Chapter One

Becoming the Earl of Derby might have been a terrible mistake.

Austin was willing to blame the earldom for his current situation and not his refusal to accept what came with it. Dismissing his coachman earlier had sounded like a fine idea at first. He didn't need someone carrying him around. He'd done well without that luxury before so he had no need for it now.

But with every grueling step he took, he was beginning to wonder if he might have been a little hasty in his dismissal. The sun beat down on him as if it aimed to make him regret what he'd done, sweat running down the back of his neck. The contract he'd tucked into his waistcoat seemed to burn right through his skin. At this point, he wondered if he should just turn around.

Walking would do him some good, he told himself. The megrim pounding in the base of his skull made his eyesight a little splotchy, but at least the fresh air helped a little. And he needed to think about what he was about to do. Needed additional time to back out of his decision.

Still, he pressed on. He had no choice, he thought bitterly. This was the only option he had left.

Latrice Manor came into view the moment he rounded the corner. It was an ornate slab of white brick, taller than the others and sporting a sizeable front yard behind its iron-wrought gate. Opulence dripped from every inch of the manor. Austin gritted his teeth.

This is a mistake , he thought as he headed for the manor. I should turn around right now.

He kept going, even though every bone in his body urged him not to. These were the kind of people he despised. He was about to walk into the home of a rich man who thought he owned the world just because he was deemed upper class.

But would a rich man approach him late at night, at a fighting ring, and all but beg him to sign a contract? A contract that basically sold his sister into marriage?

The poor woman had to be a sorry sight if this was what they had to resort to.

Austin knew he was no better. He might be deemed handsome if he ever cared to wear a more pleasant expression but it was not his lack of physical appeal that rendered him ineligible for matrimony. It was his true status as a bastard. He wouldn't have cared if it hadn't been for the fact that, in the position he stood in now, he had to get married.

Even their front gate was overdone. Latrice Manor was interwoven in the metal, the gate so tall that even Austin would not have been able to touch the top without jumping. He stood and stared for a moment, the name giving him pause. It nagged at him since last night, as if he should know it.

And then it hit him. He knew the name Latrice. A man without title but with enough wealth to put him in rooms with earls and dukes. He'd even gotten an audience with the Prince Regent himself. Dubbed the Merchant of Brentwood, the Latrice family sat atop a shipping empire.

A mistake , he thought again as he pushed the gate open and approached the front door. He used the obnoxiously large knocker on the door and listened to the sound echo on the other side.

Only a few seconds later, the door opened to reveal a thin-lipped butler with spectacles perched on the very tip of his nose. The butler slid the spectacles just a bit further down to look Austin up and down.

"May I help you?" he asked, his slow drawl so haughty that Austin curled his hands into fists on instinct.

He swallowed the irritation he felt at the butler's tone and pushed through gritted teeth, "I am here to see the master of this house."

"Mr. Latrice is not available at the moment." The butler raised his chin, clasping his hands behind him. "What is your name, sir?"

Austin nearly curled his upper lip in annoyance. He thought such a disdainful demeanor was only reserved for the upper class. "None of your business," Austin replied. "Now step aside. I do not have time to waste here."

"Sir." The butler stepped in Austin's path, stopping him from crossing over the threshold. It looked as if he was trying his best to hold back his own annoyance. "I understand that you may be eager to learn under Mr. Latrice's expertise but as I have stated before, he is busy. So he is not available to attend to you at the moment. So if you could please leave—"

"I am the Earl of Derby," Austin snapped. "And your Mr. Latrice is expecting me. Now step out of the way or else I will remove you myself. And I don't think you will fancy me doing that."

Horror flashed across the butler's face for a split second before he masked it quickly. He took a discreet step backward, clearing his throat. It took everything in Austin not to shove the man aside when he gave him another once-over, as if he was deciding whether or not he should believe him.

His clothes weren't very fashionable, Austin knew. And the lengthy walk from his townhouse had covered his waistcoat and breeches in a fine layer of dust. So yes, he may not look like a proper earl right now and usually, Austin wouldn't care about that. But if this butler insisted on standing in his way—and if Austin wanted to keep this civil—then throwing his title in the butler's face was the only way to get past this door, as much as he hated to do it.

For a moment, he thought he would really have to resort to a less favorable option but then the butler said, "Forgive me, my lord. Please, follow me."

Stiffly, he turned and walked away. Austin grunted in annoyance and followed behind him. He should just turn around. Everything in him was telling him that this was a bad idea, even if it sounded good on paper. Nothing good would come from involving himself with these people and this odd contract.

But he needed the funds. For his father. For his late stepmother. And for the legacy they left behind.

"But, Vincent, you promised!"

The shrill voice nearly made Austin stop in his tracks. The butler was slowing down and then he halted in front of a door that was slightly ajar. Instead of indicating such, he only bowed to Austin and walked away.

"Lav, you have to understand that I do not have time for this."

"That is what you always say! But I won't let you push me aside again. I have been trying to have this conversation with you for days now and I won't leave this office until you tell me what you have planned."

A breath of frustration. "Lavender, please."

"No." A foot hit the floor, hard. "Tell me, Vincent. Or is it that you haven't planned anything at all?"

Austin pushed the door aside. The two occupants within didn't notice him. One of them he recognized as the man who had approached him last night, Mr. Vincent Latrice himself.

The other person was a lady, similar in appearance to Vincent. Her hair was a mousy brown that was pulled back into a chignon, a few tendrils framing her face. She clutched a book to her chest, her slight frame draped in a brown dress that did not complement her well. She didn't seem to care about that, however.

She looked so…normal. Not exactly what Austin was picturing and yet not surprising either. Had they been in a room full of people, she would have become a wallflower.

"Vincent, you promised!" Despite the plainness of her appearance, her voice was full of life, even though it was frustrated. "Father promised and you promised to uphold it when he died."

"Lavender, I know." Vincent pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm working on it, all right."

"How? Just tell me anything and I will leave you alone." When her words were met with silence, she seized Vincent's sleeve. "The London Season has begun and yet I have nothing to—"

"If you don't mind," Austin cut in, leaning against the door frame. "I would like to get on with my meeting with Mr. Latrice."

The lady—Lavender—whirled to face him with a gasp. Looking at her full on stole Austin's breath for a moment. Her chocolate brown eyes were vivid with emotions, surprise and then confusion and then annoyance washing over her face in such clarity that Austin doubted she was capable of hiding her thoughts.

"Who are you?" With that book still clutched to her chest, she approached him, looking him up and down. Unlike the butler, she only looked curious rather than uptight. "How did you get in here?"

Austin tilted his head at her, surprised at himself for nearly responding. Then he met Vincent's eyes over her head. "Shall we?"

"My lord, I did not expect to hear from you so soon." The distress that had consumed Vincent before was gone, a smile on his face. "Come, come. Have a seat. Let me pour you a drink."

"But Vincent—"

"Lavender, we can continue this conversation another time. And I promise you, when that time comes, I shall answer all your questions, all right?" Vincent approached her, ushering her towards the door.

Lavender pouted, looking back and forth between Austin and Vincent. She looked just about ready to argue but then Vincent said, "Not in front of guests, Lav. Or have you forgotten your lessons?"

She thinned her lips at that, narrowing her eyes at Vincent. For a moment, Austin was certain that she would continue to argue. He was oddly looking forward to it.

But then she sighed heavily, sending a scathing look in Austin's direction. Up close, she was far smaller than him and yet she glared him down as if she were twice his size. "I hope you know that I find it quite rude of you to interrupt another's conversation in that manner."

Austin tilted his head to the side, his irritation mounting. This had already gone on for much longer than he cared for. "I do not care what you think."

"That comes as no surprise to me, considering your propensity for impudence, sir," she shot back without a second of hesitation, taking Austin by surprise. "But I'll have you know that the only reason I am leaving is because I have better things to do than waste time in your presence. I have important matters to deal with, like the ending of my book. But I'm sure you would know nothing about that."

Austin frowned at that. Did she just imply that he could not read?

Before he could think of a reply, Vincent stepped in between them with a sheepish grin. "Please do not mind her. She is quite used to getting what she wants. Lavender, please leave."

Her cheeks grew red, her shoulders rigid with mounting tension. Vincent grasped both her shoulders and forcefully guided her out the door. She didn't let up her glare however, burning holes into Austin until the door closed in her face.

Austin let out a breath, raking a hand through his hair. "Let us get this over with, Mr. Latrice. I have come here regarding your…contract. Or whatever you deem this to be." He pulled out the folded piece of paper and rested it on a mantle nearby. "In it, you state that you wish for me to marry your sister, but surely you cannot be serious."

Vincent faced him with a gleam in his eye. "It is exactly as it says, my lord. I wish for you to marry my sister, Lavender by the end of the Season."