'Anne smiled and handed Caro her cup. "And yet it did not stop her from making a good match. Your father was besotted."

"It was an intemperate match," Caro said.

"And your father was besotted," Anne said with a grin.

"And my father was besotted," Caro reluctantly agreed.

"The same could happen to you and for you. You are your mother's daughter."

Yes and no, and that was the problem. She was Sophia's daughter, the daughter of a former courtesan, and therefore her pedigree was a disaster. And, yet, though she was Sophia's daughter, she had none of her fire, certainly none of her mystique, and most definitely none of her experience.'