Susanna Ward is a governess.
James Gilbert is an agent for the British War Office.
The time period for these two adventures is just a few years into the 1800s.
Growing up young Ward had known a very pleasant life financed by her father's monies but unfortunately as she would learn immediately after his death three years before, he owed considerably more than she thought and all the niceties that she was used to went to settle those debts. She was "left penniless and quite alone in the world". As she would soon discover, "there was as yet only one possibility of employment for an educated lady of genteel birth" - being a governess. She has been trying this for a while when we first encounter her but she has discovered the hard way that she was "too young and attractive to be considered as a prospective governess by most families. Too many woman had husbands whose roving eyes might stray to a pretty girl living under their roof", not to mention older sons.
She is described as having a "vivid, heart-shaped face" topped with hair of "an unusual shade of red-gold", "cut short in the fashion of the day, curled in ringlets over her forehead. She had wide, iris-blue eyes set un quizzically arched brows and clear, milky-white skin". Her age is roughly 20 years old.
Gilbert, whom we are introduced to first as Captain Clark and immediately put on suspect for not being who he pretended to be or being exactly that which might be just as bad, is in fact the Third Earl of Ravenwood and thus should be addressed as "Lord". By the time Ward learns of his true identity and how she should have been addressing him, objects by telling him she will "call you James". He is wise enough not to argue with the piqued young lady.
After some time, Gilbert will let Ward know that he is rather well positioned in life, having "an estate in the North" but being a man who "could never settle down to a quiet life of a country squire", he chose to leave his lands in ....
and become an agent of the Crown with the outbreak of war with France. Since that time he has worked in France and Spain and Egype - "wherever the battles are being fought and intelligence is needed".
Together they will make a pretty good team.
Good Lines:
- Said by Ward to Gilbert, "I can practically see the thoughts and speculations leaking out your ears!"