That eyebrow spoke volumes and Rose laughed heartily again, ’I will give you some credit sir, I havn’t laughed this well in a while.’ A experiment was perhaps the wrong word, but a testing of the waters it certainly was - a gentleman, even a piratical one who was easily wounded had no place in her world – frail egos could seldom handle all that Rose considered herself to be. Many men still liked the illusion that her girls were falling over themselves for their attention for any reason other than money -their winning personalities perhaps.

There was nothing in this man that spoke of innocence, indeed when she looked at his face all she saw was sins – past and future. She nodded thoughtfully ’Since I am not for sale sir you will have be very clear on what exactly Long Rose can do for you this afternoon?’ She didn’t ask for his name, even though he had hers, well one of them – names held power, isn’t that what ever pureblood in the country wanted you to believe? And a name in a place like this could be damning in the wrong hands.

---