Kit planned to get to the bottom of why she was ignoring him.

They descended the steps leading to the Cliff Walk. “There.” He pointed to an egg on the stone. “I told you.”

She bent to collect it. “You care about her, don’t you?”

“Maddie? Yes, she’s a close friend. We spent a lot of time together after Harrison left for Paris.” He took the egg and placed it in his hat. “Which is why I must uphold my promise to her.”

“I understand.”

“Do you?” He shielded his eyes from the sun and stared down at her. “Because my refusal to help you has nothing to do with you.”

“Yes, you already said.”

“Yet I sense you don’t believe me.” Otherwise, why ignore him? Why the disappointment when they were partnered?

“I do.”

“Really?”

“Really. Now, may we cease discussing it? I am embarrassed enough.”

They began walking once more. The tide was out, the waves gentle and rolling, which allowed them to converse without shouting. “There’s no reason to be embarrassed about asking for help, for trying to take control of your own life. I applaud it, actually.”

“You do?”

“Yes. My parents were unhappy in their marriage, and I saw the misery inflicted on a woman with no power, no say over her life.”

“I’m sorry.”

He lifted a shoulder. “My father is not a nice man.” An understatement, but there was no reason to scare Alice with tales of the Ward family. Those nightmares belonged to Kit and his two siblings, both of whom had moved away years ago. He hadn’t seen either since his mother’s funeral, and his father had skipped town before even that, as soon as Kit’s mother grew ill. Four years it took her to die, and that bastard had already taken the family money and started a new life out West before she was cold in the ground.

Unfortunately, the distance hadn’t kept his father from trying to get his hands on Kit’s sizable trust fund. Kit’s maternal grandmother had set aside money for all the grandchildren, which they could access when they turned eighteen. Kit had been the only Ward sibling smart enough to refuse their father’s demand for money, and he hadn’t heard from dear Papa since.

“I take it you two aren’t close,” Alice said as she scooped up another egg.

“That is correct.” He pointed to the green egg in her hand. “That egg has more morality than my father.” Alice’s lips twitched, so Kit gave her an exaggerated expression of surprise. “Have I nearly made you laugh?”

The side of her mouth hitched. “You are amusing.”

“Well, that is something.” He dropped the second egg into his hat. “Tall, handsome and amusing? You’ll turn my head with all that flattery, Alice Lusk.”

She blushed under the rim of her hat, color decorating her cheekbones. “As if I could ever.”