Page 59 of Why Do Rogues Fall in Love?

Her thoughts turned to the past two evenings. Each afternoon, Sir Charles had wandered next door, returning some hours later as though nothing were amiss. And each evening, Viscount Templeton had brought the cat home himself before climbing into his carriage and disappearing into the London night.

Only to return, just as unfailingly, shortly before dawn.

Cordelia winced at the recollection of herself lingering in the second-floor library, peering through a narrow gap in the curtains long after the household had retired. She had watched for his carriage, waiting to catch a glimpse of him as he descended and entered his house.

It was ridiculous behavior, and she was thoroughly ashamed to admit that she had indulged in it more than once.

Well, there would be no more of that.

This evening, she intended to do considerably more than watch from afar. She would follow him and discover for herself what manner of gentleman George Ashford became when he believed himself beyond the scrutiny of respectable society.

Cordelia informed her mother that she felt unwell and would not accompany the family to the evening's ball. Her mother protested, particularly as several gentlemen of the ton had lately shown renewed interest in her daughter. But her father, remarking upon the unusual flush in Cordelia's cheeks, insisted that she remain at home and rest.

She retired to her bedchamber, where she dressed in the same gown her maid had laid out for the ball, a lovely creation that she hoped would not appear too conspicuous beneath her feathered mask.

A few hours later, Viscount Templeton emerged from the neighboring house and descended the front steps. A footman opened the door of his carriage, and moments later, the vehicle rolled away into the night. Already attired in her gown and mask, Cordelia hurried downstairs. A carriage waited a short distance from the entrance, precisely where Katherine had promised it would be.

Cordelia climbed inside and found her sister seated against the squabs.

Katherine had always been the beauty of the family, possessing a loveliness that had once inspired gentlemen to compete for the privilege of dancing with her. Her glossy chestnut hair was arranged in an elegant coiffure, with a few delicate curls framing a face of exquisite symmetry. Her complexion was creamy and flawless, her lips naturally rosy, and her dark brown eyes, so like Cordelia’s own, were fringed with thick lashes. Even now, dressed in a fashionable gown of deep blue silk, she was beautiful enough to turn heads wherever she went.

Yet there was a sadness about her that no amount of finery could conceal. It lingered in her eyes, even when she smiled, and had stolen much of the carefree happiness Cordelia remembered from before her marriage. Tonight, however, a faint flush warmed Katherine’s cheeks, and there was a spark of animation in her expression that Cordelia had not seen for some time. The sight brought a measure of relief.

Katherine released a long-suffering sigh as the carriage door closed behind her. “Are you quite certain you wish to proceed with this madness, Cori?”

Cordelia nodded, despite the nervous fluttering in her belly. “Thank you for helping me.”

A small, rather wistful smile touched Katherine’s lips. “I have declined every social invitation my mother-in-law has extended these past few weeks. I simply could not bear another evening confined to the house.” She rapped lightly upon the roof of the carriage. “I have already instructed the coachman to follow the viscount’s carriage.”

Cordelia reached across the space between them and squeezed her sister's hand. “I am grateful, Kat.”

Katherine's fingers tightened briefly around hers before slipping away.

“Is everything well within your household now?” Cordelia asked gently.

Her sister's mouth flattened. “I have no wish to speak of that bounder.”

“Katherine, I…”

“The only reason I am in London is that my faithless husband has remained at the country manor, no doubt hiding from his father’s wrath.”

The bitterness beneath those words troubled Cordelia. She loathed seeing her sister suffer, particularly when there was so little she could do to ease her unhappiness. Even if Katherine wished to rid herself of her blackguard of a husband, she could not simply walk away from her marriage. There was no easy escape, only the miserable prospect of enduring a man whose infidelity had become an open humiliation.

Katherine turned toward the window. “Tonight is not about my wretched marriage. It is about discovering where Viscount Templeton goes when respectable society has retired to balls or bed.”

Cordelia settled back against the squabs, though her nerves refused to quiet.

She had been quite at a loss as to how she might follow the viscount. Her parents required the family carriage for the evening’s entertainment, and any attempt to borrow it would have invited questions she could never answer. In the end, she had seen no alternative but to enlist Katherine's assistance. She had therefore entrusted her sister with the entire matter, withholding nothing of her peculiar acquaintance with him.

Katherine had already replied to Cordelia's earlier letter, confirming that her dear friend Victoria did indeed have a tendre for the viscount. Although she could offer few details concerning the nature of their association, Victoria apparently spoke of him with considerable affection and seemed quite confident that an understanding existed between them.

Cordelia hated how much her chest had ached upon reading those words.

“Are you quite certain you wish to risk your heart by learning more about him?” Katherine asked, her gaze fixed upon the passing streets. “Have you not seen enough of the misery that comes from marrying a man society calls a rake? They do not change, Cori. They merely become more accomplished at disguising their true natures.”

A painful tightness gathered in Cordelia's throat. “I have seen what it has done to you,” she whispered, wishing with all her heart that she could take away even a fraction of her sister's sorrow. “But I also know that I like him. Very much.”

She drew a steadying breath before continuing. “The man I came to know over those several nights was charming and undeniably wicked, yet he never once sought to take advantage of me. He listened when I spoke, Kat. He seemed genuinely interested in my opinions, even when we disagreed. When he asked about my day or the things that mattered to me, I never doubted his sincerity.”