Page 39 of An Unwilling Earl
“Not that I was prying, but she seemed to rattle around for a bit before she settled down with a book.”
Jacob bounded up the steps to his private study, ignoring the fact that he was eager to see Charlotte and ask her about her day, ignoring that Armbruster would be smirking right about now if he could see Jacob, and definitely erasing the image of that pile of envelopes from his mind.
He found her sitting on the window seat in his study, leaning against the wall as she stared down onto the street, a book clutched to her chest. He stopped to watch the way the sunlight touched her short blond hair and skimmed across her face. She was wearing peach, a gown he’d never seen before but was almost certainly Cora’s because of the outdated style and the plethora of ribbons and lace.
Cora had also preferred that window seat. In fact, Jacob had it built for her because she liked to read by sunlight.
Charlotte turned her head and caught sight of him. “You snuck in,” she said.
“Not really. Did you keep yourself occupied today?”
She shrugged. “I suppose.”
“I apologize that I had to leave you to your own devices.”
“It’s not your job to entertain me.” She swung around to face him, her back to the window, and put the book she’d been clutching on the seat beside her. He saw it was one of his law books.
“I see you’re enjoying some light reading.”
“It was all I could find. I’ve been thinking…”
“Why does that sound ominous?”
She half-smiled. “There is a man I met in the rookery. He goes by Cotton, but I don’t know what his real name is. Probably best that I don’t.”
“Undoubtedly.” He was curious about this Cotton. He was curious about all of the people Charlotte had met in the rookery.
“At one point in his life Cotton had been a clerk. Excellent penmanship.”
“So he says?”
“So he says. But he makes a good living off… Well, he walks a fine line when it comes to the law.”
“He’s a forger?”
“One could call it that.”
“And what do you need from Mr. Cotton?” But he knew. They’d discussed it before. Except he hadn’t realized how far along she was with her plan.
“I’m going to ask him to create a new identity for me.”
Marry Miss Morris.
“You just got here,” he said, choosing his words carefully. “Give yourself some time to recover from living in the rookery.”
“Recover? You act like I’ve been struck with an illness.”
“That’s not what I meant. I used the wrong term.”
“I can’t stay here forever. I need to move on with my life, and you need to move on with yours.”
It seemed as if his life was moving on whether he wanted it to or not.
“You’re welcome here for as long as you need a safe place to stay. Have you given more thought to contacting the marquess? He would make a good ally.”
“I don’t need an ally, Lord Ashland. I need a new name and a way to get out of London to start a new life.”
“Do you think your problems will magically disappear when you board a ship to a distant country?”
