A Little Mischief (28 page)

“But how many of them left something behind.”

They started walking again. “I’m not aware of anyone other than Gretchen and the owner of the handkerchief you found. Speaking of which, what did you find out about the handkerchief?”

“If we don’t count the married ladies and the widows who attended Lord Gleningwold’s party, we have one young lady with the exact initials as the ones on the handkerchief.”

“And she is?”

“Amanda Leanne Wright.”

Daniel frowned. “Are you sure?”

“I had her write her complete name for me.”

“She’s so shy she won’t even hold her head up when she speaks to you.”

“I know. She is in my Reading Society, and I’ve been trying to get her to hold her head up and talk more. There are other ladies with the first initial of
A
and last of
W
that I can check on and find out if their middle initial is
L
, but all of them are either married or widowed. Before I do that, there’s something else we need to consider.”

“I know,” Daniel said. “Amanda’s brother was also at Lord Gleningwold’s party.”

“And he could have helped her remove the body from the garden.”

Daniel nodded as he raked his hand down his chin. “But what possible motive could she have had to stab him?” he whispered angrily.

“Maybe Mr. Throckmorten was secretly courting her as he had been Gretchen. Perhaps he had promised to offer for her and decided not to. There are many reasons a woman can be upset with a man.”

“But enough to kill him?”

“Oh, yes,” Isabella said with a sweet smile. “Perhaps she was jealous.”

Daniel looked at her with such a grim expression on his face that she had to laugh.

“Do you find this funny, Isabella?”

She tried to wipe the smile off her face. “No, of course not,” she admitted, before realizing he was holding back a smile, too. It pleased her that he had seen the humor in her comment even if he wouldn’t admit it.

“There is also the possibility that her brother killed Mr. Throckmorten. Perhaps Mr. Throckmorten was accosting Amanda and her brother stabbed him to save her.”

“With a knife he just happened to pick up in the house before he went out into the garden?”

“That does seem a bit too convenient, doesn’t it?” she admitted.

“He owed Throckmorten money, but compared to most men’s debts, it was a small sum.”

“Men have been killed over small sums before.”

“I don’t like even thinking about the possibility that Miss Wright or Tom might be mixed up in this in any way at all.”

“Because you wanted him to offer for Gretchen’s hand?”

“Because I consider him a good man. I merely hinted to him if he’d like to call on Gretchen I wouldn’t object. And he has called on her. I can’t say she’s smitten, but that might happen.”

“Yes, but I’ve also seen her watching Sir Harry Pepperfield.”

“Watching him? Really? I know they’ve danced, and he called on her yesterday.”

“What about Mr. Cummerford? She simply glows whenever he is around.”

“Mmm. She’s always adored Chilton. But she looks at him as another brother.”

“You think so?”

“I’m sure of it.”

The back door opened and Isabella watched Mrs. Dawson hand a letter to Auntie Pith, but Isabella didn’t let that distract her from what she and Daniel were discussing.

“I tried talking to Amanda yesterday when she was here for our Reading Society. I mentioned Mr. Throckmorten’s name, but she didn’t say anything. She just excused herself.”

“That’s very different from the way Bradford and Chilton acted. They were quite comfortable talking about the man.”

“What about the other men who are listed in Mr. Throckmorten’s journal who were at Lord Gleningwold’s party?”

“I’m letting the runner I hired check into the backgrounds of those men.”

“Mmm.”

“That sounds dangerous, Isabella.”

“What?” she asked.

“Mmm. Usually means that you are up to something I don’t want to be involved in.”

“No. No.” She shook her head. “No, but I was just thinking.”

“I knew it. If you were thinking, that means you want to do something you shouldn’t be doing.”

“Nonsense.”

“Isabella?”

She stopped as they neared her aunt. “Well, look how much we’ve already discovered by doing things we shouldn’t be doing.”

“And look at the risks we’ve taken to accomplish them.”

“And not once have we gotten caught.”

“Our luck is bound to run out.”

She looked into his eyes. She truly loved being with him, talking to him, arguing her point with him. Did that mean she loved him? And what could she do about it if she did?

Softly she said, “I’m not unhappy about anything we’ve done, are you?”

His eyes seemed to float across her face as if he were memorizing it. “No, I can’t say I am.”

“So, do you want to hear my idea?”

He took a deep breath. “I might as well,” he finally said.

“I think you should invite Mr. Wright, Amanda, and me over to your house for tea.”

“Isabella, I can’t invite you for tea. A bachelor asking a young lady for tea would be scandalous.”

“You must keep your voice down.” Isabella looked over at her aunt, who looked as if she might actually be reading the letter that she’d received.

“It’s dangerous, too. Do you realize I can hardly keep my hands off you as it is? If you were in my home, there’s no telling what I might do.”

Isabella knew Daniel was trying to frighten her, but his words had just the opposite effect. Her breathing increased rapidly, and she felt this wanting anticipation low in her stomach.

“Do you want to kiss me, Daniel?”

“Hell, yes, Isabella.” Daniel looked away from her for a moment and then back again at her face. “You don’t have to ask. You know I do. I’m glad your aunt is sitting out here with us so for once I can behave like a proper gentleman.”

“But I love it when you are a rogue.” Isabella smiled as warmth spread down her chest to her stomach and curled low and hot in her abdomen. “I’m glad you want to kiss me.”

“I’m not. It’s difficult enough as it is to restrain myself without you continuing to remind me how much I want to take you in my arms and—”

He didn’t finish his sentence. He didn’t need to. Isabella knew what he meant.

“We should go back to what we were discussing.”

“Yes. I was saying it will be perfectly fine for me to be at your house with Amanda and Mr. Wright there. I assume you have a housekeeper, and your manservant will be there as well. And of course, I’ll bring my maid. We’ll make it work, Daniel.”

“Maybe it would if I invite Gretchen and Aunt Mattie or if we had it at the house in Mayfair.”

“Well, you could invite your aunt and sister, but I feel if there are too many people there, Mr. Wright and Amanda won’t feel free to open up and talk to us about Mr. Throckmorten. I think it is best that we leave it as just the four of us.”

“Even if I agreed to this, what could we say to them? We can’t come right out and ask them if they had anything to do with killing the poor man.”

“Of course not.”

“But if we managed to gain their trust, one of them might open up to us. What we really want to do is eliminate them as suspects, as you have Mr. Cummerford and Mr. Turnbury.”

“Why do I find it so hard to say no to you?”

Isabella smiled at him.

“All right, I’ll be in touch later in the week.”

Isabella and her aunt walked into the house with Daniel, where he was handed his hat, cloak, and gloves before taking his leave.

As soon as the door closed behind Daniel, Auntie Pith turned to Isabella and said, “Come sit in the parlor with me, Isabella. Mrs. Dawson will be bringing us in a cup of tea.”

“All right, Auntie. A cup of tea sounds marvelous right now.” She was so happy she would be seeing Daniel again.

After her aunt had settled herself in an upholstered wing chair and Isabella on the settee, her aunt smiled and said, “I told you Lord Colebrooke would be back to call on you, didn’t I?”

“Yes, but, Auntie, you know he continues to see other young ladies as well.”

Auntie Pith sighed and folded her hands in her lap. “But he always comes back to you. There is a reason for that, my dear.”

Yes, there is a reason, but it’s not what you think.

Isabella remained quiet because Mrs. Dawson walked in and placed the tea tray on the table between them. Auntie Pith dismissed the housekeeper and poured the steaming tea into delicate china cups with large yellow flowers painted on them.

She handed a cup to Isabella, and she sipped the hot liquid. There was nothing more soothing than a cup of tea after a rousing discussion with Daniel. Every conversation with him was stimulating and far more invigorating that any tonic she had ever taken.

“I have some news I think you will be happy about, Isabella,” her aunt said as she relaxed with her cup in her hand.

“What’s that, Auntie?” she asked, half listening.

“Did you happen to notice that I received a letter while you were talking to Lord Colebrooke?”

“Yes.” Isabella sipped her tea again.

“It was from your father.”

Isabella’s hand stilled in midair. “And what did he say this time, Auntie? Is his son worse? Is his wife with child again? What excuse does he have now for not returning to London?”

“Actually, he has none. His letter states he will be here within the month.”

Isabella’s cup rattled as she placed it in the saucer. “You jest.”

Auntie laughed softly. “No, my dear, I do not. What you have hoped for is coming true. Your father is coming for you.”

“To stay for the remainder of the Season?”

“Well, he didn’t say those exact words, but I’m sure he is. He has been waiting for his son to be well enough to travel, and that has happened.”

“Oh. It is wonderful to hear that his son is well. I’m glad about that.”

“Why don’t you seem happy?” Concerned, Auntie Pith placed the teacup on the table in front of her. “I thought you would be thrilled to see him again.”

“I am. I will. I’m shocked. I just never thought it would happen.” Isabella hesitated as a pressing weight settled on her chest. “You don’t think he will want me to go back to the country with him, do you?”

“Well, I don’t know. He didn’t say anything about his plans, but no, I don’t think so. I know what he wants is for you to wed.”

“But you’re not sure that he doesn’t plan to take me with him?”

“Well, I can’t be sure, Isabella. I haven’t talked to him, but I would think he’d want to spend some time with you since he’s been gone so long. And perhaps the country would be better for his son.”

Leave Daniel? Leave London? The tea roiled in her stomach. She couldn’t bear the thought of leaving either. What would she do? She wasn’t twenty-one yet. Could she deny her father and stay with her aunt? Isabella set her cup on the tray and rose from the settee.

“I didn’t expect this news to upset you.”

She looked down at her aunt. “No, it hasn’t upset me,” she fibbed. “If you don’t mind, I just want to be alone and think about what this means.”

Isabella walked to her room, closed the door, and leaned against it. If her father took her to the country, Daniel could be married before she returned. Suddenly tears filled her eyes, and that made her angry. She never cried and she wouldn’t allow herself such an indulgence now.

She took a deep breath.

She would deny herself the tears and would make some plans.

Twenty

“You look surprised to see me.”

“Somewhat,” Daniel said as he walked into the parlor of his town house where Chilton waited for him in one of the wing chairs. “This really isn’t a good time for you to stop by.”

Chilton rose from the chair and looked around the room as if he expected to see what kept the moment from being a good time. “You’re busy?” he asked.

Daniel hedged. “I will be soon.”

“Oh, well, no problem. What I have to say won’t take long.”

Daniel hoped not. He was expecting Isabella and Thomas and Amanda Wright within a matter of minutes. Daniel didn’t want to explain their visit to Chilton. It would be difficult enough if any members of the
ton
got wind of this afternoon tea.

He was playing with fire again, but it seemed that was all he had done since he first met Isabella. The strange thing to him was that he really didn’t mind. The more time he spent with her, the more he wanted to spend time with her.

“Can we talk about it later, Chilton? I’m in a bit of a rush to get some things done.”

Chilton eyed him warily. “Are you all right? You seem restless.”