From the Publisher

DARING THE DUKE (APB)

Anne Mallory

When we last saw Stephen Chalmers he was recovering from the attempt on his life by a ring of royal traitors. Since then he's successfully inherited a title, but he's yet to discover the identity of the mysterious rescuer responsible for saving his life. He's also yet to discover the secret identity of the criminal he's been hunting for years: an infamous thief who disappeared from the London scene years ago, only to return recently and act more brazenly than ever. And though he doesn't have the thief in his clutches yet, he's closer than ever.

Orphaned and responsible for her younger sister, Audrey Kendrick had no choice but to turn to a life of crime in order to survive. It wasn't long before the clever, beautiful young woman became England's most notorious thief. Her true identity had never been discovered, not even by Stephen Chalmers, the disarming young Duke who had followed her for years.

ISBN: 0060762233

ARP: $14.95 178x111mm 384pp

January 2006 Release

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Daring the Duke

HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Chapter One

London, 1824

A sliver of moonlight broke through the dense clouds, and the cold fingers of the night encompassed Stephen Chalmers, the new Duke of Marston, as he watched the figure in the window.

But heat spread through his body when the silhouette arched upward and grasped an object in a graceful steady motion.

With energy and anticipation thrumming in his veins, the passing minutes felt like an eternity. From his position in the shadows, the figure's act of reaching upward was a lover's hand skimming a thigh, grazing a side, gliding across a chest. And the motion of pulling an object off a shelf became a hand running down a neck, down a breast, skimming a hip.

He shifted uncomfortably, trying to ignore the way his body was responding. It wouldn't be much longer before the papers in the house across the street were secured; the thief's reputation had been well earned.

The silhouette lifted its shirt and tied what appeared to be a sheaf of papers around its waist. The body lines unintentionally revealed more than an added padding of paper.

The figure slid from view, and the light in the room was extinguished. Along leg stretched from the open window, and the intruder landed a smoothly executed jump.

Stephen admired the graceful landing and held his position. The figure scanned the empty street, lowered the window, then sprinted to the east. Stephen motioned eastward to the man at his side, who nodded and silently followed the retreating form.

It had been a stroke of genius and good luck to find the notorious thief Hermes' destination. With it came confirmation of the thief's identity.

A satisfied smile eased across Stephen's face. Patience wasn't his strong suit, but some tasks were definitely worth the wait. He had tracked the thief's movements for too many years to carelessly spoil the hunt.

Years of tracking Hermes had finally come to a close. Stephen had thought he was out of luck when the thief had abruptly retired and disappeared from London the previous year. But something had lured Hermes back to the game with renewed vigor. The thief was single-handedly responsible for six robberies in the last week alone. Seven, counting tonight's work.

Having stolen the papers, Hermes' next stop would be the modest brick house near Mayfair. The thief's temporary home.

Stephen stepped into the street and walked the few blocks to his carriage, whistling. He would visit the unpretentious brick house soon. An introduction to Hermes was well past due.

His blood heated. It was time to toss a kink into her plans.

Continues...

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Excerpted from Daring the Duke by Anne Mallory Copyright © 2005 by Anne Mallory. Excerpted by permission.
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