Remy appeared, and Vita’s stomach fell.
Dunst didn’t know that once upon a time she’d been on her way to becoming Lady Bowland.
Dunst’s eyes widened at seeing Remy. “General Astger. Are you this boy’s uncle?”
“I am,” Remy said.
“You’ve met?” Vita asked.
Remy lifted a brow at her. “I’m the head of Van Dero’s army. Of course, we’ve met.” He looked at Dunst. “You’re not to be on this floor.”
“My apologies.” Dunst chuckled. “But Vita and I wanted a moment alone. Have you ever been married, my lord? If you ever find a woman you can’t resist, I’m sure you’d understand.”
Vita's heart struggled to keep an even rhythm. She wanted to tell Remy that she hadn’t wanted to be alone with Dunst and that she’d come here on her own. She tried to use her eyes to plead his understanding, but he didn’t look at her.
And she was glad.
Remy’s expression was cold. “The Marquess of Ellervear resides on this floor and in this wing.”
Ellervear was Cassius’ heir. “That you would dare step onto this floor makes one think you wish to challenge the duke.”
“I don’t.” Dunst moved around Vita and into the hall. He’d paled some. “I had no clue where the baby slept. I didn’t come up here for him. As I stated—”
“This floor is closed to guests,” Remy said. “Lady Vita knows this.” Was that scorn in his tone? “I’ll escort you both downstairs.” He pointed for Dunst to lead the way.
“Yes, well.” Dunst held out his arm. His mouth was pinched.
Vita took his arm and then walked swiftly to keep up with his fast pace.
Once they were downstairs, she was out of breath.
Remy had caught up. He seemed completely calm, but she was certain he was upset.
She wanted to speak to him. He should at least know that she would never put the baby in danger.
Noel came down but then walked away. He didn’t linger.
Dunst’s gaze trailed after the young man and then he turned back to Remy. “That’s your nephew, is he?”
Remy nodded.
“He called my fiancée by her first name.” Dunst looked at her. “Are you close to that man?” He looked jealous.
Vita laughed. If Dunst should be jealous of anyone, it was Remy. “Yes, Mr. Trouble saved my life once.”
Dunst’s eyes widened. “Did he? Well, I must meet him and thank him for keeping you safe.”
He didn’t ask how Noel had come to save her, and she didn’t bother to offer that information.
Remy turned to Vita. “The duke wishes to speak to you. It was why I was on your floor.”
“He wants to speak to me right now?” Vita asked.
Dunst said, “I’ll take her.”
“You’ll wait for her outside,” Remy said.
Dunst stiffened. “I’m her fiancé. Surely, anything the duke has to say to her—”
“He has to say to her.” Remy stopped forward and only stood but an inch from Dunst. He was taller, looked far more deadly, and delicious.
Very delicious.
“When you walk onto Van Dero’s land, take note that you leave behind London and step into a new world. The rules you know no longer apply. Whatever the duke has to say to Vita will always only be for Vita’s ears unless Van Dero says otherwise. That rule stands for today just as much as it will stand after you’ve wed.”
Dunst glared at him. “I understand the rules outside of the rules. My grandfather invented a few of them.” Dunst’s smile was more of a snarl. “It’s the reason Van Dero wishes to keep me around… and alive.”
Vita was now more certain than ever that Dunst was hiding something. She wanted out of her agreement, but it was too late.
“I’m glad we understand each other.” Remy turned to Vita. “You know the way to his office.”
She separated herself from Dunst.
“I’ll be just outside the door,” Dunst said.
She looked at him. “No, go enjoy the play. I’m sure I won’t be long.”
Dunst frowned but nodded and left.
Vita avoided looking at Remy as she started toward Van Dero’s office.
Though she was fully aware that he followed.
∫ ∫ ∫
4 6
* * *
She turned a corner and Remy grabbed her and pressed her against the wall.
“What were you thinking?” Remy hissed. “Leading that man to your room?”
“I didn’t. He followed me. I didn’t know. I would never—”
“You would,” he growled. “You will in a few weeks, as a matter of fact.”
Her cheeks heated. “I meant I would never endanger Ellervear.”
Remy backed away from her. “You should be more careful, Vita. Anything could have happened, and everyone would have blamed you for it.”
Her eyes burned. “Why are you being so mean to me?” Her voice broke.
He pointed at her. “Don’t play the child now. You knew exactly what you were doing, leading that man to your room.”
There was so much hurt in her she didn’t know what to do with it.
She slapped him, but her gloves made the effect weak.
She hated him. How dare he say that to her? He had no idea just how frightened she’d been when Dunst had barged into her room.
She turned away and fled.
But Remy caught her again.
“Wait.”
She spun around and glared at him through watery eyes. “Stay away from me.”
He grabbed her face and pressed his forehead to her own. “I can’t, Vita.” He breathing was labored. “I’m trying, but…”
She slipped her hands around his waist, but he pulled away.
His eyes seemed haunted. “You don’t belong to me.”
“But I do,” she whispered.
He backed away. “Go speak to the duke. He’s waiting for you.”
“You mean he actually wishes to speak to me?” She’d assumed Remy had only said as much to get her away from Dunst.
“No, while I was on my way to see you, a soldier told me he was on his way to get you as well.”
There were eyes on her, it seemed. She was glad for that. She felt safe.
She and Remy stared at one another for a few seconds more.
“I’ll go to the duke,” she said.
He cleared his throat. “Do that.”
She turned and entered the duke’s office.
They were alone.
When Vita had first arrived, she’d been scared of Van Dero, but in the last week, that fear had vanished. He’d made promises to her and seemed to truly care for her safety. He’d apologized for what he’d asked Remy to do and had then explained to her how his business worked and the greatness he was working to achieve.
His mind worked differently than most. There were few lines he wouldn’t cross to see evil eradicated from the world.
Cass was standing behind his desk. His hands were in his pocket.
It would be a lie to say the duke didn’t have a certain appeal about him. It was that same something that Remy and many of his other top officers had. His hazel gaze was sharp. So were the strong bones in his face. His hair was a brown that Vita thought hinted red in the sun.
“I heard the earl followed you from the play. Did he make you uncomfortable?”
Vita was shocked he would know that already. She was also glad that Dunst was being watched.
She wouldn’t tell the duke that Dunst made her uncomfortable. She knew what was at stake. “I’m fine.”
“You don’t have to do this, you know?”
“I do. I already agreed to it. It’s been printed in the papers.”
Cass lifted a brow. “Anything can be undone.”
Vita shook her head. “I’ll not risk lives over something as trivial as…”
“Love?” He walked around the desk. “Love is not trivial.”
Her heart shook
as the duke settled onto the edge of his desk. His hands didn’t leave his pockets. “With this act, you’ve become a part of the fold, Vita, a member of my organization. That gives you my protection. There are no slaves in my service. Men and women have equal rights. Everyone here tonight agreed to be here at one point. I don’t want you to make a decision you’ll regret later.”
She pulled in a breath and shifted on her feet. She and the duke had never had a discussion like this one before. “Might I ask what’s brought this about?”
“Seeing my friend in pain,” he confessed.
Remy.
“And you,” he added.
She folded her hands over her quivering belly. “But what about Dunst? What about what he knows?”
“The best you can do is think about what it is you saw at his house the day you visited him. If you can remember what it is he was hiding, we might be able to piece it all together.”
“I’ve thought about it. He hid nothing but a chessboard.” She’d told Cassius and the others this before.
He placed a hand on her shoulder. “It’s all right. Go back to the play. Enjoy the night and shout if Dunst gets out of hand. You are more important to me than the arrangement I have with the earl.”
Her eyes widened. “Really?”
He straightened and lifted a brow. “Why are you surprised? I didn’t ask you to do this. I didn’t ask you to engage yourself with Dunst at all. You jumped in to save the day on your own. You women have the maddening tendency to cut us men out of your plans.”
“You mean I’m not the first woman to anger you.”
He chuckled. “Have you spent any time with Milly at all?”
She laughed.
Cassius crossed his arms. “All the men who are important to me have fallen for a very strong and very bright woman. All have been willing to make sacrifices for the greater good. It’s an admirable trait... and an upsetting one.”
She was pleased to be compared to Milly and the other wives she’d met while in Van Dero’s care. They were all brilliant. Lady Pia and Lady Elisa. Even Cassius’ cousin, Lady Irene, was enchanting. Their men listened to their opinions on matters and cherished the women that they were.
They’d shared their stories with Vita, their individual tests and trials.
The men had been no better in their acts to save the world.
“You men do the same to us women and drive us just as mad,” she countered, recalling his confession to ask Remy to frighten her.
Cassius bowed. “Touché.”
Vita turned to leave.
“I’ll try and get you out of this,” Cassius said. “But for now, try and appease the earl as much as you’re comfortable with. It’s never a good idea to anger your fiancé.”
Vita understood.
She made her way to the back door. She didn’t see Remy or Noel on her way but did notice a certain watchman who always seemed to be around.
Dunst waited for her outside just as he said he would. “What did the duke say to you?” He grabbed her arm possessively. His gaze was hard.
Vita steadied her breathing and then touched his cheek. “Let’s go enjoy the play.”
Dunst softened under her touch and then smiled. “Yes, my lady.”
They started back toward the play.
“Do you know the general?” Dunst asked.
Remy licked her lips. “Yes, I do.”
“He’s a severe fellow. I wouldn’t mind having such a man work for me.”
Vita lifted a brow. “Really?”
“Oh, yes. It’s even better that he’s an earl. What do you think Van Dero has on him that’s forced him into his service?”
“None of Van Dero’s officers were forced into their positions.”
“Oh? So you know about his operations then?”
Vita fell silent.
This was yet another thing she and the duke had spoken about after she’d told him and Milly that she’d agreed to marry Dunst to end the battle.
She could not share what she knew.
But she felt the need to defend the duke suddenly. “General Astger is Lord Van Dero’s friend.”
“And the young man? Astger’s nephew,” Dunst said. “What was the boy’s name?”
“Mr. Trouble.”
“Trouble, yes. Is he also in Van Dero’s service?”
Vita thought. “I don’t believe so.”
“Hm,” Dunst said. “I think he’d make a good soldier, don’t you? I could see the fight in his eyes. Was there a physical altercation when he saved you?”
“Yes.”
“Is he a fighter?”
Vita wondered where this conversation was going. Did Dunst know about the fight Noel had had on her behalf? There were likely court records, especially since Mr. Reid was put on a ship for Australia.
“Mr. Trouble is a very good fighter,” Vita said.
“Hm.” Dunst kept walking. “We must thank him for saving you. What do you think he’d like?”
“I don’t know,” Vita said.
“Find out. I think I might like to employ the boy in my service.”
Vita’s eyes widened. “You do?”
“Well, he saved you, didn’t he? I’d think such a man would be a good protector for you. I’d like to keep you safe. I’d pay him handsomely.”
Vita thought about having Noel with her through her marriage, or at least for a year or so before he found his own profession. “I’ll speak to him about it.”
“Will you?” Dunst grinned. “Excellent.”
Vita agreed.
∫ ∫ ∫
4 7
* * *
“My nephew isn’t going anywhere near that man,” Remy said the next morning.
Vita gasped. “Why not? Surely, you don’t think Dunst would hurt him or could hurt him for that matter.”
Noel, who was leaning against the wall, grinned.
“Dunst isn’t a fool,” Remy said. “There is a reason he wants my nephew there.”
“Yes,” Cassius said from where he stood by the window. His tiny son slept in his arms. “Dunst's no fool. He’s planning something.”
Milly was in her husband’s chair with a frown on her face. “I don’t like this man at all.”
Cass stilled and looked down at his wife. In his mind, he was likely vowing to end the man’s life.
“I’m not saying he’s a good man, but I doubt he’d do something wrong considering who Noel is connected to.” Vita looked around at the men. She was so innocent. So pretty. She wore a pale lavender dress this morning and had used a perfume of the same scent. He smiled as he imagined her pairing the two together, imagined her fussing over her dress and hair.
Always trying to appear perfect when she already was no matter what she did.
She wore small pearls in her ears that matched the stones in the choker around her throat.
And she touched it repeatedly, which only made Remy hunger to put his mouth there, to run his tongue where the choker met her skin. To listen to her soft moans and feel her gentle hands on him once more.
Vita looked at him, and her cheeks tinted. Her blue eyes glowed with her own hunger.
The impact of it all but knocked him over.
He turned to Oliver. “What do you think?”
Oliver was looking between them but then settled on Remy. “I think you should let the man make his own decision.”
Remy cursed internally and wondered why he’d asked Oliver at all. The man was bent on risking his nephew’s life.
Belle and Leo sat on a couch on the other side of the room. Belle said, “It’s probably Noel’s connections that he wants. Or maybe, he’s trying to find a way to make some division.”
That was a possibility.
“He asked me questions last evening.” Vita looked at Cass. “He wanted to know how your operation worked.“
“I’m not surprised,” Van Dero said. “Just make sure you give him as little as possible.”
Remy growled. “Yo
u shouldn’t be involved in this.”
Vita turned to him. “Well, I am.”
“I don’t understand why.”
She stood. “He had Noel stabbed. He killed two of Oliver’s men. He knows something that is going to cause more deaths. What else was I supposed to do?”
Remy got in her face. “Stand down. Let a man handle this.”
She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t think you have what Dunst wants.” She looked Remy up and down.
The room around them burst into laughter.
Belle bit her lip and then said, “She’s right. This needs a woman’s touch.”
That was the last thing Remy wanted to hear. He didn’t want his woman touching Dunst. He didn’t want Vita anywhere near the man.
“I can’t do this,” he whispered to himself. He could not let Dunst have her.
Vita, who’d heard him, gazed at him in suspicion.
“Did you find out anything about him while you spoke?” Milly asked. It was an excellent question.
Vita shook her head. “The man hides chessboards from me. I doubt he’ll give me anything I could actually use.”
In desperation, Remy walked over to the corner where Cass kept his chess table, picked the entire thing up, and set it in front of Vita.
She looked at it. “What is this?”
“A chessboard. Set it up the way you saw it.”
Belle asked, “What good will that do?”
Remy shrugged. “I don’t know, but I’ll take anything at the moment.”
Vita stared at the pieces and then began to move them. She frowned midway though. The room was silent. “It was something like this, but the pieces were different.”
“Wooden?” Cassius asked. His chess pieces were made from hand-cut glass.
“No, I mean they were figures,” Vita said. “All sorts of animals, a few knights, hearts, stars. They were also different colors.”
Leo leaned forward. “You hadn’t said that before.”
Vita frowned. “I think it was just a game. A very, very pretty game. I believed he’d hidden it so I wouldn’t steal any of the pieces. Some of them had gemstones.”
“What colors do you remember?” Leo asked anxiously.
Vita picked up a queen. “There was a lion and a bear in the center. They were the largest pieces.”
A Knight to Dare: (The Valiant Love Regency Romance) (A Historical Romance Book) Page 23
