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not let down her guard entirely. The business that lay ahead of her was too important to be handled carelessly. She had taken risks before, but this affair was far and away the most dangerous scheme upon which she had ever embarked.
    It would be worth it, she assured herself. If all went as planned, the profits from the venture would enable her to alter her destiny yet again. She would be in a position to move into Society and at last obtain everything that she had craved so long.
    The only obstacle in her path was Howard. She must not underestimate him, she thought.
     
Chapter Three
     
    "This has certainly been my day to come face-to-face with persons from my past," Lavinia said. "First my encounter in Pall Mall, and then the visit with Howard Hudson. I hasten to assure you that the two men occupy entirely different positions in my esteem."
    They sat together on the stone bench in the artful and quite artificial Gothic ruin that Tobias had discovered years ago. The architect had no doubt intended the graceful structure, with its elegant pillars and charmingly decayed walls, to be used as a place of quiet contemplation. But he had made the mistake of situating it deep in a remote, overgrown section of the large park, and as a result, the public had never taken an interest in it. The fashionable world, after all, came to the park to see and be seen. They did not come in search of privacy and seclusion.
    Tobias had come across the ruin in the course of a long walk and had adopted it as his own private retreat. Lavinia knew that she was the only other person he had ever brought here to share it with him.
    He had made love to her here. The memory swept through her, stirring a volatile brew of emotions that she had never even dreamed she was capable of experiencing until she met Tobias. Nothing about her association with him was simple or straightforward, she thought. On the one hand, he was the most infuriating man she knew. He was also the most exciting gentleman of her acquaintance. Just the act of sitting here close to him sent little whispers of intense awareness through her.
    She did not know yet what to make of their unusual association, with its complicated mix of business and passion. But she did know that life would never again be the same now that she had formed a connection with Tobias March.
    "Who was he?" Tobias asked.
    She fussed for a moment with the skirts of her gown, purchasing some time to pull her thoughts together.
    "It is a long story," she said eventually.
    "I am in no hurry."
    There was no delicate place to begin. And she knew Tobias well enough by now to realize that he would not give up until he had his answers. In addition to being the most infuriating and most exciting man she had ever met, he was also the most single-minded, persistent, and stubborn.
    She may as well get on with the explanations. It was the only way either of them would get home before dark.
    "You may recall that I mentioned an unfortunate incident in the North."
    "Yes."
    "The gentleman I glimpsed in Pall Mall this morning is connected to the incident. His name is Oscar Pelling. The reason I was late arriving home was that I was somewhat rattled by the sight of that dreadful man. I stopped in a tea shop to fortify myself and settle my nerves."
    "Tell me about this Oscar Pelling."
    "The long and the short of it is that he accused me of being responsible for his wife's death." She paused. "He may well be correct."
    There was a short silence while Tobias dealt with that blunt statement. He leaned forward, rested his forearms on his thighs, and loosely clasped his big hands together between his knees. He studied the tall weeds that formed a green screen around the ruin.
    "He blamed your mesmeric treatments?" he asked.
    "Yes."
    "Ah."
    She stiffened. "Pray, what does that comment signify, sir?"
    "It tells me why you gave up the profession two years ago and turned to a variety of other careers to support yourself and Emeline. You feared