An Elegant Façade (Hawthorne House Book #2) (12 page)

Too bad the idle life would bore him within days.

Ryland leaned forward and braced his elbows on his knees. “I was wondering if you would take Miranda.”

Collin’s laughter stumbled to a halt in his throat, all but choking him. “I beg your pardon?”

“You didn’t reveal last night that we know each other.” Ryland lifted a single eyebrow, daring Colin to contradict the assumption that he enjoyed the intrigue.

“Old habits, you know. I never knew what you were up to on the rare occasion I saw you in public. Seemed safer to pretend I didn’t know you.” Colin leaned forward, mirroring Ryland’s posture. He was not going to get dragged in to Ryland’s scheme. Not under any circumstances.

Still, he really wanted to know what it was. “Please don’t tell me you want me to spy on this woman.”

“Yes.”

What must it be like in Ryland’s head? Colin’s lips flattened. “I refuse to interrogate a lady as to whether or not she’s forgiven you. Besides, as you said, she doesn’t know we know each other.”

Ryland examined his fingernails. “You could ask her about the card game.”

Colin burst from the chair and paced across the room. “You want me to go to this woman’s house, ask her to go for a ride, and then proceed to embarrass her thoroughly so that you can have more information with which to create your plan of attack?”

“Yes.”

“No. This is a courtship, not an army invasion.” Besides, if he went to Hawthorne House he’d have to see the social-climbing Ice Princess as well as Lady Miranda.
No, thank you.

“One should always know the factors involved when creating a plan of action. Information is power, and I’m going to need all of the leverage I can get to bring her around. She’s being stubbornly female about the whole thing.”

Colin scoffed. “How dare she?” He glared at Ryland. “Find yourself another lackey. I won’t do it.” This time he really meant it. Colin would not get involved.

Not any more than he already had.

The two men stared at each other. Time stretched on, the clicking of the mantel clock the only sound.

“This is about more than your spying, isn’t it?”

Ryland frowned. “It’s possible I obtained some of her personal papers during my investigation.”

Colin waited. His inner resolve had already crumbled, and he knew he was going to agree to Ryland’s request, but he refused to admit it yet. His agreement was the only bargaining power he had at the moment, and as Ryland had said, information was power.

“I wrote to her,” Ryland mumbled. “As the duke.”

“While you there as the valet?”

Ryland nodded.

Colin gave a low whistle. That was a lot of deception for one woman to forgive. Ryland rather deserved to go through the gauntlet to get her back. “’Twas a fine piece of horseflesh you got at Tattersall’s this week.”

Ryland frowned. “You can’t have the horse.”

Colin simply grinned.

Georgina plucked a stray thread from her skirt before fanning the fabric across the gold-and-white settee. She smiled as Lord Andrew made his bows and good-byes. Being heir to only a viscountcy, he wasn’t marriage material, but he was handsome and well-liked. It was important to have a group of acceptable dance partners.

Otherwise she might end up dancing with Mr. McCrae again.

“My lady, Mr. McCrae has arrived.”

Had she conjured the man up from thin air? Georgina’s eyes widened as she searched the butler for signs that he was lying or taking part in an elaborate joke. That Gibson had never been anything but serious and competent about his job meant nothing. The man had to be lying now.

“Odious man,” she hissed under her breath. “I don’t wish to see him, Mother.”

Gibson cleared his throat. “He asked to see Lady Miranda, milady.”

“Oh.” Georgina turned to Miranda, who looked equally as stunned.

After a moment Miranda’s expression turned smug. Did she
think to make Georgina jealous because that man was calling? As if Georgina would ever desire his company.

Miranda looked gleeful as she answered the butler. “Thank you, Gibson. Please show him in.”

Maybe Georgina’s sister just wanted to torture her. It wouldn’t be the first time.

Gibson bowed and returned to the hall. Mr. McCrae strode in moments later.

Part of Georgina admitted that he made a very striking picture entering the drawing room. His clothing was impeccable. Cut with an expert hand and worn with care. The lines of his cravat were sharp enough to cut someone.

Maybe even himself.

Then he’d be too busy nursing his wounds to hinder Georgina’s plans.

He bowed to Georgina’s mother. “Good afternoon, my lady.”

“Same to you, Mr. McCrae. I didn’t know we would see you again so soon.”

Georgina’s mouth tightened at the warm smile on her mother’s face. Did she really want this man in the family? Miranda’s spinsterhood was better than marrying this lout.

The lout bypassed her completely.

What was he up to? Hadn’t he just been warning her off the duke, suggesting that Miranda had feelings for him?

“Lady Miranda, I know this is quite presumptuous of me, but would you care to go for a drive?”

“Yes.” Miranda popped up from the settee. “Yes, I would love to.”

Entirely unlike a woman in love. Tension Georgina hadn’t even known she’d been carrying around released. The duke was available after all.

Miranda laid her hand on Mr. McCrae’s arm, smiling as he covered her hand with his own.

Georgina’s stomach tightened up once more.

Now that Lady Miranda was in the carriage, Colin wasn’t sure what to do with her. He was fairly certain Ryland wanted Colin to pretend to want to court Lady Miranda himself, but chances were he’d be seeing this woman for many years to come and they didn’t need that sort of history.

“I enjoyed meeting you last night. I haven’t played such an interesting hand of whist in years.” Not since the night his father had gambled away a quarter of the family shipping company.

Lady Miranda flushed and turned her face away. “I confess that I have not either.”

He hated bringing up that absurd card game. To most people the conversation Ryland and Lady Miranda had held over a hand of cards would have been nothing but strange, but Colin knew enough of the situation to follow their coded statements.

Not that Lady Miranda would know that.

A few people looked his way with narrowed eyes as they drove down the street. What were they thinking? Colin never took a woman out for a drive. That he was doing so now might be seen as significant. If people started calling him grasping and thought him intent on truly courting Lady Miranda, they might become wary of his presence on the fringe of their circles.

He shouldn’t have done it. No matter how good a friend Ryland was.

“Lady Miranda, may I be ruthlessly honest with you?”

“Of . . . of course.”

Colin shifted in his seat. “We both know there was more afoot than a game of cards last night, and we also know that I could never compete with a duke as far as social status goes.”

He was playing right into Ryland’s plan, but there was no other way to have this conversation and not make things worse for the duke. While it was true he shouldn’t have agreed to do this, he was here now and might as well make the best of it.

“Mr. McCrae, I can assure you that I find you a most interesting gentleman.”

Colin had a feeling God was not happy with his behavior at the
moment. Why was he doing this? It had been obvious last night that Lady Miranda felt strongly for the duke. Shouldn’t that be enough for Ryland to move forward?

A nervous laugh threatened the back of his throat. He coughed in an effort to keep it away, but he couldn’t stop his brogue from thickening as he restrained the threat. “It’s glad I am to hear that. I was more wondering if you would say that the duke was an interesting gentleman as well. As I said, I don’t have much to compete with him.”

A scoffing noise of utter dismissal caught Colin off guard. She was more irked with Ryland than Colin had realized. No wonder the man was having a difficult time.

With the topic of the duke in the air, there was no stopping the awkward conversation that followed. There was no hiding the fact that Colin knew Ryland, though he tried to soften any indication of how strong the relationship was.

It was apparent that Lady Miranda’s emotions were significant. Her feelings were cloaked in a great deal of anger, but she obviously cared for the man. It was a refreshing, if bumbling, conversation.

Why couldn’t his encounters with Lady Georgina be more like this? Forthright, honest, bold.

He shifted in the seat of the curricle. Why did he care how Lady Georgina acted? It wasn’t as if her prickly, socially obsessed personality was the only thing keeping him from courting her.

Suddenly the whole thing seemed like too much. London. Society. Even Ryland and Lady Miranda’s bizarre courtship. He was going to do what he’d promised to do and then cut ties to this entire thing.

“The thing is, Lady Miranda, I’m considering looking into some investments out of town.” The fledgling idea sounded brilliant. He normally saved his trips for when the majority of his investors had returned to the country, but perhaps he should do things differently this year. “I know this is terribly forward of me, but I need to know if I should postpone my trip.”

He really would hate to miss Ryland’s wedding.

“Mr. McCrae, I—”

“Do call me Colin. It’s the least I can offer considering how personal I’m being at the moment.”

Lady Miranda swallowed. “Colin, I don’t know what to say to this. I have known you for a mere day.”

He watched her, debating. Should he unfurl the sails and make a run for the shore? As much as he hated that Ryland had convinced him to do this, he also understood his friend’s need to know that there would, eventually, be success at the end of this endeavor. And if Colin was already going to be begging God’s forgiveness for the matter, some good might as well come of it. Flawed logic that, but part of him wanted to believe it.

“There’s something between you and the duke, isn’t there? You’re a beautiful lady, but I have a sense I shouldn’t waste my time courting you. Am I right?”

He couldn’t shake the idea that part of him was saying these words to her sister. Nothing in him wanted to have a relationship with Lady Georgina. Did it?

“I’m sorry, Colin, but I think maybe you are.”

Victory elated Colin on Ryland’s behalf even as another part of him cracked in pain. It didn’t make sense.

“I’m not entirely sure what will happen with the duke, but I owe it to myself to find out.” A sad smile curved her lips.

Now that he’d decided to be done with the entire situation, Colin felt a little more charitable toward the uncomfortable girl next to him. “I understand. Shall we simply enjoy this sunshine, then, as I take the route back home?”

“That would be wonderful, yes.”

He would grant himself a boon as well and push away any thoughts of goals or motivations and sit back to enjoy the ride. The silence was comfortable, broken by the occasional comment or observation. As he pulled up in front of her home, though, reality came crushing back.

In some ways, he’d jeopardized his reputation for Ryland this
afternoon. At the very least he’d temporarily given up his invisibility.

Ryland would get his information and, with effort, the love of his life.

What would Colin get?

He jumped down and walked Lady Miranda to the door. The restlessness that was becoming all too familiar worked its way from his gut to his toes. He looked over the vehicle, wondering why he’d never bothered with curricles, coaches, and horses of his own. Wouldn’t it be a sign that he was settling down? Setting up roots? Odd that enhanced mobility could indicate that. “It is a fine curricle, isn’t it?”

Miranda nodded with a small smile. “It is. I hope your friend will allow you to borrow it again when you find another young lady to take for a drive.”

That wasn’t likely to happen anytime soon, even if he did purchase his own conveyance. The stares their ride had garnered proved he was going to have to be very sure before he openly courted any woman. That made him feel old and tired. He didn’t want to feel old and tired. Ryland would get the information he wanted from this endeavor, but it had been gained through dishonesty.

Colin could at least correct that.

The grin that spread across his face felt familiar, fun. More like him than he’d felt in a long time. More like the young man who’d once laughed with his friends and thought his future secure.

“I think I’ll keep it.” Though he had no idea where he’d store it. Probably part of the reason he’d never looked into getting his own. “It’s the least Ryland can do after putting me in a position to anger such a lovely woman as yourself.”

The door opened behind Lady Miranda, even as her shocked mouth gaped farther open.

Colin continued to speak as he bowed and backed down the four steps to the street. “Do tell him for me at the ball tonight, won’t you? That I’m keeping his horse and curricle? He’ll understand.”

He tipped his hat as Lady Miranda’s teeth snapped together with a wince-inducing click. She whirled and entered the house.

Colin chuckled to himself as he turned back to the curricle. The reopening of the door drew his attention around once more. Lady Miranda must have thought of a response after all.

But it wasn’t Lady Miranda coming down the steps.