Arabella and the Beast Author:Rebecca Baldwin Arabella Ivers is not the sort of woman who turns down opportunities--she simply hasn't had very many. Having grown up with her father's drunken rampages, she has learned to be practical; unmarried at twenty-four, Arabella would like nothing more than to leave her chaotic home life behind. — Still, she is completely taken aback when... more », after a night of gambling and spirits, her father comes home with the infamous Viscount Blackwater, a man known for his brooding silences and vast appetite for liquor, who is called simply "Beast" by his drinking companions. According to Arabella's father, the Viscount Blackwater has won at cards and his payment, for lack of any coins, will be none other than Arabella herself.
Despite his somewhat scandalous past, Beast Blackwater is heir to a vast fortune--one he cannot claim without a suitable wife. Arabella considers her own humble lodgings, her ever demanding stepmother and sniveling stepsisters, and quickly decides to accept a marriage in name only with Blackwater.
She is quite surprised to discover that Beast Blackwater's vast, cavernous mansion sorely needs the touch of a capable viscountess. But the cure for Beast's grim countenance is more difficult to discover.« less