‘Certainly not,’ Quinn snapped. ‘Do I look like her mother?’
‘No,’ the Russian agreed. ‘But you pick up stray lambs, do you not? And she is one.’
‘I picked you up, and you are not a lamb, are you?’ You appear to think you are my conscience, damn it.
‘No,’ Gregor said. ‘I am a wolf, and you are my friend. So what are we going to do about the lamb?’
‘Nothing,’ Quinn said, meaning it. ‘This is not the Mani, or the middle of Anatolia or the backstreets of Constantinople. We prove her innocent and that is that.’
He dug in his pocket as they reached the steps to his front door and pulled out the key. Gregor dogged his heels in through the front door.
‘We sort out Tolhurst,’ Quinn said over his shoulder. ‘I continue to acquire invitations to polite gatherings until I get in a position to corner Langdown and then I fight the duel. After that—’ He turned and found himself face to face with Celina, still dressed in her youth’s clothes, but bareheaded.
‘You do what?’ she demanded.
Chapter Seventeen
Over Quinn’s shoulder Lina saw Gregor beating a hasty retreat. The front door slammed, leaving them alone. ‘I’ve sent the staff to bed,’ she said, blocking the way to the stairs. ‘Why on earth do you want to fight a duel? Who with?’
‘Langdown, Sheringham’s son,’ Quinn said. She thought for a moment he was going to pick her up bodily and set her aside; instead he turned into the drawing room. Lina followed.
‘After ten years?’
‘It is a matter of honour. I wanted to fight and he would not. I was left with the choice of staying in England, branded as a seducer of an innocent young lady, or leaving the country. They took my good name, spat on my honour, tore up my career and my plans with as much conscience as they would have in swatting a fly. Now I will challenge Langdown and he can refuse and be branded a coward or he can give me my satisfaction.’
‘He might give you your death,’ Lina retorted. Her stomach felt as though she had bolted ten of Mr Gunter’s ices one after the other. How could he risk everything like that?
Then she made herself think about him, and not about how she felt, and understood the gnawing anger and shame of that old scandal. This was a man for whom truth and honesty were vital. His instinct was to protect women, to care for the weak and defenceless, and he had been branded a man who would ravish an innocent and abandon his own child.
‘I am too good for him to kill me,’ Quinn said arrogantly, glaring down his nose at her.
‘He might be better,’ she pointed out, unable to let it go.
‘I doubt it.’ He walked away to the sideboard and splashed brandy into a glass. ‘Forget that, there is something more important. I am sorry. I should have believed you when you told me you had no choice but to go to Tolhurst.’
As apologies went, Lina thought, pushing aside her fear about the duel, she had heard more gracious ones. He was probably tired; although he hid it well, he seemed to have his head filled with a half-dozen intricate plots all at once and he was not used to having to apologise for anything. Timid Lina of a few weeks ago would have been grateful for the expression of regret and would not have dreamed of challenging a man about his plans.
This new Lina threw herself down in a big winged chair and curled up, momentarily distracted by how comfortable the loose trousers were. ‘You had your preconceptions about me. It doesn’t matter now.’ But it did, and the fact that it had taken her aunt’s words to make him realise the truth stung. She was probably being unreasonable—after all, she had lied to him about who she was, what she was, why she was there—but she did not feel in the mood to be fair.
She tipped her head back, shook her hair straight and began to plait it into one heavy braid; it gave her something to do with her hands other than hitting him, or dragging him to her for a kiss. Quinn was silent while she worked, brooding into his brandy glass as he leaned against the sideboard. Lina tied the end of the plait with her handkerchief for want of anything better.
‘You want to begin your return to society with a scandal?’ she demanded.
‘It has a pleasing symmetry to it. I left it with one, after all.’ He knocked back the brandy in one gulp and put the glass down. ‘I will deal with Reginald Tolhurst by the end of the week. Makepeace, too. When that is straightened out with the authorities you can emerge as Miss Shelley once more, so it is probably best if you are not seen with Gregor or me. My courtesan idea is not a good one, not now I realise the truth of your situation.’
‘I stay here, hiding away while you two superior males deal with the situation?’
‘Yes.’
‘And then what am I supposed to do?’ Lina demanded.
‘You can hardly go back to The Blue Door, not now your circumstances have changed, so you had better return to Dreycott Park for the remainder of the six months and then you will have your thousand pounds and can do what you want.’
A few weeks ago that would have seemed like a miracle. Now the prospect made her miserable because Quinn would be here, living his new life, far away in every sense of the word, and she wanted to be with him, always. Which was impossible. He was a baron who was about to recover his reputation, provided he survived this insane duel he was plotting; her only hope of respectability was to retire to some out-of-the-way market town and trust that her cheque
red past never caught up with her.
‘Thank you,’ she said blankly.