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“No.” Selina hesitated. “He has been away for a while.”

Diana had an epiphany.

“NotthatCrawford.”

“The one and only,” Selina confirmed, her voice dropping just slightly, the hint of a smile tugging at her lips.

“The rumors say that he is…” Diana trailed off, leaning in slightly as if the very mention of the Marquess’s name would make the room lighter with intrigue. She barely noticed her own curiosity. “Well, we all know what he is.”

“And the whole ton will be reminded, too, now that he is back.”

“Why was he away?” Diana asked.

“I have some suggestions,” Herbert interjected wickedly. “From enraged to tenacious lovers, he must have had a lot of reasons to run.”

“Let’s say that he’s a man of excess. Drinks too much, gambles too hard, and, well… loves too often.”

“That bad?” Diana whispered.

“He is that and so much more.” Selina smiled. “Richard tells me that he has always been… reckless.”

“So, translating Richard, he means he is a rake?” Diana swallowed, still feigning indifference.

“I doubt that there has ever been a woman strong enough to resist him,” Selina elaborated, much to Diana’s dismay. “He does make a tantalizing case for himself. He is rather good-looking, he has a title, and he is obscenely rich. Did I mention that he is good-looking?”

She studied Diana’s face intently, eager for a reaction.

Diana was ready to react in a way that would make her eldest sister regret ever challenging her in her own charity event, but it was Herbert who spoke first.

“I am guessing you expect him to throw an obscene amount of money on the auction.”

Diana was happy to see that her brother could be useful, after all.

“I hope he decides to do the same thing on the business venture I have in mind.”

“A business venture with a man who has such a reputation?” Diana arched an eyebrow. “That seems… imprudent. Even for you.”

“Well, my dear sister, one should never let opportunities pass them by.”

It was too good to last,Diana mused when Herbert didn’t waste the opportunity to poke at her self-imposed spinsterhood.

She was ready to give him a piece of her mind when Selina leaned closer to him, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. Then, they both looked up with identical expressions of mischief.

By Jove, those two are cooking an explosive absurdity.

Diana had the dreadful suspicion that the target for their ill-conceived plans was none other than herself.

“Must you behave like children?” she scoffed. “It’s tiresome.”

“Who? Us?” they both asked in mock innocence.

Diana sensed that she had reached the limit of her patience with her siblings, for now. She was painfully aware that her treasured peace was always just out of reach when one had siblings like hers. Though, something akin to self-preservation told her that she shouldn’t be leaving those two alone.

CHAPTER 2

An Irresistible Stitch

Diana moved through the crowd with the measured poise and the agility of a person who has developed the ability to navigate such events with grace and yet still go unnoticed. She needed a change in company, and Elizabeth seemed the ideal option.