Her eyes snapped back to his face and Phoebe let out a laugh. “Oh, heavens, look at you! Good lord, I don’twantto.”
Will couldn’t hide his shock. “Why not?”
“I already earn enough to support myself,” she said. “What use would I have for a husband?”
Will suddenly felt very stodgy. “Love? Companionship? Protection?”
Phoebe laughed again, but this time with a dismissive edge that rankled him for some reason. “Surely you know one doesn’t have to bemarriedto experience such things. And that would not necessitate me giving up my autonomy or becoming nothing more than chattel.”
He hadn’t really considered that. “Nearly every woman I know talks of nothing but marriage.”
“Well, can you blame them?” Phoebe challenged. “Society tells us that a single woman is at best an inconvenience and at worst an aberration. I can understand why so many choose the safety of marriage—even if it isn’t always in their best interest,” she added.
Will cleared his throat. “What about children?”
Phoebe’s chin lifted. “What about them?”
“Do you… do you not want any?”
This conversation had become highly inappropriate for a ballroom. Though he couldn’t think of anywhere itwouldbe appropriate. And yet, he couldn’t stop himself from asking such a personal question. He wanted to know her answer. Wanted to know what kind of future she envisioned for herself.
Phoebe looked past him. “I haven’t given it much thought,” she said. “And I’d rather be available to help my students.”
It was a perfectly reasonable response, and yet Will felt a strange pang of disappointment. “Your dedication is admirable,” he said stiffly.
But Phoebe shrugged off the compliment. “I’m no different from the other women I teach with.”
“Tell me about the missing girl,” he said after a moment. It was well past time to move away from matrimony and babies. “What was her name again?”
Phoebe perked up at that. “Alice Clarke. She’s a bright girl and a hard worker. She wants to go to secretarial school.”
“And you don’t think it’s possible that she ran off? Maybe she found work outside the city.” Though as he said the words, Will realized how silly that sounded. People were pouring into London every day looking for work.
Phoebe shook her head. “Not without telling anyone. And she was so determined. She wouldn’t just disappear. Not unless—” Phoebe swallowed hard and cleared her throat. “I need to know that she is safe. She has no other family. There is no one else looking for her. She’ll become yet another girl swallowed up by this city.” Then her jaw hardened as she met Will’s eyes. “Which is why I’m going back to that tenement house.”
“But Inspector Holland—”
“Has far more important things to do than look into another missing girl,” she cut in. “Youknowthis, Margrave. I can’t waste any more time waiting for him.”
In the space of a moment, her entire bearing had changed. She seemed more confident. Determined. Unapologetic. It was the exact opposite of the modest serenity a young unmarried ladywas expected to embody, especially at a ball. But it seemed safe to assume that Phoebe didn’t give a damn about any of that.
“Then let me accompany you.”
“There’s no need—”
“I promised the inspector that I would be responsible for you,” he reminded her before leaning in a little closer. “And I take my responsibilities very seriously.”
Her hazel eyes darkened and Will found he could not look away.
“Give me two days,” he urged. “I’ll see what I can find about the owner of the tenement house as well.”
“All right,” Phoebe said after a breath. Then she arched a brow. “But I won’t wait longer than that.”
The corner of Will’s mouth curved up. It had been a long, long time since anyone other than his mother demonstrated such utter disregard for his opinion. “Understood.”
It was another moment before he realized the music had stopped and they were the only couple still holding each other. He immediately let her go and escorted her off the floor, but there was no chance their faux paus had gone unnoticed. As they rejoined Freddie, she didn’t even try to hide her smirk while he could nearly feel Lady Gwen’s sharp-eyed gaze raking his back from across the room. Will stiffened. He had let Phoebe distract him long enough.
“Thank you for the company, Miss Atkinson,” he said with a short bow. “Good evening, ladies.” Then he walked away before either could reply. By the time he reached Lady Gwen, she had managed to resume her bored expression—aside from the slight crease between her brows.
