“Where the hell are you going?”
“You have made your position clear. Allow me to inform you that you leave your niece no option but to elope.”
“Elope? Elope!” The gentleman slapped his hand to his chest. “Heavens, are you determined to send me to my grave?”
Matthew grasped the handle. “Good day.”
“Wait! Wait.” Lord Callan cleared his throat. “If you profess to love my niece as you say, you would not put her through the indignity of an elopement.”
Matthew turned to face him. “If you love your niece as much as I suspect, you would not deny her a wedding in St George’s. Other than the fact you consider me a rogue, do you have any other objection?”
Lord Callan waved to the empty seat. “Loath me to point out the obvious, but you are not the sort of man to … to settle.”
Confident he'd made his point and that the lord realised he had limited options, Matthew dropped into the chair. “Nor am I the sort who falls in love. But one never knows what Fate has in store.”
Lord Callan jerked his head. “You expect me to believe you love the girl.”
Girl? Matthew had touched Miss Smythe’s soft curves, cupped her round, full breasts. The lady was a woman in every sense of the word. Well, in all but one. And he would soon rectify that problem despite never having deflowered a virgin.
“Love is not an easy emotion to feign,” Matthew said. Although when one was skilled in the art of seduction, many ladies had been known to mistake lust for love. “Call the lady down. Draw your own conclusions.”
A weary sigh breezed from Lord Callan’s lips. “The girl’s upset with me. I assume you were the one who told her of my losses at the table.”
“I refuse to lie to her. If she is to marry me, we must have complete honesty between us.” Whether either of them accepted the truth was another matter entirely. “You may be interested to know I have my suspicions about the credibility of the card game.”
“I knew it!” The grey-haired lord leant forward, his countenance suddenly improving. “You suspect cheating?”
Matthew nodded. “Cheating on a grand scale. Did you intend to play so deep?”
“Oh, I like to have the odd flutter, a small wager here and there.”
The odd flutter? The man had more of a problem than he cared to admit.
“Forgive my directness, but fifteen thousand pounds is by no means a small wager.”
“I never meant for it to go that far. I was on a winning streak and thought it a prime opportunity to repay my vowels. One minute we’d won eight tricks the next …” The gentleman dragged his hand down his wrinkled face. “Do you think they marked the cards?”
“Not that I’m aware.” Matthew had observed the cards during the first few hands of whist. Cheating to that degree required skill in deception. It required a group of men working together, collaborating. “But I intend to look into the matter.”
He would do a damn sight more than that.
“Then I shall make a few discreet enquiries of my own.” Lord Callan narrowed his gaze. “You asked of my objection. It is your predilection for illicit pursuits that leads me to doubt your ab
ility to commit to my niece.”
Matthew had no problem with commitment. It was love and trust that chilled his blood. “I have made a promise, and I am a man of my word. I make my living catering to other people’s illicit pursuits. My skill lies in that of a generous host, nothing more.”
“Everyone knows all the best hosts participate in the evening’s entertainment,” Lord Callan countered.
Matthew chuckled to himself as it was rather a naive view. “I am not a great lover of horses, yet I own a stable full of them. Pretence is often necessary for survival.”
“That is what I fear. My niece thinks with her heart, not her head. It would not take much to convince her of your affection. The girl is as foolish as her mother.”
The sudden urge to defend Miss Smythe took hold. “What is foolish to you seems sensible to me. The heart never lies, my lord.”
“Damn it all,” Lord Callan snorted, “you must be in love with the chit if you believe that nonsense.”
Under present circumstances, Matthew did not wish to correct his misconception. “Then am I to take it you agree to the match?”