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Gregory smiled at Sir Herman Baker as he gathered his winnings for the round. With his cravat hanging open and his coat hanging off his shoulders, he was the very picture of privileged charm—a man with both wealth and looks to spare.
Old Lord Whitman shook his head and smiled ruefully. He had already lost three rounds to the young Viscount. “That young lady of yours must be quite the lucky charm.”
The smile on Gregory’s lips curled even more as another round was dealt. Oh, Lady Emily Montgomery certainly was possessed of a great deal of charm—not that any of the men present would have noticed it before—but her worth lay in far more than that.
She was the key to bringing down the Duke of Gilleton, and while she may not truly be the one to ultimately ruin his rival, she was the most expedient means by which he could deal Daniel Bolt a great blow.
That man is completely besotted with her, Lord Caney thought to himself.
When he threw down the challenge, it had been a great gamble on his part. After all, Gilleton had close ties with the Earl of Hardy, and even if he was staunchly against taking a bride, Lord Caney knew he could not underestimate their friendship.
In the end, Daniel Bolt proved to be made of sterner stuff as he turned away from poor Lady Emily Montgomery, leaving her to fall neatly into Lord Caney’s hands.
Gregory Pratt liked to gamble, but even more than that, he liked towin.
“Who would have thought you would go after the chit,” Mr. Crumbaker guffawed. “I have it on good authority from the wife that the poor girl has been passed over for two seasons already.”
“Just the last one,” Gregory smiled easily. “And it was my good fortune that none of the other gentlemen had a keen enough eye to know just what a treasure she is. Now, you have all missed your chance.”
There was a round of raucous laughter from the men present. “Indeed!” Mr. Stone remarked. “I have seen the girl myself, and if I didn’t know for certain that she was a marquess’s daughter, I would have mistaken her for somebody’s charity case. Those hideous gowns of hers could make a man go blind.”
The Viscount of Caney shook his head and smiled helplessly. “Gentlemen, please. That is my future bride you are talking about.”
“Well, you can’t say the same thing now, old Stone,” Sir Baker guffawed. “Somebody in the family must have taken pity on that poor girl, and now that she is more appropriately attired, half of the young bucks in London have been panting after her. Why, even my own boy fancies himself in love with her!” He paused and smiled lasciviously, raising his eyebrows at the Viscount. “In fact, I would have pursued her myself if Matilda wasn’t so tenacious!”
The laughter died down a little at the mention of Lady Matilda Baker, wife to Sir Herman Baker and eldest daughter of the ancient Earl of Brunswick. It was no secret that Herman Baker married her solely for her wealth for she certainly was not possessed of the charm needed to capture the attention of a man like Sir Herman Baker. She did, however, come with a generous dowry while Sir Baker was practically penniless save for a few parcels of land that he had not managed to gamble away.
Although Boodle’s catered more to the gentry than the aristocrats, there were still some among them who had ties to the old Earl of Brunswick. For Sir Baker to speak so of his wife, there were still some who would find his behavior appalling.
Gregory hid his contempt for the man with a slight smile. Sir Herman Baker was a vulgar creature, and his greatest fault was that he was not adept at hiding his true nature. This was precisely the reason that he was banned from White’s whereas Gregory was welcome in both establishments.
“I heard she caught the eye of the Duke of Gilleton a while back,” Mr. Crumbaker spoke up, eager to break up the tension in the room. He eyed the young Viscount with some mischief. “That was rather brave of you, going against His Grace.”
Gregory tensed at those words.Does Crumbaker actually think I cannot go up against that arrogant lout? Whatever Gilleton has, I have, too! And with Emily in my clutches, I will have more than he has!
“It is the choice of the Lady herself,” he shrugged easily, insinuating that even if the Duke of Gilleton pursued Emily himself, he would not win against him. “I am fortunate that Lord Rutbridge is considerate of his daughter and agreed to my proposal.”
“He must love his daughter so because no man would turn away the chance for his daughter to become Duchess!”
Again!Gregory felt the slight tightening of his jaw at being compared once more to his rival.
However, it mattered very little now—Emily was going to be his, and Gilleton, well, he would have to live with the fact that the woman he wanted now belonged toGregory.
“I heard that the Earl of Hardy is against the match, though,” Lord Whitman mused with a sly smile aimed at him. “Is that true, though?”
“Of course, he would be. The Earl runs along with the same group as the Duke. No doubt, he wants his sister with one of his friends—it’s where his loyalties lie.”
There was a murmur of assent in the room as the other men considered this. Gregory felt his composure slipping a few notches as he seriously considered planting his fist in Sir Baker’s smug face.
“Well, Lord Caney won fair and square,” the younger Mr. Carter finally spoke up, glancing uneasily at the Viscount’s cool smile. “That means that the Lady and her father consider him the better choice.”
Gregory smiled generously at the eager young man who was eager to prove himself to an older crowd.
“Quite, quite,” Mr. Crumbaker acknowledged with a sage nod. “Say, why don’t we stay for a bit more and celebrate your upcoming nuptials, eh, Caney?”
Normally, Gregory disdained having anyone speak to him so casually, but this time, he was in a better mood than he usually was.
“In that case,” he said smoothly, “I would be honored if the gentlemen present joined me later for some whiskey and cigars.”
