Page 45 of Rogue of My Heart

“True, but Jack is so fashionable,” Meg said. “Compromised with the Jack of Hearts, can you imagine?”

Charlotte had no intention of compromising herself with anyone. She might be the only one among her friends left unmarried, but she would not use trickery to snare a husband.

Willow leveled a bespectacled gaze on her. “Well, I hope you’re not planning to go quite that far,” she said.

“No,” Charlotte said. “Not that far. I only want to know who he is.” That wasn’t entirely honest. She wanted more than to know his true identity. She wanted to know if he’d kiss her again, and if their kiss had just been one among many for him.

She could easily imagine a man like the Jack of Hearts kissing women all over London and the idea was more distressing than she cared for. She preferred to imagine he had picked her specifically. She forced herself to sit on her hands so she would not rub at her lips absently, remembering the press of his. She shivered at the delicious memory of his tongue caressing her own.

She had danced with countless men since her come out, and a few had stolen kisses, but none had stirred her body the way Jack had. His kiss had elicited reactions in her skin she’d never before experienced.

Admittedly, she’d always liked the thought of the Jack of Hearts, the daring rogue who swept in and took people’s jewels while they stood there and allowed it. But her brief encounter had been more than that. He had almost stepped in to save her. Certainly that said something significant about his character. Granted she hadn’t needed saving, but he’d stood there, and waited until he knew she was safe. Her heart raced just thinking about it. He was a thief with a noble streak and that contradiction was compelling. She wanted to know more about him.

The rest of the meeting flew by with nothing but an exchange of gossip. These days the investigations they worked on had all but disappeared. Amelia was busy writing her Lady Shadow adventures, and being married to an inspector indulged her curiosity for real mysteries. Willow had nearly the same with her detective husband who worked for the Scotland Yard. Meg had never been all that interested in mysteries, and had her hands full now that she was with child.

Three of them had lived adventures that resulted in marriage. Charlotte could pretend it was her turn, that she need only identify a mystery to solve, and it would lead her to her husband. But deep down, she knew that was not her fate.

Three

The following evening, Charlotte smiled coyly at the duke who currently spun her around the dance floor. Her dance card was full and she intended to make the most of each opportunity. This was investigative work, after all.

The girls wanted her to make herself available for more interactions with Jack. He was too careful to approach her in the middle of a brightly lit ballroom. And she couldn’t very well spend the entire evening loitering on the dark balconies. Instead, she decided to use her keen skills of observation to see if she could identify who Jack was when he wasn’t…well, Jack. When he was his regularly gentlemanly self. They’d already determined that he had to be a member of Society, else he wouldn’t be able to move so freely about them the way he had.

The duke smiled back at her and she tried not to wince at the sight of his yellowing teeth. Aside from that, he was somewhat handsome. At least he still had all his hair. He was obviously not her Jack.

Oh, who was she kidding? The duke was an utter troll with his pointy beak-like nose and his terrible teeth. The dance ended—finally—and the duke, without one single word, led her back to her party.

“The Dire Duke? Honestly Charlotte, surely you could have scrounged up a better dance partner than that,” Frannie whispered once the man was out of earshot.

Charlotte took a fortifying breath and shrugged. “He asked.” She couldn’t tell her sister what she was doing tonight.

Frannie’s features scrunched and she narrowed her gaze. “You’ve declined before. You’re notorious for it. Don’t you enjoy flirting with men, making them love you, and then breaking their hearts?”

Stung, she studied her younger sister. “Is that what you really think of me?”

Frannie shrugged. “You claim to want grand love and passion, but it seems to me, perhaps you just enjoy the chase too much to settle down.”

Charlotte winced as her own words were flung back at her. She’d been saying those very words for years. They weren’t true, but they seemed plausible enough to be believed. She knew that if her family suspected she made her decisions based on her need to protect them, her mother would have a fit. And look what it had resulted in.

Too hurt to admit to Frannie exactly how much she despised the chase, she plastered on a smile and waved her hand dramatically. “Oh, Frannie, honestly, those kinds of love are so rare.”

Frannie frowned, then her pretty features softened with concern. “What’s the matter with you?”

“Nothing at all.” She looked up to scan the room, not really seeing anything amidst the blur of faces, just not wanting to look at her sister. Not wanting Frannie to see the truth she tried so desperately to protect.

Her sister’s elbow jabbed her ribs. “It appears that Lord Carrolton is fast approaching for his waltz. I’m not certain he’s the one for you, but a much better specimen than your last partner.”

Charlotte glanced up, found Lord Carrolton headed in her direction, and agreed with her sister. He was pleasant-enough looking and charming.

To distract herself from the sting of her conversation with Frannie, she reminded herself that she was supposed to be looking for Jack.

She swallowed her nerves. There was nothing to be nervous about. She’d danced with hundreds of men and tonight was not any different. Granted she’d never before pursued a thief. Was there anything in Lord Carrolton’s appearance that could identify him as Jack? He was tall and well-built, though his hair seemed paler than Jack’s.

“Miss Reed,” the earl said as he reached her side. “I do believe our dance is next.”

She flashed him a smile. “Indeed it is.” She allowed him to take her arm as he escorted her to the dance floor.

“You are looking rather fetching tonight, Miss Reed,” he said once the music had begun.