Book excerpt: Emily Cartwright isn’t looking for romance. She writes about it in her novels, and life is nothing like them. But she is in pursuit of a husband. Independent and unconventional, Emily writes adventure stories replete with rogues, heroes, damsels, and heroines. She never thought she’d get trapped in a plot like those she concocts for her readers. Fleeing a sinister distant cousin, Emily knows marriage is her only safeguard. What she needs is a man who will allow her to pursue her real passion—writing—without demanding passion in return. In fact, she needs a man like... Tyler Brandyce has forsworn women and doesn’t believe in romance. Only his sixteen-year-old half-sister Alice could have dragged him from his seclusion to the galas of her rst season in town. Tormented by scars far worse than the one that mars his face, Brandyce loathes the hypocrites who are only attracted by his station and wealth. If only he could nd a respectable woman to act as companion to Alice and stay out of his way while doing so... Neither Emily or Tyler expect romance. Their marriage is a simple, rational arrangement. At least in the beginning. But both of them have a lot to learn about love.