“Everyone besides Miss Sharp,” Colin corrected. “You have to convince her that you’re interested in courting her.”
I frowned. “Didn’t you say you made your disinterest very clear this evening?”
He shrugged. “Pretend you changed your mind.”
“You meanyourmind.”
Colin chuckled under his breath. “This is going to be quite diverting, isn’t it?”
“For you, perhaps.” My stomach dropped. I had toyed with a young lady’s heart once before, and the guilt and consequences had stayed with me for years. How could I do it again?
I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. Miss Sharp was afortune hunter, I could not forget that. Her heart was set on one thing, and if she was as determined as she sounded, she would not be in danger of any real heartbreak. It seemed there was no escaping the task now, so I leaned forward with an exasperated sigh.
“When do I start?”
CHAPTER 4
CLARK
“This is never going to work.” I stared at my reflection in the tall looking glass while Colin stood behind me. “Your nose is wider than mine.”
Colin frowned. “Your forehead is larger.”
I tugged hard on the jacket I wore. I thought I heard a thread pop somewhere. “That is most definitely not true, but my arms do seem to be. How do you manage to wear your jackets so tight?”
Colin’s valet, Morris, added another fold to the cravat at my neck. It had been starched heavily enough to stick straight out on its own. Morris had been informed, in the deepest confidence, of our scheme, and had been enlisted to help transform me into my brother. Besides the difference in our manner of dress, we also arranged our hair differently. Mine was slightly shorter than Colin’s, which could easily be explained. But Colin wore his away from his face and tucked behind his ears, while I had usually worn mine in a less formal fashion, letting it fall wherever my fancy—or the wind—took it.
With a wet comb, Morris began working on my dark hair, combing it away from my face and applying a paste of sorts to keep it in place. When he finished, I looked in the mirror again.
I grimaced. Wearing Colin’s navy blue jacket and rigid cravat, with my hair off my forehead, I could hardly tell us apart. When we were children, I had intentionally made choices that differed from his, including the colors I wore and the way I arranged my hair. It had made it easier for others to tell us apart, if nothing else. When in doubt, the telltale sign had always been the freckle on my right earlobe. Our mother had dragged me away from my mischief by the ear on more than one occasion after discovering that it was me—and not Colin—who had caused it.
“What would Mother think if she knew I was disguising myself as you?” I asked.
Colin’s mouth quirked upward. “She would doubt our success, certainly. But the people of Bath don’t know me as she does. No one will see a difference.”
Unfortunately, I believed he was right. It was frightening how similar we looked at that moment. I had no doubt that only our mother and sisters would be able to identify me, and they were still far away in Derbyshire. “How is Eloise faring in her preparations for London?” I asked. I had been away from home for months. I had missed a great deal of my younger sisters’ lives over the past few years, but avoiding Derbyshire had been in my best interest after the wedding incident.
“She is counting down the days.” Colin’s gaze grew distant. “Her dowry and accomplishments should secure her a beneficial match. I would be surprised if she isn’t engaged by the end of her first season.”
I cast him a sidelong glance. “So it’s acceptable for a woman to be chosen for her money and accomplishments but not a man?”
“I never said it was acceptable.” Colin’s jaw tightened. “Eloise wants to marry for love. I hope the men she encounters have intentions just as pure.”
“Fortunately she’ll have you to fend off any fortune hunters. You do seem to have a skill for it.” Little did my brother know, I had once been one. My participation in this ruse was all a bit hypocritical, but I was practically being forced into it. It wasn’t the time to be noble. I rotated in front of the mirror. “I look ridiculous.”
“You look more handsome than ever.” Colin smirked beside me.
I exhaled all the air I could from my lungs, but it didn’t make me any more comfortable. “The jacket is far too tight.”
“It is not. You have simply never dressed properly before now.”
I cringed. Perhaps I could have a few seams let out without Colin noticing. I closed my eyes. I could already feel a headache coming on. I would have to remind myself frequently of my purpose in participating in this ridiculous charade.All debts repaid, allowance resumed, clients obtained.It was a lengthy list of benefits to me. All I had to do was court a lady who desperately wanted to court me and pretend to be boring and unapproachable.
It should be easy enough.
“To Milsom Street?” I asked. Colin had relayed the plan to me earlier that morning, but I had been distracted by the grand breakfast his cook had served.
“Yes, though I’ve never cared to learn Miss Sharp’s actual address. I would expect her to live farther down the street, beyond number twenty.”
