Chapter 7

"Ashton! Sanford!" Cynara said surprised, "What are you two doing here?"

"We live here, little one, or have you forgotten?" Ashton answered, giving her a pat on the head.

"No, I just thought you would be out hunting or something," Cynara said, shrugging her shoulders in an effort at nonchalance.

"What's going on?" Sanford asked, seeing right through her.

"Nothing," Cynara said in dramatic outrage, "Why would something be going on? Why would you ask that?"

Sanford and Ashton shared a doubtful look. "Cynara, we can tell you're hiding something," Ashton said placing his hands on her shoulders and leaning over so he could stare her directly in the eyes and say menacingly, "Tell me what it is."

Cynara stood up straighter, narrowing her eyes, "You'll never get it out of me," she said, taking up his little game.

"I have ways of making you talk," Ashton declared, but Cynara simply crossed her arms in defiance.

"Do your worst."

Ashton grabbed her around the waist and started tickling her mercilessly. Cynara let out shouts of screaming laughter. She wiggled in an attempt to get away from him, but Ashton was ruthless.

"Help," she looked over to Sanford, but he simply grinned and leaned back against the wall, no help at all.

"Are you going to talk?" Ashton asked.

Cynara was laughing too hard to answer, her belly feeling raw, "Never," she wheezed out, instead kicking at his legs with her slippered feet.

"What's going on here?" Charles's booming voice could be heard when he walked into the room.

Ashton immediately let Cynara go, and turned to face his brother.

"She's hiding something," Ashton explained.

Charles walked over to Cynara and wrapped an arm around her "I know," he said mysteriously.

"Traitor," Ashton accused disbelievingly, "My own brother."

"We need to get rid of them," Cynara said looking up at Charles, "They know too much already."

"What do you suggest, a quick death?" Charles asked, not a flicker of a grin ruining his serious face.

"Does this have something to do with your visit to Jane's house yesterday?" Sanford asked calmly from his spot in the corner.

Cynara looked over at him surprised, "How did you know?"

Ashton's head quickly whipped around to face Cynara, "Is Miss Withurby coming over here?"

Cynara shrugged, "You caught me. But you need to leave the house because we need to get Finley and Jane alone together."

Ashton lifted his eyebrows, "I don't think Finley is going to like this. He will figure out you set the whole thing up, you know."

"Yes, but once he and Jane are happily together, he can do nothing but thank me," Cynara smiled smugly.

"It won't work," Sanford said walking forward a bit, "Finley is hopeless with women, there's no way Jane is going to fall for him."

"That's not true," Cynara said affronted, "I sure Jane will be able to see through Finley's shyness."

"Don't forget," Ashton added to Sanford, "You did also use to say that Charles was hopeless with women, too, and he was able to seduce Cynara in less than a week."

"Hey," Cynara said, and Charles glared warningly at both his brothers.

"No, I said that Charles wasn't interested in women. Being hopeless and being uninterested are two very different things."

Cynara couldn't help but feel delighted that Charles hadn't been interested in other women. What did that mean? She quickly pushed the thought out of her head, though, and concentrated on someone else's love life. "Well, I'm sure Finley will be fine if you two just leave the house and give him a chance," Cynara said sternly, shoving them toward the door.

Sanford sighed heavily, and Ashton mumbled something about being kicked out of his own home, but both men allowed themselves to be ushered out the door.

"When will she be over?" Charles asked, wrapping his arms around Cynara as soon as she walked back.

"In about half and hour," Cynara encircled his waist with her arms, "Where's Finley?"

"In his study," Charles answered, nuzzling her ear and kissing her neck.

"Do you think we should tell him now? At least give him some forewarning?"

"Mmm," Charles murmured, gently biting her neck, pulling her toward the small game room.

"Charlie, we don't have enough time for that," she said shoving out of his hands, "Besides, aren't you tired after last night?"

"I'm only twenty two, Cynara, not some old man who can't please his lady two days in a row."

Cynara grinned, "I just don't know if I believe you," she said backing up.

"Then let me prove it to you," Charles lunged for her, and Cynara gave a little shout and ran down the hall. Charles chased after her, following her around a statue and back the way they had come.

It didn't take him long to snatch her up into his arms. Cynara giggled breathlessly and playfully kicked at him. Charles ignored her struggles and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Carrying her into the game room and slamming the door, with his foot, behind him.

"I've caught you, now I shall claim by prize," he told her setting her on a table and pushing up her skirts.

"What about Jane?" Cynara asked, but Charles had already unbuttoned his pants to release his erection.

"I'll make it quick," he told her as he abruptly shoved his full length into her. Cynara gasped and grabbed his shoulders.

He needed her bare thighs under her dress as he fucked her, hard, on the game table that Cynara, somewhere in the back of her mind, was afraid would collapse.

"Your guest has arrived," the little butler announced as he entered the room.

Finley looked up from his desk. What guest? He sat down his quill and left his papers where they were. Pushing out from his chair, he quickly walked right past the butler and toward the front door.

He intended to get rid of whoever it was, because he wouldn't abide for unwanted visitors, especially when he was trying to get his work done. His steady pace came to an abrupt halt when he saw who was at the door.

"Oh, hello," Jane smiled politely up at the tall man she recognized as the eldest Stanmore brother.

Finley stared at her with shock, looking to the left and right, then back at Jane. She looked down nervously when all he did was stare at her, without saying anything.

"I'm Jane Withurby—"

"Yes, I know," Finley said suddenly, then looked pained for having done so.

Jane stared at him for a moment, then went on, "Well, I'm here to see Miss Waldorf. She's invited me for lunch."

"Yes, yes of course," Finley said looking hastily about the room. "I shall go and find her then," he said walking hurriedly away.

Jane watched him go, awkwardly wondering what she should do. But just then, a flushed Cynara and one of the other brothers walked into the room.

"Jane!" Cynara said happily when she saw her, "How long have you been here?"

"Oh, hardly a minute. I met Lord Finley, I think, but he went off to find you," Jane rushed to explain.

"Yes, that must have been Finely," Cynara nodded, exchanging a glance with Charles before introducing him to Jane, "This is Charlie. Charlie, Jane."

"How do you do Lord Stanmore," Jane said properly, despite Cynara's informal introduction.

"Oh, you can call him Charlie, or Charles, it will get confusing if you call them all Lord Stanmore," Cynara told her friend, who looked hastily to Charles for his reaction.

The man just smiled at her, and Jane was happy that she met such people that weren't so interested in the stuffy formalities of high society, although she wasn't too used to such casual manors yet. "Alright, Charles, and you, of course, may call me Jane."

"Jane," he said with a nod, "I think I'll go off and find Finley, and I'll meet you in the dining room," he left the two girls.

"So what do you think?" Cynara asked when Charles was out of ear shot.

"Oh, the house is very lovely. I can't wait to see more."

"Not of the house, silly," Cynara clarified her meaning "Of—" she couldn't say Finley, that would make it too obvious that she was trying to set them up, "My cousins."

"Oh," Jane blushed, "Charles is very handsome, is he not?"

Cynara fought to keep down the rage she felt at that comment, and remind herself that Jane didn't know the situation she had with Charles.

"He's taken," Cynara informed the other girl, "Shall we go sit down?"

Jane followed her into the dining room. "By who?" Jane asked curiously.

Cynara looked at her with a sheepish shrug and a smile.

"You?" Jane's eyebrows lifted.

"Yep," Cynara took a seat at the table, and Jane sat down next to her.

"How long? Are you engaged?"

Cynara sighed. Her affair with Charles wasn't something she had planned for the discussion table today. "No, we are just, well you know, dating. Anyway, what do you think of the silverware?"

"You're dating?" Jane asked confused, and Cynara couldn't help but wish the subject had never come up.

"Um," Cynara struggled for the word, "We're courting," she said proudly having found a way to explain it.

Jane bit her lip to hold back a smile and looked into her lap.