Her fingers closed over the silver band, a faint smile on her lips. “We found it near where you were injured. It could be yours, I suppose.” She regarded him from under her lashes. “But then again…” She lowered her hand and dropped the ring into her pocket.

Chase had to fight to keep his expression blank. The little minx! Well, there was more than one way to get something out of a woman’s pocket. If he had to, he’d divest the prim Miss Ward of her entire dress, pocket and all.

Yes, he decided, two could play at this game. And who knew? Maybe they both would win.

Harriet’s face creased. “I suppose I’m not being very gracious. You…you did help us.”

“Nonsense. I did nothing more than come in here, allow that imbecile from the bank to gawk at me, say enough to assure the man that I was indeed a real person and in charge of all my faculties, and then made certain he knew you, my love, were off bounds.”

Her gaze caught his. “Off bounds?”

“I saw the way he was looking at you.” Chase realized he hadn’t liked it at all. Funny how just pretending something could make it seem real. “Your mother didn’t tell me the banker had a liking for you.”

“She doesn’t know. In fact, I didn’t know until today.”

Chase frowned, noting the downturn of her mouth. He had a sister, himself, and his protective instincts leapt to the fore. “An unpleasant shock, was it?”

“Just…unexpected.” She caught his gaze and colored. “Not that it excuses your behavior one bit. There was no need for you to be so…earthy.”

“I like earthy.” And he had. He realized that in some way, living in London and being a St. John had removed quite a lot of earthiness from his life. “Perhaps I let myself get a bit carried away. I cannot remember what it was like to be a sea captain, much less an engaged one. I had to improvise.”

“For your information, Captain Frakenham would never have made such a spectacle of himself.”

“No?”

“Never. He is a real gentleman.”

“He?”

She colored. “I meant, you.”

“Perhaps this bump on my head has loosened my inhibitions.”

She gave an inelegant snort. “You’re incorrigible. You do realize that Mr. Gower will try to disprove all you told him. And when he discovers it’s not true—”

“Then I will tell him I was mistaken. It’s not inconceivable that I might misremember something.”

“Something, perhaps. But for a captain to forget the name and location of his ship?”

She had a point. He touched the bandage. “But I hit my head. Very, very hard.”

“Yes, but we cannot afford to raise his suspicions where the captain is concerned or he’ll guess—” She clamped her mouth closed and glared at Chase as if he’d done something horrid.

Chase straightened. She’d almost said it…almost. He closed in on her, wondering if perhaps he could get the truth out of her yet. “Gower will guess what?”