Page 101 of Seduced by an Irresistible Lady

What does he want this time?

Dr Frederick alighted and got into the now open carriage door. He saw very little. There was a small lamp at the middle of the cabin that seemed to cast shadows, instead of illuminate. Dr Frederick saw Lord Jeffrey’s form, but he could not make out his face. He cast away thoughts of how dark his eyes would be now.

A man whose eyes are dark in the light of day, they would be terrifying to see now.

“Lord Jeffrey, it is a bit late for discussions about Miss Helena, don’t you think?” Dr Frederick said.

“Why do you assume I followed you to talk about her?”

Dr Frederick remembered the Duke’s frail health and shook his head. Lord Jeffrey had never truly seemed concerned about his father.

“We have little else to talk about,” Dr Frederick replied.

There was no reply from Lord Jeffery for a short while before he spoke again. His voice sliced through the cool cabin air, solemn but filled with the promise of swift action.

“You were at the party, at Mr Ontario’s house.”

Dr Frederick remembered that it was the name on the invitation.

“Yes, that’s where I’m coming from.”

“Did you see Helena?”

Dr Frederick thought about his answer. Lord Jeffrey would have asked her where she was when he was looking for her.

“I saw her, but we only greeted from afar. I wasn’t in the mood for too much chit-chat.”

Dr Frederick could not see his reaction, but he doubted the Duke’s son believed him.

“We have decided to delay the wedding. We want to settle a few niggling issues,” Lord Jeffrey said.

Dr Frederick almost smiled but for fear that Lord Jeffrey could somehow see his face. He chose to say nothing in reply.

“I know how the two of you are,” Lord Jeffrey said.

Dr Frederick’s heart stuttered, or it felt like it did. He dropped his gaze to the floor regardless of the fact that he was sure Lord Jeffrey couldn’t see his guilty eyes in the darkness of the cabin.

“I know how you’ve helped her, treating her foot. How it made two of you close,” Lord Jeffrey continued.

Dr Frederick’s heart beat more easily. The second statement wasn’t one that made him feel safer, but it was less damning than the first.

“I am willing to offer you a gift,” Lord Jeffrey said, pushing a small parcel along the ground till it got to Dr Frederick, “Gold worth ten thousand pounds. I want you to help support us as we prepare for our marriage. You could use it to boost your research too. You could breed those animals on your own instead of smuggling them from the animal centre, and the cadavers, money allows you more access. There is more where this came from. My father is still the second richest man in England. All I need you to do is to confirm our friendship, you and I, by supporting my marriage to Helena.”

Dr Frederick steadied his racing breath. He could hear the beat of his hear in his ears, and there was a rumbling sound behind his ears.

“How do you know about–?”

“Do not bother about that. Money opens a lot of mouths, you know. You weren’t a friend of mine so I did my research on you. Now I want you to be a friend.”

Dr Frederick swallowed, but the clog in his throat didn’t budge. Lord Jeffrey was the most devious person he had ever seen. He could take the money and make the unspoken threats go away.

That’s exactly why I cannot take his money. I become a pawn in his game.

“I cannot take this,” Dr Frederick managed to say, pushing the bag back with his foot.

“I have never failed in a quest to get any woman, anything of my choice. You are about to stand between me and my woman. I will move you aside, with your will or by force,” Lord Jeffrey said.

“Take it,” he said, pushing the bag back to him.