She found him as he stepped forward from a small cluster of sycophants, and her shoulders dropped away from her ears.
He bowed over her hand as he had other business people he’d invited, giving it a surreptitious squeeze to reassure her. Tucking her arm in his, he strolled the rooms, stopping to introduce her to the various business owners and investors. He offered a comment about their role, then allowed each to share their passion with her and her with them.
There were a few he knew better than others and had co-invested with them in several enterprises. To offer proof of her business acumen, he told one friend about Althea’s shampoo and jokingly offered his hair to touch.
Althea shocked him when she opened her reticule and pulled out a few small bottles, likely repurposed from perfume. “No need. I have a few scents here for you to choose from. I brought samples for those most interested.”
She removed the stoppers and offered them to be sniffed.
“How enterprising. Cheltie said you were intelligent beyond your years. I should have known his instincts were spot on, as usual.”
Evan bristled at the flattery, then recognized his reaction as jealousy. He’d never been jealous. He didn’t like the sensation.
Attempting to put his emotions aside and focus on Althea’s success, he promenaded with her toward the next investor. Patting her hand on his arm, he said, “’Twas a nice touch, bringing the samples. Not something I would have thought of.”
She smiled.
“Let us solicit a few others. Mayhap we can get some competing bids and bring your interest rate down.”
Althea stopped. “Evan, I confess, I am confused. How many investors do you think I’ll need? How much do these people usually offer?”
“Most here would fund your venture individually unless they thought it held a very high risk.” He started them strolling. “If that was the case and a few were interested, they would meet and see if it made sense to each take a smaller piece. But yours is not what we would consider high risk. ’Tis why I think we’ll have more interest.”
Althea stopped again and turned to him. She took a breath as though to speak, then closed her mouth, looking pained.
“What is it?”
She raised her gaze to his. “I thought you said you’d be my investor.”
“What?” He frowned, his voice raised. Seeing a few heads turn, he realized they were making a scene. He took her elbow and guided her out of the room and toward the back of the wide entry hall. “Why would you think that?”
“In Bath. You told me you would help. And thus it could be expedited.”
He gritted his teeth. And here they were, back to his never-ending situation. Another person who wanted money from him. He’d been right not to trust her. His jaw clenched, he ground out, “This is me helping.”
“But—”
“But nothing. You said yourself, you don’t mix business and pleasure. This was my solution. Why on earth would you think otherwise?” He threw his hands up in agitation.
“I just thought…”
As it had in Greenborough Park when she declined his reasonable offers of investment, anger overtook him. “I know what you thought. After all, my friends call me Bags because I always had a bag of money to bail them out.” His mouth twisted as he continued, his voice pitched high to mimic her. “No, I don’t want anyone to have a stake. I just want money and sex with no strings attached. Oh, and it has to be on the sly.” He lowered his voice back to his natural range, shaking his head. “That is not how it works.”
“I beg your pardon, Evan.” She was frowning at him, her mouth a taut line in her face. “’Twas a simple misunderstanding, hence why I asked you about it now. You needn’t be rude. I do know howitworks. Life works quite differently for you titled gentlemen than it does for any lady, Ton or no. And you said all along you understood that. As for the rest, I fought hard for my independence, and I intend to keep it. Again, I thought you understood and supported that. It is clear you did not.”
He spun on his heel toward the front door, ignoring the tears coursing down Althea’s face. He needed a drink and solitude. “Good night, Lady Edgerton,” he flung over his shoulder. “Best of luck with your expansion endeavors.”
Chapter Fourteen
Althea stood in the shadows at the back of the hall with her hands fisted at her sides. She was both furious and hurt at Evan’s unjustified outburst. He’d said he would help her and referred to her as a potential business partner. Surely, he could understand her assumption. Instead, he had yelled at her and mocked her.
Her mind swirled with everything he’d thrown at her, but the soirée was not the place for it. They both could not disappear without gossip starting. Turning, she made her way to the retiring room and bathed her face in lavender water until her eyes were less red. When Evan’s accusations started replaying in her mind, she shoved them back down to be dealt with later.
After all, he thinks I am a good businesswoman, and ’tis good business to put this opportunity first.Even her inner voice sounded bitter and angry.
In the parlor, she circled the room, quietly wishing the people she had met a good night and accepting offers to visit with those interested in hearing more about her venture. Evan had already arranged a meeting with the Dowager Countess of Peterborough for the morrow. She loved the idea of a woman investor investing in a partnership of two women’s businesses. She’d follow up with the others as needed after seeing how her meeting with Lady Peterborough went.
Two of Evan’s cronies were joking about besting Cheltie as she approached them to say her farewells. One looked around the room and frowned, then turned to her. “Speak of the devil, where is he?”
