Kate was the first to arrive at Berkeley Square. Despite her genuine worry about the danger Quinn faced, her reaction to his impending nuptials surprised him.

“Poor Miss Stratham,” she murmured when she had quizzed him on his marriage proposal and wedding plans.

“Why ‘poor Miss Stratham’?”

“It doesn’t seem fair that she should be forced to marry you after all the turmoil she endured with her last betrothal. You must admit you will not make her an ideal husband.”

He narrowed his gaze on his cousin. “Whatever happened to family loyalty?”

“Of course I am supremely loyal to you,” Kate declared.

“I thought you would be pleased that I finally succumbed.”

“Not like this. I am pleased you have the good sense to choose someone of her character, and I like her prodigiously. But a ceremony hastily cobbled together in this haphazard fashion? Ash and Jack and Uncle Cornelius won’t be celebrating with you, either, as they should be.”

“I explained why.”

“I know. And a possible assassin is terrifying. But could you have offered her a more unromantic proposal?”

“Romance is not high on my list of priorities just now.”

“It should be. I always hoped you would have much more than a marriage of convenience.”

“Leave off, Kate. It is enough that I am tying the knot tomorrow.”

“It is not enough, Quinn.” The vivacious, auburn-haired beauty was the most passionately romantic of the five cousins and always led with her heart. “You know I only want your happiness.”

“Aren’t I the fortunate one,” Quinn drawled cynically.

“Don’t be snide. You deserve nothing less than a love match, just as most of our ancestors have enjoyed.”

He understood her argument. He was a Wilde. Passion was in his blood, and so was love. He had generations of proof of his family’s predilection for spectacular love matches. Love led to ardent marriages where devotion, admiration, and respect formed the foundation of unbreakable unions.

“You must try to woo Miss Stratham,” Kate insisted. “Given your success with the ladies, it should not be difficult for you to win her love.”

She clearly had no notion of his past history with Venetia or the travails of his own amorous affairs. Wooing Venetia would be the height of folly, since even if it were possible to win her love, he couldn’t return i

t. And he didn’t want to hurt her further.

He would ensure that she never regretted taking this step, though. Her happiness would always come first with him. More, however, he could not pledge.

With effort, Quinn brought Kate’s attention back to the dilemma at hand. When he insisted that she leave London for a time and join Skye at Hawkhurst Castle, she agreed with surprisingly little protest, which alone gave him cause for suspicion. Kate was rarely so amenable, and absenting herself so early in the Season was not something he expected of her.

“With luck it will only be for a week or two,” he said.

She sighed. “Truly, I don’t mind, Quinn. These past few weeks have been decidedly dull. Some fresh country air should do me good. It will be no hardship visiting there, especially if I can ride some of Hawk’s magnificent horses and watch the new foals being born. Now, how may I help you for tomorrow? I presume you would like me to handle the details of the ceremony?”

With one hurdle down, he turned his attention to other wedding arrangements.

—

It was the mark of great trust that Hawk appeared an hour later, having already visited Doctors’ Commons and secured a special license for Quinn to marry Miss Stratham. Since Skye would not be joining them until later that afternoon, Quinn decided this was an appropriate time to discuss plans with Hawk and invited Venetia to participate.

Hawk agreed it was best if the groom and his new bride disappeared for a time while he attempted to unearth the villain. “And you believe Edmund Lisle is the perpetrator?”

“He seems the most likely culprit. He may be cowardly enough to attack me covertly rather than confronting me to my face.”

When Quinn explained the tangled web with his former mistress, Lady X, Hawk seemed amused upon learning that Lisle had given the pendant to her.

Tags: Nicole Jordan Legendary Lovers Historical
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