An Improper Proposal (The Distinguished Rogues Book 6) Read online

  “I never had to search for any safe,” Iris admitted quickly. “The victims actually told me themselves, and many others in fact at the same time, several weeks before the robberies occurred. It was then simply a matter of waiting for an invitation to enter their homes and a large enough event to hide what I did. When they hosted a ball, no one ever noticed me admiring the view outside their windows.”

  “And that’s why you believed yourself invisible? Oh, my darling. What a nightmare you’ve lived under my very nose.” Esme pulled her head close to hers, as protective as a mother of her young. “You must help her, Meriwether.”

  Meriwether remained silent for a good long while as he considered her fate. His eyes narrowed and he rose to his feet. He bent over them and touched the skin of Iris’s neck, a light caress immediately over the spot Talbot had held to shake her. “How did you come to be injured?”

  Iris covered the marks. “Talbot wanted the contents of Windermere’s safe very badly. He’d made promises and I had failed to open the window for his men last night. He was very unhappy with me that his buyers were to be let down.”

  Meriwether met her gaze. “How badly are you hurt?”

  “It’s nothing more serious than a few tender spots.” Iris touched the back of her head and winced. “Perhaps a graze.”

  Esme gasped and carefully checked the back of her head. “My God, she’s bled? That beast! I’ll make him pay dearly for this.”

  Meriwether shushed Esme. “Did Talbot ever mention who handled the gems after the robbery had taken place?”

  “No, not once. I’m sorry I don’t know anything else to help recover what has been stolen.”

  Meriwether resumed his seat with a sigh. “Consider yourself held under extreme suspicion, Miss Hedley. You are not to leave Esme’s side for even a moment.”

  “I have to see my father tomorrow. I always go. If I don’t, Talbot will become suspicious and he might harm him. He’s in no state to protect himself.”

  “And don’t forget, she was to be watched,” Esme cut in quickly. “She must pass along word of our engagements to these shadowy figures who follow her. She cannot simply hide away and give up her usual routine of going out.”

  “Very well.” Meriwether bit his lip and then nodded. “This is what we shall do, Miss Hedley. You will go about your usual business and relay any further excursions with Lady Heathcote directly to Talbot, careful not to provoke him to anger again. Leave nothing out and do what he said to do. You will be in danger but it is imperative you do nothing to spook Talbot and give the game away. Your engagement to Lord Louth, when it is announced, will most certainly provoke a flurry of invitations that will be to our advantage.”

  “I don’t want to lie to him anymore.” Louth would be in harm’s way the moment their engagement was announced. “He needs to know he isn’t expected to marry a criminal.”

  “I will explain as much of the situation to him as needs be.” Meriwether rubbed his jaw. “If it can be arranged at such short notice, there will be a trap laid at Lord Ettington’s home and we will ensure a successful robbery takes place. Think nothing of it and go about your engagement in the normal fashion, shopping and house calls, etcetera. The frivolous activities any young woman would undertake prior to her marriage. The valuables stolen will be paste gems, a fine setting but of lesser value than the real thing. By the time the ball is announced, Talbot will be quite desperate. It is there we will catch him.”

  Esme leaned forward. “What if he doesn’t receive an invite to that event?”

  “Oh, I can safely predict he will.” Meriwether raised a brow, suggesting Esme should know better. “I’ll be calling in a favor.”

  Thirteen

  Mr. Richard Barker waited at the open door of the carriage and wasted no time in speaking up once Martin’s feet hit the footpath. “Thank you for coming at short notice, my lord.”

  Martin glanced at the façade of Mrs. Ward’s home as his carriage pulled away. “You did say it was urgent. What seems to be the problem?”

  The usually unflappable man of business raked his hand through his ginger hair as if he was at his wits end. “She told her butler to turn me away, saying my services are no longer required. Yesterday, when I suggested a modest reduction in her expenditure at the dressmakers, she threw a vase at me and then fell to pieces. I couldn’t stop her tears and she begged me to leave.”

  Martin shook his head and surveyed the street. “Sounds like Mrs. Ward has not changed. She once threw an entire dessert at her late husband, if I recall, because he mentioned a woman who had slighted her in glowing terms. Poor fellow hadn’t known what to do either.”

  Barker gaped. “And you do?”

  “Oh, yes.” He ran up the short flight of stairs and knocked. The butler was unfamiliar to him and clearly suspicious of a strange man at the door, so he handed over his card. “If you’d be so kind as to ask Mrs. Ward if she might have a moment to see me.”

  The door closed in his face and Martin turned to his man of business. Damn Helena for being difficult. The reason he’d sent Barker was to lessen the demands on his time. He already juggled three women—Whitney, Iris and the infant. He didn’t need a fourth. He had a dinner to host tonight and handing the responsibility over to Whitney had not been his intent. “Aside from the current difficulties with Mrs. Ward, you’re keeping well, I trust?”

  “Yes, my lord.” He winced. “My sister recently had a babe, so it seems I’m an uncle to a little girl now.”

  “Well, congratulations.”

  Barker frowned. “I’m supposed to be impressed of course but it’s hard to be excited over something small enough to fit into a desk drawer.”

  He grinned at the pleasant fantasy of placing his daughter in the drawer of his study desk at Holly Park while he worked. She could sleep while he managed the estate business. “You would feel differently if you were talking of your own child.”

  “I don’t know about that.” Barker scowled and drew close. “Given the way my sister has carried on about being indisposed, I’m of a mind to skip marriage, and women, entirely.”

  The butler invited them inside and took his hat. Martin faced his companion. “Mr. Barker, would you mind waiting here a moment. I’ll see Mrs. Ward alone first and try to sweeten her temperament.”

  “Thank you.” Barker plunked down on a nearby chair and made himself comfortable.

  Martin was led to a room he remembered well, a sitting room so cushioned that even the floors could be made very pleasant for an afternoon romp. Helena moved to greet him, her gown swishing about her legs. The diaphanous creation revealed her curves and hinted at the bounty that lay beneath. She had dressed for seduction.

  Martin accepted her offered hand and kissed her knuckles perfunctorily. “My dear, you look beautiful.”

  “Thank you for calling, my lord.” She fluttered her lashes at the compliment. “Do sit down?”

  She indicated a spot next to hers and he took it. “Thank you. Are you happy to be in London again?”

  “Oh, yes. The social whirl has me quite in its grip. Isn’t it terrible about these robberies?” She grasped his arm. “Makes a woman long for a man at her side to offer his protection.”

  He shrugged off her touch. “I think you are safe. In all cases, the victims hosted large gatherings the same night as the robberies took place.”

  Her smiled widened. “Yes, but I do have a safe.”

  “As do many homes, I’m sure.” He studied her. Her fears were understandable but entirely for naught more than attention at the moment. “What game are you playing with poor Mr. Barker?”

  “That man.” She shuddered. “I tell you, I’ve never encountered such a beastly fellow in my life.”

  “You threw a vase at him.”

  She grabbed a fan and fluttered it before her face. “What else is a poor widow to do to defend herself?”

  Barker was an even-tempered man. The most agitation he’d ever displayed had been outside. He couldn�
�t believe her description of him. “So you are saying he provoked such an attack?”

  She sniffed and turned her face away. “It’s over now and forgotten.”

  “Good, because he is waiting in the hall to continue the discussion of your finances.”

  She spun about. “You brought your man of business into my home after I expressly told Peters to deny him? He’s as bad as the shopkeepers demanding money. He will want blood next. I will not have him in my house telling me what I must do or not do. I am not a child.”

  Martin had not missed Helena very much at all he discovered then, especially her habit of blowing a confrontation out of all reasonable proportion. “But the reason he was sent to you is to make sure you could keep the roof over your head that you love so much. You came to me and asked for my help. He is the extent of my offer.”

  “Never mind the past.” She moved toward him. “I’d hoped you’d come to talk as we used to do.”

  “Barker is the only reason I am here. He sent for me because you would not let him do his job.” Martin scowled. Helena was not above playing the victim to get her way and they both knew it. “He is not used to suffering a lady’s theatrics so I must ask that you deal fairly with him.”

  Helena’s lower lip trembled and she lifted her hands to cover her face. “How can you speak so cruelly to me?”

  “The truth isn’t cruel, just as those tears aren’t the least bit real. Stop this nonsense or you will see the last of me.”

  Her hands fell. “We were so good together. We could be together again, and I promise I will learn to curb my spending to make you happy.”

  She leaned even farther forward, presenting him with a direct view of the crests of her lush bosom.

  Martin was unmoved. “What you want is not possible.”

  Helena slipped her gown off her shoulders and pressed against him, pinning him to the side of the settee until her bosom was quite squashed against his chest. “I can make you feel so very good. I know you remember how it was between us.”

  He did remember, but that was beside the point. “I don’t agree that married men should keep mistresses any more than you do.”

  Her gaze grew a touch uncertain. “Well, neither of us is married now.”

  He hadn’t planned to tell anyone about Iris until he was assured of her father’s agreement to the marriage, but clearly he had to say something to convince Helena of his disinterest in a way she would understand. “But I am going to be married soon, so an affair is entirely out of the question.”

  Helena’s eyes narrowed to slits. “Who is she?”

  “Someone I admire very much.” He pushed her away gently. “Our union is not public knowledge as yet, so I would appreciate your discretion in the matter.”

  “I see.”

  “To tell the truth, I feel uneasy even being here. I told her Barker would handle your financial muddle without my involvement in the matter. My future wife’s behavior suggests she’s not the sharing type.”

  Helena dropped her gaze, a smile curving her lips. “Your secret is safe with me, my lord.”

  “Thank you.” He rubbed his hands together. “Now, over the years I’ve learned to trust Barker’s advice implicitly. I would not have sent him to you if I didn’t think he could be of service. Might I call him in now to hear for myself his beastly suggestions?”

  She smiled but it wasn’t the genuine smile he’d hoped for. “If you insist.”

  “I do.” He stood and returned to Barker where he was cooling his heels in the hall. “Helena and I have had a discussion about her situation. If you’d be so good as to follow me and show me what you’ve suggested, I can be on my way. I don’t wish to be late when I’m hosting my own dinner party tonight.”

  Barker nodded but the moment he crossed the drawing room doorway, he froze, gaping at Helena like a starving man would look at a banquet. His gaze swept over the lush woman and two bright spots tinged his cheeks. At a guess, Helena hadn’t dressed this way for his prior visit.

  Martin snapped his fingers before the man’s face. “Barker, pay attention, man,” he hissed.

  “If she’d been dressed like that when she threw the vase I would have welcomed the pain.” He swallowed hard, adjusted his cravat and then moved to set his papers over a nearby table.

  Martin met Helena’s gaze and saw a satisfied smile now graced her lips. She knew the affect she had on men, even if it had failed to work on him. If she ever turned her seductive skills on Barker, he’d be putty in her hands.

  Martin picked up the first of his papers and scanned the sheet. Barker’s notes were thorough and to the point. Helena was living well beyond her means and the only way to delay the creditors was to curb all impulsive spending. He glanced at his man of business to show his approval of the fellow’s findings but Barker’s attention was again glued to Helena Ward’s lush figure.

  He coughed to gain his attention. “Barker, do you remember what you said to me outside about avoiding women? Keep that firmly in mind when dealing with her or you might end up footing her bills out of your own pocket.”

  Fourteen

  “Did I mention how lovely you look, Iris,” Louth whispered as he took a place at her side on the settee after dinner.

  “Yes,” she replied. “Several times, I believe.”

  They’d enjoyed a lovely dinner together but all Iris could think about was Talbot’s men lurking on the street outside. She’d seen them. They were waiting for her to open a window to Lord Louth’s home so Talbot could steal from him too.

  She glanced around the exquisite drawing room. Esme was engaged in conversation with Whitney, continuing a heated discussion begun at dinner. The pair couldn’t agree who was the most fashionable gentleman in London at present—Lord Ettington or Lord Acton.

  “Well, it’s as true now as the first mention,” Louth insisted. “I’m glad you could come at short notice.”

  She bit her lip as she waited for him to mention the trouble she was in because of Talbot. Meriwether had promised to speak to him and spare her the pain of confession but so far Louth had said nothing on the subject. “You are very kind.”

  He leaned close. “Am I boring you tonight?”

  Her eyes widened and she spun to face him. “Of course not. It is a little difficult today to pay attention under the circumstances.”

  He appeared puzzled. “How so?”

  His expression was open and friendly. He did not appear a man who’d just learned an unpleasant truth about his future bride. Her heart sank. She’d enjoyed a wonderful evening believing herself forgiven for her part in the robberies but Meriwether must not have found the time to mention her troubles to the earl yet. She scrambled for a sufficient response that would make sense. “You are an attractive man, and the things we’ve done together. I…”

  “Are you embarrassed?”

  “No, but shouldn’t I be?” She shook her head. She craved the reassurance of his touch despite the fact they were not alone. She rubbed her temple. “I do not understand myself anymore.”

  “There is nothing to worry about. The best pleasure is mutual and equally distracting.” He smiled warmly. “If given the opportunity, I would have already dragged you into my arms. I wanted to kiss you as soon as you arrived. Holding back is difficult.”

  “I agree.” Her tension eased a bit. If they were equally afflicted by desire then her situation wasn’t quite so bad, but her problems with Talbot were always in the back of her mind. Louth had been more attentive to her tonight than he’d ever been, drawing her into his conversations, and smiling at her so warmly her pulse quickened every time.

  She would give anything to feel his arms wrap around her. To know he would understand how conflicted she was. The brief interlude on the rug in Esme’s home yesterday had proved what a very wicked woman she could be. She wanted more of that, more of his undeniably large proportions in her hand.

  Louth smiled and warmth spread all over her body in a disconcerting rush. “That fichu
covering your bosom is entirely too modest for my taste and I will insist you be rid of them the moment we wed.”

  She glanced down at the white scrap of lace covering her upper chest as her breasts grew heavy at his mention of them. She’d pinned the lace as high as she could to cover a bruise that proved troublesome to hide with cosmetics. “I thought you would approve.”

  The look he sent her suggested she should know better. “You didn’t used to wear one until recently.”

  “Well, I’ll be a wife now rather than a mistress.” She blushed and lifted a hand to her face as her skin heated. “I thought I should play the part.”

  “So I’m to be denied a delightful view just so you might be an unnecessarily modest wife.” He glanced sideways. “I truly don’t mind what you wear, so long as I am the only one enjoying the hidden parts.”

  She gripped the settee cushion as her blush grew hot enough that she wished for a fan. While she had been intimate with him, they had never truly spoken of it in company. She clasped her hands in her lap and kept her gaze on her friends. “I would prefer to be the only one seeing your private parts, too.”

  “I can agree to that very easily.” His skin darkened. “In fact, I can assure you I’ll be the most faithful of husbands. Home before my bedtime every night.”

  She frowned, skeptical of such a claim. No gentleman kept to a bedtime. London was for pleasure. “You’re teasing me?”

  “I am a little about the bedtime, but I’ll never stray, I promise. Too many people never keep their promises though.” He shifted closer. “Press your hands down into your lap a little harder until you feel yourself stir.”

  “Stir?”

  “Until your sex clenches at the anticipation of my touch between your legs.”

  Her lips parted in shock at his suggestion but her body reacted with a rush of moisture between her legs. He couldn’t mean to do it here and now. “But there are other people in the room with us.”

  “A little danger can add to the excitement and spur pleasure to greater heights, especially in a crowded room. Imagine finding your release in a ballroom. Press down now.”