Sacrifice (Fashionably Impure Book 3) Read Free

aggrieved.
    “He’s a
friend.” Adrian frowned and began undoing his neck wear.
    “A
friend!”
    “He’s
helping me with some things.”
    “The man
is dangerous.”
    “Aye, I
think he is.” Adrian’s mind was still a whirl. Just when the conversation had
become most interesting, Miranda had knocked, needing to enter and retrieve her
purse to pay some tradesman.
    Adrian
had been so consumed by the conversation that he had not even felt the least
annoyed that she had disobeyed his earlier command. When she had left, he and
Drake had discussed the grittier aspects of tracking down a gentleman. A duke.
    Adrian
had never done such a thing before. The whole aspect would be quite daunting
without the older man’s advice. He was grateful.
    Ruel was
still frowning at him.
    Jon
would have an apoplexy if he knew that Adrian intended to use his trip to
America as a cover for hunting down Winterton and forcing him into a duel.
    Well,
Jon didn’t understand.
    Drake
did.
    But he
couldn’t tell his cousin this. Not yet.
    Jon’s
sigh of exasperation startled him out of his thoughts. He looked up to see the
older man’s mouth twisting into a disgusted expression. He motioned to Adrian’s
neck. “You’re making a complete muss of that.” His disgust became more
pronounced. “Where’s your valet?”
    “I
haven’t had time to call for him this morning.”
    “But you
had time to send for Drake?”
    Adrian
said nothing, this time jerking the knotted linen free. It wasn’t Jon’s
business who he kept company with. He wasn’t seventeen any longer.
    Jon
approached him. “Give me that,” he said, reaching for the dangling edges of the
cravat.
    Adrian
jerked away and forced himself to work more slowly, though his hands had begun
to shake with his rising excitement.
    He would
soon face Winterton on the field of honor.
    Sooner
than he had thought.
    Which
lead him to something else…
    “I won’t
be needing to wait for spring to leave for America.”
    Jon
gaped at him. “What?”
    “I’ll be
leaving for New York immediately.”
    Jon
turned his palms up, a shocked gesture. “What are you saying? You have to be
trained in the finer points of shipbuilding.”
    “Drake
says he has found me an assistant—”
    “Drake
has found you an assistant?” Jon quickly interrupted.
    “Yes, an
excellent assistant,” Adrian said, his fingers now moving smoothly, tying the
cravat into a beautiful semblance of the Waterfall.
    Jon
stepped back and crossed his arms over his chest. “Tell me more about this
assistant.”
    “He is
someone who knows the subject in depth. He will tutor me during our time in
transit and then accompany me on my tour of the American shipyards.”
    Jon
sighed and turned away to stare out the window. “I don’t like this.”
    “The
assistant?”
    “Any of
this. You becoming friends with Drake. You marrying a night bird—”
    “She’s
no night bird. She was Carrville’s mistress. It wasn’t as though she were
selling her wares at the theater.”
    “Her
aunt does.”
    Adrian
laughed, a cold amusement born of hatred. “Aye, Cassandra Jones does.” Then he
sobered. “It doesn’t matter.”
    “Doesn’t
it?”
    “Not to
me.”
    “She’s
Winterton’s daughter.”
    “And
your point?”
    “He’s
just as dangerous as Drake, in his way.”
    “I am
not afraid of Winterton.”
    Jon
whirled to face him. ”“You’re not? You should be.” His eyes narrowed. “He’s a
man with many powerful friends.”
    “He’s a
duke; of course he has powerful friends.”
    “Yes,
but as it happens, some of his friends were men that your father wronged.”
    Ah, yes,
his father, the notorious adulterer, foolish, indiscreet, even reckless in his
pursuit of beauty.
    What a
wonderful legacy for the Sutherlands.
    “Ah,
yes, my father.” Adrian didn’t bother to hide his sardonic mood.
    Jon’s
expression turned thoughtful. “You’ve worked very hard to rebuild friendships
and your reputation. Maybe you have