House of Cads by Elizabeth Kingston

Author:Elizabeth Kingston
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: regency romp, lighthearted, American
Publisher: Elizabeth Kingston
Published: 2018-04-25T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

In spite of the improved weather, Mason sat in the salon with the unbearable Duke of Ravenclyffe, hoping to catch a glimpse of Marie-Anne. She did not appear, which meant he had to pretend to pay attention to the duke’s theories on the study of phrenology, specifically how skull size proved the superiority of the European people. Mason understood he was supposed to be grateful for Ravenclyffe’s reassurance that most Americans were included in “these blessings of Providence” but rather than thanking the idiot duke, his response was silence and a skeptical look. This was the best way to make smug men doubt themselves enough that they inevitably sought his approval, without even realizing they were doing it.

It didn’t take very long. Ravenclyffe had been hinting for days that he’d like to invest in the fictional timber business, but he obviously could not bear to seem eager about it. Now he abandoned his pride – or at least a small part of it – and said outright that he wanted in. Or rather that he was “not averse to lending financial backing to a profitable enterprise.”

A flash of color outside the window caught Mason’s attention. “Can’t say I’m looking for more investors,” he said vaguely, and decided it was just a bird and not a thoroughly captivating Frenchwoman passing by.

“Naturally I have the utmost faith in John Company, but the prudent man bets on more than one horse. There are still far too many natives in India, they’re sure to make more trouble. As I say, the anatomy makes it plain – the cranium alone is proof, but our most prominent naturalists...”

Mason tuned out the nonsense by imagining how satisfying it would be to fleece Ravenclyffe out of thousands of pounds and then just disappear. Even more satisfying would be to do it and then publish a series of drawings about it on his way out of town. They could call him The Duped Duke, deceived and swindled despite his large-capacity skull and a jaw so inconspicuous that it was barely distinguishable from his neck.

Somewhere at the back of his mind, Mason could hear his cousin scorning him for toying with an idea for drawings instead of reeling in the biggest fish that had ever nibbled on his line. That was cousin Jody’s way – big risk, big reward. Or big disaster. He’d more often met with disaster, and Mason had learned from that. Still, it would be smart to lay the groundwork for a fleecing. Just as a kind of contingency plan, in case he had to abandon the scheme with Freddy. Always good to keep every option open.

He’d have to pursue it later, though, because Marie-Anne appeared in the salon, looking fresh and pretty in a gown of periwinkle blue. Amy’s priggish vicar was at her heels, though Amy herself was nowhere to be seen.

“Mr. Harner, you must believe me,” Marie-Anne was saying. She was using the overly cheerful tone that meant she would dearly love to strangle someone.

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