Page 40 of A Brilliant Match
Miles hid a smile. The earl was just as proud as his sister. He quite liked the boy.
“But if you are calling upon my sister, you will need to do better than hired hackneys.” Lord Poole folded his arms and closed the other eye.
Hehadliked the boy.
“Right you are. You warned me that should I aspire to any one of your sisters’ hands I should not find you unreasonable. But I suppose hired hackneys go beyond what might be considered reasonable.” Miles leaned back in the other corner, suddenly feeling tired himself.
“You would be correct, Mr.… What was your name again?” His eyes remained closed.
“Mr. Shaw. But you may call me Miles if you wish.”
“Miles. You may call me Evo when it’s just us, and Poole when in company.”
At this, Miles looked at the earl in surprise and saw that his one eye was open again regarding him. “You did save me back there, and you didn’t make a fuss about how I should be grateful to you. Nor did you read me a lecture.”
Miles turned his head, and this time he did smile. They rode on for a distance, and he wondered if Evo was realizing as he was just how long it would have taken him to get home had he not found someone to take pity on him. Although, as Miles was coming to know Dorothea’s brother, if anyone was able to turn any and all situations to good account, it would be him. He would probably charm, argue, or evoke pity—anything to get a ride.
When they arrived at Grosvenor Square, Miles accepted Evo’s invitation and followed him into the house. It had not been his intention to call upon Dorothea—he’d only said that to convince the boy to accept his ride. Now that he was here, he found he could not resist seeing her. He waited in the entryway until the butler could introduce him properly. But in the end, Dorothea, Lady Sophia, and one of the younger sisters came out of the drawing room at the sounds of their arrival.
“Evo, you scared me half to death,” Dorothea said. Then she looked up suddenly and saw Miles. The blood seemed to drain from her face. “Oh!”
The two other sisters took over scolding when Dorothea stopped, flustered. But she was only quiet for a moment before turning her attention to her brother and giving him her share.
“I know you think you are quite old, but you cannot forever be leaving the house without telling a soul where you are going.” She glanced at Miles, her brows furrowed. “Did…did you have something to do with his leaving?”
He shook his head and gestured for Evo to speak up. The boy got himself into trouble, and he could get himself out of it. He could cover his tracks better than Miles could, at any event.
“You mustn’t fuss over me,” Evo said, pulling away from Lady Sophia’s ministrations, though not unkindly. “You are treating me as though I’m still in leading strings.”
“How did you come by the black eye?” Dorothea asked him, glancing again at Miles.
Once again, he held his peace. He wouldn’t alienate Evo by stirring up trouble, butby Gad, he could only imagine the palpitations if Dorothea knew everything.
“Come with me,” Lady Sophia said. “I will get you cleaned up. Camilla, will you help?” she asked their younger sister.
Miles was now beginning to be sure he had indeed an ally in Lady Sophia, for she always managed to put him and her sister together. It was a shame that her efforts had come after he had decided not to pursue Dorothea. For he had definitely decided not to pursue her. It wouldn’t be right.
Or at least he was attempting not to pursue her.
When the hall was quiet, Dorothea looked at him for a moment. She was wearing a gown the color of an autumn leaf that had a gold shimmer to it. She still looked shaken, and he longed to pull her into his arms.
“Would you like to step into the drawing room for a moment? I am sure my mother or one of my sisters will not be long in joining us.”
So there was no one at present. Miles did not like the way his heart sped up again in anticipation, but he was powerless to resist the invitation.
“With pleasure.”
He followed her in, and she sat on one end of the sofa before silently gesturing for him to sit on the other end. It seemed she had softened toward him, to allow him to sit so near. This was new. More intimate.
“I ran into your brother quite by chance,” he explained. “He was at the traveling show in Peckham and had got into an altercation, so I got involved and invited him to return home with me.”
She absorbed this, then sent Miles a worried look. “I do not know what would have come of him if you had not been there.”
“I am glad I was there.” He wouldn’t be giving her too many details about what had happened. It would frighten her. “But I must say that your brother seems to have a remarkable way of landing on his feet.”
That made her smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. She looked at him, somber.
“I am sorry for your loss.”
