Regina Scott by The Rakes Redemption Read Free Book Online Page B

mind. He’d seen the looks flashing between Jerome and Richard when they talked about what had happened the night Uncle’s body had been returned home. If he dwelled on that day now, he’d likely go mad.
    He pushed back his chair and went in search of game.
    Everard House ought to be crowded with him, his cousins Richard and Samantha and Lady Claire Winthrop in residence, to say nothing of his cousin Jerome and his new wife, who were expected any moment. Yet sometimes days went by without more than a chance meeting in the corridor. The others were all intent on making Samantha the toast of London, and that meant taking the girl out where she could be seen.
    Today, for example, Samantha and Lady Claire, as they had all begun to call his cousin’s sponsor, were just returning from some event when he reached the stairs and gazed down into the entryway. The marble-tiled space looked remarkably empty since they had removed the massive statue of a naked Eve holding out a golden apple, one of Uncle’s mad whims. Samantha seemed entirely too small, her dainty features as animated as the hands she waved in front of her sky-blue spencer.
    “But he asked to call,” she was saying breathlessly. “I thought surely you’d advise me to encourage him.”
    “Anyone else, certainly,” Lady Claire replied, handing her feathered bonnet to the footman. Vaughn had been unsure of Richard’s betrothed at first. The color of her thick, wavy hair might be as warm as honey, but her blue gaze could be as cold as ice. And it didn’t help that she had thrown over Richard for a wealthy viscount years ago. He had come to realize, however, that a loving heart beat beneath those fashionable silk gowns, and her devotion to Samantha was unquestionable.
    His cousin puffed out a sigh as she allowed the footman to take her bonnet. “I’m only trying to fulfill Papa’s will!”
    “And with considerable style,” Vaughn called down.
    Her face brightened as she looked up at him. “Cousin Vaughn! You’re home!”
    “An astute observation, infant,” he replied with a smile as he descended the stairs. “And as you appear to be home as well, what say we find ourselves some mischief?”
    She grinned as he reached her side. “What shall it be? Boxing? Fencing?”
    Lady Claire raised a brow. “Entirely without imagination. Pugilism would ruin your gown, and you’ve already beaten him twice with the blade.”
    Three times, but he was not about to admit to their bout the other morning in the stables. “I allow her to win. It inspires confidence.”
    “Ha!” Samantha made a face at him. “Damages your consequence, you mean.”
    “Regardless,” Lady Claire said with a twinkle in her eyes, “as we need time to prepare for a ball this evening, perhaps a short game of skittles in the library.”
    Vaughn nearly made a face at that. Was this what he had fallen to for entertainment—swinging a little ball on a chain so it collided with a set of pins? Where was the adventure, the excitement?
    “Lovely!” Samantha exclaimed with a clap of her hands, and he felt compelled to bow her and Lady Claire ahead of him to the library. He’d promised to support the girl in any way possible, after all. She was doing them a favor.
    Uncle had written his will oddly. The law required the only legal child of his blood, Samantha, to inherit the title and the bulk of the Everard legacy—lands in six counties, shares in more than a dozen ships and money in the Exchange. But Uncle had left a sizable bequest to each of his nephews provided they help Samantha achieve three tasks. The first, being presented to the queen, had been accomplished two weeks ago, thanks to the help of Lady Claire.
    The other two were more difficult. Uncle’s reputation for wildness had caused any number of families to close their homes to anyone named Everard. The will required Samantha to be welcomed in those homes. Vaughn knew he wouldn’t be much help there. Between his loyalty to his