Lady Louisa turned to them, amusement in her expression. “Godspeed? What a thing to say. You are talking about me, aren’t you? I am one of the ‘circumstances,’ am I not? Good heavens, am I a harridan that the duke requires divine intervention?”
“No, my lady, but your family and,”—he cast a glance over Oliver—“and his aren’t exactly what you would call friendly.”
“Why aren’t they friendly?” Leo asked from the sofa, setting his empty cup on the table. “Aren’t you here to protect my sister? Her hired hand acting as a gardener, recently turned footman?”
Helgate burst out laughing. “Hired hand? My friend, you must have made quite the sacrifice. What did it cost you—your pride or your soul?”
Lady Louisa merely lifted her sherry to take a sip.
Oliver ignored his friend as well as the urge to ruffle the lad’s hair. “When you’re older, you can join the conversation about our families. For now, focus on how you can catch a fish.”
Helgate scoffed. “Don’t answer the question, then. You’ll find the people you seek at The Raging Stag, a tavern in Brighton run by the brothers. Their lair of sorts.”
“Not exactly subtle.”
Helgate shrugged. “Hiding in plain sight. You can take my curricle. Your vehicle is too... notable. Word might reach Talbot if you are spotted exiting a carriage with his crest on it.”
Oliver inclined his head. “Much obliged.”
His friend turned to the young Talbot. “Care to see my stables while we ready the carriage? I have a mare that just gave birth to a foal.”
The boy jumped to his feet. “Yes! I love baby animals!”
Oliver watched the two strode from the drawing room. It was the first time he’d glimpsed the pure delight of a child in that boy. He even had a slight skip in his step.
He turned to Lady Louisa. “You enjoy the beach?”
“I can’t say I do, I can’t say I don’t,” she answered thoughtfully. “I’ve never taken a walk on it before. But the view is quite breathtaking.”
“You’ve never taken a stroll on a beach?”
“Well, no.” Her gaze flicked to him then back at the ocean. “I’ve never had the urge, honestly. Now, I might develop one.”
“Then I shall accompany you for a stroll,” the words left his mouth before he could think better of it. He cleared his throat to cover the growing discomfort. “Sometime.”
Her smile gave way to a light chuckle. “All right. But only after we retrieve the book for you.”
He leaned against the window pane and crossed his arms. “You could have washed your hands of the book. There was no need to join me, so why did you?”
The smile slipped from her lips, and a moment of silence stretched before she said, “That’s right, I do have a reason, and I would like some answers from you. I had almost forgotten about it. Camilla. My stepmother.”
Oliver stilled. “What about her?”
“You made a comment about her. Subtle, but the more I think about it, the more I think you are hiding something from me.”
Ah, yes. He had done that. He hadn’t thought she would catch it. What else had she picked up on? Was she aware of her stepmother’s secrets? Did she know more than she let on? “I am not hiding anything, Lady Louisa. I simply choose not to tell.”
“Which, of course, is your right, but when it comes to my stepmother, I want to get to the bottom of every nuance.”
You and me both, angel.“Understood.”
“Well,” she pressed. “Are you going to tell me or not?”
Oliver hesitated. If he told her, it would be yet another gamble. “The truth may not serve you well. She is your stepmother, after all. Your father’s wife.”
“Be that as it may, I should still like to be the judge of that.”
As she should be. But what abouthisjudgment? It seemed every moment in her presence whittled away at it. Still, he chose to admit, “The betting book is proof of a criminal organization with dealings in smuggling and will reveal the involvement of many aristocrats.”
