The Bachelor Bargain (Secrets, Scandals, and Spies)

The one I assume from whom you heard about me, otherwise why else would you be here?”
Yes, Livie knew from eavesdropping on her brothers that Alex had had dealings with Sebastian, and was in fact now in business with him, which was how she knew he’d be an excellent choice to bankroll the gazette. Though now she was second-guessing that. His ruthlessness was something she’d anticipated, but dealing with it in the flesh was quite another thing. “You don’t have to threaten me. I shan’t tell anyone.”
“Good. Then we are in agreement?”
He really was serious about marrying his sister into the nobility. And, unlike most who sought to elevate their station through marriage, he obviously wasn’t doing so in pursuit of a title for his sister. “You really want her to marry a gentleman and be part of a world you loathe? When you’ve spent a great deal of your time bankrupting the sort of men you’re now seeking her to marry?”
“I don’t intend for her to marry a scoundrel, which all of the men who lost their fortunes to me were.” Sebastian shook his head, the gray of his eyes seeming more intense as the sunlight began to dwindle from the room. “Like you said, there are some men who are honorable, rare though they are. She can marry one of them.”
“Why do all of you men seem to think marrying is so very easy and matter-of-fact when it’s anything but?”
“In your world, Lady Olivia, marriage is a business transaction, pure and simple. And money talks.” His voice was like whiskey washing over Livie with an intensity that burned. “I shall put up enough of a dowry to make her the season’s richest heiress. Say thirty thousand pounds?”
Livie nearly lost her balance. Thirty thousand pounds was a fortune and would ensure a husband.
“With my money and her looks,” Sebastian continued, “she’ll have her pick of the lot of them, after, of course, you use your resources to ensure she chooses a man worthy of her, who has no skeletons in his closet. And you assist her with her manners.”
“You’ve mentioned manners before.” Livie was beginning to wonder what sort of girl Charlotte was. “Is she lacking in them then?” It was a fact that might either assist in getting Aunt Demelza’s help or detract from it. And most likely the latter, as Aunt Demelza had little tolerance for anything these days.
“Oh, don’t get me wrong,” Sebastian replied. “She has manners when she wants to use them. Her father is a doctor and has brought her up properly, though he has allowed Charlotte to accompany him and work at his surgery in Cheapside attending to the poor on a regular basis since she was a child. Hence, she’s often surrounded by the lower class, and her language can reflect that when she gets angry and voices her displeasure and opinions about things. What she needs is to be taught how a lady is expected to behave, rather than just the daughter of a poor city doctor. She’s a quick learner. It shouldn’t take you long to teach her such things. You or even your godmother, I care little who teaches her, only that she behaves properly to attract a husband.”
“You have it all figured out, don’t you?” Livie couldn’t help the note of annoyance from sounding in her voice.
“Yes, I do. Well, after you mentioned etiquette lessons, that is.” The man grinned in response. “Really, the idea sprung from your very words, Lady Olivia.”
The cad.
Livie arched her brow. “You do realize that if she marries into the aristocracy, you’ll probably never see her again. Are you prepared for that?”
“Securing her future happiness is more important than my wants. Besides, I rarely see her now as it is, so it matters little.” He shrugged in an offhand manner, but the tightness of his jaw belied his nonchalance. “I’ve always believed the less she has to do with me and my world, the better. Which is why I’ve kept Charlotte’s relationship to me a closely guarded secret. Because if you hadn’t already surmised from your research, it’s hazardous to be around me. People tend to die. Something you’d do well to remember.”
There was no artifice in his words, just a cold, hard bluntness that gave Livie pause. He really did believe that to be the case. “So, if I somehow manage to miraculously convince my godmother to agree to sponsor your sister in Society, and your sister is taught how to behave properly in such an environment, regardless of her wishes on the matter, you in turn will agree to my proposal and fund the gazette as a silent partner? And I do mean silent, for I’ve heard how you like to take an active role in all your investments.”
His mouth twitched very slightly at the corners. “How else am I meant to ensure their success but to take a firm hand in my investments?”
“Well, you shan’t be taking a firm hand with me or with the gazette.” Livie placed a hand on her hip and glared up at him. “Are we perfectly clear?”
“Perhaps a firm hand is exactly what you need, my lady.”
And before Livie knew what he was about, he took two strides over to her and lowered his head until it was but an inch from her face.
Her heart kicked up a notch and she breathed in the woodsy scent of his cologne and had to grip her cane handle tightly to stop herself from stumbling. Goodness, he smelled good. It was rather off-putting. She hadn’t expected him to smell so clean and enticing.
No man had ever made her feel this sort of breathless anticipation before. It was intoxicating. “I need no man. My hands are firm enough on their own.” Thankfully, there was only the very slightest quiver in her voice. “Are we in agreement then?”
His mouth unfurled in a small smile, while his scar twisted with the action. “Get the Dragon Duchess to agree and then yes,