“I’m not certain I’d call itgood, Miss Thorne, but interesting, certainly.”
Had Loftus said her eyes were green, and her hair brown? The man was blind. Anyone could see her eyes werehazel—more gray than green this morning—and her hair that distinctive, rich shade of golden brown that could only be referred to ascaramel.
One of her slim, impertinent eyebrows rose, because yes, in addition to her sharp tongue, Miss Prudence Thorne had the most impertinent eyebrows he’d ever seen. “You may call it whatever you like, Your Grace. But I’m afraid I’ve dragged you from your bed. I do beg your pardon.”
“Itisrather early in the morning for a call, Miss Thorne. To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?”
“Unexpected, yes. A pleasure?” She bit her lip. “I can only hope you’ll still find it so once I’ve explained my reason for being here.”
“You mean this isn’t just a friendly call?” She didn’t intend to simply hand his earrings over to him, then. Of course, it wouldn’t prove to be that easy, because there was nothingeasyabout Prudence Thorne.
“No. We’re not friends, Your Grace. I’ve come because I have something of yours in my possession that you wish to have back, and in return, there is something you can do for me.”
He was heartily sick of uppity females after that tussle with Selina, yet one corner of his lip was already twitching. It wasn’t as if he wasenjoyingthis, of course—no gentleman appreciated being toyed with—but at least Miss Thorne was a worthy opponent, and he did like a good scrap every now and again. Already his worst devils were rising up, urging him to battle. “That sounds vaguely like a threat, Miss Thorne.”
“Not a threat, Your Grace, but merely a trade. That’s all.”
Good God, but she had a nerve, waltzing into his home and demanding he negotiate the return of the earrings she’d stolen from him! “I don’t understand, Miss Thorne. You already assured me you don’t have my ruby earrings. What else could the humble Miss Thorne have in her possession that can be of any interest to the Duke of Montford?”
Oh, she didn’t care for that at all. Her face darkened, her expressive eyebrows pulling into a frown. “I do have the earrings. I found them on the floor in the duke’s study, under the chaise you slept on.”
“Are you saying youliedto me, Miss Thorne? How appalling of you.” He waved her toward a chair. “Perhaps you’d better sit down and confess your sins.”
“No, thank you, Your Grace.” She edged away from him, closer to the door. “If it’s all the same to you, I prefer to stand.”
“Fine. Then let’s get right to it, shall we? I told you yesterday I’d lost a valuable pair of ruby and diamond earrings, and you told me you hadn’t seen them.” He tsked, shaking his head. “Does a lie fall from your lips every time you open your mouth, Miss Thorne?”
She gave him a cool smile. “Noteverytime. Occasionally one does, when a lie proves useful.”
“How refreshingly honest. Very well, then youdohave my earrings.”
“Yes, Your Grace. It’s quite lucky I happened to see them, is it not? I can’t imagine the fuss that would have ensued had one of His Grace’s servants found them, instead.”
“Yes, that might have proved inconvenient. You’ve come to Berkeley Square today to give them back to me, I presume. I’m pleased you’ve found your conscience at last, Miss Thorne.”
“Givethem back? Oh, no, Your Grace. I’m afraid I can’t do that. No, I’ve come to negotiate the terms for their return.”
“Negotiate?” He took a step toward her. “Terms?”
She didn’t scurry backward, but held her ground. “Why yes, Your Grace. As fate would have it, we are each of us in possession of something the other needs.”
“I see. Just what is it you need from me, Miss Thorne? I confess myself quite curious.”
“I imagine you’ve already guessed, Your Grace. My father owes you a debt, one he can’t easily pay. Forgive the debt, and I will return the earrings to you with none of the gossips in London any the wiser.”
He stared at her. Was Prudence Thorneblackmailinghim? For a measly five hundred pounds? For God’s sake, she’d marched into the drawing room of one of London’s most notorious reprobates—alone, no less—to trade a pair of earrings worth thousands forfive hundred pounds? “And if I don’t agree to your terms, Miss Thorne? What then?”
“I daresay you don’t wish to find out, Your Grace.”
For all her bravado, he saw at once by the way her eyebrows shot up that it had never even occurred to her he might refuse. Good Lord, but she was spectacularly bad at this.
“Come, Miss Thorne. If you’re going to threaten a duke, then do it properly. Do you intend to expose me to theton? Take the earrings to the scandal sheets?” She’d be better off stealing the damned earrings outright than attempting to blackmail him, but here she stood without seeming to have the least understanding of the sort of trouble she was inviting.
“I—I don’t understand, Your Grace. You made it clear during our conversation yesterday that the earrings are of great importance to you, and you wish to have them back. Why would you refuse my offer?”
Why, indeed? He wanted those earrings back so he could wash his hands of Selina for good, and here was a way to have them with very little trouble to himself. It wasn’t as if he gave a damn about the five hundred pounds. In the time it took him to sign away the debt, he could be finished with this whole debacle.
And yet, and yet . . .
