Page 46 of The Bachelor
“Hurt in the head, perhaps,” she shot back. “Because Berlin is landlocked, which makes it impossible for you to have fought a maritime engagement there. Prussia is an entire country, so that battle would have been sizable indeed.”
His lips twitched again. Clearly, he was fighting a smile. “And Constantinople? Are you claiming there wasn’t a Battle of Constantinople?”
“Not at all. But it took place over six hundred years ago. So unless you’ve found the secret to immortality, you couldn’t have fought in it. As Miss Clarke said, youarebamming us. I dare you to deny it.”
“And if I don’t? What shall you do then?” His eyes were twinkling now. “Court-martial me? Have me thrown in gaol?”
“I’ll have you thrown in the coat closet until you sober up,” Gwyn said. “Because only a man who’s foxed would tell such blatant lies.”
He laughed outright. “No one can fool you, can they, Lady Gwyn?”
“Not many can, I confess, and certainly no officers. I learned early on not to trust them. They tend to exaggerate.”
That seemed to sober him. Apparently, he’d caught on that she meant Lionel. Or rather Hazlehurst, who was serving as the substitute for the younger version of Lionel.
The two ladies looked disappointed. They’d swallowed every word of his tales, and now clearly felt foolish. Given that this whole thing had started when they’d rudely asked him about dancing, Gwyn wasn’t inclined to make things easier for them.
It wasn’t because she was jealous. Certainly not. They could have him. One of them might be more successful at capturing his heart. If he even possessed such a thing.
Fortunately, two gentlemen approached just then whowereinterested in dancing with Lady Hypatia and Miss Clarke. The ladies were more than happy to oblige, leaving Gwyn still standing with Joshua.
As soon as they were gone, she turned on him. “You are almost as incorrigible as Thorn! The Battle of Berlin indeed.” She shook her head. “I would never have thought it of you.”
With a shrug, he let the footman take his empty glass. “I had to get rid of them somehow. They wouldn’t leave. But I confess, I didn’t expect them to be quite so gullible.”
She planted her hands on her hips. “And why were you eager to escape them anyway? They were flirting with you. You’d think you’d find that flattering.”
He steadied his glittering gaze on her. “Trying to marry me off, are you, my lady? Are you and Beatrice working together now to arrange my future happiness?”
The supper room suddenly seemed far too quiet. “Not with either of those two. As you say, they aren’t very bright. You deserve someone more intelligent.” She forced herself to say the next words. “And there are plenty of clever women here. Women who’ve asked me about you.”
That seemed to catch him by surprise. “Who’s bamming whom now?”
“I mean it. They want to know if you’re eligible and why you look so serious and whether you intend to marry.” An acid note crept into her voice, try as she might to restrain it. “Oh, and they’re curious about why you keep watching me. They worry that it’s because you and I have an understanding.”
“And what did you tell them?”
“I told them that as the grandson of a duke you’re eminently eligible, that you look so serious because you’re a serious fellow, and that you only intend to marry if you find a woman who suits you.” Whichsheobviously did not.
“I meant,” he said sharply, “what did you tell them about our ‘understanding’?”
“Oh. The truth, of course. That we have none.”
He cocked one brow. “So how did you explain why I keep watching you?”
She fought to keep a straight face. “I told them you were madly in love with me . . . but it was unrequited, of course.”
“Of course,” he said coldly.
Irritated that he could believe she’d lie about such a thing, she decided to spin out the tale further just to see how long it took before he caught on. “I told them you are sure that if you follow me around like a lapdog, I will one day—Damn!”
“You will one day damn who?” he asked.
“That coxcomb coming our way. Sorry, but I need to escape. He hasn’t seen me yet.” She walked toward the far end of the supper room, where stood a set of French doors.
Joshua kept pace with her. “Wherever you go, I go. Especially if it’s outdoors, where it would be easier for Malet to snatch you.”
“Fine. But only if you don’t alert that coxcomb to where I’m headed. We can hide in the gardens until he tires of looking for me and returns to the ballroom.”
