fussing, Matt.’ Charlotte dimpled mischievously up at her brother. ‘I told you I could do it. It was a simple climb up the wisteria into his bedchamber. He’d left the window open, as we knew he always does, and the stupid thing was lying on his dressing chest. I grabbed it and climbed down again, in no more than a few minutes. He will never guess it was I—no one could possibly know. I shall just have to make sure never to wear the necklace in town, because if he saw it he might recognise it.’
‘I was sick with worry the whole time. You were so long. If it was as simple as that, why were you so long?’
‘Getting the necklace back was easy enough,’ Charlotte said and bit her bottom lip. ‘It was when I climbed out of the window and then over the railings into the street that I got into a bit of bother...’
‘What happened? Damn it, Charlie. Mother will kill me if I’ve ruined your chances. I should never have let you talk me into letting you risk yourself.’
‘You didn’t, you just stood there and lectured me about my morals—which is more than rich when it was you who stole the damned thing in the first place.’
‘I didn’t intend to steal from you, Charlie,’ Matt said, torn between remorse and reproach. ‘He is just such a brute...to be honest, I’m scared of him. He said if I didn’t pay the gambling debt he would approach Father and I couldn’t let that happen.’
‘No, it would have been dreadful,’ his fond sister said and smiled her forgiveness. ‘I don’t care about the wretched necklace, but if you’d asked I would have given you what is left of my allowance, and I could have told you that those diamonds were fakes.’
‘How was I to know? They’re damned good, Charlie. I thought they were real.’
‘Uncle Ben left me all his wife’s jewellery in good faith. I’m sure he didn’t know that Aunt Isobel had replaced most of it with fakes.’
‘Why do you think she did it?’ Matt asked, puzzled. ‘Surely her allowance was enough without doing such a thing to family heirlooms?’
‘I think she was a secret gambler,’ Charlotte said, wrinkling her smooth brow. She sighed and shook out her long dark hair, which had been jammed under one of her brother’s old school caps with the badge removed. They were in her private sitting room, which led into her bedchamber, and she was tired, the shock of having narrowly escaped being roughly abused coming home to her now that she was safe. ‘Mama said something about it when we had the jewels valued and realised some were fake.’
‘I feel awful about having Uncle Ben’s money now. He might have left some of it to you if he’d guessed about the jewels.’
‘That money is to buy you a commission in the army and to keep you as a gentleman should be able to live. Besides, you won’t come into it for another year and it isn’t so very much after all.’
‘No.’ He looked rueful. ‘Harding thought I was the heir to a large fortune, which is why he fastened his claws into me—but ten thousand and a small country estate is hardly a huge fortune, Charlie, and I can’t touch a penny for ages. If I’d had my own money I wouldn’t have taken your necklace. I was going to pay you back when I could afford it, and I knew you didn’t like that necklace anyway.’
‘It is old-fashioned,’ Charlotte replied. ‘Had it been real I should have had it remodelled for me, but Mama says it isn’t worth it. She says I can wear her diamonds if I have occasion.’
‘Why did you go to all that trouble to get it back then?’
‘Because if Lord Harding realised you’d given him a fake necklace to settle your debt to him, he would have labelled you a cheat and a thief—can you imagine what the gossips would make of that? My chances of making a good marriage would be lost, as would yours of joining a decent regiment.’
‘Yes...’ Matt looked gloomy. ‘I’ve been such a damned fool, Charlie. If it hadn’t been for you...’
‘It’s over and no one ever needs to know anything about it,’ Charlotte said. She thought about the man who had grabbed at her as she was passing through the park. His hands had soon discovered her secret and the thought of him touching her breasts made her feel sick, but it had been dark there in the park and she was fairly certain that he would not recognise her if they met in society. Both he and his companion had been drunk—but the man who had saved her was another matter. Charlotte knew him by sight, for she’d seen him leaving his house across the square earlier that evening, and a couple of times he’d driven by her as she was returning to their house, but they had never met in a formal way. She knew that for a moment he’d had the opportunity to look at her face in the streetlight—but had he seen enough to know her when she was dressed as a young lady of fashion? She could only hope that he had not taken much notice.
‘I hope no one will find out, for both our sakes,’ Matt said. ‘If Harding guessed it was my sister that took the necklace...he might kill me. Yet, you’re right, Charlie. He can’t know. No one can if we keep it to ourselves.’
‘I’m not about to tell anyone.’ She dimpled wickedly up at him, her eyes wide and innocent, but filled with mischief. ‘It’s over now, Matt. Go to bed and let me get some sleep. It’s that big ball tomorrow and I want to look my best. Unless I can find a husband poor Papa is going to lose everything.’
‘Why did he have to invest his money unwisely?’ Matt bemoaned the situation. ‘We were happy enough with what we had—but he thought that venture in the East would bring in a fortune for silks and spices, only the ship sank and all its cargo with it.’
‘And he didn’t think to insure it,’ Charlotte said. ‘Thankfully, Mama had some funds put by for my come out—and if I can find a rich husband he will settle Papa’s debts and all will be well.’
‘What about you?’ her brother asked, looking at her with dark brown eyes that were very like her own, except that hers were flecked with gold and his were simply dark. ‘Will you be happy taking a man just for his money? He may be years older and not at all handsome.’
‘Beggars cannot always choose,’ Charlotte said, sighing despite herself, because she had once dreamed of being swept off her feet by a tall dark prince who would carry her off to his castle and lavish her with love and gifts. ‘I shall hope for the best. And not all rich men are old and fat.’
‘No, I suppose there are a few eligible young men around, if you can find one. A man would be a fool not to marry you if he were rich and single.’
‘You are my brother and prejudiced in my favour.’ She gave a gurgle of laughter and then darted at him, giving him a peck on the cheek before pushing him towards the door. ‘Go, before we wake everyone and they come to see what’s going on. I want to get out of these things before anyone but you has the chance to see me.’
Locking the door behind him, Charlotte went into her bedroom and glanced at herself in the long cheval mirror. A mischievous grin curved her mouth as she saw that she made a fetching youth. No one would know she was a girl unless they happened to touch her in the wrong places, which one of those horrid men had done. They hadn’t seemed to care whether she was a girl or a youth, but were intent on having their way with her in the park either way. And would have done had she not kneed one of them in his privates, leaving him yelling in anger and pain as she made it as far as the gates. However, they would probably have caught her again had it not been for the viscount—Captain Jack Delsey.
Charlotte had
