“Let me talk to him first,” Collin answered. “Please excuse me, ladies.” He bowed and went to find his colleague who had become a friend.
Collin cautiously stepped out in front of the house. If Michael bloodied up his other eye, it wouldn’t be undeserved, but that didn’t mean he wanted it. It took a second longer to scan the street with one good eye, but he found Michael’s form leaning against a stone wall in an alley not a few yards from the door. He was smoking a cheroot and didn’t glance toward Collin as he approached.
“How long?” Michael asked, blowing out a puff of smoke, finally regarding Collin.
Collin didn’t ask for clarification, just answered. His friend deserved that much. “Not as long as you would think. It started when she was knocked flat by the man with the black eye we were searching for.”
Michael’s eyes widened. “That was her? You said it was some woman.”
“She asked me not to tell you,” Collin answered. “She wanted to protect you from feeling guilty since you didn’t walk her all the way home because you were meeting me.”
Michael nodded. “That’s why you were keen on splitting up while we searched.”
“Yes,” Collin replied.
“Do you… Are you…” Michael tossed his cheroot and regarded Collin for a long moment before asking. “What are your intentions?”
At this, Collin couldn’t hold back a grin. “It’s not an amusing question,” he stated. “It’s that I have no say in the answer.”
Michael frowned. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Collin let out a long sigh and leaned against the wall with his friend, his body beginning to ache once more. “It means I don’t have a choice. I mean I do, but from the first moment I met her, I cannot control my reactions. It’s maddening, and at the same time, I don’t want it any different. My intentions have never been dishonorable, but I’ve not given them much consideration since they seemed to run off without my consent.”
“So, you haven’t spoken to her about it?” Michael questioned.
“No. I…have not.”
“Idiot,” Michael muttered. “I’d have walked on the water if she’d given me leave to use her Christian name. You think that’s nothing, Collin? I’ve known her for four years, and not once have I done anything but whisper her name to myself, never used it aloud. And yet I watch you two carry on, using eachother’s given names as if you’re bloody betrothed, and you have the bollox to tell me you haven’t asked to court her, haven’t spoken to her father?” He shoved away from the wall. “I should give you another eye to match the first for being so stupid.”
Collin frowned, glancing to the cobbled street. “She deserves better than someone like me.”
“I doubt you can convince her to let you make her choices for her,” Michael quipped.
At that, Collin barked a laugh. “Well said.”
“And she’d likely give you a tongue-lashing for thinking it.”
“Also true.”
Michael hesitated. “I wish you had told me. It makes a man feel like a fool, Collin. You knew I had my heart set on her, and you didn’t give me a warning you were fighting for her too.”
“Because I wasn’t fighting for her, Michael. I was fighting against her and didn’t realize what was happening until it was too late,” he answered honestly.
Michael took a deep breath. “I should have known, should have seen it comin’. That first time you two were here, that fight…” He blew out a breath. “That should have been my writing on the wall.”
“It wasn’t for me, and I’d bet it wasn’t for her either. I think she would have cheerfully watched me retreat to London, never to be seen or heard from again.” He paused. “Sometimes I still think that.” He chuckled.
Michael gave a small, sad smile. “It’s a bit of a disaster, isn’t it? But thankfully, it’s not much of my mine. It’s all yours.”
“Apparently I collect them,” Collin replied, thinking of the mess over his name, the mess over others’ names, and the mess he’d made with his friend. Not to mention the mess he was constantly making with Elizabeth.
“You have quite the work ahead, but I think you’re equal to the task. Or not. Regardless, here’s your warning, one you should have given me.” Michael paused. “If you break her heart, I’ll break your face and then keep her heart for myself. Understood?”
Collin’s respect for the man grew as he nodded. “Agreed.”
Seventeen
Love truth, but pardon error.
