Page 19 of A Lady’s Guide to Subterfuge and Science

“My lady?” Oliver laughed. “Not likely. She despises me for those silly comments I’ve left her.”

“I imagine she wants to be taken seriously the way any scientist would,” Hughes mused, picking up a silver gravy boat.

“I do take her seriously,” Oliver insisted. “I didn’t think I was—well. It was foolish either way.”

“So what will you do?”

“About?”

“Your lady.”

“Well.” Oliver sat back in his chair with a grin, his father forgotten. “I’ll give her exactly what she’s looking for.”

“Which is?”

“The life of a member of the Society of Microscopic Biology. The life of a gentleman living in London. The entire experience,” Oliver said with flourish. “Every damned bit of it.”

Chapter Six

Kalila stifled a yawn as she rearranged the flaxen curls of her wig in the mirror. She still couldn’t believe that yesterday had gone so well. When she’d come back to the townhouse to report her success, Caroline and Amelia had almost exploded in excitement. Dameer, meanwhile, had almost dissolved in relief. Kalila had stayed up with them, recounting every detail, describing every one of her fellow scientists—save one.

Which, of course, hadn’t stopped Caroline and Amelia from asking after him themselves. She did not plan to engage with Mr. Booth—Oliver—today. It would be safer to create distance between them, especially since he’d seen her outside of her disguise. It would be foolish to give him the opportunity to study her further. And besides, there was something about him that made her feel—unsure. Combative, even.

A knock came at the door. Kalila hopped out of her chair and opened it, revealing a disheveled Dameer on the other side. He brushed past her and sat on the unmade bed in an ungraceful tangle of limbs. This was not an unusual occurrence, of course. Propriety had never been a part of their relationship, and their respective parents hadn’t attempted to sow the seeds of it between them, either. Kalila and Dameer were more than family. They were friends of the best, unwavering kind.

“Are you feeling well?” Kalila dragged the chair away from the mirror to sit in front of Dameer. “You look as if you’ve been up all night.”

“I have been,” Dameer said. He stared at her for a moment before softening. “I feel as though I’ve—I haven’t been very good to you, Kal.”

Kalila’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Don’t say that.”

“You’re here doing something positively terrifying—to me, mostly, I think—and all I’ve done is remind you of how you might fail,” he said in one long breath. “And that isn’t how the two of us are. We’ve always been better than that.”

A small, wobbly smile formed on Kalila’s face. Though she’d been disappointed, she could never have thought that Dameer, with his soft heart, meant anything other than well. “I appreciate the sentiment, but—”

“I’ll take the fall for you,” Dameer blurted out.

She shook her head, a nervous laugh escaping her. “What?”

“I’m glad, actually, that you chose to be me. If anyone suspects and tries to call you out, it’ll be easy for us to prove the existence of Dameer Rafiq. You won’t be ruined.”

“We won’t have to do that. The idea is to not get caught,” Kalila reminded him.

“And I don’t think you will be.” Dameer leaned forward, his round brown eyes honest and clear. “I think you’ll do brilliantly, Kal. As you always do. I just want you to know that if something happens, I’ll protect you. That’s my job as your cousin.”

Kalila’s heart melted in her chest. “And as my best friend.”

He grinned. “Naturally. Shame that Caroline wasn’t around to hear that.” He paused. “About Booth—”

“I’ve decided to avoid him,” Kalila said.

Dameer relaxed. “Good. We needn’t play with fire.”

Nodding, Kalila stood up, dusted off her trousers, and removed her hat from its hook. Bidding goodbye to Dameer, she left the townhouse and strode to the university. She greeted the other men in 107, took a seat, and let out a long exhale.

Day two.

Timothy Dunn, the gentleman with the wavy brown hair, shyly sidled up to her. “Good morning, Rafiq.”