She nodded and frowned, worrying at her bottom lip again. Then her face cleared, and she smiled again, her eyes sparkling.
‘Do you mean to steal it back my lord?’ she breathed excitedly, causing Max to hold up his hand in sudden alarm. ‘I would not think to involve you in such an undertaking,’ he declared. ‘I merely wish to have a reason to remain in Bath without arousing suspicion. Bamford is certain to be watching my movements like a hawk.’
He paused before choosing his next words carefully. ‘You have made it abundantly clear that you have no wish to wed.’ He stopped again and waited for her nod of agreement. ‘If I should therefore call on you and feign an interest, it would be a perfectly acceptable reason for me to remain in the town a while longer without the added complication of engaging your affections.’
Patience felt her heart thump uncomfortably at his words. ‘Naturally,’ he continued, ‘you and I would know that my attention is merely a ruse, and once our… deception is no longer necessary, you may cry off giving whatever reason you choose.’
Patience scoffed slightly. ‘I’m sorry my lord but choosing me as your … love interest is where your plan entirely falls apart. No one will believe you are interested in a penniless vicar’s daughter, especially one as plain as a pikestaff.’ Her words were not seeking his repudiation but simply stating a fact. He found himself wanting to argue with her anyway. ‘You are the sister-in-law to an influential Duke,’ he offered, his voice equally matter-of-fact, earning him a derisory chuckle.
‘If I were a great beauty, we could perchance carry it off,’ she declared, ‘but it’s my belief that Bamford will not be fooled for long and will seek to move the diamond to a more secure location. We must therefore swiftly discover its whereabouts and take it back before he has chance to abscond with it. And…’ she paused and grinned at him before continuing animatedly, ‘as luck would have it, the Earl is holding a soiree the day after tomorrow, and Nicholas - I mean the Duke of Blackmore - has been invited.’
She sat back and regarded him like a cat who had just discovered the cream. Alarm bells started ringing. ‘I would not think to involve you in retrieving the diamond,’ he countered abruptly. ‘I would merely value your discretion while I endeavour to obtain it.’
‘You don’t understand,’ she exclaimed leaning forward. ‘I am exactly the person you need to help you recover the stone.’
Max quirked a mocking brow. ‘So, are you a rum dubber in your spare time, Miss Shackleford?’ he teased.
‘I am exactly that,’ she grinned back. ‘John says I am the finest lock picker in southwest England.’
∞∞∞
Unfortunately, Patience was not able to sneak back into the house in the same way she sneaked out of it. Indeed, the whole household appeared to be in an uproar. She had clearly underestimated the impact her absence would have on her family. Again. Not only were they congregated in the breakfast room arguing over her possible whereabouts, but Grace especially appeared beside herself. ‘This is entirely my fault,’ she was wailing, her voice louder than the rest of them put together. For a second, Patience thought Hope had arrived. ‘If I had not seen fit to drag them around the countryside like … like … travelling mummers,’ the Duchess was yelling, ‘Patience would not have such a proclivity for tying her garter in public.’
For a second, Patience was sorely tempted to creep upstairs, but just as she was considering it, a hand was laid none too gently on her shoulder and a male voice with a distinctive Scottish burr murmured in her ear. ‘I ken what yer thinking mistress, but my advice would be te face the music now, afore it becomes much, much worse.’
After jumping in surprise, Patience looked up at Malcolm, the Duke’s unorthodox valet and oldest friend. His raised eyebrows and rueful grin belied his ominous words, but his gentle push towards the dining room showed her he meant business. Sighing, she succumbed to his persuasion and seconds later found herself on the end of a collective tongue lashing. Indeed the only member of the family not present was Adam, having been called back to Ravenstone unexpectedly. As she listened to the chorus of recriminations, Patience couldn’t help thinking he was probably glad of the respite to his ears.
‘I simply cannot believe you thought it acceptable to roam the streets of Bath without even a maid,’ Temperance snapped, giving a theatrical shudder to emphasise her point. Patience glared back at her sister, sorely tempted to remind her that she’d only become a high and mighty countess due to meeting the Earl of Ravenstone in extremely smoky circumstances. Naturally thetonwere unaware of their less than formal introduction.Truly, Patience grouched to herself,Tempy had a deuced short memory.
‘I simply needed some fresh air,’ she explained once Temperance had paused to draw breath. ‘And Freddy needed to do his business.’ She looked down at the foxhound who was busy trying to squeeze under the table. ‘Coward,’ she muttered.
‘That’s all very well.’ Clearly her father decided it was time he put his tuppence-worth in, ‘but the fact of the matter remains that you’re too ripe and ready by half my girl,’ he declared forcefully. In Patience’s opinion, he was doing the whole thing much too brown, but he was undoubtedly getting into the spirit of things. ‘I have a good mind to lock you in your room with nothing but bread and water until you see the error of your ways,’ he went on enthusiastically.
Grace snorted. ‘As if that’s likely to do any good, Father. You know …’
There was a sudden rustling at the head of the table as the Duke of Blackmore put down his morning papers. Silence immediately descended as every eye in the room turned towards Nicholas who was staring at Patience quizzically.
‘Can we assume that you have not been accosted in any way?’ His mild query, as usual, got straight to the heart of the matter. Patience shook her head, feeling a sudden onset of remorse. The Duke did not have to raise his voice to indicate his displeasure. His censure was much more subtle.
‘Then I suggest that on this occasion we let the matter drop,’ he continued levelly. ‘Patience, you’ve been fortunate today to have received nothing worse than a reprimand. At the very least, I expect you to behave in a manner that will not sully the name of either Blackmore or Ravenstone.’ In truth, Nicholas cared little for the Blackmore name and knew Adam felt the same. Indeed, his grace was trying very hard not to laugh.
Relieved, Patience nodded emphatically whilst wincing inwardly. She might be aware that the Duke did not have the same pompous regard for propriety as most of his peers, but even she realised he would not take kindly to discovering she was actually planning a robbery with one of his contemporaries.
∞∞∞
The Earl of Bamford stared at the magnificent diamond in front of him. Picking up a lint cloth, he stroked it carefully across the gem’s surface. Truly, it was magnificent and all the more delicious because no one knew it was in his possession.Sepideh. It meantbreak of dawn,and staring down at the exquisite pink hue, the Earl knew it had been aptly named.
The diamond had been brought back from India by Guildford’s great grandfather. Part of an even larger diamond known asThe Great Table, rumour had it thatSepidehwas a gift from the Shah of Persia. The Earl had never actually seen the diamond before Hugo had drunkenly showed it to him, but as soon as the idiot did, Bamford knew he had to have it. It mattered little thatSepidehwasn’t Hugo’s to sell. The Earl didn’t need to parade such a prize in front of theton. It was enough to know he had it. Of course, he enjoyed watching the current Marquess chase his tail without daring to tell anyone that the diamond had been lost. Bamford laughed out loud. The loss of the diamond was the final nail in the pompous bastard's coffin. And he couldn’t wait to see the arrogant ass knocked off his pedestal, just like his idiot brother.
∞∞∞
They had agreed that the Marquess would call that very afternoon. Adam was at Ravenstone, both Temperance and the Duke were otherwise engaged until dinner, and Grace had an appointment with the modiste at four p.m. so would not have time to quiz the Marquess too much.
Her father would naturally stand as chaperone. Patience had also requested Lord Guildford’s permission to bring her father in on their plan. Not being familiar with the Reverend, Max was a little nonplussed at Patience’s assertion that they’d be wise to involve him from the onset given his penchant for meddling.
‘I cannot imagine him being particularly enamoured of our arrangement,’ Max protested.
‘You don’t know my father,’ Patience responded darkly. ‘Right at this moment in time, he’d probably bury me in the back garden to avoid the scandal he is entirely certain I’ll create. Any plan that results in my return to comfortable obscurity will have his full support.’
