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A Scoundrel in the Making (The Marriage Maker Book 9) Page 11
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Shouts rent the air. The balloon’s multi-colored envelope began to lift off the lawn, struggling like a fledgling as various silk panels billowed from the hot air and smoke. The voices began to laugh, excited.
Then the entire contraption deflated with an audible poof.
Curses replaced the laughter as Ethan ran his hands through his thick, dark hair and wiped sweat from his brow. He clipped several curt orders, then abandoned the bellows altogether and headed her way. Stirling fell into step beside him.
Finally. Elana quickly took her seat at a nearby white-linen covered table.
“It’s the resin. It won’t hold to the seams in the salt air, I’m sure of it,” Ethan was saying as they arrived. A flawless master of accents, his natural voice held the pronounced Scottish lilt of his native Scottish Highlands.
“Indeed, I can only agree,” Stirling mused in reply.
Ethan glanced at Lady Elana with a wide grin. “A most good afternoon, my lady. To what do I owe the honor of your visit? Surely, you have not come to bully me over attending your fêtes somptueuses?” He executed a full courtly bow, complete with elaborate flourish.
“You’re incorrigible, Ethan. Tell me truly, what harm would it do you?”
“Immeasurable.” He leaned back against the veranda railing and crossed his arms. “But I shan’t waste your time. It’s a moot point. Stirling has just brought the matter of Lady Sarah to my attention.”
Elana didn’t miss the sudden tightening of Ethan’s mouth as the woman’s name fell from his lips. It wasn’t a name he would mention lightly. Lady Sarah Stafford, wife to their beloved mentor, Lord Stafford—the late Lord Stafford.
Unbeknownst to his own family, Lord Stafford had served as a master spy for decades. He’d recruited and taken a particular shine to Ethan. He’d taught the Highlander every trick he knew. For his part, Ethan had loved the man as a father, and as such, the man’s death the previous year had dealt him such a devastating blow that he’d left the King’s Service—for good.
There wasn’t a thing Ethan—or herself, for that matter—wouldn’t do for widowed Lady Sarah, a cheerful, middle-aged soul without an enemy in the world.
But now? Most curious. “Lady Sarah?” she repeated and glanced in Stirling’s direction. “She’s a distant relation of yours by marriage now, isn’t she, Stirling?”
The man sat down at the table and helped himself to a glass of lemonade. “Aye. An aunt to my wife’s cousin, Rosalyn Beaumont. The lass lives with her now and writes to my wife quite frequently. We fear, since the loss of her husband, that Lady Sarah’s health has become quite fragile. A sea holiday at Brighton would do her good, and since Ethan’s headed to his own property there, he’s kindly agreed to host them.”
Rosalyn Beaumont…so, Stirling had found a match. Elana struggled to contain her delight. She stole a quick look at Ethan. The man didn’t suspect a thing. Priceless.
“And why are you headed to Brighton?” she queried in disapproval, lest he smell the trap. “I would never deny Lady Sarah a thing, but I worry about you so, Ethan…” A sudden thought flashed across her mind and this time, her alarm was genuine. “Surely, you don’t intend to sail that contraption across the channel?”
The devilish twist of his lip confirmed that was precisely what he had in mind. Did the man miss the danger of the service so much he had to concoct it on his own now?
“Do you not have the matter of the Clan Brodie succession to solve?”
Ethan shrugged. “I still have the advantage of three younger brothers.” Then, before she could issue another complaint, he sprinted off the veranda and headed back to the balloon.
Elana waited until he was out of earshot, then faced Stirling and said with a sly smile, “So, it’s Rosalyn Beaumont?”
Stirling chuckled. “It’s the perfect match, my dear. I have no doubt I’ll soon welcome Ethan into the family. She’s precisely what he needs, but I fear, she may be more difficult to ensnare into this scheme. I’ll need your help.”
GET YOUR COPY AT SCARSDALE PUBLISHING
Other Books in the Marriage Maker Goes Undercover Collection
My Lady of Danger
The Marriage Obligation
Rules of Refinement Collection
One Good Gentleman
Shameless
Redemption of a Marquess
A Marriage of Necessity
The Original Marriage Maker Saga
Worth of a Lady
The Marriage Wager
A Lady by Chance
How to Catch an Heiress
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Tarah Scott, A Scoundrel in the Making (The Marriage Maker Book 9)
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