The house was a flurry of chaos. Servants rushed back and forth: luggage in footmen’s arms and ladies’ hats and coats carried by the upstairs maids. The high ceilings of the entryway reverberated with the voices of the guests. Leo stepped out of the way, allowing Miss Leighton to rush over to a tall, striking man with a dark mustache and olive skin. Her father, he assumed, given the similarities of their features. Certainly foreign. It was no wonder she was such an exotic beauty.
“Hampton!” A loud voice cut across the merry din, and Leo was smacked soundly on the shoulder by Owen Hadley.
“Hadley, I’ve never been happier to see you.” The familiar face of his friend eased the tension in Leo’s shoulders. He would have one ally in the midst of this social fray.
Owen laughed. “Good of your m
