Chapter 11
CLARK
“ W ho was that?” Miss Sharp asked in an abrupt voice.
“Who?” I followed her gaze to the window of Colin’s bedchamber, where the curtains still swung from side to side.
“Someone was watching us.” A crease appeared in her brow as she stared up at the back of the house.
Blast Colin. And he had always called me reckless.
Had he really thought he could observe our meeting without being caught?
Perhaps Miss Sharp was just as discerning as she claimed to be.
Upon inviting her to the house, Colin and I had taken as many precautions as possible to ensure that she wouldn’t suspect that there were two of us. Two Colins , as it were.
I laughed in an attempt to dispel the concerned look from Miss Sharp’s face. “Could it have been a servant? What did she look like?” I dared the question.
“I think it was a man.” Her brow furrowed again.
Well, drat. So she had seen his face. But how well?
The window was distorted by sunlight and distance.
Surely Colin’s face had been unrecognizable.
“It might have been my valet,” I said with a sigh.
“His standards are quite high when it comes to my hair. He must have been looking to ensure it survives the elements.”
Miss Sharp frowned, taking a quick glance at the sky. “What elements?”
“Sunlight.” I shrugged. We were sitting in the shade, but hopefully she wouldn’t notice. A faint breeze brushed past my skin. “Also the wind.” I knew how ridiculous I sounded, but there was no way forward but to pretend I was the preening peacock that Colin was. He was quite protective of his hair.
Miss Sharp’s lips pinched together in a suppressed smirk. I couldn’t blame her for being amused. “I should like to see you in an actual breeze,” she said. “I suspect you would lose your composure entirely.”
“I would. Most definitely.”
She smiled, a soft laugh escaping her lips. She seemed to regret it immediately, her features slackening. I found myself staring at her face in the hopes that it would resurface again. Her laugh was soft and altogether charming, and I wished I could hear more of it.
Though she refused to admit it, she had seemed impressed with the picnic that I had prepared.
Colin had been searching for a pineapple since the day before, but without any success.
To import one would take months and would be costly.
The only other option was to find an acquaintance with a hothouse growing pineapples, which was rare.
Renting one for display was common, but that meant we couldn’t eat it.
At any rate, it would likely be rotten by the time it reached England.
“Would you like any sandwiches?” I asked, pushing the tray closer to Miss Sharp. I was eager to change the subject from my hair. The valet had used enough of that dreadful paste to prevent even the strongest winds from disheveling it.
Miss Sharp reached for a triangular cucumber sandwich, examining it from all angles before taking a small bite.
Did she think I was poisoning her? Every look and movement she had made that day told me she was still suspicious of my intentions.
Rightfully so, of course. I didn’t dare imagine what would happen when she learned that I was a struggling solicitor.
But by then, I wouldn’t be struggling anymore. Colin had promised me that much.
I moved slightly closer to Miss Sharp on the rug, careful not to startle her.
She leaned her weight on one hand, holding her sandwich gingerly in the other.
If I was going to succeed at winning her heart in a timely manner, I would have to implement a little more flirting.
It was a delicate balance, because I couldn’t risk scaring her, but I also couldn’t risk boring her.
As I considered which subtle move I might make, her gaze shifted in my direction.
“It has come to my attention that I know very little about you,” she said suddenly.
I leaned back, momentarily caught off guard. “Well, let us remedy that. What do you wish to know?”
Her eyes narrowed slightly, her fingers drumming against the rug. “I have heard you usually reside in Derbyshire. Do you have family there? Brothers and sisters?”
I cleared my throat. Omitting any mention of my twin was obviously essential, but I saw no harm in being honest about the other two. “I have two young sisters, Eloise and Sally. Eloise is preparing for her first Season, with Sally soon to follow.”
Miss Sharp’s nose wrinkled in distaste. “I remember those days.”
“Not fondly, I take it?” I asked with a laugh.
She sighed, setting her half-eaten sandwich on the plate in front of her.
“There is a great deal of pressure that a young lady endures to marry during her first Season. If she fails, then she feels as if…” She paused, her gaze flickering downward.
“She feels as if she is not enough, even despite an entire upbringing of training and preparation. Having been in such a position before, I feel deeply for those young ladies entering the marriage mart .” She grimaced, then looked up with a look of regret, as if she thought she had spoken too freely.
I stared at her shy expression. I was quite certain she had just been genuine with me for the very first time, and she seemed quite uncomfortable with it.
A breeze rustled the dark curls on her brow, and she looked away as she brushed them aside, seemingly eager to focus on anything but me as she examined the trays in front of us.
“Perhaps most of those young ladies have ambitions that are unattainable.” I studied her posture for any sign of defensiveness.
“I imagine there are a variety of aspirations among the London debutantes. Some are simply seeking a good man to marry, some are seeking love, and others are seeking wealth or titles.”
Miss Sharp eyed me with a frown. “The same could be said for the gentlemen.”
“That is true.” I looked down, a sudden pang of remorse stabbing my chest. I was not guiltless when it came to the very thing I was trying to accuse Miss Sharp of.
My treatment of Miss Merrick had been cruel.
Raising her hopes, capturing her heart, and then leaving her at the church had been despicable.
But wouldn’t it have been worse to follow through with the marriage?
Miss Merrick was one of the few, it seemed, who had been seeking love, not money, and I had let her down.
Miss Sharp and I had more in common than she realized.
I had to remind myself that my quest to teach her a lesson was important, even if it did feel a bit cruel.
I wished someone had brought me to my senses when I had been hunting a fortune before it had gone as far as it had.
Looking at Miss Sharp now, with her wide brown eyes blinking innocently, it was quite difficult to view her as a villain.
Colin had made himself her victim, which I found quite humorous at the moment.
Why could he not let the matter go? Why did he insist on seeking this revenge on her? It seemed quite excessive.
“What are you seeking at the moment, Mr. Campbell?” Miss Sharp’s voice tugged me out of my thoughts.
She lifted her hand, extending one finger at a time as she listed the options.
“Amusement, attention, love, money…or simply a suitable wife who may vex you on occasion, but whom you tolerate well enough?”
I laughed once again at her boldness. But she didn’t flinch, holding up all five fingers as she awaited my answer.
“Love.” I held her gaze.
Her fingers curled back into a fist, and she lowered her hand. Her eyes flickered away.
“Does that surprise you?” I asked.
“Yes, actually.” I thought I saw a hint of pink on her cheeks, but her bonnet cast a shadow over her face.
“Why?” I dared to lean closer. “Do I not strike you as romantic?”
She hesitated for a few seconds, a faint smile tugging on her lips. “No. Not at all. At least not before…” Her voice trailed off.
Surely she was referring to the interactions she had shared with Colin before I had begun impersonating him.
It was true—Colin was not a romantic. But I was.
At my core, in my soul, I did want to be in love.
And that was why I had been unable to marry Miss Merrick, despite all that I had planned and calculated.
My heart had resisted just enough, and it had turned me into the coward Colin had found hiding in those woods near the church.
“You must not know me well enough then,” I said in a quiet voice.
Miss Sharp’s eyelids lowered, her lashes hiding my view of her eyes. “I don’t. I hardly know you at all.”
“But that is all I want—to be known and loved for who I am and not for my possessions.” Or my lack of possessions , I corrected in my mind.
Miss Sharp studied my face for a long moment, and I took the opportunity to study hers.
She was absurdly beautiful, but in an intimidating sort of way.
I could sense a wall she had built up around herself to hide her true reactions and feelings.
I had the sudden desire to tear it all down.
If only I knew how. She seemed to be playing a role just as I was.
“But how will you know?” Miss Sharp asked with a curious look. “How will you know that you are loved for those reasons?”
“I won’t. Not for certain.”
Miss Sharp exhaled slowly, a furrow appearing in her brow. “Ah, what a burden it must be to be rich.” She picked up her sandwich again, and her eyes lifted teasingly. For a strange reason, my stomach flipped at that look.
I laughed, hoping to dispel the strange sensation from my insides.
In truth, I shared her sentiment. I had often rolled my eyes at Colin’s complaints about being pursued for his fortune, but I was beginning to understand the dangers of it.
Women like Miss Sharp could easily steal his heart without any intention of loving him in return.
How could he ever trust someone who knew about his fortune?