Page 52 of The Lady's Forbidden Marquess
Peregrine’s eyes flew open.“You saidyet.”
“I saidnotyet.”He exhaled.“Look, Hawthorne is not the sort of man who walks away from what he wants.He is plotting.I could practically see the calculations behind his eyes.”
“Good,” Peregrine said fiercely.“But why am I never invited to the plotting?”
“Because, little sister, you began this season with a plot so audacious I nearly had an apoplexy,” Henley said, a reluctant smile breaking through.“You aimed an arrow straight at the most notorious rake in London and hit the only part of him that still believed in redemption.Against every law of probability, it worked.He is obsessed with you in the way civilized men are not supposed to admit.”
Peregrine felt the words settle warm and heavy in her chest.“He will need to be.Surviving this family requires obsession and a strong constitution.”
Anna leaned closer, voice softening.“Tell me truly, Pere.His past, those stories, the opera dancers, the merry widows… none of it keeps you awake?”Her tone was soft, not asking a question as much as prodding Pere to consider her own heart’s attitudes regarding the subject.
Peregrine stared into the fire.It was a valid question.One she’d considered even before she’d concocted her plan at the beginning of the season.It was a risk, she decided, she was willing to take.But it was odd how the actions of Gabriel, though she knew them to be his, seemed so far removed from the caliber of man he could be when he chose.And he chose to be that man with her.Didn’t that matter?It did, it mattered greatly.
“I remember at the first ball of the season, the one where Henley was nearly crackling with tension from my newly revealed plan, Hawthorne danced with me.He turned every weapon in his arsenal on me.The slow smile, the murmured gallantries, the way he let his thumb brush my waist when he thought no one noticed.I was dizzy with it.Then, the fire was gone from his eyes as easily as blowing out a candle.That was the moment I understood.All of it was performance.Brilliant, devastating performance.With everyone else, he is acting.At first, he was acting with me, wanting to prove a point.But now… with me… he forgets the script.”
Anna squeezed her hand.
“I have seen him try to be charming when he is furious,” Peregrine continued, voice barely above a whisper.“I have seen him try to be cold when his hands shook because I was hurt.The mask slips only with me.And what is underneath is honorable and terrified and mine.”
Silence wrapped the room like velvet.
Eventually, Anna spoke.“If the men cannot be reasonable, I have an alternative plan.Midnight.My dark green traveling cloak.Two of the fastest horses in the stable.And a special license.Surely Hawthorne has already considered the option, if not already procured it.”
Peregrine choked on a laugh that sounded suspiciously like a sob.“You are a menace.”
“I am pregnant, not deceased.”Anna’s smile faded.“Hawthorne is coming back, and he will fight.We don’t need the contingency plan, I’m certain.”
Henley rose, his boots clipping on the hard floor as he tugged on his shirt sleeves, his expression resolute.“Speaking of fighting, I must go and prevent Edwin from challenging anyone to pistols at dawn.”
“No unnecessary bloodshed,” Anna called after him.
“No promises,” he tossed over his shoulder and disappeared.
The door had scarcely closed before Anna turned conspiratorial eyes on Peregrine.“Tell me you are not picturing Gabriel riding through the night to carry you off.”
“I am trying very hard not to,” Peregrine admitted.“It is shockingly vivid.”
“Of that I have no question.”Anna grinned.“Let’s have some tea sent up to you room and make a few dress selections.As much as the chaos prevailed in the parlor, the rest of the world ran smoothly and the carriage with your clothing and belongings arrived not long ago.It will be a good distraction while we wait for Henley to talk some sense into your other brother.”
“Heaven knows I need a distraction,” Pere grumbled, but stood, and offered a hand to Anna, grinning.“You know, sometime soon I’ll have to assist you in rising from the couch.”
“You’re saying I’m going to be fat.Thank you.I appreciate your kindness.”
“Round.”
“Even better,” Anna replied dryly.“At least all this excitement is happening before my confinement.”
“I’m not sure excitement is the right sentiment.”
“Theatrics, drama, intrigue,” Anna amended as they left the parlor and started toward the stairs leading to the upstairs residences.
“I’d argue, but at the moment, my life does feel like a gothic novel.Hopefully, it has a better ending.”
“It will,” Anna assured her.
Nearly two hours later, Pere sat back down in the same parlor, and refreshed Anna’s teacup.
“I think I’ll go with the green dress for the next ball, just in case.”Pere grinned over her teacup at Anna.
