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      To Donna Baspaly.

      A gifted artist, a wonderful friend,

      and a truly remarkable woman.

       Chapter One

      The three letters arrived on Lord Stewart’s desk within a few days of one another. Each had been written in the author’s own distinct style and each was intended to sway the reader to the writer’s assessment of a situation never before encountered: the unexpected engagement of Alex’s younger brother, Peter, to a young lady unknown to his family or to society at large.

      The letter from his father, the earl, had been typically bombastic—a strongly worded missive condemning his youngest son’s behaviour, throwing out words like duty and obligation and saying that such conduct was not at all in keeping with what he expected from a member of his own family.

      The letter from his mother had been more gently phrased, blaming the error of Peter’s ways on the impulsiveness of his nature and pleading with Alex to intervene before it caused irreparable rifts within the family.

      But the third and most heartwrenching letter had been written by Peter himself; a desperate outpouring of emotion inspired by his love for the lady to whom he had blithely pledged his troth, along with a request for Alex’s support in light of his father’s blatant disapproval and his mother’s resultant unhappiness.

      All Alex could think of as he reread the three letters was how remarkable it was that a single engagement could have spawned such a wide and diverse range of reactions.

      Still, he supposed it was only to be expected. Peter might not be first in line for the title, but he was still the Earl of Widdicombe’s son, and their father always had been a stickler for propriety. No episodes of drunkenness, excessive gambling, or contracting of unsuitable marriages had ever been permitted to tarnish the family name. Alex’s ancestors prided themselves on their ability to rise above such weaknesses, eschewing the vices that had crippled so many other noble families. They had been responsible family men and landowners for centuries, and, in time, Alex would follow in their footsteps and take up the role he had been groomed for from birth. Peter would likely settle into religion or law, either being an acceptable occupation for the younger son of a peer, and both would marry ladies of high birth and exceptional breeding suitable to producing children worthy of carrying on the line.

      At least, that had been the expectation until Peter had done the unthinkable by betrothing himself to an unknown girl from the country, who, in his father’s words, … while no doubt possessed of a pretty face, has absolutely nothing else to recommend her …

      Now it seemed the entire family was looking to Alex for a resolution, and time was of the essence since Peter was planning a family dinner for the coming week, followed by a grand ball and gathering two weeks after that at Ellingsworth Hall, his recently acquired country estate. And while Alex wasn’t sure anyone was up to the task of smoothing an entire family’s ruffled feathers in so short a time, he realised he was probably in the best position to try. If there was one thing at which he did excel, it was cutting through the layers of emotional chaos to get to the heart of the problem and resolve it before any lasting or serious damage could be done.

      ‘Godfrey, have I anything of importance scheduled for the next few weeks?’ he enquired of his steward.

      That impeccably groomed gentleman turned the pages of a large leather-bound diary and scanned the entries. ‘Nothing a few well-worded letters of regret won’t take care of, my lord. Why?’

      ‘It seems I am required in the country for a time.’

      ‘In the country?’ The steward looked at him askance. ‘Now?’

      ‘Unfortunately, my brother does not concern himself with the goings on in society. No doubt it slipped his mind that the Season would soon be underway.’

      ‘No doubt,’ Godfrey said, though his tone clearly indicated incredulity that anyone in the Earl of Widdicombe’s

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