Marcus cleared his throat, deeply uncomfortable.
“No, of course there wouldn’t be any difficulty here. I mean, there is not any trouble of any sort usually, of course, but it is always wise to be careful.”
He knew that he was blabbering, attempting to make sense of a situation where he had no understanding whatsoever, but what else was there for him to do?
Again, the man chuckled.
“Yes, I suppose that’s true, but I’ve got no knowledge about whether or not youarereally friends of this Lord Penforth. If you are friends, then he should have told you that we don’t do names around here.” His smile faded, a darkness flashing across his expression as he lowered his head just a little, glowering at them both. “Which I think means you’d both better be leaving.”
At that very moment, a door to Marcus’ left opened and, shortly after that, Lord Penforth stepped out. There was nowhere for Marcus and Lord Trevelyan to hide. Lord Penforth’s eyebrows lifted, and he blinked in obvious surprise. Taking a second, Marcus lifted his chin, thinking silently to himself that he ought to take hold of the man’s surprise and use it to his advantage.
I must appear confident.
“Penforth.” Aware that he had only two choices – one being to admit that he had arrived here unexpectedly and did not know what to expect at the present moment, or the other to feign confidence and make it quite clear to Lord Penforth that he was in control of this moment. He chose the latter, intending to state quite clearly that Lord Penforth had failed to tell Lady Almeria the truth, and to make it quite clear that Lady Almeria would know of all Lord Penforth had done. He took a breath. “I knew you would not be suitable for Lady Almeria. Now I have the proof.”
Lord Penforth made his way toward Marcus and Lord Trevelyan, his eyebrow lifting as everyone else in the establishment continued to watch them.
“And what business have you following me?”
“I have every business,” Marcus announced firmly. “You know that I am closely acquainted with Lady Almeria. I now come to make certain that you are not about to do whatever you can to steal her away. She is the daughter of a Marquess, and no doubt has a great dowry - a substantial fortune which will come with her when she marries.Youshall not have your hands upon any of it.”
Much to Marcus’ disconcertment, Lord Penforth chuckled.
“Yes, I shall.” Coming closer to him, he tilted his head. “I do not think that there is anything you can to do prevent it either.”
“You have a great deal of confidence for a man who has just been discovered in one of the gambling dens here in the East End.” Lord Trevelyan snorted, clearly as irritated as Marcus. “What sort of young lady would willing attach themselves to a gentleman such as you?”
Lord Penforth tilted his head, now only a few steps away from Marcus.
“A young lady such as Lady Almeria, would ‘willingly attach themselves’, as you say it, so long as they did not know anything about this particular situation.” He shrugged. “It is not as though you know the specifics of this situation and thus, she shall not either.”
Marcus snorted derisively, ignoring the rattle of unease in his chest.
“And what makes you think that I will not tell Almeria of this? Regardless of whether or not I know precisely what has taken place, I know where we are and what this place is.” Lord Penforth opened his mouth, but Marcus continued quickly. “You know very well that I am already to tell her that you did not send those bouquets. How glad I am to know that you will not be able to pretend anything more, that you won’t be able to invent some excuses about why you are so very much in love with her that you simply had to do such a thing as lie about the flowers! She will know precisely the sort of gentleman you are, and I will be glad to see you separated.”
“So that you might take my place.” Lord Penforth tilted his head, his eyes glittering. “Do not think me a fool. I did not believe a word of your statement that some other gentleman gave those bouquets to Lady Almeria, for I am certain that it was you.Youare the one who is in love with Lady Almeria, and the one who did not have the boldness to tell her so!” Chuckling, he grinned at Marcus, no trace of doubt in his eyes. “This is not about the fact that you think I am unsuitable for her, but rather that you regret your lack of courage.”
Drawing himself up, Marcus lifted his chin, ignoring the heat building in his frame.
“I will not be drawn into any sort of discussion about my character, rather than looking at you and what you have done.” His jaw tight, he looked away to Lord Trevelyan. “You have been discovered in lies, you have been found here and I have Lord Trevelyan with me. He can attest to what we have seen, even though, no doubt, you will do nothing but lie about what you were doing here. Thankfully,” he finished, bolstered with confidence now, “Lady Almeria trusts me.”
“It is not about my own circumstances that I might choose to lie.” Instantly, Marcus’ confidence began to falter. “I might choose to lie about both youandLord Trevelyan, in fact.”
Marcus frowned, about to say that there was none here except for the ruffians who sat around the tables, only for the door to his left to open again and, much to Marcus’ horror, he saw three other gentlemen come out to stand in the room. Their eyes flicked to him, but none came forward, all standing stock still just outside the door.
“So you see that I am firmly in control.” Lord Penforth laughed softly, coming even closer to Marcus and putting one hand on his shoulder as he looked him straight in the eyes. “There is your choice, Lord Coppinger. If you tell Lady Almeria what you have discovered of me, then the lies I shall tell about youandLord Trevelyan will spread like a furious fire through society – with my words encouraged by the other gentlemen I have here.” He lifted one shoulder. “Oryou can stay silent, and allow my pursuit of Lady Almeria to continue without hindrance.” After glancing over his shoulder, he looked back at Marcus with a lifted eyebrow. “Now, might I suggest that you depart and think upon your choice? These gentlemen are soon to join me, and I should think it unwise for you to linger.”
Marcus was not a gentleman to be afraid, but looking around the room and seeing all of the other men sitting at tables, as well as the gentlemen standing to the side, watching the conversation with great interest, he felt himself falter. There was the chance that this might soon become an all-out brawl should he linger, for his own temper was already flaring. He was not about to let Lord Penforth win, however, and thus he stood exactly where he was. He was angry – angry that Lord Penforth thought he could do such a thing as this, could treat Almeria with such disdain – and when Lord Penforth laughed, his temper grew hot. It felt as if fire billowed within him, sending smoke into his veins as he lifted one hand and knocked Lord Penforth’s hand from his shoulder with great force.
Lord Penforth’s smile immediately shattered
“I have every belief that Lady Almeria will believe me, should I tell her everything,” he stated, furiously, his voice low as Lord Trevelyan put a calming hand on his arm. “She and I are as close as we have ever been. She knows me. She trusts me, and she believes what I say. There is nothing she would hold against me. If I tell her that what I say is the truth, then you can be certain, Lord Penforth, that she will not doubt even a single word.”
Marcus smiled grimly, believing that such a statement would foil Lord Penforth’s grand plan. He was rather taken aback when the man simply shrugged.
“Be that as it may, would you really have her attach herself to a gentleman whose reputation will be quite ruined?” Lord Penforth tilted his head, his eyes gleaming. “For that is what you would be doing, Lord Coppinger – ensuring that your own reputation is entirely ruined. Even if you told her the truth, she would be all too aware that thetonbelieved something entirely different about you, given what I and my friends will say. Do you really think that her father – being a Marquess – would allow his daughter to wed a scoundrel such as yourself?”
The air seemed to grow thick as Marcus stared at Lord Penforth, feeling as though he had slipped over the edge of a precipice, and was now clinging to the top for dear life. Trying to push a little confidence into himself, he took in a deep breath and set his shoulders.
