Page 73 of The Viscount in her Bedroom
“You know what I mean,” he blundered on. “She would meet a rake and then—”
“You equated that to my arrival,” she interrupted. “Why is that?”
“I just meant that your London ways might be too much for Georgie.”
“My London ways? Wasn’t that what your grandmother hired me for?”
His face felt hot. He hadn’t imagined what it would be like to say such a terrible thing to her.
“My lord, talk to me,” she said softly. “Surely it doesn’t need to be the dark of night for us to tell each other the truth. Since my arrival, you’ve managed to be with Georgie and me during every lesson, when a busy man such as yourself must have other duties to occupy him.”
He took a fortifying sip of champagne. “Nothing is more important than my sister.”
She waited.
“Grandmama hired you for a good reason, but she didn’t know—” He broke off. If only he could see her face. “Louisa,” he murmured. “God, this is hard. Can anyone overhear us?”
“No,” she whispered faintly. “It’s so loud and there are so many people and—Simon,please.”
“You have a certain reputation among some men of my acquaintance.”
Were her eyes swimming with tears? Was she so pale she might faint? He wanted to hold her, needed to hold her.
“Reputation?” She sounded shocked and full of disbelief.
“As someone who is fast, who is willing to kiss, and maybe more.”
She gasped. “But Simon, I never—youknowI would never—before you—”
“I know that now, believe me.” He wanted to touch her, thought her arm would be safe, but he missed and reached her hip covered in layers of skirts and petticoats. If they were seen, his blunder could only make everything worse. He pulled back. “It’s all lies but—”
“But you…you thought that I would…that’s why you were…with me,” she finished in a hoarse whisper.
Did she actually think he had kissed herbecauseof those rumors, because he thought he could?
“No, Louisa!” he said forcefully. He winced, wondering how loud he’d sounded. “We can’t discuss this here. I can’t even see who’s looking at us.”
“No one, my lord.” Her voice didn’t sound like her own, so distant, so bitter. “Everyone is surely assuming that you are with me because of what you can get.”
“That’s not true!”
“I can’t talk, I can’t—”
He felt her brush by him, and then she was gone.
“Louisa?” he said her name, but already knew she wouldn’t be answering.
He was alone.
“Simon?”
He was almost ashamed by how relieved he felt hearing his sister. “Georgie, thank God you’re here.”
“Louisa didn’t even talk to me when she walked by. And I think she was trying not to cry.”
“It’s all my fault. It slipped out and I—”
“What slipped out?”
