“We want you to be happy,” Fanny said. “Your life is spent looking after others; it’s time you had someone looking after you. Speaking of which, when was the last time you got a trim? Your hair looks like an overgrown hedge. And why haven’t you seen Grier’s tailor? You’re courting a countess now and had better look the part.”
Cull heaved a sigh.
“Never mind his hair and clothes,” Mrs. Needles murmured. “He ought to collect his ladyship before the children wear her out. By the by, where are you taking her to sup, Cull?”
“We’re dining here.”
The women exchanged alarmed looks.
Peering left and right, Mrs. Needles said in an urgent whisper, “Surely you do not intend to serve her ladyship Mrs. Halberd’s food—”
“Good God, no. I made other arrangements.” He didn’t know whether to be amused or offended that they thought him so lacking in common sense.
“Thank goodness.” The matron patted her heart. “For if anything could ruin a romantic evening, it would be that dragon’s cooking.”
22
“Where are you taking me?” Pippa asked.
“You’ll see.” Cull led the way up the narrow winding stairs, his lamp painting the stone walls in light and shadow. “We’re almost there.”
“You said that thirty steps ago.”
“Not tired, are you, my intrepid Angel?”
She made a face at his broad back…and heard him chuckle.
Stupefied, she asked, “Do you have eyes at the back of your head?”
“I’m the Prince of Larks. I’ve eyes and ears—”
“I know, I know. You see, hear, and know everything.”
She rolled her eyes just as he turned, a sensual grin below his mask. She had debated asking him to remove the covering but decided not to push. He would bare himself when he was ready.
“Not everything,” he said. “I didn’t know about Vincent Ellis untilyoudiscovered that important fact.”
Pleased with her mission’s success, Pippa said, “I do have my uses, don’t I?”
“Thinking of your uses keeps me up at night. Literally.”
She chuckled at his flirtatious banter. Cull could be devilishly wicked and boyishly playful, and she couldn’t decide which side of him she preferred the most.
“Mrs. Grier is lovely,” she said conversationally.
When she’d been introduced to Fanny Grier, the lady had bluntly disclosed that she owned a bawdy house, appearing to await Pippa’s reaction. Pippa wasn’t one to judge; her own papa had made his fortune from operating a notorious gaming hell. With a polite smile, she’d asked how Fanny and Cull had met, and from there, the conversation had flowed easily.
“That is because Fanny likes you.” Cull’s tone was dry. “Trust me, she does not suffer fools.”
Amused, Pippa said, “She and Mrs. Needles are quite the pair of meddling mamas.”
“Mamas?” Cull shot her a quizzical look. “They’re my friends…work associates.”
With a tender pang, Pippa realized that while he took care of others, he wasn’t used to the idea of having that attention returned. To her, it was obvious that Fanny and Mrs. Needles treated him with maternal pride. And she thought his gruff yet affectionate manner with them was rather adorable.
A wooden door greeted them at the top of the steps.
“Close your eyes,” Cull said.
