Page 30 of A Bluestocking’s Secret Courtship

“She doesn’t suspect anything is amiss,” he said.

At least he didn’t believe so. Sometimes she looked at him a bit suspiciously, but she hadn’t worked out that he was more than an antiquarian.

“I overheard something that might be of value,” Dom said. “And it is the reason I offered to search her bedchamber. Miss Darlington found her uncle’s journal.”

“No!” Jonathan was gobsmacked. “I searched everywhere.”

“She probably totes it around in that giant bag with her sketchbook.”

Damnation! He might have been carrying it around for her today.

“Wedmore must have written something about his whereabouts,” Jonathan said. “She is convinced he has an excavation site close by.”

Dom shrugged. “Perhaps, but Miss Darlington cannot make sense of it. From what I gathered, every page is written in cipher.”

A low buzz started at the back of Jonathan’s mind. The Regent’s Consul communicated through an alphabetic substitution code, using a common keyword. Surely Wedmore wouldn’t be careless enough to employ a code any Regent’s man could decipher. But if he had taken pains to hide his actions from his fellow spies, there could be little doubt to his guilt.

Jonathan had never taken his assignment lightly, but now that he had met Evangeline and looked into her brilliant eyes, he needed definitive proof.

“I want Wedmore’s journal,” he said with steel in his voice. “Whatever it takes, I must have it.”

Dom inclined his head. “And you shall. All you have to do is distract the lady.”

Eleven

Evangeline bustled into the private sitting room where her sister and brother-in-law were sitting on a light green seashell-upholstered settee. The rococo-style furnishings throughout the villa were grander than she had expected in a city that valued austerity, but after meeting Lord Dominic earlier that day, the decor made sense.

The theatrical flair matched his person well—the sudden appearance from nowhere and his sardonic humor, as if he shared a secret with an invisible audience. She didn’t quite know what to make of him.

When she lightly rapped on a side table, Regina and Xavier ceased their hushed conversation. Regina’s smile was patient and kind.

“You are correct, dearest. The blue gown was acceptable, but the apricot one looks very smart.”

Evangeline glanced down at the scalloped white lace and apricot satin bows around the hem. “You don’t think it is too elegant?”

“You look perfect,” Regina said.

“Absolument.” Xavier nodded toward the book cradled in her arms. “Have you finally decided to request a reading from Sir Jonathan?”

She hugged the thin tome. “Should I?” Xavier was the only expert on men at her disposal. “I don’t want to seem too eager.”

Xavier grinned. “Most gentlemen appreciate an eager lady. It helps settle the nerves when one knows a lady is receptive to his courtship.”

“Courtship? I never said⁠—”

Evangeline groaned and lifted Sir Jonathan’s book to hide behind it. She couldn’t bear the thought of him believing her admiration of his work was disingenuous.

Xavier chuckled when Regina playfully swatted his arm.

“Pay him no mind. Xavier knows your interest in Sir Jonathan is scholarly. An opportunity such as this doesn’t come along every day.”

“Yes, exactly.” Evangeline turned her back to hide the warm rush of a blush.

Ever since her sister had planted the seed that afternoon, she couldn’t stop contemplating the advantages of having a husband who shared her passions. She had always recognized the unlikelihood of making a match after she finished chasing her dreams of adventure. After all, she would be quite advanced in age before she tired of being an antiquarian. Still, she had hoped to find love someday.

She squeezed her eyes closed, shaking her head. Her sister had to be wrong about Sir Jonathan’s romantic inclinations toward her. Newlyweds imagined romance blossoming everywhere. Before their party ever left London, Regina was predicting a love match between their youngest sister Sophia and Crispin, even though they got along like a cat and a bucket of water.

But what if Regina is correct?