Stealing the Heiress (The Kidnap Club Book 2) by Samantha Holt

Author:Samantha Holt [Holt, Samantha]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Helstone Press
Published: 2020-05-24T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

Ducking under the rafters of the tavern, Russell could not help but recall the last time he’d been in a place like this. Rosamunde had drawn all the attention from the patrons and then drunk far too many beers.

He had to admit, she did make a rather charming drunk, though.

He made his way to the table where Nash and Guy were seated.

“What’s the smile for?” Nash asked, peering up at him.

Russell clenched his jaw. “What smile?” He lowered himself into the wooden chair and drew the small glass of amber liquid close. He’d drunk rather too much champagne last night and the stronger liquor was a welcome change. He was decidedly not the sort of man who enjoyed champagne.

The dinner had been interesting though. He couldn’t decide if he had actually enjoyed himself, but Rosamunde’s family were a large, interesting lot, with less airs and graces than he might have expected. In fact, after the initial interrogation from the grandmother, he’d been welcomed like one of the family. It had felt almost...nice.

He shook his head to himself and took a sip of the whiskey. Nice or not, he would be wise to avoid being with them again. Once he found her Uncle Albert, he’d never see any of them again anyway.

“He’s doing it again,” Nash said.

“I’m doing nothing,” he snapped.

“You did look as though you were smiling,” said Guy.

Russell narrowed his gaze at Guy. “Whose side are you on anyway?”

Guy lifted both palms. “No one’s.”

“It’s Lady Rothmere that’s making him smile.” Nash grinned.

“I’m not damn well smiling,” he said through gritted teeth. “Christ, I’m regretting coming here now.”

“What a short memory you have,” Nash said. “I recall you finding it rather amusing that I was falling for Grace.”

Russell nearly choked on his sip of whiskey. Good Lord, he wasn’t falling for Rosamunde. Hell, he’d only known her for a few weeks. Besides which, she’d never have him. Even if her family were pleasant to him, they were likely pleasant to everyone. It might explain why they were so goddamn huge. They sucked in family members like a hole in a ship taking on water. That did not change that he was an orphan with no lineage and even less experience of being part of a family.

“This is a job, that is all,” he muttered.

“An attractive job.” Nash’s smile grew smug. “Lady Rothmere is handsome indeed.”

Russell gave Nash a cold stare. “If I cared for handsome, I’d have gone after Grace.”

“If you’d have touched her, I’d have damn well chopped off your hands.”

Russell let out a laugh. “Never took you for the possessive type, Nash.”

Nash shook his head. “Enough about Grace. Let’s talk of Lady Rothmere.”

“Or we could talk business,” Guy suggested.

Russell turned his attention to the earl. He could always be relied on to be the serious member of the group, making Russell seem practically cheerful at times. “Happily.”

“First, I’m away to the country this afternoon.” He jabbed a finger at the table. “Estate business,” he explained. “Secondly, I have heard murmurs that our services might be requested next month.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.