“Hardly the same. Mr. Chadwick asked me.Mrs.Chadwick asked you.”
“So? End’s the same. I’m here; you’re here. The game’s afoot.”
Nathan put his hand on Brig’s forearm as the other man would have approached the Chadwicks’ palatial home. “That was a stupid stunt you tried to pull this evening.”
Brig stopped and looked at Nathan with new interest. One tawny brow was raised in a rakish salute to his old friend’s cunning.“Soyou did see me. I wondered.”
“I heard you first,” Nathan corrected. “You were never particularly light on your feet.”
Brig shook his head, not accepting Nathan’s explanation. “I think you were expecting me, that’s why you heard me. Somehow you found out about my plan for Lydia and intervened in my place. That wasn’t very sporting, you know. But don’t worry, I don’t hold it against you. All’s fair. That’s what we agreed to at the outset, didn’t we?”
“I think we’ve interpreted that phrase a little differently,” Nathan said softly. “I discovered what you had in mind quite by accident. I tell you that because you should be cautious about confiding in strangers. One of the men you hired to follow and frighten Lydia had a loose tongue before he set out on your mission. God only knows what he’s telling people now. Perhaps you want to get sent back to the bay in chains, but I don’t. Once was enough.”
“Good. You protect my back and I’ll see to Miss Chadwick.”
“As you saw to her this evening?” Nathan’s icy gray eyes narrowed. “I don’t think so. She was terrified by those men and with good reason. You were late getting there.”
“An accident,” he explained. “I followed them following her. I still don’t know how I lost sight of them. You obviously didn’t.”
“I wasn’t approached by the whores on the corner of Montgomery.”
“Lucky me, eh?”
“Brig,” Nathan said, trying to reason, “It was a foolish attempt at winning her confidence. Your hirelings might have done anything to her before you arrived.”
“Raped her, you mean? I don’t think so. I wasn’t paying them to toss up her skirts. I’ve seen her, remember. I’d have had to pay them.”
Nathan’s hand dropped away from Brig’s arm. He clenched it at his side. “Don’t hurt her, Brig. She’s an innocent in this bit of madness.”
“Hurt her?” The open, boyish smile split his handsome face again. “That’s no part of what I have planned. I’m going to marry her, Nath.” He turned and went up the walk. Light scattered across the portico as the door to the mansion opened and Brig was ushered inside.
Nathan watched the house swallow him up and still he did not move. He stood alone on the sidewalk, hands thrust in the pockets of his evening coat, wind ruffling his dark hair, and wondered why he could not approach this evening’s outing with the same nonchalance or confidence Brig displayed.
“Mr. Moore,”Madeline said, a thread of excitement in her voice. “How good of you to come this evening. I wasn’t certain you would, given the fact we’re going to twist your arm for a donation.”
Brig made a slight bow and gallantly offered his arm. “Twist away. I promise you, I consider the pain a small price to pay for the pleasure of your company.”
Madeline responded to Brig’s engaging smile with light, trilling laughter. For the first time since the guests had begun to arrive, her gaiety was not forced. “I’d like you to meet my husband. Samuel, this is Mr. Brigham Moore. I told you about him,” she prompted. “The gentleman who rescued me outside of Sheridan’s department store last week.”
“Oh, yes,” Samuel said, extending his hand. “The little tremor. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Moore. It was good of you to see to my wife’s safety at your own expense.”
“I believe you’ve been misinformed,” Brig said genially. “I recall your wife pushingmeout of harm’s way. Thatlittletremor lasted only a few minutes short of eternity as far as I was concerned. I thought it was the end of the world.”
Smiling, Samuel withdrew his hand. “Then it’s all the more commendable that you kept your head. From what Madeline has told me, you reacted with incredible calm despite your own injuries.”
Brig touched the back of his head. “Nothing that a few stitches couldn’t set right.”
Samuel turned Brig’s attention to Lydia. “Let me introduce our daughter Lydia. Lydia, Mr. Moore.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Moore,” Lydia said. “Mother’s sung your praises. She told us you’ve recently come from England. It’s rare for someone not native to this area to react with such presence of mind.” Lydia watched with some astonishment as color flushed Brigham Moore’s cheeks. Why, he’s embarrassed, she thought. Then he turned the full force of his smile on her and all coherent thought left Lydia. Had he gushed over her, made some asinine remark about her resemblance to her mother, or her beauty, or her gracefulness, Lydia would have recovered her senses, but Brig did none of these obvious things and managed to hold Lydia in his thrall because of it.
“It’s an honor to be here,” he said sincerely, making another small bow. His green eyes held Lydia’s all the while, displaying his interest openly. “I’d be happy to hear about your plans for the new orphanage. No arm-twisting is necessary, I promise you.”
“Oh?”
“I was raised in a London workhouse,” he said. “I’ve no parents myself.”
Though he said it simply, without apology, Lydia thought she detected pain in the depths of his eyes. She was moved.
