He laughed and shook his head. “All of it is impressive. You are talking to a boy who grew up sleeping in a cot along with twenty other boys in a room painted gray and sparsely windowed. We were given uniforms and shoes, mint with which to brush our teeth, and a comb for our hair. Everything else we shared. I am not complaining. The orphanage was our salvation.”
Berry sighed. “Then you are the perfect one to advise me and Lord Berwick on what we are doing wrong.”
He tucked a finger under her chin and nudged her gaze upward to meet his. “Other than perhaps a more cheerful paint color for the place, you have done nothing wrong for these children.”
“I’m sure there is plenty more we could do.”
“There is always something more that can be done, but you cannot take it all upon yourself. I have some ideas. Would it bepossible to meet at the orphanage tomorrow? I can give you my suggestions.”
She nodded. “I would love it, but Lord Berwick ought to accompany us. I’ll send word to him and see if he’s available. You see, my chaperone has been feeling very poorly lately and I dare not ask her to accompany me.”
“Mrs. Garland?”
“Yes, and I cannot be seen going about London without her or another suitable chaperone.”
“Especially with the likes of me,” Mr. Knight muttered.
“With the likes of any man under the age of fifty,” she countered. “Although I shall soon be of an age where no one will care. Most ladies are considered on the shelf by my age, but I am still sought after because I am an heiress in my own right. The fortune hunters salivate when they see me.”
“The men of quality would also salivate because you are beautiful.” He dropped his hand from her chin and rubbed his neck as he took a step away from her.
She liked his touch, for he had rough, workman’s hands, and yet was gentle.
Well, better that she not pursue that thought.
“I am nowhere near as beautiful as the ladies I saw you with at the theater the other night.”
He grunted. “No, Lady Berry. They cannot hold a candle to you. They are vain creatures, while you are kind and considerate. They are haughty, while you are intelligent and have a gentle sense of humor. Your smile is warm and welcoming. Theirs are calculating and mercenary.”
She arched an eyebrow, surprised by his assessment. “But they are still beautiful. Is this not what men value above all else?”
“Some do. Not I.”
She laughed in disbelief. “Are you suggesting you would choose me over those ladies?”
“In a heartbeat. Never a doubt. I knew you were someone rare and special the moment I set eyes on you.”
“Oh.”
He rubbed his hand across the back of his neck again. “I shouldn’t have said that. Perhaps I had better leave.”
“No, Mr. Knight. Please don’t go. Now that you have had a tour of my home, let us attend to yours. I want to help make it perfect for you, and it has nothing to do with my desire to do good.”
“You do not view this as a good deed?”
“No, I do this for reasons you will think quite wicked. You see, I was unsettled by your confrontation with Lord Hawthorne last night.”
He nodded. “I am truly sorry for upsetting you.”
“Oh, do not apologize. Lord Hawthorne was completely rude and boorish. This is why I wish to help you. I would love nothing better than to have you show up those pompous wastrels like the viscount. Give them a kick in the teeth to show them you are not only as good as they are, but far superior in every way.” She cast him a dimpled smile. “Is that not wicked of me?”
He laughed, a deep, rich peal that had her tingling. “Bravo, Lady Berry. I feared you were too softhearted, but I’m glad to see you are not spineless. However, you are still a lamb and they are wolves.”
“And I now have a dragon to protect me,” she said, lightly touching his upper arm where his dragon lay beneath his shirt.
He gave her cheek a light caress. “Yes, you do.”
Berry tried to suppress the tingles that coursed through her. His touch, his laughter, his nearness—everything about him had her in a flutter.
