Amelia Grey - [Rogues' Dynasty 06] by The Rogue Steals a Bride Read Free Book Online Page A

didn’t tell me, and neither did my father. I accidentally overheard their conversation one night.”
    “Accidentally?” His brow wrinkled into a frown. “Are you sure about that?”
    “All right, it wasn’t accidentally,” she admitted. “When I was younger, I would often slip out of my bedchamber after the nurse went to sleep and sit outside my father’s book room. I enjoyed listening to him and his guests’ conversations. I’ve always been inquisitive, and my father never tried to rein in my penchant for wanting to learn and explore.”
    “Perhaps he should have.”
    “To his credit, he did try. When I was about nine or ten, I fell asleep outside his office, and he came out and found me. He wasn’t happy, I assure you, but he understood my innocent curiosity.”
    “No, he indulged it. Tell me how innocent curiosity and deliberately listening to a private conversation go together, Miss Hart.”
    She ignored his cynical-sounding question and continued with her thought. “I said it wrong earlier. I didn’t mean to imply that you and your brother had personally caused Sir Randolph grief. But I assure you, Mr. Brentwood, he was very distressed when that horrible parody came out in The Chronicle .”
    “Then try to imagine how my brother and I felt about our mother’s good name being smeared across the newsprint.”
    A blush of heat crept up her neck and into her cheeks. “Yes, of course, you were upset and rightly so. As I said, I didn’t mean to imply that you were not. I spoke without thinking,” she admitted. “I’m sure you were made ill over the light it cast on her.”
    “Even that puts it mildly, Miss Hart.”
    “I know that Sir Randolph has searched all over town for the dreadful man who wrote that story, but he hasn’t found him yet. He intends to see to it that poet doesn’t write another word of that story.”
    Soft feminine giggles sounded behind Sophia, and she turned to see two young ladies walking toward them.
    Sophia took a step away from Mr. Brentwood and cleared her throat before they both greeted Miss Matilda Craftsman and Miss Jessica Slant. When the ladies stopped beside them, it was clear Miss Craftsman had eyes for no one but Mr. Brentwood. She was a lovely, petite young lady with dark brown eyes. Her skin was a beautiful olive shade and so flawless she looked more like a painting than a real person. She had just the kind of complexion Sophia had always wanted but, with her smattering of freckles, would never achieve. Miss Slant was lovely, too, with her gorgeous blonde hair and a smile that would turn any gentleman’s head.
    A prick of envy washed over Sophia, but she quickly brushed it away. She had settled in her mind years ago that there was nothing to be done about her red hair, white skin, and freckles.
    Miss Craftsman immediately turned the back of her shoulder toward Sophia and said to Mr. Brentwood, “I hope we didn’t interrupt a private conversation.”
    “Not at all, Miss Craftsman. We were just getting to know each other. Isn’t that right, Miss Hart?”
    “Yes,” Sophia said, keeping a smile on her face. “And we found we have many things in common, didn’t we, Mr. Brentwood?”
    “More than we could imagine.”
    “But now I must get back to my aunts,” Sophia said, making sure she made eye contact with the ladies before settling her attention on Mr. Brentwood again. “Thank you for your help, Mr. Brentwood. You will let me know if you hear anything about the lad we were discussing, won’t you?”
    “You can depend on that, Miss Hart.”
    “Good evening, Mr. Brentwood, Miss Craftsman, Miss Slant.”
    Sophia turned and headed down the corridor. She heard Miss Craftsman ask about the lad she had mentioned, but she didn’t hear Mr. Brentwood’s response.
    Sophia wondered how her apology to Mr. Brentwood ended up with them quarreling about Sir Randolph and the swirling rumor of the twins’ birth. She squeezed her hands into fists. Why couldn’t she