that you, Miss Marguerite? Are you looking for your mother?”
“Good evening, Judd.”
Marguerite smiled at her mother’s butler as he gestured for her to come farther into the warm homely kitchen of the pleasure house. In truth, her mother was the last person she wanted to see. Helene had a gift for knowing exactly what Marguerite most wanted to hide, and she had plenty to conceal at the moment.
“Madame is away at her other house tonight. Do you want me to send her a message?”
“No, don’t disturb her. I just came to see my sister.”
Her mother rarely left her business to spend time at the townhouse with her husband, Lord Philip Knowles, the twins’ father. The last thing Marguerite wanted to do was interrupt their evening together. Although Philip was involved in the establishment, she knew he was often frustrated by Helene’s insistence that they keep their marriage secret. And if she sent a message, Marguerite knew her mother would always come.
“Miss Lisette was in the main salon with Captain David Gray. Do you wish to go up to the pleasure house or shall I ask your sister to come down to the kitchen?”
Marguerite swallowed hard. “No, I’ll go and find her.” She hesitated by the door. “I don’t suppose you have a mask I could borrow, do you?”
“Of course, my lady. I’ll go and find you one. Do you have any preference as to color?”
By the time Marguerite was masked and following Judd up the stairs, her heart was pounding. One never quite knew what one might encounter at the pleasure house, and she had become such a prude. To her relief, the main salon seemed relatively quiet, the guests more inclined to relax and eat than partake in an orgy.
She saw Lisette’s blond head at one of the tables and headed in her direction. Her sister wore an impeccably cut cream satin gown that emphasized her slenderness and displayed her bosom to advantage. The man sitting next to Lisette immediately rose to his feet and bowed. Marguerite gave him a distracted smile and wondered why Lisette was spending her valuable time with him. He seemed far too ordinary to warrant her sister’s capricious attention, and rather old. She judged him to be in his early thirties, if not more.
“Lisette.”
“Marguerite, what on earth are you doing here?”
Marguerite frowned and glanced pointedly at her male companion. Lisette shrugged. “It’s all right. This is my friend, Captain David Gray. He’s known Maman forever and is completely trustworthy.”
“Ma’am.” Captain Gray bowed and then turned to Lisette. “Perhaps I should go and mingle for a while.”
“All right, but don’t forget to come back and talk to me later.”
“Of course, Miss Delornay.”
Marguerite watched him walk away and then turned to Lisette who was still smiling. “He seems like a nice man.”
“He is. Why do you make it sound like a criticism?”
Marguerite sat opposite Lisette in the chair David had vacated. “He just seems a little old for you.”
“Old for me to what?”
“You know what I mean.”
Lisette wrinkled her nose. “Marguerite you are such a prude. David is my friend, not my lover. I think he prefers men actually, but it is difficult to say.” She touched Marguerite’s hand. “What are you doing here, anyway?”
“I wanted to ask your advice.”
“Mine? Are you feeling quite the thing?”
Marguerite scowled and lowered her voice. “If you are going to laugh at me, I’ll go.”
Lisette made a presentable attempt to straighten her face. “No, I promise I’ll listen. How can I help?”
“I need to see how a woman pleasures a man.”
Lisette’s mouth dropped open. “I beg your pardon?”
“Lisette!” Marguerite hissed. “I need you to show me a room where I can watch a woman making love to a man, and you mustn’t breathe a word of this to Maman.”
“As if I would.” Lisette frowned. “Are you sure about this?”
“Of course I am. You and Christian were the ones who told me to get out more!”
“Yes, but…you seem to have progressed rather more quickly than we anticipated.” Lisette elbowed Marguerite in the ribs. “Anthony Sokorvsky must be some kind of fertility god.”
“Oh, be quiet. Can you help me or not?”
“Of course I can.” Lisette got to her feet, bringing Marguerite with her. “I know the perfect room. Come on.”
Anthony slipped into the main salon of the pleasure house and looked cautiously around. To his relief there was no sign of Madame Helene, Lord Minshom or his brother. At least he might be able to conduct his business with a modicum of decorum. If such a thing was possible. He groaned inwardly.
“Anthony?”
He turned and found Peter Howard smiling at him.
“Good evening, Peter.” Anthony gestured to the quietest corner of the room. “Thank you for coming.”
Peter settled himself in a chair and studied Anthony for a long moment. “You sound very formal. Is something wrong?”
Anthony stared at his brother’s best friend, a man he respected immensely. A man who had suffered the worst life could throw at him, and yet had not only survived, but found love.
“I need your help.”
Peter’s blue eyes narrowed. “Of course, anything.”
Anthony looked desperately around the crowded room. “Is there somewhere else we can talk?”
Peter got instantly to his feet. “Let’s go upstairs.”
He led Anthony into one of the more private rooms on the second level and shut the door.
“Now what is it? Are you in trouble?”
Anthony leaned back against the door. “Not the kind of trouble you might think, but I do need some advice.”
Peter’s charming smile reappeared. “And before you ask, I promise I won’t tell Val anything.”
“Or Madame Helene.”
“Really? Why is that?”
“Just promise.”
Peter shrugged. “Of course. Now how can I help?”
As he struggled to find the right words, Anthony started to pace the room. “I want to seduce a woman.” “So?”
