The Earl's Wager

Read The Earl's Wager for Free Online

Book: Read The Earl's Wager for Free Online
Authors: Rebecca Thomas
Tags: Romance, Regency, horse, love, Victorian, Earl, bet, Race, marriage mart, Wager, hoyden, jockey, tutor
Marsdale knows about this, or he would have told me.”
    “No, he doesn’t. The gentleman I have in mind doesn’t know yet either.” She gathered her skirts in hand and stood.
    Will set his hands on the desk, pushed his chair back, and stood as well. Excellent. This might be much easier than he’d anticipated, and he’d be that much closer to acquiring his racehorse. Although… “He doesn’t know either,” he repeated. “Maybe you might inform him or, better yet, inform me who this gentleman is you intend to marry.”
    “We’ve met and spoken. I’m hoping he’ll be at Lady Laurel’s ball.” Her gaze lingered on him innocently, and yet he was certain there was more to what she was saying. And perhaps she wasn’t quite as innocent as Marsdale would have him believe. “Perhaps you can tutor me in the ways I might capture his attention?”
    She circled him, never removing her gaze from him. What exactly was she asking? “I’m not quite sure what you mean, Miss Duvall, but rest assured I’m here to help. I found the perfect match for my sister, and I’ll do the same for you.”
    “Yes, I understand, my lord. So I’m wondering how to pique his interest. Can you answer that question, or should I ask Oliver?”
    He swallowed and narrowed his gaze. “No, no need to ask Oliver. You could talk to the gentleman about the weather, or ask after his health, or maybe you can ask if he…” Will wasn’t sure what to say. Maybe he wasn’t up to the task of procuring a match for someone other than his sister, after all, because the way she looked at him seemed to spell trouble. “If he has hounds, perhaps?”
    She blinked several times, eyeing him oddly.
    Everything about her said she was an innocent maid, but she was American. Maybe women were different there, and he just wasn’t used to their behavior. Most women—no not most, no women—who were young and unmarried ever held his gaze so long with such keen challenge punctuating a seemingly guileless question.
    Stopping directly in front of him, she peered up at him, standing inappropriately close. “I’m to ask him if he has hounds?”
    “Yes, you could,” he blurted, then cleared his throat. He took a step back, but he didn’t want her to know she confused him, so he rounded the corner of the table instead.
    “I was thinking more along the lines of flirting.” Her delicate brow arched. “How do I flirt with him—that is how I want to capture his attention.”
    He gulped. “That wasn’t what I had in mind. I don’t think it’s what Oliver had in mind either. Maybe we should sit down?” He gestured toward the damask-covered sofa and matching wingback chair. Even if she didn’t need to sit down, he did.
    Confound it. She’d managed to skillfully avoid giving up the identity of the man she was interested in marrying. When he sat on the sofa, she sat unusually close.
    “Miss Duvall, let us start now in our lessons with some things you need to know.” Was he really going through with this? His earlier optimism plummeted. “I have some experience with my sister, but since you aren’t an Englishwoman, it’s understandable.”
    “What’s understandable, my lord?” she queried.
    “For example, you are sitting too close to me.” He cleared his throat again, even though there was nothing to clear. “If I was a potential suitor, then propriety would dictate that you sit farther away from me or in the adjacent chair.”
    Her delicate eyebrows made a V, and she looked sufficiently perplexed, so Will didn’t believe she was purposely acting rash. “But if I want to see if he’s interested in me, wouldn’t I want to sit close? How else would I know if we suit?”
    “No,” he said, “absolutely not. You need to keep your proper distance.” He couldn’t believe they were having this conversation—they’d met only a few hours prior. He needed more time to prepare his lessons and made a mental note to discuss the appropriate distance when

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