Looking back, the Earl could remember the son of a Peer, who had been duped by one of the more voluptuous Parisian courtesans.
He had woken up in the morning to find her wearing a wedding ring and there were a dozen witnesses to swear that they had been present at the marriage ceremony.
Another much younger man, the son of one of the Earl’s friends, had been besotted with an actress, who had a leading role at one of the largest theatres in Paris.
Her considerable success on the stage was largely due to the efforts of a European Prince on her behalf, but there was no question of his marrying her. He already had a wife and family in the Principality he ruled.
Yet the actress craved, for no reason anyone could understand, to wear a respectable wedding ring.
The son of the Earl’s friend h
