A Most Improper Rumor Read Online Free PDF Page B

voice, the lilt of her laugh?
    All he knew was he was truly in trouble because he had no idea how to be in love. And yet it had happened.

Chapter 4
    T he rain tapping at the window matched the rhythm of his fingers drumming on the table. Christopher Durham, Baron Lowe, restlessly picked up his glass of wine and drained it.
    One more word and he might explode.
    It would be ill-advised, reckless, and not appreciated from any quarter, but it still might happen. Usually he prided himself on his self-restraint, but this particular conversation was sorely testing that resolve.
    “She’s
deliciously
dangerous, if you ask me.” One of the men currently sitting at the card table actually chuckled after he said the words. “Given the opportunity, I’d fuck her and take my chances.”
    Christopher’s hands rolled into fists.
    “I don’t disagree, but word has it the Dark Angel is entirely unavailable.” George Harris, who was actually a friend, tossed in several coins to the pile on the table. “The return to London hasn’t changed that. The exquisite Lady DeBrooke remains aloof.”
    “I think I’ll raise you, Forsythe.” His hand wasn’t particularly good, but if it was possible to divert the conversation, Christopher wished to do so.
    The money lost would be worth it.
    “I don’t know if I would deem her unattainable.” The fourth man was older, his demeanor smooth, and Christopher didn’t know him all that well. “Care to make a wager on it? After all, she’s a widow, and given some latitude, younger women are not. Mayhaps she wants a lover.”
    “I might just be tempted to take your money,” one of the other men said cheerfully.
    She
has
a lover and this is going entirely too far
.
    Christopher folded his hands on the baize and said with lethal sincerity, “I thought we were gentlemen, and that means we do not wager on compromising a lady’s virtue, nor do we seek her out to win such a bet. If any of you enter this into the books at Whites’, I will take distinct umbrage and call you out. Understood?”
    Unfortunately, he rather thought they did understand and when even with his less-than-perfect hand he won the round, as the other two excused themselves, George remained, eyeing him thoughtfully. “You are moody tonight and I am sitting here asking myself if it is the inclement weather or the topic at hand. I’m inclined toward the latter.”
    “It’s been damned dreary,” he muttered, gathering his winnings.
    “That it has.” George wisely didn’t pursue it. “More claret?’
    “No, thank you. I’m leaving.”
    “It might be best.”
    “What the devil does that mean?”
    “I’m not going to argue with you.” George lifted his hands in supplication, his grin crooked. “You’re surly and it isn’t in character. Whoever she is, she has you off balance.”
    Whoever she is
.
    Maybe not so off balance that he couldn’t find some humor in the situation. “What makes you think it is a woman?”
    “Because the leap to chivalry was both impetuous and heartfelt.”
    As long as no one made the obvious connection. Christopher took a moment and said quietly, “Gossip can be hurtful, and especially to women. We tend to ignore it, but they take it to heart.”
    “It is gallant of you to defend Lady DeBrooke.”
    Was there speculation in his friend’s voice? He sure as hell hoped not. He shrugged. “She was acquitted.”
    To his relief, George seemed to also dismiss the ugly rumors. “So she was. If you are departing, I might just venture into the ballroom. I’ve been avoiding it all night, but a perfunctory dance or two is in order. My father is pressing me to marry.”
    Christopher rose and nodded. Had his father still been alive, no doubt his circumstances would be the same.
    There was no inclination on his part to waltz with a debutante. He had an appointment to keep.
    * * *
    She was going to be late.
    Angelina might insist on this damnable secrecy, but she rarely kept him waiting.
    This