Page 6 of Betting on a Baron
She studied him for a moment longer before shaking her head. He wouldn’t have created a humiliating ruse all in an attempt to find a love match. She slowly shook her head once more. The Ambrose she knew wouldn’t make Alice endure scorn and embarrassment for his sake. The Ambrose she loved didn’t have a selfish bone in his body. But what if she was right? If Ambrose was looking for a love match, was it even possible for him to fall in love with her? She’d trailed after him all these years and he hadn’t noticed her—not until today.
She wasn’t prone to fainting but her thoughts were awhirl and her heart threatened to stop. She couldn’t continue their staring match.
Her knees buckled and she dropped into a curtsy. “Pray excuse me, Lord Harlowe, I must find my maid.”She turned her back to him and ran. Ran as fast as she could away.
CHAPTERTHREE
Stomping up the front stairs to his residence, Ambrose was determined to hide away in his study for the rest of the day. He shouldn’t have kissed Daphne out in the open, placing her reputation at risk even if he’d tripled checked that there was no one about. It wasn’t the first time Daphne had piqued his curiosity. And it certainly wasn’t the first time he’d thought about kissing the minx. Regardless, his behavior had been reckless and entirely inappropriate. He should feel remorseful, ashamed of himself. Yet he didn’t regret kissing Daphne, not in the least. In fact, he was struggling not to turn around, track her down, and kiss her once more. All his worries and responsibilities had ceased to exist for those few precious moments when her soft lips rubbed against his. Had it been an anomaly or would all her kisses banish the world around him?
As soon as he planted both feet on the top step, the front door swung wide open. Alice, not his butler, greeted him.
Standing in the middle of the threshold with her hands on her hips, Alice asked, “Where the devil have you been? I’ve been worried sick.” His sister reached up and cupped his jaw, pulling him down so she could inspect his face. “Well, the slight bruise lying beneath your flushed cheeks confirms you did indeed visit your pugilist club. But it doesn’t explain why you have been away all afternoon, so where...”
He waved his hand from side to side, indicating for Alice to move out of his way, which much to his surprise, she did without protest. Ambrose trudged straight through the foyer, knowing Alice would follow him.
“Ambrose Christian James Kirkman. Stop or… or…”
“I need a drink. You can interrogate me in my study and not on the front stoop.”
Without waiting, Alice strode directly to his study and poured him a finger of brandy. He sank into the chair behind his desk laden with ledgers and took the tumbler from his sister. “My thanks for your concern.” He raised the glass and added, “And for the pour.”
“Are you ready to tell me where and what exactly you have been up to?”
Bloody hell. He was the older sibling. He did not answer to Alice. Except guilt had him avoiding his sister’s gaze and staring into his glass. Had Daphne enjoyed his kisses? Was she as dazed and confused by their interlude? Ambrose snuck a look at Alice seated opposite from him with her arms crossed over her chest, fingers drumming against her arm. He sat back and studied Alice closer. Her cheeks were slightly more defined, and there were faint lines at the corner of her eyes. He had somehow missed his sister’s transformation from an unruly girl in pigtails into the fearless young lady before him. His hand clenched about his tumbler as the memory of Daphne’s flushed cheeks and shallow breaths came to the forefront of his thoughts. He was a dolt for failing to take notice of Lady Daphne earlier. Ambrose tried to recall the last time whilst in Town that he hadn’t set eyes upon Lady Daphne. He couldn’t recall a single day.
Alice uncrossed her arms and tucked her hands under her. For a brief moment, she transformed back into his little sister who had sat next to him as they watched their father balance ledgers. The six-year gap in age between them had once seemed to place them in two separate worlds. That was no longer the case.
Feeling nostalgic, he answered her question. “I went to Hyde Park for a walk. Boxing was of no help to sort out my thoughts.” He lifted his glass and stalled at his sister’s narrowed gaze.
Alice asked, “And what occurred while you were wandering about?”
Blimey, her ability to read him had improved over the years. So as not to give her any more cause to question him and squelch his inner panic, he calmly answered, “Nothing happened. Why would you ask such a peculiar question?”
“Brother dear, you rarely drink. You seldom greet me with any other expression than a smile, unless you are preoccupied with a matter of import. Tell me, what transpired at the park that has you frowning rather than smiling?”
To date, his experience with women had been limited to a few chaste kisses from a daring miss or two. His spontaneous kiss with Lady Daphne had shaken him to his core. He wanted to confess to the damned kiss, but how could he tell Alice he’d acted out of character and taken advantage of her best friend… in truth, Alice’s only real friend. Whether it was genetics or mindset, both of them trusted few and confided in even fewer.
“Well?” Alice prompted once more.
His sister was tenacious. Even if he managed to evade her questions now, it would only be a matter of time before she cornered him and badgered him about this again.
“By pure coincidence I happened to cross paths with your friend Lady Daphne.”
Alice leaned back slightly and glared at him. “And?”
Damn his sister and her one-word responses. “And I asked her for her assistance.”
“What? You asked Daphne for help?” Alice’sI’m ready to do battlestare instantly transformed into a look of disbelief.
“Yes. I asked and she agreed to assist me in findingyoua husband since this Season shall be your last given… you know…given we are short of funds.”
“You can’t be serious. You know I have no desire to marry.” Alice resumed her earlier stance, crossing her arms over the chest, and huffed. “If it hadn’t been for the fact that you never ask for help from anyone, I wouldn’t have agreed to assist you with your ridiculous scheme. Have you fallen ill or gone mad? Why the sudden changes in your behavior?”
Why indeed. Since he couldn’t answer those exact questions he’d asked of himself earlier, how was he to answer Alice?
The best course of action when dealing with difficult topics with Alice was to redirect her attention. In this case, he would share his concerns for his sister that had been weighing on his mind but hadn’t wished to address. “Wouldn’t you agree that we are both of the age where we should marry?” He paused to place his empty glass on his desk, before sitting back and mirroring his sister’s pose. Arms crossed over his chest he continued, “Each Season I’ve watched and allowed you to devise ways to dissuade suitors, all the while hoping one of them would prove himself to be resilient and worthy of your hand. I can only imagine your disappointment was ten times more than mine as each fool gave up and married another. This Season, my ruse means that there is no need foryouto concoct another outrageous test for a suitor to conquer. If a gentleman were to show interest in marrying you this Season, it would be due to his interest in you as a person, not due to your affiliation to me or our large coffers.” He unfolded his arms, clasped his hands together upon the desk, and hunched forward. He may have been a low-ranking peer, a mere baron, but his coffers now matched that of a royal duke thanks to his long and continued membership of Masters. The secret gentleman’s club consisted of twenty members whose elite financial status was the only membership requirement. “I sincerely wish for us both to marry for love, and for no other reason.”
His sister’s jaw had slackened and her mouth was left agape slightly. She glanced at his empty glass, and after a moment she clenched her jaw and thinned her lips. When her nostrils flared, he braced himself for her response.
