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[email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights. Prologue Fentonwyck, Derbyshire, July 1816 “I’ve waited my whole life to kiss you.” Good heavens! Lady Lydia Rothermere could hardly credit what Simon Metcalf said, or the urgency in his manner while he said it. When he grabbed her hand, the heat of his touch sizzled right to her toes, left her feeling jumpy and needy. As he lured her a step closer to the hayshed, her voice emerged high and breathy with excitement. “You’re utterly mad.” “Not mad, merely desperate. You’ve avoided me all summer.” He gave her the dazzling smile that always made her yearning heart tumble against her ribs.
