By the time she escaped another fitting at Madam Le Fleur’s, it was early afternoon. All the while, she had stood in front of the mirror being poked and prodded, her mind had turned over her problem. She had ten days, no way to secure more money to settle Arthur’s debt, and she did not have the full thirty-five hundred pounds that was outstanding. Her final foray as a jewel thief had been less than successful. Having scrounged through her own meager jewelry collection as well as a few household items she’d hoped to avoid pawning due to sentimental attachment, she’d managed to scrape together a few hundred pounds.

With the meager wad of bills in her reticule, she settled into the coach and headed toward Lucifer’s. After all the ruckus of her being ruined, her rather rushed wedding, and her marital struggles, she had damn near forgotten about the debt her brother owed. Stopping up the street near a little shop, she bid her driver to stay nearby while she got out.

Once more before the door of the notorious gambling hell she knocked. This time, when the big brute who manned the door saw her, he grunted and then opened it to admit her to the foyer. He simply pointed at the chair she had sat in previously and then plodded up the stairs. He was a large man and proved remarkably cumbersome, even for someone his size.

After a few minutes, he returned. “Mr. Lucifer will see you.”

She crossed the long gallery above the hall and entered through the double doors of Frank Lucifer’s office. And like every other time, she was worried about the outcome. This time, things seemed even more dire than during her other visits.

She strode into his office and found the man sitting behind his oversized desk. “Lady Emmaline, to what do I owe the pleasure of a visit so soon on the heels of your previous one?”

“Mr. Lucifer, I am afraid I have had a turn of bad luck, to put it in terms you might be familiar with.” Emily’s gut hardened into stone. If the man didn’t see fit to give her more time—and he hadn’t been willing to in the past—she had no hope of satisfying Arthur’s debt. God only knew what he would do to her brother.

He looked genuinely surprised by her sally. “Please, do not tell me you have fallen victim to the same malady as your brother.”

The man always seemed to stir her desire to throttle someone, namely him. “Mr. Lucifer, did you fall from your bed and knock your head this morning?”

Bemused, the man rubbed his hair. “Not that I recall, my lady.”

“Then why do you insist on saying such ridiculous things? No, I have not taken to gambling. But I have unfortunately seen an end come to my ability to raise the funds required to settle Arthur’s debt. I have a mere three hundred pounds in my possession and no hope of expanding that further.” She pulled the wad of money from her purse and set it on his desk. “I am afraid I can make no further payments on what is owed you.”

The man had the nerve to grin at her. It was as though he enjoyed toying with her. Could it be that he so rarely had ladies of her caliber in his presence? Did she fascinate him? She pushed that silly notion aside. No, he was a dangerous man. He simply liked playing with those he deemed weaker than himself, and she clearly fell into that category.

“Rumor has it that you were recently married.” He looked at her in expectation, both his brows rising toward his hairline.

Stunned, Emily hesitated. “I-I…” She fumbled for a moment more. “Why yes, it seems I was. How in the world did you hear such information?”

Lucifer rose from his desk and walked around to where she stood. “Ah, you see, information can be as valuable as money. I trade in both when appropriate.”

“Oh.” She wasn’t sure she understood, and frankly wondered if this wasn’t him still toying with her. “Well, I suppose I could find something of interest for you if you’d take information in lieu of money.”

He laughed. “My dear, it would need to be more than the latest on-dit gathered from the ton’s ballrooms. The knowledge of your hasty nuptials was merely something I heard in passing recently. But it did make me think that perhaps you should speak to your new husband about the money.”

The rock in her gut plummeted to her toes. There was no way she could explain her brother’s failings to her husband. It would shame Arthur, and likely infuriate Cooper. No, that would never work. “I’m afraid that is not possible.”

He reached up and traced a fingertip over her shoulder and down her arm. “I did offer another solution.”

The silence hung thick and full between them as her body stiffened. She let her lashes lower to hide the anger simmering within at his proposition.

“I’d say it still stands, but something tells me you aren’t the kind of woman to cuckold her husband.”

She drew in a breath and raised her gaze to meet his, the full measure of her ire on display. “I am most certainly not that kind of woman, and for you to suggest otherwise is insulting. If this were a different era and you were actually a gentleman, I’d call you out for such disparagement of my honor.”

The man had the audacity to grin at her. “Lucky for us this is not the right era—I will, of course, overlook the small matter of you being a woman in this supposed scenario—and I am no gentleman. If I were, I would not so easily give in to the urge to rile you up just to see your cheeks grow pink and your eyes flash.”

Dear God, did the man find her attractive? She wasn’t sure if she was flattered or appalled. Perhaps both, if she were honest.

“Mr. Lucifer, I shall do my best to acquire the remaining debt, but I feel certain I shall come up short based on the given timeline. If I fail, what will happen to my brother?” Fear quickly pushed aside all the other confusing emotions Frank Lucifer seemed to enjoy stirring up.

“I would not be able to let nonpayment pass.” He paused, for dramatic effect, she supposed. “But, Lady Emmaline, I urge you to speak with your husband on this matter. You might find him amenable to resolving things with you.”

Lucifer’s low bass rumbled over her. If she were not so enamored of Cooper—even as she was still furious with him—she realized she could find Frank Lucifer very attractive in a rough sort of way. She took a clear step back, putting space between them. “And as I have told you, that is not possible. I shall find another way. You will hear from me when I have sorted things out.”

She turned and strode toward the door of his office. As she neared it, his voice snared her for one last moment.

“Speak to your husband, Lady Brougham. There may be more at stake than mere money.”

She never looked back, simply pressed onward, all but fleeing Lucifer and his gambling hell.

Outside, she hailed her driver and made her way home, all the while trying to figure out how to fix the mess she was in. Perhaps Lucifer was right? Maybe Cooper would be more willing to help her than not?

* * *

Emily sat in her chamber mulling over her interview with Mr. Lucifer. Why had he been so insistent she speak to her husband? It was puzzling, to say the least.

A sharp knock sounded, and then her door opened to reveal one of the men she had been thinking of. “Cooper, what brings you home in the middle of the day?”

“News of my wife’s whereabouts.” His brows were drawn low over his brown eyes.

She stood and stepped away from her dressing table. “News of my whereabouts? I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

“I feel much the same. I fail to understand why my wife was seen entering a notorious gambling hell.” It was hard to miss the gentle flare of his nostrils every time he breathed out.

Shock rattled her equilibrium as she tried to absorb the notion that someone had reported on her activities to her husband. But who? “How is it that someone saw me enter this establishment and managed to report that information to you so quickly?”

Cooper flushed. His lips pressed together into a thin line of displeasure. Or was it consternation? “I have had my friends following you for some time now. When I first discovered you were visiting Lucifer’s, I grew frantic with worry that you were in some kind of trouble.”

Emily’s stomach flipped and flopped inside. Only one question came to mind. “How long? How long have you been following me?”

He sighed. “It started around the time I discovered you were stealing at balls. I needed to understand why you were sneaking about like a thief. You refused to confide in me, even after we grew closer. I had hoped that would change over time. That you would come to me and share your troubles. But even now, after it seemed we were finding stable ground, you still refused. Then I assumed that with your near exposure as a thief, your need to visit Lucifer would cease. That you would trust me. Yet, that has not proven the case.”

Fury swept through her at his admission of having her followed. “So, because I did not choose to trust you, you took the choice from me? You insufferable, high-handed lout.”

He strode over to where she stood and grabbed her shoulders. “You left me no choice! You were so busy hiding the truth that you never once considered me as someone to confide in. How could I protect you if you wouldn’t trust me?”

“Why would I trust you? As soon as you learned of my theft, you used the information to get me in your bed. And then later, you used our intimate relationship to force me into marriage. Like every other man in my life, you have manipulated me and used me to suit your own needs.”

Her chest ached with her anger. Hurt with the knowledge that her husband was every bit as selfish and manipulative as her father and her brother had been.

“I tried to protect you. I begged you to marry me, to let me take care of you and your concerns. But you were too busy being an independent woman to allow anyone to help you, let alone a man.” He heaved a breath and cursed softly. “Well, it’s too late. I’ve bought out all your brother’s markers and have spoken with him. As long as he stays on the straight and narrow, his debts will be considered absolved. So, there is no more reason for you to sneak about going to Lucifer’s or to steal from our peers.”

And on that pronouncement, he turned on his heel and stormed off.

Alone in the shattered silence, Emily hunched over as she realized her mistakes. He was right. She had never trusted him, never given him a chance to help her openly. Instead, she had been so determined to solve her own problems that she had refused to accept help, even when she’d needed it.

And now she’d ruined her marriage over her stubborn independence.