Chapter Eleven
A week later, Lilly and Emilia were in Lord Edon’s carriage heading for White’s. She and Emilia were dressed in their disguises. Lord Edon, who had asked them to call him Ethan since he didn’t believe in doing anything properly, had helped Christopher teach them how to act like gentlemen so they wouldn’t arouse anyone’s suspicions.
Lilly’s stomach tensed with a mixture of dread and anticipation. If this worked, she would get a chance to talk—really talk—to Roger. But that depended on how well she and Emilia could play the part of young gentlemen. She glanced over at Emilia, wondering if she was worried this ruse might not work, but Emilia was grinning from ear to ear.
“This is the most excitement I’ve ever had in my life,” Emilia said. “I’m glad I’m coming instead of Kitty.”
“Kitty’s glad for it, too,” Lilly told her friend. She recalled how pale Kitty had gotten when they’d explained what they were going to do. Poor Kitty had been ready to faint until Lilly had assured her that she didn’t have to join them. Pushing the memory aside, Lilly looked over at Christopher and Ethan. “Are you worried they’ll figure out we’re ladies?”
Ethan shrugged. “What if they do? It’ll only make me that much more of a rake.”
“That’s why I knew he’d agree to help,” Christopher said. “No matter what happens, he gets something useful out of it. If no one suspects the truth, then he’ll know he fooled them all, and if he does, he’ll be infamous.”
“I wouldn’t mind something that can make me more scandalous than you are, Lilly,” Ethan added with a wry grin. “I can’t help but admire you. Lord and Lady Cadwalader are still greatly upset over what you did.” He sighed. “It’s so hard to earn their extreme displeasure when one is a gentleman.”
In that case, Lilly wished she’d been a gentleman and Roger a lady. Then she could have gone up to him and kissed him without being shunned by almost everyone in London. “It’s not easy to stay indoors all the time because you’ve incurred the Ton’s wrath.”
“If I incurred their wrath, I’d go out and tell everyone how wonderful it is,” Ethan said.
“Yes, but people look at scandals differently when a gentleman does it,” she replied.
“That’s my point. From where I’m sitting, you have the advantage.”
She shook her head. “It’s not an advantage I wish to have.”
“It’s unfortunate you two can’t switch places,” Christopher mused. “Though, that would mean Ethan would be married, and that’s the last thing he wants.”
“Why don’t you want to marry?” Emilia asked Ethan.
Ethan shrugged. “It requires so much out of a gentleman. I prefer to be a bachelor. I can do whatever I want whenever I want. I’m not bound to anyone’s whims.”
“What whims would you be bound to?” Emilia asked. “You’re a gentleman. You can do whatever you want as long as you’re discreet.”
“Ah, but that’s the problem. I don’t want to be discreet,” Ethan replied.
“Now you know why I admire and respect him so much,” Christopher told the ladies. “If I didn’t have a meddling cousin, I would be just like him.”
The carriage came to a stop. The conversation had been a much-needed distraction. Lilly was considerably calmer than before, but the knot in her stomach was quickly tightening up again.
“Follow my lead,” Ethan told Lilly and Emilia.
They nodded and waited for Ethan and Christopher to step out of the carriage. Lilly almost put her hand out to let one of them help her down, but she quickly reminded herself that she was expected to get out on her own since she was in her disguise. She hurried to step out of the carriage.
Ethan led them to the entrance of White’s. Even from the front, it was an impressive building. She could see why so many gentlemen wanted to be a member of this establishment. She’d never dreamed she’d be able to step foot into such a distinguished place. Emilia was right. This was exciting. She only wished she could give herself completely to the thrill of doing something as wicked as sneaking in as a gentleman to do this. But knowing why she was here put a slight damper on her enthusiasm.
She followed Christopher into the building, and the first thing she noticed was the smell. It was unique, and she couldn’t quite place it. The best she could come up with was that it was a blend of polished furniture and tobacco. The place was immaculately clean. She doubted any of the members cleaned it. More than likely, they hired someone to do the cleaning for them.
The place was notably dark in comparison to the other places she’d been to. She was used to light colors. Here, the dominant colors were medium brown and dark brown. Even in the daytime, candles needed to be lit for her to see everything.
Ethan said something to the gentleman standing by the door before turning to her and Emilia. “You’ll need to sign the ledger.”
He led them over to an open book on a table. He dipped the quill into the ink and said, “You’ll sign as Mr. Squire and the Duke of Marrow.” Then, in a lower voice he added, “Don’t use any feminine loops. Make it look like the other signatures in the book.”
Emilia took the quill first and happily started signing her alias’ title. Lilly took a moment to scan the room. There were other rooms in addition to this one, and while there were a handful of gentlemen in this room, she didn’t see Roger.
“Are you sure he’s here?” she asked Ethan.
“Yes,” he assured her. “The footman sent word to let me know when he arrived.”
She glanced at the gentleman by the door.
“He and Lord Northton are playing chess,” Ethan continued.
Christopher rolled his eyes. “Again?”
“A lot of gentlemen love the game,” Ethan replied.
“I can’t understand why,” Christopher said. “There are only so many ways to play it.”
“Some people prefer monotony,” Emilia spoke up. “It makes them feel comfortable.”
“If that’s the case, I hope I never feel comfortable,” Christopher said. “I’d rather die than live a life of utter boredom.”
“Not everyone finds the game boring,” Lilly replied. “It’s a game of strategy.”
Though he didn’t seem convinced the game had any merit, he didn’t argue. Lilly took the quill from her friend and signed Mr. Squire’s name.
“Good,” Ethan said. “Now that we have this out of the way, let me introduce you to the others. We’ll make our way around the room and then find the gentleman we came for.”
Lilly took a deep breath as her heartbeat picked up. This was it. She was about to see Roger, and, if he believed her to be a gentleman, he wasn’t going to get up and leave the room.
Ethan took them to three nearby gentlemen and introduced her and Emilia as two acquaintances who’d just finished their business ventures in Italy. “They’ve managed very well in trade,” Ethan said. “Between the two of them, they amassed a small fortune that even I envy. They’re in a rather distressing bind, though. They’re not sure if the ladies in London are worth pursuing. Most are so tame that they lack any real interesting characteristics. The Duke of Marrow was telling me about his romantic conquests, and one lady, in particular, refused to let him out of her bed until she was fully satisfied. He’d already pleasured her three times, but she insisted it wasn’t enough. He ended up having to sneak out of her residence.” He offered Emilia a wink. “I told him he should take me to Italy sometime. It seems that once a lady in London is pleasured the first time, she’s done until the next evening.”
The group of gentlemen laughed, and one replied, “I doubt that’s true with you, Edon. Not with all of your conquests.”
“I’d offer a contest between the two of us on who can satisfy the most ladies in a single evening, but I don’t want to ruin your reputation,” Emilia told Ethan, falling right into her role.
Emilia was rewarded with heartier laughs from the gentlemen than even Ethan had received.
Ethan’s eyebrows rose in a way
that let Lilly know Emilia had impressed him, something she bet didn’t happen often with someone of his reputation. She hadn’t talked with him until today, but she’d heard of him from many who’d either labeled him the villain or hero in London, depending on their fondness for propriety.
“Why don’t you and your friends join us for a game?” a gentleman offered. “We brought some money with us.”
“We would, but Lord Clement and Lord Steinbeck insisted I didn’t involve the guests in any gambling while they were here,” Ethan replied.
“Why am I not surprised?” Christopher muttered.
“They never have any fun,” another gentleman agreed. “It’s a shame we can’t get rid of them. This is the one place where we should be able to do whatever we want without someone preaching to us on how to behave.”
“Exactly,” another one said. “Not all of us want to spend each waking moment at a chessboard or trying to figure out what Parliament will do next.”
Ethan’s gaze went to someone, and Lilly glanced over to see a gentleman who was gesturing for him to go over to him.
Ethan sighed. “I also promised Lord Steinbeck I’d introduce my friends to him. I’m sure this is going to be a lot of fun.”
“Yes, let us know how things go with Lord Snores-a-lot,” a gentleman said with a snicker. “I’ll bet he gives His Grace and Mr. Squire a lecture on decorum while they’re here.”
The other gentlemen joined him in chuckling.
“I wish I could give him a lecture on how to make a conversation interesting,” Ethan mused.
“You could, but it wouldn’t do any good,” Christopher said. “To be interesting, you have to have a sense of humor.”
“And to have a sense of humor, you need to be among the living,” Ethan replied.
“He’s a real vampire then?” Emilia chimed in.
Ethan looked at her. “Well, he does manage to drain all the excitement in a room simply by entering it.”
“You ought to get him in front of a mirror and see if he has a reflection,” one of the gentlemen said.
Everyone, including Lilly, laughed.
“When I motion for you to come over, I expect you to do so at once,” someone spoke up from behind them.
Lilly gave a slight jerk and turned in time to see Lord Steinbeck scowling at them.
“Mind telling me what’s so amusing?” Lord Steinbeck asked, narrowing his eyes at Ethan.
“I would, but I don’t think you’d understand the joke,” Ethan replied, not looking the least bit embarrassed to have been caught making fun of him. “All right, all right. I’ll let you meet my friends. We can have this interrogation over there. Right in front of that large mirror will do.”
The group hid their chuckles the best they could, but one of them let out a snort that made the rest of them lose their control.
Lord Steinbeck looked heavenward then shook his head. “I don’t know what Lord Clement was thinking when he insisted I let you bring guests into this establishment. Follow me.” He spun on his heel and headed for another room, not bothering to look back at them as he did so.
Ethan let out a loud sigh, though not loud enough for Lord Steinbeck to hear, then led Christopher, Emilia, and Lilly to the room. By the time they entered the room, Lord Steinbeck was sitting at a chair behind a desk. On the desk was a book that had a space for multiple entries.
“I take the reputation of White’s seriously,” Lord Steinbeck told them, his tone grim. He directed his attention to Ethan. “I’ll record everything that you and your friends do while you’re here today.”
“Oh good,” Ethan said. “Does that include the part where we plan to throw our clothes off and dance on the tables?”
For a moment Lilly thought he was serious, but when she saw the amusement on his face, she realized he had said it to annoy Lord Steinbeck. She breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn’t thought Ethan and Christopher would betray them, but for a moment, he’d sounded so serious that she’d experienced a spark of doubt.
Lord Steinbeck glared at him. “I don’t know why so many people look up to you. You’re the worst cad in London.”
Ethan smiled and straightened his shoulders with pride. “Thank you.”
Lord Steinbeck grunted then turned his attention to Lilly and Emilia. “I hope you’re not as bad as Lord Edon. I hope you have enough sense to watch what you do and say when you’re in the company of respectable gentlemen. Lord Clement says you’ve visited Mr. Robinson at his townhouse and your behavior was impeccable. That’s the only reason I agreed to let you here today.”
“I didn’t need you to get them in here,” Ethan said. “It was put to a vote, and most of the gentlemen agreed with me.”
“It doesn’t matter what they voted. I’m one of the most-respected members here,” Lord Steinbeck replied. Ignoring the way Ethan shook his head, he continued, “It’s my job to record anything bad that happens at White’s. If your guests do anything I wouldn’t do myself, I will write it in this book.” His gaze went to Lilly and Emilia. “This is the book of shame. If your name gets in it, you and your children and your grandchildren will not have any chance of becoming a member of this establishment. That’s a curse for three generations. The rules are simple. You will not gamble. You may have some liquor, but you will not get drunk. You will not spread rumors. You will not enter into any wagers. You will not show any images of naked ladies. And, this is especially important, you will not share anything that happens here with anyone else. If you so much as tell anyone else what you’ve heard and done here today, I will make sure the prominent members of the Ton make it impossible for you to show your face in public again.”
Lilly resisted the urge to scoff at the threat. She doubted he had that kind of power in London. Ethan, she had heard of. She’d only just heard of Lord Steinbeck today. Besides, she was in disguise because she couldn’t show her face in public. She didn’t see how her reputation could get worse.
Ethan yawned as if bored. “Is that all, or is there some other rule you’d like to lay down to make sure we don’t have any fun while we’re here?”
Lord Steinbeck glared at him again then let out a reluctant sigh. “I suppose that’s all.” He looked at Lilly and Emilia. “Don’t make me regret having you here.”
“Good,” Ethan said then turned to Lilly and Emilia. “Now that we’ve been treated like children, we can join the adults.”
Lilly caught the way Lord Steinbeck’s eye twitched and quickly looked away before she giggled. Lord Steinbeck took himself much too seriously. She doubted he’d had any fun a day in his life. If he was married, she felt sorry for his wife. Claire’s husband had a tendency to be serious, but even he had a sense of humor. She could see why the other gentlemen didn’t like him.
When they were out of the room, Ethan shook his head and told her and Emilia, “Now you know why he doesn’t have any friends here. No one wants to be around him. Anyway, since that is over, we can find Mr. Morris.”
As Ethan directed them to another room, Emilia grabbed Lilly’s arm and squeezed it. Lilly was ready to admonish her friend that touching her like this was highly inappropriate in this setting, but then she saw what had caused Emilia to panic. Lord Valentine was entering the establishment.
“Give us a moment,” Lilly told Ethan and Christopher. “We’ll be back soon.”
Pretending she didn’t notice their surprised expressions, Lilly led Emilia to a secluded corner so they could speak in private.
“Did you know Lord Valentine was a member here?” Lilly whispered.
“No,” Emilia replied, seeming appalled that Lilly would even ask such a thing. “I don’t want to be in the same room with him no matter where I am or how I’m disguised.” She snuck a peek at him, and when Lilly started to look in his direction, she hissed, “Don’t look at him. He’ll notice us.”
“All right, I won’t.” She paused. “You’re not Emilia right now. Right now, you’re the Duke of Marrow. It doesn’t matter if he
’s here. He won’t know it’s you.”
She touched her beard. “He won’t?”
“No. Our disguises fooled everyone else. We even got past Lord Steinbeck, and I doubt there’s anyone more particular than him.”
“To be fair, he didn’t forbid us from dressing up as gentlemen in order to be here.”
Lilly snickered. “That’s because he had no idea we were ladies. Can you imagine if he had?”
Emilia chuckled. “That would have been a sight, wouldn’t it?”
“Yes, but it’s not one I wish to be privy to.” Since Emilia had relaxed, Lilly ventured a glance at the entrance and saw that Lord Valentine was no longer in the room. “It’s safe to go back to Ethan and Christopher. He’s gone.”
“He left White’s?”
“I don’t know if he did or not, but he’s not in this room. Come. We’ll look odd if we don’t get back to Ethan and Christopher.”
Though Emilia didn’t look reassured that everything was safe, she joined Lilly and made her way back to the two gentlemen.
“Did you decide you don’t want to go through with this?” Christopher asked Lilly.
“No, I want to be here,” she quickly assured him in case he suggested they leave. “We didn’t realize Lord Valentine is a member here.”
“Lord Valentine?” Christopher’s eyebrows furrowed. “I don’t recall the title.”
“He’s the one with the ridiculous laugh you can hear from another room,” Ethan explained.
“Oh, him!” Christopher grinned. “The poor man can’t tell a good joke but thinks he’s funny. It’s hard to know whether one should pity him or dislike him.”
“We avoid him,” Ethan told Lilly and Emilia. “You have no need to worry. We won’t be going anywhere near him while you’re here.”
Lilly had to fight the urge to look at her friend. She thought only ladies avoided Lord Valentine as much as possible. She had no idea gentlemen did, too. Maybe she should talk her friend into running off to Italy for real so she wouldn’t have to marry him.
No, that wouldn’t work. Her friend didn’t have her own money. Unlike a gentleman, she couldn’t run off to avoid marriage. She was bound to do it because propriety demanded she do what her father and Lord Valentine wanted. Again, she felt the surge of guilt rise up within her. If only she’d been more mindful of what she’d said to Lord Valentine that night at the ball.
Breaking the Rules Page 9