Sephy hummed a tune as she strode down Bond Street, a footman trailing her with several boxes in his arms. Her reputation as a well-paid courtesan was no secret to the shopkeepers who scrambled to serve her, but today was the first time she had ever taken precedence over a countess.
After years of vying for respectability, the hour had finally arrived.
It was all thanks to her savior.
Of course, she thought ofthe dukefrom time to time, wondering howthings were faring in India.Hunterwrote to her, surprisingly enough, and over the years a certain kinship had begun to strike up between them.She had apersonal correspondentwho relayed tales of Asia. At times, he would even send her bright scarves and jewelry that he’d procured, reminding her that she was never far from his thoughts either.
She imagined him as some distant admirer, and each time a letter or package arrived, she squealed with delight. The lastthing she’d receivedhad been sent on her twenty-second birthday. It was a jade elephant with emerald eyes and she’d instantly fallen in love with it. The trinket sat on her bedside table where she could admire it every night.
Sephyinstructed the driver to take her toher mother’s house. When she arrived, thelackey opened the door. “Good day, Miss Welton.”
“Abraham.” She greeted him with a bright smile. “Where can I find my mother?”
He gestured to the right. “She’s in her private parlor.”
Sephy had trod upon these same marble floors for yearsbefore she’d moved into the duke’s affluent residence, and yet, the thought of Hunter returning and casting her out struck fear into her heart.She had becomeso accustomed to a life free of the horrors she’d witnessed as a child, ones she hadn’t even understood at the time. Butwith each year that passed,she knew she might very well be living on borrowed time. He had saved her when she had been younger, but at some point he would be thinking of settling down with a wife and starting a family.
It would be afuturethat didn’t include her.
She tamped down her anxiety and knocked on her mother’s door. Once she was bade enter, she walked in to seethe ladywearing a pair of reading glasses, which she promptly removed. She didn’t like anyone knowing her weaknesseswhen it came togetting older, even her only child.
“My girl!”Phrynegreeted enthusiastically. As usual, she was completely put together, the powdered wig that shestillrefused to part with perched on her head. “What brings you by on this lovely spring day?”
“I have a gift for you,” Sephy gushed. She reached into her reticule and pulled out several pound notes and laid them on the desk.
Her mother gasped. “What is this for?”
“Ever since Jade left, I know you’ve been strugglingto find someone to replace her. Perhaps this will help until you can.” She decided not to dwell on the fact thather motherwas an inveterate gambler and most of the fortune that Sephy had gained from her association with the duke was nearly gone.
“Oh, you are just too precious for words.” She reached out and embraced Sephy. “I knew you would be my gem the moment you were born.”
Sephy held back her emotion, for while she wanted to believe that her mother meant her arrival into this world, she knew she meant her looks and her ability to become a celebrated courtesan. If only her mother knew the truth—that she was still as pure as the day she’d sold her virginity. In the intervening years following the duke’s departure and absence, she’d kept her promise, for the comfortableexistenceshe’d been enjoying was all due toHunter’sbenevolence. The least she could do was uphold her end of the bargain.
After a time, Sephy took her leave and returned home, for it was how she thought of the duke’s townhouse. She paused to glance up at theopulent exteriorand remembered the first day the duke had broughther here. Such a grand residence had fascinated her, butas much as she enjoyed her time here, it wasn’t truly home.
She shook her head, refusing to dwell onanything maudlin, and focusing instead on the present.
She readied herself for supper and entered the dining hall where she took her meals. She ate in silence, the scrape of her fork on the plate echoing through the room. Feeling restless, she pushed the rest of her uneaten food away and sighed. She wiped her mouth with her napkin and focused instead on her wine.
She thought of the items she’d purchased that day, upstairs in her chamber, but even shopping had lost some of its luster of late, ashadattending the theatre and various other events. At first it had been glamorous and exciting to have so much leisuretimeto do as she pleased, but she found that itquickly becamerather boring when one continually had to go alone.
For the first time in weeks she allowed her mind tofocus onHunter. He’d been gone so long that she had nearly forgotten how he’d looked.But more importantly, she wondered how much he might have changed. Was he coming any closer to gaining justice on the man he’d been pursuing? He never spoke ofLord Gregoryin his letters, nor the women he’d likelytakento his bed, for she had no doubt he was as chaste as she’d been. But considering he was sacrificing much to see to her welfare, she had no cause to complain.
WhileSephydidn’twanted to admit it, every time she returned to visit her mother, she cringed just imagining everything that was transpiring up those stairs. It was not a life she would want for herself anymore. But after she left the duke’s house, what other choice would she have but to do so in order to survive?
Again, she shoved suchdarkthoughts away as she readied herself for bed and finally fell into a restless slumber.
Sheawoke when it was still dark.
At first she wasn’t sure what had disturbed her slumber, but then she heard some commotion coming from downstairs. With a frown, she grabbed her robe and tied it as she left her bedchamber.
She was halfway down the stairswhenshe realized that there were two footmen holding a sizeable trunk between them. But it was the man standing in the midst of the expanse that caused her to gasp.
The Duke of Falcourt had returned.
***
Hunter was more weary than he ever remembered, but then, it had been a rather tedious journey all the way fromIndia. Days ofsailing, followed bydusty and grueling travel had finally led him to the one place he’ddreamedabout ever since he’d stepped off English shores in pursuit of the evil man who’d defiled his sister.
