Page 73 of Dangerous Games of a Broken Lady
“No, indeed. I am afraid that I have come to you with dire news.” Her voice trembled as she spoke. Reuben could not help but lick his lips, a predator stalking its prey. He was aware of the effect he had on women. In truth, he enjoyed the art of alarming them, for then they bent so easily to his will. Adelaide was the sole exception. She was far more fierce of spirit than that.
He turned his gaze into the fire. “News?”
“Yes, news regarding your future wife. Terrible news.”
“I have heard nothing.”
“No, you would not have for it has only occurred this very morning,” Miss Green went on. “Before I tell you what has happened, I must ask something of you. I know you shall want to hear what I have to tell, but it comes at a price.”
He shot her an icy look. “You would seek to swindle me? How do I know you are telling the truth? What is to stop me from going to my beloved Lady Adelaide this very moment and asking her what all of this is about?”
“Because she will not be honest with you,” she said simply. “I will, but it will come at a price, as I say.”
He chuckled to himself. “Who is the devil?”
“Pardon?”
“Who is the devil who has ruined you? Trouble is a powerful motivator, Miss Green, and I believe it is motivating your actions at this very moment.” He leveled his gaze at her. “So, why don’t you begin there, and I shall see if I am willing to aid you. I am not an unreasonable man, and I do so enjoy a tale of debauchery.”
She looked shocked. “I only came to tell you about Lady Adelaide.”
“We shall get to that anon. For now, I want to hear your tale of woe, for I imagine the two stories interweave,” he insisted. “I shall give you fifty pounds for your troubles, and another twenty for your news of Lady Adelaide. How does that sound? Will that satisfy your lust for security?”
She paused for a moment. “Yes, that would be most agreeable.”
“Excellent, then you may begin. Leave nothing out, for I am not the sort of man you ought to be shy in front of. There is nothing you have done that I have not heard or done myself, tenfold.” He sat back in his armchair and folded his hands in his lap. A grin tugged at the corners of his lips. He knew a ruined woman when he saw one; they always had a glimmer of desperation in their eyes. Right now, it was rife in Miss Green’s gaze.
He watched her visibly gather herself. She was rattled by his cavalier attitude, as most young ladies were. He could see that she did not want to tell him the truth of her situation, but security was also a potent motivator. She would tell him everything…they always did.
“I began a courtship with Lord Alastair McGillivray,” she began tentatively. “We met here in London, and he invited me to stay with his sister at their family estate in Scotland. You may not know this, but I was also pursuing the courtship of Lord Gillett, Lady Adelaide’s friend.”
“My, my, haven’t you been the busy little bee?” Reuben chuckled, already enjoying himself immensely.
She blushed. “A lady has to do what she can to secure a place for herself in this world, Your Grace. I merely pursued several options, in the hopes that one would conclude the way I wanted it to. I am no fortune hunter, but I am not averse to chasing security,” she said stiffly. “As it turned out, Lord McGillivray was the safer choice. At least, that is what I thought. I accepted his invitation and traveled to Scotland.”
“Were his grounds splendid? Did you see yourself as the lady of the manor?” he teased.
“They were, and I did,” she replied defiantly. “He gave me every inclination that he was going to propose. Had it not been for his meddlesome mother, I believe he would have. In order to solidify my position in his heart, I…did several things that I am not proud of. However, believing that he would become my husband, I did not feel that my actions were ungodly. To me, we were already wed.”
Reuben grinned. “Let me guess, he changed his mind once he had taken what he pleased from you?”
“Actually, he did not. It was several days before things began to alter between us. I have a feeling his mother knew what was going on and urged him to cast me from the house before I could trap him into marriage. I was not suitable, by her standards,” she explained bitterly. “He did as she asked, leaving me in a troubling state of affairs. I immediately sought to rekindle my affections with Lord Gillet, believing I could garner his proposal before anything…unfortunate could happen.”
“A child?”
She shrugged. “It is too early to say, but I must protect myself against any eventuality. I thought to seek Lord Gillet’s forgiveness for abandoning him in a rather cruel manner, and I wrote to enlist Lady Adelaide’s help in the endeavor. As my friend, I was certain she would help me.”
“She did not?”
“Oh, far worse, Your Grace.” Miss Green lifted her gaze, a hardness shining in her eyes. “She sought to have Lord Gillet for herself. I went to her house to speak with her, to urge her to assist me. When I happened upon her in the gardens, she was in the midst of an emotional discussion with Lord Gillet. They were confessing their love to one another.”
Reuben froze. “What did you say?”
“Lord Gillet confessed his love for Lady Adelaide, and she confessed hers in return,” she said. “It would seem that you have been fooled, Your Grace. It would not surprise me if Lady Adelaide had planned this all along. She has entranced him—she is a spiteful vixen, who has sought to replace me in Lord Gillet’s heart. And he has fallen for it, the pathetic ingrate.”
“This cannot be so,” Reuben muttered.
“Well, it is. I heard it with my own ears.”
