Emma V. Leech

He rebuilt his life. She’s about to blow it up — beautifully.
A warm, witty, and deeply romantic Victorian tale from Best Selling Novellist Emma V Leech about a reformed rake, a walking catastrophe of a debutante, and the unexpected beauty that blooms when two broken paths collide.
Lord Conor Baxter, heir to the Earl of Harleston, once lived as though nothing could touch him. Wealthy, adored, and recklessly carefree, he galloped through life without a thought for tomorrow.

Until tomorrow nearly didn’t come.

A brutal riding accident leaves him trapped in the dark for hours with a shattered leg and far too much time to think. Months of painful recovery force Conor to confront the truth: life is fragile, and the people who love him deserve better than the careless boy he used to be.

The new Lord Harleston is quiet. Careful. Orderly.

And then Lucy Carleton arrives to ruin everything.

Miss Lucy Carleton has never been anyone’s priority. After her mother’s death, her ambitious father handed her off to an aunt and forgot she existed — until he needed a daughter to marry a title. Now Lucy is being thrust into society with all the grace of a runaway carriage.

She is spirited.
She is nervous.
She is an accident waiting to happen.

And Conor is there to witness every catastrophe.
From toppled trays to ruined gowns to one particularly memorable incident involving a punch bowl, Lucy’s debut is a disaster. Worse still, Conor keeps getting caught in the crossfire — and the ton is delighted to laugh at them both.

Conor wants nothing more than to avoid her.
Fate, unfortunately, has other plans.

When a compromising mishap forces them into an unwanted engagement, Conor is determined to escape his “Miss Apocalypse” as soon as honour allows. Lucy, mortified and furious, wants nothing to do with the stiff, silent man who clearly despises her.

But the more time they spend together, the more Conor sees the truth: beneath Lucy’s chaos lies courage, kindness, and a heart big enough to shake his carefully rebuilt world. And when the moment comes to let her go, he realises he doesn’t want to.

To keep her, he’ll have to stop being careful.
He’ll have to be bold.
He’ll have to be the man she deserves.

Because sometimes the best thing that ever happens to you… is a beautiful disaster.