The Bridegroom by Joan Johnston

was certain Carlisle could not know it, he was already being measured against her list of Seven Deadly Sins in a Suitor. It had taken her an entire evening to compose it, and she had actually wound up with more than a dozen sins by the time she was through.
    Will he ignore present company in favor of some prettier face or larger bosom?
she wondered.
    His eyes never left her, and they were filled with admiration. “That is a charming gown, Reggie,” he whispered in her ear as he seated her in his box.
    Reggie supposed she must allow the earl a passing mark on one point, at least: he did not appear to have a roving eye.
But will he show my sister equal courtesy?
    “May I take your wrap, Lady Penrith,” the earl said solicitously.
    “Thank you, my lord,” Becky said.
    Carlisle settled the Norwich shawl across the back of Becky’s chair, which was in the row behind Reggie. “Is there anything else I can arrange for your comfort, Lady Penrith?” the earl asked.
    Reggie conceded Carlisle’s manners were impeccable. He was both considerate and kind. But she had known that already, from his behavior toward Freddy and the children.
    She caught her lower lip between her teeth. The problem was how to test all those other sins. It might be possible to determine whether he was willing to spread vicious gossip, or whether he would bore her to death with his conversation, simply by attending the
ton
events to which she was regularly invited.
    But how could she measure whether Carlisle drank to excess or gambled beyond his means? She had never been to a tavern, and Becky was not likely to agree to attend a gaming hell with her. That meant finding ways to spend time in Carlisle’s company without Becky along to chaperone.
    While the thought of being alone with Carlisle did not precisely frighten her, it did cause her a certain amount of trepidation. Nevertheless, she was determined to discover even those flaws it might be dangerous to encounter.
Was Carlisle the sort of man who might strike a woman?
Reggie was certain it would take some great provocation to know for certain, but that meant she must devise some means of protecting herself if the earl became violent.
    There were also matters of a more personal nature tobe determined, matters about which ladies and gentlemen did not ordinarily discourse.
Did the earl believe it was his right to keep a mistress after he was married?
Reggie had made up her mind long ago that she could not bear to share her husband with another woman, even one he craved only for her body, which was the excuse Penrith had given Becky for why he kept a mistress.
    And there were matters of character to be uncovered.
Would Carlisle take advantage of an innocent?
She could only know for sure by giving him an opportunity to seduce her in surroundings where they would not be fortuitously interrupted by her sister.
    “You do not seem to be enjoying the play,” the earl said.
    Reggie started at the feel of his warm breath in her ear. “But of course I am,” she protested.
    “You are not laughing,” Carlisle pointed out.
    Reggie looked around and saw that the audience in the pit had broken into raucous laughter. She could hear Becky giggling like a schoolgirl behind her. “I was not … I mean …”
    “Perhaps if you share your troubles, I may be of some help,” Carlisle said.
    Did one dare ask the fox to guard the hen coop?
“No, my lord. I do not believe that would fadge.”
    “If the play bores you, perhaps you would prefer to engage in conversation,” he said. “But not here.”
    He turned to her sister and said, “Reggie has a bit of the headache. We will walk in the hall for a while, where it is less noisy, and hope that helps.”
    When her sister started to gather her shawl, Carlislelaid a hand on her shoulder and said, “I see you are enjoying the play, Lady Penrith. Pray continue to do so. You may trust me with your sister.”
    To Reggie’s astonishment, Becky sat back in her chair and