With a scoff, Nicholas said, “As if I could respond any other way. Mother would be so upset, she might never speak to us again.”
Theo rose to his feet, went to the sideboard and poured two fingers of brandy. He passed one glass to Nicholas and returned to his chair with the other, watching Nicholas over the rim, his dark eyes exactly the same as Nicholas’s own but somehow shrewder.
“Put aside the matter of the ball for now,” Theo said as he swirled his drink. “If you were to attend a house party without me there, I fail to see how it would be any differentto the other engagements we participate in. Provided that we don’t stand side by side or dress in such a way that others can’t differentiate between us, no one is likely to make the connection.”
Nicholas tossed back the brandy. It burned down the inside of his throat. Logically, he understood that Theo had a point, but that didn’t mean their mother wouldn’t be upset. Her moods rarely had anything to do with logic.
“But Mother—”
Theo scowled so darkly that Nicholas instinctively shut his mouth.
“Do you think you would enjoy yourself at this house party?” Theo asked, savoring his brandy rather than shooting it down the way Nicholas had.
Nicholas shrugged. “Probably. Depending on who else is there.”
“Then you should go.” Theo nodded decisively. “Kate is correct. You cannot halt your life forever simply to appease Mother. That isn’t fair, and I’ve allowed it to go on for too long without addressing the matter.”
Nicholas’s heart skipped. “But it would be irresponsible.”
He couldn’t believe his brother was arguingforsomething that could endanger their secret—or which might be perceived that way by the dowager duchess.
Wasn’t Theo supposed to be the responsible son? Nicholas was the frivolous rogue. What on earth was responsible for this switching of roles?
Theo reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin. “Shall we allow luck to guide us?”
“You’re mad,” Nicholas sputtered.Hewas the one who gambled, not Theo.
His brother’s lips twisted mirthlessly. “I’m tired of us living our lives for someone else, even if that person is our mother. Heads or tails?”
“Heads,” Nicholas replied automatically.
“All right. If it’s heads, you’ll go. If it’s tails, you’ll stay.” He flipped the coin into the air and caught it on the back of his hand.
A bust of King George stood face-up.
Heads.
Theo smirked. “There. The matter is decided. Unless you don’t want to for your own personal reasons—which I’d expect you to share with me—then you’re to accompany Lady Sophie to the Wembley house party.” His expression softened as he pocketed the coin. “If it helps, consider it an order from the viscount.”
Nicholas snorted. As if Theo had ever given him an order in his life. His brother may have spent several years as a miserable, moody bastard, but he’d never been one to expect those around him to follow his edicts.
Not like their mother.
“Are you sure? I don’t want to create any discord in the household.” And this would surely do that.
But Theo nodded. “I’m certain.”
Nicholas felt some sort of way about that, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
Slowly, hesitantly, he pushed up from his chair and left the office. Shutting the door behind himself, he lingered in the corridor, staring into space, until he realized that he was achieving nothing, and if he was going to stand idly around, he may as well do it somewhere more comfortable.
He started toward his bedroom, but as he climbed the stairs, Kate appeared at the top, walking down them.
“Have you seen Sophie since yesterday?” Kate asked, pausing a couple of steps above Nicholas so that their heads were level. “I feel bad for scolding her, and I’m worried she’s upset with me.”
Nicholas’s insides warmed. “Of course she isn’t. She knows you care for her. She probably just didn’t want to disappoint you.”
Kate sighed. “She hasn’t. That would be impossible. I just…. I was so reckless that I nearly ruined myself, and she can be far more reckless than I. She needs to be careful.”
