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Danbury’s frown deepened. “Why?”
“I’ve a new mistress,” Drake managed, coming up with the lie on the spur of the moment, realizing he should have thought of a better answer beforehand but also somewhat surprised his brother had cared enough to ask. Danbury was usually completely uninterested in his life unless he could somehow use his position for his own benefit. His stomach turned at the thought of how Danbury had accompanied him to J Division a few times, pretending interest in Drake’s work when all he’d really wanted was to see whether they were on to him.
“So?” Danbury asked, finally giving him his full attention. “You’ve had mistresses before and you never felt the need to spend all your time with them.”
“This one is special,” Drake said simply, his mind filling with Heather. If she kept refusing to marry him, perhaps he really could make her his mistress.
As soon as he had the thought, he dismissed it. He could never do that to her. He respected her too much to treat her so poorly. If she continued to refuse him, he was going to have to find the strength to let her go.
“What’s so special about this one?” Danbury asked, his eyes widening. “She must be an extraordinary lay.”
“It’s none of your damn business,” Drake snapped, pushing to his feet. “I’m going to go pack.”
His brother said nothing else, but as Drake strode away, he suddenly felt that it had been a bad idea to speak to him at all. He didn’t owe him any explanations, and the last thing he wanted was for Danbury to know anything about the new life he was trying to build.
* * *
“DRAKE! TO WHAT DO Iowe this surprise?” Amelia cried, rushing across her parlor to give Drake a hug.
For a moment, he just pressed his face against her chestnut hair, inhaling her familiar scent. They didn’t see each other as much as he’d like, since they were both so busy, but after his meeting with Mortimer, he’d felt the need to pay a visit to the only decent member of his family.
“I wanted to ask you about something,” he said with a sigh, reluctantly releasing her. “Can we talk?”
She nodded, searching his face, a haunted look in her dark eyes. For the first time, he wondered if she knew about Mortimer’s sins as well.
He wanted to ask her, but if she didn’t, he would just be bringing shame and sadness into her life. Time enough for her to feel those things after Mortimer had been caught. For now, Drake was more interested in another matter.
As she instructed a nearby maid to bring them some tea, he settled into a chair near the fireplace. “I’ve met someone,” he said. “I’ve asked for her hand.”
Amelia sank into the chair across from him, delight chasing away the shadows in her eyes. “Oh, Drake! I’m so happy for you! Who is it? Do I know her?”
“I think you probably do,” he mused, realizing that she knew Allison well enough to have met Heather at least once. “It’s Allison O’Brien’s lady’s maid. Heather Fields.”
“Heather Fields?” Amelia bit her lip. “I do know her... She’s lovely...”
“Sheislovely,” Drake said, though his sister’s hesitation told him quite a lot. “I know that she may not be the woman you’d have chosen for me, but I care for her very deeply. I’m hoping you’ll give me your blessing.”
A dozen emotions passed across Amelia’s face before she finally settled on a tentative smile. “Does it really matter what I think? You’re obviously in love with this woman.”
“I’ll always care about what you think, Amelia,” he told her earnestly. “And the last thing I want is to bring scandal down upon our name, but she makes me happy.”
“Then I’m happy for you,” she said, her smile spreading. “I’ll welcome her with open arms.”
He sighed, feeling that at last something was going his way. “Thank you. You don’t know how much that means to me.”
“Any scandal that comes our way will be worth it just to see the look on Father’s face when you tell him you’re marrying a servant.” She laughed merrily. “Please let me be there for that!”
His mood darkened a bit at the reminder that nothing he’d ever done had made his father happy, but his sister had a point. If he was going to disappoint the man, he might as well do so gloriously.
“Well, she hasn’t said yes yet,” he admitted, finding that it wasn’t getting any easier to say that.
“Oh, Drake,” she said, shaking her head. “You’re going to have to give me all the details!”
