Free Miss Mischief - A Regency Romance by Kate Harper Page A

gentleman spoke up, still with that undercurrent of weary amusement in his voice that grated on Marcus’ nerve ends. ‘Having traveled extensively myself, I can attest to the fact that Miss Claybourn far outshines any of the ladies I have so far encountered. Having come to know something of her, I can assure you that she is as sweet natured as she is lovely.’
    The lady herself seemed far from pleased with this compliment but she said nothing, merely giving a small shrug and a smile.
    ‘Very nicely said,’ Mrs. Howeth said dryly. ‘And now, if we’ve got nobody else waiting in the lobby, perhaps we can get on with tea. It’s past three and I’m in need of a cup of something to sustain me.’
    ‘Quite right,’ Sir Antony said hastily. 
    Before Miss Claybourn went to find her own seat, Marcus met the girl’s gaze and was disconcerted to see a new, speculative gleam in those brown eyes. His uneasiness returned. The last thing he needed was a chit like that taking an undue interest in him.
    He was not looking for romance. Indeed, he had taken to wandering because he wished to postpone all thought of his future. Marcus had no desire to marry a girl he could give nothing to, so marrying for money was out of the question. He would become the worst kind of cliché. More than that, such a union would be so far away from what he had once envisioned for himself that it was easier to reject it out of hand than to explore the possibility. The truth was, Marcus had no idea how he was going to come about but he was determined to do so by his own means, not somebody else’s. He owed his heritage an heir but that same heritage had been so badly eroded that he was at a loss to know how to regain ground. It was easier, for the moment, to simply wander. He could not lose himself forever but he was young enough to know that the future could surely wait for a time.
    It must. His time in France had taken more from him that he had originally thought and, while the dreams might fade, the experience itself still had a hold on him. It would not be that way forever but it was that way now.
    As Johanna Claybourn took a seat, he comforted himself with the knowledge that this was only a brief interlude and soon, he would be on his way. He had met some curious characters in his travels but the Claybourns certainly ranked among the most unusual and Johanna, with her glorious looks and demented suitors probably took the prize. He wondered if the silly fools understood that, in their enthusiasm for gaining her favor, they might very well injure themselves or the object of their desire.
    It has nothing to do with me , he told himself firmly. Johanna Claybourn is the kind of girl that will always find herself embroiled in peculiar situations, either through her own doing or somebody else’s. But I will be gone within the hour and this meeting will become nothing more than an amusing encounter. Mock stick ups and pistols at dawn? Millie, I daresay, will be delighted by the whole thing.
     
     
    ‘Good afternoon, Mrs. Esk, good afternoon, Pricilla,’ Johanna said politely, finally greeting the two other guests who were sitting around the low table. Finding one of the local families present was not unusual, for her suitors often badgered their mothers into paying a social call. James, drat him, must have pleaded half the morning to make Mrs. Esk agree for the lady did not really care for Johanna and would be quite happy if her son’s suit was rejected, no matter how large a dowry she might possess.
    James gave her the sickly smile of a man far gone in the throes of puppy love and she sighed inwardly. ‘Are you feeling quite the thing now, Miss Claybourn,’ he inquired anxiously.
    ‘I am perfectly well, thank you James.’
    ‘I was frightfully worried,’ he confided, leaning forward a little. His mother, Johanna noticed, had not been particularly overset by the possibility of her young acquaintance having met trouble. She had probably been