As the carriage pulled out into the street, Alice’s gaze remained fixed on the house. Could he be the answer to her prayers?
I have a horrid feeling I may come to regret this, but I am beyond desperate.
The truth was, as long as Lord Harry Steele was better at managing scandals than he was at choosing his attire, she didn’t particularly care how he went about things.
If Harry could save her sister, Alice would follow him to the gates of hell.
Chapter 2
Harry finished off the last of his smoked salmon and pushed back from the table. Breakfast was always his favorite meal of the day. There was nothing better to settle his stomach and throbbing head than a hearty plate of food.
He rose, leaving Milton to finish his own platter of vegetables and softened grains on the floor of dining room. People may say what they wanted about pigs, but Harry had often found them to be in possession of better table manners than many of his peers. And they were most studious about being clean.
After heading to the main drawing room, feeling slightly more human, he opened the rest of the curtains and let the late morning sun into the room. He tied the drapes back and tidied the ends.
It was early December, and any hours where sunshine warmed the house were welcome. Winter was fast closing in and soon it would be dark days and biting cold. Harry loathed winter.
Sir Stephen Moore was lounging on the purple sofa, his head back, eyes partially closed. “You really do make a fetching housemaid. Let me know when you are going to clean out the fire grate. It could be entertaining.”
Harry gave the cold, dead fire one resigned look and sighed. The housekeeper only came every other morning, which meant that unless he got on his knees and cleaned out the fire, he would have to suffer a chilly house for the rest of the day.
At least Cook comes each day to feed us.
“Yes, well, you didn’t help my financial situation by playing the uptight, rod-up-his-arse butler. You are supposed to be gracious and polite to my clients, not treat them like last week’s smelly fish. Leaving Miss North in the foyer was beneath even you,” said Harry.
Harry would dearly love a small retinue of servants. Or at least enough money in his bank account to be able to consider employing one or two on a full-time basis.
All his hard-earned coin currently went into the upkeep of the house and paying for his share of the coaching business which he, along with Stephen and the others, were still trying to get established.
He glanced at his dressing gown and frowned. Fashion was his only real vice. It was also the perfect cover for his money-making endeavors. Few people, other than his closest friends and some of his clients, knew the truth of what lay hidden behind Harry’s outrageous peacock act.
And since all his clients had their own dirty little scandals which they badly wanted kept hidden, there was little to no risk of anyone daring to spill Harry’s or anyone else’s secrets to the world. London society was a cesspit of wicked behavior and double standards.
Stephen sat up in the chair as Milton trotted into the room and made a beeline for the sofa. He scooped up the piglet and placed him in a sunny spot on a cushion. “So, what did your pretty little client want? Whatever it is, she must be desperate. She stuck around even after I left her standing in the foyer.”
Yes, she was rather fetching, come to think of it.
Her pale blonde hair had matched her dark lemon gown perfectly. Not to mention those hazel eyes which had held his gaze and challenged him. She intrigued him. Not many women did.
“What did she want? The usual. A family scandal that needs to be managed before it gets legs. A younger sister in peril,” Harry replied.
She hadn’t held back on him. Alice North was not going to be one of those clients who merely handed over money and then didn’t want to know anything else until the job was done. He was going to be held accountable by the tempting chit.
This could be a fun challenge. She is more than pretty; the girl has spine. Dare I say, a certain je ne sais quoi.
He made a mental note to keep Stephen as far away from Alice as possible. If anyone was going to form a bond with her, it would be him. Mixing business with pleasure was always risky, but there was something about Miss North which had him intrigued. Tempted even.
I wonder what Miss North will be wearing this evening. One could hope for something daring. Those breasts of hers could look a wonder in a tight bodice.
But if Harry knew anything, he knew people. If Alice was playing the role of big sister and doing her all to defend her younger sibling, she wouldn’t dare come to a major social event in anything that drew attention. He would have a pound bet on Miss North wearing a plain gown, possibly cream. Something that would allow her to blend in with the crowd.
He crossed the lushly carpeted drawing room to his writing desk. He wasn’t one for having a separate formal study; those rooms reminded him too much of his stiff, stoic father. And extra rooms had to be heated. Anywhere that he could save a coin was worth it. Paying his share of the RR Coaching Company seed money was a constant battle.
“Miss Alice North has a sister. Patience is her name, but apparently not her virtue. From what I understand, she has fallen under the spell of a money-hungry blackguard whom her sister fears will talk her into eloping with him,” said Harry.
When Stephen sighed, Harry slowly nodded. People were such clichés.
“I know. Eloping to Gretna Green is so passé. Dare one say it borders on gauche,” he added.
On the sofa, a contented Milton rolled over and presented his belly to Stephen, who began to gently rub the soft bristles on the piglet’s skin. Little oinks hummed in the room.
“What happened to making the effort to get in an old man’s favor? Chaps these days are far too eager to turn their horses’ heads north and make for Scotland rather than endure endless meetings with their future fathers-in-law,” said Stephen.
“Yes, well, it is the fashion. Quick and easy. But even if this unscrupulous beast Cuthbert Saint makes it all the way to the border with the younger North sister, he won’t find anyone willing to perform the marriage service for them,” he replied.
He pulled out a plain brown folio and opened it. He perused it for a moment, before closing it again. At this early stage of the contract, he had little information to work with, but he had put in place the usual measures.
After receiving instructions from Alice North, along with his retainer, the first thing Harry had done was to send his own man to Gretna Green in Scotland. A handful of bribes would ensure that Miss Patience North and her prospective groom wouldn’t be able to wed if they sought to marry outside the rules of English law.
“It may sound callous of me, but isn’t the North family new money? I mean, sometimes these people don’t seem to understand how polite society works. Take how your client arrived this morning; I can’t imagine your sister or mine, if I had one, being allowed to wander the streets of London without at least a maid and a burly footman in tow,” said Stephen.
“Yes, Gordon North made his money in textiles and shipping. Damn near as rich as Croesus if any of the rumors are to be believed,” replied Harry.
Though his friend did have a point about the behavior of Miss Alice North. What business did she have in calling on someone like him without at least a chaperone? From where he came, it simply wouldn’t stand. Young women of rank and high birth wouldn’t dare do such a thing. His sister, Lady Naomi, never left the house without a trail of servants following her.