Page 29 of Love and the Shameless Lady

Chapter 5

For a long moment, Julian wondered if Daisy would answer. She would be foolish not to, as he could get the same information from the obliging Ellie.

“In a fortnight or so,” she grumped. “He and his family are visiting relations in Ireland.”

He’d suspected something of the sort. She was in even greater danger here than if she’d stayed at the Diving Duck. At least there he could have stayed in the same building without causing a scandal.

She poured herself a cup of tea. “But my brother’s absence makes no difference. Forewarned is forearmed. I shall be perfectly safe.”

“You, Miss Warren, are the most stubborn woman I have ever met. You will not be safe until whoever threatened you has been taken care of.”

“As I already told you, Lady Bilchester—”

“If you were acquainted with Lady Bilchester, you would know that your theory is nonsensical.”

“You can’t know that for certain.” A light appeared in her eyes. “I’ll bet you don’t even know her Christian name.”

“Indeed I do. It’s Katherine. Why, what is the name of the intrepid Dianthus’s mother?”

“Narcissa,” she mumbled. “But it doesn’t prove anything one way or another.”

He broke out laughing. “Does she spend the entire story admiring herself in the mirror?”

“Of course not. It means daffodil. Dianthus is a flower, too. I wanted to use names that no real person was likely to have.”

“And you succeeded. Listen to me, Miss Warren. I don’t know who is threatening you or why, but until I find out, I intend to protect you.”

She said nothing—for a minute or so, while she nipped off a couple of lumps of sugar and stirred them into her tea. Marshaling her arguments, no doubt.

“Sir Julian, we scarcely know one another. I can conceive of no reason why you should feel obliged to protect me.”

He shrugged. “Nevertheless, I do.”

“And don’t spout some nonsense about chivalry. I don’t believe in chivalry, and I can’t allow you to remain here. Ruined or not, I must hold to some semblance of propriety.”

“Understood,” he said, “but I cannot and will not leave you in the care of a few servants who, by the way, are now also at risk.”

She paled at that. “Surely not.”

“A man who does not scruple at murdering a lady of quality will certainly not mind dispatching a few servants who get in his way.”

She digested that, but needless to say had a response. “Perhaps not, but surely he won’t wish to leave a trail of bodies in his wake.”

“That depends on—”

Ellie arrived with a platter of scrambled eggs and ham. She brought plates, cutlery, and napkins from the sideboard and set them out neatly. “Be right back with the toast.” She scurried away.

“That depends on the reason he threatened you, which evidently has something to do with your novels.”

“And that makes no sense at all.” Daisy served him an ample helping of ham and eggs and then served herself. “I don’t imagine there are two ladies in the ton who were abducted by smugglers and also have daughters of marriageable age, as well as a succession of lovers. And there are certainly none who ran off with a smuggler for a life of high adventure.”

“Except you.”

Daisy bristled. “I didn’t run off with him. I merely seduced him.” She would have fled with the dastard, fool that she was, but that wasn’t what he’d had in mind.

“Would he have reason to murder you?”

Quite the other way around. But she didn’t say that. “The question doesn’t arise, since he was killed in a brawl. Colin wanted to be sure he was dead, so he went to see the body. I made him take me along.” Gazing down at Reggie’s corpse, she’d wondered for the thousandth time what had got into her. Handsome, yes, somewhat dashing, perhaps, but otherwise completely uninteresting. A mere nothing, unworthy of her affection. “I would have danced a jig right there and then, if I’d dared.”