A Lady's Prerogative

by Annabelle Anders

  Natalie laughed again. “Well, they never went into any details where my innocent ears could hear, but…”

  “Yes?” Garrett glanced sideways and grinned at her.

  “According to Stone, the girl was pretty, and Darly not immune to her…allure. Fortunately for him, Mother noticed this.”

  The two stopped walking when they reached the trunk of a large tree. Garrett removed his jacket, placed it on the ground, and indicated she sit. Organizing her skirts, Natalie settled upon the jacket, pulled up her knees, and hugged them with both arms. For all her bravado, she looked forlorn. Garrett took a seat behind her and leaned against the tree. With his long legs bent along each side of her, he pulled her back to lean against his chest. This intimacy was inappropriate, but she did not protest or even lose track of her conversation.

  “Mother and Aunt Eleanor followed him to the rectory that day.” Natalie chuckled and let her head relax against him. “They slipped into the side door after seeing the girl’s mother running back to the vicarage. Already suspicious, they assumed rightly that the girl’s mama had gone to fetch someone to witness the compromising situation. When the girl’s mother returned with a few ladies and burst into the chapel, all four of them were earnestly praying in the front row.” She paused for effect. “According to Stone, the daughter’s hair was unbound and her dress wrinkled. What could be said, really, with both Mother and Aunt Eleanor sitting between them?”

  Garrett laughed, picturing the young viscount sitting with his mother and godmother between him and the ambitious girl. Darlington was lucky to have such devoted womenfolk in his life.

  Garrett tipped his head and inhaled the sweet scent in Natalie’s hair. When he did so, a few tendrils tickled his lips. He’d wrapped his arms around her waist and could feel each breath she took.

  Jolted by an unwelcome memory, Garrett spoke without thinking. “There are women who will use whatever means available to capture a title.”

  Natalie leaned to the side and looked over her shoulder so she could meet his eyes. “There are men who will use their superior strength to capture a dowry.”

  This gave Garrett pause. He raised his eyebrows in question and felt his jaw tighten in anger. “Cortland?” he asked incredulously.

  “Oh, no. Good Lord, never him.” She spoke with derisive laughter, relaxing into him once again. “Anyhow, the scoundrel did not succeed.” She sighed. “I was ridiculously naive. It was my first season, and I’d not become betrothed yet.” She moved her arms from her knees and placed them atop Garrett’s. “He convinced me to walk outside with him. Believe it or not, I took him at his word when he told me a kitten had caught itself in a rosebush.” Again, she laughed at herself.

  “Of course, there was no kitten.” Garrett spread his fingers wide and threaded hers through them. He tucked them into his fists.

  “Once we reached the roses, in which of course, there was no kitten, he attempted to kiss me despite the fact that I’d told him ‘no’ more than once.”

  Garrett nuzzled his lips at the juncture where her neck sloped into her shoulder.

  “I was saved though, as Joseph had followed us. He sent me back inside and settled matters to his satisfaction. I was terrified he would call the cad out.”

  “He did not?” Garrett asked. “But punished the brute with his fists, I hope?”

  Again, Natalie turned her head to look at him. “How did you know that?”

  “Your brothers are protective of you.” He nuzzled the soft skin on the lobe of her ear with his lips. “They are not all bad, now, are they?”

  She didn’t answer. Instead, a shiver ran through her body. He responded by pulling her closer. This was madness! When had he become such an utter fool? He ought to remove his hands from her person and lead them back inside, back into the safety of the drawing room surrounded by her mother and father and several of their close acquaintances.

  “What?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

  Garrett chuckled softly this time. “Your brothers, protecting you.” Where were they now? They ought to be protecting her from him. His tongue traveled along the peach-like skin at the top part of her ear. He trailed it around the inner edge.

  “Oh…” She sighed softly. “Not so bad.”

  Lady Natalie Spencer was affected by his touch. With his arms around her waist, he felt her breathing quicken. His lips explored the outer shell of her ear in a lazy manner, nipping and licking the tender skin. Pleasure coursed through him when she moaned softly.

  “Um…” she murmured. “Uh…Tell me about…the women,” she finally managed to get out.

  This time it was he who paused. “The women?”

  “The ones who have tried to marry you for your title,” she prompted.

  “Similar girls to the one who attempted to trap your brother, only…” He stopped playing with her ear.

  She tilted her head toward his mouth as though bereft without his lips. But she persisted in her question. “Only?”

  “Only I had no womenfolk to ward off the mothers.” His voice came out harsher than he’d intended.

  “But you are not wed,” she said curiously. “You have not married.”

  “How do you think a gentleman gains a reputation such as mine, sweetheart?” He stilled. His arms loosened around her waist. As though sensing his withdrawal, Natalie grasped on to his hands and wrapped them about her firmly.

  “It is ridiculous, is it not?” Annoyance, he thought, shook her voice. “That two people would be forced to marry regardless of their emotions. The notion of being compromised seems a terrific penalty for so innocent a crime—or no crime at all! And the punishment of a lifetime married to whomever one might be trapped by? I am appalled, and yet we are bound by society’s rules. Marriage ought not to be a penalty. It ought to be a gift shared between two people—two people who want to pledge themselves to one another for life.”

  Garrett pondered her words. She had obviously given this subject a great deal of thought.

  “I am glad you did not let yourself be trapped and bound to a woman you did not wish to wed,” she continued. “I do not care if that is why you have been labeled a rake.”

  Moments passed, and then he let out a deep sigh. “But what of the girl? You do not have sympathy for her?” He was not convinced. He’d been a cad.

  “Well…” She paused as though working out a mathematical equation. “You did not ruin her? In truth?”

  He nuzzled her again, just below her chin, ever so softly. But he needed to answer her question—somehow it mattered, her opinion of him. “I did not. We kissed open mouthed. We were, um, embracing. When her aunt burst into the room with some cousins, the girl somehow managed to rip the bodice of her dress.” He held himself very still, his mouth still resting against her skin.

  “She must have been very ambitious indeed.” The words escaped her with a hint of awe. “To expose oneself intentionally! I don’t blame you for not offering for her. She ought not to have acted with such coldhearted motivation.”

  “I did compromise her. I did not ruin her—contrary to rumors spun in that direction.” His chin rested upon her shoulder. “I do not like to be toyed with or manipulated. I suppose I am more sensitive to both, having the Earl of Hawthorne for a father.”

  “And yet you were discovered and ordered to marry the girl, am I right?” Natalie must have learned interrogation techniques from her father.

  Garrett was almost amused at the accuracy of her line of questioning. And yet disgust sounded in his voice. He wouldn’t sugarcoat his actions. “I refused. I flat out refused.”

  They sat silent for a few minutes, staring back at the manor, candlelight shining from within. “And now, would you ever marry a woman you…well…merely to salvage her reputation? Even if you did not find her to be compatible?”

  “The women I keep company with pose no threat to my bachelor status. Under normal circumstances.” He nearly laughed at the irony of this very moment. “Would you ever ma
rry a man to salvage your reputation?”

  She shook her head side to side adamantly. “I have just been released from an unwanted engagement. I am in no hurry to place myself in another one.”

  “You would allow yourself to be ruined in the eyes of society?”

  “There are other ways to smooth these things over—ways that do not require two reluctant people to tie themselves together for a lifetime.”

  Garrett’s hands rested just below the thrust of her breasts. He could not help but move one up until he felt the ridge where her stays ended and plump softness began. Drawing light circles, he felt her skin tighten beneath his fingers through the light cover of her dress. His mouth resumed trailing kisses along her chin. He continued thusly, and Natalie turned her head so he could access her neck more easily. Good God, he must be foxed.

  Trifling with this lady was beyond reckless. They sat in plain sight of the house. Admittedly, they enjoyed the cover of darkness, but their absence would be noticed soon. Allowing himself one more taste of her skin, he dropped his hands and leaned back against the tree. She turned her head and gazed at him in a leisurely fashion. She, apparently, was quite comfortable and unperturbed at the possibility of their imminent discovery.

  “And now you have realized you are once again tempting fate,” she goaded him, still not moving. He was beginning to understand that at times, she donned a sophistication she did not own. He’d better watch himself. She could not be relied upon to bring any restraint to their…What was this between the two of them? He must not continue this dalliance.

  “You ought not to make yourself so…available to me,” he said. “I might allow myself to be seduced by your innocence one of these days, and that would put us both in a scrape.”

  Her eyes flashed in the moonlight as his words sank in. “Ah, well, apparently neither of us knows what it is that we want.” She scrambled away and stood abruptly. After brushing the grass from her skirts, she glared at him. “And don’t be thinking I’m available to you, my lord.” Her attempt at sounding scornful was ruined when her voice caught. Nonetheless, with a very feminine flourish, she twirled about and marched away. She held her head high as she fled. Garrett watched as she avoided the terrace and disappeared around the side of the house. She would not return to the other guests. She would be in no mood to play charades.

  Ah, so, he had hurt her.

  Garrett hardened himself against a niggling remorse. Lady Natalie Spencer was an unwanted complication. He lay back upon the grass and stared up at the sky. It would be best to avoid spending any more time alone with her. He wished he could offer her more. He wished he could be the type of man she needed, a romantic white knight in shining armor. Being caught between honor and dishonor was one of the most uncomfortable situations he’d ever experienced.

  Chapter Eleven

  Natalie wished she’d never laid eyes upon Garrett Castleton!

  How could a person, a man, make a girl feel beautiful and lovable one minute and then like a pitiful piece of unwanted baggage the next? And then why would that girl allow herself to care what that man thought of her after he behaved so despicably? Natalie pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped at a few stupid tears she’d lost control of. And then she stopped. In between her sniffles, she thought she’d heard a small cry from within the trees. After a moment, the sound came again.

  Not considering her safety, she, slowly, so as not to make a great deal of noise, stepped into the trees before pausing to follow the sound again. Sure enough, the small cry grew louder. She stepped cautiously on the leaves and pine needles until she heard the sound right in front of her. And then, upon pulling a branch aside, she revealed a tiny creature huddled in the shimmering moonlight.

  Was it a bear? No! A puppy! He must be no more than a few months old and lay curled around himself crying pitifully.

  Natalie knelt and reached out her hand. A tiny tongue licked at her fingers. “Oh, you poor baby, where’s your momma?” She reached her other hand around to grasp the small body of the dog and pull him into her chest. He sported floppy ears, a longer than normal body, and very short legs. He must have been a runt that had somehow managed to escape an ignoble fate.

  And he was near starved! Forgetting Hawthorne’s insults for the moment, Natalie carried him back to the house and entered through the kitchen door. In the light, she could see the black puppy had tan spots on his spindly neck and paws. Poor baby. His tiny black eyes gazed up at her adoringly. How could anybody abandon such a precious little life? Ah, well, it was their loss. She’d always wanted a dog. She was going to keep him, by Jove.

  When she entered the busy kitchen, filled with warmth from the ovens and mingled aromas of both savories and sweet, his ears perked up at attention. Natalie ignored the curious and disapproving glances she received from some of the kitchen help and peeked into a pantry in search of a bowl for some milk. Seeing Cook approach, with a deep scowl on her face, Natalie cuddled the pup close to her.

  “Cook, what do we have that I can feed this poor pup? Some horrible person abandoned him in the trees near the house. Can you help me find some cream or milk and a small bowl? The poor dear is near starving.” Seeing disapproval on Cook’s face, Natalie turned the pitiful pup toward her. “This is Cook, little one. She will help me see you to rights. Cook’s a fine one. Cookie just loves animals.”

  Cook raised her eyebrows doubtfully.

  Natalie continued, “Cook, this precious baby is my pet, his name is…well, I haven’t thought of one yet.” She lifted the little dog to look into his eyes once again. “What shall I name you? I thought you were a baby bear at first. Should I call you Baby Bear?”

  The puppy gave one short high-pitched bark. Natalie took this for approval. “Baby Bear, it is, then.”

  Shaking her head in resignation, Cook disappeared into the pantry. Natalie cuddled and cooed at Baby Bear until the large woman returned a moment later with a bowl filled with cream.

  Taking the bowl, Natalie thanked her and slipped out of the kitchen and up the servant’s stairs, making it to her room unobserved by any of her mother’s guests. Once there, she placed the pup on the floor with the bowl, and Baby Bear lapped at the cream heartily. Relief settled on her. This surely was a sign of good health. Kneeling on the floor, Natalie leaned back and rested her weight upon her feet as she watched Baby Bear enjoy his meal.

  With the dog occupied, she contemplated her encounter with Lord Hawthorne more rationally. He was a known rake. Practically an outcast. But such a handsome one.

  And an exasperating one! She hated that he treated her like a woman one moment and a child the next. She didn’t expect him to fall in love with her, did she?

  Did she?

  The question gave her pause as she considered the pink flounces on her window coverings and the lacy pink pillows on her bed. Dolls she’d collected as a young girl lined the top of her dresser. This was the room of her girlhood. Suddenly, it felt wrong.

  Did Garrett Castleton consider her too young for him, too juvenile? Could that be why he resisted her?

  She’d always been the baby of the family, the only girl amongst four strapping boys—now men. Everybody in her family forever protected her. While engaged to Cortland, she’d been treated, again, like a youthful sister by her betrothed. It had aggravated her to no end.

  Could that be her problem? Was she a woman now, living the life of a young girl? Hearing sounds from the door across the hallway, Natalie hopped up and peeked into the corridor. Marcus was exiting Lord Hawthorne’s room.

  “I need your assistance.” She gestured for him to enter her room.

  “What have you gotten yourself into, Nat?” Marcus treated her like an older sister much of the time. Despite their different stations, being close in age, they’d often played together as children. Marcus shoved his hands into his pockets and slipped into Natalie’s room. Upon catching sight of the puppy, he gawked at her with raised eyebrows.

  “I don’t know what I ne
ed to do for this little mite, but I intend to keep him,” Natalie explained before he could say a single word. “Do you know anything about caring for a puppy?”

  Marcus stared at Baby Bear and then, exhaling dramatically, ran a hand through his lanky black hair. “Well, Lady Nat, this puppy is going to need to…ah…relieve himself about every two or three hours.” He took a few steps around Baby Bear and considered the situation. “Pups don’t like to wet where they sleep, so a box and a blanket would be a good start. But you will need to watch him. If he begins sniffing around, you must take him outside right away so he can do his business.” Squatting down, he gave the pup a scratch on the top of his little head. “Every time he piddles outside, give him a treat. Are you sure you want to do this? If you don’t watch the pup carefully, he’ll be going all over your room and making a dreadful stench. Why don’t you just take him out to the stable and let the grooms care for him?”

  Natalie was already shaking her head. “I want to care for him myself. Would you find me a box, Marcus? And a blanket? I will do as you say and watch Baby Bear carefully.” At his doubtful look, she shook her finger at him. “Just you wait and see, Marcus Whipple! I’ll have this dog trained in no time.”

  Laughing, Marcus backed away. “Very well then, I’ll get you a box and a blanket.” He stepped out of the door. Before departing though, he poked his head back in. “I’ll bring you some treats for the little pup, too. It’ll be worth it just to see you play nursemaid to a dog.” Laughing again, he dashed off to retrieve the required items.

  Baby Bear carefully finished the last drops of cream, his adorable pink tongue making sure to find every last drop. When he found no more, he looked up at her soulfully. Baby Bear needed her!

  She picked him up and cuddled him close. She could do this. She could!

  ****

  More than a little remorseful over his treatment of Lady Natalie, Garrett remained out of doors, lying in the grass, late into the night. At least she’d abandoned him in a good place for thoughtful reflection.