An Escapade and an Engagement by Annie Burrows Page A

gentlemen’s clubs to
investigate his background and discover that he’d been living under the same
roof as Milly for over a year. That once he’d moved into Lavenham House he’d had
set her up in her own dwelling and given her a generous allowance.
    And assume she was his mistress.
    People were already casting speculative looks towards the
occupants of their box. There would be no end of conjecture about each of his
guests, and why he had invited them to form such a small, select group.
    What conclusions would they draw about how his ‘mistress’ had
come to be on terms of intimacy with Lady Jayne?
    He cursed himself roundly. He’d been annoyed with Lady Jayne
when she’d criticised his strategy, since he’d proved himself a skilled
tactician time and time again on the battlefields of the Peninsula. But perhaps
she’d had a point. He wasn’t used to manoeuvring through the morass that was
polite society, or considering the fragility of a woman’s reputation.
    At that moment Lieutenant Kendell leaned forward and said
something in Lady Jayne’s ear. She forced her lips into the semblance of a
smile, but it was a far cry from the natural gaiety she’d been expressing
before. She was so good at masking her feelings that everyone else would
probably conclude that she was freezing out an importunate young man who was
trying on his charm with her, the same way she always did. But he detested the
effect her lover was having on her.
    If he ever found any evidence to prove the fellow did not
really love Lady Jayne, he would make damn sure he never got near her again.
    He glowered across the box and Kendell sat back, leaving Lady
Jayne in peace for the present. It was the best he could do for now with regard
to Kendell, but he could definitely deal with the potential for disaster he’d
created by introducing her to Milly.
    When it came to the first interval he made his way to Lady
Jayne’s side and with a jerk of his head dismissed Kendell.
    She was so glad he’d come to her rescue. She did not think she
could take much more of Harry’s endearments. They made her squirm with
guilt.
    And, from the way Lord Ledbury had been glaring at them, Harry
had been far too obvious in spite of the earlier warning. She lifted her chin,
bracing herself for the scold she was sure he was about to give her, though for
the life of her she could not think how she could have prevented Harry from
making a spectacle of himself. Surely it was Harry to whom he should be
addressing his concerns?
    ‘This association with Milly is getting out of hand,’ he said
the moment Harry had moved out of earshot. ‘I never imagined, when I asked you
to give her a touch of style, that you would take her up this way.’
    ‘What?’ It was the very last thing she had expected him to
say.
    ‘She is not, and never has been, a proper person for you to
know…’
    That sounded so very like the kind of criticism her grandfather
would have levelled at her that her surprise turned to anger.
    ‘Well, you introduced me to her. You asked me for my help,
and—’
    ‘Yes, I know,’ he said more gently. ‘But I had no notion then,
what a warm-hearted person you are. Or how lonely.’
    She blinked. She would never have thought such a hard-faced man
could be so perceptive. He’d seen right to the heart of her. And put his finger
on who she wanted to be but was never allowed to be.
    ‘I thought you would spare her a few hours to take her
shopping, discreetly, not…fling yourself headlong into such an inappropriate
friendship.’
    ‘Oh.’ His unexpected compliment had touched her so deeply that
the warm glow it created melted her anger away. ‘But… Milly is a perfectly
lovely person. I do not consider a friendship with her inappropriate at all. In
fact—’
    ‘That’s enough,’ he said, the flinty look returning to his
eyes. ‘In the long run, this association can only be bad for you both.’
    ‘Bad for both of us? Are you suggesting that I am a