Page 35 of The Unfortunate Debutante
Downshire shook his head. “No. That will be Emma’s decision, but there are tenants in the cottage. Currently, she is earning a small income every month.” He pressed his lips in a frown. “Mr. Lockhart had taken it upon himself to secure buyers for Emma’s land, and he was furious when I informed him that the land was not for sale.Iratewould be a better word.”
“Did Constable Pearson have a savings?”
“A modest one,” Downshire shared, his expression growing curious. “Why are you asking all these questions?”
Simeon glanced over at the door. “Did you know that Miss Pearson went to Westmoreland House Boarding School in Witney?”
“I did know that, because I am her guardian,” Downshire said in a mocking tone.
Simeon frowned at the marquess’ tone. “Did you know that school costs thirty-five guineas a year?”
“I did not,” he replied, letting out a low whistle.
Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Simeon asked, “So the question remains, how did the daughter of a constable afford to go to an elite boarding school?”
“I cannot answer that, but perhaps Emma can,” Downshire suggested.
“No, she doesn’t know either.” He dropped his hand. “What of Miss Pearson’s relations?”
Downshire leaned back in his seat. “She has none.”
“None? I find that hard to believe.”
Rising from his chair, Downshire walked over to the window and looked out. “Emma’s paternal grandparents are buried near her father’s grave, and she learned from a young age that her mother’s parents died from diphtheria.”
“Poor Miss Pearson,” he found himself saying.
A knock came at the door. “Come in,” Downshire ordered.
The door opened, revealing Emma, and she let out a sigh of relief when her eyes landed on Simeon. “Oh, good. I found my protector. I was worried that you were abducted and were being held for ransom by a group of ruthless ruffians.”
He rose from his seat, slightly baffled. “And why would you think that?”
“Simple,” she remarked, smiling, “you weren’t outside.”
A chuckle came from behind him. “Please give Miss Cosette our regards when you see her,” Downshire requested.
Turning her smile towards her guardian, Miss Pearson replied, “I will. I am excited to visit her shop and collect my new gowns.” She shifted her gaze back to him. “Afterwards, I was hoping we could go to the square near Gunther’s and have some lemon ice.”
“I will agree to that only on one condition,” Simeon said, giving her a stern look.
She arched an eyebrow. “Which is?”
“You will behave, and there will be no more attempting to hoodwink me.”
Lowering her brow, Miss Pearson’s eyes had a mischievous twinkle in them. “You offend me, sir. I would never,ever, attempt to deceive a Bow Street Runner.”
Ignoring Downshire’s chuckle, Simeon cast her an irritated look.
Why did I come back today, he asked himself. However, he already knew that answer. Without Miss Pearson, he wouldn’t know when and where that meeting was with the Anti-Corn Law rebels.
Drat! When he signed up to be a Bow Street Runner, he never thought it would take him to the dangerous fields of a dress shop.
7
Simeon leanedup against the wall of Miss Cosette’s Dress Shop and started counting all the ways his life had gone terribly wrong. Here he was, standing outside a modiste shop waiting for the most infuriatingly stubborn young woman that he had ever met.
He was a blasted Bow Street Runner. Not a for-hire guard. He had brought down criminal networks, gone undercover in the rookeries, and even worked alongside agents of the Crown to help put an end to The Cursed Lot gang in Gravesend. Yet again, he cursed himself for agreeing to guard Miss Pearson. It didn’t matter that her eyes sparkled when she talked about something that excited her. She may be a beautiful young woman, but she was foolhardy, brazen, and she was going to get herself killed.
