Page 76 of To Steal a Kiss

“I don’t know,” Bonnie said, the words heavy with foreboding. “But I will have the devil’s own job persuading him the expense of another season is worthwhile when he has good old Gordy waiting in the wings.”

Ruth leaned over and squeezed her hand in sympathy. “Is he really that bad?”

“Worse,” Bonnie muttered.

“Oh, dear.” Ruth bit her lip, looking anxious. “Well, the season is almost over, perhaps, but there will be plenty of house parties and events over the summer.” She picked up a large platter of iced buns and handed one to Bonnie. “So, it doesn’t mean your chances are at an end.”

The girl took a bun, staring at it morosely. “It does if I have to go back to Scotland.”

The women all looked at each other, and back to Bonnie. Marrying a man one didn’t even like, let alone love, was far from unusual, but a fate they all feared. Alice had no trouble in sympathising with her predicament.

“Well then, you must stay with me,” Ruth said, suddenly decisive. “We will be going to the country. Papa has bought a new house,” she added, flushing a little and avoiding everyone’s eye.

Alice hid a smile of sympathy. Ruth’s father was an extremely wealthy man, but no amount of money could buy breeding, and the ton were not kind to those who didn’t belong. The ton saw the man only as a vulgar climber, a Cit, or a mushroom, and the way he collected artwork, jewels, and houses only added to their contempt for him.

“We will certainly go to St Clair’s for the summer ball,” she added, looking excited at the prospect. “So, we shall see Kitty and Harriet, and… oh, a whole host of eligible young men. And then there will be garden parties and dinners, and all sorts of social events. There, you see. Plenty of time yet.”

Bonnie let out a breath and leaned over to kiss Ruth’s cheek. “Thank you,” she said, with such sincerity that Ruth beamed at her.

“You’re welcome. In truth, I shall be glad of your company.”

“Well, this is all well and good, but I still have not smoked a cigar nor drunk a glass of whisky,” Lucia pointed out. She was arranging her skirts with a prim moue of displeasure on her exquisite face, and everyone laughed as she’d obviously intended.

“When are you going to do it, Lucia?” Alice asked, remembering the nerves and downright panic that had assailed her at the idea of kissing a stranger on the balcony.

“I thought at the Earl of Ulceby’s ball,” she said, smiling a little.

“Oh,” Alice said in surprise, a little frisson of anxiety running down her spine. The man might have been her father-in-law, if not for Nate. “You’re going to that?”

“Do you mind very much, Alice?” Lucia asked, sudden sympathy in her eyes.

“Oh, no,” Alice said in a rush, shaking her head. “Not in the least, only Lord Bindley is not a nice man, and… do watch out for his son, Edgar Bindley. He’s a spiteful cad.”

“With a broken nose,” Matilda murmured before taking a sip of her tea. Alice glanced at her and grinned.

“I know,” Lucia said, her dark eyes glinting with something secretive that might have been anticipation. “That is why I chose them. I should not like to steal anything, even as silly as a cigar and a drink, from a man I esteemed.”

“Do you esteem any man?” Matilda asked, the direct question rather shocking the group as everyone stilled.

Lucia did not seem affronted, however, and merely considered the question. “No,” she said simply.

Everyone laughed, assuming she was being amusing again, but there was something in her eyes that told Alice she meant it. There was an air about Lucia that gave her pause. She was beautiful and graceful, yet never at ease. Something raw and untamed lived within her, like a wild creature gone utterly still in the moment before it pounced. Alice shivered at the idea and turned to Matilda.

“Will you go to the Ulceby ball?”

“I suppose so, to keep Lucia company and out of too much trouble, if nothing else,” she said with a wry laugh. “I assume they won’t banish me at the door for being related to Nate, as the earl owes him too much money.”

“The earl owes everyone money,” Alice said in an undertone. “I can’t understand how he can possibly afford to hold such a lavish ball. Father had a rather frank discussion with him when they believed I was to marry Edgar, and he says they’re on the brink of bankruptcy.”

Matilda nodded. “I know. I’ve heard much the same, and Nate cut off his credit over a year ago, but a man like that has his pride. He’d rather die than have the world see he cannot live as he wants.”

“But it’s all for show,” Alice said, uncomprehending of how a man could beggar his family and squander their fortunes, their futures.

“It’s a sickness, I think,” Matilda said, her voice soft. “I was angry with my father, for a very long time but… but he was so sorry for what he’d done. So full of remorse. He said demons had possessed him, and… I can almost believe it.”

Alice frowned. She didn’t believe in demons, and could only think a man who could ruin his own family so utterly was weak, but she could not pretend to understand it, so perhaps she was too hard.

“It is a sickness for some,” Lucia said, making them both start as they’d not realised she was attending their conversation. Her voice sounded hard, cold, and unforgiving. “But not for Lord Bindley. He is a cruel, greedy man, and one day he will pay the price for it.”