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“Beautiful?”
“I was going to say witty, actually,” he said defensively. “I won’t deny that she’s lovely, but I’m more interested in the fact that she made me laugh like no one I’ve ever met before.”
“You’re insane, the both of you!” she said, laughing. “Cavendish is courting my sister in hopes of seeing me, and you fancy a woman who thinks you’re a libertine set on debauching her sister. You both belong in Bedlam.”
“And you don’t return Cavendish’s interest? Why do you not simply allow the ruse to play out and see where it takes you?”
It was pointless to deny the truth. “I’ve a confession to make,” she finally said. “At the ball, I overheard him talking to you—and when he described the kind of woman he wanted for a wife, I thought Amelia would suit him perfectly. I initially set out to bring them together by pretending interest in him myself and then allowing her to steal him. But then we began talking, and…”
Withington grinned. “You fell for your mark.”
She glared, trying her best to ignore the heat creeping into her face. “And if Amelia discovers the deception, she’ll tell Papa and I’ll be bloody lucky if he doesn’t lock me away in a convent for the rest of my miserable life!”
“She won’t find out,” he assured her.
“She will. She’s practically clairvoyant when it comes to men. She’ll see right through you.”
He sniffed and looked away. “Then I shall have nothing to fear, shall I?”
“Wait—you cannot tell me that you actually like her? But…but I’ve told you what she’s really like. And you’ve heard her yourself, you’ve seen—”
He laughed, cutting off her protest. “I’ve waited a long time to meet someone like your sister.”
“You’ve been waiting to meet a harpy?” she asked, incredulous.
“Oh, come now. She isn’t all that bad. A little prickly in temperament, perhaps, but every hedgehog has its soft side.”
Her jaw dropped. “Soft s—you can’t be serious! Her tongue could flay the hide off an elephant! Just yesterday our maid told me that gentlemen are beginning to call her ‘The Blade of London.’”
“Ah, but you know her only as your annoying sister,” he countered with a merry wink.
Seeing that she would be unable to persuade him otherwise, she surrendered. “So be it. But you’ll see,” she added, shrugging. “She’ll do the same to you as she has all the others before you. You’ll think she’s warming to you, and then the moment you show weakness she’ll have you by the throat and you’ll see the truth of it.”
“I’ll take my chances. Besides, I haven’t much choice, seeing that Julius would never forgive me if I didn’t at least try. For all of my selfish motives, I’m really only doing this for his sake. I should have taken an entirely different approach, had I been unencumbered by the two of you.”
“You wouldn’t have made it past the introductions,” she snorted.
“Well then, it is good for us all that you and Julius happened to meet, isn’t it?”
She stared at him, her insides churning with doubt. “You must understand that it is difficult for me to comprehend why he should go to such lengths to see me when we’ve only just met.”
“I’ve known him for years, and I’ve never seen him look at anyone the way he looks at you,” replied Withington.
“That is nothing more than common desire,” she scoffed. “I know better than to equate it with sentiment.”
His sandy brows drew together. “Forgive my bluntness, but if lust were his only impetus, he would have compromised you in the conservatory. And his desire for you is anything but common. I know him, and I believe there is far more than mere attraction at work.”
The blood rushed to her cheeks. “So he told you about that, did he?”
Laughing, he shook his head, denying it. “I have eyes, my lady. The flower that fell from your hair that night could only have come from one place.” He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked down at her, his eyes twinkling. “You may rest assured that his interest in you goes much deeper than desire. He has talked of you incessantly since that night.”
A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth before she remembered that she was still wroth. “One of you could have sent me a message, at least, to inform me of your plans. I’ve been going out of my mind wondering what the devil was going on!”
“He did not dare risk discovery by doing such a rash thing. He said there would be only one chance for this to work. For us both.”
She could not find fault with that assessment. And she couldn’t stay angry with him. This wasn’t his fault, anyway. It was Cavendish’s. “Very well,” she sighed, resigned. “Tell me what I am supposed to do.”
JULIUS FOLLOWED AMELIA’S gaze and fought to keep a straight face. This was going to work beautifully. “I shouldn’t worry,” he said to her quietly. “I’ve warned him that Richmond will not look kindly on him should he cause the need for hasty arrangements. He will show proper restraint.”
