Before Chase took two steps into the room, the door was smartly closed against his heels. Every eye fastened on him as the hum of conversation died an immediate death.

It was the first time Chase had been blessed with seeing the entire Ward family, and he was immediately struck by how handsome they were. There was a look of quality to them all, of grace and health. Chase felt a little guilty for having thought of them as sheep farmers.

On his entry, Harriet turned from her sisters with a genuine smile on her lips, her eyes sparkling with something other than annoyance or suspicion. It was a look Chase had yet to enjoy—unalloyed mirth. Her lips were parted to reveal even white teeth, her brown eyes shone with life, and her entire expression was winsome.

Mrs. Ward quietly moved forward, a lovely matron in an ice-blue gown, a modest bit of lace at her bosom. “Captain Frakenham, I hope your room is proving adequate.”

Chase bowed. “It’s more than adequate. Quite lovely, in fact.”

She smiled. “Excellent. Since your memory is a bit spotty right now, I thought perhaps I should reintroduce the family. I daresay you don’t remember all of them.”

He flicked a glance about the room. “You have quite a number of children.”

“Yes. I have five.”

Chase had four brothers and one sister, but he wisely refrained from saying so. “That’s a large family indeed.”

She patted his arm. “Allow me to reintroduce them to you. This is Stephen, my elder son.” She gestured to a tall, slender young man who leaned on a pair of crutches.

The young man grinned widely as he nodded a greeting. He was very broad shouldered, his hands as large as ham hocks. Chase noted the halfling’s skin was as tanned as Harriet’s.

“And this,” Miss Ward continued, gesturing to her other son, “is Derrick. You met him earlier, in your room.”

“Of course,” Chase said, bowing.

Derrick glanced up from the book he’d been reading while leaning against a chair. He returned Chase’s slight bow, his gaze flickering over him a quick moment before he went back to his book.

“Derrick is something of a bookworm,” Mrs. Ward said by way of explanation. She gestured toward the two girls who were sitting side by side on the settee. “These are my younger daughters, Sophia and Ophelia.”

The two girls gleamed up at him, the more fair of the two even daring to simper a bit. Of all the Wards, Chase decided that Sophia and Stephen possessed the most conventionally accepted idea of beauty. With their golden brown hair and blue eyes, they would have been noticed at any function in London. The others were equally as attractive, though in a quieter way, like the intriguing Miss Harriet, who faded from view until roused to ire when she’d burst upon the senses like a scorching fire.

“Oh, Captain Frakenham!” Sophia bounced in her chair, her golden brown curls springing to life. “I’m so pleased to meet you! I mean—I’m glad to meet you again. We’ve known each other for oh, so long. In fact, I daresay you remember the time you and I—”