Fully determined to give him a proper tongue lashing, she looked into his deep-blue eyes… and melted. Sadness mixed with awe washed over her as the rays of the sun fell over his face, making him more handsome than ever. She wished to touch his cheek and tell him what a shame it was that he was so vile. That his good looks had been wasted on such a disgusting man.
That she would allow him one more kiss so she would be able to relish it forever. A gift to remind him of what he would never have.
But she had never been that brave, so instead, she said, “We are here to stroll. Why else do people come to the park?” She gave him an innocent smile. “Is that not why you are here?”
He swallowed visibly and nodded. “Oh yes, well, I just completed my walk, but would you like me to join you in yours?”
“No thank you,” Louisa replied. “Miss Lockhart and I have matters to discuss. Of a feminine nature.” She gave him a wicked grin. “But perhaps another time.”
He bent his head a fraction. “Then I’ll leave the two of you alone. Oh, and concerning dinner tomorrow evening. I’ve yet to receive a reply.”
Louisa considered what to do. Having dinner with Sir Aaron was the last thing she wanted to do. But a new thought came to mind. She now had information that would cast aspersions on his name. Perhaps if she accepted his invitation, if she asked the right questions or searched the right areas, she could learn more. And then use said knowledge to end his silly idea of funding a gentlemen’s club.
“I’ll be ready at four as you requested,” she replied, batting her eyelashes.
Sir Aaron bid her farewell. Louisa watched him walk away. Yes, this dinner would prove to be a wonderful way to find more to use against him. Then the theater would be saved, and the vile knight would be run out of the village. Let him find another village to terrorize!
But even as she considered this, the very thought of hurting him, even after all she had learned thus far, left a bitter taste in the back of her throat.
ChapterThirteen
The sun’s rays lit up the dining room at Hearsely Estate, highlighting the occupants of the table. Miss Dunston sat at Aaron’s right, and beside her was Miss Lockhart. But Aaron took little notice of the redheaded companion.
He took a sip of his wine, allowing him a moment to admire the lovely features of Miss Dunston. Her honey-blonde hair gleamed, and her soft blue eyes shone. Not for the first time, he considered how perfectly shaped her face was. Even her slender nose had been crafted to perfection.
She and Miss Lockhart had arrived some twenty minutes earlier. Although they exchanged polite greetings, Miss Dunston had remained otherwise quiet, which had raised his suspicion. The otherwise opinionated and outspoken young woman had never been this reserved, not in the time he had known her.
Cutting into his duck, Aaron lifted a bite to his mouth only to find her gaze upon him. Her eyes glimmered, not in the usual flirtatious manner she tended to use but rather in a knowing way. She was hiding something, and he was determined to learn what that something was.
“How do you find the meal this evening, Miss Dunston?” he asked. “Is it adequate?”
She placed her utensils on the plate and said, “Most adequate. The mint sauce complements the meat quite well.”
“I’ll be sure to pass that along to the cook. She’ll be pleased.” Taking a final bite of his food, he motioned to one of the footmen to take away his plate. “You are unusually quiet this evening. May I be of assistance in any way?”
Dabbing at her mouth with a napkin, Miss Dunston lifted her glass to her lips. When she pulled the glass away, her lip held a lovely pout.
This had been one of the reasons Aaron had invited her to dinner—so he could feast upon her beauty. His other motive had been to use his good looks and charm to convince her to drop the silly competition.
Granted, they had agreed to postpone their bout, but their arrangement to postpone any gathering of funds would soon come to an end. A fine dinner and expensive wine would be the perfect way to loosen her inhibitions, to weaken her stubborn mind, thus quashing any further resistance on her part.
Aaron snapped his fingers, and a footman hurried over to refill her glass.
“I heard a terrible story earlier this week,” Miss Dunston said, pausing long enough to give the footman a small nod of thanks. “It seems a well-respected man in the village ignores his son. An illegitimate son, to be sure, but a son, nonetheless. What’s worse, the boy is forced to sleep in the stables as a form of punishment.”
“How awful,” Aaron said, taken aback. “What kind of person would do such a thing?”
Miss Dunston sniffed. “Only the most despicable person in all of England.” She wore a tiny yet odd smile. “One who must believe himself better than the King himself to be so cruel.”
The footmen cleared the remaining plates and returned to their places along the wall, but Aaron paid them little heed. He was missing something, an important detail of some sort, but he could not seem to work it out. And that was not like him.
“You have a lovely home,” Miss Dunston said. “May I have a tour? Maybe beginning in your study?”
Did she always leap from subject to subject in such a jarring manner? Aaron would have thought she would have received better training at that school she attended. Well, what did he know of that particular establishment? For all he knew, it was less renowned than others. Given their faulty instruction, it was no surprise why.
The house was grand, far grander than the school. Plus, if he was to change her way of thinking, granting her request would put him on the right path.
With a wave of his hand, the footmen hurried to pull out the chairs for the young ladies.