Page 20 of An Unbending Lady for the Desperate Earl
Ugh… I am becoming one of those fawning saps, who can scent wealth at forty paces.Determined not to allow her mind to become any more befuddled, she sank back in the armchair and downed what remained of her brandy. It warmed her belly and burned the back of her throat, but she didn’t mind the latter, for she knew the liquid would bring her courage in the trials to come.
Her head whipped around at the sound of cartwheels approaching the terraced house where her mother lived. Out the parlor window, the shadow of a hackney carriage appeared. Her heart leapt into her throat, quite against her will.
Would you behave!she scolded herself, feeling even more foolish for having such an instantaneous reaction to the mere sound of Lord Galbury’s arrival. Yes, he may have been the most handsome gentleman she had ever beheld, and, yes, he may have been nothing but kind and generous toward her, despite her own rudeness toward him, but she would not become infatuated. Even if he had proven himself to be her intellectual equal, which she found more appealing than anything his fine features could offer.
A knock came at the front door, echoing through the house. Victoria sat frozen in her chair, unable to move.
Betty eyed her curiously. “Are you not going to answer the door, Victoria?”
“Of course,” Victoria replied, a jot too fast. “I had… uh… merely tangled my legs in my skirts.”
“Hmm. Is that right?” Betty laughed softly, evidently understanding that there was more to Victoria’s hesitation.
With her cheeks burning, Victoria got up awkwardly and went to the door, opening it with a wrench so violent it almost twisted her arm out of joint. A gasp escaped her lips as she beheld Lord Galbury, standing on the street, dressed so elegantly that he might have walked out of the pages of one of those novels that Victoria assumed silly ladies liked to read. Not her, of course, who stuck to science and history tomes that came with their own blanket of dust and prompted sneezing fits whenever she turned a leaf.
“Victoria.” Lord Galbury looked equally astonished, his eyes as wide as saucers.
“I look ridiculous, I know,” she said swiftly.
Lord Galbury shook his head. “On the contrary, Victoria. You look… well, you look remarkable. I have never seen you look so… um… radiant before.”
“You mean I’m perspiring? Well, wouldn’t you, if you were wearing about fifty layers of garments for the sake of supposed prettiness?” She smoothed down the front of her skirt, unable to look him in the eye.
“That is not what I meant, Victoria.” Lord Galbury smiled, his eyes twinkling. “You really do look radiant. You are always impeccably presented, and, I confess, I shall keenly feel the absence of that cloak you always wear, but this suits you well. Very well, indeed.”
Victoria arched an eyebrow. “I am sure you rehearsed that on your journey here.”
Lord Galbury burst into laughter. “I can see you never learned how to accept a well-intended compliment, but then, you wouldn’t be you if you had.”
“You believe you know me?” Victoria replied, with a note of sarcasm.
“Goodness no, but I am beginning to.” The smile did not leave his lips, making Victoria feel rather queer, in a surprisingly pleasant way.
“And that is why you think you may tease me, regarding my cloak?” She didn’t intend to let him off the hook so easily, regardless of how his smile made her stomach flutter.
“Not at all. I am exceedingly fond of that cloak, as I have come to know it as the uniform of one of the finest investigators in all of London. If notthefinest.”
Victoria snorted. “More jests, My Lord?”
He paused, his expression turning serious. “I have yet to jest this evening, Victoria. I mean what I say. I would not be here, aiding you, if I did not believe that were true, with regards to you being the finest investigator in this city. Or that you do, indeed, look splendid. Or that I am very fond of your cloak.”
She didn’t know what to say. Not for the first time, he had left her somewhat speechless with his sincerity and his quick mind. Fortunately, her mother came to her aid, before she could make a complete idiot of herself.
“Will you not invite the gentleman in, Victoria?”
“There is no time, Mama,” she replied.
“Is this your mother?” Lord Galbury peered over Victoria’s shoulder, and into the parlor. Betty rose from her chair and came to greet the newcomer, where Lord Galbury duly took her hand and placed a delicate kiss upon it that made Victoria feel alarmingly envious.
“We haven’t had the pleasure, and Victoria has told me little of where she is going this evening,” Betty said, adding to Victoria’s squirming.
Lord Galbury let go of Betty’s hand. “I am Christian, Earl of Galbury. Your daughter and I will be attending a ball this evening, pertaining to a case that we are both undertaking. I assure you that I will take the utmost care of her and ensure that no harm comes to her while she is at my side.”
“And if she leaves your side? She has a habit of wandering as she pleases,” Betty teased, as Victoria urged the ground to swallow her whole.
Lord Galbury chuckled. “I intend to keep her within my reach at all times, Mrs. McCarthy. I will not let her out of my sight, so that you may rest easy, knowing she is safe.”
“I will be the one keepingyousafe,” Victoria remarked, under her breath.
