When Jonathan rose from bed just before dawn, Audrey was already awake. It was typical for her to rise early, but the mad escape from the hellfire club had sent a current of unease flowing through her that had left her more alert than she otherwise would have been. She blamed that unease for her body moving toward Jonathan throughout the night, until she ended up almost curled around his body as he slept. She’d woken to his scent and the warm press of his skin to hers. He’d managed to curl one arm around her, holding her to him, and she’d been unwilling to push away because it had felt too wonderful.

But now, with the cold absence of his body, she found the strength to scramble from the bed and dress. She rang for a maid, who helped her do up her corset and the buttons on her gown. She could still hear Jonathan moving about in the other room, and she took a moment to hastily scrawl a note to him.

“Keep your end of the agreement. Our lessons must begin soon.”

Then she went in search of Archimedes downstairs. When she’d seen the cat fighting off those villains last night, she’d recalled a story about the famous Greek mathematician Archimedes and how he’d created a claw weapon that could be swung out from a metal arm and dropped onto a ship, shattering its decks and sinking it. The name seemed to fit the cat perfectly.

Archimedes had charmed the household staff the previous evening, and Audrey found him playing under the feather duster of one of the maids. The girl was laughing as the cat eagerly batted the feathers about.

“Oh! Begging your pardon, miss.” The maid withdrew the toy and curtseyed at Audrey when she realized she was being watched.

“It’s quite all right. I just came to find him. It’s time we go.” She scooped up the cat and hugged him close before she found the butler and had him summon a coach for her. She’d lost her reticule the previous evening and wondered if the coach driver would allow her to pay him upon reaching her destination.

“Here, miss.” The butler held out a pouch of coins. “The master said you might wish to leave early and you would need this.”

Audrey eyed the coin purse.

“I…” She had to accept, but she could send a boy over with money to pay him back. She removed enough to cover the coach ride, then handed the pouch back to the butler.

“Thank you. Tell Mr. St. Laurent I’ll send a boy around later to pay him back.”

The servant nodded, but he seemed shocked at her desire not to accept a gift. But that was entirely the point. She did not want Jonathan’s charity, nor did she wish to be indebted to him.

He will teach me to fight, and then I shall not need anyone. I shall truly be independent.

Her dreams of love and marriage were fading now that she had other desires. As she lay in bed with Jonathan, tasting what she’d always longed for, she realized something had changed within her. The silly young girl she’d been a year before, the one who’d wanted to marry and be a mother, was gone. The need to do something greater now burned inside her like a beacon.

Lady Society had been an idle pastime at first, meant in part to aid in matchmaking her friends based on the gossip she heard. But over the years her ideals had changed. Her articles had grown from mere society columns to calls for equality, even essays on political issues and challenging Parliament. All of it had been done with the flourish and flair of a clever woman using society itself as her weapon. But Lady Society was just the beginning in Audrey’s desire to change England.

While she still wished to be a wife and mother, she feared she could never have that, not when she needed to prove to herself that she could do something greater. Not in a world where men had no inclination to give women that chance. It should have been a relief that Jonathan didn’t want her for a wife, because it had given her time to realize that she had a different destiny.

She thanked the butler for the coach when it arrived and then left Jonathan’s townhouse. She didn’t look back, no matter how much she wanted to. That beautiful house would not be her home, no matter how much she might’ve wished it to be.

Two years ago, when she’d debuted as the toast of London, she could have had any man she desired—all except the one man she truly wanted. If he could be so cavalier and mercenary, then so could she. She would take his lessons, and then she would leave England and become a spy.

In recent months she’d taken to speaking with Evangeline Mirabeau, a French courtesan and formidable woman in her own right, and she believed Audrey could do well in France. Gossip and intrigue ruled the French royal court, and those were two of Audrey’s specialties. Those who knew how to navigate those waters could go far.

By the time she reached the Sheridan townhouse, dawn was cresting the tops of the buildings. Hopefully anyone who had noticed she’d been missing would not think to tell her brother upon his return. Most of the staff knew her well enough to be discreet, but it was never a certainty. Audrey carried Archimedes inside and ignored the worried looks of two footmen as she passed them.

One of the footmen offered her a note. “There’s a letter for you, miss.”

“Thank you.” She tucked it into a pocket in her ruined dress and went upstairs to her bedchamber.

She set Archimedes on her bed. Muff was already there on the pillows, lounging in the early-morning sunlight. She raised her head and stared hard at Archimedes. The newcomer stared back, his tail twitching, and for a moment, Audrey worried the pair would get into a spat. After a moment Muff stood, stretched leisurely, and then hopped off the bed and walked away, her tail like a black plume in the air, waving defiantly as she turned the corner and vanished into the corridor.

Audrey took out the note and broke the seal, reading the lines scrawled hastily on the page. It seemed Gillian had suffered a slight head wound, and James had insisted on her staying at his house for the night since he had a doctor on staff treating his mother. Well, that was a small mercy. At least she was safe and cared for.

Audrey moved to her armoire and had only just turned the handle when the bedchamber door opened and Gillian peered inside.

“You’re safe!” her maid exclaimed and rushed to hug her.

“Of course! And you? I saw you leave with James Fordyce last night.” Audrey hugged her friend back.

“Quite fine.” Gillian blushed, then winced when she looked at Audrey’s dress. “Oh dear, it was new!”

Audrey sighed, plucking at the gown. “Yes, the gown is ruined, but thankfully it was the only victim last night.”

“Let me help you out of it. I’ve just had a bath drawn and was coming to check on you. I didn’t realize you hadn’t returned yet.” Gillian assisted her out of her clothes, and Audrey headed to the large copper tub in her dressing room. The water was warm, and she sighed in heavy delight as she settled back into the tub.

“Shoo!” Gillian’s sharp reprimand made Audrey bolt up from her hot bath, splashing water over the lip of the tub. Gillian held the ruined red gown hanging from her hands. She was chasing after Archimedes with it, who darted about the dressing room, leaping from the washstand to the open closet to the stack of bathing cloths.

“Gillian, what the devil are you doing?”

“Devil indeed! He was just sitting there. Watching you. He ought to be in the kitchens chasing rats.” The cat streaked past the tub, sliding on the water and darting into the bedroom. The maid finally closed the cat out of the washroom and leaned back against the door as though she were defending the room against a massive beast. “Where on earth did you find him?”

Audrey rubbed soap along her skin. “He’s from the hellfire club, remember? The poor cat they claimed was the devil.”

Gillian walked over to a chair and collapsed into it. “I thought I had dreamed that part of last night.” She tucked her head and winced. “Clearly I did not.”

“You’ll get used to him. Archimedes is simply delightful.”

“Archimedes? Lord…” Gillian picked up a few cloths for washing and brought them over to Audrey. “I’ll have some breakfast brought up for you.”

“Thank you, Gillian.” Audrey met the gaze of her friend for a long moment, hoping the other woman would hear the deeper message beneath her words. She didn’t deserve a loyal, kind, and brave friend like her.

Gillian’s face reddened. “Of course.” She smiled and slipped out of the dressing room.

Audrey took her time bathing, and she giggled as she thought back to the battle in the dining room last night. Had she really whacked a man’s leg with the candelabra and hit another man’s private regions with a fire poker?

Yes I did. And you can be assured I will write all about it in the next Lady Society column.

Writing such articles always gave her a jolt of excitement. When she wasn’t trying to tease her older brother and his roguish friends into matrimony, she was doing her best to right the wrongs of society, or at least put them on display for all to see. It was Lady Society’s influence that had given her the idea to pursue being a spy. She’d talked with Avery last year about it, and he’d seen the potential in her career in espionage, just as Evangeline had. He’d even seen fit to give her some basic lessons in disguise and how to ferret out information from people without them realizing what she was doing.

After her bath, Audrey dressed in a pale green day gown with silver slippers, then settled down on her bed with a fresh quill and paper. Archimedes, who seemed to feel at home no matter where he was, jumped up on the bed beside her and purred, rubbing his cheeks on her shoulder. Gillian bustled around the room, tidying it up, but paused when she once again noticed the cat.

“I think you’ve gone mad,” Gillian announced.

Audrey scratched out a line of her column and moved the feather quill away from the cat as he batted at it.

“Hmm?”

“I said, I think you’ve gone mad, my lady.”

Audrey glanced up, and she tilted her head. “Mad because I’m writing an exposé on the Unholy Sinners of Hell, or mad that I brought home Archimedes?”

Her maid glared at the cat. “Both, I should think.”

“Nonsense. We unmasked nearly all the men during the fight last night, and I recognized at least a dozen of them. It’s time we let the ton know who among them are not in fact gentlemen.”

Gillian grunted softly in a tone Audrey recognized as disapproval. “And what does Mittens think of Archimedes?”

At the mention of the older cat, Audrey looked at her new feline. “Mittens? Oh, she sulked a bit at first, but I believe she’ll come around. He’s a bit like Muff, don’t you think?”

She didn’t really mean that, however. Muff and Mittens had been littermates given to her when she was ten years old by her brother. Muff had been killed last Christmas by a wretched man who had wanted to hurt her brother and had used Muff to send a message. It had broken her heart to lose her dear old pet in such a way, and not even the handsome Archimedes could replace him.

“Muff looked sweet,” Gillian said.

“Archimedes is sweet,” Audrey insisted and smiled as the cat rubbed his face on her hand, purring again.

“I highly doubt that. Why did you name him Archimedes? I should think Lucifer would be more appropriate.”

Acting shocked, Audrey covered the feline’s ears as though to prevent him from overhearing the discussion.

“Just because he was presiding over a devil’s feast doesn’t mean he’s a wicked cat. He might’ve been lured in as we were, under false pretenses.”

Gillian giggled. “Lured under false pretenses? He’s a cat. They probably snatched him from some alley in the street.”

“Nonsense.” Audrey cuddled Archimedes to her. “Cats never go anywhere they don’t choose to. During the fight, he actually attacked one of the men, Lord Augersley, before I grabbed him from under the table. Yet he didn’t fight me at all, did you?” She scratched behind Archimedes’s ears.

“Good Lord.” Gillian groaned and started for the door. Audrey sensed something deeper was going on with her maid. She’d been quieter this morning. Usually Gillian was talkative, at least to her. Audrey had her suspicions as to what made her friend so pensive. If she hadn’t wanted to be bothered, she would have tidied up and left Audrey’s chambers, yet she had lingered, as though wishing for Audrey to ask what was bothering her.

“We’re really not going to talk about it?” she asked gently, which made Gillian pause as she reached the door.

Gillian finally spoke, her voice soft. “About?”

“Last night. I came home this morning. You didn’t come back until early this morning either. The messenger who brought the note said you’d been injured and that James had taken you to his townhouse.”

Her maid flinched. Audrey studied her closely, trying to read every little expression on her face in order to puzzle out what had happened.

“Gillian,” she whispered, “I know you have a tendre for him. It’s not something to be ashamed of.”

“Isn’t it?” Gillian’s swallowed hard, and Audrey could see she was fighting back sobs. “I’m not now and never will be suitable for someone like him. I’m a maid, my lady. He is an earl. I’d be lucky to be his mistress.”

If there was one thing Audrey hated, it was when society made women like Gillian feel worthless. She was the daughter of an earl, though an illegitimate one. That made no difference to Audrey. Yes, she was the daughter to a viscount and now a sister to one, but in her eyes a person’s title said nothing of his or her character. Deeds and character mattered, not circumstances of birth. And if one was born into more privileged trappings, then in her eyes it was doubly important to be deserving of it. Of course, that was a view she could never share openly, unless it was through the anonymity of Lady Society.

“James has never taken any mistresses.” Audrey got out of her bed and made Archimedes leave her pages alone. “Gilly, we must talk about you and James.” She kept her tone gentle, determined to hide her excitement and determination. If anyone was going to have a lovely wedding and a happy marriage, by God, it was going to be Gillian.

Her friend’s face fell. “Having or not having mistresses is beside the point. He and I could never—” Gillian closed her mouth, trembling slightly, and Audrey saw the glitter of tears in her eyes that she barely held at bay as her face reddened.

Audrey bit her lip, her heart aching for her friend. The bond between them was like that of sisters, and it was killing her to see her friend hurt so. She enveloped Gillian in a hug, and Gillian suddenly burst into tears.

“Have a good cry. I always feel better afterward. Men simply don’t understand the power of a good cry.” Lord knows Jonathan had made her shed tears many times.

Gillian sniffed and laughed nervously. “There are far too many things men don’t understand.”

“That is certainly the truth.” Audrey laughed and let go of Gillian, but she sobered again as she came up with an idea. “Let me ask you something, and I want an honest answer, even if it pains you greatly.”

When her friend nodded, she continued.

“If you were a lady and James was an ordinary gentleman and there was no issue of risk of social standing and such nonsense, would you want to be with him?” She waited, watching her friend’s face as she took the time to answer. Gillian squared her shoulders and raised her chin bravely.

“Yes.”

A brave girl. “That’s all I needed to hear.” She contained a giggle of triumph. She had every intention of bringing Gillian and James together. The only question was how. She sat back on her bed and reached for her papers.

“You aren’t planning on interfering?” Gillian’s tone was accusatory, but also fearful.

She had long ago learned how to keep a straight face playing at cards. “Interfering? I simply needed to know where you stand so that I might best deal with this matter should it come up in the future. I understand your fears. Loath though I am to say it, an earl and a lady’s maid would be quite an impossible situation. But I do not wish to see hearts broken, either. So forewarned is forearmed, as they say. Rest assured, I will deal with the matter appropriately should it ever come up.” Audrey pretended to read the article as she considered how to bring together her two friends. A ball? House party? Secret rendezvous?

“Why do I not believe that?” Gillian muttered.

Audrey ignored her maid’s grim tone. “You look a bit peaky, dear. Why don’t you go down to the kitchens, have a little rest and some tea? I’ll be here working on the article, and I won’t need you for a while.” If she had Gillian resting, she might get her in a better mood, and that would give Audrey time to dream up a matchmaking scheme.

“Very well.” Gillian exited the chamber, leaving Audrey and Archimedes alone. The black cat sat on the window seat, licking one paw and rubbing it over his ear.

She addressed the cat. “What do you think? Should I ask my brother to throw a ball?” Archimedes stared at her. “No? Well, my sister is having a house party in a week. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind inviting James. Everyone simply adores him. So what do you think? A party would create forced intimacy. They would be pushed together in a country house until they simply couldn’t resist each other! It’s perfect, don’t you agree?”

Archimedes licked his nose and purred.

She could see it all now. It would work out marvelously. “That’s settled then. The house party in the country.” She took a leaf of fresh paper and wrote a note to her sister, explaining the situation. Horatia was the more sensible of the two, but like Audrey she was also a hopeless romantic. Horatia would be happy to help bring James and Gillian together. She finished her note and folded it up before she took it to her desk, then carefully sealed it with wax.

Once it cooled, she sat down at the vanity and rested her chin in her hands, thinking. Last night had been a disaster, and she felt duly chastened knowing that her hasty actions had caused Gillian harm. But all would soon be mended. Even though their lives had been in danger, one good thing had come from the incident—James and Gillian had spent more time together, which would only further her plans to see them married.

She noticed one of her gloves on the ground and picked it up, figuring Gillian must have missed it. She studied the ripped silk and sighed. A scent that carried from the glove made her pause and raise it to her nose. Jonathan’s scent, just a hint of it, still lingered on the expensive cloth. Memories from last night came flooding back, of them seated by the fire, of her asking him to teach her to fight. The bargain they’d struck and the fact that she’d spent the night untouched in his bed. Had she really done that? She could not imagine facing him again after doing such a silly thing.

Lord, that had been foolish, yet she did want to learn as much as she could. Avery had taught her about spycraft, Evangeline how to use her femininity to her greatest advantage, yet neither had taught her to defend herself. She needed Jonathan as a teacher. And as much as she didn’t wish to admit it, she wanted to spend more time with him. She knew she shouldn’t. Her heart was already broken, and if she spent more time around him it would only get worse. Yet she was going to because she craved some contact with him, however small it was.

I am determined to punish myself for my desires, aren’t I?

There was a soft knock on the door. Audrey wiped away the tear she suddenly realized was on her cheek and picked up Horatia’s letter.

“Come in.”

The door opened, and Sean Hartley stepped inside. The tall red-headed footman had a warm heart and a handsome smile. He was her most trusted confidant outside of Gillian, and one of the few who knew her identity as Lady Society. She handed him the letter.

“Sean, would you see this is delivered to my sister?”

“Of course, milady.” He tucked the letter into his waistcoat, then cleared his throat. “Also, you have a visitor at the door.”

“Oh?” She tensed. Was it Jonathan? She wasn’t ready to face him. Not yet. “Who is it?”

“The visitor is Lord Pembroke. Shall I tell him you are receiving visitors?”

“James? Oh, this is excellent timing. Yes. Please tell him I will see him in the drawing room.” Audrey paused. “Oh, never mind, I will come down with you. I simply can’t wait.” She put away her writing implements and left her room, barely able to contain her excitement. This was too perfect! She didn’t even need to invite him. He’d simply shown up! James was standing in the foyer, hat in hand, his face a mixture of eagerness and nerves.

Poor dear, he must be hoping I can help him find Gillian.

“James!” she greeted, hugging him. Her brother would have disapproved of such openness, but she thought of James as a brother. There was no risk of such an embrace being construed by James as romantic.

“Do come into the drawing room. I’ll send for tea.”

“Thank you. Tea would be wonderful.”

Once inside the drawing room, she motioned for him to sit while she poured from the tray Sean had brought in. She could feel James watching her, no doubt wondering about last night and how she’d ended up in such a dreadful situation.

James cleared his throat. “How are you after last night’s adventure? I’m afraid that in the chaos we could not avoid getting separated. I trust Mr. St. Laurent escorted you safely home?”

She handed him his tea and then seated herself. “Oh yes, we were fine.” He certainly escorted me home, just not to mine, she thought with a chuckle. She sipped her tea, noticing James had waited until she did to take a sip. How long would it take for him to ask about Gillian? He knew it would be highly improper, but he would sooner or later, she knew it.

“And Miss Beaumont? Did she return safely to you this morning?”

Audrey bit the inside of her lip to hide her smile. He was besotted; it was clear in his brown eyes. They were searching hers for any hint, any word about Gillian, anything to give him hope.

“I missed seeing her depart earlier,” he added.

She smiled. “Yes, she did. Thank you for taking such good care of her, James. Gillian is quite dear to me, you understand. One of my closest friends.”

“Is she?” He scooted forward, eager for any details she would share. Audrey ignored the twinge of guilt she felt, but if she was to help them get together, some small deceptions would be required.

“Yes, we’ve known each other for three years. Since we were sixteen. I trust her with all my secrets. All of them.” She hoped he understood her meaning. As Lady Society, she was a target now for men like Gerald Langley.

James placed his cup on the lacquered table. “She knows of your…occupation?”

She nodded. “And I hope you will keep that knowledge hidden as well, my lord.”

His brown eyes turned serious. “No one shall hear it from me, but I fear your secret is no longer safe. After last night, it is quite clear that men like Gerald Langley will be out for revenge. You must take care. Both of you. Langley has seen Miss Beaumont’s face, and I fear some harm could come to her.” He picked up his cup and took a sip. “Is there any way I might see her again?”

Audrey pretended to study him critically, as though debating her answer.

“That depends. What are your intentions, James?” She waited, watching to see if he would be able to ask her what he should or if she would have to take pity on him and suggest it herself. “As Lady Society, I don’t only challenge the conventions of the ton with my exposé articles; I do other things as well.”

His eyes lit up with hope. “Yes, I hear you are a matchmaker. And I’m here, begging you to help me win over Gillian, Miss Beaumont, that is.” He sounded somewhat desperate, but she understood. When you cared about a person and wanted to be with them, it filled you with that desperation.

She put her cup of tea down and folded her hands in her lap as she leaned toward him, keeping her voice low. “I must ask you a question. Honesty matters, so it would be wise for you to give me only the truth.”

James mirrored her by leaning in. “Of course.”

“Do you love her?”

“Love?” He paused, his gaze contemplative. “I haven’t known her long enough to be certain of love, but I know that from the moment I met her something seemed to fit when I am with her. Like pieces of a puzzle sliding into place or the way the sea and the shore come together. I feel tied to her in a way that defies a more rational explanation. She is intelligent, compassionate, and brave. Everything I would want from a partner in my life.”

“And beautiful?” He had left out the thing most men focused on first and foremost when choosing a wife or mistress. She fought off a grin as she teased him.

James continued to look at her seriously. “Of course. But beauty is not merely that of one’s face and form. It extends far deeper, into the mind and soul. That beauty grows with time rather than fades.”

His words filled her heart with warmth. James was even better than she had hoped. He truly was perfect for Gillian. She leaned back in her chair. It was time to test him further. “After such a brief encounter, you can hardly know her well. What if your assumptions about her were misplaced?”

Confusion clouded his face. “I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

“If you chose to be with her and it caused your life to crumble down around you, what then? Would you regret it? Would you abandon her, wish you had never met her?” She held her breath, waiting to see if he would prove he was the man she thought he was.

He and I are so alike. We fight for our love, fight until we are certain of victory or defeat. I lost my war, but James still has a chance to win his. I won’t let him give up.

He lowered his head, staring into this teacup before he replied. “What about Gillian’s life?”

“Pardon?”

“Well, you say being with her might crumble my life down around me, but would it similarly damage hers? If so, then I would have no choice but to spare us both that pain. But if you are talking about my life alone…well, I believe there are certain people in this life who are worth the heartache and difficult times. For me, Gillian is that woman. I truly believe she is worth anything.”

She smiled at his response. “I must warn you. Gillian’s life has not been easy, and she has secrets of her own. Secrets she believes will hurt any man she loved if they were ever discovered. Are you brave enough to face her when she tells you the truth?”

James frowned. “Is she in love with someone else? Is there another man with whom—”

“No, of course not!”

James’s shoulders dropped in open relief. “Then yes, I can brave the truth so long as I have a fighting chance to win her.”

“Good.” She clapped her hands together. “Then here’s what you must do. You will receive an invitation from my sister to attend a house party one week from now. You will accept. Gillian will be there. You will have your chance to win her then.”

“A week.” He mouthed the words, still frowning.

“You can be patient, can’t you, my lord?”

“Of course.” His soft sigh was oddly reassuring. He sounded as though he’d waited for her a very long time, and waiting a little longer was a survivable hardship.

“We shall see you in a week.” She rose from her chair, and he followed suit.

Audrey walked him back to the foyer, and Sean handed him his hat. He paused in the doorway, afternoon sunlight illuminating him like Gillian’s very own guardian angel. It filled Audrey with joy for her friend’s future happiness as well as envy, because she would never have a man who cared about her like James did Gillian.

But at least I can give her a happy life.

“Miss Sheridan, if you do see her, will you tell her—” His face turned red with his bashfulness. “Tell her that I’m thinking of her.”

“I shall,” Audrey promised. She watched him descend the steps and summon a coach. She would do everything in her power to use the house party to bring them closer together. Love would grow there, she was sure of it.

When she turned back around, she saw Gillian standing just outside the servants’ entrance.

“My lady?” The two words held a mountain of questions.

“Lord Pembroke came to see you.” She folded her hands in front of her and banished thoughts of Jonathan and her own melancholy from her mind. “He wanted to be sure you were all right. I let him know you were. Now, I’ve forgotten we’ve been invited to Lucien’s estate in a week and must begin packing.” She motioned for Gillian to come with her back to her chambers. “I want to bring my best gowns. And you will be accompanying me—not as a lady’s maid but as a lady.”

Gillian stared at her in horror. “I am?”

Audrey laughed. “Yes. We must work on our spy efforts. You especially must improve your ability to disguise yourself. If you look down or act deferential when you shouldn’t, you could get us both killed.”

“But—”

“No arguing. Let’s make a list of what we need to pack.” She had to do her best to keep both Gillian and herself distracted. There was every chance that Jonathan would not keep his promise to teach her to fight. And that was not something she wished to think about.