The butler’s murmured, ‘yes my lord,’ was lost on Max as he strode towards the small but perfectly designed orangery at the back of the house. To his surprise, the thought of yet another sparring match with Patience did not bring on the expected megrim. If she truly had come to apologise, the manner in which she did it would undoubtedly be entertaining if nothing else. He idly watched a bee making its zig zag way across the flower beds and waited. He did not have to wait long.
‘Miss Shackleford and … her canine companion,’ announced Travis a few minutes later. Turning, Max nodded to the butler before turning his attention to the woman who had so unceremoniously invaded his life.
‘You do realise, Miss Shackleford, that young women are not supposed to enter the establishment of an unmarried gentleman, especially whilst unchaperoned?’ he commented drily.
For a brief second, she sported a defiant scowl, then her face furrowed, and she took a deep breath. ‘Indeed, my lord, I am most cognisant of the fact that my presence here might cause … offence, so I will endeavour to be brief.’
‘Really?’ countered Max quirking a mocking brow.
Her answering pained expression nearly had him laughing out loud. Fortunately, before she had time to retaliate, they were interrupted by the arrival of tea.
‘Please, sit, Miss Shackleford. You must be fatigued after your earlier … exertion.’
This time she had control of her scowl and merely sat without speaking. The foxhound looked uncertainly between his mistress and the triangles of toast on the tray and whined faintly. Patience glanced down, and her face softened. ‘I’m afraid Freddy is missing his breakfast,’ she murmured stroking under the hound’s ear. Watching her, Max had the most absurd image of her doing the same thing to him. For some ungodly reason, the thought had his cock suddenly sitting up and taking notice. Bloody hell, where had that come from? Watching Travis hand her a cup of tea, Max gritted his teeth and shifted restlessly, endeavouring to cover up his unanticipated stirring. Damn, that was all he needed to persuade her of his lecherous intentions.
‘And you, Miss Shackleford?’ he managed to say at length. ‘Are you perchance missing your breakfast? Will your family not be wondering what has happened to you?’
‘Oh poof,’ she said airily, ‘they are accustomed to me not being where I am supposed to be.’ She took a sip of her tea. ‘However, as you so rightly pointed out earlier my lord, this is not Blackmore, and I do not wish them to worry.’ She set down her cup. ‘So, I will cut to the chase. I wish to apologise for my rudeness earlier. It was entirely unforgiveable, and my only excuse is that I am unused to holding a conversation with a … a … gentleman of your stature.’
Max raised his eyebrows but did not speak. She was clearly not finished if her gnawing of her bottom lip was any indication.
‘May I also beg your indulgence Lord Guildford and ask that you do not allow the details of our earlier … contretemps to reach the ears of the gossipmongers?’ She bit her lip even harder, and Max couldn’t help but notice that her bottom lip was turning a dark rose.
‘Naturally, you have every right to tell the world of my behaviour,’ she continued, her voice wobbling suspiciously. ‘But I do wish you would not.’ The last was more of a whisper and so unlike the young woman he’d been confronted with earlier, he was tempted to think he was conversing with her doppelganger.
‘Whatever you think of me Miss Shackleford,’ he responded evenly, ‘I am first and foremost a gentleman. You may rest assured that any dealings we have together will not be divulged by me.’
The relief on her face was palpable. and suddenly, she smiled causing him to draw in his breath sharply. Her whole face was transformed. Two delightful dimples appeared just under her cheek bones, and her eyes almost shone. He reflected that this was actually the first time he’d seen her smile. When she did, she was beautiful.
He knew his next words would be akin to a bucket of cold water tossed over her good humour, but he had to take advantage of her gratitude if he was ever able to persuade her to help him.
‘There is something I would ask of you in return,’ he said cautiously. Predictably, the smile disappeared, and she frowned, her face taking on its customary scowl. She picked up her cup again, undoubtedly to give herself some time to think. Taking a sip, she looked over the rim before enquiring politely. ‘What is it you would ask of me my lord?’
Taking a deep breath and suddenly wishing his cup contained a stiff brandy, Max told her everything.
Chapter Nine
‘So, what do you think about this … this acquaintance Percy?’ Reverend Shackleford stared down at the letter Patience had given him two days before. ‘Do I send the demned thing or not?’ He shook his head. ‘It all seems deuced smoky to me, and we all know Patience can’t be trusted to tell the truth about what she had for breakfast if doing so will end up with her in the suds.’
‘With all due respect Sir, I would say that’s a little harsh,’ protested Percy. ‘Truth can be very subjective as you yourself have determined on more than one occasion.’
The Reverend grunted and looked down at the letter again before sighing and tucking it back into his pocket. ‘Can’t help it Percy, I have a bad feeling about involving this … person, whoever he is. We could find ourselves in the very hobble we’re hoping to avoid. I think we need to tread very carefully. Watch and wait should be our strategy, and then be ready to strike while the iron’s hot, so to speak.’
‘What is it we’re intending to strike?’ questioned Percy in alarm. ‘Mayhap we should stick to watching and waiting. Patience is a very resourceful young lady, Sir. It’s my belief she will manage to extricate herself from her current dilemma without us indulging in anystriking.’
Reverend Shackleford grimaced and nodded. ‘Damage limitation, Percy lad,’ he muttered. ‘Damage limitation...’
∞∞∞
To Max’s surprise, Patience did not seem horrified by his disclosure. Indeed, she was most sympathetic when he informed her of his brother’s duplicity and his sudden death. However, when he got to the part about him having to marry an heiress, he unaccountably found the relief on her face a little insulting. ‘Naturally, there is no shortage of ladies who would be more than willing to become the Marchioness of Guildford,’ he declared brusquely, wondering what the hell was wrong with him.
‘I don’t doubt it my lord,’ she agreed a little too vehemently causing him to grind his teeth together silently. ‘What is it you want of me?’ she continued oblivious to his inexplicable ill humour.
‘I wish to recover the diamond,’ he declared abruptly. ‘Once it is back in my possession, the whole need to wed goes away.’
She nodded, irritatingly understanding of his reluctance to marry. ‘I’m assuming Lord Bamford was fully aware that the gem was not your brother’s to sell?’
Max nodded. ‘It’s also very recognisable, so Bamford would never be able to show it publicly. While I’m convinced he has it in his possession, I cannot simply accuse him without implicating the Prince Regent and causing a scandal from which we may never recover.’
