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William contemplated his response. He could tell her he was here to mollycoddle her because clearly, no one in Wesloria trusted her to be left to her own devices. Judging by the number of footmen standing about, he was certain of it. But he didn’t care to injure her feelings. He leaned forward, braced an arm against his knee and said quietly, “Your prime minister has asked me to introduce you to mutual friends of ours so that you might—” he gestured with his hand, wishing he didn’t have to say it aloud “—make friends.”
She stared at him. He couldn’t tell if she was angry or hurt or—
She burst into laughter.“You?”She laughed again, and rather heartily at that, one hand going to her stomach as if to contain the peals of laughter, then falling back in her seat, chortling to the ceiling.
“Why no’ me?” William asked, feeling a bit offended.
“Robuchard askedyou,a known scoundrel, to keep watch overme?”
“I’m perfectly capable of introducing you to thehaute ton.”
“Je,but...” Her laughter died down. She was still smiling when she said, “You are hardly the first person I should think he’d ask to look over me.”
She was no fool, this one. “Nevertheless...here I am.”
“How dare he! Or you. Or whoever is behind this. Let me be clear, Lord Douglas—I don’tneeda keeper. Your...offeris declined.”
He winced. “It’s no’ precisely anoffer—”
“I don’t care what it is. Not for a moment do I require your help.”
“Agreed,” he said, holding up a hand in surrender. “For what it is worth, I was as surprised as you. I agreed only to make myself as useful as you might allow. I hope you will consider it a friendly gesture, one made in the spirit of forgiveness.”
“That would be lovely, but there is a slight flaw to you thinking—I am the one who should forgiveyou.”
“Well,” he said, and rubbed his knee a little. “One could argue it both ways.”
“One can argue it all day long and I still do not require any help from you.”
“Excellent,” William said. “Saves me that trouble, does it no’? Aye, but I do wonder, then, who will tour you about London?”
“Anyone else,” she said, and popped the rest of an uneaten teacake into her mouth.
“I shall endeavor no’ to be offended by the idea thatanyoneelse would suit you.”
“Noone suits me.”
“Hmm. It would appear that someone has lost all her jolly.”
She rolled her eyes and picked up another teacake, this one with her fingers, dispensing with all table manners. “I never had any jolly. I was not allowed tobejolly. You would have lost yours, too, if you’d been sent to England against your will, held prisoner at an estate with nothing to occupy you, only to discover your nemesis is to be your jailer.” She took a healthy bite.
“Now you’ve insulted me. I’m no’ your nemesis, and I am sincerely attempting to be your friend. From what you’ve said, perhaps the only one you’ve got.”
The princess snorted.
William glanced at the footmen, who stared straight ahead. He leaned forward and spoke softly again. “You are no’ a prisoner here. Robuchard has asked me to introduce you tofriends. People who will make your stay easier. Why no’ allow me to show you London? There is much to see. And, if I may...you might want an ally when suitors begin to call. Word has it that there will be many.”
“Isthatwhat word has?” Her gaze turned dark, and she pinned him in his chair with it.
“Ah...”
“The number of suitors I may or may not have does not answer the question of why Robuchard would suddenly go to such pains to ensure I hadfriends.Can you explain that?”
William was fairly certain he didn’t have to explain—she seemed to understand her prime minister. Or at least understood enough not to trust him. He scratched the side of his nose and thought about the many excuses and lies he could offer. But like her, he appreciated honesty. “In truth, I donna know if he cares at all if you have friends in London. But he would like to know about the suitors.”
Princess Justine blinked. “What would you possibly have to do with it?”
“I know some of the gentlemen that your family has in mind. And I am a neutral observer.”
