“We can fight her, Harmony,” Anthony replied calmly. “I know people who can help.”
“In the meantime, how and where would I live? I wouldn’t be able to live with my sister if I brought the fight with her out into the open. And I have no money to live anywhere else.”
“Harmony—”
“No.” She shook her head. “It’s only Agatha who thinks I’m lacking morally. If I were to accept anything from you … anything at all … what would the rest of the world think?”
Anthony dropped his gaze. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” He lifted his eyes once again. “But I think you have something in mind. Please tell me what it is.”
Harmony curled her fingers and pressed her fingernails into her palms. “I told you I was going to be honest with you. Totally honest.”
“And I told you I respect your honesty.”
“I hope you still do when I’m finished.” Harmony looked away for a moment at the silvery water rushing between the sloping, grassy banks. She took a deep breath. “My sister told me the only way I could escape my dilemma would be to marry. As much as I am loath to admit it, she’s absolutely right.”
“Harmony, I—!”
“No.” She pulled away when Anthony tried to take her hands. “Please don’t say anything you might regret.”
Anthony had to clasp his hands behind his back to keep from reaching for her again. He made a concerted effort to keep his voice as calm as possible.
“I haven’t regretted a single thing I’ve said so far,” Anthony said quietly. “I know, I understand, why you can’t trust what I say. But it’s true nonetheless. I love you. I’ll marry you if—”
“Please, Anthony, don’t say it!” Harmony put her hands to her ears. “Please,” she begged. The uncomfortable lump had returned to her throat. She bit her lip until she tasted blood.
“I … I have feelings for you,” she went on finally. “I won’t deny it. But I can’t trust those feelings any more than I can trust you. I … I want … I need … time. Do you understand?”
“Time,” Anthony repeated slowly. “You mean … time with me?”
Harmony nodded hesitantly. “I won’t lie to you.
If Agatha hadn’t told me what she did, I would never have wanted to have anything to do with you again. But … here we are. You’re my only way out of an impossible situation. The way my sister lives, I know I’ll not be able to meet many other people. I have to rely on you.”
Anthony felt as if he might snap, the tension was strung in him so tightly. “You want to go out with me to … meet other people?”
“Yes,” Harmony replied. “I know of no other way. My sister said I should pursue you and get you to marry me because you are a lord, wealthy and socially desirable. I could never use someone like that. I could never be so dishonest.”
Anthony winced as if he had been stung. It gave Harmony no pleasure.
“If you were my escort, however, with the entrée you have into society as a lord, I might—”
“Meet someone suitable,” Anthony finished for her. It was difficult keeping the bitterness from his voice. “Someone who doesn’t play … games.”
“That’s right.” Harmony felt her heart might break in two. But she had to say it. What he had done was outrageous. And now she could say what else she had to say.
“Or,” Harmony said softly, a tremor in her voice, “I might find that I am able to trust you … and my feelings for you.”
Anthony didn’t move a muscle. He wasn’t sure he could. He wanted to savor the moment, make it last forever. Because every step he took from now on was going to be a treacherous one. The present, this moment, now, might be the only moment of happiness he would ever know with Harmony again.
Why was he looking at her like that? Had she said the wrong thing after all? Had she been wrong to believe, even a little, that he had told the truth when he had told her he loved her? Had she made a fool of herself?
Anthony had spent many hours hunting. He knew the look of a frightened deer that was poised to flee. He knew the exact second to loose his weapon.
Harmony had no time to react. One minute he was standing before her; in the next he had taken her face in his hands, gently, ever so gently. His eyes closed as he lowered his lips to hers.
It was as it had been before. She was burning. The instant his mouth closed on hers she became a pillar of fire. Quite against her own will, her own determination, she melted into the embrace, let her body sink against his, longed to feel the hard, masculine length of him.
It was over as quickly as a flame might consume a sheet of dry, brittle paper. Anthony held her at arm’s length.
“I won’t press you, now or ever,” he said, voice husky. “I’ll do exactly as you ask. I would do anything, risk anything, to bring you happiness.” Although he knew the difficulty, and the danger, of what he pledged with all his heart and soul, he was powerless to do otherwise.
She could hardly catch her breath. She didn’t even think about the meaning of his words.
“I … I think we should go back,” Harmony mumbled. She turned before Anthony could reply and started back up the hill.
Chapter Fourteen
Like a very large dog, Maggie wiggled all over with delight when she greeted her favorite customers.
“Tony! What’re ye doin’ back here s’soon, me luv?”
“Hello, Maggie.”
“An’ all dressed up, y’are. Look at yerself!”
“Look at yourself, Maggie. Beautiful as ever.” Anthony leaned over the bar and kissed the blushing woman on the cheek. She giggled.
“Are ye stayin'? Or did ye just come by t’give ol’ Maggie a kiss?”
“It appears my business is going to take a little longer than I thought, Maggie. Can you put us up again?”
“You’ll be wantin’ yer same room, I expect.” Without waiting for a reply, Maggie reached under the bar for a key. “You, too, Mr. Sneed?”
The man nodded, expression dour.
“Here y’go then.”
Sneed caught the key Maggie tossed in his direction and followed Anthony up the narrow flight of stairs. Once in the second floor corridor, he put a hand on Anthony’s shoulder.
“Don’t say anything, old friend,” Anthony said quickly.
“Just tell my why. The world is full of women.”
“Not like this one.” Anthony opened the door to his rooms and stepped inside, Sneed on his heels. “I’m certain this one will prove to be the one I’ve been searching for.”
“You’re taking a very big risk,” Sneed said when Anthony had closed and locked the door. “This is the longest time you’ve ever spent in this area.”
“It’s going to become longer still.”
“Someone is bound to recognize you sooner or later. It will change everything.”
Anthony sighed. “Maybe things are meant to change. Maybe the way I’ve been living my life isn’t such a good idea after all.”
“Might I say it’s been highly effective?”
“You may.” Anthony smiled ruefully. “I’ve been successful, I’ll admit. I’ve gotten almost everything I want. Everything except for what I want most.”
“I daresay you think you’ve found it now, however. Haven’t you?”
Anthony nodded slowly. “She’s worth the risk, Sneed. I’ve never met anyone like her.”
Sneed lowered his gaze, then looked up from under his ponderous brow. “The biggest risk you’re taking is with the young woman herself, you know. How is she going to react when she finds out you’ve continued to deceive her?”
“I’ll deal with that when the time comes, Sneed. In the meanwhile, I’ve got to make plans to accommodate the young lady’s … wishes.”
“For you to be her escort into society, you mean?” This time Sneed lifted his brows.
“Exactly.” Anthony turned and gazed out the window for a long moment. “Contact Applegate, Hall, and Turner. I can trust them. Have them arrange a �
�� an evening.”
“Very well. And then?”
Anthony clapped the man on the back. “Then you can fetch our things upstairs, and I’ll buy you a drink.”
“A dinner party?”
Agatha smiled unctuously. “I thought I would give you the opportunity to be the first.”
Lady Margaret Donnelly fingered the long ropes of pearls that lay across her ample bosom and gazed about at the opulent splendor of her parlor. With a feeling of immense satisfaction she smiled tightly at Agatha in return.
“His name is … Lord Farmington … you say?”
“Anthony Allen, Lord Farmington. Surely you’ve heard of him.”
“I can’t actually say that I have. Ah, here’s our tea.” Lady Margaret indicated a gallery table to the right of her plush, gold-brocaded armchair. “Set it there, please. I’ll pour.”
The maid did as she was bid and withdrew from the sumptuously appointed room, footsteps silent on the pale green and gold Aubusson carpet. When she withdrew from the salon she pulled the doors closed behind her.
Lady Margaret gave a single brief nod, touching one of her chins to her silk-clad bosom, and with a practiced hand, served tea from the elegant silver service. She held up a Limoges cup.
“One lump or two?”
“Two please.
Dainty silver tongs nearly disappeared in her meaty hand, but she handled the instrument skillfully and deposited the lumps in Agatha’s cup.
“Cream or lemon?”
“Lemon. Thank you, Lady Margaret.” Agatha held her pinkie out daintily to sip her tea. “Excellent,” she pronounced. “No one makes it like you, Lady Margaret, I must say.”
Lady Margaret made a satisfied noise that came from somewhere deep in her overly generous bosom. “You’re too kind. But tell me more of this … Lord Farmington.”
Agatha set her cup on a small, gilt table and folded her hands in her lap. “Well, you’re simply not going to believe how we met him,” Agatha began. With undisguised relish, she described the holdup of the coach on the journey back from London.
“How horrible!” Lady Margaret exclaimed. “And a sapphire ring was stolen, you say?”
“From my poor, dear sister. Yes, indeed.” Crocodile tears filled Agatha’s eyes. They disappeared as she related Lord Farmington’s fortuitous discovery of the purloined item. “Can you imagine?”
“Amazing. Absolutely amazing. Not to mention the luck involved. The scoundrel who stole it was not only base but clumsy to have dropped the ring. And how clever of Lord Farmington to go at once to the authorities upon its discovery.”
“Yes. They directed him to me. I recognized the ring immediately, of course, and was overjoyed for my dear sister.”
Lady Margaret had leaned forward in her chair, listening avidly. Her tea, unnoticed, had grown cold. “What happened then?”
“Why, I called Harmony to come and thank Lord Farmington personally.”
“Very smart.”
Agatha flushed with the compliment. “Thank you, Lady Margaret. It did seem the thing to do. My sister is … rather lovely. And Lord Farmington, well …” She rolled her eyes upward.
“Do tell me what he looks like, Agatha dear,” Lady Margaret urged.
Agatha snickered. “So very well dressed. And such a fine figure in those close-fitting trousers. I could tell dear Harmony was taken with him at first glance.”
“How romantic!”
“Quite. And Lord Farmington seemed taken as well.”
“So he’s asked to call, has he?”
Agatha gave a deep nod. “He has even, I understand, extended his business trip to this area in order to call.”
“He’s not from London, then?”
“Oh, no.” Agatha shook her head.
“I thought not. As I said, I’m not familiar with the name.”
“Nor am I. However, as Lord Farmington told me himself, he’s from the north. A rather secluded area, as he describes it.”
“I see. Well, that explains it, I suppose.” Lady Margaret sat back. “Despite my husband’s many lofty connections and wide social circle, one cannot be familiar with each and every noble of the realm.”
“My exact words, Lady Margaret.” The two women exchanged knowing smiles.
“A dinner party is just the thing then, I agree,” Lady Margaret pronounced. She poured the cold tea into a dregs container and prepared herself a new cup from which she sipped with an exaggerated moue. “I’m grateful to you, Agatha, for letting me be the first to féte our visiting lord.”
“The pleasure is mine, Lady Margaret, believe me.” Smiling with heartfelt gratitude and contentment, Agatha touched the pearls decorating her barren, black bodice. Her jewels could in no way compete with Lady Margaret’s, but things were beginning to look up in her world. Someday …
“I shall set a date at once and send over a guest list for your approval. Is that acceptable?”
“You’re too kind.”
“Nonsense. I shall look forward to it.”
“So will I,” Agatha readily agreed.
“And if all goes well …”
Lady Margaret left her sentence to dangle intentionally. If Agatha had been a cat, she would have purred. For the first time since her sister’s arrival, a ray of sunshiny hope pierced the bleak, gray fog that had become her existence.
“Exactly, Lady Margaret. As you very well know, it’s quite nice to have a nobleman in the family. And thank you so much for your help.”
“Not at all, Agatha dear. Not at all.”
Following polite farewells, Agatha took her leave. She had to force herself to walk slowly and sedately down the flower-bordered flagstone path to her coach. Charles, the coachman, climbed stiffly to the ground when he saw his mistress approach.
“Home, ma’am?” he asked when he opened the door and lowered the steps for her.
“No, I think not, Charles.” Agatha paused, pale, narrow brow knitted in thought. “No,” she repeated. “Take me into Millswich, to the library. I have to do a little research.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Agatha settled into her seat with a satisfied smirk. Lady Margaret had been all too willing to entertain a lord, just as she had supposed. It was a shame, however, she hadn’t heard of the Farmington title. From the looks of Anthony Allen, Lord Farmington, his dress, his coach, his manner, he was very highly placed and wealthy indeed. A little research would prove her out. Lady Margaret would be pleased to know the exact position of the aristocrat she entertained.
It would also be nice to know more about the man she hoped would soon become her brother-in-law.
Yes, it was absolutely the thing. She would find out exactly who Lord Farmington was, where he came from, what peerage rank he held, and how his title had come by its obvious wealth.
Chapter Fifteen
Harmony stared at the gowns strewn over her bed, their jewel-like colors brightening the otherwise dim and gloomy chamber. She reached out to stroke a velvet ribbon on an amethyst-hued bodice, and felt tears spring to her eyes.
Her parents had always been so very, very generous with her. She had been given everything she could ever want. Agatha was wrong to think that anyone had to suffer deprivation if they lived on a cattle ranch in the West. They had been members of a lovely and lively community with many a social gathering. There were trips to New York as well, and St. Louis. Harmony had led a gay and happy life and had never lacked for anything. Her trunks had been full of beautiful clothes when she had arrived in England, and her heart full of wonderful memories. It was a good thing. There would be no more of either now.
Harmony moved from the amethyst silk to a gown of midnight blue. Her tears dried and a faint smile touched the corners of her mouth.
Lady Blue. The girl with the sapphire eyes. That’s what the bandit had called her. The bandit who turned out to be Lord Farmington. Lord Farmington, who was going to take her in to London tonight for an intimate dinner with some of his friends. Whoever would h
ave believed such a thing could be true, that it could actually happen? A dime novel come to life. A handsome bandit who turned out to be a lord. And she, little Harmony Simmons, on his arm attending an intimate dinner party in London.
A quiver of excitement tingled to the very tips of Harmony’s fingers. She couldn’t help it. Just the thought of being alone with Anthony on the carriage ride to and from London, on a warm and moonlit summer night, made butterflies swarm in her stomach. As much as she would like to, she couldn’t deny that her feelings for Anthony were strong. She had told him she wasn’t certain she could ever trust him again, but that didn’t erase the physical attraction between them. Was it strong enough to overcome her lingering doubts?
Harmony didn’t know. She did know, however, that she looked forward to meeting his friends. The type and character of a man’s friends spoke a great deal about the man himself. The slightly wicked side of her also continued to enjoy the irony of the situation.
Harmony held the blue gown up to her breast and looked into the mirror. It was perfect. Her smile broadened.
Agatha had probably been absolutely right when she had said there seemed to be an instant attraction between her sister and the man who robbed their coach. The same man, the same physical attraction, that had so scandalized her, was now the most important and exciting thing in Harmony’s life. Simply change the bandit into a lord and everything was all right, desirable even. If Agatha only knew!
Harmony chuckled bitterly to herself. Maybe she would tell Agatha the truth one day, merely to see her reaction. Although it might not matter at all. As long as Agatha kept Harmony’s portion of the inheritance, she undoubtedly didn’t care who Harmony married. To have a lord as a brother-in-law, even if he had momentarily masqueraded as a bandit, would purely be icing on an already rich cake.
But Harmony didn’t want to think about that anymore. She glanced back into the mirror and ran her fingers from the low-cut bodice down to the pinched waist and flare of the skirt. She had small, diamond pendant earrings her mother had given her for her eighteenth birthday that would look elegant with the dress. Her hair would be worn up, of course, but styled into ringlets that would frame her face and lightly touch the tops of her bare shoulders. A touch of rouge to her lips and cheeks would complete the picture. A portrait of Lady Blue. She knew Anthony would approve.
Lady Blue Page 10
