A Kiss With Scandal (Scandals & Secrets 4) Read Online Free PDF Page A

switched topics. Gulping down punch with unladylike haste, she didn’t care what he thought of her in that moment. She needed to get away from him, from his searching comments and contemplative stares.
    She choked, spluttering punch into the cup. “Forgive me, my lord, but I believe I have promised the next dance to another.” She shifted under his gaze.
    He passed the glass between both hands a moment before setting it on the balustrade. “Lady Charlotte, I apologize, but there is no other way I can ask this. Is it possible you misplaced your glove instead of spilling punch on it? I would understand if there were reasons for keeping the truth to yourself.”
    Lead pooled in her stomach, rooting her in place. “Of course not. Why would I need to tell a falsehood if I had lost my glove? There is nothing wrong with that.”
    A breeze tousled her hair. The perspiration on her skin froze. She couldn’t tell him the truth. Even if he hadn’t been in that sitting room, if she told him, if she told anyone what she’d heard, it was possible that they’d confide in someone else, and from there she would be found out. If she kept it to herself, she would be safe.
    His jaw clenched before he looked out to the garden. “Forgive me. I did not mean to upset you.” He bowed in apology. “Allow me to escort you inside.”
    Why was he backing off so easily? “Thank you.” She hesitated giving him her hand, but there was no way to refuse without being rude. Doing so would only further his curiosity.
    For the next few hours she would dance, laugh, eat, and be merry. She would be the affable debutante everyone knew her to be. And when she arrived home and locked herself in her chambers, she would fall apart. But only then.
    With a final bow, Viscount Lawrence left her near the refreshment table and walked away without looking back.
    He would never know what she’d witnessed. Neither would anyone else.
----
    D erek studied Lady Charlotte from a column along the edge of the ball. She appeared as every young lady should. No one would find anything wrong with the way she held herself, danced, flirted. But Derek saw what others didn’t. Candlelight from heavily laden chandeliers softened her features. Below the sweetly curved lips was strain. Behind twinkling eyes, worry. She glanced over her shoulder for the third time during her dance with Lord Harold, assessing the floor like a hunted creature.
    Oh, yes. She had been in that sitting room. She’d heard something that scared her. And she should be scared. He knew what these people were capable of. He had seen too many lifeless bodies, too many lives destroyed because of their deeds.
    His fists clenched. He had witnessed the misery a handful of people could spread to dozens. Husbandless wives, fatherless children. Statistics, mere numbers to the War Office. But not to him. He had seen too much for detachment. He had seen those lives torn apart. The horror of knowing you would never see a loved one again.
    He was done with that, with this life. And Lady Charlotte was the key. He was sick of knowing what others hid behind a thin veneer. Once he locked away those responsible, he would be free.
    But he’d made a mistake tonight. Coming to her so directly, blatantly asking about her glove spooked her. He’d calculated the risks, acted, but it had not yielded the results he’d expected. He needed her trust, but fear held her back. He had to push past that. Only then would he get what he needed.
    Assured she was partnered for the next set, he slipped into the library, confiscating a crisp sheet of vellum and a quill before scribbling a note. No arrests. We have a witness. He sealed the note with his ring, knowing his news would disappoint, but at least there was a glimmer of hope.
    His servant and friend, Henry, found him outside the library, pocketing the letter without a word. Derek had learned long ago to have a trusted man with him at all times. With the corrupt vein that ran through