In three rounds, he had Brooks up against the ropes, and by the fifth, the man’s bluster proved to be all steam. A clock to Brooks’ temple sent him down to the floor and that time, he stayed down.
“No, you did not,” Andrew scoffed. “What did you earn this time?”
“A thousand and a hundred pounds altogether,” William replied. “Enough to cancel a debt of mine that I need gone.”
“Are you at any level concerned that you might seriously injure yourself or die?” Andrew asked.
“I’ve been on death’s door before,” William shrugged. “I am not that afraid.”
Leaning in, Andrew furrowed his brows. The light from the waning sunset through the window glinted over his cufflinks and the pocket watch’s chain.
“I knew you were a hellhound for years but being so blasé with your life concerns me, William. Where is this…ennuicoming from? Do you not want to have a stable life? A relationship, a wife? Or is bed hopping the only intimacy you desire?”
Swirling his drink, William replied, “I have never lived a conventional life, Sutton, and moreover, I never wanted a conventional life. It's boring, it’s tedium, it's routine, and I have had enough of that from Eton and Oxford. And coming from one rake to another, is that not a tad hypocritical.”
“Just be glad my escapades have hidden all of yours,” William laughed. “They were all so agog with my jumping out of windowsand scaling balconies to look at you entreating three women at Vauxhall.”
Sighing, Andrew sat back. “I am… deeply concerned for you, old boy, you know that.”
“I only have myself to blame,” William lifted a shoulder. “You know what they say about hitting rock-bottom.”
“I do,” Andrew nodded. “But is this the best way to go up, I wonder?”
“Meaning what?” he scoffed. “I won’t be plying myself out to a rich heiress to get blunt to shore up the hole I have dug for myself. A man fixes his mistakes when he realizes he has made them. A boy’s response is to have someone else fix them for him. I am the furthest thing from a boy.”
Rubbing the back of his neck, Andrew added, “I have told you before, I can loan you the money—”
“And I have told you before, I need to fix my other debt before I get myself back into one.” William took the last sip of his only glass and sat it on the coffee table. “It is not pride, as I know you are going to accuse me of parading around, but it is simply common sense.”
Reaching for the bottle, Andrew poured another glass and lifted the bottle, wordlessly asking William if he wanted another.Waving his hand, William pressed his fingertips into the bruise and knew a long bath was scheduled for him later that night.
“When is the next match?” Andrew asked.
“In six days,” William replied. “At least word has gotten out now that I am a contender for the Circuit’s grand prize, and I know the harder competition will come my way. Along with it the better coin. Brooks was a brawler, a novice if you will, and seasoned boxers will be coming out of the woodwork.”
“You must be exhausted,” Andrew canted his head. “I will leave you be. I cannot imagine brawling, much less bare-knuckling another man.”
“That’s because the hardest work you do is scribbling your name on an investment account,” William laughed.
“You forget that I fence,” Andrew smirked. “It is a gentleman’s sport.”
“Swinging a foil around is not awe-inspiring,” he scoffed. “Nor would I bet a ten-pound note on a match to see two men dance around each other.”
“And that—” Andrew chuckled, getting to his feet and reaching for his jacket. “—is my cue to leave, before I call you every disrespectful name in the book.”
“Wouldn’t be anything I have not heard before.” William stood as well, moving to his room. “Please don’t call tomorrow, I will be comatose.”
After Andrew left, William made for his room and called for a bath while gently reclining on an armchair. The moment he closed his eyes, another face bloomed on the back of his lidsmademoiselle mystérieux, her eyes vibrant, and her mouth ripe and trembling—she'd been enticing beyond words.
His instincts told him he had only scratched the surface of who the angelic Miss was. She was like a rare pearl just shucked from the ocean, a clean, unsullied, innocent gem on the inside, though her outer shell was hardened.
Why?
William knew he would have ample time to dissuade the girl from hanging her hat on Hansen—thank God he had honed his seductive wiles a long time ago, she would fall, he knew that.
But what happens after that?
He avoided that question like the plague.
