Regency Spymasters 01 - Spy Fall by Diana Quincy Read Free Book Online

frippery,” Maxim said.
    Marcel nodded. “Not everyone sees aerial excursion as the science demonstration it is.”
    Mari’s throaty voice sounded from the doorway. “They desire a spectacle, so we must provide it.”
    Cosmo’s mouth went dry. As far as he was concerned, the best show in the metropolis stood a few paces from him. His fallen angel had thrown off the breeches in favor of a deep-green silk gown that did wonders for her form. With her dark hair pulled up, the deep décolletage revealed a long, slim neck and honey-satin skin draped over curving shoulders. Her breasts were as lush as he’d imagined—pale, plump, and rounded to perfection. Suddenly, he didn’t care what the parachutist was up to, as long as she continued to favor them with her presence. He could only hope her scheme involved seduction.
    “Mademoiselle Lamarre.” Aldridge bowed. “You are certainly in good looks this evening.”
    She curtseyed, the movement like flowing water. “ Merci , my lord.” She shot an edged look at her siblings. “I have Maxim and Marcel to thank for it.”
    The M brothers exchanged the sort of rapscallion glance common to young boys involved in mischief. Maxim’s mouth twitched with restrained mirth. “You look decidedly…feminine…sister.”
    “ Belle. Like a real lady,” Marcel complimented with an admirably serious expression, betrayed by the spark of laughter in vivid eyes so like his sister’s.
    Ah, the gown had not been Mari’s choice. The brothers had decided to have a little amusement at her expense. Dismissing them with an elegant turn of her neck, she spoke to his father. “You were speaking of the exhibition, my lord?”
    “Indeed. Your brothers were lamenting the need to add ornament to what is essentially a scientific undertaking.”
    “It is most regrettable that the public comes for the spectacle,” she said, “and not the science.”
    Cosmo shook his head with disgust. “Seeing a fellow creature exposed to danger is not entertainment enough for the masses?” He set his empty glass on a marble-topped end table with a clank. “How is it, gentlemen, that your father allowed Mademoiselle Lamarre to pursue such a perilous vocation?”
    Marcel chuckled. “He not only allowed it, he insisted upon it.”
    Cosmo bounced a questioning look between the two brothers. “Surely you jest.”
    “Not at all,” Maxim said with a shrug. “Once mon père realized that people would pay more to watch a woman fall from the sky, he began training Mari to take over the job.”
    “The idea of a damsel in distress is very appealing to the masses,” Marcel explained.
    Disbelief burned in his chest. “Your mother allowed this?”
    Mari’s lips curved into a saucy little smile. “Only after she herself was allowed to jump.”
    “God’s breath!” Cosmo shook his head incredulously. “Does everyone in your family have a death wish? I suppose your sisters are fire-eaters.”
    “Not quite,” Maxim said, “but it is true we Lamarres do not care for boring vocations. Perhaps that is why we took up aerostation.”
    “How did you come to be involved with ballooning?” Aldridge asked. While his father engaged the brothers in a discussion of their personal histories, Cosmo took the opportunity to go to his fallen angel’s side. “Tell me, Miss Lamarre, do all of the M s court risk and danger?”
    Her mercurial eyes shone an opal-like green this evening, reflecting the vibrant shade of her gown. “Do you not crave a little excitement, Dunsmore?”
    “At the moment I crave you.” His eyes slipped to the spectacular view her bodice offered. “Preferably divested of that gown.”
    She smiled, baring the charming little gap between her front teeth. “You do not care for my attire?”
    “On the contrary, I care for it entirely too well.” He felt warm in his formal dinner clothes. “As enticing as the wrapping is, I’m anxious for a glimpse of what’s inside the package.”
    “Sometimes the