In Pursuit of a Scandalous Lady Read Free

spectacles glittered in the lamplight as if with their aid she dissected him.
    Leo put a hand on his chest and bowed. “Then my reputation precedes me. Allow me to prove that I canlive up to your beliefs. Gentlemen, I propose a wager.”
    Julian didn’t want to be distracted by such drunken foolery, but he forced himself to be patient, an ability that had aided him well over the years. He’d spent his childhood patiently waiting to rescue his family, then his adulthood patiently guiding his investments and businesses, even while patiently seeking the proper bride. Leo’s wager might work out to Julian’s benefit.
    â€œWhat is it?” Peter asked warily.
    Leo smiled. “I propose that we each try to determine the real identity of the model—any way we can.”
    A momentary silence grew and held, thick with possibilities and promise.
    â€œThis is preposterous,” Rebecca said coolly.
    â€œYou do not have much of a choice,” Julian said, thinking how such a wager could lead him to unravel the truth of his family’s tragedy. “You are at our mercy. If you don’t wish to participate, then you’ll have to live with the consequences of your…unveiling. There are many men who’ve seen this painting. I wonder what they would think if they knew…”
    â€œThat is blackmail,” Susanna said tightly.
    â€œWhy, Miss Leland, that is such an ugly word,” Leo said. “You have put yourself in this situation, and I think you’re getting a decent return for such a daring stunt. We’ll let you go free, and you’ll have to accept our attempts to discover the truth.”
    â€œSo you think by ganging up on us,” Rebecca said, “you’ll somehow wear down our resistance? Gentlemen, that will never happen.”
    â€œYour voice is full of challenge,” Julian said. “I like that.”
    Her focus came back to him immediately. She betrayed her nerves by licking her dry lips.
    And after everything he’d gone through, his single-minded devotion to his family and businesses, his obsession with the Scandalous Lady—one flick of this woman’s tongue had him suddenly thinking dark thoughts. He glanced up at the painting, at the up-thrust breasts and the dark shadows between her thighs. Clenching his jaw, he focused his thoughts on the lost diamond and his father’s downfall.
    â€œI think the model is you,” he said to Rebecca in a low, husky voice.
    Tension crackled between them like heat lightning on a sultry summer evening.
    She tossed her head. “And I’ve already told you it is. What challenge is that?”
    â€œTwo of you are lying. But I think you’re not. Leo, what say you?”
    Leo rubbed his chin thoughtfully, even as he walked a circle about the women, examining them. They twitched uneasily like fillies up for auction at Tattersall’s. “I can see you are all related, at least by the shapes of your bodies. With so many garments on—andmale garments at that—it is difficult to see a true difference. So we cannot go by that.”
    â€œYou are being vulgar,” Elizabeth said, her voice haughty with generations of noble blood.
    â€œAnd you are being scandalous, Elizabeth,” Peter said in a low voice. “All of you. I cannot believe—”
    â€œYou cannot believe that one of these women would dare so much?” Julian said softly. “Ladies of Society have so little to do before they’re married.” He saw their looks of outrage but ignored them. He’d been doing meticulous research on ladies this past year. “A certain type of woman might become…bored.”
    â€œDon’t pretend you understand any of us,” Rebecca snapped.
    â€œPerhaps I don’t now, but I intend to know you very well.”
    The alcohol was making him lose his vaunted control. He could see her jaw clench. Damn, but she was beginning to intrigue