“Don’t worry,” Evie said, giving her sister’s hands a quick squeeze. “I borrowed the housekeeper’s stout parasol. It will come in handy should I need to beat someone off.” She grinned to show her sister that the idea of anything like that happening was far-fetched. “I’ll be sure to pick a hackney driver who looks respectable, and I’ll pay him to wait for me. If worse comes to worst, I can ask Mrs. Rafferty to escort me back from St. Margaret’s.”
Eden reluctantly nodded and let her go. She went back to the bed and started to collect her things but sank down onto the soft mattress instead, frowning at Evie over the top of her borrowed spectacles. “I still think you should have talked to Wolf this morning when he came to see Papa. You could have at least tried to explain things to him.”
Evie pressed her forearms tight against her stomach, as if she could hold in the feelings of shame and panic that overwhelmed her every time she thought about last night. Not only her betrayal of Michael, but how she had let Will kiss her in the first place. She still couldn’t quite fathom how it had happened or why.
Well, strictly speaking, that wasn’t true. Once Will took her into his strong arms and his lips covered hers, all rational thought had dissolved under his touch. She’d been swept away into a beautiful fantasy come true, one she’d been dreaming about for a very long time.
She had to swallow hard before she could answer. “There was no point. I know Will, and there would be no talking him out of it. The only way I can save both of us from an enormous mistake is if I beg Michael’s forgiveness and convince him that we should still be married.”
“Mamma won’t be happy about that,” Eden said dryly. “She seems thrilled that Will has agreed to marry you.”
Her mother’s hypocrisy made Evie’s stomach burn with acid. “It’s so unfair. She barely tolerated Will, and yet now she’s pretending to like him because she can’t stand the idea of me marrying Michael. I assure you, he would not last long in her good graces once we were married.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that,” Eden said. “Will has a future, you know. When I was skulking about downstairs this morning, I heard Mamma and Papa talking about it. He’s not rich like Michael, of course, but even Papa seemed pleased.”
Evie waved a dismissive hand. “He was only trying to placate Mamma.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that. Papa always liked Will.”
“Eden,” she said with exasperation, “Will has no desire to marry me. It would be completely wrong to leg-shackle him because of one little kiss.”
Her sister let out a derisive snort. “It didn’t sound like a little kiss, from what Mamma said. According to her, your bodice was practically down around your waist.”
Evie’s cheeks turned fiery. That moment when she realized her disheveled state had been one of the worst in her life, especially with the look of anguish in Michael’s eyes. That it had followed several of the loveliest moments of her life was truly ironic.
“Will does not want to marry me,” she said doggedly.
Her sister studied her thoughtfully, then gave a brisk nod. “Want to know what I think?”
“No.”
“I think you’re still in love with Will, and you should marry him.”
Evie gaped at her. “I am not, and I most decidedly should not.”
Her sister began swinging her foot like she didn’t have a care in the world. “The thing is, Sis, since Wolf’s been back, you seem so much more . . . well, alive, I suppose. Things happen around you now. I hate to be critical, but you do rather act like an old lady when you’re with Michael. Don’t you want more excitement in your life than that?” She waggled her eyebrows in a salacious manner. “Wolf knows how to have fun.”
“That’s one way of putting it. No,” she said, raising a hand to forestall her sister. “I don’t want to discuss it anymore. I need to try to explain things to Michael, and this is the only way I can think to do it on such short notice. His note said he would be leaving for his father’s estate tomorrow, and goodness knows when he’ll be back.”
The first thing Evie had done this morning was send a note around to Michael’s rooms, but he replied that he was not yet ready to see her. She simply had to speak with him tonight, before Mamma got a chance to tell the entire world about her engagement to Will. Evie had managed to convince her parents to wait a few days before they did that, arguing she needed time to get used to the idea. She hated tricking them but what other choice did she have? Will didn’t love her, and Evie couldn’t imagine anything worse than forcing him into marriage. He’d resent her for the rest of his life—possibly even causing a breach with his powerful father—and that would simply kill her.
“Edie, please, please do this for me,” she begged. “I know it’s wrong to involve you in such a deception, but I must see Michael tonight.”
“Oh, silly, don’t worry about me,” Eden said, collecting her things. “I get to have all the fun tonight and wear your spectacles. I cannot tell you how much I will enjoy being able to see people’s faces for once. Although with some of my suitors that’s rather more a curse than a blessing.”
Evie had been trying for years to get Eden to wear spectacles in public, but her sister simply refused. Eden was a splendid person in more ways than she could count, but she was just a wee bit vain. “Thank you, darling,” she said. “I will be forever in your debt.”
“Pish. As I said, it’ll be fun.”
But as she came to kiss Evie good night, Eden hesitated, looking worried.
“What now?” Evie asked in a resigned voice.
Eden grimaced. “I hate to throw a damper on things, but what if Michael doesn’t want to marry you? You have to marry someone, Evie. There was considerable gossip after you and Will and Michael didn’t return to the party last night. It was rather obvious that something strange was going on, especially since you and Will were gone for quite a spell.”
Evie was well aware of the possibility that Michael would still reject her. “I’ll just have to convince him that he doesn’t have a choice.”
Her sister shook her head. “I can’t wait to hear how you manage that.”
Will took refuge behind a pillar at the far end of Lady Talwin’s baroque ballroom. In the last hour, no fewer than three matchmaking mothers had shown a surprising amount of interest in him, and their daughters had tried to engage him in a flirtation despite the fact that he’d shown not a particle of interest. Perhaps he should blame it on his dress regimentals, which sometimes appeared to have an odd effect on young ladies’ mental processes. It certainly wasn’t his fortune, since everyone knew he didn’t have one. It also didn’t help that Alec was going around telling anyone who would listen that Will was a war hero.
In any case, interest from eligible maidens or their mammas was no longer relevant. Not since his haphazardly managed engagement to Evie.
Every time he thought about it, which was reliably every few minutes, a jolt of amazement arced through him. He might be tempted to call it surprise, but it wasn’t, because in some way it felt ordained. The only surprising part was how easily he’d accepted his change in status, and how some part of him had welcomed it with both relief and anticipation. Evie was not the girl he had expected to marry, but it felt entirely right that she was.
His father, of course, would be irate. Evie would bring only a respectable dowry and very little in the way of useful connections. And she was involved with an organization that could possibly be a hotbed of conspiracy and sedition.
Of course, Evie had not yet agreed to marry him. She’d refused to come downstairs when he called on her mystified father this morning, and that gave Will some cause for concern. Lady Reese had explained it away with glib words about a headache, but that was bollocks. The situation was so bloody awkward it was a miracle they’d been able to discuss the settlements like rational human beings. But Lord Reese had been pleasantly surprised with Will’s financial situation—which wasn’t a fortune, but certainly a decent co
mpetency—and Evie’s mother had been downright ecstatic.
After they’d finished, Lady Reese had assured him that Evie was looking forward to seeing him at Lady Talwin’s ball. Will knew that was bollocks, too. Evie was furious with him, and it would take a good deal of work to bring her around. But, somehow, he’d do it. He’d work his arse off to give her the happy life she’d envisioned with him as a girl, a life that she richly deserved.
The only remaining problem, as he saw it, was the fact that she might be inadvertently caught up in a conspiracy. If Evie found out he’d been spying on her, she would brain him with a poker and that would be the end of their future together.
Like a mischievous Scottish hobgoblin, Alec loomed out of the crowd with a smirk on his face.
“Hiding away from the adoring multitudes, are we?” he said, jabbing Will in the shoulder. “Wise man, especially since your fiancée should be arriving at any moment. Don’t want to give her a reason to back out of it, now do you?”
“She has yet to back into it, as you well know,” Will retorted. “And the only reason I’m garnering any attention is because you keep telling people I’m a war hero. I wish you’d bloody well stop it.”
“No need to thank me,” Alec said with an airy wave that looked ridiculous coming from a man his size. “Besides, all that will stop as soon as your future mamma-in-law starts gabbing about the impending happy event.”
“Oh, joy.” Will loved Evie, but Lady Reese as a mother-in-law was a truly daunting prospect.
“Well, enough larking about.” Alec reached out a long arm to snatch a goblet of wine from a passing footman. “Aden is waiting for us by Lady Talwin’s greenhouse. He says he has some news.”
Will shoved off from the column. “About time we got something from the Intelligence Service. I only hope it’s information we can actually use.”
They slipped through a convenient door behind them into a corridor that ran lengthwise along the side of the mansion. It led to the back of the house and away from the kitchen and other service rooms, which accounted for the quiet that quickly enveloped them.
Will glanced at his cousin. “Let’s not mention my impending nuptials to Aden. I need to break the news to my father before he hears it from someone else.”
In fact, he’d asked Lord and Lady Reese to refrain from any kind of announcement until he’d had a chance to talk to the duke. He’d also assumed Evie would be grateful for a pause before the madness began, which Lady Reese had reluctantly confirmed.
Alec grimaced with sympathy. “I don’t envy you that conversation, old boy. When do you intend to pull the trigger?”
“I thought I’d try him at the Horse Guards tomorrow. Might as well get it over with.”
Alec stopped him with a touch on the arm. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re making the right decision, not only for her sake but for yours. Evelyn is a splendid girl, and I suspect she will make you a splendid wife.”
“Thank you. I can only hope my father will share that opinion,” Will replied dryly. Still, he was moved by his cousin’s words, and by his loyalty.
“Bugger him,” Alec said. “And if you ever need help, you know you only have to ask.”
Will nodded. “I know, and I thank you, but I’m sure we’ll be fine.”
He didn’t mention his doubts about a whole host of other issues, such as where they would live and what he would be doing for the rest of his life. Though marrying Evie would diminish his chances of garnering his father’s support for any career advancement, Will could still hope that Wellington thought enough of him to ignore that problem.
They cut down a corridor that led to the greenhouse. Just outside its glass doors, Aden waited for them, lounging in a wrought-iron chair, his long legs thrust casually out before him.
He rose to his feet, looking rather grim. “Dominic’s source in Dublin—”
“Isn’t that now your source?” Alec interrupted.
Aden flashed a brief grin. “I’m still getting used to the change.”
“No doubt. Now, about that source,” Will said, already impatient to get back to the ballroom. A niggle of worry about Evie had started to form. Why was she so late?
Aden nodded. “Our source in Dublin has managed to get his hands on a letter from Michael Beaumont to Daniel O’Connell, who as you already know is an ardent advocate of both Catholic emancipation and dissolution of the Act of Union.”
“Yes, Dominic told us that O’Connell and Beaumont had corresponded,” Will said. “How did their relationship develop in the first place, by the way?”
“They know each other through Beaumont’s mother, Lady Leger. Her family is Irish, and distantly related to the O’Connell family,” Aden replied. “Beaumont is apparently an admirer of O’Connell’s politics.”
Alec grimly shook his head. “So Beaumont has Irish relatives? Unfortunately for him, that puts him under even greater suspicion.”
“Anything of use in their correspondence?” Will asked.
“It regarded the aborted duel between O’Connell and Robert Peel,” Aden said. “Beaumont expressed concern for O’Connell’s safety and pleaded with him to avoid taking any further risks.”
“That’s not exactly damning,” Alec protested. “The opposite, I would think.”
“True,” said Aden. “But Beaumont went on to write of the importance of O’Connell’s leadership in the cause, and how they couldn’t afford to lose him. Who they are remains a mystery, as does the exact nature of their cause.”
Will shook his head. “Many people support Catholic emancipation, or even breaking up the Union, but they would never resort to violence to achieve those aims.”
“Which is why we need information before we can act,” Aden said. “Without solid evidence, we can hardly start arresting random Irish immigrants or people who hold what some might consider radical views. The prime minister of course is greatly concerned that we avoid a repeat of the Gordon riots. If rumors were to get out that a group of Irish radicals was fomenting treason, the results could be dire. Most of all for the innocent Irish and other Catholics of London.”
Will glanced at Alec. “We’re making some headway, at least in terms of getting into Beaumont’s office at St. Margaret’s. I’ll break in later tonight, or tomorrow night at the latest. Alec is going to see about searching Beaumont’s apartments at Albany.”
Aden nodded. “Keep me apprised of everything you find—decisive or otherwise. I’ve got the Home Office and Peel breathing down my neck.”
“Understood,” Will said, eyeing Aden’s breeches and top boots. “I take it you won’t be joining us in the ballroom tonight?”
“No. My wife is rather under the weather, and I’d like to get home to her.”
Will frowned. “Again? Nothing too worrying, I hope.”
Aden shook his head. “Simply the usual stomach ailments that afflict women in her condition.”
“Maybe I could develop a stomach ailment,” Alec said in a sour tone. “Barely back in London, and I’m already sick of haunting these bloody balls and soirees. Don’t know how anyone stands it.”
“Poor you, having to keep all those eager society widows at bay,” Will scoffed. “Best regards to your wife, Aden.” He took Alec’s arm and started to propel him down the hallway.
“One more thing, Will,” Aden softly called.
Curbing his impatience, Will turned back and lifted an enquiring brow.
“Congratulations on your engagement,” Aden said. “Miss Whitney is a lovely girl. I’m sure you’ll be very happy.” Then he gave a slight bow and disappeared into the greenhouse.
“How the hell did he know about my engagement?” Will exclaimed, exasperated.
“Well, they did ask him to replace Dominic,” Alec said, “so he must be good at his job.”
“Spies,” Will said in disgust as they strode down the hall. “They’re the worst bloody gossips of them all.”
Alec grinned but didn’t reply, since some guest
s had wandered out of the ballroom and into the hall. One, an acquaintance of Alec’s, hailed him into a conversation. Will nodded and kept going, determined to track down Evie. If she hadn’t yet arrived, he’d already decided to leave the ball and pay a call at her home. It was late, but he’d be damned if he’d allow her to put him off any longer. They needed to settle a number of things—tonight.
Circling the edges of the crammed ballroom, he avoided getting drawn into conversation. Halfway down the room, he finally spotted Evie standing quietly by her mother, who was speaking with a pair of elderly women.
He paused, frowning as he ran a quick, assessing gaze over his fiancée. She looked pretty in her sweet but unassuming gown, with a new hairstyle a tad more ornate than usual. Had she done it to impress him? He didn’t think so, because Evie didn’t give a whit about her coiffure. Something else seemed off, too, although he couldn’t put his finger on it. Perhaps it was the way she flicked her closed fan against her thigh, as if she was irritated or impatient. And had she just rolled her eyes at her mother? Evie tended to go still and quiet at large social functions, trying to fade into the background. She didn’t wriggle her fan or generally look like she was ready to jump out of her skin.
Perhaps she was just nervous about seeing him. He’d do what he could to calm her jitters, assuring her that everything would work out for the best.
“That’s odd,” Alec said, popping up next to him. “I didn’t think Miss Whitney wore spectacles in public.”
“Are you top-heavy?” Will asked. “Evie always wears her spectacles, regardless of the occasion.”
“I know that, you idiot, but that’s not Evelyn. That’s Miss Eden Whitney.”
“You’ve gone completely daft,” Will snorted. “Eden would never dress like that, and she doesn’t wear spectacles in public.”
How to Plan a Wedding for a Royal Spy Page 21