“That shouldn't be too much of a problem, then,” James said.

“Well, no, but…” Caroline's words trailed off, and she clamped her mouth into a grim line. Blake and James were talking intensely between themselves, and she might have been a piece of furniture for all the attention they were paying her.

And then, without so much as a farewell, they walked into Blake's study, and Caroline was left sitting among her books. “Of all the rude—”

“Oh, Caroline?”

She looked up hopefully. Blake had poked his head back into the library. Maybe he had decided that she could go with them to Prewitt Hall after all. “Yes?”

“Do you know, but I forgot to ask you about that odd little book you carry about.”

“Excuse me?”

“The one with all the odd words. Does it have anything to do with Prewitt?”

“Oh. No. Actually, I told you the truth when you asked me about it the first time. It's a little personal dictionary. I like to jot down new words. The only problem is that I often forget what they mean after I write them down.”

“You might try using them in context. It's the best way to remember the meaning.” Then he turned on his heel and disappeared.

Caroline had to allow that his idea was a good one, but all that left her with was a burning desire to use insufferable, arrogant, and irritating all in one sentence.

Six hours later, Caroline was in an extremely grumpy mood. Blake and James had spent the entire afternoon closeted in Blake's study, planning their “attack” upon Prewitt Hall.

Without her.

And now they were gone, having ridden out under the cover of the moonless night. Even the stars had conveniently obscured themselves behind clouds.

Those blasted men. They thought they were invincible, but Caroline knew better. Anyone could bleed.

The worst part of it all was that they acted as if it was all so much bloody fun. They'd discussed their plans quite animatedly, arguing over times and transportation and the best approach. And to add insult to injury, they hadn't even bothered to shut the door to Blake's study. Caroline had heard every word from the library.

Right now they were probably nearing Prewitt Hall, preparing to break into the south drawing room…

Without her.

“Stupid, stupid men,” she grumbled. She flexed her ankle. Not even the teeniest bit of pain. “Clearly, I could have accompanied them. I wouldn't have slowed them down.”

Dressed entirely in black, they'd both looked heart-stoppingly handsome. As she'd watched them leave, Caroline had felt unbearably frumpy. She was wearing one of the new dresses Blake had purchased for her, but she still felt like a rather plain pigeon next to those two dashing ravens.

She sat down at a table in the library upon which she'd piled all the biographies. She had planned to spend the evening alphabetizing them by subject, a task which she was now completing with a bit more vigor than was probably necessary.