Charity Girl by Georgette Heyer

Charity Girl is one of Heyers last novels, and it's a little like the Foundling, in that a lot of the story is about the hero helping a young girl. Ashley, Lord Desford, is visiting his father who is ill with gout. Lord Wroxton is in a temper -. He is annoyed that his eldest son shows no signs of settling down. Ashley has a fortune of his own, inherited from an aunt, so he is independent of his father and spends much of his time pursuing sports. Lord Wroxton reads a tirade over him, complaining that he could have married Hetta Silverdale, who lives nearby. Ashley responds that he is very fond of Hetta but they are good friends and not likely to fall in love. He is due to leave his father's house to pay a visit to his Aunt Sophronia... and before he leaves the neighbourhood, he visits Hetta at her home Inglehurst Place. He finds Hetta is entertaining a man. Mr Nethercott has inherited a nearby property, Marley House. Ashley thinks that he is a bit dull but talks to him civilly and then goes off on his visit. Lady Emborough has a large family and Ashley enjoys a stay with them. But he finds he is expected to visit a local landowner's house for a ball. The host is Sir Thomas Bugle, who has a very lovely daughter, Lucasta. Ashley is pleased to find that there is at least one pretty girl to admire at the party. He flirts with Lucasta.. but during the ball, he sees a young girl watching from upstairs. He goes up to speak to her, thinking she is one of the younger children, who wants to see the fun. He finds that she's actually 18, but very small. She is Cherry Steane, Lady Bugle's niece, and he discovers that she has been taken in by her aunt because her parents are dead. Lady Bugle has been treating her almost like a servant. He feels very sorry for her but is shocked the following day, to find her trudging along the road, with a suitcase.