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valiant attempt to rescue yourself there at the last.”
    Silence fell, his gaze glued to the board as he studied it for some fleeting avenue of escape. At length he reached out, took up his glass of whiskey and swallowed the contents in a single gulp. Setting the tumbler down with a snap, he met her eyes. “Your game, Miss Amberley. And bravo, you are indeed a masterful player.”
    Warmth poured through her at his praise. “Thank you, my lord.”
    He shrugged. “It is nothing but the truth. Had I known precisely how good you are, I would have paid a great deal more attention to the game from the start.”
    “I rather imagine you would have,” she said in a mild tone.
    He grumbled something unintelligible beneath his breath before recovering his composure. “No chance, I suppose, that I could talk you into a best two-out-of-three on that wager of ours?”
    Her lips tilted upward as she shook her head, forcing herself not to laugh at his expression of resigned chagrin.
    “Very well. Seeing that I am a man of my word, I will honor our agreement.” Reaching for a nearby crystal decanter, he refilled his tumbler. “Since you have now won the right to be entertained each evening, I suggest we have another match tomorrow.”
    Her smile increased. “It will by my pleasure, my lord.”
    “And your downfall,” he stated. “I warn you now I shall not be so easy to defeat next time.”
    “I look forward to the challenge.”
    He huffed low in his throat. “So, where in the world did you learn to play like that?”
    Taking up a pawn, she began to straighten the beautifully carved black and white ivory pieces. “My father taught me. We had a game nearly every night for the past few years, and quite often during his shore leave in the days before that.”
    “Shore leave? Was he a sailor?”
    She sent him a quick glance. “Yes, a career officer in the Royal Navy.”
    A faint pause ensued. “You mentioned at dinner that your parents are both deceased. Was he lost at sea?”
    She moved a black knight to his side of the board. “No. Although a part of me always thought that is how he would die, leading his men and his ship in battle. But he sailed for years without serious incident. He was even in the thick of things at Trafalgar and came through without so much as a scratch. Ironic, that he passed away from something as mundane as a heart seizure.”
    Lines settled anew on Lord Cade’s forehead. “How long ago did he pass?”
    She swallowed, shuffling more pieces around in a clipped, almost automatic fashion. “Five months. As you may have noticed, I am still wearing mourning colors.”
    “And your mother?”
    “Four years last June.” She gazed toward him and forced a weak smile. “Pray do not worry that I shall burst into a messy fit of girlish weeping. I am well usedto the circumstances by now.” With all the chess pieces in their proper places, she began centering each one precisely inside its square.
    Lord Cade’s large hand came down and stopped her. She trembled, just as she had at his earlier touch, enjoying the comfort of his strength far more than she knew she ought.
    “No one ever gets used to it,” he said. “I know. I’ve lost people myself, including my own inestimable father when I was barely older than you. You have no need to dissemble with me.”
    She lifted her gaze to his. “Thank you, my lord.”
    Suddenly, as though only then realizing he was holding her hand, he drew away.
    “My lord?” she ventured after a moment.
    “Yes?”
    “Since I have told you a few rather personal details about myself, I was wondering if I might ask the same of you? Excuse my boldness, but how did you injure your leg?” As for the scar on his throat, she didn’t quite have the nerve to inquire about that—not yet, at least.
    He paused and took a drink. “In Portugal, in the war.”
    “Oh, I didn’t realize you are a soldier.”
    “I’m not. At least not anymore. A broken femur from a bullet through the