Lessons in Seduction (Greentree Sisters 1)

“I had thought better of you, Vivianna, really I had. I did not know where you had gone, and neither did your maid here. We thought you had been kidnapped by some foul persons seeking ransom.”

Lil caught Vivianna’s eye and bit her lip.

“Not that I expect we would have been able to pay it,” Mrs. Russell went on, setting aside her attack of the vapors as other, more practical concerns took root. “We can barely pay Cook or the grocer, so I imagine a ransom is out of the question. And Toby wagers so much on the cards that I sometimes wonder—” She stopped, sighed, and attempted a smile. “Well, I suppose my sister would pay it anyway. Amy is quite well off, is she not? Yes, if there was a ransom, then Amy would pay it.”

“Of course she would,” Vivianna soothed. “But there is no ransom, Aunt. I am sorry if worried you, but I simply had to speak with…a person about the shelter. I did not expect to be so long. Forgive me.”

Mrs. Russell eyed her a moment more and then rose to her feet. “Very well, dear, I will put this down to your unfamiliarity with London and the stricter code of behavior here, but don’t do it again. Or if you do go out, take Lil with you. A young lady does not go about London on her own, and she certainly does not go about alone at night!”

“Yes, Aunt, I’m sorry. I will know better in the future.”

“What’s this, what’s this?” A deep, attractive voice drifted from the direction of the front door.

Vivianna only just managed not to groan aloud as Toby Russell strolled toward them. He was decked out in a coat severely pinched in at the waist and grossly padded at the shoulders—she was certain he was wearing a corset—and his waistcoat was even more garish than Oliver’s had been. Toby’s face was still handsome, though deeply lined about the mouth, and his eyes were as watchful of opportunity as always. Vivianna had never liked him, and she knew from Lady Greentree that Helen had lived a miserable life with him. If there was the perfect example of a charming wastrel, then it was Toby Russell. He treated Helen abominably, he was vicious when cornered, and he was never, never to be trusted.

He served as her caution, Vivianna thought, if she were ever tempted to marry a handsome rake herself.

Toby strolled by Lil, and the little maid stepped back abruptly.

“Vivianna has been very naughty,” Helen said, “but I have spoken to her and she has promised not to do it again.”

“Sounds intriguing,” Toby said, with a leer masquerading as a smile. “Do tell, Niece.”

“Actually, Uncle Toby, I am rather tired. If you don’t mind, I think I will retire now. Come, Lil.”

Vivianna preceded her maid up the stairs to her room, trying not to listen as Helen asked her husband, in a plaintive voice, why he had not come home to supper.

“That Mr. Russell tried to pinch my bum,” Lil said furiously when the bedroom door closed.

Vivianna’s gaze narrowed. “Did he? Lil, I’m so sorry. Stay well clear of him, he’s not a nice man.”

Lil cast up her eyes at Vivianna’s words. “You don’t have to tell me that, miss. I can see it at a glance. Don’t worry, I can handle meself.”

Vivianna smiled. Lil was small and skinny and fair, with brown eyes; a lively girl. Vivianna had found her, starving, in York, when she was little more than a child. The young girl had touched her heart with her plight, and Vivianna had persuaded Lady Greentree to employ her. Her loyalty and intelligence were beyond dispute, and Vivianna had never once regretted her impetuous action.

“I know you can, Lil,” she said gently. “I’m sorry I put you in such a difficult position with Mrs. Russell, but I had to see Lord Montegomery.”

“I understand, miss. The shelter means the world to you.” Lil began to help Vivianna to undress. “But all the same,” she went on quietly, “you need to take care. This Lord Montegomery could have done anything he wanted to you, and me and Mrs. Russell would have been none the wiser.”

He had done what he wanted to her, Vivianna thought, trying not to blush before Lil’s sharp eyes. He had touched her, and kissed her, and held her against his body. And she hadn’t struggled, not one bit. She had pressed back against him, and sighed, and moaned when he kissed her. She had enjoyed it. She had wanted more.

“Miss?”

Vivianna shut out the images. “I thought he would be sympathetic, if only I explained properly, but…” She shook her head in despair. “He doesn’t care, Lil. He doesn’t care what happens to the orphans.”

Lil touched her arm gently. “They reckon you can’t change a sow’s ear into a silk purse, but if anyone can teach him the error of his ways, miss, then it’s you.”

An unwilling smile curled Vivianna’s mouth. “Thank you, Lil.”

“Now come and get warm by the fire, miss. You’re cold and damp, and you need some hot milk.”

Vivianna allowed herself to be fussed over, sinking back into the chair and lifting her feet toward the flames.

Persuade him.

Her smile vanished. That was what the woman had said tonight, the beautiful older woman with intelligent dark eyes called Madame. Vivianna did not pretend she did not understand how that persuasion was to be affected—to kiss him and let him kiss her, to touch him and let him touch her. Employ her feminine wiles.

Except that Vivianna had never used her feminine wiles before. She did not even know whether or not she had any. She had always considered herself a bookish, serious girl, and that feminine wiles were for pretty little creatures who knew nothing about poverty and abandonment, and cared less. And yet Oliver Montegomery had looked at her as if he saw something in her that she had not known was there. Until now.