamine beauty with golden skin and hair of dark honey kept every fellow guessing . . . and wanting to know more.
Still, her substantial charms notwithstanding, she was his best way in. Particularly since the other two sisters were already married, and happily, from what he’d seen.
Sir Lucius cleared his throat. “Once you enter Society as yourself, it will become considerably more difficult to return to being incognito. You’ll lose any advantage you gained from subterfuge, and you’ll have to see this to the end, even if it means ruining your reputation as the future Lord Wolfford.”
“I don’t care.” Besides, he’d never really wanted that role. When he’d left for the army as an ensign, he’d merely been a general’s heir, since Uncle Constantine hadn’t yet been given the viscountcy he’d later gained in service to his country. Few of Rafe’s fellow soldiers had known him as anyone but an officer with military connections. “I’ll have to reveal myself once Uncle Constantine dies, anyway. At least I can get some use out of the revelation.”
A sigh escaped Sir Lucius. “I’ll admit your timing is impeccable. That upcoming Elegant Occasions event at the seaside gives you the perfect opportunity to examine the family up close.”
“I was told even Holtbury’s former wife will be there.”
“Lady Rumridge.”
“Yes,” Rafe said. “Talking to her will be my first priority, given her new husband’s army rank. She could even be the one passing on information. I couldn’t ask for a better situation in which to question her than a two-week-long house party spent with her and the other subjects of my investigation.”
“Assuming you succeed at getting invited.”
Rafe crossed his arms over his chest. “Elegant Occasions wants to introduce some female clients to marriageable gentlemen, and I am eminently marriageable. I’ll do what I must to wrangle that invitation. Better still, Exmouth is within a day’s journey of Lord Holtbury’s estate, so if the courtship progresses well, I can travel there as a friend of the family, possibly even as Lady Verity’s fiancé.”
Sir Lucius’s face darkened. “You don’t actually intend to make an offer to Lady Verity, knowing you don’t mean to honor it. That would be a level of deception even your uncle would disapprove of.”
“True.” Although if it came to that . . . No, he knew better than to admit to his superior that he would go so far. Sir Lucius was a gentleman at heart, after all.
But Rafe was a soldier who couldn’t bear the thought of his compatriots dying because some aristocrat had decided to sell information about troop movements to England’s enemies. “I should hope I know how to flirt with a woman without ending up leg-shackled.”
“Do you, now?” Sir Lucius snorted. “If I have any doubts about your plan, it centers around your ability to court a woman of rank. You’ve rarely encountered them in your profession, and you’ve never had a mother or sisters to learn from, so where is all this vast knowledge of flirtation coming from?”
Rafe drew himself up stiffly. “I’ve been around women enough to realize they’re no different from men. Show some interest in them and their affairs, and they will tell you whatever you need to know.”
His superior laughed outright. “That statement makes my point. Women can be vastly different from men. Most men underestimate them. This isn’t some poorly educated servant girl in rural Devonshire or even a wide-eyed eighteen-year-old in the throes of her first Season. This is an earl’s daughter with experience running a business. Wooing a clever, sophisticated woman like Lady Verity might take skills you’ve never needed to develop.”
“Perhaps. But she hasn’t had a suitor since Lord Minton scandalously rejected her years ago. She’ll be happy to be courted at all.”
“Or his behavior has made her suspicious of men. You may find her more immune to male attention than you assume.”
Rafe scoffed at that. How hard could it be to charm a woman whose only experience of the world was in the rarefied atmosphere of Society? “Even so, her family will be interested in me for her. Surely, they will welcome any respectable suitor and attempt to influence her choice. That alone might gain me an invitation to their house party.” He narrowed his gaze on Sir Lucius. “Unless you’re concerned they might recognize me from my previous forays.”
