Page 23 of Three Promises Before Christmas
“That’s because you added brandy to your honeyed milk after a fight with the baron that one year,” Kate reminded her. “So that doesn’t count.”
Clair nodded. “Lonsdale is very different from the baron.”
Caroline gave a small sigh, thinking back on how Lonsdale had declared himself their protector. Her heart gave little jump. “He certainly is not.”
“Speaking of the baron, what did he want?” Kate asked.
“The money he believed we received for the watch.” A pause. “And to marry me off to a rich fellow of good stock.”
Kate gasped. “What?”
“How beastly!” Clair joined in.
“Do not worry,” Caroline said reassuringly. “The viscount set him straight, and I would never marry a man the baron chooses.”
Kate nodded. “Good.” Then she sighed. “Look, Caro, forget about the baron. Forget about us. Forget about everything. Just for a moment, shed that incredibly thick armor of yours and think only about you. What do you want for yourself?”
Caroline blinked. What did she want? She couldn’t rightly say. She knew what she did not want, and she knew what she wanted for her sisters, but she had never thought about what she wanted for herself.
Kate chuckled. “I can see you have never given it any thought. If you want to marry the viscount, then marry him. We will draw pistols alongside you if he ever hurt you. In fact, I brought my pistols just in case.”
“Do not jest about such things, Kate!”
“I’m not jesting. I really brought them.”
“She really did,” Clair said.
“They are dangerous! As you well know, which is I locked them away!”
Kate blushed. “In any event, the baron gave them to us for a reason. They will come in handy if we are ever threatened in the future.”
“You shot a footman in the leg!”
“That was an accident,” Kate defended.
Clair pointed a finger at her. “You also shot the rabbit in our yard.”
“It survived, did it not?” Kate pinched Clair’s nose. “And weren’t you the one who picked the lock?”
Caroline let out an exasperated breath and sat up. “You must hand them over to the viscount for their safekeeping immediately.”Hissafekeeping.
“I promise I won’t play with them like last time.”
Caroline almost groaned. She could never deny her sister anything when faced with that hopeful, imploring look. “At the very least you must tell him you have them in your possession. It’s his home, Kate. If he allows you to keep them, you can.”
Kate rose and jumped from the bed, marching to the door. “I’ll inform him right now. But I’m not telling him Clair can pick locks.”
Caroline fell back onto the bed.
Dear lord, they sounded like they were born from a bunch of criminals. Clair had been right before. The viscount was a catch. She, on the other hand, was not.
“Do not fret, Caro,” Clair said, patting her shoulder and went on, as if reading her mind, “The viscount will accept us with all our quirks.”
“Quirks? Is that what the two of you are calling it these days?”
Clair giggled. “Kate is right. You should think more about what you want. If you want the viscount, just take him. We won’t mind.”
Such simple logic. Such magnificent reasoning.
