Upon his arrival, Evan’s mother caught him before he headed into the games room.

“What sort of errand was of the utmost importance to have you leave without so much as a word to me?”

He sighed, it was of the utmost importance to marry her off, as well. He wouldn’t tolerate her interference any longer.

Evan faced her and said in his sternest voice, “Have you taken leave of your senses, Mother? Or have you forgotten I am head of this household? I am not a child, nor will I tolerate your scolding me. Need I remind you I could cut your allowance to a mere few shillings and have you relocated to the dower house?”

His mother blanched. He didn’t desire to put her into the dower house, which had been vacant for some time now, but if she continued this path she would leave him no choice.

“If that is all, I will attend to our gentlemen guests and you may continue with your ladies.”

She bowed her head and left the foyer, finally leaving him to his peace.

“There you are, Radcliffe!” Emberly entered. “Join us for billiards. We were hoping you’d open up the stables for the few of us that are left.”

“Of course! Fresh air is just what our constitution requires.”

When he approached Emberly at the sideboard, the others were playing the current game. Evan couldn’t help but notice that Amelia had walked by the games room twice since he arrived.

Taking a seat under the window he leaned toward his friend. “Did anyone inquire about my whereabouts?”

“Aye. Your mother was most persistent in learning your whereabouts, your sister, and of course, the ton’s favorite hussy. Oh, and before you concern yourself with what I said, I only mentioned what we previously discussed.”

“Excellent.” Evan took a swig of his drink, leaned back and attempted to relax.

He smiled. He wanted to hold that lady in his arms and make sweet passionate love to her. There was no rhyme to his reason, but she was a blessed gift and she had no idea the power she held over him. From the first time he laid his eyes upon her, to finding her so flustered after their kiss this morning. How he wished they had more time in the carriage. He knew it was only a matter of time before his mother received some report on his outing this morning. The blasted woman had eyes and ears all over town. The only question remained is what she would do with the information. Which, suffice it to say, could be anything knowing her.

“We kissed. Passionately, too.”

“Well now, this is certainly a change of events. First you attempt to rescue her, and then she ends up hauling your arse back to her cousin’s townhouse. To you stealing a kiss from her inside your carriage in town. You’re a brave man.”

“I’m not brave. The deuced woman has bewitched me and does not even know it.”

A roar of laughter from the billiards table caught their attention.

Evan and Emberly headed over to see what the commotion was all about.

“So, what is all the laughter about, men?” Evan asked.

“Young Lord Avery here seems to have made a wager.”

“What kind of wager would that be, Avery?” Evan got the sense he wasn’t going to like what the young man had to say.

“The wager is simple really. I wagered fifty guineas that Lady Amelia will find her way back into your good graces, my lord.”

Evan cleared his throat and called out to the footman who waited by the door. “Close the door, Manfred.”

Before Emberly could talk any sense into him, Evan grabbed Avery by the lapels. “First of all, let me make myself abundantly clear when I say you will lose this wager; I have no desire to reacquaint myself with that woman and her wiles. Secondly, if you, or anyone else for that matter, dare to make that wager again, I will pound you so senseless that you will wish that you were never born. Am. I. Clear?”

Evan released him and brush his lapels.

“Jesus, Radcliffe,” another exclaimed. “It was a harmless wager. No respectable person of the ton takes her seriously.”

“That is not the point, Beauvale. I will not have my name dragged through the mud while I am trying to find a suitor for my sister.”

They all stared at him. When Beauvale continued, “So the gossip is true then? Wickham jilted her for an American heiress.”

All Evan could do was grumble. He wanted nothing more than for this little charade his mother was putting on to be over with.

“Wickham did leave, but I promise you, if he ever sets foot on English soil again I will call him out.”

Evan removed himself from the circle of men that surrounded him and walked toward the window overlooking the courtyard. All the ladies were strolling outdoors before luncheon. “You are all welcome to my stables. I will join you shortly, I just remembered I have some ledgers to go over.” Without looking back, he left the room and headed to his library with Emberly hot on his heels.

“If you insist on following me, make sure you bolt the door behind you. I have no desire to be interrupted further.”

“Just hear me out and you can return to your sulking,” Emberly said.

Evan waved off for him to join him at his desk.

“What could you possibly have to say at this point, Emberly? I’ve already said what I’ve had to say on the matter of my sister and that woman.”

“I realize this whole husband hunting has you in a foul disposition. Do keep in mind that you know how people talk. They will speculate as to why you’re desperate to find her a husband so quickly after Wickham ran off.”

Evan snorted. “I am well aware of that fact.”

“Then do try and be civil. I will help you find the proper suitor, but for now you need to get through this engagement your mother and sister are hosting.”

Evan relaxed. There was a reason he and Emberly were friends. Emberly balanced his impulsive nature, which was an oddity unto itself; the viscount was even more impetuous than he.

“Well, now that you’ve mentioned it, I do have an outing I am planning of my own. I plan on taking Annabelle to the opera, and I’ve invited Eliza and her cousin to join us. Perhaps, you can join us.”

He watched the expression on his friend’s face change from shock to curiosity.

“Am I to understand that the two of you are now so intimate that you’re calling each other by your given names?”

Evan had no intention of dignifying that inquiry with a response. “I am planning on taking Annabelle next week. I hope you will be able to join us. I am certain you will not want to miss the opportunity in a formal introduction to the lady.”

He glimpsed the devious grin that lured the minxes to Emberly.

“How could I ever decline such an opportunity?”

“Then it is settled. Let us return to those pompous asses in the stables. I will be glad for all of them to be gone by tomorrow, including the ladies.”

* * *

“What do you mean he kissed you? Of course, a gentleman always picks up a glove and kisses a lady they admire,” Mary teased while holding Eliza in her arms. “Do tell. I want every detail.”

Eliza pulled away and walked up the stairs and stopped halfway to face her.

“No! He kissed me as a lover would. Quite passionately…it all happened so quickly. I hardly know what to conclude from such an exchange.”

Eliza raced to her room and flopped onto her bed, only to be joined by her cousin a few seconds later.

“Oh no you don’t, Eliza, I want to know everything that he said to you.”

“Nothing really. Other than he would like us to join him and his sister at the opera next week. I was sure he meant nothing by the invitation, that is, until he kissed me long and hard in the carriage outside your house.”

Eliza sighed at the fond memory. She clung to his scent that lingered on her skin.

“Elizabeth Winston, if I didn’t know any better, you are besotted with the earl. Heaven prevail! A miracle has happened.”

Eliza reached for a pillow and tossed it at Mary.

“Do stop, Mary. I’m enjoying the moment, try and not spoil it. If you cannot find something constructive to say, do stay on topics such as the weather.”

“Pardon…” her cousin muttered, confused.

Eliza peered over at her and they broke out in a fit of laughter.

“Ahem…”

Mary’s son had entered the room, appearing unamused with their childish antics.

“If you ladies are done behaving like silly chits, I will be dining with some of the men from the regiment tonight. Do,” he waggled a finger at them both, “try and stay out of trouble.”

Eliza watched Mary’s son leave with the most ridiculous and stern expression on his face, when Mary blurted out, “That boy is turning into his father with every passing day. I do hope he will find a proper lady and make us proud.”

There were times, like now, Eliza would have liked to have been blessed with children of her own, and yet providence had not. Moments like this one made her take stock of how fortunate she was that Alfred had left her with a smidge of income. Though she was not close with his son, she was grateful he honored his late father’s wishes.

Yet, the fact remained that she had not been her own identity these last ten years. She married late. In fact, her own mother had written her off as spinster and prepared to take her off the marriage mart. Were it not for her father’s connections, she’d have not married Alfred.

“Eliza…” Mary nudged her. “Do you ever wonder what it would have been like to have been married off to a younger, virile man.”

She turned toward her cousin. “Sometimes.” Her voice trailed off and sadness pulled at her heart. She was a childless widow, and even despite that her husband hadn’t given her any children, it would not stop the wagging tongues of the ton suspecting she was barren. A thought that would limit her suitors if she were to consider remarrying. The gossip would not aid in that singular matter as well.

Her cousin gripped her hand and brought it to her lips and placed a gentle kiss. “You will have children one day my beautiful and intelligent cousin. I would wager you could very well be a countess one day soon.”

A wonderful thought and perhaps it was true, perhaps it was all a dream. The Earl of Chisholm’s kiss had left her bereft of her senses. Lord, the man knew how to make a lady swoon.

“What say you we have ourselves some luncheon and then we shall venture off to collect your new wardrobe. I daresay, I cannot way to see you in some new gowns. Just imagine the heads you will be turning at the theatre with the earl at your side,” Mary quipped while vaulting from the bed.

“I’ll be along in a moment, Mary.”

Eliza rose from the bed and headed to the window. The traffic below was busier than the norm for this time of day. She supposed a little dalliance with the earl would not hurt, but she knew nothing of courtship or the etiquette of such affairs. Just how did one demonstrate their affection to gentlemen without coming across as a doxie? She’d have to ask her cousin for advice, but hoped the dear woman wouldn’t laugh at her. Far be it any fault of her own for not knowing any better, but it was time she sought out her own happiness instead of mulling around in her own fears and disappointment.

Eliza made her way down to the dining room where her cousin had started luncheon without her. She sat down and glared at her cousin who grinned like a fiend.

“What on earth is so amusing, Mary?”

“You’re distracted, Eliza. Is it the kiss with the earl that has you out of sorts, or that you require some personal attention?”

Dear God. The woman was out of her wits by openly discussing such subject matter.

“If you must know, then yes, it was the earl I was thinking about.”

“Excellent. So, now that we’ve established you can secure a kiss from an earl, I wonder what other gentlemen you could catch. Shall we put my theory to the test?”

Eliza recognized the grin her cousin bore. Full of intrigue and trouble. Just the sort of thing she did not want to attract. She supposed she will discover soon enough the sort of intrigue her cousin is carefully plotting out.