Chapter 7 #2
She ran out of breath. The silence that followed seemed to mock her torrent of words, and it made her wince.
She'd talked too much, too fast, too honestly, and now this man was going to look at her the way Edmund looked at her, with that patient, tolerant smile that said there she goes again.
Kit was quiet for a moment. "That's a much better answer than 'practical.'"
She blinked.
"In that case, I'm honored to be of assistance," he said.
She blinked again. Goodness. She was very rarely shocked into silence, but now it had happened twice in one conversation. But then…
I'm honored to be of assistance. Her eyes narrowed as she studied him. How did he manage to say such a thing with such sincerity? She couldn't detect even a hint of greed or hidden agendas.
But she knew they were there. She'd heard the way he'd bartered. She knew he had an agenda of his own. But the fact that he hid it so well right now…
Well, it was unnerving. And so she started to back away, wariness stealing over her.
"What is it?" He frowned. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
She stopped. "Like what?"
He tilted his head to the side, and his lips curved up but in real amusement. "Like you're afraid I might pounce."
She swallowed hard. For a moment she considered her options. Looking around her she realized that while they were not alone—they were in the same room with many others—they had a moment of privacy. No one could hear them. And he was being honest with her…
Or at least, she thought he was. He'd asked her a direct question and seemed to be forthright in return. It was at once terrifying and thrilling. "What do you want?"
His blank stare was definitely genuine. "Pardon?"
"You asked me and I told you honestly," she said. "Now it's your turn."
"My turn for what?"
"You said you were honored to be of assistance." She wet her lips and thought through what she wanted to say. "Why would you do that? What is it that you want?"
She knew, of course. But would he say it? Would he admit it?
The silence that followed felt stifling, but she clamped her lips shut. She would not be the first to speak.
After another long moment, he seemed to soften. His eyes filled with understanding. "You heard us talking, didn't you?"
She didn't reply. Didn't trust herself to.
He let out a sharp exhale and shook his head.
"No wonder you're wary." Then he straightened and when his gaze met hers, she felt like she was meeting him for the very first time.
There was no smile, no dimple, and no spark of laughter to be found.
"I do genuinely want to help you, Lady Clarissa.
Not because my aunt is paying me. Though she is, and I'd prefer to keep that arrangement, if you don't mind, as I have my own reasons for needing the funds. "
She opened her mouth, and forced herself to shut it again. He wasn't done.
"But that's not about you." He held her gaze. "You want the ton to see you differently. I can do that. I'm good at making people see things the way I want them to." After a brief pause, he added, "It's one of my better traits."
"That and modesty," she said.
A grin split his face, so sudden she had to blink again. He really was too handsome for his own good.
"Let me help you," he said. "And then you choose. Whomever you want. Whatever you want. I'm just the—" He waved a hand. "The opening act."
She studied him, looking for some crack in his facade. But she couldn't find anything but a pleasant smile and his eyes fixed firmly on hers. Which either meant he was telling the truth, or he was even better at pretending than she'd feared.
But either way, what choice did she have? She'd already said yes to his aunt's patronage, and Kit's assistance was all part of the plan. Still, he seemed to be waiting for her to respond, and so she said, "I have conditions."
"I would expect nothing less." He said it so seriously, she suspected he was laughing at her.
But in all honesty, she'd said that bit about conditions without actually thinking it through. She had no conditions at the ready, though she probably should…
So perhaps he was right to laugh.
He dipped his head and lowered his voice. "Would you care to elaborate on these conditions?"
Oh drat. Now her lips were starting to twitch with the most unwelcome laughter. But really, his amusement was rather infectious. And she was fairly certain they both knew she'd been making that up.
She struggled to think of even one. Finally, she settled on, "If you call me Cast-Off Clarissa, even once, even in jest—"
"I would never." He said it so solemnly.
She believed him.
He arched a brow. "Anything else?"
She opened her mouth. There were any number of things she could say. No kisses. No real emotions. No taking liberties. But all of those sounded so pompous, as though she thought she was so very irresistible.
His eyes glinted down at her and his dimple flashed. She felt a surge of heat rise up into her cheeks.
Oh, who was she fooling? She was hardly the temptress in this situation. If anything, he ought to be warning her off.
"Do we have a deal then?" he murmured.
She took a deep breath. "I suppose."
From across the room, Thea looked up from her pamphlet and said, loudly enough for everyone to hear, "Are you two quite finished? If so, it would seem we have a battle plan to strategize."
"A battle— I'm sorry, but what… A what?" Clarissa sputtered.
She looked back at Kit and found he was fixing her with the world's most wicked grin.