Inwardly, Honoria shrugged. It couldn't hurt to tell her tale, and if it distracted him, well and good. "My parents died in an accident when I was sixteen. My brother was nineteen. We lived in Hampshire, but after the accident, I went to stay with my mother's sister in Leicestershire." He frowned. "I'm surprised Magnus didn't intervene."

"Michael informed him of the deaths, but he didn't come down for the funeral." Honoria shrugged. "We hadn't expected him. After the falling-out between him and Papa, there'd been no contact." Her lips lifted fleetingly. "Papa swore he'd never ask for quarter."

"Stubbornness is clearly a family trait." Honoria ignored the comment. "After a year in Leicestershire, I decided to try my hand at governessing." She looked up, into far-too-perceptive green eyes. "Your aunt wasn't exactly welcoming?" Honoria sighed. "No-she was very welcoming. She married beneath her-not the mild mesalliance the Anstruther-Wetherbys got so heated over but truly out of her class." She paused, seeing again the rambling house filled with dogs and children. "But she was happy and her household was welcoming but…" She grimaced and glanced at the dark face watching her. "Not for me."

"Fish out of water?"

"Precisely. Once I came out of mourning, I considered my options. Funds, of course, were never a problem. Michael wanted me to buy a small house in some safe country village and live quietly but…"

"Again, not for you?"

Honoria tilted her chin. "I couldn't conceive of a life so tame. I think it unfair that women are forced to such mild existences and only gentlemen get to lead exciting lives."

Both black brows rose. "Personally, I've always found it pays to share the excitement."

Honoria opened her mouth to approve-then caught his eye. She blinked and looked again, but the salacious glint had disappeared. "In my case, I decided to take control of my life and work toward a more exciting existence."