Free Margaret Moore by His Forbidden Kiss Page A

very close.”
    Vivienne frowned, unsure what he meant, although it was obviously not a compliment. Rather than have him explain, she addressed Lord Cheddersby again. “Does he have many clients among the king’s court?”
    “I don’t believe so, no,” Lord Cheddersby replied.
    “I should say not,” Philip seconded. “I thought I would have fleas after I left his office. Nothing but riffraff for clients. It’s a wonder the man makes enough to live on. You would think he would have been delighted to see me, but he was almost rude. He actually had the effrontery to ask some old woman if she would mind waiting while he spoke to me. I’faith, I nearly walked right out.”
    Philip’s denunciation probably meant Mr. Harding had not been sufficiently humble and deferential to Sir Philip. She also suspected that if Mr. Harding’s clientele were poor, his fees were small. No doubt that was another reason Philip had chosen him.
    “The play’s about to start,” Philip observed coldly to the young nobleman. “Should you not go to your own box?”
    “Nonsense!” Uncle Elias growled. “We have room in our box for one more.”
    “I wouldn’t want to intrude,” Lord Cheddersby demurred.
    “You won’t be,” Uncle Elias assured him. “Here, sit beside Vivienne, my lord. Sir Philip, there is plenty of room on the other side of my niece.”
    In a few moments, they were arranged as he proposed.
    Eagerly taking his seat beside Vivienne, Lord Cheddersby said, “I can tell you something about Mr. Harding that’s really rather astonishing,” he began. He didn’t wait for Vivienne’s nod of approval before continuing with awe and admiration. “Richard told me that Mr. Harding threatened him once.”
    “He threatened Sir Richard Blythe?” Uncle Elias said with a gasp of disbelief from behind them. “He’s only a solicitor. How dare he draw on a friend of the king?”
    “Oh, not with a weapon. Richard was telling me about how he reconciled with his wife and he said that he was very upset when he went to see Mr. Harding, who had made a rather serious allegation about Richard. It all was for naught, of course, because Richard wouldn’t do anything despicable, although one might believe him capable of anything if you saw all his plays and some of the characters he’s created. Really, Richard does come up with the most astonishing people sometimes.”
    Fortunately, Lord Cheddersby paused to shake his head.
    “What happened when he went to see Mr. Harding?” Vivienne asked.
    “Mr. Harding told him to sit down.”
    Vivienne’s mouth fell open in surprise, and her uncle sounded only a little less surprised. “That is all?”
    Lord Cheddersby nodded gravely. “He
ordered
him to sit down and, as angry as he was, Richard
did.
I swear, if Richard came upon me when he was enraged, I would turn tail and run. I would never dare to order him to do anything—and Richard would never do it anyway. Mr. Harding must have looked very fierce.”
    “It would take more than a verbal command to make
me
sit down,” Philip declared, “if he even possessed the gall to try to order me about.”
    “Perhaps not,” Lord Cheddersby replied as he gave Philip a dubious look. “Still, he is rather intimidating. I suppose if one saw him smile, one might think differently. Supposing he can smile, that is, and I’m not absolutely sure of that,” Lord Cheddersby confessed genially.
    She thought of the difference a smile did impart to Robert Harding’s usually stern features. No, he was not intimidating then.
    “Do you know,” Lord Cheddersby began meditatively, “I would have liked to have been a barrister, but I daresay my father wouldn’t permit it.”
    Although she really couldn’t imagine Lord Cheddersby gainfully employed, Vivienne gave him a friendly smile for the sentiment, while Philip emitted a scornful snort of a laugh.
    “You are fortunate that you do not have to work for a living,” Uncle Elias said.
    “Yes, I suppose