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F inn leaned an elbow against a massive bookshelf in Jon’s study and glanced toward the door. If he had any sense, he’d run while he still could. His friend’s plan might have been uncomplicated and logical, but if life had taught him anything, it was that the end result of any scenario involving his sister would be anything but simple.

Macie studied him with those keenly intelligent emerald eyes of hers. I sense an opportunity. If ever a man had a reason to run for the hills, her pronouncement summed it up beyond all argument. Especially since the opportunity involved him.

Blast it all, it would be easier to turn away if his own cursed curiosity hadn’t taken control. For some reason he couldn’t even explain to himself, her expression intrigued him, even more than her words. Of course, the fact that her emerald-green walking suit hugged her curves in all the right places didn’t help matters. She’d appealed to him even in the bloody abysmal gown she’d worn at Lady Drayton’s soiree, but today, in the light of day and wearing hues that did not resemble the muck in a stable, he could take in her natural beauty without distraction. In his gut, he knew he would not like what she was about to propose. But like a moth nearing the heat of a flame, he did not veer away before it was too late.

Finn met her gaze. “What manner of scandal are ye devising now?”

A hint of a smile curved her full mouth. “Scandal?” she scoffed unconvincingly. “Why, I wouldn’t think of it. After all, I promised that I will not tarnish the family name.”

By thunder, the woman was maddening. And so blasted fascinating, he could not look away. Let alone leave.

“Then what is it ye want of me?”

The corners of her mouth pulled higher. “A distraction, if you will.”

“A distraction?” Jon echoed. His brow had furrowed like a washerwoman’s board.

Her shoulders rose and fell in a little shrug. “I suppose decoy would be more to the point.”

Decoy ? “What in thunder are ye getting at?” Finn pinned her with his gaze, expecting the truth.

“I suppose that is the correct term. Rather like the replica of an owl on the barn at our country home—it keeps away undesired creatures.”

Jon pinched the bridge of his nose. “Have you gone a bit mad, Macie?”

“No, she hasn’t.” Finn didn’t like it one whit, but he took her meaning. “Ye think to use me to frighten off a man who shows an interest in ye.”

Her slight smile transformed into a grin. “Precisely, Mr. Caldwell. My, you are a clever one.” She cocked a brow. “Played right, this little game might actually prove entertaining.”

“Count me out.” Finn had had enough. He had come to London to arrange a deal between Mason’s enterprises and his family’s business. Being a blasted human scarecrow was not part of the bargain.

Macie pulled out a chair, swished her skirts out of the way, and took a seat. “Won’t you join me, Mr. Caldwell?” she said, patting the chair at her side.

He sent her a look that made it clear he had no intention of accepting her invitation. Or was it a command? “I don’t know where this Mr. Caldwell has come from. I’ve been Finn to ye since ye were a girl in braids.”

She shrugged again. “But I am not a girl in braids any longer. And since propriety is a virtue, I thought a more proper form of address appropriate.”

“In any case, suffice it to say I will play no part in chasing away yer suitors.”

“Chase away?” She pursed her coral lips. “No, that won’t be necessary. Your very presence will serve as a deterrent.” Her gaze swept over him, from the tip of his boots to his head. “You are, after all, a rather imposing man, with your height and what I presume are genuine muscles under your suit.”

Finn could not resist his own curiosity. “Genuine muscles?”

“It’s rather a long story, I’m afraid, but there was one rather unfortunate marquis who thought to impress the ladies with his powerful physique. Unfortunately, at one point during a rather vigorous dance—the polka, as I recall, or was it the mazurka?—the padding beneath his jacket slipped. You can only imagine the poor man’s mortification when his broad shoulders ended up somewhere they should not have been.” She gave a little sigh. “I did feel badly for that one.”

Jon nodded along. “That was a rather horrific sight. I suspect he’d also padded his thighs. After the excursion onto the ballroom floor, his knees appeared rather lumpy, didn’t they?”

Macie nibbled her bottom lip, as though to stifle the giggle she could not entirely silence. “Oh, dear, I’d forgotten about that. For once, I was not the one who created the scene.”

Jon plowed his hand through his hair. “That was quite a spectacle.”

“Indeed.” Macie smiled. “I’d wager my last shilling that will not be an issue for Finn.”

“You should not be commenting on a gentleman’s... build,” Jon said, his expression weary.

“As he has pointed out, I’ve known him since I was a girl. In that time, I certainly was able to observe that he has acquired an athletic build from his sporting pursuits. I see no difference between that observation and noting that his eyes are brown.”

Jon frowned. “You know what I mean, Macie.”

“My athletic build is not relevant,” Finn said, eyeing the door.

“To the contrary, it plays a part in the scenario I’m envisioning. I’ve heard rumors that you’re quite good with your fists. Is it true you enjoy the sport of boxing?”

Bollocks. How much gossip had she heard about him since she returned to London? “It is true that I enter the ring from time to time.”

“Well, I’m confident the scrawny milksops I’ve encountered in the city would not want to cross a man who is unafraid of violence.”

He cocked a brow, flashed a purposeful scowl, and went to the door. “Protecting ye is one thing. Playing the role of walking and talking lord repellent is another. I will not create one scandal while trying to prevent another.”

“Are you positive you want to leave now, Mr. Caldwell?” She cocked her chin. Her eyes were the color of a lush forest on a spring Highland morn. “I know my brother well enough to understand that he is not above applying a bit of leverage to work a situation to his advantage. Now, I don’t know precisely what Jon has offered that would convince you to watch over me like an oversized governess—but are you certain you can simply leave it behind?”

Bloody hell. “Oversized governess? Shakespeare’s shrew had nothing on ye, Miss Mason. ”

Her eyes flashed. “Unlike Kate, I have no intention of being tamed.”

“What man would possess the patience?” he asked coolly.

“Macie, what are you talking about?” Jon spoke up, his tone betraying his alarm.

“Come now, dear brother. Surely you don’t think me so na?ve as to believe Finn Caldwell’s offer to serve as my unofficial bodyguard is motivated solely by a dedication to protect me from the villains who evidently lurk in every shadow of every corner in London.”

Her words cut, though Finn didn’t entirely understand why he gave a damn. “I meant what I said, Macie. Ye put yerself in positions where ye’re vulnerable. The villains might not be lurking in every shadow. But the curs are there, even in the ballrooms of the city’s most affluent mavens.”

Her features were set in an impassive expression, but she did not hide the scowl in her eyes. “And you, of all people, took it upon yourself to watch over me. How very noble.”

Jon shot him a look of confusion, but Finn ignored it. At the moment, this was between him and Macie.

“It is nothing of the sort. We both know that. I can protect ye. It’s not complicated.” He felt the weight of the truth he’d omitted even as he spoke the words. He wanted the blasted contracts. The deal mattered to him. And to his family. But above that, he wanted to know Macie was safe while she was on her own in the city. He wanted to be there to watch over her. Somehow, that mattered even more than the bargain he’d made with her brother.

“You’re right—it isn’t complicated. The way I see it, your presence will create an illusion that will work to my advantage.”

“What in blazes are ye getting at?”

“If you don’t walk away... if you don’t leave, I will tolerate your presence as bodyguard of sorts.” She pulled in a breath, as though the words had been difficult for her to speak. “But in the process, you will assist me in creating an illusion.”

“I’m still here,” he said after a long moment. If he had any sense, he’d walk out of the door. Right then. Right there. But somehow, he couldn’t leave her. “What is it ye have in mind?”

“When I’m out and about, you intend to be there, watching over my every move in the name of security. Do you not?”

“That would stand to reason.”

“And if we were to give the impression that there is... something between us?”

“Macie, I don’t like the sound of this,” Jon protested.

“Is that supposed to matter to me?” Macie’s gaze flared with defiance.

“Let her speak,” Finn said. “It is her plan we’re talking about, after all.”

Jon scowled and folded his arms. “Go on, Macie.”

“The way I see it, the best way to discourage an heiress hunter is to lead him to believe I am no longer on the market.”

Jon began to pace. “You cannot be serious.”

“Unfortunately, that strategy won’t work,” she said matter-of-factly. “If Father got word of anything that sounded like a betrothal without his approval—and you know he would—he might well suffer an apoplexy.”

“Gads, ye would not want the man to think ye’d settle for the likes of me now, would ye?” Finn said with a deliberately bland tone.

“It’s not like that,” she said quickly, sounding a trifle sheepish, though Jon did not voice any disagreement with Finn’s assessment.

He studied her face, seeing the touch of regret in her expression. Did she feel she’d wounded him? Somehow, that look of caring in her eyes seemed much more like that kind girl she’d once been than the enterprising woman who sought to use this situation for her benefit.

Not that she had hurt him. He possessed, above all else, a firm perspective on the realities of life in this city, with the nose-in-the-air old money types and the new-money industrialists who desperately wanted to be part of a club that did not want any part of them, other than their tin.

“What in thunder are ye planning?” he asked directly.

“As I said, I am thinking about creating an illusion. I’d like the fortune hunters to think of me as not-quite spoken for.” She smiled. “After all, a man like you will stand as quite a boulder in their paths.”

“Boulder, is it? So now ye’re comparing me to a rock?” No wonder she suspected her father would keel over at the thought of his daughter becoming Finn’s bride. He bit back the first words that sprang to mind. Definitely not suitable for a lady’s ear. But then again, Macie was not the typical lady.

She gave a little shrug. “I thought it was a rather appropriate image.”

“Ye still have not told me what ye intend for me to do.”

“It’s simple, really. You’ll be there with me at the balls and soirees and gatherings I’m expected to attend. I can hear the chatter now. The heiress and her rake. That should be all it will take to buy a reprieve from their oh-so-dull efforts at courtship. At least until Jon returns.”

“Rake? I think I preferred boulder. ”

“I’ll try to remember that,” she said lightly, glancing toward her brother. Jon’s expression was a cross between a scowl and utter defeat. “Don’t look so glum, Jon. I’m intending to have a bit of fun, that’s all.”

Jon slowly shook his head. “I know how your fun usually turns out.”

“The way I look at it, the options are clear. I will be seen about town with a protective, somewhat besotted bodyguard whose presence will spur the noble nobs of London to set their sights on someone—anyone—other than me. And you, Mr. Caldwell, will get what Jon had promised you—not that I truly care to know the details of your bargain. Or I will devise a scandal that will make even rogues blush. In which case, I can only assume that you will walk away empty-handed from whatever deal you’ve hatched with my brother. So, which is it?” A smile played on her lips as she turned back to Finn. “Do we have an agreement?”