Isaac’s brow furrowed, and he walked in silence for several seconds. “Because he’s a…peacock?”
Sophia burst into laughter. “No—I mean, he has two very large dogs. I will ask him if we might have access to his gardens for our picnic. He keeps his dogs in the stables.”
Isaac looked down at the grass, a faint smirk on his lips. He didn’t seem quite as amused as before. “Very well. We shall plan a picnic with Lord Finchley.” His tone was edged with distaste, and against her better judgment, it caused a flutter of satisfaction to erupt in her chest.
The thought struck her again: Did Isaac regret the day he had written her that letter? She banished the thought at once. It didn’t matter whether he regretted it or not. He had done it, and if watching her court Lord Finchley was to be his punishment, then he might finally learn his lesson. The moment Percy was out of Prudence’s life, Isaac could be out of hers. Their alliance was temporary.
She reassured herself with that thought as she and Isaac concocted the rest of their plan.
Chapter Nine
In the polished marble floor of Lord Finchley’s townhouse, Isaac saw Sophia’s reflection.
He looked up in time to see her walking down the staircase on Lord Finchley’s arm. She wore white, a bouquet in one hand, a sheer veil over her face.
“My dear Lady Finchley, please welcome our guests,” the earl said. His voice echoed off the lofty walls. The ceiling was higher than any townhouse Isaac had ever seen, stretching up and up toward a painting of angels in a beam of light, as if to indicate the heavens above them.
Sophia floated down the staircase, stopping a few paces in front of Isaac. Her veil lifted magically from her face, revealing her blue eyes, brown hair, and freckles from the Cornish sun. She stared up at him softly at first, gently—but then her mouth twisted in a smirk.
Her eyes grew dark.
“I have everything I have always wanted. Are you not happy for me?” Her gaze pierced through him. “Are you not happy for me, Mr. Ellington?”
Lord Finchley joined her at the base of the staircase, brushing his lips against the side of her neck. Isaac tried tospeak, but no words came out. His chest was compressed, and he couldn’t breathe.
Sophia smiled. “Well, almost everything.” Her eyes shifted to the stairwell, where a row of animal heads were mounted on the wall, each with a wooden crest bearing its name. A tortoise named Archibald, a badger named Gilbert, a giraffe named Arabella, a bear named Cornelius…and one empty space in the middle.
“Lord Finchley and I are in search of a new specimen for our home.” Sophia’s voice swam in his ears. “My stepfather made a suggestion that we could not refuse.”
Isaac’s vision blurred, then focused on the wooden crest that had just appeared in the empty space on the wall.
Isaac
He jolted awake, sitting upright in his bed. His skin was hot, his sheets sticking to his bare chest. He pushed his blankets to the floor, rubbing both hands over his face as he caught his breath. He could scarcely remember ever having such a vivid nightmare in his entire life.
“Blast Lord Blackstone,” he mumbled, collapsing on his back. His body buzzed with energy, as if he had truly been moments away from running out the door of Lord Finchley’s townhouse.
OfLadyFinchley’s townhouse.
His heart raced, so he rubbed a circle over his chest. It did little to soothe him. He glanced at the window. Streams of faint daylight escaped the edges of the curtains. He wouldn’t dare sleep again now, not at the risk of finishing the nightmare. Although, at the moment, his reality was not much better.Sophia was indeed courting Lord Finchley, and Isaac would be spending time with both of them that day.
Aside from the threat of becoming taxidermy, his nightmare could soon become very real.
He stumbled out of bed before calling a servant to fetch him a pot of tea. And something stronger. Leaning both hands against his desk, he calmed his racing thoughts. He had been determined not to care who Sophia married, but he did care. Too much. He hadn’t seen her for three days, but he had spent many of his afternoons at Blackstone’s, mingling with the other gentlemen there and drinking a little too heavily. Sophia’s presence in London, their interactions, her determination to protect her sister—it had all upended him, leaving his heart in turmoil.
She was still the same woman he had fallen in love with those years ago.
He shook himself of his ridiculous thoughts. If shewasthe same woman, then he ought to be careful. She would draw him in, and then break his heart. She had a different man in sight, and her feelings for Isaac were never enough for her to sacrifice her ambitions.She is colder than she seems,he reminded himself repeatedly as he went about his morning.
When it was time to gather at Lord Finchley’s address, Isaac collected his beaver hat and his coat and took a coach to Berkeley Square. It was still a little early in the season for an outdoor picnic, and today the air was particularly chilled. He was grateful, for perhaps it would remind him of what he had been telling himself about Sophia.
She is colder than she seems.
Isaac knocked on the front door of Lord Finchley’s townhouse. His heart hammered in his chest, his stomach in knots. He was prepared to run out the door the moment he stepped inside if he found any taxidermy on the walls—even thesmallest squirrel or rat. Lord Blackstone’s club had obviously altered Isaac’s subconscious in some way, planting a new aversion inside of him.
The butler opened the door and ushered Isaac inside. The ceiling was not nearly as high as it had been in his nightmare, but the staircase was similar. He swallowed hard as he followed the butler’s directions to the back door. Thankfully, the floor wasn’t the same dark marble, and there wasn’t an animal in sight.
Not a stuffed one, at least.
