Saving Lord Berkshire - Laura Beers Page 0,17
friends with a solicitor in the first place?”
“It is not something I speak of.”
“I can see why,” she replied. “It is wholly inappropriate.”
“I agree with you.”
Miss Blackmore lowered herself onto the chair. “You must put an end to this flirtation. No good will come out of it.”
“It is not a flirtation,” he insisted.
She frowned. “On our walk through the gardens, Kitty shared a story of Mr. Kendall’s childhood in the countryside.”
“She did?”
“Yes, and she went into great detail.”
“Botheration,” he muttered under his breath.
Clasping her hands in her lap, Miss Blackmore said, “I do not enjoy being lied to. You should have disclosed that Kitty had feelings for your solicitor.”
“Would it have made a difference?”
She nodded. “I would never have agreed to take her on as a client.”
“Why is that?” he growled.
Miss Blackmore looked at him as though he was a simpleton. “My sisters and I strive to secure love matches for our clients, but if their hearts are already spoken for, our time is wasted.”
“Her heart is not already spoken for,” he argued.
“No?” she asked. “Then, pray tell, did you know that she was given permission from Mr. Kendall to call him by his given name?”
Edward’s jaw clenched. “I was not aware of that fact.”
“I’m beginning to wonder if you are privy to anything that happens under your own roof, Lord Berkshire,” she mocked with a lifted brow.
Ignoring her snide comment, he asked, “You spent the entire day with Kitty, were you able to help her with her shyness?”
“These things take time—”
He cut her off. “I take it that is a no, then.”
Miss Blackmore’s mouth set in a hard line. “Kitty was able to speak to Mr. Caney—”
“That is wonderful news!” he exclaimed, speaking over her.
With a shake of her head, Miss Blackmore continued. “Only when Mr. Caney kept his eyes closed.”
Edward stared at her incredulously. “You consider that a victory?” he asked dryly. “Because I have yet to attend a house gathering where everyone kept their eyes closed.”
Miss Blackmore visibly tensed. “The more comfortable Kitty becomes around Mr. Caney, the more likely she will be able to converse with him without blushing.”
“Do you intend for Mr. Caney to pursue Kitty?” Edward asked.
“He is just one of the potential suitors that I have in mind for her,” Miss Blackmore replied.
“I don’t think your plan will work.”
“Regardless, this is the path that we are taking at the moment.”
“It is a waste of time.”
“And I don’t believe I asked for your opinion.”
Edward leaned forward in his chair and placed his forearms on the desk. “I am paying you a considerable amount of money to help Kitty and I—”
Miss Blackmore rose swiftly. “You are a pompous jackanapes,” she declared, speaking over him, “and I knew that this was a mistake.”
“I beg your pardon?” he asked. “Did you just call me a ‘jackanapes’?”
“I did. We agreed that you would not question my methods,” she said, “but you can’t seem to help yourself, can you?”
Rising, he replied, “I cannot stand by and watch you waste valuable time with Kitty.”
Miss Blackmore huffed. “If you hadn’t lied to me about Kitty in the first place, then this wouldn’t have been a problem.”
“I didn’t lie to you.”
“No?” she questioned.
“I just left out that part about Mr. Kendall.”
“You should have disclosed it,” she argued.
He came around his desk and stopped in front of her. “Your job is relatively simple,” he said sternly. “You find Kitty a proper suitor, and she will forget all about Mr. Kendall.”
“Oh, is that my job?” Miss Blackmore asked sweetly. Too sweetly.
“It is.”
The lines around her lips deepened. “Then you are a bigger fool than I have given you credit for, Lord Berkshire.” She sighed. “And I don’t have time for people that are intolerably stupid.”
“I assure you that I am not stupid.”
“You could have fooled me.”
Edward tugged down on the lapels of his jacket as he fought his growing irritation for this vexing woman. “You are dismissed, Miss Blackmore. I will not stand here and allow you to call me names in my own home.”
Rather than fight him as he expected, she stared back at him for a long moment. Finally, she bobbed her head and said, “I think that is for the best.”
“You do?” he asked, unsure of the game she was playing.
Miss Blackmore took a step back. “I do,” she replied. “And I wish you luck with Kitty. She is a charming young woman who has much potential.”
“I believe so, as well.”
As she walked towards the door, she stopped and spun back