Chapter One
October 31st, 1808
London
Miss Letitia Trentham, England’s wealthiest unmarried heiress, received her eighteenth proposal of the year at the Hammonds’ ball. The Little Season was drawing to its close and the company was thin, but more than a hundred people crowded the ballroom. Four of them were currently angling after her fortune.
When Laurence Darlington suggested that they sit out their next dance, Letty experienced a sinking feeling. When Darlington suggested that they repair to the conservatory, the sinking feeling became stronger. The conservatory adjoined the ballroom—was in fact in full view of the ballroom, had a table of refreshments and an attendant footman, and could hardly be called secluded—but it was secluded enough for a proposal.
Experience had taught Lett
