Page 55 of The Matrimonial Advertisement

Finchley lifted his brows. “Have you?”

“It’s what I’ll swear to.”

“The answer is no, then.”

“Does it make any difference? Glyde and Hargreaves mentioned something about Helena lacking the ability to consent.” Justin paused. “My God, Tom.” He ran a hand through his hair in a burst of frustration. “Is this marriage even legal?”

Finchley’s face grew serious. “It is, even without consummation. But there’s nothing to prevent them from arguing that it’s not. And winning that argument too.”

“She’s frightened to death.”

“And well she should be. That uncle of hers… He won’t scruple to have her put away.”

“All because of the money her brother left her.”

“That’s the crux of the matter,” Finchley said. “It’s no small sum, Justin.”

“Why the hell does he need it? Didn’t he inherit all of the property? Helena mentioned estates and hunting lodges and the like.”

“The income from the estate isn’t enough. Not for a man like Castleton. He has debts, apparently. He might manage well enough if he retired to the country, but he’s a man who likes to cut a figure in town. Lavish balls, fine bloodstock, a yacht on the Thames. His lifestyle is luxurious by any measure. And the expenses…well. Suffice to say that the earl has every reason to want his niece—and her money—back in his clutches. And given his status in society, there’s little anyone can do to stop him.”

Justin stared into the fireplace for a long moment. He was close enough to feel some of the warmth from the burning coals. But he didn’t feel it. The prospect of losing Helena left him cold to the heart. “It’s a mystery to me why you ever involved yourself in this affair.”

“I wouldn’t say I involved myself. I never sought Lady Helena out. She simply answered your advertisement.” Finchley hesitated. “Or, rather, her companion answered it.”

“But you met her, didn’t you? You must have done. She speaks highly enough of you.”

“Naturally I met her. You don’t think I’d send a lady all the way down to Devon to marry you sight unseen?”

Justin was silent.

“Well, I wouldn’t,” Finchley said. “Lady Helena came to my office some days later. She wasn’t exactly what you had in mind in terms of a wife, but she was exceptionally fine. And an earl’s daughter, too. You can’t do much better than that. Except for a duke’s daughter, or the daughter of a marquess, I suppose. But there’s not many of them who’d consent to marry a man like you, I’m afraid.”

“Helena was desperate.”

“True. She’s also kind and intelligent and—”

“Yes, yes, I’ve heard your recitations,” Justin said with a scowl.

“My point is, you would never have been content with an average woman. Some part of you has always believed you were entitled to something more. It’s what’s driven you for the whole of our lives.” He paused for a long moment. “Besides, I think it would do you enormous good to successfully rescue a female from harm.”

Justin glared at him. He didn’t know whether to be outraged or amused. “If rehabilitating my self-image was your goal, you might have chosen a female I’m actually capable of saving.”

Finchley shrugged. “There’s some minor difficulty, certainly, but nothing that can’t be resolved if we employ a little ingenuity.”

“Some minor difficulty? Is that what you call it?”

“Yes, well…” A fleeting expression of embarrassment passed over Finchley’s face. “The fact is…I didn’t fully comprehend the extent of the business until after Lady Helena had already departed for Devon.”

“What?”

“I was working on a case. Quite fascinating, really. A dispute over a right of way which turned on a novel theory of law. When Lady Helena arrived to meet with me, I was in the process of finishing my brief. I may have been a bit…distracted.”

“Too distracted to ask why an earl’s daughter was answering a matrimonial advertisement?”

“Give me some credit,” Finchley said. “I did ask. And Lady Helena’s answers—and those of her companion—seemed more than sufficient.”

“What did they tell you?”