Page 27 of Lord Gabriel’s Undoing

Mattie huffed. “Of course he has, you goose. Why do you think he’s asked you to go walking in the park with him?”

Amongst other things, because he wanted to keep her sweet, that was what, and prevent her from giving him up to the authorities. The penalties for robbery were harsh, whatever the destiny of the funds raised from it. He could easily end up hanged. Or even transported to Botany Bay as a convict. The thought of all the dangers he faced thanks to his predilection for helping himself to things that weren’t his sent a cold shiver down her spine.

But she didn’t say any of that. “I think he’s just being polite.” If only he wasn’t, though. She would more than like it if he’d asked her out because he liked her. It might even be sufficient to make her change her vow never to marry, which of course had been made before she realized what true love was like. Indeed, the more she thought about him, the more she was inclined to think she might indeed be in love. After all, try as she might, she couldn’t stop thinking about him.

But she wasn’t about to reveal that, for the thing she feared most was being disappointed and people knowing she was. That would be entirely too embarrassing and she had no intention of making a fool of herself. And besides, one could not be disappointed if one never allowed oneself to hope.

All the same, her heart was pitter-pattering in anticipation and she couldn’t prevent it from doing so.

In the end, Lord Gabriel managed to make his arrival without either Phoebe or Mattie spotting him from the drawing room window. Phoebe was just resigning herself to the conclusion that he wasn’t coming, when Bowles announced him quite unexpectedly, and he stepped into the room looking as immaculate as he’d done the day before. However, the bruises on his face had now darkened to a frightening blue and black. His eye, however, was not quite so closed up.

Fresh guilt surged, but Phoebe pushed it away. He had deserved it, and any other person disturbed in the middle of the night like that might well have shot him dead. So in a way, he’d been lucky she hadn’t had Papa’s old pistols under her bed.

He swept a bow that encompassed all three of them. “Lady Brockwood, Lady Phoebe, Miss Nicholson. How charming you all look. If I were not so handicapped I swear I would ask all of you to step out with me to the park. But alas, I have only one serviceable arm with which to escort a lady. So I’m afraid it will just have to be Lady Phoebe who accompanies me.”

Goodness, he was good at flattery and sweet-talking.

Aunt Fanny appeared most satisfied by his words. “Why, Lord Gabriel, you make me feel quite young again. It’s not every day a young gentleman as handsome as you are calls me charming.” She fluttered her fan. “And I must say that today you look much improved on yesterday. I hope you have sold that clumsy horse who inflicted such damage on you.”

His smile held mischief. “On the contrary, my lady, I intend to keep the horse and school it until it has no wish to do me further damage. It is a particular favorite of mine and a very beautiful creature. It would be a great shame to see it sold.”

Phoebe was not such a fool as to be unable to work out that he was talking about her. The blush rising up her cheeks could not be controlled. She glanced across at him and found his eyes dancing with further mischief. How annoying he could be. Hopefully neither Aunt Fanny nor Mattie would be able to work out the double meaning of his words. But…he’d called her beautiful. Again. Might that mean he liked her? Didn’t men only ever fall for beautiful women?

Gabriel gestured at the window with his good hand. “I fear it might rain later on, so I think Lady Phoebe and I had best go out immediately, so I can have her back here without fear of getting wet. If that suits you, Lady Brockwood?”

Aunt Fanny nodded, still managing to look as though she thought Phoebe’s success at securing a walk in the park with the second son of a duke was all down to her. “Of course. I don’t want my niece to catch a chill. Wear your warm pelisse, Phoebe dear, and take a muffler and don’t forget your gloves.”

Phoebe rose to her feet. “I won’t.”

Very shortly, Phoebe found herself in the street outside Aunt Fanny’s house in the required pelisse, bonnet, muffler, and gloves. Behind her stood Atkins, also well wrapped up against the chilly day, and by her side stood Gabriel, who had donned a smart beaver hat. If one ignored his broken arm and battered face, he could be said to look very elegant. The picture of a dashing young man about Town.

As usual, there was no sunshine to be seen, but at least it wasn’t raining. Yet. Although she would have wanted to go even if it had been a torrential downpour. Aunt Fanny would never have allowed it, though.

Gabriel held out his left arm to her and she tucked her hand into the crook of his elbow with far more confidence than she’d done at the ball. Here, with just the two of them, as one couldn’t count Atkins, it felt far more natural. Not to mention that being on his left side meant that she couldn’t see the damage she’d done to his face. In fact, all she could see when she peeped up at him was his rather noble and handsome profile, and the curl of his golden-brown hair where it poked out from under his hat. Very satisfactory.

With Phoebe casting the odd longing sideways glance up at her escort when she thought he wasn’t looking, they set off up the street heading westwards towards Hyde Park, with Atkins tucked in six paces back, as Phoebe had commanded. Although Atkins had been with her such a long time, she had no doubt that under pressure her maid would recount everything that had gone on during the walk to Aunt Fanny, who had all the skills of the Spanish Inquisition.

Once on South Audley Street, Gabriel opened the conversation. “A good idea to keep your maid at bay.”

Phoebe nodded. “I would have done it for anyone, but as you and I no doubt have matters to discuss that would give Aunt Fanny the vapors, I thought it more than wise to relegate Atkins to a distance. She’s a faithful servant, but I fear Aunt Fanny would get the better of her.”

He nodded. “Although she’s probably imagining we want privacy for quite another reason.”

Phoebe’s heart sank a little. Not that she’d been hoping for him to be cherishing any romantic notions about her…or rather, she had been hoping, but she’d known it was impossible. She was small, with boring brown hair and eyes, and the only thing about her that would attract a gentleman would be her inheritance. Perhaps she should be pleased that Lord Gabriel, even with his stated requirement for money, was not using this walk to press his suit. Or maybe she should be sad he wasn’t, as it might be the only way she could win him. And winning him was something she would very much like to do.

“I suppose so,” she said, a little despondently, as she watched a curricle bowl past them, presumably on its way to the park. It was being driven by a gentleman who had a young lady by his side, her face wreathed in smiles. No sign of a chaperoning maid for her though. Phoebe mused over asking Gabriel if he had access to a similar vehicle. One that had no room for Atkins.

“You will be happy to know that those jewels you so kindly presented me with will provide my orphanage with enough wherewithal to keep my original house going and go a long way to setting up the second one I’ve acquired. It’s to be in a house that came up on the same street. So Violet will be able to run both establishments. Which is just as well, as I’m rather out of action for the next couple of months regarding house breaking. One usually needs two arms for that.”

“I’m most pleased for you.” In fact, she was pleased on two counts. Pleased that she’d been able to contribute towards the orphanages, and pleased he would not be risking his safety by carrying out any other robberies.

They walked a little further. Now she’d been alerted to pay more attention to the less well-dressed on the street, Phoebe’s attention was caught by a small boy standing on the street corner holding a tray of bootlaces. Every so often, he called out hopefully to passersby to look at his wares, but seemed to be having little success.

Curious, Phoebe watched. She’d probably passed children like this many times without a second glance, but now she felt it beholden on her to take a better look. The boy’s thin face and hands were clean, but his faded clothes were threadbare and worn and his boots had holes in the toes.

As she watched, a woman stopped and, after a moment’s consideration, took a set of laces from the child and handed over a single penny in payment. That wasn’t going to buy him much. Not that Phoebe had any idea how much food cost. Ribbons and fripperies, yes, but not food.

“That child,” Phoebe said, “would he be an orphan of the rookeries? The sort you might try to save?”