Since Georgie knew how she would feel had their positions in the bell tower been reversed, she understood and tried not to worry him further.
“The penmanship is definitely the same,” Con continued. “And the paper is similar as well. So this person, whoever he is, is determined to see to it that you three are punished in whatever way he can manage. Though it seems his preferred method is to use someone who already bears you a grudge to do the task.”
“And someone we don’t already see as a threat,” Isabella said thoughtfully. “I must admit, it’s rather clever of him. If the attack comes from a direction we don’t expect then the blow is likely to be more painful.”
“Exactly,” Georgie said. “We aren’t dealing with a weak intelligence. This person is extremely bright. And is willing to do whatever it takes to prey upon our worst fears.”
“Let us hope that he doesn’t like repeating himself,” Perdita said in a joking tone. “For I have no wish to see the specter of Gervase mooning up at me from the back garden.”
“It’s not a joke, your grace,” Archer said, rising from his chair by the fire to stalk over to the window. Almost as if he wished to reassure himself that there was no ghost hiding in the garden. “This man, whoever he is, has unsuccessfully attempted to arrange the deaths of your sister and your friend. And if he holds to his pattern, you will be next on his list. It is not a matter for joking. We should instead be making plans to get you away from your usual locales and find somewhere that you can lie low for a while. Until the threat passes.”
“And when will that be?” Perdita asked, her face taut with annoyance. “Next year? The year after? I have spent long enough cowering in the shadows, Archer, and I do not intend to do so ever again.”
“He may be right, though, Perdita,” Isabella said quietly. “If there is a way to protect yourself from this monster, then perhaps you should take advantage of it. I should hate to see you suffer as we have.”
“I have twice now seen this person threaten people I love,” Perdita said firmly. “I will not be the one to hide myself away when my turn comes. I will stand firm, and when he comes for me, I will be waiting.”
With a muttered imprecation, Archer strode from the room and down the stairs. Faintly they heard the front door close after him as he left the house.
“Well,” Perdita said, “I didn’t mean to annoy him, but it is my decision to make, after all.”
Suspecting that Lord Archer was more invested in keeping Perdita safe than her friend realized, Georgie kept silent. It was not her place to tell Perdita of her suspicions. And if Archer wished her to know he would have done so by now.
Changing the subject, she said brightly, “Enough of this morose talk. Let us discuss something happy.” She looked pointedly at Isabella who frowned in puzzlement for a moment. Then comprehension dawning, she laughed. “Oh, that. I’d quite forgotten it was news.”
“What was news?” Con asked, looking from one lady to the other.
“Only that it would appear that the house of Ormond is expecting a new addition to the fold,” Georgie said with a grin. “You knew that already didn’t you, Con?”
“Oh, that,” he said, echoing Isabella. “Yes, I already knew that. But it is a delightful change of topic all the same.”
The good news did what Georgie had hoped and infused the room with a happier atmosphere as they began to suggest possible names for the impending heir. Perdita mouthed “well done” at Georgie while the others were looking the other way. Georgie gave a slight shrug, but she was pleased with how her attempt at changing the subject had worked.
But she was somewhat puzzled when Con stood in the middle of the conversation. Georgie watched, curious, as he said, “I hope you will forgive me for doing this here and now, but I did promise Georgina a spectacle, and since we are unable to go out of doors without encountering a loathsome scandalmonger, I thought you all might serve as our audience.”
“Not at all,” Trevor answered with a grin.
“If this is what I think it is,” Isabella said, her eyes alight with mischief, “then I wouldn’t miss being privy to it for the world.”
“Don’t look at me,” Perdita said with a broad smile, “I said you should do it days ago.”
Beginning to suspect what might be afoot, Georgie felt her heart speed up within her. As she looked on, Con walked toward her, and to her astonishment, he stopped and came down on one knee before her.
She looked up into his dear face, which had become nearly as familiar to her in the past days as her own, and saw love, patience, and something else, something rare and precious, shining out at her from his eyes.
“Georgina,” he began, his voice strong and sure, “I knew from the moment we met that you would be important to me, but at the time I had little knowledge of just how important you would be. Since then I have discovered so many wonderful things about you. Your patience, your kindness, your generosity, your loyalty to your friends, and your passionate nature.” This last had Georgie turning rather pink in the cheeks. “I have known for a while that there is no other woman I would wish to have alongside me as I journey through this life. My darling, my partner, my most precious Georgina, please say you’ll marry me and make me the happiest of men.”
All through his speech, Georgie felt tears streaming down her face, and when he reached the end, she let out a sob.
His face becoming increasingly worried, by the time he finished his proposal, and Georgie sobbed aloud, Con was looking sincerely alarmed. “Georgina, dearest, I know it might be a bit sudden, but I had hoped that you might be happier upon hearing this than you seem to be. Perhaps if I—”
Before he could finish, Georgie shook her head vigorously. “No,” she managed to choke out between sobs. “This is … because … I … am … happy,” she said, before throwing her arms around Con’s neck and sadly crushing his cravat.
Behind them, she heard the door to the drawing room open, and Con leaned back a bit to accept something from Archer, and before she could speak again, Georgie felt a ring being slipped over the knuckle of her ring finger.
“This was my grandmother’s,” he whispered against her hair. “I knew from the moment I saw you that I would be needing it soon. Fortunately, Archer was able to retrieve it for me yesterday. Otherwise we’d have been forced to make do with my signet ring. Which isn’t nearly as pretty.”
Pulling back a little, Georgie looked down at the ring on her finger. It was pretty. A sapphire surrounded by tiny winking diamonds.
Looking into Con’s eyes, however, she said only, “You’re prettier. And stronger. And more beloved.”
At her words, his expression softened and he kissed her. “Not as beloved as you are, my dearest Georgina.” He stroked her cheek with his thumb, staring at her every feature as if he were memorizing her for posterity. “I thought I’d lost you up there on that tower,” he whispered.
“You didn’t, though,” Georgie said, looking into his eyes. “I had too much to fight for to ever let her take me.”
“And I had too much to lose to let her win,” Con said, leaning his forehead against hers. “I love you, Georgina,” he said quietly. “I love you more than I ever thought possible.”
“I had a suspicion,” she said with a crooked grin. “What a lovely coincidence that I love you too.”
“Promise me you’ll never put yourself in danger like that again,” Con said fiercely. “I don’t know if I’d be able to handle it.”
“I shall certainly try,” Georgie said, “but you must know there are certain things that we simply cannot control. But I assure you that if it is at all in my power, I will try never to frighten you like that again. But the same goes for you.”
“I think I can make that promise,” Con said, giving her a hug. “Now, I suppose we’d better stop embracing and share our joy with our friends. All right?”
Georgie nodded, and turned around in his arms. “We’re betrothed!” she cried, holding up her newly beringe
d finger.
And their friends responded with a resounding huzzah.
“I can think of worse ways to begin life as a couple,” Con said to her with a grin, “than with cheers.”
Georgie heartily agreed.
Epilogue
“So many lives were harmed by Lettice Stowe,” Georgie said the next day as she, Perdita, and Isabella shared tea in the drawing room of Laura Place. The men had gone off in search of a prizefight that was supposedly going on in the vicinity. After the excitement of the past week, Georgie could not blame them. “It really is far too much to believe that my dear friend of so many years did all of that because she was jealous of me.”
Not only was she surprised about Lettice, but also that the person who held herself, Isabella, and Perdita responsible for Gervase, Duke of Ormond’s death, was still out there. “Perdita,” she continued, “I know you were resistant to the subject yesterday, but I was hoping that was playacting for the sake of hiding Lord Archer’s reasons for leaving the room. Please tell me that you are not as resistant to taking precautions for your own safety as you suggested yesterday.”
Perdita’s expression, which had been one of good humor, turned wary. “I was exaggerating a bit for the sake of drama,” she said carefully. “But it is an old argument between Archer and me. He is being a bit old-womanish about the whole thing, really. I mean, I know that the two of you faced some sincerely disturbing attacks, but I have no intention of running away from the field before our mysterious last-season correspondent even makes a move. Aside from the fact that I don’t wish to appear cowardly, I don’t know how long I would need to stay away. Five years, ten years, fifteen, forever? It’s a ludicrous proposition for me to leave when there has yet to be a genuine threat to my safety.”
“What of the letters you’ve already received from him?” Isabella asked, her lovely face taut with worry. “Do those not count? Or do you think that he’s of no harm until the first death threat? Or perhaps it’s an attempt on your life that you see as the more legitimate signal to let you know that the game has begun? Tell, me, Sister, when should we begin to feel terror on your behalf?”
“Do not be so melodramatic, Isabella,” Perdita said, waving off her sister’s words. “I am not proposing to simply place myself within target range of this person and wait for him to shoot. I had enough of that with Gervase, thank you. I only mean that I won’t run away from him. I cannot. It is not in my nature, but more importantly, it hasn’t done either of you any good.”
“What do you mean? That we are cowards?” Georgie demanded, her voice hurt.
“No, no,” Perdita rushed to assure her. “Of course I do not. I only mean that you both removed yourselves from the site of Gervase’s death, which was London, and this person still managed to find ways of getting to you. So, what good would it do me to go abroad or hide away in Scotland? He would simply find some way of getting his minions to wherever it was I chose to hide.
“No,” she continued, standing and beginning to pace before the fire. “What I intend to do is go about my day-to-day life behaving as if I expect nothing untoward to happen.”
“And what if it should?” Isabella asked, her brows raised in question. “What if you suddenly find yourself in the position of fighting for your life? Will you simply decide to stand your ground and fight alone?”
“Hardly,” Perdita said with calm assurance. “I shall be protected by you all. And do not forget Archer. He has made it quite clear that he has no intention of letting anything happen to me. Whether I wish him to or not.”
“I was about to ask what Archer thought of all this,” Georgie said with a grin. “He seems to take a great interest in your health and safety these days, does he not?”
Before Perdita could respond, Isabella spoke up, “Yes, indeed, our Perdita seems to have gained a champion there. I wonder if she returns the favor or if she simply thinks of him as yet another hapless suitor.”
“There is nothing hapless about Lord Archer,” Perdita snapped, tiring of being the butt of their jokes. “He is simply a good friend who has promised to look after me, despite the fact that I’ve tried heartily to dissuade him.”
“I do not doubt it,” Isabella said with a grin. “Those come-hither looks you give him definitely seem the most probable means of warning a man off.”
“Stop it, both of you!” Perdita said, her temper getting the best of her. “I tell you once and for all that there is nothing between us. We are friends. Now, I wish that you would stop haranguing me over a subject which you know makes me uncomfortable.”
Her words hung in the air for a few moments, as Georgie and Isabella exchanged looks, then turned back to look at Perdita.
Contrite, Georgie reached out to squeeze Perdita’s hand. “My dear, we had no idea this was such a sensitive subject for you. We were only teasing.”
Isabella also spoke up. “Perdita,” she said, “if I thought for one moment that our teasing could possibly have brought you pain, I would never have done so. I had hoped that there might be something between the two of you, that is all.”
“Well,” Perdita said, rising from her chair, pulling away from both ladies, “there is nothing between us. I wish you will not speak of it again.”
To Georgie and Isabella’s surprise, she stalked from the room and shut the door firmly behind her.
“What on earth was that about?” Isabella asked, staring at the now closed door.
“I’m not sure,” Georgie said with a shake of her head. “But I know one thing’s for sure.”
“What’s that?”
“She’s lying. There is definitely something going on between those two,” she said with certainty. “I don’t care what Perdita says.”
Coming soon …
Don’t miss the next novel of “emotion-packed, passionate historical romance” (Romance Junkies) from
MANDA COLLINS
Why Lords Lose Their Hearts
Available in August 2014 from St. Martin’s Paperbacks
Also by Manda Collins
How to Dance with a Duke
How to Romance a Rake
How to Entice an Earl
Why Dukes Say I Do
Praise for Manda Collins’s delicious Regency novel …
HOW TO ROMANCE A RAKE
“With her trademark wit and charm, Manda Collins has penned a deeply romantic and emotionally satisfying story in How to Romance a Rake. Her heroine is plucky and tremendously appealing, and I cheered for her well-earned happily-ever-after.”
—Vanessa Kelly, award-winning author of
Sex and the Single Earl
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HOW TO DANCE WITH A DUKE
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—Romance Dish
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