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and earn my own way.”
    â€œBy taking care of a parcel of noble brats?”
    â€œNo. Even if a household could be found that would employ me, I want nothing at all to do with the nobility. A wealthy merchant class family will do just fine.”
    The viscount was obviously leery, but Harriet could sense her brother had no logical arguments to offer.
    â€œIf you insist on going, I cannot stop you,” he said with a sigh. “However, I must insist that you take a position only with a decent, Christian family. In this case, it shall be the employer who will need to provide references.”
    Harriet nodded. She had already anticipated this requirement and was prepared. “I have spoken with the vicar and he has kindly agreed to inquire among his many relations, friends, and colleagues in hopes of finding me a suitable position. I assume if our local clergyman can vouch for the family, you will have no objection?”
    Griffin gave her a rueful smile, then tilted his head, assessing her closely. “You are well prepared to refute any objection I can think to offer.”
    â€œI tried to anticipate your reaction.” Harriet chanced a confident grin, then sobered. “ ’Tis a lesson I learned about my character, from my former fiancé. I find that I do not like surprises very much.”

Chapter Three
    The noise from a large, boisterous party gathered somewhere in the house was an unwelcome, persistent intrusion. It tugged relentlessly at Lord Avery’s slumber, pulling him from the brief moment of peace that an unconscious mind afforded.
    Nathaniel dragged opened his eyes, struggling to regain his senses. The bold splash of red velvet bed curtains revealed he was not in his own bedchamber. And the cloying, floral scent of thick perfume revealed he was not alone in the large fourposter bed. Ever so slowly he tilted his head.
    â€œAh, you are awake,” a sultry female voice declared. “At last.”
    The mattress dipped as the lush, unclothed woman pushed up on one elbow, then leaned closer. Nathaniel stared up at her for a long moment. She was very pretty. Her features were dainty and soft, her eyes dark and sparkling. Shiny sable hair cascaded down her shoulders, contrasting starkly with her fair creamy skin. Her lips were full and ruby red, her breasts abundant and luscious.
    An elusive memory took shape in his mind. Dinner out with an old Scottish friend, Duncan McTate, then a jaunt to a new gaming club in an attempt to cheer his dismal mood. There had been the usual assortment of women making the rounds at the tables, high-priced courtesans and unclaimed mistresses seeking new protectors, along with a few of society’s females whose reputations skirted the edge of respectability.
    Temptations abounded. Nathaniel had never been one to deny himself when it came to carnal matters. Thanks to his handsome face and impressive lineage, he had always had his pick of women, be they of noble or common birth.
    But who exactly was this sumptuous brunette who was eyeing him like a tasty morsel? Nathaniel was unsure. Not that it really mattered. Somehow he had ended up alone in an upstairs private chamber with this entrancing creature and had used her luscious body shamelessly in an attempt to forget his mounting woes.
    Trouble was, it hadn’t worked.
    â€œYvonne?” he ventured.
    â€œDarling,” she smiled broadly, then leapt onto all fours.
    Her large breasts dangled precariously close to his chin. She made a deep, guttural sound in the back of her throat and leaned forward, her lovely face alive with wanton interest.
    Lord Avery hissed out a curse. He had not meant to incite her passion, yet hunger radiated from her very pores as she pressed closer to his naked flesh. Nathaniel could not recall in full detail their earlier coupling, but obviously he had left her in need.
    Her fingers began to stroke his chest. A part of him wanted nothing more than to rise from the bed