They're not exactly sneaking around, but they're also not following the rules of propriety, either.

The actual relationship development is understated and sweet, as Ned and Rosalind both communicate their wants and needs to each other. The investigation draws them closer together even as it becomes clear that the disappearance of one woman is only scratching the surface in a human trafficking plot. Rosalind approaches Ned to assist her in finding her lady's maid, who has disappeared. The heroine, Rosalind, is an earl's daughter who has struggled with a stutter and often finds herself on the outskirts of polite society. The hero, Ned, is a former child convict who was adopted by a duke.

To contact Grace, email her at a Duke is a understated love story that deals with incredibly angsty issues.

The query letter that resulted in 'the call' started out: 'I am the buffoon in the bar at the RWA retreat who could not keep her heroines straight, could not look you in the eye, and could not stop blushing-and if that doesn't narrow down the possibilities, your job is even harder than I thought.' (The dear lady bought the book anyway.) Grace eventually got up the courage to start pitching her manuscripts to agents and editors. ('Mom, why doesn't anybody tell you being a grown-up is hard?') This aim was realized when Beloved Offspring struck out into the Big World a few years ago. While reading yet still more romance novels, Grace opened her own law practice, acquired a master's degree in Conflict Transformation (she had a teenage daughter by then) and started thinking about writing. It also left enough time to grab a law degree through an evening program, produce Beloved Offspring (only one, but she is a lion), and eventually move to the lovely Maryland countryside. Her first career was as a technical writer and editor in the Washington, DC, area, a busy job that nonetheless left enough time to read a lot of romance novels. Early in life she spent a lot of time reading romance novels and practicing the piano. She is the sixth out of seven children, raised in the rural surrounds of central Pennsylvania. Grace Burrowes started writing as an antidote to empty nest and soon found it an antidote to life in general.

Forever and a duke grace burrowes