“It appears the money he was pilfering was to fund his own establishment. His plan to bankrupt no’ only the Thistle & Pig, but my estate as well, was so that he could get rid of what he considered his number one competition.”
“Nay,” Alexander muttered in disbelief.
“Aye. I want all of us to go to his pub. Together as a banded front. I want to see the fear in his eyes when he realizes I am aware of what he’s done.”
“Och. ’Tis been some time since I’ve been in a fight, but I am ready.” Nicholas stated.
The four men looked at him, surprise clear on their faces.
He put his hands up in defense. “What?” He pointed to his scars. “I am great at putting the fear of God into people. Especially no-good bastards.”
Laughter erupted in the room.
“’Twill be like the old days,” Finlay said.
Gunn clapped his hands. “All right, ’tis settled. We have dinner this eve, but on the morrow, we’ll pay Theodore a visit.
Happy to have the support of his friends, he smiled, and they made a plan to leave at noon tomorrow.
“’Tis almost time for dinner. We should collect our wives and get ready,” Malcolm said.
Gunn had no complaints about that. He couldn’t wait to see Jocelyn again and see how she was faring with the other ladies. He had no doubt all went well, but she had been so nervous. He wanted to hear all about it.
*
Four sets ofeyes focused on Jocelyn and the attention caused her heart to jump in her throat. Did they really just expect her to blurt out everything? About her and her past. About Gunn? It didn’t seem proper to give such details to women she’d just met.
“Dinna be shy,” Lizzie urged. “They dinna bite, and we all have pasts that arena the purest.”
Jocelyn raised an eyebrow, curious of what Lizzie referred to. Two of the women that sat in front of her were duchesses. Certainly, their pasts were squeaky clean.
“I dinna ken she believes that, Lizzie,” Clarissa pointed out. “Ye have spent the most time together. Did ye tell her how ye met Malcolm?”
She had. “Yes, they met at a ball,” Jocelyn answered.
The women burst out in laughter.
Willamina clutched her stomach as she laughed so hard, tears shone in her eyes. “Aye, and I met Finlay at a garden party.”
“Well, actually,” Gwen said, “that is true.”
Jocelyn laughed nervously. “I’m sorry, I fear that I am not privy to all of the background information you are.” She turned to Lizzie, hurt a little that the person she had believed was fast becoming her friend, had lied to her. “You didn’t meet at a ball?” she asked quietly.
Lizzie threw an annoyed look to Willamina. “We did meet at a ball, just no’ in the conventional sense, I suppose.”
“Did he not ask you to dance?”
Lizzie laughed. “He most definitely did not. He found me in the chamber of the viscountess that was hosting the party.”
Jocelyn was confused. It still sounded to her as if they met at the ball.
“Malcolm was there to work. He was hired as security to ensure no one stole the viscountess’s jewels. He found me with my hands in her jewelry chest.”
Her mouth dropped open in shock. “You were stealing from the viscountess.”
Willamina barked out a laugh, and Clarissa and Gwen shushed her.
“Nay. I wasretrievingthe jewelry of my grandmama that had been stolen from my family.” She emphasized the word retrieving. “Anyhow, he didna believe me when I said they were mine. I did manage to convince him to follow me home to Stonehaven though, so I could prove it. Which I did. But I did meet him at a ball.”
