“Running away from my post,” Eli explained. Geórgios had acquired his English with impressive speed, but there were still a few gaps in his vocabulary. “It’s very important that you not tellanyoneabout the time I spent with you on the continent. You could get me in a lot of trouble.”
“Ah. I see.” Geórgios assumed a grave expression for the first time since Eli walked in. “But you know you can trust me. How many times have we helped each other? I won’t say anything to make problems, and no one here knows who I am.”
He meant the words, no doubt. But even if Geórgios would never intentionally put Eli in harm’s way, his very presence was bound tostir up interest. With his towering stature and his foreign mode of speech and dress, he cut a figure one didn’t easily forget.
“Any chance you’re planning to go back to the continent soon?” Maybe he would say yes, and put Eli’s mind at ease.
“Oh no.” Geórgios grinned, a spark of mischief in his eye. “I want to see all the sights, and besides, I can’t go back. There was some trouble with a woman, and I’m also out of money.”
Lord help me.
Even if he promised not to make any more “social calls” now that he’d found Eli, Geórgios couldn’t be left to roam free, where anyone he’d already told of their friendship might spot him and decide to ask questions. Sooner or later, the wrong person would take notice of their connection, and word would get back to the naval court judges.
It would be the end of them both. He couldn’t let that happen.
“I insist you stay with us at my aunt’s town house, as my guest,” Eli announced. He would keep Geórgios under tight watch until the inquiry was over. It was the only way to contain this threat. “Do you need to collect any of your things before we leave?”
“Ah, thank you, Eli. And no.” Geórgios picked up a leather satchel from the floor near where he’d played checkers earlier. “I carry everything with me. This place is full of thieves.”
The irony didn’t escape Eli, but better to let it slide.
“Good. Let’s go.” His parents weren’t going to like this, but that was a problem to sort out an hour from now.
Twenty-Two
“Stop fussing with those,” Della scolded. “Everything is perfect.”
Jane set the namecards back in their places and tried to keep her hands from alighting on everything in sight. It was Monday evening and their guests would arrive any minute, but she couldn’t seem to settle herself.
Her last night. How could it end this way, with a rebuke from Bertie instead of the triumph she’d planned? She’d staked everything on this, telling herself it didn’t matter if she never married, it didn’t matter if Cecily laughed at her spinsterhood, so long as she had her club.
Now she would have nothing.
“Did anyone ask you about Eli and MacPherson fighting over me?” Jane asked. “Do you suppose they all know?”
If she had to say goodbye, she would have liked to do it with a clear heart instead of worrying about potential gossip. But Della only smiled and squeezed her hand.
“That story isn’t as bad as you think. It makes you sound exciting.I shouldloveto reduce a pair of men to fisticuffs. You’re rapidly outpacing me as the daring one in this friendship.”
“Until Uncle Bertie hears of it,” Jane reminded her. “We’ve already established that he has a hair-trigger when it comes to forcing marriage proposals.”
“It may reassure you to learn that I have an emergency plan in case anyone says anything to upset you.” Della took a glass of champagne from the row her servants had prepared for their guests and enjoyed a long sip. “I shall knock over a lamp and set the tablecloth on fire, bringing an end to the evening and giving everyone something else to talk about.”
Jane wasn’t sure whether to laugh or protest, for there was a chance Della was serious; she’d had worse ideas. Before she could decide, the butler announced Miss Williams’s arrival.
“Good evening,” Jane hurried forward to greet her, pushing her emotional tumult aside. “You’re a bit early. No one else is here yet.”
“I know,” Hannah explained. “I wanted to talk to you about something before the others arrived.”
Perhaps she wants some betting tips. But a closer look at Hannah’s face revealed that this was a more serious matter. Her brow was drawn, and she cast an uncertain glance toward Della, as if hesitant to discuss the matter before her.
Eli wouldn’t have told his sister anything about them, would he? Jane could still picture his face clearly, as he’d looked when they’d parted.I didn’t know I put you through all that. I didn’t realize that you cared so deeply.
He’d looked so wounded, it twisted her heart even now. Had Hannah noticed and decided to involve herself?
But when she spoke, she turned the subject in quite another direction. “It’s about my forfeit.”
Her promise to share anything unexpected about Eli’s absence.Jane had all but forgotten it after Eli swore that he was telling the truth. He’d seemed so sincere. But what was this then?
