One Week To Wed. Laurie Benson

was glad Lady Charlotte would not be staying at Knightly Hall long. If he had to continually dodge Mrs Knightly’s comments about her friend, it would get exhausting. ‘I assure you the noises and disturbances are kept to a minimum. All the gentlemen who have sets there are very respectful of each other’s privacy and comfort.’

      ‘Is it true women are not allowed on the premises?’

      Mrs Knightly must have interrogated Toby about him. He wondered what else she knew. Due to the secret nature of his work, her investigations on him were not welcome even though Toby was not privy to that part of his life. He glanced at his friend, who only gave him a slight shrug.

      ‘Yes, that’s true. Women are not permitted in the building.’

      ‘What a fine way to ensure no wickedness takes place within its walls. The residents must be all very honourable men, wouldn’t you say, Charlotte?’

      Lady Charlotte nodded, but her attention was on the contents of her teacup. She really had taken a poor measure of him.

      His life was all about nobility and honour—protecting the Crown by sacrificing a life for himself. Regardless of what she thought of him, he knew his life was consumed by noble actions. Hell, one of the reasons he was up here was because ensuring order was so important to him, he couldn’t stop.

      And why did it even matter to him what she thought?

      He had lost his appetite and had no desire to make polite conversation, but he knew he was now forced to sit there until everyone else was finished with breakfast. And by the amount of food on Toby’s plate, that could be quite a while. He would just make certain when they all left the room, he would avoid Lady Charlotte for the remainder of her time at Toby’s house.

      Once the roads were deemed passable she would be gone. While he had no doubt the Duchess of Skeffington was seeking out his presence in London, he also knew Lady Charlotte couldn’t get away from him fast enough. In a few days, he would barely recall the green of her eyes and those soft lips. She would be a faint memory of this trip, if that.