Page 37 of The Rogue's Last Scandal
“I think not,” he said.
A member he didn’t know seated himself at the next table, twitching his chair so that one ear was turned their way. Dark hair and a well-tailored dark coat.
He was obviously preparing to eavesdrop.
“I say, Pender,” Charley said, too loudly, “will you still insist that Cribb was a better pugilist than Spring?”
The fellow turned full around. “Penderbrook, is it you?” He stood.
A tall athletic body stretched under a lean face with a hawk nose planted between two small dark eyes. A flamboyant gold waistcoat caught the light from the nearest sconce, a contrast to the rest of his darkness.
Penderbrook nodded cordially, his jaw tightening. “Payne-Elsdon,” he said.
“Fancy seeing you so soon after that card game at—”
“Yes, yes,” Charley interrupted, tossing back some wine and signaling the waiter. “Let’s make short work of the introductions and I’ll get on to my third drink. I’m Charles Everly.”
“Pleased to meet you. I have heard you are blessed with the attentions of a golden-haired angel.”
Indeed.
The fellow put his hand on a back of a chair preparing to draw it out and join them.
“This is Major Payne-Elsdon,” Penderbrook said. Then he put his attention to gulping the rest of his wine. Though as pale as his face was, it might come back up.
“Major.” Charley beamed a smile. “We’d invite you to join us but I’m delving into Penderbrook’s expertise for an upcoming wager. Height of secrecy, and all that.”
Penderbrook failed to smile. Instead his face paled even more.
Payne-Elsdon’s lip curled up. “Maybe you’ll have better luck with your boxing bet than cards.”
“I say, Payne-Elsdon,” Charley said affably, “on active duty, are you?”
He shook his head. “I’ve sold out my commission.”
“Weren’t in the Peninsula, were you? Might have run into my brother.”
He blinked. “I don’t believe I had the pleasure.” He flashed a toothy smile. “Though I was there during the war, and more recently.”
Charley grinned back while the waiter poured a fresh glass and he mentally connected the dots. He’d heard of a sold-out major, recently returned from some scandal in Spain, a card shark and swordsman who’d maimed a man, all of it hushed up by the victim’s family. Pender was swimming in dark waters. “Not likely you’d have met my brother. He was a lowly sergeant then, but Shaldon has lured him into the Everly fold and he’s a Member of Parliament now.” He raised his glass. “Cheers.”
Penderbrook pushed back his chair and stood. His face had recovered some of its color. “I see Gilbert over there and I promised to meet him. Many thanks for the drink, Everly. Do send a note if I’m needed. I am at your service.”
The abrupt departure brought a smirk and a raised eyebrow. Charley stood also and leveled a gaze at the man. His appearance at their table tonight—and for that matter at Penderbrook’s card table sometime in the recent past—was one more sudden appearance to delve into.
“I suppose I’ll have to manage this wager with my own wits,” Charley said.
Payne-Elsdon dipped his head, but there was no apology in his expression. “I’d be happy to offer counsel.”
He drummed up a grin. “No thanks. I’ll ponder out the odds myself.”
He waved to Pender as he passed. The bloody fool was playing cards again trying to raise some capital. In spite of his joking, he was too proud to take a loan, preferring to issue vowels to the likes of a shady major, who’d work for the likes of the Duque and who probably marked his cards.
He’d send Pender some work on the morrow, and scrape his own allowance to pay for it.
