A Daring Liaison(55)
She masked her disappointment. She’d been looking forward to being part of a family, if only for an evening. “Are you ashamed of me, Charles? Or have you decided you do not want to involve your family further in our deceit?”
“Ashamed? Good God, no! Selfish, perhaps. And my family will understand and forgive the deceit—if, indeed, there is one.”
“But of course there is a deceit. They think we are engaged.”
His eyes darkened and he merely watched her until she could not bear the silence.
“What are you up to?”
“Exploring options, m’dear.”
“You are being quite cryptic, Charles. What options?”
“The deeper in we get, the more difficult it will be to extricate ourselves. Might as well go through with it.”
“Go through with what?”
“The marriage.”
She was stunned to silence. The steady clop of the horses’ hooves punctuated the silence, and the dim light in the coach made Charles’s expression difficult to read. Was he teasing? Serious? Had he forgotten the fate of her husbands? “I—”
“I know. Shocking, is it not?”
“Stunningly so.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Imagine how surprised I was when it popped into my mind.”
“How... Why were you thinking of such a thing?”
He shrugged, then rubbed his right shoulder. “We’ve been unable to provoke an attack until today. Alas, it was my enemy to show himself, Georgiana, not yours.”
“Are you well, Charles? Did he hurt you?”
“Only my pride.”
Relief spread instant warmth through her. “Do you think the deaths were coincidental after all?”
“I believe Booth’s death was coincidental. As for Allenby and Huffington...that remains to be seen.”
Relief and disappointment mingled in a confusing blend. “Then we can dispense with our ruse?”
“To the contrary, it is more important than ever. Events have taken on a life of their own.”
“Is there something new?”
“Laudanum, Georgiana.”
He was studying her for a reaction, but she could not make sense of his statement. Was she supposed to know what that meant?
“Do you take laudanum?” he pressed.
“I have taken it on rare occasions to help me sleep.”
“Do you keep it on hand?”
“Aunt Caroline used to. Her scars would sometimes pain her.”
Charles shook his head. “We could have a problem.”
Georgiana thought of the vial of laudanum at home in her dressing table drawer. Who had found out about that? And why did they think it could have had anything to do with her husbands’ deaths? “How can my aunt’s laudanum matter?”
“I intend to find out.”
The coach drew up outside an elegant establishment in the neighborhood of St. James. Charles alit and turned to help her down. “I am about to become the envy of all my friends. Did you look in a mirror before coming out, Georgiana?”
She looked down at her gown and patted her hair into place. “Am I disarrayed?”
He laughed and took her arm. “You are perfection.”
A gloved footman in a greatcoat opened tall glass doors for them and stood aside as they entered a wide foyer. Georgiana was nonplussed to hear a string quartet playing quietly and nearly drowned out by the sound of conversation and laughter. A man standing behind a desk smiled and nodded at Charles. “Good to see you, Mr. Hunter. Will your companion be playing this evening?”
“I believe so. Shall we say fifty pounds, Biddle?”
“Of course.” The man made a notation in a large ledger and gave Charles a small chit, which he put in the pocket of his dark jacket.
Biddle came around the desk and held his hand out. “Your wrap, madam?”
Charles moved behind her and slid his hands over her shoulders to take her shawl. She blushed when he skimmed his fingers over the exposed flesh in the deep V between her breasts as he parted the shawl to lift it away. She shivered, her body remembering the sweetness of his touch. His sigh fanned her cheek before he handed Biddle the shawl and led her toward a second set of glass doors where another footman awaited.
The moment that second door opened, Georgiana realized they’d come to a gambling club—a “hell” she’d heard them called. But there was nothing hellish about this establishment. It was opulent to the point of being ostentatious. Gilt moldings, intricate wallpaper and plush carpeting lent an almost decadent feeling. A stunning crystal chandelier, at least twice the size of the largest she’d ever seen, hung in the center of an enormous room casting rainbows of light throughout. An open stairway led to a mezzanine where people milled about, watching the play below. The women below appeared to be a bit older than Georgiana, while the women above were younger and more daringly dressed. And their companions seemed somewhat familiar in their handling of them. Demireps?