It Takes a Rake

Summary

She’s facing her biggest challenge yet

Miss Kitty Beckett is a talented heiress who can breathe life into a dry building plan with her pencils and paints. She can also spot a rake at a hundred yards––and she won’t be tricked or charmed into marriage. Certainly not by any man who might interfere with her dreams. When Bellehaven Bay announces its first-ever architectural design contest, she vows to win––with a little help from her childhood rival.

Turning her buttoned-up nemesis into a rake

Leo Lockland, a hardworking architect with a gift for numbers, has returned home after a few years in London, and he has secrets. The biggest? He’s been in love with Kitty since they were both apprentices. When she mistakenly assumes he’s smitten with another woman, she offers to help him win her over––in exchange for his help with her building design. Before Leo knows it, he’s agreed to let Kitty tutor him in the nuances of fashion, flirting … and seduction.

Let the lessons begin

Leo proves to be a surprisingly quick study in the ballroom, on the beach, and in the bedchamber. Before long, he’s softening Kitty’s hard edges with his wicked words and kissing his way past all her defenses. Perhaps she’s a bit too skilled at teaching, because her lessons are threatening to backfire …