The False Betrothal

"VERY WELL. WE SHALL PRETEND TO BE ENGAGED. PRETEND, MIND YOU, FOR I HAVE NO INTENTION OF MARRYING YOU!"

No lady had more suitors than lovely Alexa Eiseley, but few were more adamantly opposed to the married state. Alexa enjoyed her life, did, not consider herself on the shelf and, to the great consternation of her stuffy brother, George, had no plans to change her status.

Then, one night, she gave shelter to young Leigh Winslow on a stormy night with no servants at home and in full view of her neighbors. To quiet the gossips Alexa agreed to announce her "betrothal" to Leigh's uncle, her good friend the Earl of Winslow, himself a confirmed bachelor.

They planned to continue the hoax only until the wagging tongues stopped wagging. But the betrothal seemed to have a life of its own. What's more, these two good friends found themselves in a near constant state of quarreling.

Why was it so complicated?

Hero: Sebastian Winslow
Heroine: Alexa Eiseley