The Perfect Temptation (37 page)

mentioned that a friend of hers
had purchased some replacement

pieces for her formal set from
you. Luncheon forks, I

believe she said."

She couldn't recall any such
transaction. Warily, she prodded,

"And you're looking for
replacement pieces for this

set?"

"Actually, this is the
only piece that I
 
have at the
moment.

I'm looking for the rest of the
set that goes with it."

And he thought she had it? The
implication was clear and

it made her angry. Aiden didn't
look at her, but he shifted his

stance again and took a long,
slow breath.
It
might have been

wordless, but it was an
admission if she'd ever seen one.

None of this conversation was
coming as a surprise to him.

Was the knowledge of Barrett's
suspicions what had preoccupied

him during dinner? Did he
suspect her of trading in

stolen silver, too?

No, she instantly admitted. He
knew her better than that.

He would have dismissed the
possibility out of hand. Had he

been worrying that she would
feel insulted and hurt and angry?

He was right, but the apparent
fact that he'd known how

she'd react was most decidedly
to his credit.

Deciding there was nothing to
do but to address the matter

squarely, she faced his friend
and bluntly inquired, "Was

the rest of the set you're
looking for by any chance stolen?"

His smile studiously pleasant
and his brow twitching ever

so slightly, Barrett explained
smoothly, "A recent guest of

Lord Westerham walked off with
it while he was sleeping.

Lady Westerham is due back from
Paris before the week is

out and he'd prefer to avoid
having to explain its absence."

"And he's hired you to
find the set in time," she guessed.

"And I, in turn," he
said before she could ask her next

question, "would like to
hire you for the task. Would you be

willing to consider it? The
finder's fee is considerable."

"So is the risk,"
Aiden said quietly, meeting her gaze.

"Understand that if you
decide to accept Barrett's offer, you

won't go looking without
me."

There were so many emotions in
his eyes. Irritation. Resolve.

It was the depth of his regret
and embarrassment that

spoke the loudest, though. He
didn't like this at all. Not one

little bit. "And who would
guard Mohan in your absence?"

she asked, thinking that he
might be wanting her to provide

them an excuse to evade the
task
.
"He's most certainly not

going with us. Not where we
have to go and not among the

kinds of people we'll have to
meet."

He nodded and gave his friend a
tight smile. "The boy

needs a riding suit and a
decent pair of boots. You can see to

getting
him
outfitted
while Alex and I are conducting your

investigation."

"I suppose-"

"Good:' Aiden declared,
cutting
him
off and effectively

out of the conversation.
"Is tomorrow all right with you, Alex?

The sooner it's done, the
better."

She sensed that his desire to
have the task behind them

had nothing whatsoever to do
with Lord Westerham's desperation.

''There's an auction at
Christie's I had hoped to attend

in the morning but given the
circumstances, I-"

"I don't see any reason
why you should miss it." he interjected.

"We'll go and then see
what we can do about finding

the missing silver. We'll make
a day of it. Barrett will cover

any of our incidental
expenses." He turned to his friend.

"Won't you? And the cost
of the silver when we find it."

"If
we
find it," she corrected before Barrett could answer.

''There's a reasonable chance
that it's been melted down. The

monogram makes it both more
identifiable as stolen and more

difficult to sell. Even
unscrupulous buyers have certain standards.

A monogram matching their own
surname initial being

a primary one. Whoever acquired
it from the thief would have

a better chance of a faster
profit in melting it
all
down and

moving it back into production.
When was it stolen?"

"A fortnight ago,"
Barrett supplied.

Well before she'd met either
one of them. They'd had to

have begun looking for
it
immediately.
Had to have developed

a list of people they suspected
of having purchased it

from the thief. Had she been on
that list? Aiden had a good

many answers to provide. God
help
him
if they weren't good

ones.

"We'll be diligent in our
efforts," she told Barrett
.
"But I

think it's only fair to warn
you that the odds of finding the

set intact are very slim, Mr.
Stanbridge. If I might make a

suggestion?" She didn't
wait for his permission.
"If
we can

find a set of Ross Fiddle
without monograms, they could be

engraved and Lady Westerham
might never know the difference."

"How likely is it that
you'll find even a plain set?"

She smiled weakly. "I hope
Lord Westerham isn't holding

his breath and has somewhere
else to live.
If
you'd come

to me for help the day it was
stolen, you'd have had a far better

chance than you do now."

"I didn't know then that
you could be of help. I sincerely

wish I had."

No, at the time he'd considered
her suspect. A fence. A

dealer in stolen goods. Had
Aiden thought of her in a similar

light? He had asked her about
stolen silver that day Polly

had brought in the set of
Roberts and Belk. Had his question

been an idle one based on
passing curiosity as he'd said? Or

had it been grounded in genuine
suspicion?

"Well, as much as I hate
to eat and dash," Barrett announced,

"I really must be going.
Having been gone from the

office for the better part of a
week, I'm behind in my paperwork

and desperately need to catch
up as quickly as possible.

Thank you for the lovely
dinner, Miss Radford. My compliments

to Preeya."

"I'll see you out,"
Aiden offered crisply. "What time is

the auction tomorrow,
Alex?"

"It
starts at nine in the morning," she provided,
feeling almost

sorry for Barrett. Aiden was
angry and she suspected

that his friend was going to
get a solid lashing the moment

they were alone. "We
should leave here by eight to get a

number and good seats."

"You have a lot of
midnight oil to burn, Bare." He motioned

toward the dining room door.
"You probably shouldn't

tarry
another moment."

Barrett took a step in that
direction before he paused and

offered her a slight bow.
''Thank you for being willing to

help me with the investigation,
Miss Radford. I trust you to

come up with a solution one way
or another. And to further

that end, I'll be here well
before eight tomorrow morning."

She nodded her acceptance of it
all and watched him

walk away. Aiden, glowering at
his friend's back, followed.

He'd reached the threshold before
she couldn't stand the wondering

any longer.

"Aiden? Before you go,
might
I-"

He wheeled around and came
back, stopping only when

he was standing in front of
her, so close that she had to tilt

her head to meet his gaze.
"Yes," he said firmly, "you were a

suspect. And yes, he asked me
to look into the possibility. I

did only because I knew he'd
turn up and press the issue just

as he did. But I knew the truth
before I even broached the

subject, Alex. You don't have a
dishonest, deceitful bone in

your beautiful body. Not one.
Anyone who knows you knows

that."

She believed him. To the center
of her honest, reputedly

beautiful bones. And she
wanted, just as deeply, to slip her

arms around his narrow waist
and hug him tightly. Resisting

the urge, she said instead,
"I should be offended that I was

ever under even the slightest
suspicion."

The tension in him disappeared
in an instant, replaced by

an impish smile and slightly
cocked brow. "Should be?"

It
was impossible to even pretend to be angry with him.

And no real reason to, either.
"I
think
we're even."

"You had suspicions of
me?"

"Not so much
suspicions," she admitted, "as unflattering

assumptions."

"Such as?"

It
was amazing how easily he could lift her mood, how

effortlessly he could banish
even the darkest thoughts. Just

by being himself. She smiled up
at him and slowly shook her

head in appreciative wonder.
"I thought you were uncommonly

arrogant for being a
toady."

"A toady?"

His amusement prompted her to
add to her confession.

''And that you were no
gentleman."

"Well," he drawled,
his smile quirking, "since I
 
do
actually