How to Plan a Wedding for a Royal Spy by Vanessa Kelly

straining against her bodice. It took a great deal of willpower on his part to resist the temptation to take a longer glance down.
    â€œI’m glad I accepted Matt’s invitation,” he said. “It’s been like coming home, seeing Maywood Manor and all my old friends.”
    Her full mouth thinned into a narrow line as she transformed from flustered to annoyed in the space of one breath. “One could wonder that you didn’t make the trip sooner, but never mind. I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself. Certainly my mother seems happy to see you.”
    Ah, now that was a tidy detail. She obviously thought her mother was up to something too.
    Beaumont glanced at Evie and cleared his throat in a pointed fashion. Her shoulders jerked even higher and her cheeks went from pink to red.
    â€œOh, dear, I’m forgetting my manners,” she said. “Michael, allow me to introduce you to Captain William Endicott of the 1 st Royal Dragoons. Will, this is the Honorable Michael Beaumont, a very good friend of mine.”
    After murmured acknowledgments of the introduction, silence held sway for a few seconds as the two men took each other’s measure. Will might have been amused at the way Beaumont’s gaze flicked over him in sharp assessment, as if sizing up a rival, if he didn’t still have a hand on Evie’s back. In fact, from Will’s angle, he could see that it rested perilously close to the swell of her pretty arse.
    Will ignored his growing irritation and focused on the man in front of him. Beaumont was almost as tall as Will but thinner and looked more the scholarly sort than a Corinthian. His style was respectable although hardly that of a dandy—his Oriental-style cravat and neatly brushed hair attested to that. He held himself with a quiet sort of confidence that Evie would probably find attractive.
    More important was what he deduced from Beaumont’s lean, clever features, and the brown eyes that shone with intensity and intelligence. If the sharpness in that dark gaze was any indication, Beaumont was a man who didn’t miss much. If he was involved in a conspiracy, Will had the distinct impression he would be a formidable opponent. That meant that Evie—if she really was about to marry the man—could be in danger, after all.
    Even a remote possibility of that was not acceptable to Will.
    When neither man seemed inclined to break the uncomfortable silence, Evie let out an impatient sigh and attempted to fill in the breach. “Will is an old childhood friend, Michael. We practically grew up together.”
    Beaumont’s smile transformed his features from ones of narrow suspicion to those of a man who clearly had warm feelings toward the woman standing before him. “Then the captain is indeed a lucky man, Evelyn. I wish I had known you when you were a little girl. I’m sure you were most charming.”
    When Beaumont’s fingers inched a fraction closer to Evie’s bottom, Will lifted a pointed eyebrow at the offending hand. Evie let out a tiny gasp and took a hasty step to the side.
    â€œI’m sure I wasn’t,” she said with an uncomfortable laugh. “Wolf, er, Will could tell you that. Eden and I were both perfectly horrid little girls.”
    Beaumont looked a little embarrassed to be caught with his hand all but on Evie’s arse, but he made a quick recovery. “I’m sure that’s not true, at least in your case, as no doubt the captain must attest to.”
    â€œEvie was a sweetheart,” Will agreed. “Now, Edie . . . that’s a different story. You took your life in your hands when you embarked on one of her adventures. But Evie never had anything but the kindest of natures.”
    Evie’s eyes went wide at his compliment. Will held her gaze, silently conveying that he meant every word of it.
    But her reaction was not what he expected. Her expression grew pinched and anxious, and she