by Renée Dahlia
A knock thudded on the door twice. Ravi hugged Claire tighter, not wanting to leave her and her warm, soft body. The pounding intruded, reminding him of Claire’s arrival. Why had she made this choice to be with him today? What prompted her?
‘Are you decent?’ His brother’s dulcet tones sang through the door, far too friendly an interruption.
‘Not really,’ he muttered. Sanjay waltzed in regardless.
‘Oh, I see. Lakshmi has brought us luck.’
‘What do you want?’ Ravi swung his legs out of bed, and stalked, nude, towards his brother.
‘Shouldn’t you cover up?’
‘Perhaps you shouldn’t barge into my bedroom.’
‘Little brother, not so little anymore …’
‘Sanjay.’ Ravi infused his words with a warning.
‘Ravi. You know how much I want this. I’m so glad that you have found a wife.’
‘You are assuming a lot.’
‘Do you mean that you have taken a young woman to bed, and she isn’t to be your wife? How depraved are you?’
‘That’s rich coming from you.’
‘What on earth are you two doing?’ Ravi spun around to see Claire sitting up in bed, with the covers pulled up to her chin. She looked smaller, more fragile than her usual bold self, as her gaze flicked between him and his brother. He wanted her there forever, in his bed, just not with that caution written on her brow.
‘Aren’t you Dr Carlingford?’ asked Sanjay.
‘Yes. Precisely what do you mean—you are glad Ravi has found a wife?’ Claire’s voice was like ice, and had an instant shrinking effect over his nether regions.
‘Nothing. He oversteps.’ He resisted the urge to cover himself. Damn Sanjay for barging in here and destroying the tender balance of his burgeoning relationship with Claire.
‘Ravi agreed to take a wife to solve a small problem for me. Lakshmi has provided the answer to our prayers.’ Sanjay spoke over the top of him, and waved in the direction of the tapestry that he’d placed in here a month ago. Ravi’s hands bunched into fists at his sides. Claire wasn’t going to like the implication, and damn it, he was so close to having her accept his love. Ishwar ke liye, Sanjay had ruined everything with his poor timing.
‘I see. The older brother is infertile, and has forced his brother to find a convenient broodmare.’ Claire, of course, saw directly to the point.
‘Infertility is not the precise issue,’ said Sanjay. Ravi grinned as his brother bristled at the implication. Funny how her barb could still hurt him.
‘Why don’t you get your own broodmare then? Why force your brother to do this?’ sneered Claire. Her tone made Ravi want to rejoice, to punch the air in satisfaction, as she leapt to his defence.
‘It sounds so simple, yet I find I couldn’t hurt a woman enough to take her into this role. Nor trust one enough to explain the full situation.’ Sanjay’s comment sent a rush of empathy and sorrow that sucked all the air from Ravi’s lungs.
‘Oh. But it is fine to ask your brother to do the same.’ Claire stepped out of the bed, and dragged the silk covers around her. Ravi folded his hands in front of his penis at the sight of her, his breath catching in his throat. She was a queen, his jaaneman, completely regal. He had no doubt that both he and Sanjay would end up complying with her wishes, whatever they might end up being.
‘Ravi agreed.’ Sanjay’s simple comment made him want to hang his head in shame at the truth of the matter. When they’d discussed this plan, Ravi had agreed, thinking that one wife would be like any other, a suitable warm body in bed, someone to run his household. The future of the estate mattered more than himself. But now he’d met Claire, no other would do. Ravi opened his arms wide, conscious of his nudity, but not caring because he wanted her to see the truth of his desire for her.
‘If I was to follow Sanjay’s plans and get, as you say, a convenient broodmare, I’d pick someone much less argumentative. I want you, Claire, for you. You are my jaaneman, my one true love. I want to be challenged by you. You won’t make an easy wife, but you will make a thrilling one. It’ll be an exciting ride to spend life with you. Sanjay can find his heir another way.’
‘Hey, you agreed. You can’t renege on that,’ said Sanjay. Ravi spun around and poked his finger in Sanjay’s chest.
‘Why not? I find my wishes mean more to me than your desire to preserve the estate. Sell it instead.’
‘I can’t do that to everyone on the estate. An heir is required to keep everyone safe.’
Claire rolled her eyes. ‘If you truly believed that, you would educate them and set them free to have the lives they wanted. Instead, you want to beholden them to your estate for future generations. Land based wealth is dying. Move on. Forget trying to preserve this crazy system that we have.’
‘You are right, Ravi. She wouldn’t make a comfortable wife …’ Ravi stilled as Sanjay paused. ‘But she is probably the wife that Dalhinge and its estate requires.’
‘I am right here. And I refuse. Both of you.’ Claire clutched the covers tighter around her shoulders in a regal gesture and stormed out of the room.
‘Damn you, Sanjay. Why did you have to march in here and ruin everything? Find an orphan child and pretend it is yours if you can’t stomach having relations with a wife.’ Ravi walked to the far side of the room and pulled on his trousers. He couldn’t chase after Claire without pants.
‘That’s not fair, Ravi, and you know it,’ said Sanjay. Ravi spun around and pointed his finger at Sanjay.
‘Neither is storming into my bedroom and disrupting me. I was going to ask her to be my wife before you interrupted. How will she trust that I love her now?’
‘She must know. You just told her.’ Sanjay shrugged. Ravi clenched his fists at the dismissal.
‘It’s not that simple. All her life people have chased her for the Carlingford fortune. And you’ve just stated that you believe I’m doing the same.’
‘I don’t care for her money. I have enough for all of us. I just—’
‘Yes. You want her babies.’
‘No. I want you to deal with the babies. Smelly, noisy things that they are. I want an heir, a fully grown heir that can build the estate for the future. Someone has to plan ahead.’ Sanjay stood, arms folded over his chest, glaring at Ravi. Ravi took his time to button his trousers, collect his shirt from where it had been flung on the floor earlier, and slowly put it on. His brother’s foot tapped impatiently, and he grinned internally. The door creaked open. His head jerked up and his queen, Claire, stood on the doorway.
‘That conversation was quite enlightening. I will do it on one condition.’ Her voice filled the room, strong and clear. Sanjay unfolded his arms and held his hands behind his back. Ravi’s smile burst out and all he could do was grin inanely at her. This was going to be good.
‘Yes?’ Sanjay sounded cautious. Ravi’s smile stretched.
‘I want to vote. Get me that and I’ll provide the heir you desire. And if I have only daughters, they will exist in a world that values them enough to grant them equality,’ said Claire. Ravi coughed at her statement, while Sanjay’s face glowered.
‘You can’t be serious.’
‘I’m perfectly serious. You want me to give up my independence to create a child for you, one that you will take away from me, and you expect me to do this purely because I love your brother.’ She loves me. Ravi’s smile broadened as his heart pounded. His hand shot up to his chest.
‘Isn’t love enough?’ said Sanjay.
She shook her head. Claire stepped into the room with the confidence of a warrior ready for battle, an incredible sight while draped only in his bed covers.
‘No. Love is private, but life still needs to be lived. I pay taxes to this government, yet I have no say in anything they do. I want the vote.’
‘I may be a Lord, but I am just one among many. I don’t have the power to force that change.’
‘Just as I have the power to walk away.’
‘R
avi. Say something,’ said Sanjay. Ravi winked at Claire and shrugged his shoulder a fraction.
‘She loves me. What else needs to be said,’ he said. Her eyes sparkled, shards of gold flashing in the dulling light of dusk.
‘Nothing else needs to be said. If you love each other, then marry, have babies, and we all win,’ sneered Sanjay. Ravi opened his mouth to agree, but Claire spoke first.
‘There are many ways to prevent the conception of children. Perhaps I will dedicate my life to my career instead, or to campaigning for the vote. After all, I have a lawyer on my team already.’
A laugh burst out of Ravi as Sanjay’s mouth dropped open. It was a rare day when someone got the best of his big brother.
‘Excuse me, Dr Carlingford.’ Her foreman Higgins’ voice interrupted. Claire turned to look over her shoulder.
‘Yes?’
‘Mr Carlingford sent me. I have some distressing news.’
‘Well, come in. Spit it out,’ she said. Ravi glanced at his brother who stared down his nose at everyone.
‘Your brother has been arrested,’ said Higgins. Damn it all to hell. He’d hoped, against hope it seemed, that the bookmaker Sutton’s assistance would find a different answer. To be fair to Sutton, his contribution couldn’t be called evidence, rather he pointed out the lack of evidence. Most bets weren’t recorded anywhere, they were a simple cash transaction with a ticket issued. Their only hope was that the perpetrator held an account with the bookies in question, and then their bets would be in the settling books. Sutton had nothing in his files for that meeting. Officer Wedsley had railed about the trip to Newmarket being a waste of time, and had declared he’d take the first train back to London. Ravi had gone with him to keep track of the next step in the case. What had he missed? Wedsley must have some new information.
‘Which brother?’ said Claire. Ravi rubbed at the sudden frown on his forehead, thoroughly confused by her comment. Didn’t she only have one brother?
Chapter 23
‘Wil,’ said Higgins. Claire stood in Ravi’s bedroom, unable to move under the emotional shock of the afternoon. She’d taken the bravest step of her life and given herself to Ravi. With adequate protection against all her worries. She’d gained power, not conceded it as she’d expected, particularly as he had been the one to insist on French Letters. He had been the one to protect her, to ensure she truly consented. Ravi had taken all her concerns and deliberately showed that she mattered. She’d given herself freely to him, because he’d believed in her rational view of the world.
She could forgive him for not telling her about Lord Dalhinge’s plan. Ravi’s reasoning made sense, and she’d enjoyed debating her future with the two of them. Life should be brilliant. Except Wil had been arrested. What had Mr Thackery done now? Was this the despicable act of a desperate villain on the verge of being discovered?
‘Thank you, Higgins. Give me a moment to get dressed, and we will all go to the Yard to get this sorted out.’ Claire tried to infuse her voice with confidence, as if she had expected this. Higgins bowed and left the room. This morning, before Mr Thackery and everything else had been revealed, Wil’s arrest might have caused her undue stress. Now, only half a day later, her brittle façade had broken, and she was free from pretending to be the right amount of strong. Ravi loved her because she was outspoken. She could embrace those qualities without the second guessing that always went with them. Her stepmother’s continued commentary about her big mouth didn’t matter anymore. The revelation about her real mother, Rachel, had stripped away Mrs Carlingford’s power over her. Now Claire was free to be bold, to say what she wanted, with the bonus knowledge of being part of a team that appreciated, and loved, her.
‘Out. All of you,’ said Claire, repeating herself as the three men stood still. ‘Feed my footman, and get a carriage ready. We need to get to the Yard quickly.’ The earlier conversation between brothers had illuminated all these feelings for her, bringing light to her worries about being wanted for her fortune, and not for herself. Ravi wanted her just as she was, and she wanted him. All of him. She would risk death for him. She’d already risked everything by going to bed with him. Once they rescued Wil, and saved Father’s business from the clutches of Mr Thackery, she would say yes to Ravi. He was worth that brave step. She had no regrets, all she felt was power and strength.
‘Perhaps we shouldn’t rush. Wil—’ said Ravi.
‘That fool, I told him we needed to be more circumspect. I should have insisted. It’s my fault,’ said Sanjay. Claire gasped. Oh. That’s why he wanted Ravi to provide his heir.
‘My apologies, Lord Dalhinge. Wil is too cautious to be caught for gross indecency. This is most likely the fault of my half-brother Mr Thackery. He is a manipulative toad.’
‘Mr Thackery is your brother?’ said Ravi.
‘Only by marriage. It’s complicated.’ She waved her hand. ‘If you let me get dressed, I will explain everything.’
‘As you wish,’ said Sanjay. ‘Come along, Ravi.’ Lord Dalhinge nodded at his brother, and gave Claire a long stare with a fragile smile hovering on his lips. Underneath that lordly exterior, the arrogant confidence he projected, Claire could see the same uncertainty about how to navigate this world that she saw in her brother. Wil, who disguised himself in plain sight as a brainless fop, now sat in the same filthy cell her father had been in only a few weeks ago. She supressed a sob, dragging in a shaky breath. Ravi wrapped her in a hug, and bent to kiss her, a gentle kiss infused with love, a sweetness without the rampant urgency earlier in the day. A simple promise for the future.
‘Thank you for understanding him. I know he’s a difficult character, but now you know what he has to live with,’ he said.
‘He’s not so bad. Now I need to dress, and we must get to the Yard before nightfall.’ She stepped back and glanced around the room for her clothes.
‘Do you need assistance?’ His face lit up with a grin, his dark brown eyes twinkling.
‘No. Your type of help will slow us down.’
‘Minx. I love you.’ He kissed her forehead and left.
Claire walked out of the house, squeezed back into her day dress. She squared her shoulders to shake off that vague uncomfortable stickiness caused by wearing a dress she’d already worn and removed today. Higgins hailed a hackney and the four of them climbed in.
‘The story is simple—’ She launched into her story, not bothering with any preamble. ‘Unbeknownst to me, my mother died when I was an infant. Father remarried the current Mrs Carlingford who isn’t my mother, and yes, I’m thoroughly upset at him for not ever telling me, but that’s not important right now.’ She heaved out a shaky breath. ‘As if that isn’t enough drama for one family, his new wife had a baby before their marriage. Raised in secret, the baby turns out to be Mr Thackery.’ Cold prickles stung the back of her neck.
Ravi sat up sharply. ‘That explains—’
‘Why he looks like Wil?’ She twisted her hands together in her lap.
‘Huh! So he does. No, I was going to say, it explains your mother, I mean, Mrs Carlingford’s odd interactions with Mr Thackery,’ said Ravi. Higgins growled in the back of his throat.
‘Yes, Higgins. The man that you fought in the hall this morning has fooled all of us.’ Nausea rose in her throat, acidic, and she swallowed it back.
‘It also explains why Mrs Carlingford wants him to marry you—’ said Ravi.
‘To control my portion of the business. Yes. It’s worse than that. It’s a two-pronged attack. Over the last few years, Mr Thackery has made rapid progress in the company until he was one of Father’s closest advisers.’ She inhaled sharply. ‘It doesn’t explain why Father pushed so hard for me to take over. Unless he saw Mr Thackery as a threat before he got ill.’
‘He is ill?’ asked Ravi. She tapped her toe inside her shoe. Again that nagging feeling that she’d missed something made her grind her teeth.
‘Maybe. Anyway, I think we all missed the role played by Mrs Carlingf
ord, because no-one knew she’s not my mother. The plan was that Thackery, her son, should marry me, and together they’d take over my fortune. But the plan was taking too long for Mr Thackery, so he instigated this betting scheme—’
‘—to get rid of your father?’
‘Yes. Then Thackery could step up and control the whole business. An international company with power and money. It’s a huge prize,’ she said.
‘But what about Wil?’ asked Sanjay. ‘Wouldn’t he be there to take over from Mr Carlingford?’
‘Oh.’ She drew the word out on a long breath. ‘Clever. Mr Thackery wants Wil to take the fall for this betting crime. That removes Wil as a player for the business, and with Father ill, once Thackery marries me, there is no-one in his way.’
Silence hung in the hackney. Only the horse’s feet beating a steady slow rhythm on the road, the creaking wood of the cab’s frame, and the general hum of the city seeped in from outside.
‘Officer Wedsley is dedicated, young, and desperate to break a case that will increase his profile. He won’t want to be manipulated by a criminal like Thackery,’ said Ravi.
‘We have no proof.’ Claire heard the defeat in her voice, the defeat that sagged heavy on her neck and shoulders. She stared at the booted feet resting on the floor. All this intellectual power, political power, man power, and she couldn’t see a way forward.
The hansom pulled up at the Yard. Higgins alighted first, holding the door open for her. She picked her way down the stairs, and waited to follow Lord Dalhinge and Ravi inside. A couple of weeks ago, she sat in this same foyer, waiting while men decided Father’s fate. She’d been furious at the impotence gifted to her gender, but today, she had a different power. These two strong men, one a Lord, the other her lover, were doing her bidding. They were a team with a singular purpose. Evening arrived with an uneasy peace filling the foyer. Some officers bid their colleagues good night, while others clocked on. People moved about with a restlessness and anticipation of future action.
