“In other words, you won’t help me win back some of my money, after all.” Lord Sommerset didn’t sound disappointed in the least, so he didn’t stand to lose much. The man had inherited financial problems, which, though since solved, had made him financially cautious.
“I didn’t say that. If you guess, I could perhaps indicate if you are correct.” He took another sip of the whisky, happy with both the company and the conversation. “What is the second bet?”
“The last bet is who will win Lady Dorothea’s hand. The competition has been most interesting to watch. My wife and I have had to spend all our time with her except when she is in her room.”
“I will not bet on that.” He couldn’t help the cold turn his voice had taken.
“Why not? You always tell me you make your bets based upon observation. Have you not observed Lord Deerling, Lord Manning, and Mr. Retfield enough to choose one as the triumphant suitor?” Sommerset raised his glass as if toasting.
“None of the suitors here are a good fit and until I see her interaction with others during the season, I won’t have enough information.”
Sommerset swallowed his whisky. “That is a fair point. The lady has been surprisingly popular. I don’t remember men flocking to her.” He raised his glass. “I even thoughtyoumight have an interest.”
“Me? You know my heart is already taken, though I am the reason Lady Dorothea is here at all.”
“You?” Sommerset grinned, obviously assuming the wrong reason. “I thought your mother had chosen the guest list. After all, I’m on it.” He chuckled.
His mother adored Sommerset, which had been convenient more than once for getting them out of trouble. “True, but she allowed me to suggest additional guests. I knew Rose wished to attend the Belinda School for Curious Ladies, so I thought having one of them here would give her a chance to learn more about it before she made a decision.”
“That does make sense. You have always been protective of your sister. If I remember correctly, your words to me when wecame home from Oxford that first year were something to the tune of ‘Do not even consider the thought.’ And I do believe all I did was comment on how much she’d grown.”
He smiled at the memory as he took another sip. “Yes, well, it washowyou said it. Remember, at the time you were hardly a saint.”
“And as I remember it, neither were you.”
No, he hadn’t been. He’d taken his pleasure where he pleased with whomever he pleased since his heart had died. Filling his physical needs had given him some relief. He smirked. Mayhap that constituted a bit of happiness, but he’d never tell Dory about that. “True. But discovering that Rose sincerely wished to attend Belinda’s school gave me additional motivation. You see, I had already decided to make those students more popular among thetonso Belinda’s name could be honored, and I set about determining how to do so.”
“Ah, that does put this into perspective. And what did you decide upon? As I’m quite sure you crafted a plan of some sort.”
“Of course. I realized that each woman had something unique that made her less palatable to society. Since Lady Dorothea accepted the invitation, I set out to discover what the problem might be and fix it.”
“‘Fix it’? I’m not sure I understand. Are you saying youfixedLady Dorothea?”
“I did. She is already quite beautiful and well trained as a lady, but she had a habit of rambling in her conversation without input. I researched what could be done to shorten or eliminate the many soliloquies she falls into. There was no clear answer, but I found enough information and suggested a solution, an experiment if you will. She put it into practice and has become, as I had hoped, a success.” Dory’s success did make him happy, but he couldn’t tell her, for to talk to her would bring them tooclose for him to not touch her. They’d already been far more intimate than he’d ever expected. Better to keep his distance.
“We should celebrate that, but I need more. Shall we replenish our glasses?”
“Yes.” He followed Sommerset in and poured them both more scotch.
Sommerset moved to stand near the cold fireplace. “I will say both Amelia and I had secretly hoped that your attentions to the lady were of a personal nature.”
Unfortunately, they had become far too personal. Felton walked over and rested his forearms on the back of a winged back chair set there. “Since I don’t want her success ruined, tell me about Lord Leighhall. My father seems to believe the man is also interested in Dory.”
“‘Dory’?” Sommerset lowered his brow.
Berating himself for his slip, he shrugged. “It is what my sister calls Lady Dorothea.”
“Hmm, well I can tell you Leighhall is not interested in the lady for any noble purpose. He’s blatantly accused her of being like her mother.”
He choked on his whisky, coughing to get it out of his throat. “Why would the man say that?” He well knew she had been innocent before he’d touched her.
Sommerset didn’t look at him. “Let’s just say your sister might have instigated something that would not have reflected well upon Lady Dorothea if anyone discovered it. Unfortunately, Leighhall did, according to Lady Dorothea. Amelia and I couldn’t have your parents ask him to leave without divulging what happened, so instead, we have stayed with her constantly. Except, of course, when she’s in her room.” He motioned toward the ceiling.
He couldn’t help looking up. He’d have to get the truth out of his sister, but no matter what they’d done, it wasn’t goodthat Leighhall knew. “I don’t like this situation. You and your wife have protected her here, but about when she’s home or at the school? I’ve learned that Leighhall becomes obsessed with whatever he focuses on and doesn’t give up easily.”
Sommerset put his drink down on the mantel. “That was my sense, though I don’t know him and have heard only rumors. Since he’s older than we are, I never paid him much attention.”
Felton threw back the rest of his whisky, not happy with this turn of events. “All the rumors you heard are true. Even the ones you find difficult to believe. I once saw him stalk a young lord just out of Cambridge because a woman preferred him over Leighhall. Leighhall bided his time. When the young man’s mother died and he came to the club to drown his sorrows, Leighhall was there to take every penny from him. His father paid his debts, but the young man never set foot in White’s again. I believe he married a rich, American woman after the first woman spurned him for being imprudent.”
