Page 95 of The Gentlewoman Companion

“Do you, now?” Graham’s eyes danced with that familiar camaraderie. “She’s a sprite and will have you dancing an eternal jig.”

“Hah. That is one way to put it. Thank you, Graham.”

“My lord.” He bowed and was gone.

Later that evening, James sat across from Hugh, eating mutton and drinking port. After a little of their usual friendly banter, he brought up his reason for meeting.

“I’m afraid I’ll be leaving London soon. I wanted to say goodbye in person before I left.”

“Really? Is everything all right?” His gaze was piercing.

“Margaret and Samuel deserve stability and don’t feel comfortable in Mayfair. I will settle them in Stroud, where I can see them frequently. Tom and Susan have a family waiting for them. They’ve all been through a lot of change.”

“Will Lady Halverton and Miss Louisa join you?”

“I spoke to my mother about it previously. She cannot get enough of London. I imagine Louisa will stay with her.”

Hugh sat back and looked around, fidgeting with his napkin.

“What is it?”

“I don’t know if it’s true,” Hugh whispered, “but it’s going to be all over town. There will be those who believe it, even if it isn’t true.”

“Is it so ominous?” James tried to smile.

Hugh’s mouth stretched into a line. “I was here late last night.”

“Gambling, were you?”

“Not really. I intended to convene with a potential business partner, but that is not the point. Mr. Thorpe was there.” He cleared his throat. “He is not a member of the club so must have come with a friend.”

“Louisa’s brother? I thought he left town.”

Hugh sighed and a deep foreboding filtered through James.

“I encountered him on other occasions but had not seen him for weeks. Rumors circulated that he’d run into money troubles, which surprised me little based on the way he lost his head to drink and the heat of a game.” Hugh glanced around again.

“Yes?” James could hardly breathe.

“Mr. Thorpe was good and foxed, and he told a story about his sister.”

“Louisa?”

“He began by announcing to the room that his sister had paid his debts, and he was a free man but would on no account return to Cornwall, as it seems his sister thought he would.”

“Is that all?”

“He blathered on and said a great many things, one of which is that Miss Thorpe—he called her terrible names. He really is a blackguard.”

James gripped the table. “Well?”

Hugh sighed. “He said she left Bath to elope, that the man abandoned her at an inn, and she was forced to become a servant to avoid returning home to her father’s wrath.”

A painful hollow expanded in James. He pushed away his dinner. “I don’t believe it. The man was intoxicated.” Even as he said it, doubt seized him. Louisa had hinted over and over about an indiscretion. What if she hadn’t merely run away from an arranged marriage but had attempted to elope instead? He felt nearly as betrayed as when he’d discovered the letter in his father’s coat, but he told himself he could not fall into despair without further proof.

Hugh patted James consolingly on the arm. “I don’t believe it either. Even so, people are talking. I thought it best you heard it from me rather than a stranger.”

“I must go.” James shook his friend’s hand and absently invited him to visit Lundbrooke whenever he pleased.