She tilted her head and a lock of her golden red hair fell forward. Hunter knew that, in time, she would be an incomparable beauty. “And where is it that you are planning to spend most of your time?”
He glanced down into the liquid still swirling in his glass. “There is a man whom I am determined to bring to justice. He injured a member of my family, but I cannot prove his guilt. I received word that he plans to leave the country for a time and travel to India. I intend to follow him and keep a record of his actions.”
Her eyes widened slightly at this. “You would devote your life to pursuing him?”
He nodded firmly. “I would.”
As silence fell between them, he finished the last of his drink and finally broke the tension. “What do you say, Miss Welton? Shall you be my mistress? Or shall I return you home tomorrow morning with the impression that I’ve despoiled you?”
She considered the prospect for a time, but it didn’t last long. She strode forward and stood on her tiptoes to give him a chaste kiss that would haunt his dreams for years to come. “I accept your proposal, Your Grace.”
Chapter Two
Five years later…
Sephy hummed a tune as she strode down Bond Street, a footman trailing her with several boxes in his arms. Her reputation as a well-paid courtesan was no secret to the shopkeepers who scrambled to serve her, but today was the first time she had ever taken precedence over a countess.
After years of vying for respectability, the hour had finally arrived.
It was all thanks to her savior.
Of course, she thought of the duke from time to time, wondering how things were faring in India. Hunter wrote to her, surprisingly enough, and over the years a certain kinship had begun to strike up between them. She had a personal correspondent who relayed tales of Asia. At times, he would even send her bright scarves and jewelry that he’d procured, reminding her that she was never far from his thoughts either.
She imagined him as some distant admirer, and each time a letter or package arrived, she squealed with delight. The last thing she’d received had been sent on her twenty-second birthday. It was a jade elephant with emerald eyes and she’d instantly fallen in love with it. The trinket sat on her bedside table where she could admire it every night.
Sephy instructed the driver to take her to her mother’s house. When she arrived, the lackey opened the door. “Good day, Miss Welton.”
“Abraham.” She greeted him with a bright smile. “Where can I find my mother?”
He gestured to the right. “She’s in her private parlor.”
Sephy had trod upon these same marble floors for years before she’d moved into the duke’s affluent residence, and yet, the thought of Hunter returning and casting her out struck fear into her heart. She had become so accustomed to a life free of the horrors she’d witnessed as a child, ones she hadn’t even understood at the time. But with each year that passed, she knew she might very well be living on borrowed time. He had saved her when she had been younger, but at some point he would be thinking of settling down with a wife and starting a family.
It would be a future that didn’t include her.
She tamped down her anxiety and knocked on her mother’s door. Once she was bade enter, she walked in to see the lady wearing a pair of reading glasses, which she promptly removed. She didn’t like anyone knowing her weaknesses when it came to getting older, even her only child.
“My girl!” Phryne greeted enthusiastically. As usual, she was completely put together, the powdered wig that she still refused to part with perched on her head. “What brings you by on this lovely spring day?”
“I have a gift for you,” Sephy gushed. She reached into her reticule and pulled out several pound notes and laid them on the desk.
Her mother gasped. “What is this for?”
“Ever since Jade left, I know you’ve been struggling to find someone to replace her. Perhaps this will help until you can.” She decided not to dwell on the fact that her mother was an inveterate gambler and most of the fortune that Sephy had gained from her association with the duke was nearly gone.
“Oh, you are just too precious for words.” She reached out and embraced Sephy. “I knew you would be my gem the moment you were born.”
Sephy held back her emotion, for while she wanted to believe that her mother meant her arrival into this world, she knew she meant her looks and her ability to become a celebrated courtesan. If only her mother knew the truth — that she was still as pure as the day she’d sold her virginity. In the intervening years following the duke’s departure and absence, she’d kept her promise, for the comfortable existence she’d been enjoying was all due to Hunter’s benevolence. The least she could do was uphold her end of the bargain.
After a time, Sephy took her leave and returned home, for it was how she thought of the duke’s townhouse. She paused to glance up at the opulent exterior and remembered the first day the duke had brought her here. Such a grand residence had fascinated her, but as much as she enjoyed her time here, it wasn’t truly home.
She shook her head, refusing to dwell on anything maudlin, and focusing instead on the present.
She readied herself for supper and entered the dining hall where she took her meals. She ate in silence, the scrape of her fork on the plate echoing through the room. Feeling restless, she pushed the rest of her uneaten food away and sighed. She wiped her mouth with her napkin and focused instead on her wine.
She thought of the items she’d purchased that day, upstairs in her chamber, but even shopping had lost some of its luster of late, as had
