“I’m sure you will, but I’d best stay with you, miss. The guv’nor—”
“Pray, don’t trouble yourself on my account. I’m sure you have better things to do with your time than act as my nursemaid.”
He looked at her for a long time before stepping out of the barn. “Right enough. I’ll be directly outside if you have need of me.”
As soon as the door closed after him Alicia fell into a pile of hay and sobbed her heart out.
Nick strode into the house and broke his fast in solitude. None of the ladies breakfasted downstairs and neither of the Woodley males were in evidence.
Ravenous, Nick worked his way through a heaped plate of coddled eggs and ham, accompanied by fried mushrooms and copious amounts of coffee. He tried to anticipate any stratagems Woodley and his man might be concocting in an effort to gull him.
But his mind appeared reluctant to tear itself away from thoughts of Alicia and all that had passed between them the previous evening. He couldn’t help wondering why the memories were so determined to linger. Perhaps it was because her capitulation had been as sweet and natural as it had been poignant, setting her apart from her numerous predecessors. Something about her sultry smile as she surrendered to his touch, the unselfconscious delight she displayed at their activities, aroused him afresh. It was the reason why he’d blindfolded her, of course. If she couldn’t see his face, she’d feel less inhibited and more likely to behave instinctively.
Are you feeling rampant yet, Your Grace?
Nick chuckled at the memory, still at a loss to understand his distracted state, putting it down to guilt. As soon as the act was completed he usually forgot all about it. It took him a moment to realise what was different about this particular one. Incredibly, she’d made no demands upon him, other than those of the flesh. And he was all too willing to oblige in that respect. Alicia hadn’t expected to be rewarded for the gift of her body, nor had she tried to pin him down to a second meeting. He sat up a little straighter as the singularity of her behaviour struck him. He couldn’t remember the last time his interaction with another person of either gender had been entered into without expectation of gain. But it would appear that Alicia Woodley really did only wish to satisfy her curiosity.
“I’ll be damned!”
Spoken aloud, his words startled the footman who’d been standing statue-like beside the door. He jumped to attention.
“Was there something you require, Your Grace?”
“No, nothing. I am replete.”
Nick pushed back his chair and walked through the door the servant opened for him. He squared his shoulders as another footman facilitated his entry to the library.
Woodley looked up and smiled ingratiatingly at him.
“Good morning, Your Grace. I trust it’s not inconvenient commencing our business at such an early hour?”
The books were accompanied by a badly attired little man. He sported an abundance of whiskers that failed to conceal hollow cheeks and a sallow complexion. He stood and bowed low, looking a little overawed to be in the presence of an actual duke.
“It’s not inconvenient,” Nick said curtly.
“Good, good.” Woodley beamed. “Saunders arrived in the village late yesterday evening but, not wishing to interrupt our little party, he very properly put up at the local inn. That’s why he’s so punctual this morning.”
“I see.” Nick took the seat at the head of the table and looked at the two men expectantly. He was in no mood for one of Woodley’s long monologues and wanted to get this thing over with. Every moment he couldn’t be with Alicia made him unaccountably anxious, even though she’d be perfectly safe in Gibson’s care.
“Aware of your anxiety to have sight of the books, Your Grace, I took the liberty of asking Saunders to come at first light.”
More like you want me to look at them so I’ll leave and you can safely cover those mares. Satisfied that his private thoughts weren’t reflected in his expression, Nick turned his attention to the books. He wasn’t the slightest bit surprised when they appeared to be above board, showing a modest profit. He pretended to be taken in by them.
“All seems to be in order, Woodley,” he remarked to his host after an hour.
Woodley appeared relieved. “I’m gratified to hear you say so, Your Grace. I pride myself on running a tight ship here.”
“You appear to have experienced a very lean year two seasons ago,” he added, just to see how Woodley would explain away the virus.
Alarm briefly flittered through his host’s eyes. “We were badly let down. A number of mares were due to come to us from the same yard but the gentleman in question lost them in a card game. Their new owner sent them to another stallion.”
Nick shrugged. “How unfortunate.” It was a ridiculous explanation which he pretended to swallow. He stood up and stretched. “Well, Woodley, you’ve given me much to think about. But before we take matters further, I’d like to see records of the mares covered during your tenure here, details of their owners, and so forth.”
“Is there a particular reason why those records would so interest Your Grace?”
“Certainly. I’d like to ascertain if any of my acquaintance have utilised your stud. If so I’ll obtain a firsthand account of the experience from them. There’s nothing like word of mouth to make or break a reputation, don’t you know.”
“Indeed I do.” Woodley let out a slow breath. “It will take several hours to pull the records together, if you’d be good enough to exercise a little patience.”
Nick didn’t see why it should take any time at all since the information must be lodged in ledgers in the estate office. However, it suited his purpose for there to be a delay. “After luncheon will suffice, Woodley. I don’t intend to quit Ravenswing Manor until tomorrow.”
“My wife will be gratified to learn that she’ll have the honour of entertaining you for a further night.”
“She shouldn’t put herself out on my behalf,” Nick drawled laconically, knowing that she would.
He swept from the room and left the house by a side door, anxious not to be detained by any of the family members. He discovered Gibson pacing the area in front of Alicia’s barn.
“Is Miss Woodley in her maid’s care?”
“No, she’s in her animal hospital.”
“And you left her there alone? God’s teeth, I told you to stay with her, Gibson.”
“And she told me she wanted privacy.” Gibson spread his hands. “Wot was I supposed to do?”
“You were supposed to obey my orders for once.” The irrational fear for Alicia’s safety which had been with him all the morning caused Nick to speak sharply.
“Which is why I’ve been hanging about here. I can see the door to the barn and no one’s gone in there after Miss Woodley.”
“And you know for a fact that no one was lying in wait for her inside, do you?”
“Well, no.” Gibson scratched his ear. “Now you come to mention it, that didn’t occur to me.”
“Well, it bloody well should have.” Nick strode toward the structure in question. “Anyone wishing to do her harm would know this barn is always her first port of call.”
Gibson was at Nick’s heels as he wrenched the door open with unnecessary force. He felt a coldness gripping his heart, convinced that he’d find Alicia dead or, at the very least, lying unconscious on the floor. What he didn’t expect was to see her seated calmly on a bale of straw, their rabbit sitting quietly on her lap as she attended to its injured leg. The tranquillity of the scene stopped him in his tracks.
Nick drank in the sight of the woman he appeared to be developing something of a tendre for, relieved beyond reason to see her looking hale and hearty. She glanced up when he opened the door, a question in her eyes.
“Wait outside,” Nick said brusquely to Gibson.
Chapter Thirteen
When the door opened, Alicia assumed it was either Will or Janet but didn’t wish to be disturbed by either of them.
She felt an urgent desire to be alone with her thoughts and looked up, ready to dismiss the intruder. The words stalled on her tongue when she espied Nick’s imposing figure filling the doorway. And he didn’t look pleased. An involuntary gasp escaped her lips when she took in the hard set to his features, the steely determination in eyes as black as obsidian. The duke cut an impressive dash at the best of times. But when he was in a bad mood, as he clearly was at that moment, she privately admitted to being a little in awe of him. She was still angry at the infamous manner in which he’d used her just to win a wager, but couldn’t help a spontaneous smile briefly flitting across her lips.
His presence here could only mean trouble, of course. He probably intended to ring a peal over her for some reason, just because he’d decided she was his responsibility. The realisation caused her to quell her fledgling smile and scowl at him instead. This time she would not be intimidated into doing as she was told.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, returning her attention to the rabbit.
“I might ask you the same question.”
“I work here every morning.”
“And anyone wishing you harm would be aware of that fact.” Nick had taken up a position inside the door. He was leaning against it, arms folded in a fashion that suggested anything but a relaxed frame of mind.
“Mr. Gibson delivered me to the door and saw me safely inside,” she said, annoyed with herself for sounding so defensive. “I thank you for your concern, sir, but you can take yourself off to Lord Dawson’s estate now. I’m perfectly safe here.”
“Dawson? Why the devil would I wish to go there?”
“Oh, no particular reason. I’d thought…however, it’s of no consequence.”
He looked blank so perhaps she’d got it wrong and it wasn’t Lady Dawson’s sister he intended to marry. She’d like to know, in that case, who the unfortunate young lady was who’d have to live beneath this exasperating man’s tyrannical rule for the rest of her days. But she didn’t see how she could ask such an impertinent question.
“Don’t let me keep you, Your Grace,” she said with an airy wave of dismissal. “I’m sure you have better things to do than stand guard over me.”
Alicia chanced a glance at his face. He was still sprawled against the door but his stern features had relaxed and he was scrutinising her closely. Levering himself upright, he watched as she applied a poultice to the rabbit’s leg. Jasper struggled to his feet, wagged at Nick and proceeded to lick his hand.
“How does she fare?” he asked, nodding toward the rabbit.
“She’s a great deal better. I anticipate being able to return her to the wild in a few more days.”
“She looks as though she’d be perfectly content to remain here.”
“Possibly, but that wouldn’t be fair to her. She’ll be happier mixing with other rabbits. Besides, if I were to keep every creature I rescue, I’d soon run out of space.”
“I suppose that’s true.”
Nick took to prowling round the barn, looking into every pen. He asked questions about their various occupants and actually listened to her responses. But all the time she could sense the tension between them inexorably building. Nick hadn’t come here to discuss her animals and they both knew it. Why he’d chosen to come at all was another matter. He still looked angry, and she was fast discovering that he wasn’t a comfortable person to be around when one had incurred his displeasure.
Alicia spent as long as she could attending to her patients. Nick watched her, allowing a penetrating silence to stretch between them. He’d clearly run out of questions, and she’d run out of things to do. She started to pack her medicines away. She’d return to the house after that and shut herself in her room. Even he wouldn’t attempt to pursue her there. Not in broad daylight anyway.
“Here, allow me.” Nick removed a crate of medicine from her hands.
“Thank you, but there’s no need. I’m well able to manage.”
Nick ignored her and stored the crate in her cupboard, saving her the trouble of standing on a bale of straw in order to reach it. “Are you finished now?”
“Yes, I shall return to the house and rest.”
“Are you fatigued? But of course you are,” he continued, not waiting for her response. “You’re unwell and didn’t get much sleep last night.”
She examined his face to see if he was taunting her with this deliberate reference to their clandestine activities. But all she could detect in his expression was mild concern. “I’m feeling perfectly well, thank you. My shoulder doesn’t trouble me at all. But that won’t prevent Janet from scolding me if I remain outside for too long.”
“I rejoice in the knowledge that someone else has your best interests at heart.”
“Yes indeed, even if you’re not one such.”
“I beg your pardon.” He appeared surprised by her acerbic tone.
“You’ve achieved that which you set out to do,” she said, tossing her head. “You don’t need to pretend an interest in me that doesn’t exist to pacify what passes for your conscience.”
“What in the name of Hades are you talking about, Alicia?”
“I should have thought that was self-evident.”
“Not to me.”
“All right then, I’ll say it plain. I know you only…well, that you only came to my chamber last night to win a wager with—”
“What the devil gave you that idea?”
“You did.” In her agitation she hadn’t realised that he’d moved to within a few inches of her. She hastily attempted to put distance between them but he prevented her by placing a hand firmly on her uninjured shoulder. She was rocked by a virulent surge of emotions, just through this innocent contact with his hand, and that discomposed her even more. She didn’t want to feel anything for him and attempted to brush his fingers away. “You really ought to lower your voice when crowing about such matters with your servant, Your Grace.”
“Ah, you heard Gibson and me when I left you last night.”
She nodded, too mortified to meet his eye.
“I should have anticipated as much. That’s why you’ve been so distant with me this morning.” He tilted her chin with his forefinger. She reluctantly lifted her burning face and looked defiantly into his eyes. What she thought she saw there caused another jolt of awareness to surge through her, and the words she’d been about to speak died beneath his blistering gaze. “I can only surmise that you didn’t hear it all.”
“It’s of no significance. In all fairness you did warn me of your intentions from the outset,” she said, feigning indifference. “You didn’t have to force your attentions upon me and have nothing to reproach yourself for.” She turned away from him and straightened a cupboard that was already meticulously tidy. Anything to avoid meeting his quizzical, penetrating gaze. “The matter’s already quite forgotten.”
“Alicia, listen to me.” Once again his hand claimed her shoulder and this time she couldn’t muster the strength to shake it off. “It’s true, to my shame, that Gibson and I had a small wager in respect of your, er…shall we say, conviviality.”
Alicia snorted, not deigning to dignify his comment with a response.
“However, had you heard the whole of our conversation, you’d know that I didn’t win my wager.”
“What, you didn’t take the opportunity to boast about my easy capitulation?” She shook a finger at him. “Shame on you, sir. You really shouldn’t pass up such golden opportunities to bolster your disreputable reputation.”
“You’re angry with me, Alicia, but I can—”
“Don’t flatter yourself.” She swirled away from him. “Far from being angry, I’m obliged to you for satisfying my curiosity.” She’d lost her ribbon during the course of their exchange and her hair was now tumbling round her shoulders in its usual unruly fashion. She was used to it happening and barely noticed, but Nick’s eyes were glued to it in apparent fascination. “That is, after all, what I asked you to do, and I must
own that you were a reasonably adequate tutor.”
“Adequate?”
Alicia was obliged to quell a triumphant smile. By calling into question his performance as a lover, she’d clearly struck a blow at his most vulnerable place.
“It’s history, Your Grace, and I have better things to do than discuss the particulars of a diverting half-hour’s activity. If you require wide-eyed admiration, you’d be better served to apply to Maria.”
Quite without warning a strong arm wrapped itself round her waist. She let out a small scream as Nick seated himself on the bale of straw she’d just vacated and pulled her onto his lap.
“Before we discuss my amatory prowess, or lack thereof, there’s something else we must talk about first.”
“Let me go!” she said half-heartedly.
“Certainly not! You’ve cast aspersions upon my manhood. I can’t allow such a slur to pass unpunished.”
“I take back what I said.”
“It’s too late for that. But before we even discuss that subject there is another—well, several others, actually—that we ought first to consider.”
“I don’t understand.” Alicia was feeling most peculiar. Sitting on Nick’s lap was a very pleasurable experience. But she was still smarting from being used as a pawn in his ridiculous wager with his henchman and didn’t intend to submit to whatever he had in mind without putting up a spirited fight.
“Why did you tell Gibson that you wished to be alone?”
Alicia felt her chest swelling with indignation. “Well, of all the conceited, high-handed, presumptuous—”
“Save the tirade for a more appropriate juncture, if you please, Alicia, and answer my question.”
“It’s none of your business how I conduct myself. But since you insist upon an answer, I don’t mind telling you that I prefer to work with my animals in solitude. They are wild beasts, remember, easily frightened by contact with humans. But they have all grown accustomed to me and react better to my ministrations if there are no distractions.”
“Gibson wouldn’t have got in your way. Besides, I ordered him to stay with you.”
Of Dukes and Deceptions Page 17
