Page 10 of The Mysterious Miss Lydia
Not if it meant incurring the wrath of the great Earl of Langley.
Richard sighed. “If there truly is something nefarious going on, you’ll have to trust Sir Cedric and your replacement to address it.”
A muscle in Luke’s jaw twitched at the mention of his replacement. “After all these years, to be replaced by that upstart, Wendell.” He fairly sneered the name.
Richard cleared his throat. “Eh hem. May I remind you that just because not all of us are Earl’s sons—”
“Oh don’t start with that,” he said. But both men were grinning.
It had been a private joke since they were children that Luke must be a snob. But the opposite was true and they both knew it. He had no love of the lords and ladies of theton, with their endless balls and their matchmaking.
That’s all anyone seemed to care about these days. Who he would marry. When he would start a family.
No one cared a whit when he hadn’t been the heir, but now his mother, his father, and all of good society, it seemed, were intent on keeping him out of danger and in a state of extreme boredom.
Luke caught a glimpse of red hair, and this time the sight had his lips twitching with amusement. If she was indeed attempting to eavesdrop, she wasn’t a terribly accomplished spy. PerhapsRichard was right and she was just a lovely young lady taking a gander at the new eligible viscount.
“No one can blame you for not wanting to shirk your responsibilities to your former colleagues,” Richard was saying. “And if you’re really so certain that someone close to you or Sir Cedric is leaking information then you ought to follow up on it.”
Luke opened his mouth, but Richard held him off with a raised finger. “Not at the Home Office,” he added meaningfully. “There’s no need to rile your father’s anger, is there?”
Luke sighed. He didn’t care much about his father’s moods, but if his father was angry then his mother would worry.
And Luke would never hear the end of it.
“You’ll see Sir Cedric at his home next week, won’t you?” Richard pointed out.
Luke nodded. “His family is hosting a masquerade and I was invited...as well as my parents.”
Once more, he couldn’t quite hide his disdain and Richard chuckled. “Not an ideal place to speak about such matters, but it’ll do, won’t it?”
“Mmm.”
Richard clapped a hand on his shoulder before turning away. “I’ve got to get going. I’m hosting a salon for men and ladies interested in the latest developments in the field of chemistry.”
“Fascinating,” he murmured sardonically.
“Yes, well...” Richard smirked. “We can’t all be dashing spies, now can we?”
Luke chuckled as Richard walked off. He ought to do the same, but he lingered a moment, his gaze on the tree before him. Sure enough, she popped out again, like a cute little mouse poking its head out of a hole.
He approached slowly and quietly, and he stepped around the tree just as she was making to leave her hiding spot.
She stopped with a gasp and then a squeak. Slightly melodramatic considering he’d stopped a good two feet away from her.
But goodness... This close he realized she wasn’t just pretty. She was exquisite. Her eyes were a brilliant green, her skin creamy but for a scattering of freckles. Her eyebrows had an elegant arch and her cheekbones were high and defined. And those lush, pink lips...
Well, they were parted in surprise.
And he suddenly felt like a cad, cornering a sweet young lady like this. “Are you alone?” he asked. With a cursory glance, he didn’t see anyone who looked like a chaperone. That made him frown and he stepped toward her, but she stiffened.
He smiled, hoping it would put the lady at ease.
If anything, it seemed to make her...ill. She grew so pale he moved closer still lest she swoon.
She looked like a deer caught in a hunter’s crosshairs. She looked...
Guilty.
