Page 11

" T he new draperies belong in the sitting room," Victoria's voice rang out from the foyer.

The next thing James heard was the sound of heavy-footed people—several of them—walking through the house. He got up from his desk and hurried out to see what was going on.

He'd spent the morning looking over his ledgers again and again.

Something seemed off to him—the calculations weren't adding up in a way that made sense.

But he couldn't seem to figure it out, and now these noises were preventing him from focusing.

He was determined to discover what it was all about and to put a stop to it.

He found Victoria standing in the foyer and looking in the direction of the sitting room.

"What's going on?" he asked, looking the same direction.

His question was answered as soon as he had asked it. He saw three men in the sitting room carrying heavy-looking draperies. As he watched, the men began to mount the draperies on the law in front of the windows.

He turned to face Victoria. She was studiously avoiding meeting his gaze. "What's going on here?" he demanded.

"I've been meaning to get new draperies for this room for several months," Victoria said, still not looking at him. "I hope you like the ones I chose."

She couldn't believe she would be so disingenuous. "You don't care if I like them or not," he said. "In fact, you knew I wouldn't like them. You knew that I wouldn't permit you to make a change like this to my house. What do you think you're doing?"

"It's only draperies," Victoria said dismissively. "It can't bother you that much."

"What bothers me is the sound of people coming and going all day long in my house," James said.

"I'm trying to get some work done. I haven't been able to focus on anything all day.

Now I can see that this is the reason why.

You've been making all this noise. I have to insist that you keep things quiet while trying to work. "

Now Victoria turned to face him. Her eyebrows lifted. "So," she said, "you're telling me that you wouldn't mind if I changed the draperies as long as I had it done during a time when you were not trying to work."

"Where did the money for this come from?" James asked.

"I paid for it," Victoria said simply.

He had thought she would say something like that. "You paid for it with what money?"

Victoria folded her arms across her chest. "What are you really asking?"

"I'm asking you whether you are spending my money to make changes to my house without my permission," James bit out.

Her eyes blazed. "You act as if I've done something dreadful when all I've done pick out new draperies for the sitting room," she said. "You would have needed to get new ones soon anyway. The old ones were nearly falling apart. They must have been older than the late duke himself."

James closed his eyes and breathed out slowly. She was right. It wasn't the draperies that upset him. It wasn't even the money. What bothered James most of all was the way she insisted on doing things according to her own desires. It was impossible to control her, impossible to tell her what to do.

His only consolation was that she wouldn't be his problem that much longer. "I need to get out of the house," he said. "I'm not getting any work done with all this noise, so we may as well go out."

"We?" Victoria asked. "I need to stay here to oversee the installation of the new draperies."

"I'm sure these men can handle it without your supervision," James said firmly. "You'll come into town with me for a promenade."

"What if I don't wish to go?"

"I've been very accommodating lately," James reminded her.

"I've allowed you to keep your cats in the house against my wishes.

I could send these men with their draperies away, but allowing them to be installed.

If you don't oblige me now, I might change my mind about some of those things.

I might decide not to be so lenient. I think the least you could do would be to cooperate with me since I've done so much for you lately. "

"That sounds like a threat," Victoria said, her eyes going wide.

"Consider it a warning," James said. "I don't need to be as generous with you as I have been."

"If you were that generous, you wouldn't be trying to force me into a marriage I don't want. I can hardly believe you are calling yourself generous in light of that."

"Listen," James said. "My intention was to spend today working.

I would still be working had it not been for these distractions.

Because I won't be able to focus on my work today, I will be focusing on something else instead – the task of finding you a husband.

So you and I are going for a promenade, and we are going to mingle with the ladies and gentlemen of society.

We are going to see if we can find someone willing to marry you. "

Victoria's nostrils flared. James felt a strange rush of excitement.

He wasn't sure exactly why it was so much fun to provoke her – why he got such enjoyment out of it.

He only knew that it was the biggest thrill he had experienced in some time.

Perhaps he ought to have felt guilty – after all, she was a lady, and maybe it was wrong to tease her like this.

The truth was, he didn't think it would be that difficult to find someone who would be willing to marry her.

Her reputation was going to be a problem, but there was also the fact that she was beautiful.

She was young, and she was a figure of great mystery.

There would be plenty of people who found all of that exciting.

Under different circumstances, James could even imagine being one of those people himself.

"You're probably wasting our time," Victoria said.

"Nobody is going to want to marry me. Don't forget, everyone believes that I am a murderer.

They think that I murdered my husband. Why would anybody want to be my next husband?

I'm sure they'll all be frightened that they will be the next one to be murdered. "

"And I am sure that there are plenty of people who will not be put off by something like that," James said. "There are those who don't truly believe that you are a murderess."

"Well I'm not," Victoria said under her breath.

James pretended he hadn't heard her. "There may also be those who are unsure about your guilt or innocence, but find your story so exciting that they are willing to take a chance."

Victoria laughed. "Why would anybody take that chance?" she asked. "What a ridiculous chance to take. Would you do it?"

James looked at her. "Would I marry you? Is that what you're asking me?"

The blush that covered Victoria's cheeks was as red as blood. "That wasn't what I meant," she mumbled.

It was a perfect opportunity to tease her a little bit more, but to his own surprise, James found himself blushing as well. He cleared his throat and changed the subject quickly. "Go and put on something nice," he said. "You need to look your best."

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" Victoria demanded.

The gown she wore was very simple. James recognized the style from two years ago. He also thought it looked as though the sleeves were beginning to fray at the ends. "How long has it been since you dressed to make an impression?"

"I haven't needed to," Victoria said. "There hasn't been anybody I've wanted to impress."

"Well, that's going to have to change if we are going to find you husband," James told her. "Go and put on the nicest thing you own. And be quick about it. I'll be waiting for you in the foyer. I want us to leave in a quarter of an hour."

Victoria let out a long-suffering sigh. "You really don't mean to give me a choice about any of this, do you?"

"If you can manage to get more than one gentleman interested in you, then you will have choices," James said. "And I'm sure that won't be too difficult for you. After all, you can be quite an engaging young lady…when you wish to be."

"Unfortunately for you," Victoria said sharply, "the one thing you cannot force me to do is to wish to be engaging. I have no interest in marrying. In fact, I will do almost anything to avoid it. So if your plan is dependent on me wanting it to succeed, I'm afraid it's doomed to fail."

James couldn't help feeling a spike of anger at her.

Did she have to be this difficult? Couldn't she see that everything he was doing was for her own benefit?

After all, her actions had destroyed her reputation.

If he hadn't come into her life, she would have grown old alone in this house with no one for company and no one to take care of her.

She might not want to marry, but it was his intervention that would ensure she had a good life.

"I suppose we'll have to see," he said. "At any rate, I certainly mean to try. And I can be just as stubborn as you, I assure you. You might try to avoid marriage, but I will not give in until we have successfully found you a husband. Now go and change."

Victoria's hands clenched into fists. James was sure she was going to say something else to him, but after a moment, she turned and stalked away.

James let out a long breath. She was very difficult, very stubborn. But at least he had gotten her to comply with his request. She was going to get changed, and she was going to come with him on this promenade.

He had a feeling that this outing would be challenging. Victoria might have agreed to get dressed, but she had not agreed to cooperate with anything else he wanted her to do. She would put up a fight. She would make this as difficult as she possibly could.

But James thought himself more than a match for her.

She might be the most independent, most fiery lady he had ever known in his life, but there was something incredibly exciting about that fact, and he knew that he would be able to use it to his advantage.

Although it made her difficult to control, it would make it easier to engage the interest of eligible gentlemen.

What man wouldn't want a lady as thrilling as she was?

He walked out of the sitting room, leaving the workmen behind, and went to put on his cloak. Whatever lay ahead, James knew that he was ready for the challenge. There was no gentleman better equipped to tackle something like this than he was. James was the most determined man he knew.

He would not give in. He would find Victoria a husband, get her married, and get her out of his house and out of his life. But as he had that thought, he couldn't help feeling a twinge of sadness. This house would be very different without her. It would feel big and empty.

He brushed that thought aside. This was what had to happen. It was necessary. The house belonged to him, not to his late cousin's wife, and he intended to claim it as his own.