Page 24 of The Danger of Desire
Wait, that was highly unlikely. “You couldn’t possibly have seen my derriere. I was seated the whole time you were there.”
“Not the whole time, trust me. And all it would take is your bending over once to pick something up—”
“I don’t bend over. Women never do.”
“Exactly. So don’t you think someone would notice if you performed the usual ladylike dip to pick something up? Or any number of other feminine actions you take for granted?”
She swallowed. “No one’s noticed heretofore.”
“It’s only a matter of time. It took me little enough effort to follow you and Owen on foot to the gaming hell—”
“Follow us! Youfollowedus?” Her heart pounded. Sothat’swhen he’d seen her derriere in tight trousers.
And she’d thought she was being so clever by escaping last night. But he’d known exactly where she was going. He could have found her then, if he’d chosen. “If you knew where I lived, why didn’t you demand to see my aunt last night and expose me?”
“Before I did anything drastic, I wanted to give you a chance to stop your dangerous activities. I have no desire to get you into trouble with your relations.” His gaze hardened. “But I will, if that is what’s necessary to make you stop taking these risks.”
Ooh, he could be so infuriating, him and his marquess high-handedness! “I am managing the risks perfectly well.” She tipped up her chin. “I’ve been going nearly every night for a month and not a soul has guessed I’m a woman. Men only see what they want, and they assume that no woman could ever be as good at cards as I am.”
She wasn’t boasting about her abilities. It was a fact that even Reynold had acknowledged.
“Youaregood—I’ll give you that. But you’re not managing the risks as well as you assume. Don’t you think people have noticed your ducking out to confer with Owen at balls, the private notes shared between you, your tiredness—”
“Oh, Lord, I knew it!” she said as awareness dawned. “Lady Clarissa put you up to this, didn’t she? She keeps prying. But this takes the cake—setting her cousin to spy on me!”
He thrust his jaw out defensively. “Not spy. Observe.” When she snorted, he added, “And everything I’ve seen tells me she was right to be concerned. This masquerade of yours is mad.”
“Why? Because I’m winning money from lords who think they’re better than everyone else?”
His dark gaze narrowed on her. “Is that what this is about? Money?”
She caught her breath. She didn’t dare tell him the truth, since she still had no idea who her quarry was. For all she knew, the tattooed nobleman could be Lord Knightford’s close friend or relation.
So she would have to give him the answer he expected. “Of course it’s about money. I need enough to forestall the foreclosure of Camden Hall before we’re all tossed out. I’ve put away quite a bit of blunt already.”
“I can’t imagine you’ve put away enough to forestall foreclosure of an estate of any size.”
He was right, but she couldn’t say that, since her hopes were set on a different source of funds entirely. “It’s not enough yet, but if I can have a couple more weeks in London—”
“What about your suitor, the rich farmer, Owenouse?” he said sarcastically. “Can’t he take care of all of you once you marry?”
His knowing look scraped her nerves. “All right, I admit that was a rather... clumsy lie.” Turning on her heel, she stalked down the path.
He fell into step beside her with an easy stride that reminded her of a fine Thoroughbred’s. Or a tiger on the prowl. Honestly, he was too unnerving to bear. Men rarely unsettled her, so how did he always manage to do it? It galled her.
So she lashed out. “You can be terribly annoying sometimes, you know, meddling in other people’s business.”
“And you can be terribly stupid.” When she shot him a black look, he caught her arm to halt her. “I have it on good authority that you’ve turned down some perfectly eligible, respectable suitors. Why on earth would you do that when marriage is the easiest way to settle your future for good?”
She tugged her arm from his. “My future isn’t the only one at stake. SinceIdo not inherit Camden Hall, any man I marry would have no incentive to save it, or to support my sister-in-law and her child. So while marriage might saveme, it won’t save the rest of my family or their proper inheritance.”
“Fine. If your sister-in-law is the one whose son will inherit the property, then helpherfind a rich husband. I hear she’s pretty enough to land one.”
“That’s precisely what I’m trying to avoid! As soon as Brilliana is out of mourning, she means to marry the first wealthy man who offers for her, the first one willing to pay off the debt and save the estate. And I can’t let her do that.”
“Why, for God’s sake? That would solve everything.”
“Only if she can find one soon enough. How probable is that for a destitute widow with a son? So my only choice is to go on as I have.”
