Nicholas.
He jerked his gaze onto Wylst. “Where did you hear that?”
The baron smirked. “You are not the only gentleman Easton does business with.”
Jo’s fingers flexed on Nick’s arm. He looked down at her in inquiry, but she stared straight ahead.
“Cumberland, I believe is the name of the company,” Wylst said. “He plans a year’s trip to the orient. Should be quite lucrative.”
Nicholas made a mental note to decline investing in the company. If Easton was fool enough to involve Wylst, he wanted nothing to do with the venture.
“It looks as though you and I will be partners,” the baron went on.
“I cannot see how.”
Wylst looked surprised. “As investors in Cumberland, we will be partners.”
“If you are looking for a company where you can take an active role, you have made a mistake with Cumberland. Easton is looking for silent partners.”
“So he is telling most of the investors he approaches,” Wylst replied. “But he is looking for two equal partners as well. He tells me you are one.”
Nick lifted a brow. “I do not intend to go into the shipping business.”
Wylst frowned. “Easton is under the impression you are committed.”
Nick gave Wylst a cold smile. “Then he is as mistaken as you.”
Chapter Seven
Josephine squinted against the morning sun at her mother, who, up ahead on the road, rode a dark chestnut alongside Miss Jane Halloway. This last week, the girl’s parents had paraded her around like a piece of horsemeat for sale—an apt analogy, as far as Josephine was concerned—and Jo had the impression she was relieved to have a quiet day away from any eligible gentlemen.
Jane’s father led the group along with Lord Deeds. They were eight in all and, once the woods gave way to sparser trees, they would leave the road to picnic along the banks of loch Ness.
For Josephine, the only thing she liked about their outing was Lord Wylst’s absence. He, along with Nicholas and her father, had remained at Barthmont Keep. A day free of the three men had been worth the price of her mother’s company.
The sun shone through clouds that reminded the god of light that even its great power could not penetrate the clouds’ airy density should they deign it so. But Jo had lived in Inverness all her life, and knew these clouds would not rain today, despite their show of power.
She had brought a copy of James MacPherson’s translation of Ossian and hoped to lose herself in the poetry. But she feared her mind would return to Lord Wylst and his command that she marry Nicholas. After hearing the baron talk business with Nicholas last night, she feared part of his reason for wanting her to marry Nick was that he felt the connection would give him entry into Nicholas’ world of finance. That possibility terrified her even more than him trying to blackmail her for Nick’s money.
Her heart broke anew. She hadn’t deluded herself. She knew from the moment Wylst appeared in her life she had to get Nick to call off the marriage. But she hadn’t quite let go of the joy she felt upon signing the contract. Nicholas was right. She had fancied herself in love with him since the age of thirteen. That girl’s fantasy grew into a woman’s desire and Nick’s return resurrected the feelings she had convinced herself were dead. And now the baron threatened to expose the truth if she didn’t marry Nicholas. She saw only one solution. She had to get rid of Lord Wylst, and she knew of only one way.
The party turned a bend in the road and Jane’s cry shattered Jo’s thoughts. A carriage blocked the road. Beside the team, a mounted man aimed a gun at the driver. A second highwayman stood and pressed a gun to a young man’s back, while a third brigand—a giant of a man—gripped a woman’s arm. The group froze, all eyes on Jo’s party. Fear lodged in Josephine’s throat.
“By God,” Lord Deeds cursed, and yanked a pistol from the waistband at his back.
“He has a gun!” the
He jerked his gaze onto Wylst. “Where did you hear that?”
The baron smirked. “You are not the only gentleman Easton does business with.”
Jo’s fingers flexed on Nick’s arm. He looked down at her in inquiry, but she stared straight ahead.
“Cumberland, I believe is the name of the company,” Wylst said. “He plans a year’s trip to the orient. Should be quite lucrative.”
Nicholas made a mental note to decline investing in the company. If Easton was fool enough to involve Wylst, he wanted nothing to do with the venture.
“It looks as though you and I will be partners,” the baron went on.
“I cannot see how.”
Wylst looked surprised. “As investors in Cumberland, we will be partners.”
“If you are looking for a company where you can take an active role, you have made a mistake with Cumberland. Easton is looking for silent partners.”
“So he is telling most of the investors he approaches,” Wylst replied. “But he is looking for two equal partners as well. He tells me you are one.”
Nick lifted a brow. “I do not intend to go into the shipping business.”
Wylst frowned. “Easton is under the impression you are committed.”
Nick gave Wylst a cold smile. “Then he is as mistaken as you.”
Chapter Seven
Josephine squinted against the morning sun at her mother, who, up ahead on the road, rode a dark chestnut alongside Miss Jane Halloway. This last week, the girl’s parents had paraded her around like a piece of horsemeat for sale—an apt analogy, as far as Josephine was concerned—and Jo had the impression she was relieved to have a quiet day away from any eligible gentlemen.
Jane’s father led the group along with Lord Deeds. They were eight in all and, once the woods gave way to sparser trees, they would leave the road to picnic along the banks of loch Ness.
For Josephine, the only thing she liked about their outing was Lord Wylst’s absence. He, along with Nicholas and her father, had remained at Barthmont Keep. A day free of the three men had been worth the price of her mother’s company.
The sun shone through clouds that reminded the god of light that even its great power could not penetrate the clouds’ airy density should they deign it so. But Jo had lived in Inverness all her life, and knew these clouds would not rain today, despite their show of power.
She had brought a copy of James MacPherson’s translation of Ossian and hoped to lose herself in the poetry. But she feared her mind would return to Lord Wylst and his command that she marry Nicholas. After hearing the baron talk business with Nicholas last night, she feared part of his reason for wanting her to marry Nick was that he felt the connection would give him entry into Nicholas’ world of finance. That possibility terrified her even more than him trying to blackmail her for Nick’s money.
Her heart broke anew. She hadn’t deluded herself. She knew from the moment Wylst appeared in her life she had to get Nick to call off the marriage. But she hadn’t quite let go of the joy she felt upon signing the contract. Nicholas was right. She had fancied herself in love with him since the age of thirteen. That girl’s fantasy grew into a woman’s desire and Nick’s return resurrected the feelings she had convinced herself were dead. And now the baron threatened to expose the truth if she didn’t marry Nicholas. She saw only one solution. She had to get rid of Lord Wylst, and she knew of only one way.
The party turned a bend in the road and Jane’s cry shattered Jo’s thoughts. A carriage blocked the road. Beside the team, a mounted man aimed a gun at the driver. A second highwayman stood and pressed a gun to a young man’s back, while a third brigand—a giant of a man—gripped a woman’s arm. The group froze, all eyes on Jo’s party. Fear lodged in Josephine’s throat.
“By God,” Lord Deeds cursed, and yanked a pistol from the waistband at his back.
“He has a gun!” the
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