A Waltz into Wickedness

Lady Eleanore Wingate has survived five fruitless Seasons, too many pitying smiles, and more awkward waltzes than any lady deserves. At four-and-twenty, she is tired of being overlooked, advised, and gently corrected into the sort of woman London might finally choose.

When her mother insists she must do more to secure a husband, Eleanore turns to her oldest friend, Thomas Thornton, Lord Pavington, for help. Thomas has always seen the woman beneath her careful composure. Teaching her how to hold a room, accept admiration, and stop making herself easy to leave should be harmless. Practical. Respectable.

It is anything but.

With every lesson, Eleanore grows bolder, brighter, and impossible for other men to ignore. And Thomas soon discovers the painful truth: he did not teach her to be wanted so he could watch another man win her. But wanting Eleanore in secret is one thing. Claiming her in the open may cost them both the safety of the friendship they have always trusted.

When one moonlit kiss turns every lesson into a scandalous confession, Eleanore must decide whether admiration is enough—or whether she is brave enough to demand the love that truly sees her. And Thomas must risk propriety, pride, and every careful rule he has ever lived by to prove he will no longer love her from a distance.

Friends to Lovers • Lessons in Courtship • Wallflower Awakening • Heartfelt Slow Burn • Regency Romance