From the Publisher

Like every noble in the London peerage, Morgan Drummond, Marquis of Westham, expects his butler to be awaiting his return home — even when that return follows a five-year absence. But he didn't expect the horde of strangers who've taken up residence in his house, courtesy of that enterprising butler and a discreet classified ad. Morgan's plan to toss his unwelcome tenants into the street is thwarted by a beautiful but indomitable debutante, Miss Emma Clifford — who's not averse to a bit of blackmail for a good cause.

Now Morgan finds himself squiring the lovely Emma to the ton's most fashionable events — and what's more surprising, he's beginning to enjoy it. Surely he's not falling for such an infuriating woman, even if she does have a way of making him forget his own name? That butler has a lot to answer for — but then again, it's so hard to find good help. . . .

Publishers Weekly

Despite his five-year absence, eminently eligible Regency bachelor Morgan Drummond, Marquis of Westham, expects his lordly residence to be in tip-top shape when he unexpectedly returns to London for the social season to find a suitable wife. After all, he has Thornley, the perfect butler. Instead, he finds a motley cast of social-climbing perfect strangers already in residence. Making the most of their cachet as the marquis's "houseguests" are a 70-year-old con man with a scheme for turning lead to gold, a nouveau rich seamstress who's possibly a killer, and the entire formidable (if impoverished) family of debutante Emma Clifford who's hunting a wealthy husband. Who's responsible for the mayhem? The butler did it. And Michaels has done it again, too. Witty dialogue peppers a plot full of delectable details exposing the foibles and follies of the age. Real historical figures include a roguishly unrepentant William IV, who's referred to only as "the King" or by his nickname, Florizel. The heroine is appealingly independent minded; the hero is refreshingly free of any mean-spirited machismo; and supporting characters have charm to spare. Almost a quarter-century after The Belligerent Miss Boynton, the RITA Award-winning novelist's 86th book is another playfully perfect Regency-era romp. Agent, Karen Solem at Spencerhill Associates Ltd. (Sept.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Product Details

• Read a Sample Chapter

Read a Sample Chapter

The Butler Did It

Harlequin Enterprises, Ltd.

Chapter One

As I was going to St. Ives,

I met a man with seven wives,

Each wife had seven sacks,

Each sack had seven cats,

Each cat had seven kits:

Kits, cats, sacks, and wives,

How many were there going to St. Ives?

- Anonymous TO BEGIN WITH ONCE UPON A TIME would be, perhaps, a tad facetious. Rather to simply begin at the beginning, or at least as nearly as possible to that part of the beginning where it becomes interesting.

Picture England during the Regency. Such a time, such a varied generation. War, civil upheaval, opulence, indulgence, genius and cruelty. Great literature, great inventions, great deeds, great injustices. The English Regency has all of that.

Those who live there, happily, also manage to squeeze in a little silliness, a little fun. There are a few, in particular, who might be mentioned now.

Who are these people?

Why not commence with Morgan Drummond, Marquis of Westham, a gentleman who has been blessed with fine good looks, great wealth and high intelligence ... and cursed with a quick temper that, five years earlier, ended in a duel that nearly cost another man his life.

Shameful.

And Morgan was ashamed, devastated by his actions. What was the matter with him? he asked himself. Did an insult to his latest light-o'-love (what was her name again?) really necessitate a trip to Lincolns Inn Fields and dueling foils drawn at dawn?

Was he that mad? Hadn't he learned anything through his father's death at the hands of another duelist when he, Morgan, had been only a toddler in leading strings? What had that fight been about anyway? If Morgan couldn't recall the story, and he was the son of "Mad Harry," obviously the reason had been insufficient to the result - his mother a widow, his father's body moldering in the family mausoleum at Westham.

What he did know was that he did not wish his epitaph to read: "Mad Morgan, laid low by his own wretched temper."

So the chastened and repentant Morgan swore to shun his former hey-go-mad ways and had fled London, retreating to his estate in Westham, to lick his own wounds and examine his life.

And he had been exceedingly boring.

He had drunk deep and long, then thought, hard and long, and finally decided that he could control his temper. He worked diligently during those five years of self-imposed isolation, remaking himself less in his father's image and more in what he believed to be his own. He did not, however, metamorphose into Mellow Morgan, as he never quite overcame his inborn arrogance, his penchant for sarcasm, or his most definite disdain for fools.

Alas, ho-hum, he was still boring.

But at last Morgan, having just passed his thirtieth birthday, and admittedly weary of his reclusive life, believes himself equipped to rejoin civilization once more. Sure of himself, confident in his self-control, he even feels prepared to bear the silliness of a London Season, because yes, indeed, it is time Morgan marries and sets up his nursery, begets himself an heir to carry on the line.

He has thought long and hard (and boringly) about this as well. What he needs is a complacent wife, a calm and never ruffled wife, a woman of breeding and some wit, but with a temper as sweet as a May morning - for the sake of their unborn children, naturally.

So off he goes, to London.

NEXT UP, WE HAVE ONE Miss Emma Clifford who, as it happens, is also on her way to London.

Dear Emma. Was there ever a more beautiful female?

Poor Emma. Was there ever a more beleaguered female?

Emma Clifford is the older child and keeper of the Clifford family, which explains the beleaguered portion of her description.

Emma's mother is lovable, but a bit of a twit. Her brother is a complete loss. Her irascible grandmother is forever reliving her not quite proper past. And they're all constantly in need of funds.

The Cliffords do have one hope. Actually, they harbor quite a few hopes. Emma, however, has just one. She is not a silly girl; she knows she is quite beautiful. And, in London, beautiful is often the key that opens the door to an advantageous marriage.

In other words, a good marriage equaled solvency for the entire family. Ah, a financially comfortable existence; always considered A Good Thing To Have, and eternally prized as a cure-all to any woe by Those Who Don't Have.

Although her grandmother keeps telling Emma that, ideally, marriage shouldn't have anything to do with lining one's pocket at the expense of being stuck with a belching, scratching buffoon who probably ingests cabbage for breakfast.

Her grandmother's advice to one side, the determined Emma has sold her mother's diamonds, hocked the family portraits, and traded the services of a fairly good stud horse for the use of an ancient traveling coach and some showy if not quite prime carriage horses.

(Continues...)

---

Excerpted from The Butler Did It by Kasey Michaels Copyright © 2004 by Harlequin Enterprises, Ltd.. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---