He frowned. “I beg your pardon?”
“A man who does not insist upon his way. One who respects my choices. It gives me hope for the human race.”
He snorted. “I don’t think the race is in any danger, but I accept your compliment. Though I find your choice baffling and incredibly unwise.”
She laughed. “You have the entire drive to convince me of your thoughts.”
He nodded. That was exactly his plan. Then he held open the door to her. She passed by him close enough that he could feel the heat of her body as she brushed past. What he wouldn’t give to have her in his bed for one night.
He pushed aside those thoughts as he stepped to follow her, neatly cutting off his sister. “Not you, I’m afraid.”
“What?” Clara gasped. “Aaron, you just said you would respect her choice.”
“I did. I also agree with her statement.”
She lifted her chin. “Which was what?”
He winced in advance. She was not going to appreciate this. “You have a reputation to lose. You cannot be seen in a gambling hell, Clara.”
“Don’t be ridiculous—”
“Plus, I have the carriage. You have no means to get there.”
She sniffed. “If you think your carriage is my only means of transport, then you are sadly mistaken.”
It was true. She had money for a hackney if she could find one at this hour. She also had friends who would likely offer to take her wherever she wished. “You will be of no help there,” he said gently. “A gaming hell is a man’s domain, and you have no experience in it.”
“I should like to learn!”
That wasn’t in the least bit true. She had no interest in gambling. Never had. Never would. “I can protect Miss Rees better if I am not watching to see that you are safe. As my sister, you are my first obligation. If she gets in trouble, my priority would be to make sure you are safe first. That would leave Miss Rees unprotected.”
It was a lie. He would see them both safe, but it would be much easier if he watched only one woman, not two. Fortunately, he knew that Clara respected logic. She was temperamental, not unreasonable.
“You will not abandon her?” Clara stressed.
“I swear it.” Then because he felt bad about leaving her behind, he pulled her into a quick, brotherly hug and whispered into her ear. “Allow me to be human, Clara. I cannot protect two women at once.”
“I understand,” she said as he drew back. Then her gaze went to Miss Rees. “Pray do not do anything stupid. Do not spend a penny of your dowry. Just your pin money.”
“I shall be very practical,” Miss Rees returned.
“If that were true,” he muttered, “then we wouldn’t be doing this at all.”
She chuckled as they left Clara’s parlor. He called for his carriage and she served him his dinner in the kitchen while they waited for it to be brought around. Between bites of the still-warm meat pie, he asked her about the details of her plan to run a registry office. She answered easily enough, and he could find no fault in her conclusions. This mad gamble might indeed be her best choice.
He worried, of course, what his sister was doing. It wasn’t like Clara to remain in her room while they were still here. But he was more interested in Miss Rees, and so he let himself forget his sister and focus instead on what Miss Rees was saying.
“I know it sounds ungrateful,” she said. “But I cannot accept the life my adoptive mother has declared for me. I don’t want to be her companion for the rest of my life.”
“But are you sure you want to run a registry? You haven’t been working on this idea for very long. Perhaps a new idea, a better idea will strike—”
“I cannot spend my life waiting for inspiration. This is what I’ve decided upon, and I will never forgive myself if I don’t try.”
He admired that determination. So many risked foolishly while the others never took a chance at all. He hoped she was that rare creature who straddled the middle line. “Tell me about your calculations.”
She did. She walked him through all her thoughts during the rest of the drive to the Lyon’s Den. She’d certainly been thorough. She’d been very analytical, and he was impressed by her methodical approach. It was too bad, really, that her dreams would never be realized.
No man, even a drunk, would gamble away his business when it was his only means of income. By all accounts Mr. Palmer was a veteran in the hells. Aaron knew many such men who had markers all over town yet managed to survive through fair means and foul. Such a man did not lose to a woman, even one as enticing as Miss Rees. Especially her.