Page 91 of In the Prince's Bed

But really, it served Mama right to have this happen. By promoting the earl’s suit, Mama had probably not realized she would lose Katherine’s management skills. Whereas if Katherine had married Sydney, she might have been able to continue her activities from the nearby Lovelace estate.

Thank goodness she was marrying Alec.

Chapter Twenty-two

Even the cleverest rake cannot ensure the smooth running of his plans. Learn to be flexible.

—Anonymous,A Rake’s Rhetorick

You’ve nearly made it,Alec told himself later in the evening as he and the Merivale ladies waited for his carriage.Another week at most, and you’re safe.

Unless they found out about his finances in that time, but that was unlikely.

Of course, once he got Katherine back to Edenmore, there’d be hell to pay. But by then it would be too late for her to escape the marriage—and he sincerely hoped he could eventually make her not want to escape.

Lady Purefoy’s footman approached them with a frown. “My lord, I cannot seem to rouse your coachman. If you can suggest—”

“It’s all right.” Alec pressed a few coins into the man’s hand, hoping his companions didn’t notice how few they were. “I’ll take care of it myself.”

Mrs. Merivale gazed at him in horror. “Didn’t you bring your own footman, my lord? Can’t he rouse the coachman?”

“I left my footman at your town house,” Alec explained, “in case you returned before I caught up to you. But it’s nothing to worry about. I’ll rouse him.”

“We’llrouse him,” Katherine put in.

Though Mrs. Merivale grumbled at the indignity of having to don her pattens to keep from soiling her dancing slippers, she went along with them to where the carriage was parked a short distance from the Purefoy town house.

“John, wake up,” Alec said sharply as they approached.

The coachman’s loud snore was his only answer.

“John!” Alec said more loudly, punctuating the command by jiggling the coachman’s leg.

John shifted his position on the perch and resumed his snoring. Not that Alec blamed the man, after the day they’d had.

“Blast it, John,” Alec grumbled as he shoved the coachman hard.

Too hard, apparently, for John fell off the other side, hitting the ground like a sack of barley. At least that woke him up. “Thieves! Robbers! Watchman, ho!” John cried as he scrambled to his feet.

Then he spotted his master. Turning a sickly pale, he hurried around the coach. “Oh, m’lord, beggin’ your pardon, I didn’t mean to doze off…It won’t happen again, I swear.”

“It’s all right, John,” Alec said.

“Truly, m’lord—” He caught sight of Katherine and Mrs. Merivale. “’Odsfish, you’ve got the ladies with you, too. Please forgive me, madam, miss. It’s just that we been on the road for days, seems like, and this last trip from Lord Draker’s in Hertfordshire was such a mad rush.”

“Lord Draker’s?” Katherine looked at Alec. “Isn’t he the one they call—”

“The Dragon Viscount, yes,” Alec said irritably. “Doesn’t anybody ever use the man’s name, for God’s sake?”

She blinked. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize he was a friend of yours.”

“Well, he is. Come on, let’s get in.” Alec glanced to John. “Can you get us home without falling asleep on the perch again?”

“Yes, m’lord.” John bobbed his head even more furiously because of the ladies watching him.

As soon as they set off in the carriage, Katherine shot Alec a curious glance. “How do you know Lord Draker? I understand he doesn’t go into society.”

“He’s an old family friend,” Alec muttered. What would she say if she knew the truth? Would it bother her? “If you like, I can introduce you to him.”