“It is best if you don’t know.”
William furrowed his brow. “More secrets? How do you live with so many?”
“Everyone has secrets. I have just managed to have more than most.” Hawthorne rose. “I must depart. I have work I need to see to.”
“You have mentioned before that you have contacts around London,” William said as he reached for his glass.
“I do.”
“Will you see what you can find out about Lord Wakefield?”
Hawthorne bobbed his head. “I will make some inquiries.”
“Thank you.” William took a sip of his drink. “I don’t pretend to understand how you spend your time, or why you sometimes dress like a man down on his luck, but I suppose it can be useful at times like this.”
“Will I see you at White’s this evening?”
“I’ll be there, but I have an errand I need to see to first.”
Hawthorne gave him a knowing look. “I assume you will be visiting Miss Holbrooke at Evie’s townhouse.”
“Am I so obvious?”
“Just to me.”
“I am only going to ensure Miss Holbrooke has settled in nicely and is protected.”
Hawthorne gave him an amused look. “If you say so.”
“For what other reason would I go?”
“It is all right if you admit that you enjoy her company,” Hawthorne said knowingly. “There is no shame in that.”
William watched as Hawthorne departed from his study. Why did it matter so much to him, that he needed to see for himself that Miss Holbrooke was safe? It shouldn’t, but it did.
Heaven help him, but he did enjoy Miss Holbrooke’s company.
ChapterFifteen
Georgie rode in the coach as it slowly made its way down the street. Alice sat across from her and stared out the window, a pensive look on her face.
“What’s the matter?” Georgie asked.
“Nothing.”
Georgie gave her a look. “I know you better than that.”
Alice gave her a weak smile. “I was just thinking about my mother,” she revealed. “She wasn’t very lucid this morning.”
“I am sorry to hear that.”
“I just don’t know what I will do without her,” Alice whispered. “She binds our family together. Without her, I imagine that my sisters and I will all go our different ways.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do,” Alice said. “My youngest sister, Elizabeth, works across Town at a dressmaker’s shop, and my oldest sister is busy raising her five children.”
“Five children?” Georgie asked. “Good heavens! She must be busy all the time.”
