A sharp clipping of heels echoed down the hall, alerting Henley to the inevitable arrival of his sister.Peregrine—Pere—was a force to be reckoned with, and he inhaled deeply in preparation for the verbal onslaught about to spill through the doorway.
“Mother?Mother?Oh, good, you’re here.”
Henley bit back a grin at his sister’s voice preceding her entrance.
“Oh, you’re here too.Even better.”She flicked a hand and promptly dismissed him.“I have exactly five hours until people start arriving.Is Edwin here?You promised he’d arrive on time.I will simply murder him if he is late.”
Henley whistled low.Pere’s green eyes darted to him, issuing a silent challenge.Her hands balled into fists as she arched a brow.
With a slight shake of his head, he declined to rise to the bait.Pere was petite—barely a head and a half below his six-foot frame—but what she lacked in stature she made up for in volume of her opinion.
“Dear, we are not going to commit murder the day of your debut.And your brother will be here, and on time.It’s still quite early,” Lady Devon said, moving to soothe her daughter’s flaring temper.
“Was he out late last night?”Pere turned to Henley.
He coughed, trying to cover his reaction to her question.She hadn’t even debuted yet and already knew far too much about Edwin’s activities for it to be anything short of reprehensible.
“Well?”she pressed.
Henley gave what he hoped was a placating smile.“He wasn’t out too late.”
“Too late?”she repeated.“Which means he was out galivanting—”
“Peregrine,” their mother interrupted, effectively halting the tirade.
Pere sighed, lips twisting.“Very well.I’ll not ask further.I just want him here.Is that so much to ask?”
“No, it’s not—and I’m sure he will be,” Lady Devon assured her.
In Henley’s opinion, her confidence seemed overly optimistic considering Edwin’s track record.
“Let’s focus on tonight.It’s sure to be a crush.Practically every invitation we sent was accepted,” their mother added smoothly.
Henley glanced at his sister, who preened under the praise.“Oh, Mama, do you think I’ll have many callers tomorrow?”
“Of course!”Lady Devon returned to arranging the roses.“You’ll be a sensation.”
Henley nodded, silently offering the agreement she sought.
Boot heels clicked down the corridor.
“Ah, that must be your brother,” Lady Devon said, beaming as Edwin entered the parlor.
His face lit with charm, his smile directed squarely at their mother.With his light blue eyes and golden hair, he appeared angelic—which couldn’t have been further from the truth.
“Speak of the devil,” Henley muttered.
“Ah, Judas,” Edwin replied with a smirk, nodding toward him.
“We are not going to start anything,” Lady Devon warned, her tone sharp.“We never start anything, do we, Henley?”she reminded him with a pointed glance.“We restrain ourselves.We do not react in the moment.”
Henley tensed as his brother clapped him on the back.
“Odd that you consider those things fun…” Henley muttered.
“I mean it.No more from either of you,” Lady Devon warned again.
Henley resisted the scowl he wanted to send his brother and turned instead to Pere.“See?Present and accounted for, as promised.”He took the opportunity to smack Edwin’s back with a smirk.
