Flirting With Fortune swak-3

by Erin Knightley

  “Who said I was a proper gentleman?” He leaned a shoulder against the wall beside the painting, his body as lithe and lean as one of the great cats she’d seen in the Tower Menagerie. She had a sudden image of painting his portrait in just that position but stripped bare to the waist.

  Heat swamped her cheeks, and she hastily dropped her gaze to the floor. Lord have mercy, where had that thought come from? She drew a deep breath, trying to get herself under control. She wasn’t a blusher, and she certainly wasn’t shy. Gathering her scattered wits, she put a hand to her hip and met his gaze head-on. “You did—when you decided to attend that first ball.”

  “Ah, is that how it works? I’d argue the point,” he said, a bit of mischief lifting a single dark brow, “but it wouldn’a be very gentlemanly of me. Now, as for the dance, it was your decision to take a stroll outside over my offer to dance. You canna expect me to leave the door open indefinitely for that particular delight.”

  “Of course I can. It’s one of the few perks of being a female. We may make unreasonable demands upon men until our hearts are content. Of course, it’s up to them as to whether or not they choose to indulge us.”

  “And that, I suppose, separates the men from the gentlemen?”

  “No, that separates the gentlemen from the rakes.”

  “So my choice is to honor a lady’s wishes or be labeled a rake?”

  “More or less. And truly, you are entirely too generous to be a rake—otherwise I would never have had the chance to be here. Therefore,” she said, grinning as she presented her victorious argument, “your offer to dance still stands. And I accept.”

  “Do you now?” He pushed away from the wall and took a slow, languid step toward her. “Well, far be it from me to keep a lady waiting.”

  A spark flared to life within her as he extended his gloveless hand. He couldn’t mean to dance now. Could he? She considered the slight upward curl of his lips and the genuine amusement crinkling the corners of his eyes.

  He most definitely did.

  She swallowed, dropping her gaze to his boldly offered hand. Did she know that accepting his offer was highly imprudent, given that her maid was right outside the door and at least three men were at work in the front room? Absolutely. Did she care?

  Not particularly.

  Not while he was looking at her with those charcoal gray eyes, daring her to accept his teasing offer. The spark grew to an effervescent burn as she took a step closer, lifted her chin, and slid her hand into his. The soft, supple leather of her kid gloves did nothing to shield the heat of his skin or the strength of his grip as his fingers closed around hers.

  “You really don’t play by the rules, do you?”

  She allowed him to draw her a step closer to him, all the while savoring that unmistakable thrill of being just the slightest bit wicked. “No. But you knew that. Isn’t that why you asked me to dance in the first place?”

  “Perhaps,” he said, giving a quiet chuckle, “which is very interesting, since I like rules. I follow them by nature.”

  Beatrice lifted their joined hands. “Could have fooled me.”

  He chuckled, tugging her forward. “You, my lady, must be a bad influence on me.”

  With that, he snagged her other hand in his and swung them both around in a dizzying circle. It was such an unexpected move, she gave a little squeak, tightening her grip. “What are you doing?” she half gasped, half laughed. It was the sort of thing she might have done in the meadow by the lake at their estate in Aylesbury, when the flowers were blooming and there was no one around to see. Certainly not something she would have done in the middle of the stark white walls of a London gallery filled with priceless paintings.

  “Dancing, of course,” he said, releasing one hand to swing her out before changing directions and rejoining hands. “Don’t you just love a good Scottish reel?”

  She giggled as he spun them around, her skirts swirling out with the movement as the paintings whooshed by in a blur of muted color. It was by far the most fun she’d had in months—years, perhaps. In a move so fast her head was spinning, he brought them both to an abrupt stop, facing one of the portraits.

  “As you can see, Father decided to use a brilliant sunset as the backdrop for Lady Westmoreland’s portrait.”

  She gaped at him, at a complete loss as to his sudden shift of demeanor. He sounded like a bored guide at a museum, not even a hitch in his breathing while she huffed like a racehorse to regain her breath.

  “Is everything all right in here, Sir Colin?”

  “Yes, of course, Mr. Swanson. Thank you for your concern.” Colin’s smile was utterly polite and disengaged as he nodded to the man standing in the doorway.

  Sucking in a breath, Beatrice followed suit, offering her own bland smile even as her heart pounded wildly within her chest. How on earth had she missed the approach of the gallery worker? She was more perceptive than most spies, or so her brother-in-law, Benedict, had once teased. She never missed what was going on around her.

  His brow creased in confusion, Mr. Swanson nonetheless dipped his head and retreated back to the front room. Letting go of the pent-up air in her lungs, Beatrice turned widened eyes to Colin. “Thank you so much. Can you imagine if he would have caught us?”

  He shrugged, the motion drawing her attention to the strong line of his shoulders, encased in a simple black jacket that suited him perfectly. “I see far too many cases where people break the rules without paying close enough attention to the possibility of being caught. In fact, it is exactly what keeps the courts full and barristers in demand.” He paused and gave a little tip of his chin. “And you’re welcome.”

  She lifted a brow imperiously, a gesture passed down from Mama. “Learned a thing or two about getting away with murder, did you?”

  “Murder, theft, dancing with a beautiful lady—only the most grievous of crimes.”

  The compliment caught her by surprise and sent an immediate flush of pleasure through her. He thought her beautiful? She turned the compliment over in her mind, inspecting it as one might a stumbled-upon treasure. Her sisters were beautiful. Her mother was beautiful. Even her sister-in-law was gorgeous. Beatrice had always been the passably attractive one in the bunch. The one whose eyes weren’t quite as blue, whose hair wasn’t quite as blond, whose teeth weren’t quite as straight, and whose bosom was more a hint than a reality.

  She would say that he was just making a pretty statement, with no real meaning behind it, but he struck her as a man of honesty. He was nothing like the hordes of men who paid her empty praise and waxed poetic about her beauty and charm. Those men had agendas, and heaven knew they wouldn’t look twice at her if she were separated from her ever-present dowry.

  But Colin seemed different somehow. She got the impression that if it wasn’t true—in his mind, at least—then he probably wouldn’t say it. She tucked the comment away and nodded gravely. “All the worst crimes, punishable by death or marriage, no?”

  “Precisely.”

  They grinned at each other a moment, her heart still elevated from their romp. The afternoon sun bathed half his face in slanted light, illuminating his sculpted jaw and cheekbones, and she wished that she had her paints with her. He looked like a fallen angel, half human and half heavenly creature. As he turned his attention back to the priceless masterpieces lining the walls and continued with his thoroughly interrupted tour, Beatrice realized that something rather shocking had happened in the course of their time at the gallery.

  Here she was, surrounded by some of the most exciting and expertly executed works ever created, and somehow the one thing that seemed to hold her attention was the least known of all the painter’s accomplishments.

  His son.

  Chapter Eight

  Beatrice was late, and she knew it. With the daylight fast fading to a dull gray twilight, she tightened her hold on her reticule and hurried forward, urging her maid, Rose, to keep up. The carriage would be waiting at the end of the street as ord
ered, but first they’d have to make their way through the growing crowd.

  Whoever had decided that Bond Street was perfectly appropriate for ladies for half a day, at which time it suddenly transformed into a forbidden street acceptable only for the club-going gentlemen of the ton, clearly had never been caught up in a newly arrived shipment containing a gorgeous selection of red sable brushes imported directly from Italy.

  But no one had consulted her on the issue, and the window for making it to the end of the street by five and then home before her family sent out a search party was fast closing. Already the pavement was emptying of swishing skirts and harried servants, replaced by the sure-footed thump of Hessian boots and the low rumble of male laughter.

  Of course, even if she was late, it would be worth it. She could hardly wait to try out the new brushes she’d finally decided on. Viewing Sir Frederick’s incredible collection had redoubled her passion for capturing the world around her on canvas. She wanted to stretch her abilities, experimenting more with light and darkness to bring true depth to her paintings.

  A silly grin came to her lips, and she pressed them together to keep from looking a fool in the middle of Bond Street. She couldn’t help it—every time she thought of Sir Frederick’s paintings, her mind inevitably slid toward thoughts of Colin and the magical afternoon they had spent. Was there any other man on the planet like him? With his cool, logical side underscored by unexpected whimsy and kindness, one never knew what he would say or do next.

  Ahead of her, a trio of young bucks walked abreast of one another, completely unmindful of the fact they were blocking the way of anyone who might wish to pass them. Beatrice slowed, glaring at their dark greatcoats as they lumbered along, offering jovial jabs and slaps on one another’s backs as they walked, their voices gratingly loud.

  Oh, for heaven’s sake. At this rate, she was sure to be here when the bells tolled the hour. She started to speed up, to attempt to slip between them and the storefronts on the right, when she suddenly realized she knew them.

  On the outside was Lord Bridgemont, the young heir to the Earl of Marks, in the middle was Mr. Bickett, if she wasn’t mistaken, and on the left was Mr. Knight. It was jarring to see them so completely uninhibited. One would think they would at least wait until they were inside their club to engage in such behavior. They laughed in unison, the bawdy sort of sound that could only mean that they were speaking of the sort of things not meant for young ladies’ ears.

  Which, of course, meant that she wanted to hear what they were saying.

  Softening her footsteps, she steadily closed the distance between them, straining to filter out the sounds of the traffic. Keeping her head down and counting on her small stature to provide some amount of inconspicuousness, she advanced until she was only a few steps behind them and could clearly make out their words.

  “You really should go to the Carlisle ball t’night, Knight.” Mr. Bickett paused, then promptly tilted his head back and laughed. “T’night, Knight!”

  “S’right, Knight—you should spend the night with him,” added Bridgemont, and the three of them laughed all over again. The stagnant odor of spirits trailed in their wake, making Beatrice wrinkle her nose.

  “You’re on your own, m’afraid. I’ve got my pockets lined with my father’s blunt, and I intend to spend every penny at the legendary Madam V’s tonight. I’ll leave you to your horse-faced heiresses—be sure to dance with one for me.”

  Mr. Bickett groaned, shaking his head. “S’hardly worth it. Might as well hold out for the new crop come spring. God knows only the dregs are left now. ’Course, I’m still bitter over Rochester bagging that Dowling chit right out from under me. Now he’s free to tup his mistress, and I’m still trying to find a dowry attached to a female I can stand to look at for more than five minutes.”

  “Don’t worry about that,” Mr. Knight said, elbowing his friend. “You can always look at the pretty ones while dancing with the rich ones.” More laughter and back-slapping.

  Beatrice came to an abrupt halt, her heart pounding painfully in her chest. Of all the disgusting, vile, awful . . . She made a sound perilously close to a growl as she glared after the men. Rose came to stand beside her, worry clouding her dark eyes as she waited for Beatrice to move.

  Clenching her jaw, Beatrice lifted her chin and started forward again. Her steps were heavy for once, her half boots connecting solidly with the pavement. It was all too much to bear. For Bickett to speak of Diana so callously, to actually envy her horrible husband, it was just so wrong.

  She needed to get home. As anger built like trapped steam within her, propelling her forward, she felt compelled by the need to do something, to help protect the unsuspecting young women of the ton from such greedy scoundrels. Someone had to warn them of the nefarious intentions of single-minded fortune hunters like Bickett—and Godfrey for that matter. And Rochester and heaven knew how many others.

  As if of its own volition, her right hand tingled with the need to pick up her tools and express her emotions in her artwork. An idea began to form in the back of her head, one that was risky and ill-advised and somewhat mad.

  As far as she was concerned—it was perfect.

  * * *

  “Bonjour, monsieur.”

  Beatrice smiled brightly as she strode to the counter of the artist supply shop, behind which she knew her quarry would be. The space was well lit by the huge front window, even with another cloudy day outside. At least it had stopped raining. Otherwise, her mother would never have let her out of the house with so vague an explanation.

  Just as she expected, Monsieur Allard sat hunched on a stool at his worktable, his white hair poking from beneath his black cap. When she stopped just shy of the counter, he looked up, his curmudgeonly expression steadfastly in place. His great, crooked nose held up a pair of ancient spectacles, magnifying his eyes oddly.

  “Mademoiselle. Back already, I see.”

  It wasn’t so much a greeting as an unenthusiastic acknowledgment of her presence. Her grin widened—it was no less than she expected. “Oui. Ça va?”

  His gaze returned to the half-finished engraving on the worktable in front of him. “This is London, my lady, and you are English. There is no place for français here today.” His heavily accented words were gruff, but not unkind.

  Beatrice gave a small shrug. “As you wish, monsieur.” She clasped her hands and waited, allowing her gaze to wander around the plethora of supplies behind the counter. Easels, a huge selection of brushes of nearly any size, an array of canvases, and pigments enough to create every color known to man. It was the sort of place women were not generally allowed, but she spent enough money here for him to overlook that fact. Yes, she could send a footman in her stead, but no one else would know quite what she would want.

  And no one else could possibly be trusted with her task.

  “Is there something I could help you find today?” He was long-suffering, as usual, but she knew that, deep down, he did actually like her. He always saved the best of each shipment for her, as he’d proven two days earlier when the red sable brushes had arrived.

  Which was why she had decided to try to enlist his help in her unorthodox plan, “try” being the operative word. As good a customer as she was, she wanted to think that he would agree to help her, but the truth was, she couldn’t be sure of such an eventuality.

  She placed her gloved hands on the utilitarian counter and leaned forward the slightest bit. “I think not, actually. As it turns out, you are the person I’m here to see today.”

  That earned her little more than a flicker of his eyes before he returned his attention to his work. “Perhaps you will wish to come back when I am less busy, non?”

  Definitely not. There wasn’t a soul in the shop other than the two of them since she’d convinced her maid to pop in the small bookstore next door and choose a new book. And besides that, it had taken quite a bit of nerve to come here today, with the carefully rendered drawing tucked in the
crook of her arm for safekeeping. “Never fear. I’ll take only a moment of your time.”

  He grunted in acknowledgment, somehow infusing incredulity into the inarticulate sound.

  “Tell me, monsieur, do you ever break the rules?”

  His hands paused for a second or two before he resumed his task. “I am a Frenchman living in London, my lady. A man in my position admits to no wrongdoings.”

  “I don’t mean anything nefarious. I merely wondered if you have ever tried something . . . a bit outside of the accepted norm.”

  He sighed, setting down his carving tools beside the small steel plate. She could see what he was working on now: a fashion plate of a stylish morning gown.

  “And what is the norm? I wonder. I suspect my normal and your normal are quite different.”

  “True,” she allowed with a bob of her head. Her eyes landed on the small, framed print hanging on the wall directly over his workspace. Rendered in the limited medium of lines and crosshatchings, it was a masterful portrayal of a laughing young woman looking playfully over her shoulder. It was the sort of piece that would have taken hours upon hours of careful, delicate work. Every time she visited the shop, the young woman’s portrait drew her notice. And she had a pretty good idea of who the lady must be.

  It was time to test her theory. Changing tactics, Bea met his skeptical gaze head-on. “Are you married, monsieur?”

  His bushy brows snapped together, eyes narrowing. “I used to be.”

  It was exactly as she thought. “Did you love your wife?”

  An Englishman might have kicked her out of the shop right then and there. In fact, many Frenchmen would have as well, and she braced for the possibility of his anger. But one look at his softening expression, and she knew her hunch was correct.

  “Ah, yes. Very much.”

  “I thought that might have been the case,” she said, her tone soft and sincere. “It’s why I hope you’ll help me now.”