Violet_167

Isabella Beaumont figured she was making a smart, if desperate, trade: her freedom in exchange for marrying the dreaded Duke Alaric Thorne. 
Sure, the guy had a reputation darker than a moonless night, whispered about in every corner of the kingdom, but it was just a contract, right? A way to escape a brutal past that had literally left its mark on her face. 
She wasn’t expecting warmth, and definitely not passion. But then Alaric, this formidable, feared man, starts acting… protective. His unexpected kindness will make her want to throw away her protective mask and actually fall for the man who was supposed to be just her ticket to freedom. 
Just as Isabella starts believing she might actually deserve happiness, everything begins falling apart around them.
With the villains on the loose, old wounds being ripped open, and everyone’s true colors showing, is this sudden, fierce love strong enough to survive the storm? Or will the darkness from their pasts and the deadly games shatter everything they’re starting to build?

The Masked Duchess

I stared at Alaric in disbelief, my mind struggling to process his words.


"Lord Edmund Blackwood? The King's cousin?" I shook my head, the pieces not quite fitting together. "But he's nearly sixty years old!"


Alaric frowned, studying the letters once more. His eyes narrowed as he traced the elegant script with his finger.


"No," he said slowly, "I was mistaken. This isn't Blackwood's handwriting after all." He looked up, his expression grim. "It's Lord Gideon Finchley's."


The name struck me like a physical blow. Lord Gideon—the elderly art collector known throughout society for his vast wealth and eccentric manner. A silver-haired gentleman who'd always been polite, if a bit odd, at social gatherings.


Chapter 87 - The Stalker Unmasked