Her heart was already shattered from feelings she should have never entertained. Rita didn’t want to make it any worse for herself. The duke should have more consideration for her.
Clearly, he didn’t care that much about her if he was still following her around.
It was freezing outside and Rita had forgotten to take her coat or bonnet with her. The wind whipped around her hair and went down her back. Rita shivered and wrapped her arms around her body, huddling behind the outside lavatory. She would wait until she was sure Inverness had left even if it meant freezing to death.
She huddled down on the floor, the cold snow seeping through her skirt, and waited. Rita knew she was being ridiculous, hiding out in the snow, but if it meant avoiding the duke, she would do it. She didn’t want to encounter the man again if she could help it.
Her mother did not need to see that.
Rita then heard someone enter the back yard. Footsteps sounded in the snow. They were too sure-footed and slow for her mother’s walk, and not heavy enough to be her father’s. Was it…?
Inverness then rounded the corner and stopped, staring at Rita in stunned surprise.
“What the…Rita, what are you doing out here like this?”
“I…” Rita’s mouth was dry. Her lips were chapped from the wind. “I…”
She could barely speak, she was that cold. Then she saw Inverness holding her shawl. He hurried forward and knelt, putting the shawl around her shoulders. It didn’t hold off the cold, but it was something. Rita tugged the shawl closer around her neck. Her fingers were ice-cold.
Then Inverness reached out and hauled her into his arms. Rita shrieked as he stood, holding her against his chest. Her feet were off the floor and Rita was pinned against him, unable to get down. She tried to push away, but the duke held her tightly, hurrying back to the house. There was no sight of Lucy anywhere.
“Where’s Ma?”
“She went to the store to get some more candles.” Inverness took Rita over to the fire. “She told me to make sure you get warm again.”
“But…I shouldn’t be alone with you!” Rita cried. “She didn’t say that.”
“Not exactly,” Inverness said grimly as he gently placed her down in a chair, whipping a blanket off the back and putting it across Rita’s lap. “I made her leave. She couldn’t refuse me.”
Rita couldn’t believe her mother had bowed down like that. She had always taught Rita to do as her employers said but she would never have left her daughter alone with a noble gentleman, surely? Even if Inverness wasn’t doing anything but keeping her warm.
She pushed his hands away as he kept tucking the blanket in around her.
“You really should not be here,” she hissed. Tears were starting to well up. “And, how could you? You can’t expect anything from me after you dismissed me like that.”
Inverness winced. He looked abashed.
“I had a feeling you would say that.”
“But you came anyway.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Inverness sighed and sat back on his haunches.
“I expect you to forgive me when I get down on my knees and beg.”
Rita snorted. That would be a sight to see if she even wanted it.
“You want to apologize? Too late.”
She tried to stand up, but Inverness tugged her back down again. He held her hands tightly and refused to let go, causing Rita to wince.
“You’re hurting me!”
“Forgive me.” Inverness’s grip loosened a little. But he didn’t let go. “Please, Rita. Listen to me. I know I was duped. In my heart, I knew you weren’t the thief. But the evidence was stacked against you. And I think that was the plan all along.”
Chapter 9
In the Act
“What do you mean?”
“Someone wanted you out of my household. And they knew how much you meant to me.” Inverness laid a fist over his heart. “It was to hurt me, and they were getting at me through you.”
Rita snorted.
“It’s always about you, isn’t it?”
“You sound like my mother.”
“And it sounds like we’re in agreement.” Rita managed to pull her hands away. But she didn’t pull away herself. She shook her head. “You’re an arrogant fool, Inverness. What makes you think I’m going to believe anything you say?”
Inverness’s expression was softening. He also looked pained. When he reached out and touched her jaw with his hand, sliding his fingertips across her cheek, Rita didn’t pull away. She couldn’t. If anything, she almost leaned into him.
This man was infectious, no matter where she was.
“My mother has faith in you,” Inverness whispered. “And I know you did not do it, deep down. And I intend to prove it.”
Rita rolled her eyes.
“And how are you going to do that? Find the thief yourself?”
“Yes.” Inverness didn’t even blink. “And for that, I’m going to need your help.”
“My help? For what?”
“You come back to work for me. Back as the dowager duchess’s maid.” Inverness held up a hand as Rita started to protest “When the thief hears about it, they’ll double down to get rid of you again. And then we will catch them.”
Rita didn’t need to guess what he was up to.
“You mean you want to use me as bait.”
“For the proof of your innocence,” Inverness insisted. “And to get the person who tried to make you look like the culprit.”
It was all very well to talk about it, but Rita didn’t think it would actually happen. Whoever the thief was knew it would be too risky to start stealing again. It could be weeks, or even months, before anything happened. Inverness was grasping at straws.
Rita took a deep breath. Being this close to the man was making her heart stumble over itself again.
“How do I know this is going to work?”
“You don’t.” Inverness cupped the back of her head, running his fingers through her hair. “But you have to trust me.”
“You just dismissed me. How can I trust you after that?”
“Please.”
He looked so insistent. So determined. Rita knew he wouldn’t be leaving until he got an answer. An answer she wasn’t sure she could give.
But he wasn’t going to budge. And, if she was honest, Rita wanted a piece off it. She wanted to know who the real thief was, the person who had ruined her reputation. It was only fair. She swallowed and squared her shoulders.
“All right. But on your own head be it. If this doesn’t work, I don’t want to set eyes on you again.”
Inverness’s smile was almost sad.
“I know.”
***
Rita had a feeling her return was going to cause a stir. And it did. The servants were shocked to see her coming back but most of them were delighted. Cook and Mrs. Lassiter had burst into tears and barely let her go. Even Carstairs twitched a slight smile when he saw her.
But she could tell a few people weren’t happy to see her back. Namely a few downstairs maids who were constantly trying to get into the same room as Inverness. However, the most noticeable reaction was from Victoria Sheldon, the maid who had found the jewel in Rita’s unused wardrobe. She looked like she had seen a ghost and she didn’t approach Rita at all.
This was odd, to say the least. Rita had thought she and Victoria got on really well. The older woman was certainly a good conversationalist whenever she came to change the bedding in the dowager duchess’s room or to bring her various clothing items that had been washed and pressed. She thought they were friends.
Clearly, Victoria had other ideas.
Inverness had settled Rita back, much to Duchess Christine’s evident relief. He had warned her it may be awhile before the thief attempts to try again but he was willing to wait. Rita wasn’t sure if she could, but Duchess Christine was equally excited, ready to get on with trapping the real culprit. She had begun to
plan what to do to get the one who stole her jewels to come crawling back out before Rita had even sat down.
Inverness and his mother were very confident it could happen. Rita, however, needed a bit of persuasion. As the days went on and she carried on with her work, Rita’s doubts began to creep back in. And they didn’t go away. What if the thief didn’t come back again? What if the thief thought it was too dangerous?
There was far too much to suggest that it wouldn’t happen again, and Rita’s reputation would forever be sullied by this malicious rumor.
She was still thinking that when she was in Duchess Christine’s bedchamber, laying out her clothes and jewels ready for the dowager duchess’s daily walk. This was something they had started doing every day, making sure to leave Rita alone while she did it. Then Duchess Christine would enter after some time. So far, nothing had been taken. It was getting frustrating.
Rita finished laying out the dowager duchess’s walking clothes and headed into the adjoining lounge where Inverness was waiting with his mother. They didn’t say anything as Rita came in and began pacing, twisting her fingers so hard it hurt. She was surprised she didn’t twist them off completely.
“This doesn’t feel right,” she whispered loudly.
Duchess Christine sighed.
“How else do you expect us to do it? We have to give them something they can’t ignore.”
Inverness smirked.
“Would you rather be with Carstairs and Fawn across the hall?”
Rita scowled at him. At least, with the two of them, she wasn’t in any danger of losing anything. Nothing that hadn’t been lost already. If Duchess Christine wasn’t with them now, there would be talk about what was happening. But Inverness had been very careful since Rita had come back, never leaving the two of them together. Often, his mother was present. Rita was grateful for that. She didn’t want any more gossip and the biggest gossipers in the female servants were rife with the suggestion that she was the duke’s mistress. Rita tried to deny it, but it just fueled the flames.
Hopefully, that would all end soon.
Suddenly, Inverness straightened up. He signaled the two women and put a finger to his lips. Then Rita heard it. The door had been left partly open. There was the definite sound of clothing rustling as someone crossed the room.
Inverness stood and went to the door, peering through the gap. His expression was grim, and he looked at Rita, nodding once. That was it. Someone really was stealing. They had caught them.
Inverness barely waited for his mother and Rita to join him before he barged in. From the other door to the hall, Carstairs and Fawn the footman entered and blocked the doorway. The woman standing by the bed, Duchess Christine’s necklace in her hand, jumped back with a scream. The necklace dropped from her fingers and onto the carpet. She stared at the surrounding people.
“Your Grace? What’s going on?”
“That’s what we’d like to know, Victoria,” Inverness growled.
Rita moved around him and saw Victoria Sheldon standing by the bed, looking ready to run. The other woman’s eyes landed on Rita and then they narrowed.
“What are you doing in there with the duke, Rita?”
“Watching you steal Her Grace's jewels.” Rita went over and plucked the necklace off the carpet, moving away and handing it to Duchess Christine. “Again.”
“I…” Victoria’s cheeks flushed. “I did no such thing.”
Duchess Christine sighed. She looked very unhappy as she looked at her jewels draped through her fingers.
“I didn’t think you were a liar, Victoria,” she said quietly. “And I didn’t think you’d be the thief, either.”
Victoria looked like she was about to burst into tears. She hurried to Inverness and grabbed his arm.
“Please, Your Grace!” she pleaded as Inverness tugged his arm away. “It wasn’t my idea. Really, it wasn’t! Please believe me!”
Inverness looked torn. Rita could see he didn’t want to be there. He sighed and rubbed his hand over his face.
“I can believe that, Victoria. You’ve been in my service for a long time and I can’t believe you did this of your own accord suddenly. But I don’t understand why. Who put you up to this?”
Victoria started sobbing. Her whole body was trembling.
“He’s going to be furious,” she whimpered.
Chapter 10
The New Duchess
“He?”
“The Marquis of Bedfordshire. He approached me the day after…” Victoria swallowed hard, “After Lady Thorpe’s party. We got talking and…”
“You don’t need to explain,” Duchess Christine put in hastily.
Victoria shook her head.
“Oh, no! Nothing like that happened. Honest. He never touched me. He simply paid me, telling me that if I stole some of Madam’s jewels and put the blame on Rita, he would pay me handsomely. And I needed the money.” She started to cry again. “Desperately, I needed it.”
Rita frowned.
“But why the money? You get paid well here, I thought.”
“Not enough,” Victoria said bitterly. “And Ma is very ill. I needed the money for a better doctor and Lord Bedford knew it. He paid me to steal for him.”
“And you thought you had succeeded but when I brought Rita back, he told you to do it again,” Inverness said grimly.
Victoria nodded miserably.
“Yes. He was so angry about Rita making him look a fool. And he saw how you were with her, Your Grace, so he thought he could hurt both of you.”
Rita felt like she had been hit over the head. Bedford had been behind all this? It felt too much for her. Inverness was scowling darkly, baring his teeth.
“Well, he’s the one who’s going to get hurt.”
***
Inverness had Victoria taken to his study and held there, declaring he would deal with her later. Then he had left with Carstairs to fetch a constable to go over to the marquis’s home to confront and arrest him. And the duke had made it very clear that Victoria would not be leaving with her reputation intact after being caught in the act.
Rita had wanted to go with him, so she could look the marquis in the eye when he was confronted about putting the blame on her, but Inverness forbade her from going. They had briefly argued, but Inverness’s insistence that someone needed to stay with the dowager duchess won Rita over. Duchess Christine looked faint and kept swaying even when she was sitting down. It had given her a shock, never mind Rita.
Once Inverness left, Rita had got Mrs. Lassiter, the housekeeper, to help her put Duchess Christine to bed. The older woman was in a state of shock. Victoria had been a kind, caring woman, and the dowager duchess had been very fond of her. Now she had betrayed her mistress and master. Rita was even more angry with Victoria for doing that.
It was a while before Duchess Christine fell asleep and Rita sneaked out. She had heard Inverness come back some time before, just as the sun was going down, but he had given her strict instructions not to leave his mother’s side. Rita had done as she was told until her mistress started snoring gently.
Letting herself out, Rita hurried downstairs and to Inverness’s study. Had he dealt with Victoria already? And what was the outcome with Bedford? Rita needed to know everything, to know if she was going to come out of this intact again.
Inverness was there, sitting by the fire with a glass of brandy in his hand as he stared into the flames. He looked up as Rita came in without knocking. But he didn’t berate her. Instead, he put aside his brandy glass and stood. Rita hurried to him.
“What happened?”
Inverness didn’t say anything, simply stopping before her and staring at her. Then he cupped her head and kissed her. Rita didn’t push him away. She couldn’t. Her hands tightened in his shirt and she kissed him back, sighing as his arms went around her and the kiss deepened.
She really was sullied now. But Rita didn’t care.
Inverness lifted his head, his eyes darker and his br
eathing heavily. Rita managed to find her voice.
“That wasn’t quite the answer I was expecting.”
“Forgive me.” Inverness didn’t look or sound apologetic. “I needed something to make me feel better.”
Rita couldn’t stop herself from smiling at that.
“I’m glad I could do that for you.”
“Always.”
He kissed her again, this time very brief, and then tucked her into his side as he went over to the couch. Rita was too tired to push him away. Anyone could come in and find them like this. And she wouldn’t be able to do much except smile.
“What happened?” she asked as Inverness sat her down, sitting beside her. “What’s happened to Victoria?”
“She’s already been taken by the constable. She’ll be charged with theft along with Bedford.”
Rita wished it wasn’t so. But Victoria had buried herself by willingly getting involved. She had to have a punishment.
“You managed to catch Bedford, then?”
“Just. He was about to leave for a boat when we got there.” Inverness scowled. “He had the rest of Mother’s jewels in his trunk. Victoria had been taking them to him, and he would hide them to pawn them off when he got to France.”
“He really was planning on running away?”
Inverness nodded.
“He was. The coward was going to let Victoria take the blame for everything. He knew he had gone too far, but we were too quick for him.” Inverness took Rita’s hands. “He didn’t say much beyond some words that no woman should hear, but from what we could gather, he didn’t get Victoria to steal just to hurt you and I. It was to hurt Mother as well.”
“The dowager duchess? But why?”
“Because she spurned him when they were young. Bedford had wanted revenge on her for years but had never gotten the chance. Mother was a careful woman and getting revenge on her in the past would have backfired. Now he could.”
“And he used me to do it.” Rita closed her eyes. “What a selfish, cruel man.”
“You sound like you’re giving him sympathy.”
“Was I?” Rita opened her eyes and sighed. “I suppose I was, in a way. He didn’t get the woman he wanted and ended up alone with an ugly mind. One that preferred drink and manipulation over anything else. He manipulated Victoria, and he tried to ruin me.” She bit her lip. “I just hope he hasn’t succeeded. I shudder to think what people are saying about me now.”
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