Except…
She did have money, didn’t she?
Or, at least, she would very soon.
A sob formed in her throat and sat there, a hard, unresolved knot.
Likely, it would sit unresolved for the rest of her days.
She must pay Lydon’s debt.
If she wanted to keep both the roof over her head and her good name, she had no choice.
And like that, her dowry and her good, solid future disappeared before her eyes.
To think, for an instant, she’d allowed herself to envision one.
Blaze Jagger.
The name cut through her like a curse.
With sudden determination, and ignoring the tears of fury and frustration and no small amount of hurt, she shot to her feet and dashed into the receiving hall. A frenzied search of her reticule found the item she sought.
A calling card.
Mr. Blaze Jagger
Tom of All Trades Extraordinaire
The Archangel
Resolve steeled within her.
Blaze Jagger, Tom of All Trades Extraordinaire, wanted her to pop in to The Archangel for a nice, little chat?
Oh, they would have a chat, indeed.
But it wouldn’t be nice.
The Archangel
Dev gave the Hazard dice an indifferent toss and stifled a yawn.
It was just as well he threw out on the first roll.
He was dead bored.
Typically, he enjoyed a rattle of the Hazard dice or a game of Macao as much as the next man. But it was habit that had him here tonight, as he made a point of frequenting The Archangel once a week. To show that he belonged to one of London’s most exclusive gaming hells. That he belonged everywhere any lord of thetonbelonged.
Really though, the night’s work had already been accomplished in that capacity.
In fact, he was feeling fairly gratified at the moment. The Earl of Bridgewater had just deigned to inform him personally that he and the countess would attend the house party at Primrose Park. Further, the earl had made it abundantly clear that he intended to tour the stables and meet Little Wicked.
Beatrix had been correct on that point.
The woman was correct on many points, in fact.
Dev loved a good plan, particularly when matters behaved as they should and proceeded as expected.
