As for their wives, in spite of the demands of their positions and children, they too had left their mark on the world. Lady Warton had continued her study of orchids and was now a recognized expert in the field at home and abroad. Lady Cavendish was credited with the co-discovery of a minor comet. She seemed content enough with that, although Cavendish never failed to mention that she shouldn’t have been made to share the honor and only had to do so because of the stature of the man who claimed the discovery as well. Mrs. Sinclair’s travel books had become a necessity for female and male travelers alike and she had kept her husband busy discovering the world with her.
Kate had turned her scholarly pursuits toward their families. It had taken her years to decipher and catalogue the papers in the attic as well as similar documents regarding her own heritage. She had compiled it all into histories of both families and was currently working on her third massive volume, which Oliver fully intended to read someday.
She had never asked him if he was responsible for the planting of the spring flowers in the garden, the sign that the curse had ended but he had long suspected she knew the truth. And, even as absurd as he had always thought the curse to be, he had to admit, if only to himself, he had breathed a sigh of relief with every year that passed that he remained on this earth.
There had been no more dabbling in magic, at least as far as he knew, by any of the ladies in his family. The only magic in his life had been, and continued to be, that to be found between a man and the wife he adored who had made his life whole and well worth living.
“Do you see those gentlemen over there?” Warton nodded toward a table in the far corner of the room. There sat four young men, obviously friends, sharing a bottle, deep in jovial conversation. “Do they remind you of anyone?”
“Not at all,” Cavendish said staunchly. “There’s not an American among them.”
Sinclair laughed. “And yet, even from here, one can sense an attitude that seems remarkably familiar.”
“In that case, gentlemen.” Oliver got to his feet. “As once was our custom, let us propose a toast.”
“Excellent idea.” Warton nodded and stood, the others followed suit. He held up his glass. “To our young friends in the corner then. May their friendship sustain them through the years to come and last as long as ours.”
Sinclair thought for a moment then raised his glass. “May they find the ladies who will make their lives complete and with them the happiness I doubt they suspect exists in this world.”
Cavendish paused. “May they have the grace to accept the sorrow in life as well.” He lifted his glass. “And may they have the strength to carry on.”
“And, gentlemen,” Oliver began. “May they know love and adventure and, most of all.” He raised his glass. “May they know magic.”
About the Author
VICTORIA ALEXANDER was an award-winning television reporter until she discovered fiction was much more fun than real life. She turned to writing full time and has never looked back.
Victoria grew up traveling the country as an Air Force brat and is now settled in Omaha, Nebraska, with her husband, two kids in college (buy her books!), and two bearded collies named Sam and Louie. She firmly believes housework is a four-letter word, there are no calories in anything eaten standing up, procrastination is an art form, and it’s never too soon to panic.
And she loves getting mail that doesn’t require a return payment. Write to her at P.O. Box 31544, Omaha, NE 68131.
www.eclectics.com/victoria
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By Victoria Alexander
SEDUCTION OF A PROPER GENTLEMAN
SECRETS OF A PROPER LADY
WHAT A LADY WANTS
A LITTLE BIT WICKED
LET IT BE LOVE
WHEN WE MEET AGAIN
A VISIT FROM SIR NICHOLAS
THE PURSUIT OF MARRIAGE
THE LADY IN QUESTION
LOVE WITH THE PROPER HUSBAND
HER HIGHNESS, MY WIFE
THE PRINCE’S BRIDE
THE MARRIAGE LESSON
THE HUSBAND LIST
THE WEDDING BARGAIN
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
SEDUCTION OF A PROPER GENTLEMAN. Copyright © 2008 by Cheryl Griffin. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Mobipocket Reader July 2008 ISBN 978-0-06-170064-4
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