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planet earth without ever having attended one seemed very strange to them indeed. Serafina studied Grant without appearing to do so. He was an intensely masculine man with thick silver hair, which she knew was prematurely grey. He had unusual hazel eyes, and there was a strength about him that most men would envy. He was not a man of many words, and Serafina admired him for that. She spoke up then saying, “Well, we will average out. I’ve been to far too many.”
    “You don’t like balls?” Grant asked, turning to face her.
    “I think they’re a frightful bore and a waste of time.”
    Dylan laughed. “There’s a pessimist you are. That sounds like a description of being in jail.”
    “What a terrible thing to say!” Dora giggled. “But you’ve never been in jail.”
    “Oh, yes I have. I was arrested once down in Cornwall.”
    “What was the charge?” Matthew asked.
    “Assault and battery, and tearing up a saloon.”
    “Were you guilty?” Serafina smiled despite herself.
    “Mostly I was, but it wasn’t my fault. I was provoked. The man spoke evil of Wales, and it was my duty to correct him.”
    As they rode through the falling rain, Serafina found herself as fascinated by Dylan as she had been from the beginning. In all honesty her initial impression had been quite negative, but she had learnt that underneath his deceptively handsome features worked a quick and agile mind. He had been places and done things that she had never heard of, and now she sensed some of that quick mind as he asked, “What about the family of Lord Darby? I know nothing about them.”
    Serafina shrugged. “Our families are very close. As a matter of fact, Lord Darby is Aldora’s godfather.”
    “That’s right. He is.” Dora nodded. “He never fails to send me a present on my birthday.”
    “I suppose it’s a very large place?” Grant asked.
    “Oh yes,” Serafina said, nodding, “larger than Trentwood. The house is enormous. It must have twenty bedrooms.”
    “Well, devil fly off!” Dylan exclaimed. “That would be like operating an inn.”
    Dora was shocked. “What an awful thing to say, Mr. Dylan!”
    “Well, it is a bit ostentatious.” Serafina shrugged. “They have, I would guess, some twenty-five servants in all.”
    “What’s the earl like?” Grant asked.
    “He’s very nice. He’s fifty-five years old now, a rather tall man, very lean, and quite good looking. He’s rather dignified, but he unbends mostly with his wife and his niece, Gervase.”
    “And his wife is so nice. Her name is Heather,” Dora said. “She’s younger than Lord Darby, and you know they have a true romance. She told me about it one time. Her husband is a wonderful singer, and he would come and sing love songs under her balcony.”
    “They’re a very happy couple. It makes me believe that happy marriages can take place.” Serafina spoke almost without thinking and then suddenly felt the eyes of the other occupants on her. She flushed slightly and closed her lips, determined to say no more along this line. Her own marriage was something about which she seldom spoke.
    “Do they have children?” Dylan asked, feeling her discomfort.
    “No, and that’s the one sad thing about them,” Serafina answered. “Both of them wanted a large family, but it never happened. Lady Heather had several miscarriages. One child lived but only two days. They don’t talk about children anymore. You would never know how sad it makes them unless you are around them a great deal.”
    “What about the rest of the family?” Dylan asked.
    “Well, the earl has two brothers. One of them is Rupert Hayden. He’s five years younger than Lord Darby. He’s the businessman of the family,” Dora said.
    “Business is about all he cares for,” Serafina said. “He never married, and he spends his life taking care of the estate.”
    “The earl’s other brother is named Arthur Hayden,” Dora said. “It always makes me sad to think about