Enter the world of the most notorious gambling den in London, where matches are made... unusually. Welcome to the world of THE LYON'S DEN: The Black Widow of Whitehall Connected World, where the underground of Regency London thrives... and loves.

She’s pretending to be respectable.

Tricking her way into a gentlemen’s card game isn’t Belinda Bellamy’s cleverest idea. Especially not when it’s at the Lyon’s Den, and one of the gamblers is a theatre owner who knows an actress when he sees one. Unmasked, Belinda’s ploy to raise enough money for Mrs Dove-Lyon’s services backfires badly. Instead of hiring the best matchmaker in London, Belinda is blackmailed into becoming her employee, and her hope of escaping her tragic past through marriage is shattered.

He's pretending not to be...

The man who’s ruined Belinda’s plan is the rich but ruthless Piers Darvill, a notorious rake whose secret suffering is concealed by a heart of steel. He’s on the hunt for the woman hiding his young son. He’ll use any means to find her, including a young street urchin called Tom and Roland Chetwynd, Belinda Bellamy’s hapless chaperone and confidant.

Seeing Darvill as her nemesis, Belinda is determined to rescue Tom and free Roland from his obligations. But she has totally misunderstood Piers Darvill and ends up exiled and disgraced. Now he’s the only one who can restore her to Society, but his help comes at a price: she must become his fake fiancée.

Will their false betrothal fool anyone? And what if it becomes more than an act? Belinda's scapegrace past could resurface, and Darvill will lose his last chance of finding his missing son.

Tropes/Story Hooks:

✔ Forced proximity

✔ Enemies to lovers

✔ Opposites attract

✔ Fake engagement

✔ Fish out of water

✔ Second chances