Page 132 of Enemies with an Earl
Sam shook his head. “Already handled. My late brother, the one who just passed, secured a pardon for me. His…apology of sorts for what my family had done to me.”
Ryker made a disparaging scoff. “Like that washes the blood off his hands.His own brother.”
“It doesn’t,” Kozington cut in. “But it sure does make our work a damn sight easier. Now, Bentley has already put into motion smoothing the path of Dalreoch’s return. Rumors and the past will surface, but to be frank, it was so long ago, I don’t see why we can’t cast your family as the true villains. Especially if word of your brother securing the pardon…conveniently finds its way into circulation. That, in itself, is practically an admission of guilt on the family’s behalf.”
Rutledge nodded while he paced the length of the back of the study. “Kozington is exactly correct. You have the association of many powerful peers who vouch for your reputation. We can make it clear that anyone who decides to speak against you will face all of us.” He paused and scanned the room. “That’s two dukes, two marquesses, and two earls.”
“Don’t forget the dowager,” Dunmore added. “She’ll take one look at Dalreoch and champion him as if he were her own. It’s like looking at Ironcrest ten years from now, just without the ugly scar.”
Ironcrest grunted his agreement. “Grandmother loves men who are a seemingly lost cause. And the ton is deathly afraid of her.”
“As are we,” Dunmore added.
“Touche,” Ironcrest murmured.
“Even so,” Felix said, stepping forward, all attention landing on him. “Things most likely will become…messy. We all know rumors can do irreparable damage. We can combat them, yes, but they’re still out in the world for everyone to hear.” He glanced at Sam nervously. “Which was why I had come up with a list of marriage prospects for Dalreoch.”
“Unless…” Ryker said, his eyes gleaming with something dark and hungry. “Anyone who dares speak against Dalreoch finds themselves…” He rolled his neck with deliberate slowness, lips pursed in mock contemplation. “…embroiled in far nastier allegations. The kind that ruins lives. Ends them.”
Sam leaned close to Felix and whispered, “I’m fifteen stone and six-foot-four, andthatright thereis the most terrifying thing I’ve ever seen.”
Ryker’s lips curled. “Why, thank you, Dalreoch. One doesn’t become King of the Underworld without a little blood on his hands.” His tone turned cold, deadly serious. “I mean it. I have eyes and ears in every drawing room, every alley, every club, and whorehouse. If I so much as catch a whisper. The source will be…eliminated.”
“Metaphorically,” Felix said sternly, arching a warning brow.
Ryker rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes—metaphorically. Honestly, you lot take away all my fun.”
But even as Ryker’s declaration had spurred a bout of nerves—because it was impossible to know what the man would or wouldn’t do—it also surrounded Felix with a soft comfort. Ryker was a powerful man, a man feared, and Felix and Sam had him in their corner.
Ryker’s infamous reputation as a cutthroat was a large reason Felix had recruited Ryker as a third partner inThe Harborage. He had wanted to create safe spaces for men like him, ones that wouldn’t be subject to raids like the one he’d fallen victim to. Ryker oversaw every one of those spaces forThe Harborage. There had only been one raid in that time. And every single individual had been whisked away to safety, tucked out of reach before the law could sink its teeth in.
Rutledge stepped forward, bringing the meeting back on course. “All right. Royal pardon handled. Gossips will face our wrath if they surface. We paint Dalreoch’s family as the villains if needed.” His brown gaze met Felix’s. “That leaves your and Dalreoch’s relationship.”
Sam rubbed his hands together next to Felix. “That’s the tricky part. Before, as his valet, it was easy to hide. Two peers always under scrutiny? Especially one with a mysterious past, one that comes with a sodomy conviction…”
“We simply need to create reasons for you two to be seen together,” one of the Kozington twins said. “Shared interests in Parliament, for example. It’s only natural you’ll be in one another’s company if that were the case.”
“It already works in your favor that your relationship with Devonford has been made known, dating back to your days at Eton. With him married to Bentley’s sister, there’s another connection right there,” Lord Kozington added.
“This is madness,” Felix said in disbelief, his thoughts reeling. They were making it sound so…possible. His lungs stuttered. God, could this actually work? “What we’re planning, it’s just not done.”
Koz cocked an eyebrow, his hazel gaze boring into Felix’s. “That you know of. The world loves to focus on the dramatic and the terrible. It is only ever the bad that is documented. We know firsthand from the molly housesThe Harborageruns, from the highly frequented cruising grounds, from the number of men we’ve assisted,that there are so many others out there like us. What makes you so certain there aren’t other peers living happily, quietly together?”
That sank into Felix, like an anchor of realization dropped upon him. If they only focused on the persecution, on the punishment of those convicted of sodomy, then of course all anyone would see was the horrors of being a sodomite. But that wasn’t the life the vast majority of others like them lived. That was what should be focused on: the joy, not the prejudice; the allies, not the condemners.
“I don’t see why anyone would question if you develop a close friendship,” Dunmore interjected. “Half the ton knows Ironcrest and I used to share women, and they never blinked twice.”
Rutledge stared incredulously at his friend. “You do realizeeveryonewhispered about that. You two are notorious.”
Dunmore waved that away. “Yes, but what came from it? Nothing. That’s my point. I guarantee Lady Camoys will be more than happy to spread rumors of Dalreoch’s prowess if asked. She’s best friends with Bentley’s sister. And we all know the Bentley family’s reputation is spotless. Can you imagine someone making that accusation toward Bentley? They’d be made a laughingstock.”
“And we’d be the first to laugh at them,” Ironcrest added.
Felix nodded dazedly. Sam inched closer, thigh to thigh, hip to hip, shoulder to shoulder, offering silent support.
“I’ll be under a watchful eye for a while,” Sam said, eyes not leaving Felix’s. “I’ll—we’ll—have to be extremely careful with how we execute this.”I won’t risk your safety, your reputation.
Sam didn’t need to say the words. Felix knew the man staring down at him would always put him first. He pressed his lips tight, as if he could hold back the tide of emotions threatening to spill over. It had been a very long time since Felix had come before anyone, not even just first. As the head of his family, he stood alone. There was no one to put Felix first. He was the last stop. Until Sam.
