didn’t let her finish. ‘And I was starting to think you were only a little bit eccentric. Why would you carry these things around?’
Her smile faded, and she replied coldly, ‘I was trying to sell them, clearly.’
‘Did the man offer you any money at all?’
She shook her head. ‘He didn’t quite know what to make of them.’
‘I shouldn’t think so. What do you think they’re worth?’
‘I don’t know. Next to nothing.’
He returned the object to the bag. ‘More than that, surely.’
She shrugged. ‘I…I’m going home now.’
He didn’t pass the bag back to her. ‘But I thought I was going to help you.’
‘How can you possibly help me?’
His answer didn’t come readily, suggesting he had no more idea than she. ‘Well…some advice, maybe. Perhaps you could sell these things to a collector? Someone with an interest in antiquities? You won’t find anyone who wants to buy them around here.’
She sighed unhappily. ‘A collector wouldn’t want them, either, since they’re not really old.’
‘No? Then why are they broken?’
‘They were broken to begin with, to make them look more, um…authentic.’
‘I see.’ He was looking at her curiously, and she suspected he didn’t see at all. ‘You mean they’re forgeries.’
She didn’t want to say the words. She just nodded.
‘You told the man they weren’t real, I trust?’
She frowned at him, not liking the implication. ‘Of course. I’m not dishonest.’
He reached into the bag and removed the red morocco case. ‘What about this necklace? Are the pearls real?’
She nodded. It was the last nice thing she owned, and it was more valuable than many of the things she’d already sold. She’d held on to it for personal reasons, but she could no longer afford to be sentimental.
‘It is yours, I hope.’
‘Are you suggesting I stole it?’
‘Did you?’ he asked.
She wanted to be angry, but it was a perfectly reasonable question. ‘It was a gift. It is mine to do with as I like.’
He nodded. ‘In that case I would be happy to buy it from you.’
She took the necklace from his hands and returned it to her bag. ‘I do not think it will become you.’
‘No?’
There was a lilting, teasing note to his voice, but she was entirely serious—serious and, now, getting angry. ‘No. I will not accept your charity. You’ve just met me and you needn’t feel you have to help me.’
‘It isn’t charity,’ he protested.
‘Oh? What use have you of my necklace?’
‘You needn’t sound so incredulous. I’m sure I can find someone to give it to.’
‘Who?’ she demanded, but then she immediately blushed, realising how naïve her question sounded. A man like him undoubtedly had about five mistresses, if not a wife.
‘I wouldn’t have to look that far. I could give it to you, for one.’
‘To me?’ She didn’t quite understand what he was proposing, probably because all rational thought was quickly slipping from her mind. All she knew was that he suddenly seemed every bit as dangerous as the man who’d been following her that morning, and the boy who’d tried to rob her. More dangerous, in fact, at least to her sense of self-preservation.
‘Yes,’ he said softly. ‘I’ll buy it from you, and then I’ll give it back. As a gift.’
‘That’s unnecessary. I…I must return now.’She rose and started walking back the way they had come.
He caught up a few seconds later, taking the bag from her when he reached her side. ‘You’re remarkably stubborn, you know.’
She didn’t turn her head to look at him. ‘If that bothers you, then you may leave. I know precisely where I’m going, so I can walk on my own.’
‘I’m far too stubborn m’self.’ He caught her hand, forcing her to stop. ‘And I would like to buy your necklace. I don’t see why you’re denying me, since it’s clearly for sale. And, if you promised not to be difficult about it, then I’d even be happy to allow you to keep it. Perhaps it has special meaning for you?’
It did. It had belonged to her mother. There was pity in his eyes, and she hated it. ‘Then that would be charity, sir.’
He frowned. ‘You needn’t worry that I would expect anything in return.’
That just made her blush. She started walking again. ‘It’s very expensive.’
‘How expensive?’
‘Two hundred pounds,’ she said, hoping the outrageous price would end the subject. She glanced at him sideways.
He raised an eyebrow, but otherwise showed little reaction. ‘Yes, that does seem rather dear.’
‘Well, I’m sorry—’
‘Would you settle for fifty pounds…’he was patting his jacket’s inner pocket as if looking for something ‘…and sixpence?’ He extracted a coin.
She stopped to stare. ‘You don’t travel with that sort of money.’
He smiled. ‘No, I tend to rely on credit. I think the sixpence would be about all I could manage at the moment.’
‘You think I’d give you my necklace for sixpence?’
‘A mere deposit. You can come to my house and I can give you the rest.’
Go to his house? No. ‘Your offer is too high.’ She resumed walking.
‘It’s considerably less than you requested.’
‘I wasn’t serious!’
He sighed. ‘Yes, I rather realised that. But I thought the object was to sell everything in this bag, and you’ve so far failed miserably. You’re clearly in need of money, or you wouldn’t be here.’
Isabelle ignored his point. He was right: she really was a fool. He was offering her the money she needed—much more than she’d hoped for—and yet she was refusing. Why? ‘I don’t need money that badly…I’m looking for employment, you see, and I only need enough to tide myself over until
