Page 2 of Boxing With My Duke
“What is it, Adams?”
“Your Grace, I apologize for the intrusion. But a lady has breached the entrance and is running through the place opening rooms, demanding to see her brother.”
Carlton rolled his eyes and looked at the ceiling. “A lady? Who is her brother?”
“The Earl of Landon. She believes he is being entertained by one of our staff—upstairs.” The footman emphasized the word and looked beseechingly at his boss. “Your Grace, she claims the young lord is possessed by a she-devil who has bewitched him into marriage and is concerned about her mother’s wellbeing, should she find out.”
“A she-devil? Where is Roberts, the manager?”
“He stepped away to the bank, Your Grace,” Adams replied.
Carlton turned to Damon. “I’m sorry. We’ll have to continue this later. I have a fire to douse.”
“Ah! No problem, my friend. The lovely Lady Catherine Campbell has breached your club’s defenses, and you have a possible bewitching. Your hands are full,” Damon said, his eyes twinkling with mirth. “I should get home before my children come up with ideas on how to entertain themselves. For the moment, I think the frogs are safe. But once they hear a new governess is coming, anything is possible.
“Give Mandy and Michael my love and tell them Uncle Carlton will see them soon.”
Carlton grabbed his jacket and left the room with his footman, and made his way to the front entrance.
“Why would she think her brother is on the third floor? Does he have an apartment?” he asked Adams as they searched the main floor.
“I’m unsure if he has one of the apartments. Lady Campbell ranted about the third floor and the illicit activities she’s heard take place in clubs such as ours.”
Lord Landon was a newly minted earl. Carlton recalled hearing Lady Landon was having a rough time with the loss of her husband, having lost her eldest son and heir only a year and a half prior. At least it gave him some understanding of the emotions involved with Landon’s sister.
“I don’t recall having met his sister. Their father died not quite a year ago. I’m beginning to get the picture,” Carlton murmured.
“I’ll cover the second and third floors. You cover this floor, and make sure you cover the kitchen.” Carlton started to leave and turned back to Adams. “Did Lady Campbell name the employee she thinks is the she-devil?”
“Serafina.”
“My Serafina?” he asked, stopping in his tracks. “That’s absurd.” Carlton had treated Serafina Davies much like a younger sister and saw her as his ward. As the daughter of a vicar, she had grown up with an education, but her parents perished in a fire at the vicarage when she was twelve. Serafina was shuffled among relatives until she finally ran away at the age of fourteen from the home of her father’s distant cousin, who treated her like a servant. The last straw was when he tried to grab and kiss her. Serafina had met Carlton’s uncle in town once, and he had been very kind to her.
Remembering his uncle’s kindness, Serafina found her way to his doorstep three years ago, looking for a job. His housekeeper, who had no children of her own, took an immediate liking to her and encouraged Carlton’s uncle to help her. Following his uncle’s wishes, she became his ward. Carlton never told a soul when he found Serafina’s cousin and beat him to a pulp for what he tried to do to her.
Presently, she lived under his roof, as his ward, and under his protection, but also under the guidance of his housekeeper, who looked at the young woman like a daughter. Serafina asked to work, and after much discussion, he compromised and gave her access to his club books. She helped with accounting and bookkeeping—a position designed to keep her presence unseen and unknown. He had just received word she would start the Judith Allen School for Young Ladies in January. His mother had pulled some strings to get her accepted and seemed excited about the prospect. So…how did Serafina meet Landon?
The woman is mad. “Serafina would never flee with a member.” Would she? His mind screamed no, but there were questions. Niggling doubt wedged itself in his thoughts as he struggled to remember something—something he had asked Serafina to do for Lord Landon.
With cold certainty, he recalled having asked her to sit with the young lord and transfer his father’s account assets into his name. It was something he normally did, but for reasons he couldn’t recall, he asked Serafina to handle it. But how did Lady Catherine Campbell know her?
“Adams, find out where Serafina is. Leave no stone unturned. I want her in my office in ten minutes. If you don’t find her, report back to me.”
“Yes, Your Grace. I’ll find her.”
Taking the stairs two by two, Carlton reached the second floor and frantically looked everywhere. The floor housed common areas for the members, but they were all quiet. Exasperated, he climbed to the third floor, where members’ private rooms and suites were located. Normally, the doors were locked. But on the off chance one had escaped the cleaning crew’s notice and was left open, he’d check. Going room by room, he tested the knobs. As he approached the last one, the door burst open, and a woman bumped into him. He caught her to keep her from toppling the two of them.
“Who are you, sir?” she demanded.
“I believe the question is, who are you, and why are you going into my club members’ private rooms?” Carlton asked.
“You never answered my question,” she snapped. “I am Lady Campbell, and my brother is the Earl of Landon.” She paused for emphasis. “He should be here, but I cannot find him.”
“I am the Duke of Richmond, and you, dear lady, are running through my club. And this,” he waved his hands, “is a private floor.” Carlton returned, not bothering to mask his irritation.
“A lightskirts’ dream, no doubt,” she snorted, placing her hands on her hips. “Where are you hiding him? I demand you take me to him.”
Carlton caught his breath. The woman was beautiful—and to his liking, she was taller than the average woman, with chocolate brown hair, blue eyes, and curves in all the right places. Not only could he see, but he felt every delicious curve when he bumped into her. Carlton had refused to court a too-small woman who he would crush in bed. A smile rose to his lips. “Your brother doesn’t maintain a room here. If you cannot find him, perhaps he is not on the premises.”
