Текст книги "An Accidental Affair"
Автор книги: Heather Boyd
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“An omission is a lie,” Lady Penelope added. “Come to London with me for what remains of the season, Lady Farnsworth. If you remain here as his tenant, the scandal will never go away.”
Arabella hesitated. She did not want to become a pawn in any disagreement, but if she stayed here then she would likely be in the thick of it all.
Merrick raked his hands through his hair and glared at his aunt. “Damn you. Why couldn’t you just stay away?”
Lady Penelope offered a wry smile. “Because you are family, and no matter what happens, the family reputation always comes first,” she said simply. “Lady Farnsworth is a little wiser now, and I’m content. I’ll return below and wait for her.”
She glided out, leaving them alone again.
Merrick hurried to squeeze her hands as if she might need comforting. “The situation is not exactly how she painted it.”
“Then how is it exactly? You have a special license in your possession. You have raised the expectations of two young women to the point where they await a proposal. How could you think so little of their feelings that you begin with me?”
He grabbed her by the arms and steered her to the nearest chair. Although she disliked allowing him to push her about, she needed the chair and sat gratefully.
He knelt at her feet as he’d done the night she’d sought shelter in his home. Her throat closed at the memory. “I do have a special license. My grandfather sent it to me, as he sent one to every grandson he has. I have admired you from afar for a long time and never considered I’d have a chance to win your affections. Yes, I began the season looking for a bride. I had not settled on either of the women my aunt mentioned. Then I kissed you by mistake and then you needed me. I liked that better than finding myself a bride. I acted selfishly, I admit.”
A little of her disappointment faded. He had been a friend when she’d needed one most and it was Arabella who had changed things. All she needed to do now was prepare to make as graceful an exit as possible. “It seems my friendship has come at a high price to you. You had plans that I’ve blundered into.”
“I’ve not offered for anyone but you.”
She nodded, but it made no difference. “But you should. Lady Mary is a lovely girl, very pretty and a great conversationalist, and young. Her father is well connected and her dowry is large. She would make an excellent countess.”
He shook his head. “I asked you to marry me.”
“I have not agreed.” She gathered her strength, stood, and faced the window. “You would do better with Lady Mary. Your family expects the match and more importantly so does she.”
Merrick was on his feet in an instant. He grabbed her arms and turned her to face him again. “I will not offer for Lady Mary or anyone else. I want to marry you and grow as close as two people in love could be. I hope you will place no faith in anything else my aunt may have said.”
“No. I am capable of making up my own mind.” Arabella met his gaze, her chest hurting badly for the end of their affair. She would not continue to see him when he had two women waiting for him to propose to them. “I thank you for your kind offer, sir, but I must decline.”
When he ran his fingers through his hair, Arabella longed to straighten it again. “I feared it was too soon.”
“No, Merrick, it is far too late.” She sighed deeply. “Your aunt has invited me to spend some time with her and I feel that is a sensible decision.”
“Well, I do not.” He took a deep breath and drew her into the circle of his arms. “I am in love with you, Arabella, and I will prove my worth. Wait and see.”
His kiss was urgent and left Arabella breathless. When he left with no further mention of marriage, Arabella’s throat closed. A surge of unfamiliar longing swept her.
Was it because he was a good man that she refused? She would not be the cause of his loss of honor. He had raised a young woman’s expectations past the point of turning back. He should marry Lady Mary or Miss Milne. He should make either one love him. It would be easy.
She tightened his banyan about her body and rubbed he hands over the rich material. She would never have his arms about her again and already she missed that. Merrick had given Arabella everything she needed to be happy and safe. She owed him for his protection and for overlooking her omission of her virginity. But with all he’d done, all he’d promised and delivered, that did not mean a marriage between them was in his best interests.
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
Merrick did his best to keep a civil tongue in his head, but his aunt’s continued references to Lady Mary and Miss Milne before Arabella set his teeth on edge. Arabella was much too pale, much too timid now. She would not meet his eye, and if Aunt Pen kept bringing up the misunderstanding, she might never look at him again.
Luckily, Grayling and his wife had arrived unannounced and ended any plans to travel that day. Merrick had already had the carriage put away again and was biding his time until he could speak to Arabella alone. He was not going to marry Miss Milne or Lady Mary. Neither of them were Arabella, but there were two other reasons he wouldn’t change his mind.
First, Arabella had accepted his half brothers’ existence with not even a ripple of distress. She’d even guessed about Holland. Then there was her kindness to young Danny to consider. There was no reason for the boy to be lodged in the house. He would be perfectly comfortable in the stables with Jimmy and the others. Placing young Danny beside Holland in Winslette House had won his brothers over completely.
Second, until presented with the omitted details of his hunt for a bride, she’d stood up to Aunt Penelope. The first woman he’d ever witnessed doing so and that moment had been glorious. She might not have answered his proposal of marriage the way he’d hoped, but she wouldn’t listen to false criticism. But then the tables had turned against him, and he’d been battling just to have her look at him.
He should not have rushed his proposal. He should have waited, as he’d suspected was the right course from the beginning. He tried to catch her eye one more time, but she turned toward her visitors instead. “Gray, I need to speak with you in private,” he whispered.
Grayling frowned. “About Miss Milne or Lady Mary?”
He scowled at his aunt. She’d done her work well if even Grayling had picked up on those names. “Neither.”
Grayling’s wife had a talent for deflecting discussion to the three little girls surrounding her—the apples of their father’s eye and also their new mother’s. The middle child, Maisy, wasn’t so docile as to sit still. She climbed onto Arabella’s lap and snuggled against her. His heart skipped a beat at the expression of tenderness on Arabella’s face. She appeared completely enthralled by the little girl, her eyes growing soft and full of love. Merrick wanted that for Arabella so badly his heart ached. To make her part of his family so she would never be alone again and might, if they were lucky, have a daughter of their own. “Would you come with me?”
He led Grayling into the quieter library and shut the door. “Arabella refused my offer of marriage, thanks, I believe, in no small part to my aunt’s presence and her accusations that I’d raised hopes in those two young ladies she keeps mentioning.”
Suddenly, Grayling was before him, his hand fisted in his cravat, his expression furious. “I don’t care what your aunt has to say. That isn’t good enough for Arabella. Ask again.”
Merrick fought to free himself and put distance between them. “Believe me, I have not changed my mind about wanting to marry her. I’m just not certain that what I say is getting through anymore. She believes my aunt’s accusations that I led those women on. I paid little more interest than any man considering marriage. Let me explain how things began, and perhaps you can suggest a way forward.”
He told Grayling almost everything that had occurred over the past weeks, leaving out nothing of what he’d done in his search for a bride and why he believed Arabella was the better choice. They were good together. He did leave off mention of Arabella’s virginity and the recent loss of it when they became lovers. That was private and would remain between them alone. “My aunt has managed to turn Arabella’s trust from me and has convinced her to leave Winslette. I had not meant for that to happen. When I bought the estate, it was with the understanding that this would always be her home.”
Grayling settled against a desktop, arms folded across his chest. “Arabella has always trod her own path. It seems my fears of a few months ago were accurate. How did you convince her to stay with you?”
He shrugged. “I did nothing. She seemed determined to hide, and I simply never suggested she leave. If not for my aunt, it’s possible we would both still be in my London town house. As of a few days ago, she’d only just regained her confidence around others.”
“I would never have guessed her to have been injured and afraid. She didn’t confess the extent of the situation yesterday.” Gray tilted his head. “Thank you for looking after her so well. For a scoundrel who can have almost any woman he wants, I’m rather proud of your restraint.”
“Past tense.” He shook his head. “I did what you suggested. I asked Arabella to be my wife this morning, well before the timing was right, and have been refused. I don’t know what to say to convince her I don’t want anyone else. She knew about the special license already. Found it herself and pretended not to until this morning. I fear the existence of the damn thing has convinced her I’m in a hurry to wed.”
Grayling’s gaze grew shrewd. “She grows more reserved when troubled. She looks about to weep every time your aunt speaks. I take those two things as a very good sign. She’s conflicted about what to do. Augusta used to worry when Arabella tried so hard to be agreeable. Rosemary has voiced the same concerns in different ways. The only thing I can suggest is patience. Destroying the license or allowing the license to lapse might ease her tension. How patient are you prepared to be?”
“I’d wait an eternity just to see her smile again.” Hearing his own conclusions from Grayling’s lips brought relief. He might still have a chance to change her mind, but revisiting the subject today wouldn’t help. He’d have to give her time. He could do that. “The license is still in London, so I can do nothing there. Let’s return to the ladies.”
Merrick stepped back into the drawing room and glanced around without seeing Arabella. Lady Grayling was still trading subtle barbs with his aunt, the three children lolling on the thick carpet between them. Although Merrick listened for her footsteps, Arabella appeared nowhere nearby. He glanced at his pocket watch, wondering how soon after his departure she’d slipped away. He and Gray had spoken perhaps a quarter hour. It was unlike a hostess to desert her guests for that length of time.
When the ladies paused in their conversation, Merrick cleared his throat to interrupt. “When and where did Lady Farnsworth go?”
The pair glanced at each other, then at the clock. His aunt’s expression grew disapproving. “Close on a quarter hour. She did not say what she needed to do, either.”
Lady Grayling rose from her chair. “She excused herself soon after you left. I assumed she needed a private moment or was coming to speak with you.”
“We did not see her at all. If you’ll excuse me, I would like to check on her.”
Merrick left them quickly, took the stairs two at a time, and barged into Arabella’s bedchamber. The room was empty, as were all rooms above stairs when he inspected them. Sure that he’d overlooked no smaller chambers, he headed below and poked his head into every chamber he remembered from his tour of the house. In the small room where Arabella’s fledgling greenhouse resided, Merrick found his half brother sprawled on the floor untidily, unresponsive when his name was called.
Merrick rushed to him and shook his shoulder. “Holland. Wake up, brother.”
Holland stirred slowly, blinking at the room as he turned over. Blood oozed from a nasty head wound and Merrick quickly pressed a clean handkerchief to the injury. “What happened to you?”
“I don’t remember.” Holland slowly sat up and rested against him a long moment, one hand held to his head. “I heard a sound in here and thought to inquire if Lady Arabella needed my help.”
Relief coursed through him. “Did she?”
“She wasn’t here. I never saw her.” Holland fumbled for his pocket watch and stared at the time. “I don’t remember anything beyond that moment. I think it was a little after the hour when I came in.”
Merrick peeled the cloth from the wound as Holland put his pocket watch away. The bleeding didn’t seem too bad, but he wasn’t used to such matters. He’d need help with his brother. “Someone else must have been here though.”
He put his arm about his brother and lifted him carefully to his feet.
“The way my head hurts, I’m not surprised.” Holland groaned. “Do you think Farnsworth returned?”
Cold fury filled him. “He better not have. I’ll get you settled to rest, then search for Arabella.”
Holland waved his hand. “Find your lady first. I can rest here as well as anywhere.”
“Don’t be absurd. I’ll not leave you alone.” Merrick bore the bulk of Holland’s weight and shuffled him from the room. By the time they reached the drawing room doorway, Holland was passing in and out of awareness. Merrick was terrified. “I need some help,” he shouted.
Aunt Penelope turned as he came through the door and then fainted clean away, settling to the floor with a sob. Some use she would be. Grayling reached them first and helped settle his brother on the fine damask sofa, and then Merrick checked on his aunt.
“She’s only fainted,” Lady Grayling said as she fanned the older woman’s face briskly. “I’m sure she’ll recover.”
Merrick shrugged and then put his aunt back in her chair. “So much for her reputed strong stomach. I never imagined a little blood could upset her so badly.”
Grayling helped his wife stand and then glanced at his brother. “What happened to Holland? Did you find Arabella?”
“I don’t know and no, I haven’t located her yet. She is not upstairs and while looking for her I found Holland out cold on the floor of Arabella’s green tiny greenhouse. He thought she was there but said he saw no one in the room.”
Holland groaned, his eyes fluttering open again. When he made to rise, Merrick pressed his hand to the man’s chest. “Rest. You’ve taken quite a blow.”
“I need to help you find your bride,” he insisted. “Don’t let her get away.”
Merrick patted Holland’s chest. It seemed at least his brother agreed with his decision to marry Arabella. Holland’s approval meant a lot to him. “Not a chance. You must promise to remain here until I return. If you cannot, I’ll have young Danny come sit on your chest to hold you still.”
Holland’s eyes flickered across the room and an embarrassed expression flickered across his face. When Merrick lifted his gaze in that direction, his aunt watched them, a strange, almost wistful expression evident.
“Are you well now, Aunt Pen?”
“Of course. Go find Lady Farnsworth,” his aunt croaked, tears filling her eyes as she stared at them. “I can watch over him.”
An odd look passed between her and his brother, and though unwilling to leave him in the dubious care of his maiden aunt, he was comforted by the knowledge that Lady Grayling would be there too. She certainly would send word to him if Holland worsened.
Merrick approached his aunt as she continued to stare at Holland. “Promise me you will take good care of him while I am gone. He is more important to me than you’ll ever understand.”
“I see that. I’m sure that between us we can manage his requirements with ease.” She drew in a deep breath, then stood and crossed the room, pulling up a footstool to sit beside Holland. Although rather shocked by her actions, he walked away. He had bigger problems than Aunt Pen’s sudden compliance to deal with.
Together with Grayling he searched the main floor and, on the off chance that Arabella had returned abovestairs in the interim, sent a servant up to her room to check again. She wasn’t found and no one remembered seeing her.
Merrick returned to the green room and studied the space. A faint breeze stirred through the room, rustling the leaves of the delicate orchids Arabella kept here. Merrick approached the tall windows and tested the latches. One was unlocked, and as he paid closer attention, he saw a thread caught on the window frame.
His blood ran cold as he surveyed the view from the window. With all the trees studding the grounds, it was impossible to see far outside in any direction. Arabella could be anywhere, and he very much feared that Farnsworth had returned to take her away.
His hands curled into fists. If Farnsworth had harmed her again, he’d kill him this time.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
The ties on Arabella’s wrists had long since burned tender marks onto her skin as she’d tried to free herself again through the endless day that had just passed. She stared at her throbbing wrists helplessly. It was no use. Despite her best efforts, the knot remained firmly tied. She was hobbled—hands tied to her feet by a short rope between—denied any freedom of movement or any hope of escape from Winslette’s ruins.
As the sun lowered in the sky, tendrils of fog rose from the nearby river, gradually cocooning her and her brother-in-law in a private world. She shivered as a chill swept over her skin. Cut off from everything and everyone she held dear, she’d no idea what plans Farnsworth had made, but she was sure she wasn’t going to like them.
She hunched forward, attempting to reach her chilled legs and rub some warmth into them while scanning the view available to her for a means of escape. There were one or two rough-looking men outside the ruins, but they didn’t look her way once.
Across the ruins, Farnsworth stared intently into the thickening fog, looking not at Winslette House but away from it. When he’d taken her from the house, he had spoken only a few words, threatening to hurt Merrick if she didn’t come quietly. He’d already killed Holland simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Once she’d glimpsed the rough company he now kept, she’d agreed to go quietly as there were three little girls, Rosemary, and Lady Penelope in the house.
Arabella bit her lip to hold back tears.
“Won’t be long now,” Farnsworth said with a terse nod in the direction of the disused road.
“What was that?” Arabella had kept up a constant stream of questions but had received little by way of response. All Farnsworth had said about his intentions so far was that he was waiting and then everything would be well again.
“The solution is at hand.” He smiled and the sight chilled her to the core.
She swallowed the hard lump forming in her throat. She considered asking him to explain but decided against it. “May I have a drink?”
She might need to scream or to plead for help from whomever was on his way. Her mouth tasted of ashes. Surprisingly, Farnsworth revealed a travel case and produced a fine crystal goblet and bottle of red wine. He poured her a glass as if they were on a picnic and held it to her lips as a lover would. She attempted to sip, but his hand rose, forcing too much into her mouth at once. She swallowed quickly, only to regret it. The wine was rancid. Bitter.
She turned her face away, but his fingers dug into her hair, tugging her head around painfully until she held still. He forced her to drink the rest.
“You’d best learn to do what you’re told now or come to regret it later.” A cruel smile twisted Farnsworth’s lips. “He won’t like disobedience from you.”
Arabella blinked as a wave of tiredness swept her. “Who?”
“The man you were too stupid to marry.” He shrugged. “Now who knows what his intentions are? It’s none of my business. All debts will be paid and I’ll be free of the yoke about my neck. It’s a shame you had to be so disobliging to your family.”
In the failing light, she studied her brother-in-law critically, determined not to give in to fear and fall to pieces at the news that he was again using her as a means to cover his debts. Farnsworth appeared disheveled and weary. He was desperate.
“There,” he said suddenly.
Arabella jerked her head up as he stepped from the ruins and strode a few yards farther away. Arabella watched him carefully for signs he would turn back to check on her and then tried to stand. Pain exploded as sharp needles of pain lanced her feet. She sat with a thump, realizing that her feet were utterly numb from being bound like this. She couldn’t run fast if she tried. She bit her lip as the world swayed just enough to make her feel she could fall.
When she raised her head, the rough fellows Farnsworth had employed had come closer and were laughing at her. Their images danced in her vision and her stomach rolled disconcertingly.
Farnsworth stopped at the edge of the old roadway and set his hands to his hips. Arabella caught the sound of movement beyond him and fought to focus her eyes. She heard horses, tack jingling in the distance, and then men carrying lanterns appeared.
“This is the devil of a place to meet, Farnsworth. I thought Winslette would offer a finer welcome than this. You’d better have delivered what your invitation promised.”
A dark shape joined Farnsworth, though she could not identify who it might be immediately. He was tall. His voice held a demanding edge to it that nagged her memory.
“She’s waiting. Exactly as I believe you like your women.”
“Good.”
Farnsworth turned and gestured to where she sat. “There she is. As you can see, Parker, she’s docile enough for your plans.”
Lord Parker came closer, his smile showing his delight and his greatcoat sweeping back from his body like the giant wings of death. “My dear lady. How well you look this evening.”
“Help me,” she begged, her words slurring. She lifted her heavy, bound wrists for him to inspect. It was growing harder to focus. “Farnsworth stole me away.”
She shook her head, hoping to clear her foggy mind.
Lord Parker came close enough that he could inspect her bound hands. His fingers caressed the rough ropes and the reddened skin beneath, but he did not untie her. “You’ve done well, Farnsworth. How long ago was she drugged?”
Arabella gaped when Farnsworth smiled. “Not long. A double dose since you’ve a ways to travel.”
It must have been the wine. She forced herself to relax as Parker untied the rope between her hands and feet. Her feet tingled a little as she shuffled her feet. Given how they felt, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to walk away, let alone run, if an opportunity presented itself.
Parker turned his back on her. “The gag will solve any difficulties when the potion wears off on the journey. I’d rather not be disturbed by busybodies. The dose you gave will serve. Too little and she might cry out an alarm and draw attention. Too much…”
He left the rest unsaid and she shivered.
A gag? What sort of a fiend was he that he needed to resort to such measures? She swallowed hard as tears sprung to her eyes. Parker was strong, and if he didn’t release her of his own accord, she didn’t think she could get away without help. He would have no trouble subduing her if she tried to flee. She didn’t like to think about what might happen after that.
“You’re sure no one will look for her?”
“Not after the tales I’ve spread. She has no family to speak of besides me.” Farnsworth nodded. “Are we square now?”
Parker circled back to leer at her. “She’s more leggy than I usually like, but all women are the same in the end I suppose. You just have to teach them to behave.”
Arabella stared. She should be scared by that promise. She should be terrified. But it was becoming so hard to think of very much at all. She was on the verge of sleep when a voice cut through her stupor.
“Oh, I don’t think you’ll have the chance to teach her anything.”
Arabella’s heart thudded in response to Merrick’s voice. She fought to turn her head to see if she’d imagined his arrival and saw him a short distance away on the edge of the ruins in the company of his servants, half-brothers, and Grayling. She smiled happily. Her Merrick, though shrouded in fog, would make everything all right again. He would take her home to Winslette where they both belonged together.
