Jack had no doubt that Charlene returned his feelings with an intensity that rivaled his own. He was also certain that those who loved her would discourage her from him.
In truth, evenhewould advise her to choose Gavin. Jack’s law practice was growing but struggled. He had just hung his shingle when Strong had tapped him for this mission. For years, he’d been living modestly, and who knew if he could support a wife?
However, there was something about the way she’d looked at him tonight that had made him feel a hero. A warrior. She had held Leo’s ratty hat as if it was a trophy. He had saved her from blackmail. For one unguarded moment, he’d seen mirrored in her eyes the same strong, vivid emotion that now ruled his own heart—love.
And did the sage not claim that love could conquer all?
“So what shall you do about it?” Jack asked himself.
The answer was silence.
On the morrow, he would take part in the most important meeting of his life. The stakes were high. Whether the British realized it or not, war hung in the balance.
This was no time for Jack to be moony-eyed. Or to place personal desire, even love, over what was right and just.
He stood in the dark of an empty park in the middle of a vast and powerful city and realized he must keep his distance from Charlene. It was the only honorable thing to do and, to Jack’s surprise, he was honorable.
It had been bred into him.
The driving, restless need to move after seeing her vanished when met with brutal honesty. He could not, must not press his suit with Charlene.
It would irreparably damage his relationship with his twin. Gavin might have yielded to Elin falling in love with Ben, but Jack knew his twin’s ego was every bit as strong as his own. Gavin would not take kindly to another betrayal, not from the black sheep of the family. Especially after all the Fashionable World knew his intentions.
Therefore, if Jack loved his twin—and, surprisingly, he did—andif he loved Charlene—passionately—then he must step back. He must accomplish what he’d set out to do and return to his life, leaving these two good people to their happiness.
Damn, being noble was a sword thrust to the heart. But Jack would recover. Hope had taught him that lesson.
And now that he’d reached his decision, now that he knew what he must do, Jack felt exhausted. Depleted.
If he was going to make sense on the morrow, he needed to find his bed.
Menheim was a short distance from the park.
Jack entered the front door shortly after midnight. He was tired but he wanted to review one more time the speech he’d written that he would be presenting at the meeting.
He opened the door, and found Gavin sitting on the stairs, waiting for him. The flickering light from the wall sconces reflected on an empty glass in his twin’s hand. He appeared relaxed. He had abandoned his jacket and untied his neck cloth, but Jack could feel the tension around him.
“Hello,” Jack said, giving his hat and coat to a nervous-looking footman. “Waiting up for me?”
Gavin looked down at the empty glass before saying, “I did wonder where you had gone off to.”
He knew.In that uncanny way twins had of reading each other’s minds, Jack knew that Gavin was aware of exactly where he’d been. And why.
“Do you still have Perkins following me?”
The footman had taken Jack’s coat and hat to a closet. He had started back into the front hall but at Jack’s question, the servant stopped mid-stride, and then quite wisely retreated away from the brothers.
“Do I need to do so?” Gavin countered.
Jack shrugged, having no problem meeting his brother’s distrust with his own honesty. “I never felt the need to be followed in the first place.”
“Tomorrow is an important day for you,” Gavin said, changing the subject. “There will be men there who believe you could be a traitor.”
Jack’s first impression had been that Gavin has sensed his desire for Charlene. Now, he wasn’t sure. Was Gavin having doubts about lending his support to the United States cause? “A traitor to what? Not to my values. Not to what I believe is important.”
Gavin held up his empty glass as if it was a symbol. “They see you as an Englishman, Jack. They don’t trust that you speak for another country. They question yourallegiance.”
The last word hung in the air between them. Jack spoke, “Especially since I once turned my back on my family?”
