They were all questions Anna had asked herself in the past. And with that one unfortunate exception where the marriage would have been a disaster, the answers were always the same.
No, not likely, and nothing.
But this gentleman intrigued her. She found herself watching for him in the crowd, curious to see how he acted with other people, anxious to catch just one more glimpse of him. Wanting to know if he might be looking back at her.
And when he did and Anna felt her gaze trapped in the soft silver glow of his eyes, she knew it was too late to look away. She had carelessly exposed herself, allowing her interest in, and her curiosity about, a stranger to be revealed. Was it any wonder that when he tipped his head and slowly began to smile, she felt the heat rise in her cheeks and the breath catch in her throat?
Goodness, who would have thought that with just one look, he could make her feel as awkward as a schoolgirl, as young and as gauche as Miss Mercy Banks. Surely as a mature woman of twenty-four, she knew better than to encourage the attentions of a man she’d only just met …
Anna dipped her head and boldly returned his smile. No, clearly she did not. But as she opened her fan and reluctantly turned away, the knowledge that a handsome man whose name she didn’t know still had the power to make her blush was more than enough to keep the smile on her face for the rest of the evening.
‘Parker, have you heard anything I’ve said?’ Colonel Tanner demanded in a harsh whisper.
‘Every word, Colonel.’ Sir Barrington Parker’s expression didn’t change, though he was careful to pull his gaze from the face of the exquisite young woman who had just smiled at him across the room. No small feat for a man who appreciated beauty as much as he did. ‘You wish me to investigate the disappearance of your mistress—’
‘I never said she was my mistress!’ the older man blustered.
‘There was no need. Avoiding my eyes while you described her told me all I needed to know,’ Barrington said smoothly. ‘She is approximately twenty years old, slim, with dark brown hair and rather startling green eyes. The last time you saw her she was wearing a pale blue gown with a white shawl and a bonnet with either blue or black ribbons.’
The older man grunted. ‘Apologies. Just don’t like blathering on to a man who doesn’t appear to be listening.’
‘I wouldn’t accomplish much if I didn’t listen, Colonel,’ Barrington said, though in truth he hadn’t been paying as much attention as he should. Through the mirror on the wall behind Tanner, he had been watching Lady Annabelle Durst attempt to play matchmaker. She had waited until Lieutenant Giles Blokker was in the midst of a small group of people with whom she was obviously acquainted and had sought the necessary introduction. Then, as the other couples had drifted away, she had engaged Lieutenant Blokker in conversation, no doubt with the intent of bringing Miss Banks’s name into the discussion.
At that point, Barrington had seen a look of cautious optimism appear on Blokker’s face, followed moments later by one of genuine happiness. When Lady Annabelle turned and started in the direction of Miss Banks and her mother, the young pup had fallen into step behind her, clearly delighted that he was on his way to being formally introduced to the young lady who had captured his heart.
‘Where did you last see Miss Paisley, Colonel?’ Barrington asked, reluctantly dragging his attention back to the matter at hand.
‘Hogarth Road. I keep a house there. Nothing elaborate, you understand,’ the Colonel said gruffly. ‘Just a place for friends to use when they come up to London.’
Barrington nodded. He knew exactly what the house was used for and it certainly wasn’t the convenience of friends. ‘I shall make enquiries. Where can I reach you?’
‘Best send a note round the club. Wouldn’t do to have anything come to the house.’
Barrington inclined his head. Though most wives knew about their husbands’ affairs, none wanted proof of them showing up at their front doors. ‘As you wish.’
‘Look here, Parker, it’s not what you think,’ the Colonel said, clearing his throat. ‘Eliza’s not like the rest of them. She worked as a lady’s maid in a respectable establishment until the eldest son took a fancy to her. When she was turned off without references, one thing led to another until she ended up in a brothel. That’s where I met her,’ he said, again not meeting Barrington’s eyes. ‘She told me her story and naturally I felt sorry for her, so I asked her if she’d like to come and work for me. I knew Constance was looking for a new maid and I thought it might be a way of getting Eliza back into respectable employment.’
Barrington’s smile was purposely bland. ‘And did your wife agree to take Miss Paisley on?’
‘She did, but it wasn’t long before she realised there was something going on and I had to let Eliza go,’ the Colonel said regretfully. ‘Felt so damned guilty, I offered to put her up at the house on Hogarth Road until she was able to find something else.’
With the small stipulation, Barrington surmised, that she become his mistress while she was there. A gentleman’s altruism only extended so far. ‘It would seem Miss Paisley has much to be grateful to you for, Colonel.’
‘I thought so, which was why I was so surprised when she left without telling me,’ the Colonel said. ‘Bit concerned, if you know what I mean.’
Barrington did know and he wasn’t surprised. Tanner was a decent chap, somewhere in his mid-fifties, with four married children and eight grandchildren. His wife had been in poor health for the last five years and, though he was devoted to her in every other way, her ill health had prevented them from enjoying a normal marital relationship. So he had turned, as so many men did, to the ranks of the demi-monde and there he had encountered Miss Elizabeth Paisley, the young woman for whom he had developed an unfortunate affection. Now she was missing and the Colonel was worried about her.
Probably with good reason, Barrington thought as he shook the man’s hand and walked away. It was a simple fact that women of Miss Paisley’s ilk were concerned with one thing and one thing only. Survival. It wasn’t easy making a living on the streets of London. A woman never knew if the man who pulled her into a darkened alley and threw up her skirts was going to be a paying customer or the last man she ever saw alive. Being a prostitute was not without its risks. But being the mistress of a wealthy man took away those risks and gave a woman security. It put a roof over her head and kept food on her table. So why would someone like Miss Paisley walk away from all that if she’d had any other choice?
It was a question Barrington couldn’t answer. And as he prepared to leave Lady Montby’s reception—after deciding it was best that he not stop to engage the delightful Lady Annabelle in conversation again—he realised it was one that would trouble him until he did. To that end, he made a mental note to ask his secretary to make some initial enquiries into Elizabeth Paisley’s whereabouts. Sam Jenkins had been with Barrington long enough to know what kind of questions to ask and who to ask them of. Then, depending on what he turned up, Barrington would either call upon one of his extensive network to continue the investigation or delve into the matter himself.
He wasn’t sure why, but as he climbed into his carriage for the short ride home, he had a feeling there was more to the disappearance of Miss Elizabeth Paisley than met the eye.
Anna pulled her dapple-grey mare to a halt by the base of a large oak and waited for Lady Lydia Winston to catch up with her. The two had made a point of riding together on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and these rousing canters had become one of the highlights of Anna’s week. Lady Lydia, daughter of the Marquess of Bailley, was by far one of the most amusing and interesting people Anna had ever met.
‘Goodness!’ Lydia said as she drew her spirited Arabian bay level with Anna’s mare. ‘I