Page 47 of How to Start a Scandal

The skin around Seth’s eyes tightened. ‘The men of the ton are all fools.’ He tenderly took her hand and lifted it to his lips. ‘You don’t need Lottie to help you win a husband, my darling Violet.’

A clash of emotions lurched through Violet. Excitement for the implication that there might be a man who was not a fool, one who was ready to claim her hand in marriage. Fear of having to be honest with him about her ruination.

Could she do it?

‘What do you mean?’ she asked through numb lips.

He took her hand and bent over it, delivering a tender kiss on her gloved knuckles. ‘Good evening, Lady Violet.’

‘What do you mean?’ she asked again, her heart thudding so violently in her chest, she worried she might retch.

He straightened with a wink. ‘Time will tell.’

He was impossibly handsome with his mussed hair and dark eyes, the way he watched her as though she were the only woman in all of existence. It would not be the way he would regard her if she was forced to reveal her greatest, darkest secret.

Her stomach slid down to her toes as he picked his way through the gap in the hedge and returned to his own home. She stayed beneath the elm tree for a long moment, letting her racing pulse still to a heavy, dread-filled beat.

What had she got herself into?

Seth hoped the odour of the public house wouldn’t stick with him after his departure. Especially not with what he planned to do once his meeting with Nash had concluded. He couldn’t possibly go reeking of old tallow smoke, sweat and ale.

Even in mid-afternoon, the interior of the public house was awash with shadows despite the weak sunshine trying to eke its way through the dirty paned windows. The seats around them were full, mostly with men who appeared defeated and tired, some wearing the vivid red jackets of soldiers who had fought for the British Army at Waterloo.

Seth fixed his attention on Nash.

The former Runner hunched over his drink as though he could curl into himself and disappear. ‘After Pattinson left London, he made his way to Bath. He was recognised and promptly left before the ball at the Upper Assembly Rooms that evening.’

‘Where did he go afterwards?’ Seth demanded. ‘Did he attempt to sell the jewels?’

Nash’s gaze slid about the room, taking note of every soul who entered, every person who rose or sat. He never once moved his head, keeping his actions discreet. ‘No one has seen the jewels. I’ll notify you if I locate them.’

‘You’ll find where he went next?’ Seth lifted his glass of porter and took a sip of the heavy, dark brew.

Nash nodded. ‘I hear the bastard is skittish, so I can’t move as swiftly as I’d prefer. I’ll report back to you once I have more information.’

Nash’s eyes tightened.

‘What is it?’ Seth asked.

‘Sometimes these men emerge after Parliament recesses, when everyone departs for their country estates.’

Seth tapped his finger on the spotted glass of his porter. ‘It doesn’t matter how long it takes. I want him brought to justice.’

‘Then it will be done.’ Nash lifted his own glass and the two men drank their beer down.

Seth swallowed a second time to clear the grittiness of the dregs, thanked the man and took his leave out into the muddy streets where a hackney awaited him. He didn’t have to sniff his jacket to know it held the fetid odour of stale tallow smoke.

It was indeed fortunate then that he lived directly next door to his destination: Hollingston House.

Bennet was beside himself with unmitigated elation as he helped Seth into his second outfit that day. The valet even insisted on another shave and proceeded to do so with such a skilled hand, Seth didn’t feel a whisper of chafed skin afterward. The old valet might be a missish sort with a proclivity towards meticulous detail, but he did do a damn good job.

Seth looked in the mirror and nodded in approval. He looked far more respectable than he was. Even his unruly hair had been combed smooth. ‘Good God, man, you are a wonder at what you do.’

Bennet puffed out his chest with pride. ‘It’s kind of you to say, my lord.’

‘Well, it’s the truth.’ Seth clapped the man on the shoulder with gratitude. ‘Thank you.’

With that, Seth made his way next door and requested a moment of Lord Hollingston’s time. Nerves jittered through him as he wondered if he was doing the right thing. For him, yes. But for her...?