It was certainly one that had been making the rounds in the ward—always at the expense of the cantankerous matron who had dared to insult their duchess. As Drake told the admiral the tale, his neighbors butted in now and then with their own observations of how Miss De Wilde had stridden in, looking to be the epitome of furious pride. And how Dot had been the only one in the room who seemed more horrified than impressed.

The admiral chuckled in all the right places, going so far as to lean back in his chair and slap a hand to his knee at one point.

The duchess herself made an appearance as they were wrapping up the tale, stealing the attention of most of the men and giving Hall the chance to lean forward and say quietly, eyes still twinkling, “Don’t waste your time, Elton.”

Drake lifted his brows. “Pardon?”

“Pursuing Margot De Wilde. I see the interest in your eyes.”

His brows pulled down again. Hall was famous for reading people, but even so—Drake was usually better at hiding his thoughts than that. Perhaps it was the fault of the injury and medication and endless hours on this blighted cot. But DID had seen, apparently, so what was the point in denying it? He weighed the question for a moment before coming to the conclusion that admitting it could actually prove an advantage. He could ask the admiral questions he couldn’t ask his sister without announcing to her his interest in her friend. “Is she spoken for?”

The admiral barked a laugh. “Heavens no! She wouldn’t hear of it. Which is my point. In the last year I have watched no fewer than half a dozen men try to get her attention, and she is utterly oblivious to them all.”

Drake shifted, winced, and covered it with a smile. “That’s a positive for my cause, sir, not a negative.”

“Elton . . .” The amusement in the admiral’s eyes faded into mild concern. “I don’t usually take it upon myself to interfere in such matters, but Margot is a special case. She is vulnerable from the loss of her mother, though she’ll never admit it. I won’t have you taking advantage of that.”

“I wouldn’t!” The very suggestion made him go tense. Which in turn made fire scream through his middle.

“Not in any reprehensible way. But you ought to know that she has goals for her life, for when this war is over, that don’t include a husband keeping her at home to raise a brood of children. Education, for starters.”