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asked.
    Julianne hesitated. “Perhaps I should have asked your permission first.”
    Georgette nodded. “We thought about sharing it with the other young ladies, but they might reveal Julianne wrote it, and the gossip would ruin her.”
    Julianne gave her cork-brained friend a speaking look. “You and Amy would be implicated as well.” She, on the other hand, had nothing to lose.
    Georgette’s eyes widened. “Oh, I didn’t think about that.”
    Amy mumbled under her breath.
    “I believe you should share the advice with all the young ladies,” Hester said.
    “The risk is too great,” Amy said.
    Hester regarded Amy. “Ah, I heard you were a sensible girl. I concede Miss Hardwick’s point about gossip, but I have an idea.”
    Julianne eased off the bed and walked to the desk. “What sort of plan do you have in mind?”
    Hester pulled out the chair. “Be seated,” she said, drawing out a fresh sheet of paper. “Now, the way to keep our little secret is to publish the advice anonymously. I have a gentleman friend who will ask no questions. He will make all the arrangements. That way no one will trace the identity of the author.”
    “It will be a book?” Julianne’s heart beat faster. “I am to be an author?”
    “I’m envisioning a pamphlet, as we can have it produced quicker,” Hester said. “Of course, all of us must keep the secret. As Miss Hardwick said, you do not wish to stain your reputations.”
    “Amy, even you cannot find fault with that plan,” Georgette said.
    Amy worried her hands. “I have grave misgivings.”
    Hester lifted her quizzing glass to inspect Amy. “Your concern is understandable, but in this case, there is no danger to any of you. If matters grow hot, I will take responsibility. One of the advantages of old age is that society excuses one’s eccentricities.”
    Amy frowned. “It still seems terribly risky to me.”
    “The only thing required of you and Lady Georgette issecrecy,” Hester said. “You must never reveal it to another soul.”
    “We will keep mum,” Georgette said. “Oh, this will be such fun.”
    Hester uncapped the inkwell, dipped the pen, and handed it to Julianne. “Now the work begins.”
    “I do not know where to start,” Julianne said. “It seems an overwhelming task.”
    “You need a title, do you not?” Hester said. “It must convey the contents in such a way that others will rush to purchase it.”
    Julianne furrowed her brows. “
Advice to the Lovelorn
?”
    “We need something more provocative,” Hester said, waving her hand in dismissal. “Ah, I have it:
The Secrets of Seduction
.”
    Georgette gasped. “Seduction?”
    “Only the suggestion of it, my dear,” Hester said. “Teasing and implied promises of secret pleasures make any man wild. I’ve some experience in the matter.”
    Since Hester had managed to attract five husbands, Julianne concluded she was an expert. “The title is perfect,” she said, scribbling it on the page and ignoring Amy’s moan. Underneath, she wrote
By a Lady
. She blew on the wet ink, set the page aside, and considered the blank page Hester handed her. “Now what?”
    “An introduction is necessary,” Hester said. “You must explain what drove you to conclude that unmarried ladies need a better method of leading gentlemen to the altar.”
    “Write it as if you’re addressing a friend,” Georgette said.
    “An excellent suggestion,” Hester said. “Julianne, let the words flow upon the page.”
    Julianne dipped the pen again. Excitement filled her as she wrote. When she finished, she read it aloud at Hester’s urging.
    Dear Desperate Readers,
    I am prevailed upon by friends to publish my advice designed to fell even the most resistant of bachelors. My friends and I have observed that far too many single gentlemen put off marriage in favor of unsavory pursuits. Meanwhile, our fair sex waits, often in vain. Ladies, it is time we took matrimonial matters into our own capable