In a solemn tone, Stacey added, “She’s no longer among the living.”

  Eleanor’s eyes grew wide. “Oh, that’s terrible.”

  “She took a fall down some stairs,” Tara began. “We weren’t fond of her, but we didn’t wish for her early demise, either.”

  “Was it an accident, or did someone murder her?” Eleanor asked, suddenly thinking of her own situation.

  “It was an accident,” Tara replied. “The butler saw her trip.”

  “Her lover paid to have the incident investigated, but once the butler gave his report, the matter was resolved,” Heather added.

  “So she just happened to be clumsy then?” Elanor asked.

  “I think she was drunk when it happened,” Tara said. “She made it a habit of drinking too much, and word around London was that she’d go to her husband’s residence while drunk. The two didn’t get along.”

  That explained the whole thing about the lover then. Eleanor supposed the details didn’t concern her, so she decided to stop asking questions about Lady Eloise. She knew enough as it was. And while she didn’t make it a habit of drinking more than a glass of wine at dinner, she decided it was to her benefit to never get drunk.

  “Enough about that.” Heather turned to Eleanor in interest. “I want to know more about Mr. Tumilson.”

  Eleanor’s smile froze on her face. Did they know she and Mr. Tumilson had been lying to them about him being her suitor? Did they suspect he was a Runner?

  “Yes, I want to know more about him, too,” Stacey added, her eyes twinkling. “I noticed you two at the ball, and it was apparent he was smitten with you.”

  “Was he?” Heather asked.

  “Oh yes. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her while she was away from him, and he had the smile of a gentleman in love while they danced,” Stacey replied. “Eleanor did a terrific job of pretending that she wasn’t interested in him. It made him work even harder to get her attention.”

  Heather nodded in approval. “A lady has the right to make a gentleman pursue her. You can’t blame her for making things difficult for him.”

  “But she isn’t making it too difficult. She did allow him to escort her to dinner this evening,” Tara inserted.

  Heather giggled. “An excellent ploy. It’ll no doubt make him strive harder to marry you, Eleanor.”

  If Eleanor wasn’t relieved to realize they hadn’t figured out the truth, she would have laughed. The last thing she and Byron would ever do was marry. But it was good they believed it. This was what her father wanted. It could very well get her membership into Ladies of Grace, and after spending this evening with them, she wanted to be friends with these ladies. They were turning out to be quite nice.

  “Lady Cadwalader made a comment about the way Eleanor made Mr. Tumilson pursue her at the ball,” Tara spoke up. Directing her gaze to Eleanor, she continued, “Is that a strategy you’re using to impress prominent members of the Ton?”

  What should Eleanor say to that? While her father wanted her to impress the Ton, all Eleanor wanted to do was lead her life far from public attention. Small dinner parties like this were much more manageable than mingling with a bunch of people at a ball.

  “I think her goal,” Heather began, “is to make poor Mr. Tumilson suffer. I doubt she cares what the Ton thinks.”

  “Well, either way, Lady Cadwalader was impressed,” Tara said. “So it worked to her advantage in both ways.”

  Considering all the grief Mr. Tumilson had given her, Eleanor wouldn’t mind it if he suffered somewhat, but he certainly wasn’t going to suffer because he had a romantic interest in her. She couldn’t tell these ladies that, of course. Not that she even wanted to. She was getting their approval, and that’s all that mattered.

  The door opened, and Tara’s husband poked his head into the room. “Do you ladies mind some company?”

  Eleanor couldn’t speak for the other ladies, but she was glad for the distraction. If they kept talking about her and Mr. Tumilson, she didn’t know what she was going to do. She didn’t think there was a single question she could ask to get them to talk about something else.

  Tara waved them in, and after a quick debate, the group decided to play cards. As the gentlemen brought the tables out and arranged the chairs, Eleanor noticed the way Heather and Stacey glanced between her and Mr. Tumilson then whispered to each other.

  Eleanor’s face warmed. She supposed she should be glad they were still talking about the way Mr. Tumilson was interested in her, but she worried Mr. Tumilson would notice and assume she had a secret infatuation with him. Goodness, that was the worst thing that could happen right now. Imagine if he thought she had developed romantic feelings for him! He had such a swelled head that he would make her life impossible. He was already giving her grief over the way she’d acted at the ball.

  “I’ll get the cards,” Tara’s husband called out when they were done.

  Heather ran over to two chairs that were placed next to each other. “Lady Eleanor and Mr. Tumilson, you can sit here.” She patted the chairs and gave Eleanor a mischievous smile.

  Eleanor bit her tongue and went to one of the chairs. If Heather knew… If only she knew…

  Eleanor sat down but didn’t look at Mr. Tumilson. For some reason, this seemed to amuse Heather and Stacey all the more. Tara, on the other hand, gave no reaction. Of the three, it seemed that Tara was better at hiding her feelings. Thankfully, the gentlemen seemed oblivious to the whole thing.

  “I can tell you more about that book I was reading if you want,” Lord Whitney told Eleanor as he and Stacey sat across from her and Mr. Tumilson.

  Glad to have the conversation turn in a safe direction, Eleanor nodded. “I’d love to hear more.”

  Without waiting for a question, he started talking about Rome. She breathed a sigh of relief because right now, she was having trouble remembering what he’d already told her about it. For this evening, at least, she had managed to get through a social event without feeling like a failure. And that was good enough for her.

  Chapter Nine

  “Lady Whitney is a suspect,” Mr. Tumilson told Eleanor and her father the next day. “I need more time before I can conclude she’s the culprit, but I want you both to know progress has been made on the case.”

  “This is absurd.” Eleanor jumped up from the chair in the drawing room. “Stacey isn’t trying to harm me. She was very kind to me at the dinner party.”

  “That kindness could have been an act,” Mr. Tumilson replied.

  Eleanor turned to her father. “It’s not her. Nothing bad happened to me all evening while I was near her.”

  Before she could continue, Mr. Tumilson said, “Why would she do something when we were all watching her? Granted, a few people are dumb enough to commit a crime when others are looking, but Lady Whitney is a noble lady. She knows better than to do something bad in front of everyone.”

  Eleanor closed her eyes and prayed for strength to keep calm. She opened them. “She wasn’t at the theatre the night I almost fell off the balcony.”

  “Just because you didn’t see her, it doesn’t mean she wasn’t there.”

  “She’s a lady. How would she have been strong enough to loosen the wheel of a carriage?”

  “She could have hired someone to loosen it.”

  Eleanor turned to her father. “It’s not her. I know Stacey better than he does. I spent almost an hour with her and the other ladies in the drawing room last night. She’s a nice and respectable lady.”

  “All criminals seem nice until the truth comes out,” Mr. Tumilson argued.

  “We need to heed Mr. Tumilson’s warning,” her father said. “He has experience with this sort of thing. If he thinks Lady Whitney is a suspect, then we need to be wary of her.”

  She grunted in frustration. Her father hadn’t even bothered to consider her side of the argument. He just blindly ran after everything Mr. Tumilson told him.

  “I’m glad to see you’re able to listen to reason,” Mr. Tumilson told her father. “It’ll make my job easier.” He rose to his feet. “I’m going to watch Lady Whitney. If I discover anything important, I’ll let you know.”

  “You’re going to spy on her?” Eleanor asked in shock.

  “I suppose that’s one way you can look at it, but I prefer to think of it as doing my due diligence.” He straightened his waistcoat. “I need to find out her habits. It’s possible she’s acting out of pettiness, but her motives could be far more dangerous. Her husband is obviously impressed with you. He couldn’t stop singing your praises while he and I were with the other gentlemen in the library last evening.”

  Eleanor’s eyebrows furrowed. “I only met him last night. How could she want to push me off a balcony or loosen a wheel from my carriage if she’s jealous of her husband’s praise of me?”

  Mr. Tumilson blinked in surprise. She breathed a sigh of relief. Good. Now maybe they were getting somewhere.

  Just when she thought Mr. Tumilson was going to admit she had a point, he said, “Perhaps her husband has admired you from afar. London has a lot of people, but I notice the nobility seem to frequent the same places. It could be that he saw you at a ball or some other social engagement and fell in love with you.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m a wallflower who can’t attract anyone. Who is going to admire me from afar?”

  “You were a wallflower. The Duchess of Ashbourne changed all of that. I saw the way you held yourself at the dinner party, and there’s no doubt gentlemen will be lining up to speak to you now.”

  Her father perked up in interest. “You really think so?”

  “I’m a man, aren’t I?” Mr. Tumilson told him. “The ugly duckling has turned into a swan.”

  Her father looked at her in excitement. “Did you hear that? You’ll have your pick of suitors soon enough. We must find out when the next ball will be.”

  She would have asked her father if he understood how ridiculous it was for Stacey’s husband to be interested in her before she went from an ugly duckling to a swan, but talking to him was pointless. He didn’t listen to her. In fact, he never listened to her about anything. When she said she wanted a certain gown, he insisted on a different one. When she thought a certain piece of jewelry or hairstyle would be flattering, he brushed off her thoughts and had her lady’s maid do something else. It wasn’t until the Duchess of Ashbourne intervened that she finally got to do what she wanted with her appearance.

  Not hiding her annoyance, her gaze went to Mr. Tumilson. “I don’t understand how you can believe Lord Whitney fell in love with me from across the room at a ball when I was so ugly. That doesn’t make any sense.”

  “To be fair, he is attracted to ladies who have intelligence and can share an interest in his books,” Mr. Tumilson said.

  “I never talked to him before last evening,” she emphasized.

  Unfortunately, he was undaunted by her logic. “Then perhaps his wife told him about you. She knew you before last evening.”

  Eleanor closed her eyes and prayed for strength. God help her refrain from throwing something at him!

  “I am keeping my mind open to the possibility of other suspects,” Mr. Tumilson assured her. “Lady Whitney is just the first one.”

  When she opened her eyes, he turned his attention to her father. “I think we should do something in public with me as her hopeful suitor. What other activities do the nobility engage in besides balls and dinner parties?”

  “Quite a few go for rides in Hyde Park. Do you ride a horse?” her father asked.

  He shook his head. “I’ve never ridden one, nor do I want to. Walking suits me just fine.”

  “Then we can walk,” her father suggested.

  “Let’s do that tomorrow. I want to start my watch on Lady Whitney right away.”

  After they agreed on a time for the walk, Mr. Tumilson left.

  ***

  Byron had spent plenty of time watching people in the past. Sometimes all he did was sit close to a residence and pretend to read a paper while keeping an eye on the entrance. There were times when he followed people into questionable areas of London, such as brothels, gambling hells, or even alleys. Byron didn’t expect Stacey to run off to a brothel, a gambling hall, or meet someone in an alley, but he was hoping she’d do something more entertaining than going from one bookstore to another with her husband.

  She and Piers spent a good hour in each store, and each time they came out, a man brought a stack full of books to the carriage. By the time they were done shopping, Byron figured Piers had acquired a good thirty of them. Byron wondered how many rooms in Piers’ townhouse contained nothing but books.

  When the day was done, the only thing Byron concluded was that Stacey might feel like she had to be at her husband’s side all the time. She didn’t once stray to look at other books or talk to other people. No, she just stuck with him the entire time. She was either sincerely interested in the same books her husband was, or she was afraid to leave him alone.

  It was actually with relief that Byron arrived at Lady Eleanor’s residence the next day for the walk in Hyde Park. A walk would be far more interesting than watching those two go from one bookstore to another and then having to pretend he was browsing the selection of books while out of their sight. If he had to feign interest in one more book, he might go mad.

  “The Duke of Dormondton and his daughter will be down shortly,” the butler told Byron as he escorted him to the drawing room. “Is there anything you wish to drink while you wait?”

  Byron shook his head, and the butler left the room. Byron didn’t think he’d ever get used to how formal these noble people were. Upon arrival, he had to give the footman his hat, and then he had to explain his reason for coming and who he’d come to see. Then the butler came to take him to the drawing room. It would be easier to hold onto his hat and just go directly to the room he needed. Perish the thought that a member of nobility would have to open their own door, find a place for their own hats, or make their own tea. He rolled his eyes and turned from the doorway.

  He decided to give a careful study of the room, something he hadn’t done before since the duke was usually waiting for him when he came here. The room was neat and tidy. Not a single thing was out of place. He guessed this was due to the duke’s personality, rather than to the maid’s diligence. But something else he noticed was that there was nothing in the room to indicate he had a daughter.

  Byron frowned. Why hadn’t he noticed that before? He thought for a long moment and realized the library didn’t have anything to make him think of Lady Eleanor, either. No portrait of her. No book she might read. No feminine object. If he didn’t know the duke had a daughter, he would come into this room and assume he had no child at all. Was that standard practice for parents who had titles? Or did it say something about the kind of relationship the Duke of Dormondton and Lady Eleanor had?

  He heard the sound of someone approaching, so he directed his attention to the doorway. Lady Eleanor was wearing a lovely peach gown that complemented her figure, especially her breasts. He still couldn’t believe the fantastic job the Duchess of Ashbourne had done with her. One would swear he was looking at a different lady. Lady Eleanor paused just after she entered the room. He forced his gaze off of her body before she realized he’d been staring at her in a way that was most inappropriate.

  Lady Eleanor grimaced. “I had hoped my father would already be down here with you.”

  “Considering he usually is, I can see why you’d expect that.” His eyebrows furrowed. “Are you feeling all right?”

  “I feel fine. Why do you ask?”

  “Because you look as if you’re in pain.”

  “Well, it is painful to be around you.”

  He blinked in surprise. “Why?”

  “You really have to ask?”

  “I wouldn’t have asked if I knew.”

  She let out a sigh. “It’s because of you my life has become difficult, and what’s worse is that my father agrees with every single thing you say.”

  He had no idea what she was talking about. He strode over to her. “Your father is wise to listen to me. I’m a Runner. I’ve been so for a long time. Sixteen years, to be exact. I know what I’m doing.”

  “Maybe that’s been true for everything else, but you don’t know what you’re doing this time.” She went around him and sat on the settee. She crossed her arms. “You’re wrong about Stacey.”

  After a moment, he decided to sit next to her. “We can’t know that for sure.”

  “Yes, we can.” When he shook his head, she added, “Or at least I can. I got to know everyone in Ladies of Grace pretty well the other night, and not a single one intends to do me harm.”

  “For your sake, I hope you’re right. I know how important it is to your father that you become a member of the group. Given the effort you put into the dinner party, I gather it’s important to you, too.”

  “Yes, it is important to me. It might not have been before, but now that I know those ladies, it is.” She uncrossed her arms and turned to face him. “I don’t have any friends. Up to now, I’ve spent all of my time in the country. There was no one I could have a meaningful conversation with while growing up. At that dinner party, I felt like I was a part of something. Those ladies were genuinely interested in me.”

  He’d never been forced to live a reclusive life, so he could only imagine how lonely she’d been. Sure, she hadn’t been alone. There had been servants with her, but that wasn’t the same thing as having family or friends nearby.

  “It’s good to have people in your life that you can be close to,” he softly said.

  She nodded. “You don’t really think Stacey is trying to kill me, do you?”

  By the expression on her face, he could tell she was hoping he’d tell her no. Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that. “I didn’t see her do anything suspicious yesterday, but it’s too soon to remove her from the list of suspects.” Especially in light of the fact that he had no other suspects yet. Noting her disappointment, he added, “I’m not trying to be mean. I truly am trying to help. The wheel on the carriage and the incident at the theatre are worrisome. I have yet to see you do anything that tells me you’re clumsy. You hold yourself with a lot of grace.” And her lessons from the duchess only emphasized that. “At the very least, making sure someone isn’t trying to harm you is a worthwhile venture.”