The Earl Next Door Read Online Free PDF Page A

six feet and more of him.
She hesitated. ‘Perhaps,’ she replied.
‘With that it seems I must be content.’ He made a low bow then rang for Figgs, and she was escorted from the room.
 
‘So that’s Kit’s sister.’ Figgs’s voice was speculative as he returned to the drawing-room, having shown Marianne out.
‘It is.’ Lord Ravensford, standing by the window, was watching Marianne as she drove away in her rustic cart. She made a lovely figure, sitting erect as she skilfully handled the reins, her cloak reflecting the blue-grey of the sky and her black ringlets cascading down her back.
'And you weren't tempted to tell her?' asked Figgs.
'What? That I am a friend of her brother's, and that I am here to give Kit any help he needs in rescuing his beloved Adèle from the revolution in France ? That her brother did not need money to pay gambling debts as she supposes, but that he needed it to mount the rescue attempt, and that even now he is on the other side of the Channel, facing God knows what perils in order to bring Adèle safely back to England?' he asked with a wry smile.
'Any of that. Or all of it,' Figgs said. He had lost the deferential look of a servant and was now talking to Lord Ravensford with the air of a comrade in arms.
Lord Ravensford's eyes lingered on Marianne until she was out of sight. ‘No,' he said, reluctantly turning away from the window and giving his full attention to Figgs. 'I gave Kit my word that I would not tell her anything. He does not want her to worry, and she would be sure to do so if she knew where he was. Even so, I wish I'd known who she was from the outset. I should have guessed, I suppose, but I hadn’t imagined her to be anything like that. Somehow I had the impression that Kit’s sister was a large-boned, mannish woman —’
‘Because Kit told you she’d be able help her father with the estate whilst he was away,’ Figgs suggested.
‘Probably so,’ Lord Ravensford agreed. ‘I certainly never imagined such an intriguing beauty, with such a delightful figure or such gentian-blue eyes. But that’s no excuse. I should have guessed who she was, or at least guessed who she might be. Particularly once she revealed we were neighbours. Then, if not before, I should have had the idea at the forefront of my mind. It isn't like me to get so carried away.’
‘What’s done is done,’ said Figgs practically.
Lord Ravensford frowned, settling himself in a Sheraton chair.
Figgs sat down opposite him.
‘Perhaps,' Lord Ravensford said. 'But it’s unfortunate all the same. I’d planned things quite differently. I was going to be charming and respectable at our first meeting. I have promised Kit I'll keep an eye on his little sister whilst he is away,' he said. 'And since I've arrived I've been even more determined to help her. I know Kit said she would be able to help her father with the running the estate whilst he was in France , but according to the local gossip Mr Travis has turned into something of a recluse since Kit’s departure. He has taken it hard and has retreated to his room, where he nurses his grievances. He rarely comes out, and Marianne has been left to run the estate by herself. I wanted her to feel she had a friend in me; someone she could turn to if she needed any help, so that if the burden of running things at Seaton Hall became too great she wouldn’t have to feel she was alone. ’
Figgs nodded. ‘As we have to be here anyway, to be a back up for Kit, so to speak, it makes sense for you to keep an eye on Marianne. We don’t want Kit returning home to find her on the brink of exhaustion from looking after the estate - he has enough troubles.’ He looked around the room thoughtfully. ‘It’s lucky we were able to rent this place. It’s ideal: right next door to Kit's home, and with its own coves and beaches so that if we're needed we can put a small boat out to sea without attracting too much attention. And, once Kit's rescued Adèle, we can help him