The Theory of Dukes

Caught wandering London unchaperoned on the search for new perfume scents, Miss Prudence Courtright is forced into a lie. Now James “Duke” Barnes believes her a worldly widow and not an innocent—albeit curious—debutante. The risk of ruination will be worth it if she can earn enough on her ventures to avoid being sold off to a staid, stuffy Englishman.

Duke Barnes has grown bored of London. Society seems both enamored of his money and repulsed at his American lineage. He is ready to abandon England for the excitement of the Continent, but bumping into the interesting, attractive widow changes his attitude. Perhaps he will delay his travel plans for a different sort of (mutually satisfying) excitement.

Their light-hearted flirtation is cut short by a masked man and a dead body. Is it a random act of violence or is a plot afoot? Prudence and Duke band together to discover the truth even as her lies fester.