All Men Are Rogues by Sari Robins

known that he had been in intelligence. Governments were loath to claim anything except for the inoffensively neutral. So how was the matter legally proceeding? Was she simply to be swept under the rug? Or worse yet, ignored completely? She was not about to stand by and have her father’s name besmirched and her fortune stolen. If necessary, she would march into the House of Commons and declare her father’s innocence to the rooftops, if it would do any good. But it would not. She sighed. Which way to turn now?
    “You are brooding, Miss Amherst. I pray our last encounter does not make you ill at ease in my company.”
    She was ripped back to reality. “Oh, that, well…no.” Her cheeks warmed, but she resisted the urge to touch her lips. “Not at all.”
    “I confess I got a bit carried away.” He smiled. “But I cannot claim to regret it. It was very… special .”
    She tilted her head, interested. “Really? How so?”
    “Well, I…” He rubbed his chin. “If I were a lady it would be my turn to blush.” Pursing his lips, he stated, “Well, to be frank, I have had the opportunity to kiss a few ladies in my time. And your kiss, well, it was…better than any I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying.”
    Her cheeks flamed. “Really?” It was nice to know she wasn’t the only one affected by that searing embrace. “It certainly banished all troubles from my mind.”
    “Troubles?”
    She blinked. Had she said that aloud? She wanted to kick herself for having such loose lips, in more ways than one.
    Silence filled the cabin.
    “Has this something to do with the solicitor Mr. Marlboro?” he asked.
    She hated to lie to him but could not dare tell the truth. What would she say? I’m trying to follow my father’s dying instructions so I have a future and am not murdered too?
    He broke the quiet. “On second thought, I apologize for intruding. It is your personal business and none of my affair.” He raised his hand to the curtain and pulled it aside, allowing moonlight to filter into the plush cabin.
    There was a novelty, someone not trying to interfere in her life. She studied his profile in the pale light. His strong nose added a touch of haughtiness to his features, but even in shadow the man was stunning. It was growing all the more difficult to categorize him as “cousin,” and she wondered if she really wanted to keep him at bay.
    Heavens! What was she thinking? She had no time to dally with a dashing marquis; her very future was in jeopardy! Father would be mad as hops at her for losing sight of her target. She needed to stay focused and not allow herself to be distracted. She needed to keep her head clear and her business in the fore. And finding a way to access her fortune was the first of her tasks.
    “Please do not interpret my silence as anything but what it is—woolgathering, my lord. I am simply ruminating on some of the legal issues pertaining to my father’s estate. As a matter of fact, if I may ask, which solicitors do you use?”
    “The Troutman Jones firm. They are quite good.”
    She filed the name away for later use. She might be needing new legal representation. But how was she to pay them? She bit her lip.
    “They are on retainer and are available to any in the family with legal issues.”
    Her eyes narrowed. “Why are you being so kind?”
    He straightened. “Excuse me?”
    “Why are you always trying to be of service to me?”
    He blinked, as if taken off guard. “I, well, I like you.”
    She crossed her arms.
    “I kissed you,” he continued.
    Her brow furrowed. “Although it was quite lovely, what does that have to do with anything? As you well have admitted, you have kissed many ladies.”
    “But that was different.”
    “Why?”
    “Well, it’s just different. They were my…” He shifted in his seat, seemingly at a loss. “Those ladies, well…we had an arrangement beneficial to both sides. It was an exchange, so to speak.” He continued as if searching for the