Page 13 of A Lady's Wicked Revenge
As Colin had well learned over the past several years, this made for parties at which everyone was as ambitious as they were hungry, though their ambitions tended to manifest in what he found a particularly uninteresting way. Still, eager as ever to do his familiar duty as the stepson of the host, as Colin walked, he made sure to scan the room for any guests who needed to be greeted, directing a nearby servant to collect Lady Westermont’s unseasonable cloak and hang it somewhere secure.
Adam was quick to pull Colin back into conversation with himself, as ever. Having somehow procured a glass of wine and finished it without leaving Colin’s side, Adam poked his friend in the ribs with a finger to reclaim his attention. “I know you’re dying to ask, Mullens, and yes, this hat is genuine beaver, and no, I can’t tell you where I got it.”
“Thinking of your friends, Radcliffe, as always.”
“I count all of God’s creatures as my friends, Mullens. Except the beaver, I suppose. Filthy beasts, you know.”
As they walked, Colin could not help smiling at his lifelong friend Adam’s continued inability to still his tongue. The two had been all but inseparable since they were boys, and as they had grown into manhood, so too had their mischief. And as Adam had been one of their group of rowdy young bachelors who had not been able to attend Colin’s recent excursion to Spain, Colin was bursting with colourful anecdotes of his exploits he had been looking forward to sharing with Adam for weeks.
He was just wondering whether there was any chance his stepfather had forgotten that Adam was responsible for defacing a beloved family portrait during the last dinner party Colin had invited him to when he noticed Adam had frozen mid-step.
“Magnificent. I say, Mullens,” said Adam as if in a daze, tapping Colin on the shoulder. “You didn’t tell me you’d brought a bird of paradise back from Spain with you.”
Colin followed Adam’s gaze and nearly burst out laughing when he saw the object of his friend’s admiration. Just inside the salon with the rest of the dinner party guests, gamely making conversation with Lord Westermont, was Diana Hann. She looked quite lovely in her lilac-coloured gown and meticulously arranged golden hair, but even from here Colin could feel the familiar fire of anger burning bright within the young lady.
“Most generous of you to retrieve a souvenir of your travels for me,” Adam quipped, straightening his tie. “I think I’ll just go and sign my name on her for safekeeping, shall I?”
Colin caught his friend by the collar before he could make it more than a single pace in Diana’s direction, rolling his eyes. “I think you need a bit of explanation more than a drink. Come on.”
Adam shot him a hurt look. “If I don’t need a drink, then there’s no more need to raid your stepfather’s wine cellar. Why not join the party straightaway?”
“BecauseIneed a drink now.”
With that, Colin led his reluctant friend down the corridor, away from the mingling dinner party guests in the grand salon of the household to a small study at the end of the hall. Withdrawing a snifter of brandy and a pair of glasses from the breakfront, Colin poured them each a generous serving, and they sat in the low chairs by the window. The friends raised their glasses to one another … and that was as long as the peace lasted before being broken once more by Adam Radcliffe.
“I didn’t realise they grew them like that in Spain,” said Adam after slugging down half the glass in one mighty swallow. “She does speak English, though, doesn’t she? Never mind, I’m sure we’ll find a way to make ourselves understood. Or I will, at least. I’m a clever lad, they say.”
“She’s not from Spain, you dolt.” Colin laughed, shaking his head at the absurdity of this sudden infatuation.
His friend shot him a look of exaggerated surprise. “You don’t mean to tell me she’s one of your conquests, then? And you’ve somehow kept her from me? I’m hurt at your mistrust, Mullens! It was a wise choice, of course, but it still smarts.”
“She isn’tmineeither, Radcliffe. Not all of us are as single-minded as you.”
“No one is as single-minded as me.” Adam smacked his lips thoughtfully. “Surely she isn’t one of your mother’s friends, then? Well, she wouldn’t be the first older woman I’ve wooed. And she is remarkably well preserved for a matron. I think I can summon the fortitude to—”
“Radcliffe, for God’s sake, listen to me!” Colin snapped, still chuckling. Adam set down his glass and assumed a posture of careful studiousness, fingers folded beneath his chin; the sight was ludicrous enough that Colin needed a moment to catch his breath and collect suitable words for the task.
“Her name is Diana Hann, Adam. Does that name mean anything to you, perchance?”
“Can’t say. Doesn’t sound nearly scandalous enough for me to have taken an interest. Hann, you say?” Colin nodded, and Adam rubbed his chin in thought. After a moment, he jumped to his feet, snapping his fingers in recognition. “I say, isn’t she that heiress to the rich man who was killed in a carriage accident?”
“That was her father,” said Colin, suddenly feeling the humour drained from the situation. “Her mother died in the same crash.”
“Why, that’s wonderful!”
Colin shot Adam a savage look.
“Don’t get me wrong, I mean that’s terrible, of course, my condolences and all that. But Mullens, you mean to tell me she’s not only beautiful and rich, but she’s an orphan as well?” Adam barked with laughter. “Come on, old man, could you ever wish for a more promising prospect than that?”
“She’s not precisely an orphan,” said Colin, looking down into his glass of brandy. “She still has a living uncle who has been named her guardian—my stepfather, Sir James Leeson.”
Adam’s orange-coloured eyebrows rose nearly to his hairline at this. Colin gave a rueful smile and, seeing that he finally had his friend’s attention, leaned forward and explained the whole scenario. Over a quarter of an hour, he gave every detail he could recall about Diana’s history, Sir James’ intentions for her, and how he expected things to proceed over the coming days.
He was surprised to find himself lingering so on recounting Diana’s temper, with words like ‘passion’ and ‘amazon’ escaping his lips unironically. As he completed this soliloquy, Colin found himself growing louder and more animated, though he was unsure why he suddenly felt so anxious on behalf of this strange comely houseguest.
All the air seemed to come out of Adam as Colin spoke. Finally, he sat back down in his chair and took a dour sip of his brandy. “It all does sound a bit grim when you put it like that.”
Colin blinked. “I … suppose it does.” For a moment, the two sat in silence in the library, with not a sound but the distant hubbub of the dinner party and the tick-tick-tick of an old grandfather clock.
