Epilogue

1818 St James, London

" B riana! Need I remind you, you'll catch your death of cold if you go out like that. Would you at least drape it over your shoulders?"

Victor hovered behind Briana, trying to place a shawl across her shoulders as she walked through the gardens.

"Oh, for goodness' sake, Victor, it is not even chilly and I'm just taking a short walk—I don't need a shawl. The weather is warm right now." She tried to remove the garment to no avail.

"Damn it, wife! You are the most exasperating woman..." He replaced it again across her shoulders.

And this is what it had been like for the past two months since Victor discovered Briana was expecting their first child.

Briana could not go anywhere without Victor knowing where she was at all times, and then he would follow her with either a rug, a chair, a glass of lemonade, or a sandwich. Hortensia Investigations was gaining a good reputation with increasing clientele. But Briana was no longer allowed to traipse about London breaking and entering to gather information. Thanks to the proceeds from the Carthage haul, she now paid a small but trusted team of investigators to assist with matters. That appeased Victor's concerns somewhat. His brothers and Charlie were another matter entirely.

The Cambridge men combined with Charlie Maxwell were just as stifling—she had never encountered such an overprotective group. If Victor was not available, he would set up a schedule for either Sebastian, Miles, Brenton, or Charlie to escort her. Lucas already had his hands full with Caitlin.

Briana was beginning to side with Vincentia with a vengeance. They had to get more women into the family so she could get a moment's peace.

Finally, she relented and took the bloody shawl, knowing that he would not give up and knowing also that Victor hovered because he truly loved her. Briana just shook her head and grinned.

As Victor returned to his study, he watched his wife pruning the roses outside. She looked up and waved at him with her glorious mischievous smile. It always made him catch his breath, and he could not have felt more content and more loved. Now expecting their first child, he felt an even stronger bond with her than he thought possible. Victor forever fretted over her health. Speaking of which, it looked like it was going to rain. Slipping away from the desk, he marched outside again with brisk determination. It was time to bundle his wife into the study and sit her on his lap by the fire. He looked forward to the feisty altercation which would always follow because it would end with them wrapped in each other's arms.

Sebastian

LORD SEBASTIAN CAMbrIDGE was on a winning streak. If truth be told, he had been on one for most of his life. As he sat around the gentlemen's club with his winning hand held close to his chest, he knew he was about to win every last penny the gullible lordlings had at their disposal. He had watched it all before—the signs, the tells of whether men had a good hand or a bad one. The sweating of the brow and loosening of a cravat. The flinches and the grimaces. He was a master at reading the subtle nuances of each target. Up for grabs were the deeds to a vast estate that was not entailed, a large sum of money from another who had made his fortune overseas, and yet another who had gold stocks and bonds. Sebastian was not greedy, but he wanted it all. Every last farthing.

He also knew this was personal, as he had slept with a woman all these men wanted. Kept her satisfied, and then for some reason they hated him on sight. But he was not here to mix business with pleasure. He was here to right an old wrong. He was here to ruin them completely.

As Sebastian sat cockily, knowing that it was suddenly dawning on the men they were about to lose everything, he remained calm and showed no emotion other than a slight frown of concern. He had feigned disinterest and played them the entire night.

As he waited patiently for Lord Buckley to decide on his next move, a server placed a fresh glass of brandy at his side and moved around the table refreshing the gentlemen's drinks. Thinking nothing of it, and rather impatient to end the game, gather his winnings and leave, Sebastian decided he might as well have one final glass as he waited. He lifted the glass only to see a flash of a dark blue dress beside him before a serving woman walking past tripped and inadvertently knocked the glass out of his hand. The contents spilled all over the table as the men shouted at the disturbance.

She hastily righted herself, apologized profusely for her clumsiness to the table at large, and then it happened. While his card players were distractedly scowling and shouting at her, she reached back and tucked a note into Sebastian's sleeve. He glanced up just as she turned and gave him a meaningful look. Sebastian nodded and tried hard not to openly stare because her eyes—dark, captivating, and piercing—held him transfixed, and then she was gone as if he had just imagined her. His survival instinct warned him not to give her away or turn in her direction.

Instead, he surreptitiously drew the paper from his sleeve, turned it over in his palm, and read the words, "Do not drink the brandy." His blood ran cold, but he retained a bored expression as he slipped it into his pocket and glanced around the table. Noting the other two looked most put out, but it was Lord Buckley who looked especially livid. Sebastian realized it was time to end this once and for all and take his leave. He would need to take extra precaution from here on as he called out to several friends to join him for a nightcap at his home. Safety in numbers, so to speak.

Lord Buckly looked furious, and Sebastian knew the game had just changed. He could no longer trust his own safety. And when he had time to regroup, he was determined to find the woman who had just saved his life because whether she knew it or not, she had just gained a marker, and he always paid his debts.

The End

Sebastian & Olivia’s story is next ...

https://elinaemerald.com/

Blurb

In the glittering ballrooms of Regency England, Sebastian Cambridge is a man of many faces. A rakish gentleman known for his devastating good looks and disarming charm, he is the envy of men and the object of many women's desires. Sebastian's reputation as a notorious card sharp and womanizer precedes him, with wealthy widows and high-stakes gamblers alike falling prey to his cunning. Arrogant and brash, Sebastian believes he is untouchable—until he meets an intriguing and determined woman seemingly immune to his charms

Devastated by her friend's murder, Olivia Price , a woman of Caribbean and English ancestry, is on a relentless quest for answers. Disguising herself as a servant in a notorious gentleman’s gaming club, she infiltrates high society in search of the killer. In this clandestine role she crosses paths with Sebastian inadvertently saving his life.

As their worlds collide, an unexpected and fiery alliance forms, sweeping them from the opulent splendor of London's elite gatherings to the dark, perilous corners of the city's underbelly.

Amidst danger and treachery, they must navigate their growing feelings and unravel a web of secrets that threatens to destroy them both. If they survive, they may just discover that the greatest gamble of all is falling in love.