And if he was lucky, he’d quickly find the answer to questions he didn’t know to ask. Sometimes life worked that way. A man had no choice but to take action and hope for the best.
He knocked on the roof, the sign to take Gwendolyn home.
They were quiet the rest of the way. She acted lost in thought. He believed the best way to reinforce his message was to let her be.
He reminded himself that the Lanscarr sisters were not afraid to defy convention. That had been the secret to their success. Well, that and tremendous luck.
They were like beautiful pirates who had set sail to conquer theton, and conquer they had.
But this battle was his. He was the captain of this ship.
The coach rolled to a halt, and he peeked out of the shades to see they were in front of the Brogan residence. Beck reached for his hat so that he could help Gwendolyn down from the coach.
She stopped him with a hand on his arm. “You mustn’t. I am certain my sister is watching for me. She will be upset if she believes I have been riding alone with you.”
Well, at least she had that good sense.
The coach’s footman opened the door and put down the stool. Gwendolyn started from the vehicle, but then stopped. She looked back at Beck.
“I shall behave,” she whispered, “because this means a great deal to you. However, youare wrong about the two of us. You can’t fight what already exists any more than you can stop dreams of your mother from haunting you.”
“Gwendolyn—” he started to correct her, frustrated by her stubbornness. But she was already out the door. Her manservant stood in the open portal of the house. She disappeared inside.
The footman picked up the stool. “Is all good, sir?”
“Fine,” Beck answered absently... but he knew that wasn’t true, because Gwendolyn was right.
What was between them already existed.
Chapter Six
Of course Dara had questions for Gwendolyn when she walked in the door, the most immediate one being, “Did Mr. Steele make an appearance?”
Gwendolyn took her time removing her bonnet and gloves. She handed them to Molly, who waited to carry them upstairs, because apparently she was interested in the answer as well. Even Herald lingered. Carefully Gwendolyn said, “I met Lady Orpington’s nephew. Mr. Curran.”
“Oh,” Dara said brightening. “That is interesting. I didn’t know she had a nephew. However, was Mr. Steele there?”
“Mr. Curran was the only man in the room.” Gwendolyn didn’t like her little fib, except she was tired of Dara dictating what she should and shouldn’t do.
In truth, Gwendolyn often deferred to Dara. She kept the peace by going along... but not on this matter. She would not let Dara interfere when her heart was involved, a heart that Mr. Steele wished to reject.
Fortunately, Dara didn’t press the matter. Instead, her active mind leaped to, “What did Lady Orpington want?”
“To invite me to Colemore for their house party next week.”
If an earthquake had shaken the very foundations of the house, Dara could not have acted more astounded.“Colemore?”
Gwendolyn nodded.
Her sister danced a jig. “Gwendolyn, this is spectacular. The people you will meet! The opportunities. I am so happy for you. The Marquess and Marchioness of Middlebury are the very cream of the cream. They are even more important than Lady Orpington. Did you know that a member of the Chaytor family rode with William the Conqueror? They say that he was the Conqueror’s right hand, and many of the laws and rites we accept today were designed by him. They say he even helped lay out London’s streets. No one outranks them, not even the House of Hanover.”
“They are more important than the king?” Gwendolyn said, not believing it.
“Oh, yes. Their bloodlines are pure.”
Gwendolyn made a dismissive noise. “I find it disturbing, Dara, when you talk about people as if they are broodmares.” She started for the back sitting room. Of course her sister followed.
“In many ways we are,” Dara opined.
