Zachary by Leah Moyes

Four younger sons,
Four brothers-in-arms,
Four gentlemen willing to do whatever it takes to protect the women they love.
-Gentlemen of War Series

When duty called, Zachary Collins answered, leaving behind London’s innumerable societal pleasures as well as the woman he secretly loved his entire life, Eveline Brown. As the second son of the Earl of Tichborne, his free-spirited behavior oftentimes created a wedge between him, his father, and his older brother—one that distance, and time can’t always mend.
Two years later, he returns home a changed man, scarred by the terrors of war and grappling with permanent injuries. The gaiety he experienced from the world he knew is gone and so is Eveline, now married to another man.

Adrift in a society he no longer recognizes, Zachary navigates the complexities of his new reality, finding solace in the familiar—his friends, his careless behavior, and the bottle—as echoes of the past torment his heart.
The Hon. Eveline Brown, the oldest daughter of Baron Ashton, had always secretly hoped her longtime friend, Zachary Collins, would cease his coquettish ways and be the man to ask for her hand in marriage, but when he marches off to war against the French and tragedy strikes her family, she must enter into a marriage of convenience in order to survive.

Though her married life leaves her feeling undervalued and lonely, she takes comfort in the role she played in saving her mother and younger sister from a life of destitution.
When Eveline and Zachary cross paths upon his return, there is no denying the feelings they share and the dangerous attraction tests their resolve, but Eveline’s loyalty to her husband prevails.
In a desperate attempt to put Eveline out of his mind permanently, Zachary returns to active duty, facing off with Napoleon at Waterloo, risking more than just his wounded heart—and if he does survive, can he confront his demons long enough to forge a new path? One that leads to healing, forgiveness, and perhaps even love?

Zachary is a clean, stand-alone Regency Romance. #3 in the Gentlemen of War Series about honorable military men who, after fighting for King and Country, return home to unexpected and unfamiliar lives.