As Rich as a Rogue by Jade Lee

Author:Jade Lee
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2016-06-15T04:00:00+00:00

Fifteen

Peter got the message while he was still dressing for Lord and Lady Vinson’s ball. He’d spent the day trying to ferret out the differences between his father’s ledgers and Mr. Powel’s statement that there had been only one middling payout from their joint investment. All it had gotten him was a headache. Now he was looking forward to an unencumbered evening with Mari. He was both anxious and excited to tell her the things he needed to share. And it turned out that both those emotions led to a state of arousal that was highly embarrassing in the presence of one’s newly hired valet. But then his father’s footman rushed into the room, and he had to redirect his thoughts.

“Mrs. Evans sent me, yer lordship,” the man huffed.

Mrs. Evans was his father’s cook and Peter’s best ally in that household. “Really?” he said, lifting his chin so his new valet could finish off the cravat. “Whatever for?”

“Said she remembered that name you’d asked for. Her cousin’s cousin’s nephew, she said.” The footman’s expression spoke volumes about the illogic of running through London just to relay such a benign message. What it really meant was that something odd was going on at his father’s household.

“Did she say more?”

“No, milord. Just that her memory being what it was, it be best if you came right away. I tried to get her to write it down, but—”

“Don’t question her, man. Mrs. Evans has her own way of doing things, and neither you nor I can change that.”

The footman didn’t have an answer. Didn’t matter. Peter let his valet finish off the cravat, and then he pulled on his coat. He’d look damned stupid riding a horse in all this finery, but a hackney would take too long. Mrs. Evans had said to come right away.

So he flipped the footman a coin as thanks and then left. He made it to his father’s back door in a frustratingly slow twenty minutes. When he slipped in the kitchen door, he could see she was ready for him. The entire kitchen area was empty except for Mrs. Evans, who was just pulling a kettle off the stove and bringing it to three teacups already laid out on a tray.

“Mrs. Evans,” he said warmly. Some of his happiest childhood memories were of the two of them sharing a bit of tea and a sweet. “I got your message.”

“Got here faster than I expected, but your boots have suffered.”

Peter looked down and sighed. He’d been quite pleased by the shine on his Hessians, but now they were mud-splattered, and somewhere he’d picked up a scuff. “Where is everyone?”

“I sent them on errands or let them dally as they want. Figured it would be best to speak to you alone.”

“It’s serious, then?”

She didn’t answer. Instead, she picked up the tray and smiled at a third person who’d just walked in the room. “Mrs. Osborn, just in time.”

The housekeeper? He barely knew her, but obviously the two women wanted a private word with him.

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