She could imagine it only too well. Joshua would be forced to join Ferryman’s gang and Georgie would be put to work as a mudlark. She’d either have to leave them and find work at another shop or stay with them and become one of Ferryman’s whores. Within a year, they’d all be either dead or wishing they were.
“One day won’t put us out on the street. He can stay here tonight, and we’ll figure out the rest tomorrow.”
“No.” She shook her head. “He cannot stay here tonight.” She said the last loud enough that Georgie, who was standing near the marquess, heard her.
“But you can’t make him leave, Vi,” he protested. “Danny says if you show him your charms, he might become our new pa.” Georgie looked up at the marquess. “Don’t you want to be our new pa?”
“Ahhh.” The marquess looked as though he wasn’t sure how to answer.
“I’m not showing King any of my charms,” Violet said.
“You have charms?” he asked, raising his brow.
She ignored him. “He will not be your new pa. He’s not staying.”
King finally looked as though he’d woken from a bad dream. Something about the charms comment had spurred him out of his stupor. “What if I work for my keep?” he asked. “I can repay you from my wages.”
“You? Work?” She raised her brows. “Not possible.”
“I can work,” he said. “I mopped behind the bar.”
Violet sniffed and marched across the tavern to peer behind the bar. It looked exactly the same as it had when she’d last seen it.
“That corner there,” he said, pointing to a small area.
Violet looked at him. “That corner is clean?”
He nodded.
“Georgie, hop over and see.”
Georgie hoisted himself onto the bar as he had a thousand times and hopped down on the square indicated. “Looks clean to me!” he announced.
Violet gave him a long look. “Pick up your feet,” she said.
“Why?”
“Just do it, Georgie.”
With a frown, he picked up one bare foot—or at least he tried. It stuck to the floor so that Georgie had to tug until it came free. “See, Vi! Clean!”
She looked at King. He scratched his head. “Maybe it was that corner.” He indicated another small area. Georgie tried to move that way, but his feet kept sticking. Joshua took pity on him and lifted him out. “Very well. Mopping isn’t my strong suit. But there are other things I can do.”
Violet put her hands on her hips. “Name something else you can do.” She put a hand up. “Besides drink, fight, and dance at fancy balls.”
“He can act as publican,” Joshua said before King could answer. “With Archie hurt, we need someone behind the bar. He’s big enough to intimidate the troublemakers, and you just said he knows how to fight.”
“I do know how to fight,” King said, seizing on Joshua’s words. “And I can be very intimidating.”
Violet couldn’t argue with this, even if she wanted to. King was an objectively tall and well-built man. That alone wasintimidating, but he also had a presence about him. He had an air of authority that would discourage most men from crossing him. And Joshua was right. They were in need of a publican and protector with Archie injured.
King seemed the perfect solution, but she didn’t want to agree. She didn’t want him here. She didn’t want him in her life or that of her brothers.
If she were brutally honest with herself, she didn’t want him here because every time she was near him, her body seemed to thrum with awareness of him. She found herself stealing glances at him and her cheeks growing warm when he looked at her directly. “No,” she said. “He goes. Even if it means we never recover the two pounds, fifteen shillings.”
Joshua and Georgie stared at her open-mouthed. “You’rewilling to give up two pounds?” Joshua said. “Vi, are you feeling well?”
She scowled. “I don’t like him. He’s trouble.”
