“Berkeley Square is my home, as is any place where Christian happens to be.”
Nicole scanned Rose’s coat and breeches and screwed up her nose. “But you need to bathe. You need clean clothes.”
Rose shrugged. “Mrs Hibbet will see to it all.” When Christian told her he’d brought the children and his housekeeper with him to London, Rose’s heart soared. “Please, Nicole. I want to be there when Christian comes home.”
Nicole pursed her lips and nodded. “Who am I to stand in the way of true love?”
Christian hadn’t told her what number Berkeley Square, only that he had a house next door to Lord Marlborough. Nicole refused to allow Rose to knock on doors while wearing a gentleman’s coat and smelly breeches and so they waited in the carriage while Jackson made the rounds.
Eventually, he returned to the carriage and opened the door. “It’s this one, my lady.”
Rose hugged Nicole before alighting and mounting the three small steps. She expected to see the butler, but Lord Trevane stood at the door in his shirtsleeves.
“Lady Rose.” Trevane inclined his head but smirked as he perused her unconventional attire. “I received a note to say Farleigh won’t be back for a few hours.”
“I know. He asked me to wait here until his return.” It didn’t matter if she lied to this man. “I thought I might spend time with the children.”
Trevane raised a brow. “You wouldn’t happen to have a calming influence by any chance? Three glasses of brandy and still the noise is deafening.”
Rose smiled as she imagined mayhem within. “The only way you’ll find out is if you let me inside. Or are we to spend the evening conversing on the doorstep?”
Trevane stepped aside and gestured to the hall. “You’re certain you wish to enter the house while I’m in residence?”
Rose’s heart raced. Trevane knew how to intimidate without saying much at all. “I assume your sister is here,” she said marching past him.
“Do you think that will stop the gossips?” He closed the door and then inhaled deeply. “Good God, you smell as though you’ve spent a week sleeping in the gutters.”
Heat flooded her cheeks. “I’ve been swimming in the river, though not out of choice.”
Trevane stared at her neck and narrowed his gaze. “And if that wasn’t foolish enough you thought to enter the home of two unmarried gentlemen, without the aid of a chaperone.”
Rose waved her hand down the front of her coat. “As you can see, my sense of propriety abandoned me long ago. And as you obviously enjoy playing butler will you not at least offer to take my hat and gloves?”
Trevane’s eyes flashed with amusement. “Now it’s clear why Farleigh dragged me around half the ballrooms in London to find you. Originals don’t come along often. But allow me to point out that in your effort to appear scandalous you seem to be minus both items of apparel.”
“Rose! Rose!” The children’s excited voices rang through the house. “Rose is here.” They came bounding down the stairs, their little legs moving so fast they were liable to fall. “Rose.”
Trevane winced. “I’ll be in the drawing room, cradling a decanter of brandy if you need me.”
Jacob reached her first and flung his arms around her waist. Alice was but a second behind. “We missed you,” they both cried.
Rose closed her eyes and hugged them with every ounce of strength she had left in her body. She knelt down, cupped their tiny faces and kissed their cheeks.
“We kept your letters.” Alice’s innocent blue eyes widened. “And we did what you said.”
Jacob raised his chin. “I filled a glass with brandy without spilling a drop and brought it to Papa.”
“That is a feat. Crystal decanters are extremely heavy.”
“And I brought him a flower from the garden and left it on his desk.”
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Rose’s heart swelled. “And did he appreciate your small gestures of love?” She’d hoped the tasks would distract their minds and make them focus on the one person who truly loved them and was always there.
Alice nodded. “Papa told Mrs Hibbet he’ll teach us our sums from now on.”
“That’s wonderful.”