“What are you going to do, Hetty?”
“I’m going to bribe him to relinquish his claim.”
“You think that will work?”
“It must. I’ll visit him tomorrow evening at his gaming hell.”
“You can’t go there!”
“I have to, it’s the only way. I’ll wear a cloak, and I’ll take a strong footman with me.”
“I won’t allow you to face that man alone. I’m coming with you.”
“I can’t allow you to do that.”
“He ruined Westbury. I’ll help you defeat him,” Viola said staunchly.
“All right, we’ll go together.” Hetty drew a wooden box out from under her bed. “And we’ll take this.”
“Your pistol?”
“You never know what might happen when we descend The Devil’s Staircase.”
“Hetty, you don’t need the pistol. Your footman will carry one.”
“I’ll do whatever it takes, Viola. My future, the future of my vineyards, and the livelihood of every tenant at Rosehill Park are at stake. I’m going to make a bargain with the devil. Every scoundrel must have his price.”
It was the day after the ball, and Ash was having regrets. He shouldn’t have kissed Lady Henrietta.
An innocent highborn lady might think she wanted a little thrill in the gardens with a handsome devil of a stranger she assumed was connected with her social set.
Until that stranger made a play for her family fortune.
Ash had to admit that it hadn’t looked good. Kissing her and then making his claim. The timing had been all wrong.
The duke had been eagerly receptive to his announcement, but Lady Henrietta had gone from amorous to infuriated when she’d learned of his identity and his plans. She was bound to cause trouble.
He grabbed a bottle of gin from behind the bar and headed for his usual table against the back wall of the gaming house, where he could observe the clientele without being observed himself.
It was early yet. They’d only just opened, and their barman, Gus, had the staff lined up for inspection.
The young bloods and working girls of London hadn’t yet begun the hedonistic whirl that would bring some of them through his doors, where they would drown in spirits, play games of chance and luck, perhaps make use of the upstairs rooms, and then be swept out again in the small hours of the morning, when the night-world began to lose its luster in the harsh light of the rising sun.
He downed a large quantity of gin, trying to drown out the memory of that kiss.
Soft, tentative response at first, and then . . . soft breasts pressed against his chest, her fingers wound through his hair, pulling him closer, her tongue meeting his stroke for stroke . . .
He drank more gin.
A spoiled, headstrong lady like Henrietta required a steady hand, a clear head, and subtle persuasive tactics.
That kiss had been anything but subtle.
Ash groaned, staring into the bottom of his glass. If he could read gin dregs like tea leaves, the streaks would spell out: You’re a hot-blooded fool.
Didn’t matter if she was the one to initiate the kiss. It had been a mistake. And Ash couldn’t afford mistakes.
He’d planned this so carefully. There was too much on the line.
His business partner and best friend, Jacques Smith, known as Jax, joined him at the table. He was impeccably dressed and bright-eyed, while Ash hadn’t slept a wink last night, had thrown on the first clothes he’d found, and felt like hell warmed over.
Jax poured himself a stiff drink. “How’d it go last night? Did the swells throw you out on your ear?”
“Far from it. The duke welcomed me with open arms. It’s the managing daughter I’ll have to persuade.”
“Managing daughter, eh? Sounds like trouble.”
“She’s definitely trouble. Tall, tempting brunette trouble. With lush, kissable lips.”
“I thought you told me she was a spinster?”
“No idea why she’s a spinster. Those curves of hers should be illegal.”
“Ah . . . that kind of trouble.”
“All the kinds of trouble. She’s sharp as a knife and has a way of getting what she wants.” Ash smacked the heel of his hand against his forehead. “I really bollocked everything up last night, Jax.”
“What did you do?”
“We were in the gardens. There was champagne involved . . .”
Jax raised both of his eyebrows. “What the hell did you do?”
“She kissed me.”
“She kissed you?”
“At first. Then I kissed her. Quite thoroughly.”
It had been more than just a kiss. Something had happened to him out there on the balcony. The earth had shifted beneath his feet.
She’d made him feel like the king of the world.
“And someone saw you. And the duke called you out, and now it’s pistols at dawn. You bloomin’ idiot!”
“The duke did see us, but I gave him an excuse, said she was whispering wine recipes in my ear.”
“And he believed that rubbish?”
“He’s desperate not to remarry. Practically welcomed me into the family. Said to send proof of my claim to his solicitor.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“Lady Henrietta. She wasn’t too happy about finding out she’d just kissed The Devil’s Own Scoundrel. Furious would be the word. She’s the one who wants to challenge me to a duel. She’s a bluestocking with a pistol. I’ll have to watch my back. It complicates things . . .”
“You think she’ll stand in your way.”
“Nothing I can’t handle.” Ash leaned back in his chair and clasped his hands behind his head. “She likes to be in control. But I have evidence of her pliability. I’ll find a way around her.”
Or over her. Under? She’d probably want to be on top. She’d want to set the pace.
What in hell was wrong with him? He had to stop thinking about Lady Henrietta Prince as anything other than an obstinate bluestocking obstacle to his plans.
Jax gazed at him steadily. “You’re really going through with this?”
“This is the only way, Jax. The only way to create real change. I’ve been saving as many lads as possible from the factory, but it’s not enough. I’m going to be the next Duke of Granville.”
“And then what? We’ll all have to bow and touch our forelocks every time you pass by?”
“I’ll never become one of them, you know that. Heedless and cruel. I’ll be a different breed of nobleman. One who never forgets his dark, twisted roots. Who never stops attempting to right life’s inequities for those less fortunate, those less privileged.”
“You’ll be a hero for the ones at the bottom of the heap.”
“They’ve been kicking us down for too long. To change the rules, I have to climb to the top, become one of the ruling class.”
“They won’t accept you into their hallowed halls.”
“They’ll have no choice. I’ll change the nobility from the inside out. I’ll be just as ruthless as they are, but for the benefit of the child laborers.”
Jax refilled his glass. “I just don’t want to see you swinging from a noose. Blood is everything to the Fancy. As far as I know, you ain’t got a drop of the blue.”