As the second son of the noble Bridgerton family, Benedict is the prince no one is waiting for. With his brother Anthony heading family affairs, there is little left for Benedict except struggle to find his own purpose in life.
He paints, but most of his works are unfinished. He attends social functions but has little interest in marriage. He seems to excel only in getting drunk in dubious establishments and then leaving them with women and men he’ll rarely see again after the next morning.
A ray of light is a mysterious lady Benedict meets at a masquerade ball. They share a magical night, but with no name and only her glove to go on, he fails to find her even after months of searching. While curing an injury at his countryside cottage, his housekeeper, Mrs. Crabtree, encourages him to maintain his pursuit rather than make eyes at the maid he invited to his cottage on a whim.
“If this lady is important to you, do not let her be like one of the projects in your study,” Mrs. Crabtree says, “something you are passionate about today but forget about tomorrow.” And then, in a way so gentle it’s as if the subject aren’t dues to be paid, she recommends: “You owe it to yourself to dedicate yourself to something.”
The great plot twist, of course, is that the maid sleeping in the guest room is the very lady Benedict seeks, but that will remain for both him and Mrs. Crabtree to find out later—if only he will pick up his quest upon his return to London.
It needn’t be art, you know? Or a person. It could be cooking, mathematics, or shining shoes. But life only truly blossoms when we don’t hold back, no matter how small our morsel of land.
Go ahead. Pick a hill, and dedicate yourself. Purpose will sneak into your guest room when you least expect it.
