Forever a Lady (The Rumor #2) by Delilah Marvelle

TWO DIFFERENT CLASSES, ONE COMMON DESIRE... Lady Bernadette Marie Burton  may be the richest widow in England, but like her dreams of finding true passion, her reputation is deteriorating. Cruel gossip, loneliness and hoards of opportunistic suitors have her believing Society couldn't be more vile...or dangerous. So when an attacker threatens her life, she finds safety in the most unseemly of places: the arms of a mysterious, Irish-American gang leader. His fortune stolen, young  Matthew Milton is done playing the respectable gentleman. In the slums of New York, only ruffians thrive. But from the moment he arrives in London and encounters the voluptuous Lady Bernadette, he can't help but wonder about the finer pleasures he's missing. Or just how much he's willing to risk-not only to bed her, but to prove his worth....





5/5 stars

 
I don't hand out five star ratings very often, but this book definitely deserved it. This is the second in a series set in the 1830's and revolve around an interesting group of people. There are dukes, thieves, boxers and even a missing heir. Here we had Matthew's story, who we met in the last book and was the stepson of Georgia. Matthew is the leader of a gang known as the Forty Thieves that keep a portion of the Five Points safe for the residents living there. While on a trip to London he meets the lovely Bernadette and becomes instantly smitten after helping her ward off an old lover who is attacking her. Due to a very bad decision and a stay in jail, Matthew and Bernadette split up and go their separate ways until Bernadette is thrust back into his life. They decide to give it another try, but Matthew can only commit if he can come to her as his own man. Matthew not only makes his way back, but exceeds his goal. The transformation he makes is amazing and he becomes everything we knew he was capable of becoming. I love the settings that this book and series has taken us to. It's a whole new side that we don't normally get to read about in historical romance. I would love to see this series stretch out to more then three books, because I would love to see what kind of man that Ronan grows into being under Matthew's care. Please read this series, I really don't think you'll be disappointed.