She's a mite contrary in the mornings and might not be as cooperative as you could wish."
She breathed a sigh of relief. At last, someone was coming to their senses.
Peter shrugged. "She can refuse and watch me shoot you. Even Georgie isn't that bloodthirsty."
"If you have any damn blood in your veins at all, you'll give us a minute. It's not as if we can go anywhere. Miss Hanover has the right to at least be asked properly for her consent, something you neglected to do, I might add."
It was the first sign of anger that Daniel had shown, and both Georgina and Peter looked at him with surprise. His angular face was taut with suppressed fury. Without waiting for an answer he pulled Georgina to the corner of the picket fence, just far enough to keep Peter from hearing.
"You and I know that we're both innocent, but the world doesn't," Daniel reminded her, keeping his voice low. "I'm perfectly willing to do the right thing by you, but I realize you've been caught by surprise and aren't any too ready for marriage. As long as you're..." He searched for a polite word. "Untouched, the marriage can be annulled. If you'll agree to go through with this, I promise I won't do anything to jeopardize that annulment until you make up your mind one way or another. It's awkward, but it's one way out of the situation. People will find an elopement romantic, but a scandal won't be if word gets out that we spent the night together without marriage. We can go in there and pretend this is just what we want and foil Peter's revenge, then correct it later."
Daniel was holding her hands between them and looking at her as if her agreement really mattered. Georgina was too astonished to know how to reply. In an odd way he was actually asking her to marry him. She wasn't at all certain she wished to understand the meaning of "annulment" or the consequences, but she did have some sense of what he meant by "untouched." They could be married and not married at the same time. It was a revelation that widened her eyes. She could be respectable but independent.
"We could just be..." The appropriate word was difficult to locate, but she tried. "Friends? And be married? Is that what you're saying?"
Daniel's smile was a trifle forced, but he nodded. "For a while. We'd have to decide what to do sooner or later so we don't cause any more scandal, but that will give us more time to think than your friend over there is giving us."
Georgina's heart was pounding a little frantically at the decision she was being given, but Daniel had phrased it a lot more palatably than Peter. If the world required that she be married, she'd much prefer a man who had some consideration for her opinions. Right now, she very definitely preferred Daniel over Peter. Curling her fingers inside his with nervousness, she nodded slowly.
"All right. If this is the only way." Realizing Daniel might not find this arrangement as convenient as she did, not wanting to incur his wrath any more than necessary, she sent him a pleading look. "I didn't mean for this to happen, believe me. I had no idea my father would fetch Peter. And I didn't know Peter could be so unreasonable."
Daniel's smile was a little warmer as he released one hand to caress her cheek briefly. "I'm afraid I understand altogether too well. I'm not blaming you. I have a feeling we're about to upset a few applecarts. Let's do it with style."
She grinned, took his arm, and without any preparation aforethought, stood on her toes and kissed his cheek soundly.
That would certainly make Peter think twice.
Chapter 14
The minister was already dressed in a dark sack coat with elbows polished by wear. His cravat wasn't quite correctly tied when he opened the door, but he didn't seem to be aware of that as his eyes opened wide at the sight of his employer on his doorstep. As he retreated to allow Peter in, his gaze fell on the two miscreants with him.
Georgina offered him a blinding smile. "We wanted to elope, but Peter has gallantly offered to stand up for us. I hope we're not disturbing you."
Daniel was quite proud of her. For a light-headed, frivolous pearl of society, Georgina was remarkably courageous. Another woman might have been hysterical by now. Of course, another woman would never have