The Husband Campaign. Regina Scott
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A Marriage of Necessity
The moment John, Lord Hascot, encounters a young woman sheltering in his abandoned stable, his future is sealed. To prevent scandal—and protect Lady Amelia Jacoby from her parents’ ire—he must propose. John’s ability to trust vanished when his former love married his twin brother. Yet he offers Amelia everything she could want—except affection.
Amelia sees John’s true nature shine through when he cares for his horses. But the brooding aristocrat seems determined to keep her at arm’s length. Little by little Amelia will turn Hollyoak Farm into a home, but can she turn a marriage of convenience into a joyful union?
The Master Matchmakers: Wedding bells will ring when downstairs servants play Cupid for upstairs aristocracy
“I married you, Amelia.
I will honor our vows.”
How could she help him understand? Amelia stood and approached him. “And if you cannot? ‘Forsaking all others,’ the rector said. Your wife is to have all your love and devotion.”
“And a husband should have all his wife’s,” John replied. “Do you tell me you’ve held nothing back?”
She stiffened. “No, nothing! I’ve never loved another.”
“And do you claim to love me?”
Amelia swallowed, her gaze falling to the black-and-green carpet even as she halted a few feet from him. “Perhaps not yet.” Her voice sounded so small. “But I’m trying.”
He moved to close the distance between them and touched her cheek, drawing her attention back to his face. Standing so close, she could see that gold flecks danced in the dark eyes, as if some part of him still clung to light, to hope.
“I know you are trying, Amelia,” he murmured. “You’ve turned this place into a home. You may well have saved Firenza’s life. I admire your efforts.”
A tear slid down her cheek. “Admiration is not love.”
REGINA SCOTT
started writing novels in the third grade. Thankfully for literature as we know it, she didn’t actually sell her first novel until she learned a bit more about writing. Since her first book was published in 1998, her stories have traveled the globe, with translations in many languages, including Dutch, German, Italian and Portuguese.
She and her husband of over twenty-five years reside in southeast Washington State with their overactive Irish terrier. Regina Scott is a decent fencer, owns a historical costume collection that takes up over a third of her large closet, and she is an active member of the Church of the Nazarene. You can find her online blogging at www.nineteenteen.blogspot.com. Learn more about her at www.reginascott.com, or connect with her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/authorreginascott.
The Husband Campaign
Regina Scott
A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
—John 13:34
To my dear Kris, who knows what it’s like to rearrange a life for those you love, and to the Lord, who is so much better at arranging things than I’ll ever be.
Contents
Chapter One
Hollyoak Farm, Peak District, Derbyshire, England
July 1815
Why was the most beautiful woman of his acquaintance sleeping in his stable?
John, Lord Hascot, pushed a lock of rain-slicked dark hair out of his eyes and raised his lantern to peer more closely through the shadows. He hadn’t visited the crumbling, thatched-roof outbuilding near the River Bell since he’d first purchased the Derbyshire property five years ago. He and his horse Magnum wouldn’t be out this direction now if his horse Contessa hadn’t gone missing. Only a chance late-afternoon thunderstorm had driven him to seek shelter.
He hadn’t expected to find the place inhabited, and by Lady Amelia Jacoby, daughter of the Marquess of Wesworth, no less. Even if he hadn’t recognized the plum-colored riding habit of fine wool, he would have known those elegant features, that pale blond hair. In the light from the lantern, he could see golden lashes fanning her pearly cheeks.
He’d never mastered the rules of London Society, but he was fairly certain they didn’t cover how to properly react to a lady found sleeping in the straw. Some might expect him to take Magnum out in the rain from the opposite stall where he’d made his horse comfortable and leave her to her peace. He rejected the idea. For one, he refused to mistreat Magnum. For