Page 12 of The Seduction of Lord Sin
“I admire your honesty and ingenuity, my lady. I have to admit I too need a wife.”
“That is not fair. You don’t need—” Bann stopped himself just in time from saying money.
Charlotte took a step toward Toobury. “Now, now, gentlemen.” She swung to face Lord Sinclair. Instead of another chastisement, Charlotte nodded. “I take it you wish to remain at my party then, even though there is only Lady Flora and I present? Won’t you find the week boring?”
How to answer that question without offending her? Sin decided it was not appropriate to laugh. Bored? He couldn’t wait to see this fiasco unfold. “I heard you mention fishing, archery. You have other activities planned. I do thoroughly enjoy physical activity.”
Her eyebrows rose. “So I have heard,” she added sweetly.
A quick wit, too. He looked forward to watching these desperate men fall over themselves to win her hand in marriage. It would be the best entertainment he’d see this year. Even after having just met Lady Charlotte, he immediately knew she was not an idiot. She had courage and determination. She knew what she wanted and had formed a plan to get it. He grudgingly admired her.
But if she were barren, why this unseemly display to remarry? He desperately wanted to know the answer.
He waited with breath held to see if she would have the audacity to ask him to leave. He did not blanch under her scrutiny. Instead, his body heated at the lingering look she gave him from head to toe.How odd and unexpected.
Finally, she uttered, “Then, I suppose we should go into supper.” She held out her arm to him and smiled warmly, transforming her features and making her quite pretty. She should smile more often as it softened and highlighted her beautiful sky-blue eyes and luscious lips. A stunning beauty she wasn’t, but she was pretty and she had presence.
“Your Grace, if you would be so kind as to escort me. I shall reserve judgment as to your participation. I shall wait to decide if your contribution is of value.”
She was indeed a clever woman. “I’m sure I could be a confidant of all sorts of information on the gentlemen present.”
“I’m sure I can work out who suits me best on my own.”
He was sure of that, too. Some present were indeed desperate men, but he remained tight-lipped. She would think he was here to push his friend’s case. Devlin could do so much worse than a marriage to Lady Charlotte.
He offered his arm and when she slipped hers through his and placed her delicate hand on his forearm, his body tingled most inappropriately. “Tell me about this archery competition you have planned for tomorrow. What are you hoping to learn from that?”
She chuckled, and it was a pretty sound, almost like a cat’s purr. “I think I shall keep my motives to myself. It would not be fair if your friend Lord Devlin knew too much. Besides, I want to see the character under the skin, so to speak. I don’t want the men to behave how they think I want them to behave, but to reveal their true characters.”
He held out a chair for Lady Charlotte and helped her take her seat at the head of the long dining table. He slipped into the seat next to her before any of the desperados hoping to take the chair could react. “What is the prize for the winner of the contest?”
The teasing smile she flashed his way did extraordinary things to his insides.
“They win a private outing with me.”
That sounded like a genuine delight, and he frowned at the idea of these men being alone with her. “Where is this outing too?”
“You almost sound as if you disapprove. I am a widow, not some young debutante. And the winner gets to choose. Their choice of outing will tell me a lot about them.”
“You’ve put a lot of thought into this week.” She could rival Lord Wellington with her strategic skills.
“Marriage is a very serious business. I learned that from my first marriage. If I have to tie myself to one man for the rest of my life, I intend to do it carefully this time. I do hope you will keep my scandalous house party to yourself.”
“Of course. I quite admire your courage to go after what you want.”Would it be too forward to ask why you wish to remarry? He kept his words in his head, deciding that the question could wait until their private outing. He would win the archery contest.
A longing to tell Lady Charlotte that she deserved better trampled him like a rampaging bull. He looked at his friend Devlin and suddenly the idea of ruining Devlin’s chances of marrying Lady Charlotte seemed wrong—because she deserved a man like Devlin. None of the others were good enough for her.
He remembered the sad look in her eyes when he’d first met her. He wanted her to be happy. Devlin could make her happy—except for the not having children part.
“One wonders why you chose archery as the first activity. You must know Lord Devlin is renown with the bow.”
Her fork slipped from her fingers and clattered onto the table. “Is he? I did not know. How interesting.” She looked down the length of the table at Devlin and smiled brightly. “Then I think I shall enjoy the sport tomorrow.”
Oh, she knew. Sly as a fox.When he looked at the lady sitting regally beside him, it unsettled him to realize the idea of winning an outing with the hostess appealed more than it should.
A woman who could not have children was not for him. His one promise to his father was to ensure the lineage continued. The oldest title in England, they traced the title back to 1069.
He looked round the table and suddenly it was no longer just Lady Charlotte analyzing these men. He would be too. If she wanted a husband by the end of the week, she’d have one, but it would not be him.
