the way.”
With Christian following along behind, Anthony soon found himself lost in the labyrinth of the big house as Lisette took him through to the more private areas.
“Here we are, my lord.”
Anthony stepped through a doorway into a lavish suite of rooms decorated in pale silver and cream. A table stood in front of the fire laid for three, and an elderly woman rose from the couch to curtsey.
“Good evening, my lord. I’m Mrs. Smith-Porterhouse, Lisette’s chaperone; I’ll be in my room if anyone needs me.”
Not an assignation then if Lisette’s chaperone was nearby. Anthony wasn’t sure if he was relieved or disappointed. Despite their age, the sexual antics of the Delornay twins were already legendary. Had he hoped to find an escape from Lord Minshom with them? He doubted they’d be able to stand up to the force of his lover’s acerbic personality, but they were Helene’s children after all.
“Lord Anthony?”
He bowed, aware that he’d been staring at Mrs. Smith-Porterhouse for far too long.
“My apologies, ma’am, I was woolgathering. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“And you too, sir.” Mrs. Smith-Porterhouse nodded at Lisette. “I’ll be back in a while to check on you, my dear.”
Lisette looked resigned but not surprised. Anthony reckoned she still had a remarkable amount of freedom for an unmarried woman, but she wasn’t exactly a young lady of the ton. As far as he understood it, her social position was far more ambiguous.
“Please, sit.” Lisette headed for the table and Anthony moved to hold a chair out for her. “Thank you.”
He waited until Christian sat too and then took his place between them. To his surprise, he was actually hungry, so he settled down to enjoy his dinner before entertaining any thoughts about what the twins wanted from him and what he was going to do about it. The Delornays were surprisingly cultured and amusing compared to his younger siblings, and he found himself enjoying their wicked gossip and banter.
By the time the remnants of the second course were removed and he nursed a large glass of brandy in his hands, he was feeling quite benign toward them. He waited until the last servant withdrew and fixed his gaze on Christian.
“Thank you for an excellent dinner. Now what exactly did you want to discuss with me?”
Christian exchanged a quick glance with Lisette. “We wish you to give us your word that anything we talk about goes no further, regardless of the outcome.”
Anthony raised his eyebrows. “I’m not known as a tattletale. Of course, I’ll keep your secrets.”
“Good, then we wish you to help our sister, Marguerite.”
Anthony put his glass down. “Your sister? I didn’t even know you had a sister.”
Lisette smiled. “She doesn’t live with us and, in truth, she is only our half sister. She had a different father.”
Were they referring to Lord Knowles’s legitimate children? “An Englishman?”
“Non, we assume he was French. Marguerite is older than us. She is twenty-three.”
“But your mother seems scarcely old enough to have given birth to you two, let alone another child.”
Both of the twins glared at him, and he held up his hands. “I apologize. That is none of my business—I hold your mother in the highest regard.”
Christian cleared his throat. “Anyway, Marguerite needs help, and we think you are the right man to provide it.”
“Me?” Anthony laughed. “I doubt it. What exactly does she need? And please don’t tell me she is looking for a husband.”
“Marguerite is a widow. I doubt she’d want to marry you. That’s why we want you to help her.”
Intellectually, Anthony understood that no sane woman would want him in his present state, but it pained him to hear it spoken out loud. He struggled to keep his tone even. “I don’t understand.”
Christian smiled. “She doesn’t want anything. She stays in her house and doesn’t go out in case anyone starts gossiping about her.”
“And what am I expected to do about that?”
Lisette sat forward, her hands clasped together on the table top. “We want you to squire her around town, take her to balls, picnics and concerts, and make her smile again.”
Anthony stared at them. “Excuse my bluntness, but why in God’s name would you think I’d do any of that? I’m not exactly known as a ladies’ man.”
“We know—why do you think we’re asking for your help?”
“Now I’m completely at a loss.”
“I overheard some of your conversation with my mother this morning,” Christian said carefully. “You said that you wanted to change.”
Anthony’s smile disappeared. “I don’t appreciate being spied on.”
“I apologize, but it was unintentional. I wasn’t expecting anyone except my mother or her lover to be in her boudoir at that time in the morning.” Christian hesitated. “If you truly want to change, helping Marguerite might be beneficial to you. At least it might give you an opportunity to step away from a lifestyle which has obviously become abhorrent to you.”
Anthony fought the temptation to smash his fist into Christian’s calm face. But it was past time to face the truth, and Christian was repeating only what Anthony had realized for himself. However, it still stung to be judged by a mere youth.
“Your mother would not consider me a fit partner for Marguerite. I’m not sure that I do myself.” He held Christian’s gaze. “You know what I’m like; you know I’m usually involved with men.”
“That’s exactly why we think you’ll be perfect for Marguerite. She’s not ready to have a real sexual relationship with anyone. She’s still ‘in love’ with her dead husband, but she does need to gain some experience with a man, and you will be perfect.”
“But your mother will still object.”
Lisette smiled. “Then we don’t tell her.”
“She knows everything that goes on here. I hardly think my gallivanting around with her daughter will escape her notice.”
“But you won’t be here, will you? You’ll be escorting Marguerite to a different kind of place entirely. And don’t you want to keep away from here, anyway?”
Anthony studied Lisette’s face. Was it possible to change his life that easily?
“Excuse me for asking this, but if you two are not considered socially acceptable, how will your sister get away with it?”
Christian looked amused. “We are respectable. We just don’t choose to embrace that particular environment.
