Sounds familiar, I too squandered a lot of money via similar means.
“It got so bad that after our parents passed, I left to live with my godmother and he kept on with the manor. Only yesterday,I found that the house is empty and he is gone. He had a heart condition, and I fear he will die out there alone.”
“Possibly drinking himself to death too,” William muttered.
Her eyes darted to him. “Pardon me?”
“Nothing.”
Narrowing her gaze, she continued, “It did not sound like nothing. Did you say he is out there drinking himself to death?”
“It is likely true,” William said. “Speaking as one who almost ended in that same predicament, I can tell you. Well, not truly because I do not know the horrors of war and I can assume whilst my insouciance indulgence came from flagrant disregard for propriety, his might have come from the urge to forget the atrocities he had to commit.”
“You are a rake,” she said flatly. “He is not.”
“Despite that, the tricks to hide from creditors and to still earn money for drink are the same,” William muttered darkly. “And none of them are ones palatable to a gentlewoman’s ears.”
She notched her head up. “Nevertheless, will you help me find him?”
Cocking his head, William replied, “I find it interesting that you did not go to your beloved Lord Hansen for this matter, but you came to me instead.”
Her eyes flew open, and he saw the moment the penny dropped. She went red. Staring at her, all he could think about was how supple she had felt in his arms.
If her face was so soft, he could only guess that beneath that bland gray frock lay the softest, silkiest skin. “Oh, how remiss of me. Have I complimented you on your dress? It is rather delectable.”
“I am not fishing for compliments,” she murmured. “And the reason I did not go to Hansen is because he did not promise me anything. Youdid,and I expect you to fulfill it.”
Leaning in, he pinned her with a hard, unflinching stare. “You might doubt me, but because of my past, I know the rookeries, I know the slums. But if I am going to search through them, I am going to be risking my life. My life over a simple promise is not fair, is it? I want something more.”
The eyes that met his were wide and thickly lashed, and the color; blue, vivid, and pure, the shade of a summer sky in a painting. She glared. “And I didn’t riskmylife drawing the attention from you that night?”
Quick thinker, isn’t she. “Touché.”
“Then what, you won’t do it?” she huffed, standing. “I see that I made a mistake coming here.”
“No, you did not,” his tone sharpened. “Sit.”
He hid his surprise when her bottom promptly met the seat. With what she was asking of him, he would have to renegotiate their terms.
William was assured he knew the rookeries in London, and he would fish her brother out of whatever hole he had buried himself in, but he needed her loyalty secured first and the only way he could do that was to have her as his fiancée.
With her as his wife, he would receive his inheritance quicker, she would have her brother, and he would give her a hefty sum as thanks for her service. A win-win as far as he was concerned; but she was a stubborn one, and if he wanted to get what he wanted, he would have to convince her.
I may have no choice but to seduce her.
“And what terms would these be?” she asked coldly.
Don't rush your fences, man. Remember, she is an innocent. Go slow.
CHAPTER 15
“Ihave three options for you. Option one, I send the Runners to find him, which will probably end up with him in debtor’s prison where he will likely perish. Option two, I will have a search done of the rookeries for him and report back, but for this one, we will have to be courting,” William gauged her expression; she looked startled but not overly so.
“And for option three, I will personally find him, bring him back to you on a lovely silver platter, but for this one… you must accept my hand in marriage.”
Those were words he knew Bridget had not expected to hear and she certainly did not accept them now. “No.”
“Rest assured; it is only temporary. We will amicably dissolve our marriage soon enough, you’ll have your brother, I will have the fortune that was held from me, and we’ll part ways with your reputation untouched.”
