Author's Note: This novella was first published in a Christmas anthology as THE LAST SURPRISE, but I always felt more scope was needed to tell the tale of three girls who are orphaned while the eldest is in the midst of a glorious London Season. Therefore, the title has been changed and more than ten thousand words added to this poignant tale of those faced with tragedy, amplified by unforeseen circumstances, who still manage to survive, aided by the spirit of Christmas.
The story:
Lady Christine Ashworth is enjoying her second London Season and about to receive an offer of marriage, when the sudden death of her father, the Earl of Bainbridge, results in Christine and her two younger sisters being exiled to relatives in Yorkshire, while awaiting the return of their father's successor from the wilds of western Canada. Christine is promptly deserted by the man who thought to become her fiancé and constantly importuned by her Yorkshire cousin who is eager to add her inheritance to his family's coffers. Her sisters are also miserably unhappy.
No wonder then, when Christine finally meets the new earl, she begs him to allow them to come home. But he is not married, and the solution to the problem is painful—for Christine, who has become disillusioned with men, and for Harlan Ashworth, who never expected to inherit an earldom, the responsibility for three females, nor find himself married to a woman he just met. Not surprisingly, the marriage does not get off to a good start, and goes downhill from there. Only with the help of the youngest Ashworth and a hefty does of the Christmas spirit is Christine able to lose her prickly edges and learn the true meaning of love.
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