Page 102 of The Earl's Bluestocking Bride
He kissed the top of her head and began to talk. The stories spilled from him easily, and by the time he finished, she was asleep in his embrace. He smiled to himself. He could grow accustomed to holding his wife while she fell asleep.
Moving carefully, he extricated himself from her, then propped a pillow beneath her head and pulled a blanket over her. He’d return soon, but first, he had to speak with his mother.
He took a candle from the nightstand and used it to light the way down the corridor to his mother’s chamber. He knocked quietly and waited. When the door opened, shestood before him in a warm robe with her hair loose, but her eyes were sharp, not hazy with sleepiness as he might have expected.
She drew herself up to her full height and crossed her arms. “I heard where you went earlier.”
He winced. “Who told you?”
She arched an eyebrow. “A better question is, why would you visit that woman when you are clearly besotted with Amelia?”
He sighed and rubbed his temples. “She’s blackmailing me.”
Her mouth fell open. “Blackmailing?”
“Yes, and I failed to meet her terms. That’s why I’m here. I need to warn you.” He ought to warn Amelia, too, but that would be a more difficult conversation. Broaching the subject with Lady Drake first would ease the path.
“Warn me about what?” she demanded.
“I believe Miss Giles may intend to smear our good name.”
His mother stepped aside. “You’d best come in and tell me everything.”
CHAPTER 24
Andrew entered the Regent,nerves churning in his gut. It had been a week, and so far, Florence had not made good on her threat.
Unfortunately, neither had he worked up the courage to speak to Amelia about the fact that their lives may be about to become subject to public speculation. His mother was threatening to do so if he didn’t hurry up. He’d intended to raise the subject last night, but she’d been in such good spirits that he hadn’t been able to bring himself to do it.
Today, he’d ventured out alone in the hopes of discovering whether any damage had been done the previous evening at the first ball since his conversation with Florence. He was hanging onto a thread of hope that perhaps she’d decided not to punish him. If she’d decided to be merciful, he could avoid hurting Amelia yet again.
A servant took his coat, and another offered him a drink. He accepted the glass and made his way down the corridor, turning into the busiest room, where men sat around tables, playing card games.
Spotting Mr. Falvey at one table and knowing how muchthe man liked to gossip, he pulled out a chair opposite him and sat.
Falvey met his eyes. “Are you sure you should be playing, old chap? You shouldn’t gamble what you don’t have to lose.”
His heart sank.
So, that was his answer. Florence had indeed followed through. She must have just been waiting until the event where her actions could have the biggest impact.
“Of course he can play,” Mr. White protested from the chair beside Andrew’s. “He married the Hart chit, and we all know how large her dowry was.”
Mr. Falvey chuckled. “How right you are. I should have known there was a reason you were so eager to settle down with someone like her. I didn’t put the pieces together, though. I thought you must have seen something in her that the rest of us didn’t.”
Andrew gritted his teeth. He was tempted to give them all a piece of his mind and march out of there, but he couldn’t afford to do that. He needed to know exactly what had been said and to whom so he could properly prepare his family.
“Deal me in,” he said.
Mr. Falvey did so.
“How did you hear about my… situation?” Andrew asked.
Mr. Falvey shrugged as play began. “Henry told me.”
Andrew turned to Mr. White. “And you got it from…?”
He looked uncomfortable. “I can’t say for sure. It was definitely at the Benton ball last night, but it could have been anyone who mentioned it to me.”
