“There most likely won’t be one, truthfully.”

Lady Yolten clicked her tongue and shook her head. “I can’t believe that. Simply do what Yolty said and trust Bryant. He is a good egg.” Lady Yolten nodded as if the whole thing were already settled and she could expect a wedding invitation anytime.

To what man, Diana had no idea, but that didn’t seem to bother Lady Yolten.

As soon as the door closed, Mrs. Oliver rushed to her side. “That was exciting, wasn’t it? To have a lady here in the office. What did they want to talk about?”

“She wanted to know about the railroad business,” Diana answered truthfully.

“I thought I heard them mention Lord Bryant. What did they have to say about that scoundrel?”

Diana winced. What had she done? “He isn’t a scoundrel, Mrs. Oliver.”

“But Nate . . . and even you . . .”

Diana returned to her seat and slumped into her chair. How could she have been so wrong about him? Lord Bryant was supposed to be a scoundrel. He wanted everyone to believe him a rake.

It wasn’t her fault that she had trusted in the facade he had so carefully constructed.

Her head fell forward onto her desk and landed with a clunk. No pain came.

She had known. Somewhere deep in the recesses of her mind, she had always believed Lord Bryant to be an honorable man. She would have never gone to his house unaccompanied and so late at night otherwise. She would have never asked him to ruin her if she had thought him actually capable of it.

Lord Bryant was decent, noble, and kind.

And she had taken advantage of him.

She put her hands in her hair and dug her fingers into her scalp. Every devastatingly handsome smile of Lord Bryant’s flashed before her eyes, now painful to remember. All that time, he had been helping her. Every hour he spent in her company, he put Lady Emily at risk, and yet he did it for Diana with that devilish smile on his blasted face.

A face that was now sporting a possible broken nose due to her interference. And all because she had forced him into their little agreement. At this moment, he was sitting at home, knowing he had failed to help Lady Emily, and it was all her fault.

How could she have been such an unthinking fool?

She placed her hands beside her head and heaved her body back into a normal sitting position. “I have to go.”

“But we won’t be closing up shop for a few hours yet.”

Diana shot up from the desk and practically ran to the coatrack. “Can you handle things here on your own? I can send a runner to have Mr. Oliver come. I hate to leave you alone.”

“I won’t have a problem, but what should I say when Mr. Barton returns?”

“Tell him the truth,” Diana said, buttoning the last button on her coat. “You don’t know where I’m going.” She reached the door and yanked it open.