There is nothing Matthias Deverell, illegitimate son of a marquis, wants more than to remove the murmurs of treason that haunt his father’s name. He is determined to do just that, even if it means completing the nearly impossible task of reassembling the globe his father used as a safe. With pieces spread all over London, it will take all of Matthias’ considerable skill at intimidation to retrieve them. Nicholas Rexford, young Viscount Leighton, wants only to be able to provide a comfortable life for himself and his three sisters. After being left in near-poverty thanks to their father’s spending and gambling, Nick is desperate to find a business venture he can invest in to turn their fortunes around. Sadly, he has no head for business, preferring to spend his time engrossed in horrid novels. When Matthias finds Nick in possession of a piece of the globe, he believes the handsome young man to be in on the scheme, and decides to keep a closer eye on him. But when Nick meets Matthias, he is enthralled by the “dark and dangerous bastard” who could have stepped out of one of his novels. Despite his suspicions, Matthias is drawn to Nick, but will his suspicions destroy what is developing between them and cost Matthias a chance at happiness?

The Bastard's World

Esmond might not know all that, but he certainly knew who was or was not an heiress. So why his continued interest in Miss Rexford? He wasn’t besotted with her, as Beresford so obviously was. Esmond was far too pragmatic to lose his head over a penniless miss when he needed money, no matter how pretty she was. It definitely bore watching.


Despite his need to watch Esmond, to know what the man was about, Matthias found that his eyes kept straying to Leighton. It wasn’t merely that the young man was handsome; Matthias knew he could find himself any number of pretty young men in London. Yet something about Leighton constantly drew his eye.


Chapter 15