Author: Tina Gabrielle
Genre/Age: Historical Romance
Series: The Infamous Somertons Series (Book Two)
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
Format: ebook via NetGalley/Tasty Tours
Rating: ✺✺✺✺.5
Links: Goodreads
Synopsis: 1816 England
Brandon St. Clair, the Earl of Vale, has never been one to follow the rules. Even though he must marry a wealthy heiress so that he can be rid of the pile of debt he inherited with his title, he can’t stop thinking of another. Amelia Somerton is the daughter of a forger and is not a suitable wife. But that doesn’t stop Brandon from making Amelia a different offer, the kind that breaks every rule of etiquette…
Sin runs in Amelia’s family. And even though she now rubs elbows with the aristocracy, she knows the truth—she has the ability to forge priceless works of art. She’ll never be seen as an acceptable wife, not that she wants to marry, anyway. So when the earl scandalously offers her the one thing she’s always dreamed of, she can’t help but take it. But what begins as a simple arrangement, soon escalates into much more, and as the heat between them sizzles, each encounter becomes a lesson in seduction…
“You must paint my portrait. In exchange, the art lessons are yours when you return to London,” Lord Vale said.
Amelia’s breath caught in her lungs. She struggled to comprehend the enormity of what he offered. She understood why he’d want her to paint a copy of the Cuyp landscape. Her unique ability to forge paintings was rare. But his second request was baffling. “Why me? I know why you sought me out to replicate the Cuyp painting, but why not hire Stirling from the Royal Academy for your portrait?”
Vale’s eyes darkened to a deep moss. “Stirling no longer paints portraits, but I wouldn’t commission him even if he did. The true reason I want you to paint me is because I don’t want to look like them,” he said, flicking his thumb at the portraits on the gallery walls. “I don’t want to look earlish.”
A single thought crossed her mind: Vale looked nothing like them. The comparison was as foolish as the tingle of excitement she experienced every time he looked at her, and she suppressed the urge to press her hand to her pounding heart. There was so much male beauty that she longed to capture on canvas.
The risks were high. She could get caught alone with him at night while she worked. She could ruin her reputation and her chances at a future marital match. Eliza would be devastated.
She would spend hours alone with Vale, watching him, studying him for as long and as freely as she wanted as she painted. It was sinful, wicked, and entirely improper.
When had that ever stopped her in the past?
She looked into his eyes and saw the flash of victory before she uttered the words. “I’ll do it.”
***
A thrill of primitive satisfaction coursed through Brandon.
She’d agreed.
He imagined standing still as Amelia worked. Her eyes intently studying him feature by feature as she painted.
Christ. It was enough to make him grow hard in his breeches and his skin sizzle.
She looked lovely in an azure gown that emphasized the color of her eyes—a deep blue. Her skin was as flawless as porcelain and her glossy hair a unique blend of browns and reds. His fingers itched to remove the pins in her hair and discover if the locks reached past her shoulder blades.
As if she read his thoughts, a spark of annoyance flared from beneath her thick lashes. “It will be a strictly business arrangement.”
“Yes, of course.”
“You will act the perfect gentleman.”
It would take every ounce of willpower he possessed, but he wouldn’t pounce on her. “I will.”
He may fantasize about her in his bed, but he would not act upon his desires. He wasn’t a complete scoundrel. He did not want to ruin her reputation, and he could never offer her marriage. He was an earl with a responsibility to his title, his family, and all those dependent upon him, and he needed to marry a wealthy woman. And as his best friend’s sister-in-law, Amelia was not mistress material.
But he could take pleasure in watching her as she worked. There was passion beneath her surface. He was sure of it. She freely expressed it in her artwork—in the swirling texture and strokes of her brush. If Amelia’s layers of respectability were peeled away to reveal her true essence, he had no doubt that she was a fiery, passionate woman. What if after spending hours alone with him in the intimacy of his study as she worked, she would come to want him? 
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**Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for honest review.**
Sometimes business and pleasure become one and the same...
Brandon's father left him with a large debt to overcome. Desperate to keep the estate's destitute finances from his family, Brandon concocts a plan to hire a talented daughter of an art forger to recreate one of his paintings so that he may sell the original and settle some of his debt. What he doesn't expect is for the woman he hires to be a work of art, herself.
Amelia knows she will never marry a titled man. Her family's name is riddled with scandal as her father's sins have become her own to bear. But Amelia did inherit one good thing from her father: her talent for painting. Self-taught, she desires nothing more than to paint her own work and sign her very own name to the art.
He also asks her to paint his own portrait but Amelia refuses as it would not be proper. When Brandon sweetens his offer with private lessons from one of her most admired living artists, she can't bring herself to refuse. But soon, Amelia discovers that she wants to do more to Brandon's body than just paint it. The two are swept up into a love affair that definitely didn't disappoint!
This was a steady story of passionate romance with a mystery on the side as our couple strives to understand why Brandon's textile mill is being strangely under-productive. There is also a healthy dose of jealousy and a dash of conspiracy thrown into the mix. I was never bored while reading this book.
In closing...
A great historical romance! I am definitely interested in checking out this author's other work. 4.5 suns!
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