“And when the sisters run out of beds?”
With a sigh, she rolled her eyes. “I’m working on it.” With the freedom that she’d gained this morning, opportunities opened. She just needed to sit down and explore all the possibilities. Perhaps she could find people—some among the nobility—willing to support her cause.
“Here we are,” he said suddenly. He brought them to a halt in front of a large brick building that had three rows of windows. She’d paid very little attention to the path they’d taken, wasn’t quite certain where they were. He dismounted, walked over to her, and placed his large hands on her small waist, and she fought against welcoming the familiarity of it as he lowered her to the ground. Afterward he tethered both horses to a post and flipped a coin to an eager lad. “Keep watch on them.”
“Aye, guv.”
Then he led her toward the steps. “What is this place?” she asked.
“The Elysium Club.” He said it as though the name explained it all.
“I’m afraid I must beg ignorance as I’ve never heard of it. Is it a gaming hell?”
“It is.” He leaned toward her, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “For women.”
Inserting a key into the lock, he led Vivi inside. The mornings were the quietest and his favorite time of the day, when possibilities loomed before him. In the hush of inactivity, all dreams appeared obtainable.
They entered a small lobby where people could leave their cloaks and coats with a young woman who would hang them in the tiny room behind her until the guests were ready to leave. Then they walked into the main room. All the gas lamps were alight, bathing the room in a golden glow. She gasped, which delighted him beyond all measure.
“So this is what a gaming hell looks like,” she said in awe. “Is this your brother’s?”
“It’s mine.”
She spun around, surprise and awe momentarily returning the lost years to her features, reminding him of the girl she’d once been. “But I thought you worked at Aiden’s club.”
“I do, although not as often since I’ve begun managing this place.”
Slowly she took in the surroundings, and he wondered if she saw the same potential he did. “It’s incredible, Finn. What’s the purpose of the various tables?”
“We have faro, roulette, dice games, and naturally card games. We even have a book over here similar to the one at White’s where ladies can wager on anything they choose.”
She flipped through the pages. “They’re blank. Have you not yet opened?”
“We have.” He shrugged. “We just don’t have many customers yet.”
“Did you announce it in theTimes?” She picked up a pair of dice and rolled them along the table.
“No, I want to keep the club more exclusive. And that’s where you come in.”
She swung around and stared at him. “I beg your pardon?”
“You can’t get into a gentlemen’s club without someone vouching for you.” He bobbed his head to the side. “Except for Aiden’s, of course. Show enough blunt and he welcomes you with open arms. I want you to help me determine who to invite. I’ll pay you for the service.”
“This club is for the ladies of the nobility?”
“It is. As well as some commoners whose husbands are well-off. What do you ladies do when your gents are out for the evening?”
“We embroider.” Turning on her heel, she began wending her way between tables. “Why call it the Elysium Club?”
“Aiden named his club for the three-headed hound that guards Hades. I thought to name mine for the heavens where the gods lived. I want the ladies to feel like goddesses.”
She ran her fingers over the green baize of a card table, and he remembered how it had felt to have her fingers running over his chest, thought about how badly he wanted them skimming over his skin now.
“There are two sorts who might seek refuge here.” She faced him. “Have no doubt about it, they are seeking refuge. One sort will be the outgoing girls, the bold ones, the ones gentlemen tend to discount as being unbiddable. The other will be the shy girls. Both groups sit at the balls, bored beyond reason, feeling... less than. Judged, although for entirely opposite reasons.”
“You say that as though you understand them, as though you’ve experienced it. I’ve seen you at a ball—you’re not a wallflower and you certainly never gave the impression of being unbiddable.”
“I changed a bit after that masquerade ball. I had to force myself to be enthusiastic about things and found myself not really being part of either group. I’d ridiculed them before, came to know them better afterward.”
