Anabelle Bryant: The Last Gamble

As one of the owners of London’s most infamous and scandalous gambling hall, The Underworld, Luke Reese looks like a man who has it all.

But underneath his swagger lies a pain which no amount of liquor, women or card games can ease. Because, nine months ago, Luke’s son was stolen by his half-brother, Lord Dursley.

Luke knows the agony of growing up without a family, and he will not allow his son to suffer the same fate. So when evidence leads him to Coventry and a mysterious governess named Georgina, Luke doesn’t hesitate in tracking her down.

But nothing is ever as simple as it seems in the London ton. And soon, Luke is facing his most dangerous gamble yet.

Dare he risk losing his heart to find his son?

The Last Gamble

Anabelle Bryant

ONE PLACE. MANY STORIES

Contents

Cover

Blurb As one of the owners of London’s most infamous and scandalous gambling hall, The Underworld, Luke Reese looks like a man who has it all. But underneath his swagger lies a pain which no amount of liquor, women or card games can ease. Because, nine months ago, Luke’s son was stolen by his half-brother, Lord Dursley. Luke knows the agony of growing up without a family, and he will not allow his son to suffer the same fate. So when evidence leads him to Coventry and a mysterious governess named Georgina, Luke doesn’t hesitate in tracking her down. But nothing is ever as simple as it seems in the London ton. And soon, Luke is facing his most dangerous gamble yet. Dare he risk losing his heart to find his son?

Title Page The Last Gamble Anabelle Bryant ONE PLACE. MANY STORIES

Author Bio ANABELLE BRYANT is happy to grab her suitcase if it ensures a new adventure. Anabelle finds endless inspiration in travel, especially imaginary jaunts into romantic Regency England, a far cry from her home in New Jersey. Instead, her characters live out her daydreams, because really, who wouldn’t want to dance with a handsome duke or kiss a wicked earl? A firm believer in romance, Anabelle knows sometimes life doesn’t provide a happily ever after, but her novels always do. Visit her website at AnabelleBryant.com

Acknowledgements [Acknowledgements] Having a novel published is a dream come true. Having my tenth novel published is a milestone achievement. I have only gratitude for this generous opportunity. My sincere thanks to Clio Cornish, editor, for her smart direction and belief in my work, to the entire team at HQ Digital and HarperCollins, as well as the copy editors, cover artists, reviewers and most of all, readers. I’ve always had an active imagination. Being able to take a daydream and offer it a life of its own, shared in the form of historical romance, is a precious gift. Thank you!

Dedication [Dedication] This book is dedicated to dreamers. We often are told to get our head out of the clouds. If only they realized how lovely the view.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Epilogue

Excerpt

Endpages

Copyright

ANABELLE BRYANTis happy to grab her suitcase if it ensures a new adventure. Anabelle finds endless inspiration in travel, especially imaginary jaunts into romantic Regency England, a far cry from her home in New Jersey. Instead, her characters live out her daydreams, because really, who wouldn’t want to dance with a handsome duke or kiss a wicked earl? A firm believer in romance, Anabelle knows sometimes life doesn’t provide a happily ever after, but her novels always do. Visit her website at AnabelleBryant.com

[Acknowledgements]

Having a novel published is a dream come true. Having my tenth novel published is a milestone achievement. I have only gratitude for this generous opportunity. My sincere thanks to Clio Cornish, editor, for her smart direction and belief in my work, to the entire team at HQ Digital and HarperCollins, as well as the copy editors, cover artists, reviewers and most of all, readers.

I’ve always had an active imagination. Being able to take a daydream and offer it a life of its own, shared in the form of historical romance, is a precious gift. Thank you!

[Dedication]

This book is dedicated to dreamers.

We often are told to get our head out of the clouds.

If only they realized how lovely the view.

Chapter One

A moonlit sky is a thief’s worst enemy. Lucius Reese, proud proprietor of one third of The Underworld, glanced upward in appreciation of the boon found in the night heavens, not a star visible in its velvet span. Owning an exclusive gambling hell provided endless benefits, one being the ability to become equal with the darkness. Dressed completely in black, he melted into the evening hours. His low-brimmed hat and high-collared coat made him nothing more than a shadow, a whisper of suspicion were anyone to notice an anomalous movement in the alley adjacent to Welbeck Street.

Reese was a man of many titles, none of them revered by the peerage: rakehell, philanderer, and bastard most of all. Which prompted a multitude of secrets and composed a complex nature that disallowed emotion, unwilling to maintain an intimate relationship with a woman for longer than a few days. And though he valued his friendship with Maxwell Sinclair and Cole Hewitt, his partners at the hell, Reese rarely confided anything of a personal nature.

Therefore no one knew he skimmed the brick wall at the rear of the three-storey town house owned by Viscount Dursley, intent on gaining entry and perpetuating a theft that would leave the stuffy prig in an apoplectic fit. The mental image urged a grin, but Reese nudged the desire aside. How unfortunate he would not be present during the moment of realization as Dursley’s worst fear actualized. Reese would enjoy few things more than thwarting his half-brother in the twisted game played at his expense.

In silence, he smoothed a gloved hand down the mullioned paned glass of the garden terrace doors and settled on the brass and strike plate. His fingertip located the keyhole and, with his left hand, he twisted the knob to confirm the lock held. Utilizing the expertise learned through his years on the street, he produced a short metal pick, inserted it into the lock, and gained entry two breaths later.

Stepping into the ground-floor drawing room, he allowed his stifled smile freedom. The withering embers of the evening’s fire simmered in the hearth and his first inhale brought with it the cloying scent of floral perfume as it lingered in the otherwise breathless interior. Aah, Dursley must have his mistress abovestairs. An intriguing development. His shrew of a wife preferred the countryside and the purposeful separation allowed Dursley inordinate liberties. Although Reese wouldn’t put it past the viscount to make free with a servant girl.

But no, tonight the servants were safe as the presence of expensive fragrance confirmed his first assumption true. Reese needed to enter the viscount’s bedchamber to retrieve the particular item of interest and having a female abed raised the stakes. A spike of challenge quickened his pulse.