Once an Innocent by Elizabeth Boyce Page A

illness.”
    “Where is my father, then?”
    “In Scotland,” Clara declared with a note of triumph, “fishing.” She raised a brow. “What choice did I have but to bring her with me?”
    Jordan growled and ran both hands through his hair. What a fool he was to concoct this ridiculous house party! The whole scheme had already gone wrong, with him being unable to perform the most basic function of keeping his sister out of harm’s way.
    “But she’ll feel left out.” He restlessly prowled the room, working the stiffness of his long, cramped confinement in the coach out of his legs. “She cannot participate in most of the evening entertainments — dancing, cards, and so forth. It would be quite beyond the pale. I won’t allow it and, neither, I know, will you.”
    “Of course not!” Clara sounded scandalized at the merest suggestion that she might be less than assiduous in protecting her daughter’s reputation. “I have already discussed the matter with Kate, and she understands. But there can be no harm in her mixing with the other ladies during the day. I shall watch her closely, of course. Your claims,” she said, shaking her head, “about her feeling left out are entirely unfounded, and I dismiss them out of hand.” She flicked her wrist as though physically waving away Jordan’s arguments. “It can be nothing to you if she’s here, in any event. You’ll be outdoors while she’s with the ladies, and she’ll be in her room at night while you while away the hours downstairs. When would you even see her?”
    Jordan couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt at neglecting his sister. True, he could avoid her entirely if he wished. But that wasn’t the point, and he said so.
    Confusion clouded Clara’s eyes. “What
is
the point, Jordan? I must confess I am utterly baffled by your objections. Believe you me, had I known what a fuss you would make over Kate, I would have told you to find yourself another hostess.” Her arms crossed beneath her chest, and one toe peeking from beneath the hem of her dress tapped out an annoyed cadence.
    God, this was getting worse and worse. Briefly, he wondered if he should tell Clara the truth — the real reason for the house party. He’d built a career lying and manipulating people. Never before had the lies hit so close to home. Never would he have thought the people he loved would become ensnared in his world of secrecy. But if he told her the truth, everything would fall to pieces.
    “I’m sorry, but Kate cannot remain,” he said sharply. “Surely, there’s somewhere else you can send her. Your sister lives not twenty miles from here, I believe?”
    Hurt filled Clara’s eyes. “Jordan Atherton,” she said quietly, “you and I have scarcely exchanged harsh words since the day I married your father. Despite the numerous scrapes you’ve gotten yourself into over the years, I have always spoken up for you. It grieves me deeply now to experience this … ” Her lips curled in distaste. “ … this
side
of you. And I pray never to witness it again. If you want Kate to go, then
you
shall tell her. I’ll not be the villain in this farce.”
    Jordan stood with his feet braced wide and glared down into his stepmother’s fierce expression. He closed his eyes and groaned, his resolve crumbling. He couldn’t bear to disappoint Kate, not after he’d managed to hurt the child seconds after his arrival. And there really wouldn’t be any danger, he supposed, not if he and his men performed their duties as they should.
    “Fine.” He flung his hands up in surrender. “She stays. But you
must
keep her with the other ladies, Clara,” he said emphatically. “I mean it. Keep her close to the house. She cannot go rambling about the estate as she does at the Grange. It isn’t — ”
    He started to say,
It isn’t safe
, but was saved from revealing too much by a sharp knock at the door, followed immediately by the entrance of Fitzhugh Ditman with their harried