Page 10 of The Perks of Loving a Wallflower

That was enough change for one year. Tommy’s days were plenty full with missions and pies. She certainly didn’t need to add “words” and “conversations” to her busy calendar.

Jacob produced an ornate snuffbox. “I cannot believe that our happy-go-lucky fearless adventuress is scared to talk to agirl.”

“Woman,” Marjorie corrected.

“You have the perfect excuse to approach Philippa.” Jacob opened the snuffbox. It did not contain snuff. “We’re helping her reading circle.”

“I have no reason to talk to her,” Tommy said. “The next meeting isn’t for a week and we have no news yet anyway.”

Jacob arched a brow. “So you’ll just pine from afar in the meantime?”

“She’s good at it,” said Marjorie. “She’s been practicing all year.”

“Thank you, Marjorie,” Tommy murmured.

The truth was, there was no use starting down a path that went nowhere. All good things ended. Especially when it came to people Tommy cared about. She had been orphaned at the age of four. Bean died. Chloe left. It was better to acknowledge relationships were temporary from the start than to get one’s hopes and dreams andfeelingstangled up in the matter.

Tommy was happy to infiltrate asylums and impersonate night watchmen. Resolving situations for clients was something she was good at.

The impossible situations in her own life, however, tended to stay impossible.

“What’s the problem? There are no laws against women sleeping with each other,” Jacob pointed out.

“Maybe that is the problem,” Marjorie said. “Tommy adores breaking laws.”

“‘Not illegal’ isn’t the same as ‘accepted,’ and you know it,” Tommy said. “Graham is always deciphering messages in the advertisements. Why do you think the hostess chose to hide the true nature of that Sapphic country house party last month?”

“So men wouldn’t attend,” Marjorie said without hesitation.

“Probably,” Jacob agreed.

Tommy ignored them. It had been an excellent party.

She was no stranger to desire and pleasure. Her lovers weren’t looking for anything more than an evening’s romp. Fun while it lasted. There was no expectation of gadding about town together in theirreallives. Most didn’t even share their true names.

It was perfectly fine. Tommy didn’t need anything else. Or anyone else.

“Besides,” she said, “there’s no reason to believe Philippa would be interested in me even if Iwereto shower her with words and conversation. She’s hunting for a husband. She almost married a duke. To people like the Yorks, rubbing shoulders with an untitled Wynchester—even platonically—is too scandalous to consider.”

“She rubs shoulders withGreat-AuntWynchester,” Marjorie pointed out.

Tommy sent her a flat look. “Polite Society is not and will never be for me.”

“Maybe Philippa doesn’t want it either,” Jacob suggested.

Tommy picked at her tea cake. “Maybe she does. We don’t know. I’d rather never confess my feelings than to see her recoil in horror.”

“What if she didn’t recoil in horror?” Marjorie said softly.

“I still couldn’t keep her,” Tommy said. “Losing Philippa would be worse than never having her. If I lost the chance for friendship, I would be left with nothing.”

“A simple conversation,” Jacob insisted. “Not a sonnet about your admiration of her big brain and bigger bosom, but a regular, ordinary, words-and-ideas conversation about something other than the case. If you do that, I promise to stop hounding you.”

Tommy glared at him.

“I promise, too,” said Marjorie. “I’ll even make the others promise as well. If you talk to Philippa for…fifteen minutes.”

“Twenty,” Jacob said quickly.