“No, I sent my man. Sadly, from what he’s told me, he tried to grab you too soon. He should have waited for Robert to return to the others. He said afterward that he was worried Langley would merely move away a bit and then turn to watch you from a distance, so he took the chance.” Findlay shook his head at what he obviously thought had been a foolhardy decision. “The idiot earned himself a nasty knot on the head for his trouble too. But I gather he got in a good jab with his knife on Langley before that? At least he claimed he did.”

“Not such a good jab. Robert managed to deflower me the next night despite the trifling wound,” she said spitefully.

Charles’s mouth tightened. “That is most disappointing.”

“Good,” Lisa said grimly. “I hope you choke on that knowledge.”

Now he smiled. “So the kitten does have claws. Delightful. I like fight with my fun.”

“I don’t know about fun, but you’ll certainly get a lot of fight from me, my lord,” she assured him, and reached for the handle to the carriage door. But, as if he’d been waiting for just that, Charles caught her wrist at once and twisted viciously as he dragged it away from the door.

Lisa cried out and fell back on the bench seat as he released her. Cupping the injured arm with her good hand, she stared at him as a pleased little smile claimed his lips.

“Does it hurt very much?” Charles asked solicitously.

Sensing that he would enjoy knowing he’d hurt her, Lisa removed her good hand from the wounded wrist and shrugged. “Not very, my lord.”

As she’d expected, his mouth twisted slightly with disappointment at her words.

Suspecting he would try to hurt her again as punishment, Lisa quickly said, “I gather we are not on the way back to Radnor house?”

Charles blinked and then seemed to relax again and smile. “You are right, of course. We are on the way to my townhouse. I will continue my routine here in town for the next week or so to ensure suspicion is not cast my way, then retreat to the country, heartbroken at what I think is your defection after accepting my proposal.”

“That’s why you acted as if we were engaged with Robert,” she said with realization. “I thought you were just trying to protect my reputation after getting caught kissing me.”