“My father cannot know.”
“Fine,” Vi said.
“Please,” Miss Sinclair said again. “Not all men of God are loving and kind.”
“I very rarely find them to be so,” Smith told her. “I swear to you that we will do everything possible to secure your secrets.”
Somehow that promise from Smith, who was so very rarely trustworthy, was enough for Miss Sinclair. She handed over a card to Smith. “Please be discreet.”
“Thank you,” Vi said, not allowing a shred of curiosity to cross her face. “Now that we know you weren’t involved, tell us about why your father was so concerned that you would wed Jason Meyers.”
Miss Sinclair’s face turned red with anger. “I’ll take that tea after all.”
“We have G&Ts,” Lila offered. “Though, I confess to feeling unwell.”
“I cannot return home from volunteering smelling of gin,” Miss Sinclair replied quietly.
Violet poured the tea to Miss Sinclair’s specifications, and when she had taken a fortifying sip, Miss Sinclair spoke. “Father got his position through the assistance of Mr. and Mrs. Meyers, the elder. Mrs. Meyers has never let Father forget that and before it was clear that Jason Meyers was a fiend in human clothing, it was the fondest wish of Mrs. Meyers’s heart to acquire me and the money my maternal grandmother left me. It is tightly tied up, but Father had…dangled…it before Mrs. Meyers during something of a ruckus at the church. We’re not Church of England, you know. So the locals who support the church can run it as they see fit.”
“Your father, the reverend, bargained you to keep his position?” Rita demanded. “Why am I even surprised? The only thing shocking about this is my distress.”
“Your father was insistent with Jack that you would not be marrying Jason,” Vi said.
Miss Sinclair’s smile was not humorous when she clarified. “There’s no getting around that Jason Meyers is—was—a criminal. Father suggested that I marry Tobias instead. The money would still be in the family, but Tobias is good and kind.”
“Mrs. Meyers must hate that idea,” Vi mused. “She told me that they were tepid. All of those Watkins children were supposed to be tepid and worthless.”
Miss Sinclair lifted her fork and dove into the cake as she tried to explain. “It’s rather simple, I’m afraid. Mr. Meyers, the grandfather, had died. Mrs. Meyers didn’t have the same weight in the church as she once possessed. Father had spent the years ingratiating himself with the other powerful members of the church. Father offered that I would marry Tobias or nothing.”
“Neither of you actually want to marry each other,” Lila groaned. “It’s so frustrating.”
Miss Sinclair bit her lip. “It’s important that Father not know of my visit that evening.”
“You sound afraid,” Violet said. “Do you need help?”
“I need to marry my lover,” Miss Sinclair answered. Her fingers fluttered for a moment. “We’ve arranged it, and Father will hate it, and—” She shook her head, mouth twisting, and then she looked at the women in the room, pleading with them in her eyes. “I—”
“Violet married against her family’s wants. Her stepmother would still rather Vi divorce Jack and marry someone more appropriate.” Lila laughed evilly. “Rita is richer than Croesus and she married a Yard man. Her father didn’t object, but the rest of the world did. My father did everything but lock me in my bedroom to stop me from marrying my Denny. Beatrice’s family would kidnap her to save her from Smith if they knew him well enough.”
Beatrice laughed and then snapped her mouth shut when all eyes looked her way. Lila continued. “Kate didn’t face any great objections to her marrying Victor, but to be honest, he’s every mother’s dream.”
“Rich,” Rita muttered.
“Handsome,” Lila added.
“Well-connected,” Beatrice shot out.
“Well-trained,” Vi finished, winking at Kate. “You’re welcome.”
“Thank you,” Kate replied, easily. “He really is a catch, isn’t he?”
“We’ll help you,” Rita told Miss Sinclair. “Are you really marrying your lover?”
“Marrying, running away, tied bedsheets and everything. If Father finds out, he’d probably chain me to my bed.”
“Then stay here,” Rita said. “Or at my house. Or I’ll use some of that ridiculous gold to send you ahead of your lover. Or, you could go to Violet’s father’s house. No one gets around his servants.”
“Yes,” Lila laughed, “that one. Please. I should so enjoy it.”
“Lady Eleanor isn’t there,” Violet told Lila, giving her a withering glance.
“Oh,” Lila frowned. “Never mind. I don’t care where you go.”
“But your father had doubts about you and Jason Meyers, didn’t he?” Beatrice asked. “He told Jack that you’d marry Mr. Meyers over his dead body.”
“It was my petty revenge,” Miss Sinclair said. “My father is a hard man. It has not been easy being his less than satisfactory daughter. So I cried when Father told me to turn my attentions to Tobias. I told Father I loved Jason. I wanted Father to worry I’d marry Jason. And I wanted Jason to think I would. He just assumed he could romance Tessa Tapper, steal from everyone we knew, and I’d throw away everything for him. At least with my father, I’m dealing with a devil I know. Why take on an unknown one?”
“Oh,” Rita said, and then groaned. “I regret all those G&Ts now.”
Her gaze landed on Violet with a lack of surprise but understanding.
It took Vi a moment to catch up, and then she gasped, “Oh!”
“Oh?” Lila demanded.
“What?” Kate asked when Rita and Vi stared at each other in silent agreement and then slowly turned to Miss Sinclair.
“Is it possible that your father discovered your intentions to wed?” Vi asked. “He’s cruel, right. What if—”
Miss Sinclair shook her head. “He doesn’t even know Bryce.”
“I’m not talking about Bryce,” Vi said, leaning in to emphasize the importance. “Just the desire to wed.”
Miss Sinclair paused, her eyes wide and worried.
“He did, didn’t he?”
“I—” Miss Sinclair licked her lips. “I had a piece
