The Lady's Gamble: A Historical Regency Romance Book
Abby Ayles
Dear Reader,
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed every page and I would love to hear your thoughts whether it be a review online or you contact me via my website. I am eternally grateful for you and none of this would be possible without our shared love of romance.
I pray that someday I will get to meet each of you and thank you in person, but in the meantime, all I can do is tell you how amazing you are.
As I prepare my next love story for you, keep believing in your dreams and know that mine would not be possible without you.
With Love
Introduction
The Lady’s Gamble
Miss Regina Hartfield is the youngest of her sisters—and, if you asked most of society, the least. She’s not good with people and she’d much rather read or sew than go to a ball. But when her father, a gambling addict, gambles away their land and titles to a known rake, all that Regina knows of her world comes crashing down.
Determined to help her family, she enlists the help of the mysterious and possibly scandalous Lord Harrison, Duke of Whitefern. Lord Harrison is in love with Regina’s sister Bridget, and in exchange for promising him Bridget’s hand in marriage, Lord Harrison agrees to teach her to play.
At an upcoming masquerade ball where faces and identities are hidden, Regina can slip into the card game among the men and win back her family’s fortune, saving her father’s honor and her sisters from destitution… but only if she plays better than anyone else.
For the first time, the sister who was all but ignored is finding herself with the responsibility of her family’s future on her shoulders. And that’s if nobody finds out about what she’s doing, which would only lead to more scandal and Regina’s personal ruin.
And then there’s the small matter of Lord Harrison herself, the first man Regina’s ever found herself drawn to. But Lord Harrison is in love with Bridget, not Regina—isn’t he?
Chapter 1
Regina Hartfield concentrated on her stitches. Elizabeth was banging away at the pianoforte just one room over. It was threatening to disturb her calm.
She did feel rather bad. It wasn’t Elizabeth’s fault she couldn’t play well. And she wasn’t trying to disturb anybody. But every time it gave her such a headache.
“Elizabeth!” Natalie entered the room. Her hair was only half done up. “For the love of all that’s holy would you stop! You can hear it through the whole house!”
The pianoforte stopped. Regina breathed out a quiet sigh of relief.
“Honestly,” Natalie grumbled. Then she spied Regina. “Oh, darling, you must start getting ready!”
“I don’t think I shall be going tonight.”
“But you must!” Natalie looked crestfallen. Although part of that might have been her half-done hair. “Regina, everyone will be there.”
“Precisely.” Regina focused back on her stitching. The idea of being among such a large crowd of people for hours terrified her.
“Have you told Father?” Natalie asked.
Regina didn’t answer. She was a horrible liar. And she hadn’t told Father. She’d tactfully avoided the subject of tonight’s ball all week.
She had been hoping that, being ensconced in the side parlor, she could avoid Father. Then when it was time the flurry of her four elder sisters climbing into the carriage would disguise her lack of presence. By the time Father realized she wasn’t there they would hopefully be halfway to the ball. Far too late to turn back for shy mousy Regina.
It was too late for that now. Natalie would be sure to tell Father.
“I think that you should go,” Natalie maintained. “It’s always such fun.”
“For you it is,” Regina replied. It was widely maintained that Natalie was the prettiest of the Hartfield sisters.
Regina supposed that depended upon one’s taste. Natalie was the only sister with blue eyes. That helped her to stand out, certainly. Paired with a sweet, heart-shaped face and dark red hair, every man in the county wanted to marry her.
Personally, Regina preferred the cat-like green eyes of her other sisters. Not that Regina took after them. She had red hair like all of her sisters. Gotten from Mother, God rest her soul. But Regina had boring brown eyes and far too many freckles. She was tiny as well. Elizabeth liked to joke about Regina being the runt of the litter. What man wanted to dance with a girl when he had to crane his neck down to look at her?
It wasn’t her looks that truly made Regina reluctant to go to the ball. She just didn’t like people. And all that exercise. She wasn’t the adventurous type. A quiet evening stitching and reading suited her just fine.
Not that Father would see it that way.
“It would be fun for you as well if you would make an effort,” Natalie replied.
“I’m sure that stitching would be just as fun for you if you made an effort,” Regina pointed out.
Natalie sniffed. She’d always hated stitching. “I’m going to finish getting ready. You should as well. Elizabeth!”
Elizabeth appeared, looking peevish. Elizabeth was the second youngest and had taken to it like a martyr. Her red hair was orange and fiery to match her temper and her green eyes were always flashing.
“It’s hours yet, Natalie, I don’t have to get ready.”
“You should start now. You know your hair takes longer to tame.”
Elizabeth had also inherited their father’s tight curls. It did make her hair rather difficult to get under control.
“Not all of us need half a day to make ourselves fit enough to be seen by society,” Elizabeth replied.
Regina focused back on her stitches. She really didn’t want to be privy to another spat between Elizabeth and Natalie.
“You could learn from my example. Perhaps then someone would ask you to dance a second time.”
Regina shrank a little farther back into the chair. Luckily the spat was ended when Bridget entered the room.
Bridget was the oldest of the five Hartfield sisters. She was also Regina’s favorite. Although, it wouldn’t do to tell any of her other sisters that. Bridget was everything that Regina wished she could be. Bridget was confident and tall with pale creamy skin and a serene face. She had dark red hair and quick green eyes. Furthermore, she was wickedly funny, well read, intelligent, and could make anyone love her. Natalie was the prettiest Hartfield, everyone said, but Bridget was the wittiest and the most well-liked.
“Elizabeth, please go and get ready.” Bridget didn’t raise her voice. She didn’t need to. “I’ll join you in a moment. Natalie, could you remind Father that he needs to speak to the gardener?”
Natalie and Elizabeth looked like they knew exactly what Bridget was doing but they hurried off anyway. Everyone always did what Bridget asked.
Meanwhile Regina was pretty sure that if the house was on fire, nobody would listen to her if she told them to get out.