“Wonderful,” Braden muttered. He grabbed a cup of tea and sat down to watch the performance.
“Why did it take him two weeks to find you? Mother gave him the address.” Mia eyed him with suspicion.
“Amy and her husband had been evicted. They had left no forwarding address, so I was staying at an inn in Whitechapel.” Tia moved to a sofa and sat. “At least I was, until Middleton found me.”
“Whitechapel?” Hart commented. “That is not a very good section of town.”
“I had no choice. I had very limited funds,” Tia said, taking a cup of tea from her sister’s hands.
“So why didn’t you just return once he found you?” Mia asked and then added, “That was weeks ago.”
“She didn’t stay long at my house,” Braden added.
“I don’t understand.” Mia sipped her tea.
Although they were twins, Tia’s sister looked far different from her. Mia had sable hair, no freckles, and was slightly taller than her sister. But they both had the same wide, brown eyes that dominated their faces.
Braden sipped his tea before replying. “I succumbed to a slight accident that first night. After she patched me up, she gave me laudanum. So the next morning, I slept much later than my usual. When I awoke, I discovered that she had left.”
“You left him!” Mia exclaimed, glancing at her sister.
“You were not there, Mia.” Tia put her teacup down and glared over at him. “I went for a walk in the park and met a lovely lady who wanted to help me. She offered to let me stay with her. So I did so for a fortnight until Middleton found me yet again.”
“Why would you stay with someone you had only just met?” Mia asked.
“Because I was not ready to be forcibly escorted back to the estate,” Tia retorted. “And then there was the poisoning.”
“The what?” both Mia and Hart asked at the same time.
Braden watched the reactions as Tia explained the poisoning to her sister. Mia’s brown eyes grew large as she glanced back and forth between Tia and Braden. Concern lined Mia’s face and he was certain the worry wasn’t for him.
“Someone is trying to kill you?” Hart asked. “Why didn’t you send a note? I could have helped.”
“I believe you were busy with your own business,” Braden said with a nod toward Mia.
“True,” Hart admitted. “But I am here now.”
“There is still something that has not been explained,” Mia interrupted them. “There has still been several days of them living together with no poisoning and no mishaps. Rumor has it that you are his mistress. Is that true?”
“Miss—excuse me, my lady, I do not believe that is anyone’s business except Miss Featherstone’s and mine,” Braden said stiffly.
“She is my sister so it is my business too,” Mia retorted, crossing her arms over her chest. “How dare you suggest it is not.”
“Indeed. Then one has to assume you are blameless. For why else would you be the one to cast the proverbial first stone?”
Mia’s cheeks reddened as she stared at her feet.
“Middleton, that is enough,” Hart warned.
“I agree. The subject is to be put to rest. Miss Featherstone has been proposed to, so it is up to her if she decides to become a viscountess or a woman of scandal.” Braden rose. “Hart, I need to speak with you privately.”
Hart glanced at everyone in the room before nodding. “Very well.”
Tia couldn’t look at her sister, the earl, or even Braden as the men left the room. Her cheeks felt as if they were on fire with embarrassment. Now that she and her sister were alone, Mia would attack her for her mistakes.
“I am sorry, Tia,” Mia said softly. “I suppose I am the last person who can scold you for your behavior with a man.”
“Thank you for understanding.”