A Talent for Trouble

I confess, dear reader, that being the daughter of England's most notorious card sharks presents rather unique challenges to one's social calendar. My parents, fresh from their exile and carrying scandal like a fashionable accessory, have presented me with two options: either I employ my unfortunate talent with cards to restore their fortunes, or I wed a brute whose only redeeming quality is his well-tailored coat.

But fortune, that fickle mistress, has dealt me an unexpected hand in the form of Lord Beaufort—Leo—the most vexingly handsome proprietor of London's finest gambling establishment. He requires my expertise to uncover a devious scheme threatening his family's future, and I find myself quite unable to refuse those earnest green eyes. (Though I shall never admit as much aloud, for a lady must maintain some mystery.)

As we work together to expose the fraudsters, I discover that teaching him every trick in my considerable arsenal is far more diverting than it ought to be. But with my parents' schemes, society's disapproval, and both our reputations hanging by a thread, falling in love may prove the riskiest wager of all.

Though perhaps, just perhaps, some games are worth losing one's heart to win...