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far worse than he could imagine. No one had enough credit to improve it.
    She closed her eyes. It was barely possible that the Regent was powerful enough to stop the gossip. Maybe. But stopping gossip wouldn’t make the tales disappear. They would remain in whispers behind fans and under stairs, in drunken confidences in the clubs, in rambling letters to correspondents. And they would grow all the more titillating for being suppressed. How could she invite such a future by asking for help?
    Yet Laura deserved an introduction to the earl. Hadn’t she been fretting over her family’s future when that arrogant fool had accosted her in Exeter? Her fists clenched as she recalled his attack. If Rockhurst was a fair-minded knight who decried injustice, then the stranger in Exeter was his opposite.
    “Very well.” She met William’s eyes. “We will make his stay comfortable. I will talk to Laura, and perhaps you can devise some entertainment. Does he hunt or shoot? You might be able to set up an evening of cards if people know that I will not attend. Mrs. Telcor has vowed to avoid any gathering that includes me.”
    “You will chaperon Laura.” His voice was firm. “Rockhurst’s presence will force Mrs. Telcor’s acceptance. She will never eschew meeting an earl.”
    “Dreaming again, William,” she said gently. “If he utters one word in support of me, she will denounce him to all and sundry. Jasper cut me in front of her last week. You know she hates anyone who contradicts him. Didn’t she take his part after people blamed you for the haywain fire he set when you were boys? You still do not understand our peril. Why do you think his lies spread so quickly and with so little scrutiny? Because he tells them first to her.”
    Leaving William to consider her parting shot, she sought out Mrs. Moulding. How many servants would Rockhurst bring? Should she add another course to dinner, or would additional removes suffice? What about linens? Did the green bedchamber’s chimney need cleaning?
    The questions buzzed through her mind, but she knew they were just distractions. She did not want to think about what this scheme might cost her family. William was a simple man who accepted the world at face value. He would never understand Jasper’s ruthless cunning, which was one reason she hadn’t revealed the confrontation that had started this. But in his ignorance, William thought it was all a misunderstanding that would disappear in time. So he had invited a man to stir the pot.
    It could only create new trouble, which must again be laid at her door. But it was too late to cancel the invitation. Instead, she must convince Rockhurst that pursuing Jasper would ruin more lives.
     

CHAPTER THREE
     
    Blake shifted in his carriage seat, wondering for the hundredth time why he was here. After two days of talking to people, he understood Seabrook’s ambivalence. Even knowing a fraction of the rumors would raise grave doubts about his sister’s innocence. All was not well with the widow Parrish.
    Yet he had promised to investigate the matter, and Seabrook deserved his best efforts. The lad had been well liked at school, though his dreams had been basic – improving the yields on his family estate, exercising good stewardship over the land and its dependents, and producing the heir who would carry on in the future. Nothing had changed, if the condition of his estate was any indication. The grounds were unpretentious but well kept. Hedges were tidy and the fields tended. Seabrook cared for his land, putting his meager resources into maintenance rather than squandering them on his own pleasure – which set him apart from the dandies who frequented London. Such a man would do whatever he could to help his sister, even if he suspected she might be guilty of at least some impropriety.
    That might explain why he had not yet challenged Jasper. No matter how much the combatants tried, news of duels invariably became public. Whatever the