Page 137 of Regency Mid-Summer Mischief

“Initially, I thought I might return the necklace to Colleen so that she might claim the glory of its placement in Prince George’s hands, but, then I realised she would be blamed for the necklace’s initial disappearance, especially considering she was involved in that whole Lady Jenest debacle.”

“Have you seen Miss Everley?” Grand asked.

He did not like the idea of Thomas Everley calling on his daughter and placing her under more danger and continued suspicion.

“Only as I saw you an hour past. She was asleep when I recently called upon her household,” Everley explained.

“Enough of the cat and mouse games! Tell me exactly what you want in exchange for the necklace,” Grand pleaded.

The man leaned forward, bracing his weight on the crossboard which marked the foot of the bed.

“I want the sting of my reputation no longer to follow Colleen about. I want her gloried for her goodness and her kind heart.”

Grand said truthfully, “Your notoriety will always mark Miss Everley’s days.”

Was that not the crux of the matter regarding Grand’s desire for the woman?

Everley flinched as if Grand had struck him.

“I suppose such is true, but it would be lessened if, for example, the Prince invited Colleen to Carlton House and recognised her as a ‘particular favourite’, not as a potential mistress, but, rather, as a young woman worth knowing.”

“And for this, you would return the necklace?” Grand questioned.

Everley smiled knowingly.

“You make the appropriate arrangements. For her moment of glory, I will return the necklace and disappear from Colleen’s life.” He eyed Grand with an odd look, one that displayed a sense of despair. “I will insist that Colleen knows nothing of your negotiations. I want my daughter to shine upon her own laurels.”

“Does this ‘contract’ include your freedom?”

Grand returned the man’s steady gaze, attempting to discern whether Everley’s actions and words were honest.

Everley chuckled easily.

“Although I wish for a bit of leniency, I expect Lord Liverpool will choose to lay some sort of trap to catch me after the necklace is returned. If I am true to my well-earned reputation, I will survive the Prime Minister’s trap. If not, I am certain another ship will soon depart for the penal colony to which I have been sentenced.” Everley caught up the bag and deposited it in his coat pocket, before he loosened the string on Grand’s left wrist. “I suppose you are capable of freeing yourself from here, my Lord. Call upon Lord Liverpool tomorrow and make the necessary preparations for Colleen first foray into society. I will be in touch soon enough.”

Chapter Eight

The news that Lord Ridgeworth’s body had been found among the reeds and vegetation edging the Thames near Mardyke had filled the newsprints. Colleen knew sadness when she read the report of the man’s death, for not only had Lord Ridgeworth ruined himself, but he had ruined his son’s future, and she was well aware of how the child often paid for the father’s sins. The newsprint said, because the body had been in the water for so long, Ridgeworth’s identity had been determined by the items within Lord Ridgeworth’s pockets and by the clothing he wore. According to the papers, the authorities assumed his lordship had encountered footpads and lost his life while fighting them, which did not necessarily make sense, but, perhaps, such was the tale Lord Liverpool wished to have upon the lips of those who dared to speak of the man. Colleen knew otherwise: More likely, his Lordship had committed suicide, or he had been killed on purpose and his body dumped into the Thames.

“At least, if word does not spread of Lord Ridgeworth’s involvement in stealing the Queen’s necklace, the man’s son has the opportunity to practice economy and save the Viscountcy — something not possible before his father’s death. I pray the son is wiser than the father and that Lord Harlow knows success in returning the necklace before Her Royal Highness Queen Charlotte learns that it has gone missing.”

It had been nearly five weeks since she had last seen Lord Harlow. Colleen regretted not insisting that she should join his Lordship and Mr. Dostoff in their search for Lord Ridgeworth. In truth, she had not been prepared to abandon her acquaintance so abruptly, especially after the brief kiss they had shared. Her heart and her body both wished to know what would have happened next between them.

“Unfortunately, the kiss meant nothing to him,” she argued with herself for, at a minimum, the hundredth time. “His lordship has known a variety of women — women more handsome and more worldly and more socially acceptable than I. Whereas, you have known no other man.” A deep sigh of regret followed this reality. “Nor are you likely to ever know another.”

She stood suddenly, realising that she must keep busy and not allow her doldrums to continue. Brooding would bring her no justice. Her grandest wish would never know fruition. Nor could she continue to lie awake each night in her attempts to avoid the exquisite dreams of the heat of his Lordship’s body aligned with hers.

Her participation in the hunt for the necklace was at an end, as was her relationship with Grandison the Great.

“Over,” she repeated aloud to seal her determination.

With renewed resolve, she stormed from the room to be about her life. Her future. One that would never involve Lord Harlow.

******

Grand watched in anticipation as England’s Prince George ranted on about the proposal presented to him by the Prime Minister.

“I do not appreciate being told with whom I must associate,” the Prince declared with a scowl of disapproval. “Especially if that someone is a man who has repeatedly defied English law.”

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