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Chapter One

Chetwell House, London, April 1829

Once a duke has jilted a lady, she should be grateful to have any suitors at all

Lady Marianne Seaton was blessed to have threefor her hand

Marianne didn’t feel blessed She felt hunted

As she waltzed with Lord Tranter, she made herself sh surely being sought out was better than ostracism But her shoulder blades prickled with uncomfortable awareness that she was under constant scrutiny

Of course, society had alatched her, the Marquess of Baildon’s only child Watched with a critical eye, waiting for the paragon of behavior to make a mistake so they could revel in her downfall

This last year, the observation had become particular and oppressive After Caeossip Even worse, with Sedge, London’s bachelors had rushed to express their interest in the Seaton heiress

Most of those men had no chance with her and they knew it But not all of them admitted defeat

Now it seemed that wherever she went, her ht dance with Tranter, but two other es of the crowded ballroom And their eyes were covetous

A headache throbbed in her te event The music was too shrill The chatter was too loud The room was too stuffy After all these years in society, she still shrank fro the center of attention She’d been born shy and to her father’s disappointment, she’d never conquered the affliction

With each turn around the overheated roo with her father Desborough was a force in the land, a major political powerbroker, and her father’s choice for her A pity he was forty-five and as dull as a rainy month in the Outer Hebrides

“Lady Marianne, you seem distracted,” Tranter said “Would you rather we took a stroll on the terrace?”

She battled to keep her smile His hold on her waist was just as decoru “I’ about this week’s travel”