Had she truly turned her attention to Sir William?
I bowed, and she turned quickly toward her aunt, leaving me standing alone with my glass of water.
I exhaled all the air from my chest as I watched her retreat into the crowd. What had Mrs. Aldworth said to her the night before? Had Mrs. Wickerton revealed more about my ‘brother’ when the ladies had been alone in the drawing room?
Something must have caused Miss Sharp to become reserved.
She was impossible to read, and even more impossible to outwit. My identity felt on the brink of discovery, and I didn’t know how much longer I could conceal the truth from her.
Or how much longer I wanted to.
“I wouldn’t be opposed to you watching from the window today,” I said in a dull voice as I stood in front of the chair Colin had been practically living in for the past week.
He frowned, leaning back with his arms crossed. “Why is that?”
“If Miss Sharp sees you, then it will be your fault that the ruse ends, and I shall not have to continue pretending to be you.” I adjusted my cravat with a firm tug. As always, the valet, Morris, had seemed determined to suffocate me.
Colin rested his hands on the desk in front of him with a laugh. “What makes it so miserable? You are doing a good deed by keeping a fortune hunter from running loose, and you look more fashionable than ever.”
“I have been cornered by eligible ladies at nearly every event I attend.” I cast him a look of long-suffering. “They are relentless.”
“Now you see what I endure constantly.” Colin glared at the wall behind me, his eyes reflecting deep thought. “They always have hidden motives.”
“Perhaps if you didn’t try to hide your relation to me, then we could reverse this charade at another time.” I strode over to the side of his desk until he finally looked up. “You could pretend to be me, alowlysolicitor, and find a woman who loves you for more than your possessions. She would only be pleasantly surprised to later learn that you do have a fortune.”
I had meant it as a joke, but Colin seemed to be considering the offer. He drummed his fingers on the table, that same scowl still etched deeply on his brow. He snapped out of his daze suddenly, shaking his head. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Do you doubt your ability to attract a woman solely with your charming personality?” I knew I was irking him, but I couldn’t help it. He was irkingme. He had been for quite some time.
“I have no intentions of trying,” he muttered. “It is you who is tasked with that responsibility.”
I bit the inside of my cheek, a surge of anxiety rising in my chest. “At what point will you consider my debt repaid?” I hardly cared about the clients and allowance anymore. I wanted it all to be over.
Colin rubbed a circle over his chin slowly, eyes cast upward in thought. “It certainly hasn’t been long enough yet. She can’t have developed any real attachment to you in such a short time.”
I wanted to tell him that it was indeed possible, but I kept my mouth shut.
“If you manage to keep her occupied for a full fortnight before revealing the truth, I shall be satisfied with that. I am beginning to feel a bit imprisoned in this house.”
I groaned, raking a hand over my hair. How could I continue for another week?
Colin’s jaw lowered in dismay as he stared at the top of my head. “Morris will have to arrange your hair properly again before you meet Miss Sharp outside.”
Anger stirred inside my chest, my veins boiling under my skin. It was my fault that I had ever become indebted to Colin, but I hated being so controlled by him. It had been this way my entire life. He enjoyed giving me orders, and he had the power to do so.
I closed my eyes to calm my sudden vexation. It would all be over soon enough. I could leave Bath with my debt repaid. I could build a life away from the influence of my brother. As he had said, one week was not enough time to forma real attachment. Another week wouldn’t make a significant difference.
Miss Sharp would recover, and so would I.
Colin sent a footman to fetch Morris, who combed my hair back into place. My jaw was clenched so tightly it hurt. My heart leaped as the rumble of carriage wheels came from outside the front of the house.
Leaving Colin in his study, I waited for Morris to disappear down the corridor before running my fingers through my hair again, causing a few strands to fall over my forehead. The small act of defiance was pathetic, really, but it did make me feel slightly better as I greeted Miss Sharp at the door.
A glimmer of surprise crossed her face. I assumed it was caused by the change in my hair, but I couldn’t be certain. Perhaps she didn’t notice such small details about me the way I noticed the small details about her. She had changed her gown from the one she had worn in the Pump Room earlier that morning. Now she wore pale yellow with a matching straw bonnet and a thin gold necklace at her throat.
She followed me to the garden where two easels, paints, and a small refreshment table awaited us.
I directed her aunt to the bench against the garden wall, as far from the rose bushes as possible. It was also farther from where Miss Sharp and I would be working on our paintings—but I hadn’t objected to that.
